Daddy arrives in Austin

Olivia was very excited to see her Daddy when he joined us in Austin. We switched over to the Rhodes Mansion, which is always enjoyable! Fife heated the pool to try and relive New Years last year. As usual, we invited lots of friends over to their house and we are so appreciative for it. It is so hard to see everyone when we come in town and that makes it a lot easier. Especially now with a little one who goes to bed at 7:30.

We stopped at the Co-Op to pick up some new Horns gear and this is now in the parking lot.

Olivia wreaking havoc among all of the burnt orange

Her latest obsession, balls

Dinner at Lamberts downtown

Bubbles with another man :)

Chase's John Deer was a huge hit

She learned a new word at the Rhodes', "Outside". She even learned how to open their pocket doors to get out on their balcony all by herself.

She has become the best snuggler lately. She even gave big hugs in the pool.

Auntie Eileen came over to play

Playing in Chase's police car

On our way out of town, we went to Jimmy and Belinda's for brunch. Olivia was helping her second cousin, Gabriel, play piano.

Second Stop--Austin

Before Mike joined us in Austin, Olivia and I stayed with Maggie, Scott, and Jake. How much fun!

The first night we got there, Maggie got a babysitter for the kiddos and we went to Maudie's for Happy Hour with all of our old crew. This was my first night out without Olivia in months! We had lots of fun.

Fun in her muscle man's ball pit

Their awesome neighborhood park

Date night!

Smiling adoringly at her man

American Tour 2009. First Stop--Indy

Olivia and I got up early for our 8 AM flight to Indy, the first stop on American Tour 2009. We went to visit my mom and step-dad (AKA Nana and PaPa). Uncle Matt and I planned our trip at the same time for extra fun. We had a nice relaxing time. Olivia had a blast checking out every inch of their apartment and loved riding in Nana's wheelchair!

Trying to put on our bronzed baby shoes

Showing off that her wet hair looks like a 1980's rat tail

Fun in the big tub

Nana's wheelchair is super fun!

Fun with "PaPa"

Who knew that the Sky Mall catalog could provide hours of flight and post flight entertainment! Olivia was yet again fantastic on the flight!

Best Buds

Olivia's best friend and Maya's, not so best friend

Happy Halloween!

Every time we took Olivia to the zoo, she was mesmerized by the giraffes. We decided that would be a great Halloween costume for her this year. Olivia looking at the giraffes last time we were there:


We started the day at Room to Grow, her playgroup preschool for a fun party.

Bowling with pumpkins with her friend Tesfa

Then we went to "Boo at the Zoo" and took pictures our our baby giraffe in front of the real giraffes!

She wouldn't stop looking at them long enough to cheese for the camera

Then we came home and waited for trick or treaters

I love my Daddy and my bird dogs!

15 Months!!!

While we were in Jasper, Olivia celebrated her 15 month birthday!! We had two photo sessions this month...the one by the lake didn't really work, as it was a little windy for the sign.

What changes this month-- the biggest being walking!!! She is now a very proficient walker and prefers that to crawling. This has made a huge difference when we go places. We let her explore now that she can stay clean! Another huge one this month, "Mama"! I finally have been given the title I have worked so hard for :) Her language has also really exploded. A friend asked me the other day how many words she has. I guessed around 30. That gave me the idea to sit down and write out a list of all of her words and I found that she has over 50 words! I couldn't believe it! This month, she also got three new teeth! This brings the count to 15. She has also learned NOT to share, great! She still prefers books to any toy but has developed an interest in stuffed animals and babies. It is so sweet to see her hug and kiss them. She is truly such a joy!

Jasper

With his new Canadian assignment, Mike gets one Friday off each month. It is intended to be a day to make doctor's appointments or other activities that need to be done during the work week. We decided to use the extra day this month to make the trip to Jasper. It is in the Canadian Rockies, about a 5 hour drive from Calgary.

We had a fantastic trip and Olivia did surprisingly well on both the long drive there and back. There are several points of interest along the way that are just breath taking. We got a chance to revisit Banff and Lake Louise on our way to Jasper. We got to see several waterfalls and tons of snow capped mountains. It was truly so beautiful!!!!!!

Athabasca Falls

Lake our hotel was on

Our hotel, Fairmont Lodges

Hiking down into a canyon

One of the many waterfalls

Medicine Lake...each winter natural springs drain the lake. In the summer, the snow melting off the mountains fills it back up.

A moose!

Our hotel again

Maligne Lake...Olivia was here

Refusing to put her pants back on after a diaper change. We were so cold, she didn't care though!

Doing some shopping

Playing her new maracas in the hotel lobby

The fam at the hotel

On the FREEZING hike to the Columbia Icefield glacier

Olivia loves her backpack, but she didn't really enjoy the hike it was so windy and cold, so we never made it to the glacier. Maybe next summer!

Snow

It is really cute to see Olivia walk over to the window and say "snow". A word a Texas toddler may not have! She loves looking at it coming down.

Belly buttons are the best

Olivia discovered her fabulous belly button after thinking mine was the coolest. Anytime she has on a dress or shirt that makes it accessible, she goes after it. She calls it her "owwww" because every time she finds mine, she jabs her finger in it and I respond in pain. :)