Holidays gone by...

I've been super disappointed in myself these past few months about not keeping this blog updated. I've gone back and forth between being too busy, too tired, not interested, etc. Good thing for me, I haven't stopped taking millions of pictures, so I can return to blogging and hopefully catch up!

First things first: Olivia's first smattering of holidays! I've managed to completely miss Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas blogging. For Halloween, miss Ollie was an owl, of course! I was actually trying to avoid it because everyone knows how much I love owls and I really don't want anyone to think I'm projecting on to her, but I found the cutest outfit so oh well. To celebrate, we went to my dad and step moms neighborhood party and walked around a little. nothing too fancy!

I didn't plan on hosting Thanksgiving this year, but we had somewhat of a family ER illness come up so I ended up cooking for Dave and myself. Then, my dad, step mom and step sister ended up coming over so we had a family dinner after all! Ollie got to have her first Thanksgiving dinner and she loved it!

Christmas was amazing! I tried to celebrate all month long with cookie making with my mom, Christmas tree decorating, parties with friends, a visit with Santa, Christmas light watching, Christmas Eve church services, and gifts at my parents!

This first holiday season for Olivia was wonderful! I think back to the holidays last year when I imagined what it would be like with her here with us, and it went way beyond my expectations. I can't wait for many more to come :)

momma's first mother's day

yesterday i celebrated my first Mother's Day! last year i wasn't even pregnant at the time, but probably wouldn't have considered it my first mother's day even if i was. Dave, Olivia, and I celebrated on our own, as is typical family tradition in our house. growing up, our family always put an emphasis on celebrating with our immediate family before anyone else, and it's something i've inadvertently carried into my own family. don't get me wrong, i love celebrating with my family at large (thought it's not very big), but i also love having my own family traditions that are no one else's. we've been pretty busy and tired these past few weeks (i wonder why, oh my dear 10 week old) so we kept the holiday low key, as is also our tradition. we went to church and snagged a picture the service. i love how Olivia is looking at us like we are crazy!

p.s., doesn't she look like she has red hair?

then we headed to a special (aka expensive and PACKED) brunch at my favorite restaurant in Orange, Citrus City Grill. Olivia slept through most of it, but we still had a lovely afternoon. brunch is my absolute favorite meal because it combines my two favorite types of food: breakfast and dessert. anytime i consume both unashamedly is fine by me. throw in a little mimosas and i'm a happy girl.

after brunch we headed home to watch the Dodger game and take a family nap. not only did the Dodgers win, but we had a great snooze too:

yes, we napped on the family room floor, and yes it was quite nice. and that's that! though it wasn't glamorous, i thoroughly enjoyed my first Mother's Day. i can't wait to share many more with my Little Wood:)

Olivia's First Easter!

i've always been a big photographer, scrapbooker and all around memory preserver. now that i have a baby of my very own, i want to make sure that i can document as many "firsts" as possible, since i know this time will fly by!

At just over a month old, Olivia celebrated her first holiday, Easter.  it was a bit of a dreary day, weather-wise, and we kept the day low-key. we attended the Easter Sunday service at church, then came home to rest before family came over.

First holiday as a family :)

Waiting to go to church

Easter service at church

Dave really wanted to make sure Olivia had her first Easter basket so the day before we went to Target and willingly dropped 40 bucks on our Little Wood! Dad probably also got some items for himself, seeing as how it's hard for a 4-week old to eat Cadbury cream eggs!

my dad, step mom and step sister came up to give Olivia an Easter basket and then we went out to dinner to celebrate.

Me, Olivia and Grandpa

Easter basket from Grandparents

by the time i got around to photographing Olivia with her Easter baskets, she was a bit cranky and tired. oops! these are the fun memories though, right?

 

i can't wait for Olivia to celebrate all the big holidays this year! she's already a ton of fun, and i know she's going to make my favorite holidays even better!

Christmas in utero

Christmas is probably my favorite holiday of the year. i love the music, decorations, and the overall spirit. oh, and the eggnog, peppermint, and cookie treats.  it was a little emotional for me this year, what with all the hormones, and i even caught myself trying not to cry a few times at church while singing Christmas carols!  being that this is our last Christmas without the wee babe, the husband and i decided to take it easy, but to also spoil each other a little in the gift department:) we know our focus during this time will change completely next year, and definitely for the better! we are always blessed during Christmas by each other, and our families. here are some of my favorite gifts from this year!

Madewell Heart Stripe sweater- this was an inadvertent gift from the husband. he had originally gotten me a different sweater that made me look like a whale (and it would have even w/o being pregnant) and some awesome thermal pajama pants. but the pants were defective and i had to return them and they didn't have any more! so sad. but i got this cute sweater instead and it kind of even fits my pregnant belly.

Clarisonic Mia cleaner- i didn't even know i wanted this until I had it! it's a facial hand buffer/exfoliater which i've used 3 times and already love it. it's gentle on my acne prone skin and makes it feel so soft! i'm hoping it can really keep my acne at bay until i can get back on my Rx creams after Little Wood comes.

JCrew striped blouse- i LOVE this print and can't wait to wear it! right now i look a little silly in it because my belly is half exposed. oh well.

Chi pink flat iron- i've had my Hai for at least 5 years and needed an upgrade. my parents got me this new one and it's AMAZING! it's much smoother than the Hai and makes my  hair so much shinier.

Madewell UK Storyteller Scarf- this is such a beautiful scarf. it's got "hand drawings" of Scotland, Ireland, and England on it and i can't wait to wear it.

Les Miserables (unabridged)- yes, i know, i'm quite advantageous for having a baby next year. but i've always wanted to read this and i think it may be my 1 and only book goal for next year. we'll see.

Madewell Skimmers in emerald green- i've decided that i'm a "flats" girl. heels kill my feet and do not a happy mama make. my husband is now indulging me, and got me this lovely flats!

and finally, the wee babe was also blessed this year by the hubs (guess which item he bought) and by grandma and grandpa Jalowiec:

it goes without saying that i can't wait until we can share the wonderful holiday season with our newest Little Wood next year. she is already so loved and blessed!