Last Days of Summer

Being in North Carolina provides some decently warm days well into the end of September and even part of October. We have been lucky enough to soak in a ton of sun during these last summer days. We started September off with an impromptu trip to the beach-just the three of us. It was so much fun being able to just pick up and leave. It wasn't long ago that we were tethered to oxygen lines and equipment. 

 

We also spent many days at the local "water park" beating the heat and hanging out with her older cousin, Branson. Both babies love the outdoors. Olivia has gotten to a point that she knows when shoes are going on her feet-we are going outside. It's been a blessing to have such nice weather and so many nice parks close by. We will have to get really creative with activities once the weather starts to cool off! Disclaimer-no she cannot reach the peddles, but she likes to climb on the bike and be pushed around the yard. She's getting big but not that big yet!

 

 My predictions where off-she wasn't walking into her September doctor appointment but the week after she took off. As most babies, she was very cautious to start with but gained confidence quickly. She has also started (a bad) habit of climbing on anything. When my phone pops up with a memory photo from last year it still blows my mind to see that tiny little baby hooked up to machines and wires and then look at her like this: 

And of course, at Olivia's specialty appointment she impressed all the doctors and therapists! Although Olivia was not walking into her appointment as I had anticipated based on her activity last month, she did impress physical therapy with her progress. In fact, the therapist tried to call over to the NICU to have the therapy team that worked with Olivia while she was in the hospital come over and see her. We once again heard from all the specialists how incredible Olivia is and how she is not a typical 24-weeker. She has far exceeded expectations. The entire appointment went better than expected and really just felt like we were meeting with old friends. All I can say sometimes is "God is good" and that is enough. 

With my brother and sister-in-law living out of town, family get togethers are a little further and far between. So, when everyone is free, we spend as much time together as possible. We were so excited to meet Penelope, the newest cousin to the group, but also enjoyed family time. Olivia LOVES Uncle Jason and tried to monopolize his time. She was curious to meet her new cousin Penelope, but upon further inspection decided babies weren't really as much fun as running around with Uncles. 

 

The same weekend we took Olivia to her first pumpkin patch. She had a blast crawling and climbing all over the pumpkins. She also enjoyed taking off all the price tag stickers and ripping off the pumpkin stems. 

My sister tried to put together a little photo shoot with all the cousins, but it was like wrangling cats. 

We did end up with maybe two decent pictures. 

To close out the last days of summer and warmer weather here in NC, we spent time at our local Harvest Festival and then had some fun on Halloween getting dressed up. I convinced Kevin that I couldn't find a sour patch kid outfit for Olivia (first they're sour, then they're sweet) so my second-best suggestion was that he and Olivia be Thing One and Thing Two. I, the ringleader of the craziness, would be cat in the hat. Olivia had her very first bite of chocolate. Thank goodness she wasn't a big fan (more for mom). And the costumes were a fun hit around the neighborhood. The short evening mostly consisted of Olivia petting every single dog that came to the door. Aside from her first piece of chocolate, there was not much candy taking to be had. 

Lastly, I have to share this fun photo. Now that I am back to work, Kevin is working hard to care for Olivia during the day (and continue to maintain his required hours for work). This means that sometimes, Olivia has to accompany dad on trips to Lowe's or Home Depot. She even has her favorite register lady! I remember as a child going with my dad to Lowe's and thinking it was so much fun. I believe though that Olivia would think anything with dad is fun. They are two peas in a pod, and it makes my heart explode seeing their bond.