Chompers

Olivia got her first tooth last Thursday. While we were camping. Lovely. Woke up screaming like you wouldn't believe. I think the other bottom one must be on its way, because she is extremely fussy. AND...I've been mixing the soy formula with regular formula the last few weeks to see if her tummy could handle it. Well, it gave her bad gas, so I went back to straight soy. And she doesn't like it anymore! She got a little taste of the good stuff and won't go back. What a smartie! So I guess we'll go back to the mixing and hopefully her little stomach will get better with time!

Tyler moved down to BYU today. It's kind of sad thinking he's not at home anymore! All grown up. One day my parents will be empty nesters. One day when we all stop coming back. :)

8 Month ABCs

Olivia is officially 8 months old! Most other moms would be saying how fast the time has gone. But it's different for me. It feels like much longer than that, mostly because I just can't remember what life was like before she came to us. Such a beautiful girl, and we are so blessed to have her.

A: Still on her daily antibiotic for her ureter condition. At least she loves the taste of her medicine!

B: Bedtime is getting a little easier each day. Some days are a step backward, but she is mostly making progress in figuring out that we sleep at night!

C: Isn't crawling quite yet, but will be soon, from the looks of things!

D: Daddy's girl. There is a special smile that is for daddy only.

E: Full of energy!

F: Eating all sorts of foods! I haven't tried making my own baby food yet. Usually we have fruit for breakfast, veggies for lunch, and a mix for dinner.

G: Olivia loves being closer to all of her grandma's and grandpa's!

H: Such a happy girl! Smiling and melting stranger's hearts at grocery stores everywhere. :)

I: Not sure how many inches our little smiley is now, but should get that measurement again in a few weeks.

J: There is a jungle mobile that hangs over Olivia's changing table. It spins and plays classical music. It has saved my life because I turn it on and she doesn't try to squirm out of her diaper while I'm changing her!

K: Olivia now has TWO kitties to play with and she has a special noise she saves just for them!

L: I love our baby monitor. It has a camera that lights up for night vision purposes, but also doubles as a night light. Pricey little thing, but it has given me so much peace of mind since moving Olivia to her own room (thanks uncle Bri).

M: Mr. Mom is Ryan's title a few days a week right now...and I'm pretty sure Olivia couldn't be happier about that.

N: Naps are getting shorter thanks to the sleeping better at night. A little sad about that, but I guess I'd rather have her sleep at night.

O: Incredibly obsessed with Elmo. Elmo's song on YouTube has saved the day more than once.

P: Loves to suck on pickles. Probably all that vinegar isn't great for her tummy, but once in awhile when I'm working in the kitchen, it helps to keep her happy!

Q: Haven't weighed in lately, but pretty sure this little girl is up to about 18 pounds now. Growing too quickly!

R: One of Olivia's new tricks is to reach out, grab both my hands and pull herself up to standing. Great. She'll be walking. Soon. :)

S: Went in Olivia's room the other day after naptime to find her sitting up in bed. She's really figuring out how to move, and her latest and greatest is sitting up from a laying down position!

T: No teeth yet...but I think we're getting really close! The drool is EVERYWHERE!

U: Found a pediatric urologist up at Primary's...hoping to get her in sometime before Christmas for some follow up.

W: Gearing up for Olivia's first snowy winter. At least she's not a newborn...but I think I'll still be obsessed with bundling her up.

X: Our new neighbor Xander is a cute, curly-haired, new friend.

I am skipping 'y' and 'z' for obvious purposes. We must not use those letters much in our house, because my mind is completely blank!

Mid-West Trip

Our vacation was so special this year! We visited Grandma and Grandpa in Nauvoo, IL, and then headed to Saint Louis for a few days with Aunt Debra, Uncle Reed and many other of our favorite loved ones. We did a lot of fun things. But, in case you haven't noticed, I love bullet point posts, so here are a few hightlights from each state we visited:

• Nebraska:

Ryan-"That's the biggest John Deere dealership I've ever seen! Maybe we should stop and I'll have you take a picture of me on one of the combines!" I was less excited about the multitude of green tractors.

Jayelle-"Nothing but corn, as far as the eye can see."

Ryan-"Yeah, I keep expecting to see the Green Giant pop out at any moment. HOHOHO!"

Olivia's first hotel stay. Highly recommend the Oak Tree Inn if you're ever passing through North Platte, NE. LOL

Home of the longest stretch of road construction in the country. '2 miles of construction ahead' the sign said. It lied.

Ryan- "Hey! Cabela's! Exit 49!"

Jayelle- "No, I'm pretty sure the sign said Exit 89."

We never made it to Cabelas. I knew it said exit 49.

• Wyoming

Turns out Wyoming is really very anti-climactic after being in such pretty states all week. It was pretty in it's own way...pretty brown, that is.

• Illinois:

Illinois-home of the place in which I swore I'd never take a baby on vacation again. But it really wasn't bad. Olivia loved most everything we did.

Toll bridge crossing over the giant Mississippi River.

Birthday shopping at Kohl's. I now feel a little better equipped in the clothing department for my return to work. Thanks Grandma.

Beautiful historic sites in Old Nauvoo and Carthage.

My first time inside the Nauvoo temple. I'd go back just for that. It was beautiful in every sense of the word.

Amazing performances by Grandma and Grandpa in their musical productions.

Humidity unlike anything I've ever experienced. Thought I'd never be dry again. But it was worth it :)

• Missouri:

Pool at Aunt Debra's and Uncle Reed's home=nasty sunburn for Ryan and slight sunburn for me. Also worth it :)

Going up the Gateway Arch. 630 feet up in a little 'pod' of an elevator. Amazing structure.

Charming Charlie is this adorable little (big) accessory store. It's kind of like a giant Claire's only ten times better and with shoes and shirts. My parent's got me the cutest shirt and shoes for my birthday. It was such a fun store. A little overwhelming, especially for a non-shopper such as myself, but after you get over the massiveness of it all, it's fun.

St. Louis Cardinals baseball game for Ryan. 2 hour rain delay. Turns out the cheap seats are the only ones that are covered in a rain storm. Ironic. LOL

Flat tire on the way home for my parents. Don't try and get into a tire shop in St. Joseph, MO, on a Saturday. Impossible. Luckily, the Blazer has a full-size spare.