Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!

We got a couple inches of snow on Thursday, so of course I had to suit Olivia up for the obligatory "First Snow" pictures! Her snow suit was huge on her and we didn't last long outside, but at least I got a couple of good shots.

An Early Christmas Present

This past weekend, we braved the crowd at the mall to finish up our Christmas shopping. While there, we walked past a mother holding a baby girl wearing a medical halo brace around her head. It was a jarring, poignant image. . .this sweet tiny girl wearing such an industrial, macabre device. We looked at each other and didn't even have to say what we were thinking: that we are two incredibly lucky people. It put our daughter's hip dysplasia into crisp perspective.

For the past three months, Olivia has worn a Pavlik Harness to correct the hip dysplasia that was diagnosed when she was born. The day they put my perfect little baby into that harness was a rough one to say the least. I remember thinking how long 12 weeks (the prescribed treatment time) was and crying for all the big and small reasons why this wasn't fair. But today we received an early Christmas present: Olivia's treatment is complete, and she no longer has to wear the harness. An x-ray this morning showed that her hip joints have matured and the bones are just where they should be. Other than a few milestone delays, which she'll make up for quickly, she's just like any other perfectly healthy baby.

What felt like a horrible, traumatic diagnosis only three months ago is now just an early chapter in Olivia's story, something she'll have to mark down for sports physicals and a random fact she'll be able to use when she plays "Two Truths and a Lie." This Christmas, we are counting our blessings, the most important of which is sleeping soundly in her crib. . .harness-free.

Back to Work Blahs

I am returning to work on December 28th, and I have to say that I have never NOT looked forward to something this much in my life. Don't get me wrong, my coworkers are great, but they are absolutely nothing compared to my newest boss. The mere thought of leaving her in someone else's care for 10 hours a day, 5 days a week is enough to bring me to tears, which it does. . . on almost a daily basis these days. Shoot, I'm tearing up just writing this.

After a lot of time, many, many interviews, and the obligatory reference checks, questions, etc., we have selected a lady to watch Olivia during the day. She's only 2 miles from our house, has raised 6 kids of her own and is super nice. Olivia even spent a couple of hours over there today, getting acclimated, while I ran errands.

I know there are pros and cons to both staying at home and going back to work, so I am trying to focus on the positive aspects of this situation and just hope for the best. If any working moms out there have advice on how to weather this tough time, please feel free to share!

Merry Christmas!!

Turkey Day 2010

Olivia spent her first Thanksgiving with the Wyatt family, and even Nanna and Pops Breeden joined us so they wouldn't miss out on her first Turkey Day! Since my family is kind of large and we all like to spend Thanksgiving together (and that's about 30 people all told), we have our Thanksgiving meal at my Grandma's church social hall so there's plenty of room. I know that, one day, Olivia will create some great Thanksgiving memories running around with her cousins, playing flag football outside and munching on the ridiculous amount of food my family puts together (seriously, I think we could feed a small army).

On Saturday, Ama and Pawpi (aka my stepmom and dad) hosted an "Olivia Open House" so that all of our family and friends could meet Olivia and kick off the holidays with some great food and good company. Here are a couple of pictures. I would have more except that we had to dump my camera card onto a disc because it was full and now I can't get the pictures to load properly. :(