Me and My Girl.

So I have never been very consistent with writing.

I love writing but diaries, journals and now blogging have just never been something that I take the time for on a regular basis. In fact, growing-up you would only find diaries with lost keys and the first few days written in, I have never finished any type of journal.

I am not sure why this is as I was a journalism major and writing is a big part of my job. I love coming up with new ways to communicate to my volunteers at the AHA, writing for our newsletter, my campaign, our website etc. are what I love most about my work. Who knows, maybe I get burned out on writing creatively because I do it professionally.

Anyway, all that to be said that in the past I have tried to catch up with each blog post on the months in between and it just gets a little overwhelming because there is alot I would love to write about but just can't fit it all in! From now on I think I will just write when I feel like it and about whatever random thing pops into my mind. Thanks for keeping up with me- I get emails from alot of you who aren't bloggers but are readers and I am glad you are here!

I have been having a lot of really fun days with Olivia. I have enjoyed every stage of her- I really have! A lot of people have asked me recently if it has been so much more fun now that she's crawling, standing and talking so much more but I can honestly say that each stage thus far has had it's absolutely amazing and fun moments. I can't really choose one stage over another. We totally lucked out that our girl started sleeping through the night at 3 weeks so one that happened it's been really awesome.

Anway, back to my fun days, on Valentine's Day I took Livi to a little party at this baby gymnastics place during my lunch break. It was so fun watching her play and really interact with the other babies. It was seriously one of the best days of my life- just seeing her have a blast and listen to story time, play in the bubbles and ball pit- I actually cried after it was over to Ryan for like 2 seconds. I just love seeing her so happy! It made me realize I would do anything to see her smile and be so happy.

Yesterday we took Livi to the zoo for the first time. We love going and haven't been in a few years but I really didn't have any expectations of how I wanted the day to go because I honestly wasn't sure if she wouldd love it, hate it or not care at all...

We fell somewhere in the middle of loving and not caring. She was happy all day, waving to people, the other babies especially but really didn't care about seeing the animals. She did laugh at a monkey who was right in front of us and threw her bow into the fence where the lamas were but other than that she didnt have too much interaction with them which is be expected from a barely 8 month old. It was just really fun spending the day just the 3 of us, no schedule to keep to, no plans that night or things to worry about- we were just able to emjoy the day. We rarely have weekends like that so it was really great. We also tried a new restaraunt that night since we were in the city. It was a "hot pot" place which means they put a huge pot on your table-top burner and you choose everything you want to go in your soup and you cook it. It was mongolian food and it was pretty awesome! Ryan already said he wants to go back for his birthday.

Before you have the baby its all about preparation- getting the room ready, eating the right things, taking parenting classes, reading all those crazy books (i did not read a single one actually) but you know just doing what you can to "prepare" for this new human being that you are being entrusted with. Once the baby comes you realize that no amount of preparation would have made a difference because you are going to make mistakes, not always know why they are crying, realize that your baby could care less about her wipes being from the warmer first, whether her room is finished or if you are using the best diaper brand. All she cares about is being loved. Well and lets be honest- FED! I have so much more to learn when it comes to being a parent but I think the most important lesson I have learned thus far is to not sweat the small stuff and if at some point in the day you get a great laugh, cuddle time or just a fun moment than it's been a good day in the parenting world.

Parenting hasn't been all sunshine and lollipops these short 8 months- there have been some challenging times when she gets a cold or a stomach flu but there have been so many more happy moments that totally out-weigh the hard ones. As my Olivia is cuddled up next to me just playing with my hair while I type this out I wish I could just stay in the moment for so much longer than it will last! There is laundry that needs to be done, toys that need picking up and I need to go to the grocery store but for right now it's just me and my girl.