Olivia Ann - 6 and a HALF!

The other day, okay, okay, at the beginning of the month, January 9th to be exact, I had one of my "not so stellar mom" moments.  The day started and progressed as normal.  For some reason, unlike normal where I pick them up, I was home when the girls got home...Olivia walked in and said - "Hey Mom, today's my half birthday!"  She was pumped!  I guess she got to wear the birthday vest at school, she got a special note and sign from her teacher and from the school office, her class sang Happy "Half" Birthday to her...and, why hadn't I sent cupcakes to school?  Whoops.  Oh well, she had a great day which is what matters most!

So - to celebrate this half-birthday, here are 6 and a 1/2 facts about Miss Liv.

Olivia...

1) Weighs approximately 43 pounds...she's really stretching out and is 44-45 inches tall.  She wears six 6 regular pants, 6-7/8 tops (though the 7/8 are definitely too big), and size 11 shoes.

2) Has taken full ownership of her clothes.  Olivia's definitely still quite picky about how things feel, but mostly this applies only to pants.  She hates wearing a uniform and says it makes her "hate" school, but as she's mostly pretty positive about school and always anxious to show me what's in her folder, I'm pretty confident she's not serious about this.  In fact, this morning she asked me if "hate" was a "strong" word.  I thought this was a pretty interesting questions, and we had a nice discussion about it.  Back to the clothes - Olivia likes red and white shirts for her uniforms but won't wear the blue ones often because "that's a boy color."  She mostly likes "comfy" clothes, but she's experimenting with jeans and some "fancy" outfits too.  Olivia's pretty good at matching, favors her fleece sweatshirts, and wears socks to bed every night...very ironic because she used to scream in agony at the very thought of even wearing socks.  She LOVES her new, sylish boots from Grandma Huinker, and can't wait for her blue flats with the puff on them to fit!

3) Is trying pretty hard to stop sucking her thumb.  Olivia never sucks her thumb outside of the house, but I see her doing it too often still at home, especially if she's watching TV or is tired.  The challenging thing about this is that the thumb sucking is connected to a blanket, and Olivia is a cuddler which pretty much means she always want to cozy up with a blanket.  She thinks she should have a paci now as a way to stop sucking her thumb...Brian supports this idea because he thinks it won't last for long, but I do not agree.  I think I won out on this little discussion...and, Olivia's new tactic is to wrap her hand up in her blanket and just have her hand by her face.  I'm impressed with her drive...I think she's been motivated by Brian's "buck teeth" comments and the thought of braces.

4) Has a competitive side.  This side doesn't surface a lot, but it's definitely there - and Brian is thankful for the fact when it comes to sports.  :)  Olivia can get a touch cocky when she wins and can be a bit of a poor sport when she loses. She's starting to understand the point of practicing...this is especially great as she has started piano lessons!  She's been very proud of how her practicing has allowed her to get stickers and harder songs!  Hooray for piano!

5) Is an amazing big sister.  While there are times Olivia doesn't want to hang out with Grace and/or Grady, more often than not (basically all the time), she's very willing to do this and seems to genuinely enjoy it.  Grady will follow Olivia around and raise up his arms to be carried by her - little stinker.  Olivia is great at distracting Grady if I need to get something done and enjoys being a little mommy.  Olivia doesn't play with her dolls too much - she likes changing their clothes but not actually playing with them - and I think think this is because Grady is her real doll!  The girls have started sleeping together again in Olivia's bed, and I love this - it's so sweet to see them all cuddled up together.

6) Is still one of the sweetest girls I know.  Olivia has such a soft heart - and while this sometimes causes her to get her feelings hurt a little more than is maybe necessary, I'd rather it be this way than any other.  Olivia's still a cuddler who will cozy up in bed or on the couch with us in the morning so we can get a little extra sleep.  She loves to make people happy, is a good friend, and...  (hey, I said six and a half, didn't I?)  :)