Olivia's One!

Birthday kisses from Otie!

My baby girl turned one on Thursday, July 15.  Absolutely unbelievable.  I've had a few very sad moments thinking about how quickly this year went by, but we've had so much fun lately.  We had her party this weekend (that's a whole other post to come) so for her birthday, she just went to school as usual, and I dressed her up in her crown and cupcake panties for some pictures.  

I love this age.  I love everything about it.  And I love my baby-turned-toddler to pieces.  Here are some things I love most.

• She makes me laugh every day, a lot!
• She's the silliest girl--a total ham.  Loves to make people laugh, and definitely will do something over and over if she's getting the reaction that she wants.  
  
• She's a social butterfly.  Loves everyone.  Loves a crowd.  Loves other babies and big kids. Loves dogs.  She's just a lover.
• You can talk to her and feel like you're having a full conversation.  She makes this one particular noise that I especially love...it's like she's saying "Huh?" in this high pitched, questioning tone, and gets a confused look on her face.
• When she gets excited, she'll scream "Da-da-da-da-daaaa!" This has nothing to do with daddy, which I believe is just a single "Dah" for her right now.
• If you say "What does a cow say, Olivia?" she'll say "Mmmmmm".  It's not quite Moo, and I know she has no clue what a cow is, but I think it's brilliant, nevertheless.
• She has so many fabulous facial expressions that are very unique to her.  I'm not sure where she got them all, but I love 'em.  I wish I could get pictures of every single one.
• She has a new pose that she does when she's throwing a fit.  Folds herself over and puts her face on the floor between her legs.  The Porters called Emery's pose like this "baby taco", but that's how Nuggie slept...O uses baby taco for letting you know just how unhappy you've made her feel.  
• I'm occasionally made aware the she understands so much more than she lets on.  At least she can't repeat what she hears yet!  That's going to take some language adjustment on my part.
• She gives the best kisses.  She likes Frenchies, and if she's in a good mood, she'll kiss anyone who asks.  She especially loves to kiss Lila, because she gets such a great reaction from the crowd.  "Awww, what a sweet girl!"  This is a great change from her earlier habit of sneaking up to Lila and smacking her on the head or stealing her paci.  She got quite the reaction for that, too.
• She's trying so hard to get this walking thing down.  She took her first couple of steps right around 11 months, and is up to a max of about 6.  I think it's mostly a confidence issue holding her back now.  She can cruise furniture and push toys like nobody's business but when she's freeform, she'll sit herself down really quickly when she starts to feel off-kilter.
• I love her chubby little leg rolls.  And her little wrist rolls, too!
• I love her laugh.  When you really get her going, it's the sweetest, most infectious giggle you've ever heard.