The Countdown Begins

March 1st is just a few hours away.. That means we're T minus 15 days to Oliver's 2nd birthday. This is very exciting for me- I love a reason to celebrate, especially when it involves the birth of my little man. We had his two year pictures taken, and I am so happy with how they turned out. Here's a few of my almost two year old. Doesn't he just make you smile?

Buzz

The week before last Oliver was really sick. He wouldn't eat and only wanted to snuggle with me on the couch. So we spent the week in our pjs and did just that. Seeing him so sick was very stressful, especially when he wasn't eating anything.. but we made the most of it and I really enjoyed my cuddle time. (He's usually way too busy to snuggle with Mommy.) Look at that sick little man, isn't he pitiful? He just finished his antibiotics yesterday, so we're hoping he can dodge anything else that comes his way.

Beauty in the Backyard

This gorgeous girl live in my neighborhood. She perches right outside my window, and I can watch her on my porch. Isn't she stunning?

What Are the Odds

This is just too crazy not to share. On Sunday evening, Jim and I were heading back home after an afternoon out running errands. We were on Walnut Street around dusk, and this small white and brown spotted dog with a long skinny tail like Otto was running on the side of the road. My heart immediately dropped. There was no way this dog was going to make it across that street alive, it's just too busy. We couldn't stop, and I thought all night about that dog. If that dog got hit, I would just die. I felt so helpless, and all I wanted to do was help. The next morning, Oliver stayed home from school, so while he was playing in the den I went to the bedroom to let the dogs out the side door. And I kid you not, that same dog I saw the night before was now trotting down my street. I freaked out and started calling, "puppy, puppy, here puppy." She looked so skinny and scared. Calling her only made her run faster. Then Rufus started barking and she stopped. If I had been there alone I would have jumped in the car and gone after her, but I couldn't with Oliver home sick. I watched her run down the street and again felt so helpless. Then, fast forwarding to tonight. I'm still thinking about that dog. I decided to google missing dogs in the area in the chance I could find the owner and give them some information on where I saw her. I ended up on craigslist, and 2 clicks later- I found her!! Her owner lives on Walnut Street, and she got loose on February 5. I saw her on February 15. ugh, I had to call. (So I did) And, this nice lady answered the call. She seemed very grateful for the information I gave her. She said they had rescued her in January, and she was very skinny. They couldn't keep her, so they found a home for her to a lady who lives on Walnut Street, and the day after they gave her away the lady called to tell them the dog pulled the collar over her head and took off. Evidently this dog is used to being wild, but it breaks my heart to think of how cold, hungry and scared that beautiful dog is. I sure hope she's safe and is in the hands of someone good in this world. Here's a picture the family posted of her on craigslist. Have you seen her?

A Day to Remember

Today started a little rough. Oliver's been sick all weekend and not getting any better. He's had a fever of 102 off and on, and no appetite. I called this morning and made an appointment for 11:00, which left us rushing to get ready and out the door. After a minor struggle to get on Oliver's jacket and shoes off to the car we went. I got O all buckled in, and jumped in the car. I then opened the garage door and pushed the engine button to learn the car didn't turn on. I quickly thought I grabbed the wrong purse with my keys, but there they were in the passenger seat. So I pushed the button again and again.. Nothing. The steering wheel was locked, and no lights would come on. I grabbed the keys and started pushing buttons but nothing happened. Luckily only a "Shoot" came out of my mouth, because Oliver started repeating, "shoot! shoot! shoot!" in the back seat non stop. It made me laugh even though I was pretty frazzled. Now it was 10 til 11, and I had already tried calling Jim with no luck. So I called the doctor's office and canceled the appointment. I later rescheduled and Jim came home so we had a car. Just before it was time for the appointment, Oliver's ear started oozing and he was cranky and upset. I convinced Jim to go with us, and I am so glad I did. The doctor noticed a bad wheezing which led to a 7 minute breathing treatment followed by 3 prescriptions including a steroid to help him breathe. Thank goodness Jim was there to help with the breathing treatment. I know I couldn't have done that by myself. Jim has an amazing way of calming O down, which was exactly what he needed.

But on to the part to remember.. At bed time, Oliver turned to me tonight and said clear as day, "love you" and blew a big kiss to me. My mouth dropped open I'm sure. I've been waiting to hear that for so long. It was the most beautiful thing I've ever heard. Does it get any better than that?? I don't think so.

Birthday in Review

This year snuck up on me, mainly because with the house remodel I lost quite a few months of my life.. In my mind it's the end of October because Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas are all a blur. The last time that happened to me was when Oliver was born. He was born March 15, so obviously St. Patty's Day came and went without my knowledge.. Then a week or so later Easter went by. I don't even think I heard the word Easter that year. I finally glazed over a calendar in May, but by then I was thinking it was Easter. You get the point- time has been speeding up on me ever since O was born.

Luckily I was reminded of my birthday a few weeks before. There's always someone to tell you, "someone has a birthday coming up." I'm usually that person- so needless to say I let myself down this year.

This birthday was very enjoyable, in fact I'm still celebrating. That's the joy of having a birthday at the end of the week- you technically get the entire weekend to celebrate.. at least at my house. Thursday evening Mom and Dad came over and we all went out to eat. My pick- Mexican. Everything there was delicious. I could have made a meal on the guacamole. But now, whenever I eat an avocado or guacamole, our friend Ed comes to mind. He stayed with us for a week this past summer to work on the house and he came downstairs to find me eating an avocado. The words, "You know those are fattening" slipped right out of his mouth. It was pretty funny, because you know I had a response to that. Those words always help me to have a little restraint when it comes to licking the guacamole bowl. (Thanks, Ed). Anyway, Oliver really enjoys Mexican food too. He is after all a Texan. But that night he really enjoyed our waitress, Christy. She was a cute 20 something college student that immediately caught the eye of my little man. Now, you hear all the time about young boys liking older girls, but this was ridiculous. He was seriously into this girl, and we all noticed it. She'd come over and his entire demeanor would change. When she spoke to him he got so bashful, but then when she'd walk away he'd want to talk to her. Don't worry, we captured a picture, or two. After dinner I opened presents and we played with O before he went to bed. Mom and Dad surprised me with a swing for our patio off our bedroom and a yummy mint ice-cream cake. One of the two were immediately enjoyed. It was a wonderful evening. Saturday Jim is taking me out while Mom and Dad watch Oliver. A night out is always fun, I've even been known to wear heels on those nights. Whoa. Here are some pics from the night of celebrating. Thanks to my amazing family for making me feel so special.

Family Shot

Enjoying the Guacamole

Enjoying his sundae

"The Look"

Crushing hard

Cheesing with Daddy

Opening presents

Cake!

Blowing out the candles

Jim and I

&

Dad, Mom, and Me

Sledding Adventures

We live in a very shady neighborhood.. And by shady I do not mean suspicious. This snow isn't going anywhere until it really warms up. That's okay, we've really enjoyed the snow. Today we saw a rainbow peak out of the trees. Simply gorgeous.

Oliver went on a sledding adventure down our driveway. It is quite a hill and just perfect for a 2 year old. We smiled the entire way down the hill. I think he's going to be really sad when the snow melts away.

Here's a picture from last January and then one from today. My how Oliver has grown.