Ode to my 7-year old, Olivia

It doesn't sink in right away.  You are basking in the glow of a newborn; you are feeding burping, changing.  You are holding hands as she toddles, wiping faces, giving baths, reading stories.  You plan birthday parties, celebrate and make cakes.  It took me a few days on this one, but it has finally hit home.  My daughter is seven.  Olivia turned seven on September 18th and Dave and I celebrate our anniversary on September 22nd.  Olivia arrived 3 weeks early, so she became our anniversary present to each other.  What else were we going to do?  During those days, work consumed every bit of our extra energy, so anniversary presents were a brief thought.  We gave each other a doozie on that anniversary!  Olivia has been one to keep us on our toes.  As I type, she is watching bats on the Discovery Channel.  She examines our new puppy, Kobe daily.  Poor dog, he hasn't visited the vet yet, but no worries, he has Olivia.  She wants us to admit that Kobe is her dog.  We say he is 'the family's dog'.  Not good enough for her.  She catches fish with her net at the lake and again, examines each and every one of them.  Hmm, I wonder if she will enjoy dissecting animals in biology or zoology?  You know, I did, so maybe we are on to something here.

On to her 7th birthday....We celebrated with treats on the playground with her class.  Olivia chose to have Skylar over for a spend the night party.  We kept adding to the fun by baking an orange cake together, getting a mani/pedi, eating at Los Bravos (party hat and song included), then waking up bright and early Saturday morning, her actual birthday, to open presents (they woke up early, we pulled ourselves out of bed worried that they didn't take Kobe out to use the bathroom).  Present opening was tons of fun with Skylar, Zach and Olivia....and Kobe.  Zach had a baseball game, so he and Dave were off.  I took the girls to see Alpha and Omega at the movies.  What is it about?  Two lost wolves and the hierarchy of the pack, none the less.  The girls loved the movie and asked to bring their 3D glasses home; maybe in hopes of daddy buying a 3D television?  Right.... We still need a normal t.v. for the lake!  After a stop by Publix for more cake ingredients (the first one was gluten free....tee hee hee, so I figured we could make another that she would really enjoy), they were given birthday balloons and we were on our way to make another cake.  Cake...check, playing...check, pool with friends...check, were were officially partied out!

Happy Birthday, our darling Olivia!

Riding Lessons and Little League

Olivia is truly an animal lover.  She loves the slimy ones, the stinky ones, the soft and cuddly ones.  She hit the jackpot with a new puppy....well, it's the family's puppy, but she finally got her wish.  With all of the activities that are offered to our children, Olivia hasn't found one that excites her.  Sure, she took Karate for a year.  It was fun, but not what she truly loved.  She loves swimming now, but that's not a sport I want to continue until next spring.  So, we found a stable recently and she started riding lessons last Friday.  Olivia loves her new boots and she even wore them to school on Friday.  The horse that she will be training on is named Midnight.  It's still early in the process, but I hope that she enjoys herself.  Did I mention the barn has numerous cats and she has to say hello to them before she saddles up?  Yes, that's a win-win situation.

My main man, Zach, started Little League baseball this past Saturday.  I'm actually enjoying the practices and games as well.  Granted, we are only one week in to it.  This age group uses the pitching machine, which can be hard for the kids, but they are getting the hang of it.  Zach was awarded a game ball at Saturday's game to recognize a great stop at short stop.  Go Zach!  He was proud of himself and so were we!  He is on the Braves team, how cute.  

Labor Day firsts.. football and dog days

Who would have thought of what a small, pint-sized puppy would open my eyes to see.  Kobe was introduced to the lake house this Labor Day weekend.  With the introduction, came a new place for him to pee and poop.  With Kobe being there, it forced me to go outside just before or at sunrise.  I saw and heard so many animals in the area.  Area?!  They were actually in our yard!  Zach and I saw a beautiful and elegant deer, a doe to be exact.  Then we heard the coyotes.  Yep, Kobe will not be going out alone.  Hawks and a bald eagle were spotted this weekend too.  All, unfortunately, could be fatal to our little pup.  So, he will be watched over for some time to come.  Kobe loved the lake house and the beach.  He was a bit hesitant to be in the water, but he also fell off the dock at one point.  Olivia 'saved' him.  Poor, wet pup wasn't too happy.

I've realized that having a puppy around makes me take life a little slower too.  I'm typically out of the house the entire time the kids are in school.  Now, I need to be home to take Kobe out and to play with him.  It's nice being home and it's quite relaxing.  Interesting how a puppy changes things...for the better.

As for Labor Day, it was a nice, quiet weekend for us.  We spent Saturday at the GA Tech football game.  Quite boring, but boy, the South Carolina State band kicked it up a notch.  I got chills watching them!  Yes, chills when a marching band played.  Strange, but true.  Football season is officially here, so you know what we'll be doing most weekends (in addition to little league games).  Zach starts practice today!