Life is Good!

So here I am in Sept, Oct, Nov, Dec, Jan, February writing my "monthly" update on life at the Olsons'. It has been an eventful several months as Laney has been growing, Peter has gotten a new job, and I have been adjusting to working full-time.  We are so blessed to have two wonderful women watching Laney during the day.  She loves them! I feel so blessed that the only tears are when I try to take her home. 

Additionally, Peter has the privilege of getting to stay home one day a week to play with Laney and he is loving it (so am I for that matter)! He has one task on those days and that is to plan and shop for the weekly meals (a huge job!). It goes without saying that he's an amazing husband and Laney and I are lucky to have him.

It was a big decision whether or not to go back to work and people often share their opinion about how staying-at-home or working will ruin your child. My teacher perspective definitely helped me through this as I know some of the most amazing young people who came from both working and stay-at-home parent families.  On the flip side, the crazies come from both, too.  :)

I always come back to the same thing.  No two families are the same, no two kids are the same. Every decision should be made and remade frequently and whatever decision you choose be proud of it. That said, I'm using sick days as needed and guilt free.

Here are some updates from the last...oh...6 months:

• Laney started walking at about one year and now it seems like her feet aren't keeping up with how fast she wants to go.
• She's still the same very expressive little gal whose smile are ear to ear and cries are glass shattering.
• She absolutely loves reading and it is how I find time to get ready in the morning. 
• She loves mimicking us and recently starting working to ensure her favorite stuffed Kitty has good hygiene   She uses a wash cloth to wash Kitty, she brushes her "teeth", combs her hair, blows her nose, wipes Kitty's bottom, and absolutely INSISTS that Kitty wears "pretty" hair bows on her ears.  
• Laney is a definite animal lover!  She talks about my parents' dog, Tessa constantly, calling out to her first thing in the morning.  She loves watching the video of her Auntie Gina's two puppies and is constantly pointing out every animal within a 2 mile radius
• She has just started speaking in phrases and has lots to say including many directives for us, "Momma, Daddy, sit here."
• She's a fierce physical trainer.  She'll sit on Peter's back and count as he does push-ups.  When he's done, she exclaims "More...push-ups!"
• She loves to give hugs and kisses, giving them freely to new friends at the park, pictures, and the iPad.
• Peter and I have started working out again and we're hoping to keep it up. So much easier in the nicer weather. Maybe a race will motivate us...
• I recently came to the revelation that we're pretty much a typical Seattle family. We love our fairtrade coffee (Laney recognizes the sound of the grinder at friends' homes), we can talk about the benefits of buying organic for hours, and a favorite place to visit is REI so we can check out the latest "gear" for our outdoor adventures. Life is good!

Laney's longest hike yet!

My Baby is 1!

I can't believe it, but my baby girl is 1 year old! What a wonderful and blessed year it has been.  I have enjoyed every minute with her (yes, even the ones involving bodily fluids). I truly can't believe how quickly she's picking up on things.  If we set a comb in front of her, she'll pick it up and comb her hair.  For her birthday, she got a "Laney-sized" table and immediately she went and sat down on the bench like a little adult.  She knew just how to put her leg over the bench and get comfortable.  She now tries to put her clothes on herself (we're still working on that one) and she loves "brushing" her teeth with her bitty brush.

Nose to Nose with Mom :)

Of course, her first steps were a pretty cool moment, too.  Our fabulous nanny had assured us that if Laney tried to walk while we weren't there, she would kindly knock her down.  So sweet! Luckily, Peter and I were both playing with her when she decided to stand up and carry her bunny across the room.  Such a cool moment!

I can't put into words all that I've learned this year, but there are a few things that I think about often.

 I had never realized before, but babies just make people happy.  I am so impressed by how many people smile, wave, laugh, hold doors open and just show genuine kindness when Laney is around.  I can't imagine how wonderful the world would be if that was common practice.

Also, I am constantly reminding myself to just sit down and play.  It is so difficult for me to ignore the 100s of tasks calling my name, but I try very hard to spend any time I can just playing with the sweetest little toddler that I've ever seen.

The final thing that I think about often is trusting God.  From the moment I got pregnant, through the birth, through starting back at work to finding childcare and Peter getting a new job.  I have had so many truly compelling reasons to worry (and I have done more than my fair share of it).  I have learned so many times that God will take care of us and His plan has turned out even better than I imagined.

Babies are so "Fluffy"!

Laney LOVES the swings so we go to the playground often.  Earlier this week we went and as we were swinging an adorable little 6 year old boy, Nigel, came to the swings to show off his mad swinging skillz.  Laney loved him and he asked if he could gently push her.

We had some time for small talk and I asked Nigel, "Do you like pushing kids on the swings?"

Nigel responded, "Only babies.  Because they're so fluffy.  Look at her cheeks and her legs."

Well, Nigel, Laney says, "Thank you."

I agree. I love those "fluffy" cheeks and legs.  Thanks for making our day. 

Fun in the swings with Dad

A recent hiking trip

We agreed that since I carried Laney the first 9 months 24hr/day.
Peter would carry her on the outside. Thanks, Peter!

Laney's always trying to grab things along the trail.
She finally got something!

Last weekend, Peter shared an interesting thought.  He said that he just got a new holiday...Father's Day.  I realized Father's Day is the only holiday that you can actually earn.  It sure does take a lot of work to earn it!  Here are a few fun pics from Laney and Peter's first Father's Day.  

Our girl loves her keys!

Peter, Grandpa Olson and Great-Grandpa Olson. Three generations of fab fathers!

Laney and her Auntie Kristen dancing to some music on the ipad.

ALARM! (Insert blinking red light here)

Now I know what you're thinking, "Something urgent must be happening for the title of this post to say ALARM!." When I saw the ALARM! light blinking a bright red on my new printer, I assumed a similar thing...perhaps my printer was about to explode or catch on fire! Well, according to Canon, that bright light that is currently illuminating my hallway simply indicates that my printer has a paper jam...hmmmm....feels like a bit of a let down. 


I don't mean to make light of the emergency that a printer jam is (especially during finals week at college), but are you kidding me, Canon? Could the printer not just say "Paper Jam", no caps or flashing lights needed.  Plus, then I would know what the issue is without having to hunt down my printer manual.

Look at that cute, little girl

If I had an ALARM light in my life it would have appeared several times in the last week.  In fact, on Thursday, it would have been flashing with it's full force. Peter was out of town and I was just about to take Laney to the babysitters before I went to work.  As we were sitting on the couch, putting on her coat, I got that all too familiar feeling of warm, wetness on my leg.  I looked down to find a distinct brownish transparency around the top of Laney's pants! As my heart sank, I tried to work out the logistics of showering myself, bathing Laney, finding new, clean outfits for each of us, not contaminating the rest of the house with this undesirable brown tinted wetness, and making it to work on time. Laney didn't seem at all phased by the sudden turn of events and almost seemed happy about it. :)

Unexpected bath...Fun!

Perhaps you would disagree with this next "ALARM light" moment, but on Easter evening, Laney took her first intentional, independent crawls forward.  Undoubtedly, I am thrilled for her and love watching her grow and achieve new milestones, but this movement struck me with total fear and trepidation.  My daughter is moving...without me!  Gone are the days of using outlets freely, running upstairs without having to leap over gates, and setting her down to play without worry. Instead, I find myself anticipating the safety of our little home. I am grateful for our small house so I have less physical space to worry about (though I could do without the 3 flights of stairs... it's an obstacle course to get upstairs and I'm just hoping that my glutes get a good workout with each gate I leap.)

Watch out, Duck! Laney's coming for you!

I got him!

I think I'll leave this post at that and go sort out the printer.  Here's hoping that there are no more ALARMs this week.

We love Great-Grandma Freda

Pretty much all of my posts have been about our sweet, little Laney, but I wanted to branch out this time and use this space as a place to share just a little about my wonderful grandmother who passed away recently. Words can't express what an important person she was to me, but I think I'll give it a try anyway.

Here are just a few reasons my grandma was so special

She was Fun!  Yep, she was a blast.  Not just because of all the funny jokes she told or fun cereals she bought us or because she would sit at the table teaching us new games for hours, but because she knew how to have a good time.  Every summer, she and my grandpa would come on vacations with us and I remember one year my dad dropped a knife between his toes nearly cutting one off.  My grandma found out and came from her motorhome to ours with a homemade medical mask and scalpel.  She was ready for surgery! That was just one of the "jobs" she came prepared for.

She loved music! So my grandma carried a harmonica in her purse.  I can't say for sure, but I think this makes her pretty unique.  She didn't pull it out often, but every time she did it was a truly special treat.  Her dad had played the harmonica, and she carried on his love of music. As a little girl, I remember sitting in church with my grandma and I suddenly was mortified, she was singing the wrong notes! Now I was only in elementary school choir, but I knew the right  notes and those weren't them!  About 3 years later, I entered junior high and discovered what harmonizing meant...hmmm...turns out my grandma was a gifted singer after all. :)

She was a wonderful listener.  My grandma was one of those people who you could talk to and you felt like you were the only person on Earth.  I remember so many occasions where we'd sit outside and talk about everything from our family to her thoughts about the government.  

She was caring.  My grandma spent her life helping out others through volunteering at church, the Finn lodge, Nifty Thrify and many other places. She empathized with everyone she came across and stressed the importance of being kind to everyone.

She loved to dance!  As someone who will probably still be dancing around the kitchen in my walker someday, I absolutely love knowing that one of my grandma's requirements in a husband was that he know how to dance.  Luckily, my grandpa made the cut.

I could honestly write about her all day, but I'll end with a final thought.  My grandma taught me that you always need to have a gold pen around to dress things up. It just makes things a little more special.  Well in my life, my grandma has been that gold pen.  Everything she touched had a little more sparkle, a little more fun and a little more love.  Love you always, Grams!

Happy Valentine's Day!

This year, I had this great idea to get a picture of Laney "writing" a Valentine's card. She would be sitting up holding the crayon, the card would be facing the right direction to read it in the photo, she would look at the camera smiling...no problem.  Crazy mom! Instead, I made a cute little rosette thing (it's hiding behind her arm) and she kept trying to eat it and then falling over.  Then, she wouldn't hold the crayon, she'd eat it immediately.   I couldn't get her to look at the camera.  Every time she'd be set for some pics, she'd topple over. Silly girl...or silly mom?

I also found this cute, little garland and decided to make my own decoration. The photos don't really do it justice but I love how it turned out.

My final Valentine's fun was for my students. I loved this idea and liked not giving my class more candy. Valentine's is my favorite school party and I was sad to miss it this year, but enjoyed a fun day with the baby girl.  I'm sure I'll get to hear about some Valentine card drama when I work tomorrow. :)