Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Monday Pinterest Projects

So as I mentioned previously coming up with fun games in the water is a must so that the fun lasts the whole summer. Monday we made aluminum foil ramps to roll balls down into the water. She hasn't quite gotten the hang of it yet...she kept wanting me to get the balls out of the water and bring them to her! (Great delegation skills already LOL!)
Then we took a bowl and practiced throwing the balls into the bowl. This seemed to work a little better..she played with this one for a while.
And no summer fun day is complete without a picnic lunch outside on the deck with mommy! I have one happy little girl :-0

Family Day Sunday

Sunday we had a couple of friends and their kids come over for a little fun!
After having lunch at Mellow Mushroom we took the kids to play in the fountains for a while. Mateos was so sweet with Olivia...James was there too but of course you can never get a pic of them in one spot together! They were all running different directions!
She had a ball!

Daddy is my Hero!

To hear the excitement in this child's voice when her daddy comes home from work could make anyone's day brigher! She ADORES her daddy!
Her favorite thing lately is to have "snuggle" time with her blankie...(Max's UGA blanket of course!)

Look mommy! I can reach the light all by myself!

She's fascinated with turning the lights on and off and is proud of the result when she remembers how to do it.

Summertime....and the living's easy...

This is our set up for the summer! Everyday Olivia and I head out back around 11 and play in the pool, eat lunch, dance, and whatever else we decide will be fun that day!
She is loving the pool and since the novelty of it is wearing off pretty quickly I'm already having to come up with some fun games we can play in it...more on that above.

Fort Fun!

When Max was out of town last week Olivia and I built a special Princess fort with her favorite blankie! (UGA of course :-)
She thought it was so much fun!

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Monday's Craft Project

As I was cleaning the house today Olivia found her finger paints...how do you tell a toddler that she CAN'T paint and have fun?? (well..normally I could BUT since I was cleaning it was the perfect way to keep her busy!
Next Question...how do you keep a toddler from putting her fingers and feet IN the paint? Answer: You DON'T!
So instead of freaking out I let it go and let her have some fun..and FUN she had! We turned it into a craft project and talked about the colors green and blue and how those were the colors of the ocean. We talked about how pretty they were and we even used the brush to paint the bottom of her feet and did some foot prints (which I immediately cut out and hid so they could dry so I hope to use those for another project soon!)

Mother's Day 2012

This is a wonderful way to wake up every day! I love this little peanut!
She was especially loving on Mother's Day. I think she knew it was a special day for mommy and she really loved laying around and snuggling with Max and I in the bed..it was such a rainy day outside it was perfect for relaxing.
Cheese Mommy!
That evening we went to my in-laws for dessert and this is a great pic of all the cousins together.

Beach Playdate

Brittany and I met one of her neighbors at a little park on Lake Lanier last Thursday. It was perfect! It had white sand and the water was shallow enough that all the kids could walk out and play without us worrying ourselves sick!
They had so much playing together as usual ;))
Mae and Molly started singing little songs and Olivia thought that was soooo funny! She tried hard to tag along!
Happy Girls!

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

End of the School year...Summer here we come!

This is Matthew(Olivia says his name constantly!) Could she get any more comfortable?!?!?!? LOL
This was the best class picture we could get but I was thrilled to get one of her first classmates. Luke, Ben, Matthew, Colin, and Livi (Knox and the other Matthew weren't there today :(
This is Olivia's graduation diploma from the PMO program and her picture for the year! What a big girl she is!

Teacher Appreciation Gifts

This year I used a great Pinterest idea and made these sweet gifts for Olivia to give her teachers.
I attached a Jasons Deli gift card to the note and labeled the tops with her teachers names. They turned out great!

Friday, May 4, 2012

Playdate FUN!

Who says moms can't have fun too!
Get ready...here come all of the McLaughlin girls!
Charlie isn't quite sure if she liked it! But it's pretty clear the big girls did (Yes...even Brittany!)

Catch Air!

The smile on her face says it all! She had a BLAST!
All things are more fun with good friends! Not only did Mae, Molly, and Livi have fun but Mommy and Ms. Brittany did too!
She wouldn't slide down by herself so I went up with her...did I mind?? Of course not!

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Park day and Fountain fun

Olivia and I went to "our" park today for some fun with her friend Emily. But before our playdate I got in some exercise! I have made it a point to get out and do at least 30 minutes every morning this week and must admit (although I already knew this!) that I am feeling so much better about myself! The girls are still a little too young to do any real playing together but they run along side of each other very nicely! LOL After the park we ventured over to the fountains in our neighborhood for some fun in the water. Olivia is still trying to give up a morning nap so our time was shortened due to some melting down but overall the morning was a success!

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Letter of the Week "M"

This week I started a "school" hour at home. Our letter this week is "M". All week we will be talking about words that start with the letter M. We are also talking about the month May and the color Purple. Never too early to saturate them with knowledge!
Every afternoon before I start dinner I set up Olivia's table in the kitchen with some utensils and dried rice/beans and she cooks with me.
I am really having to learn to "let go" of the mess because I am still finding rice on my feet a week later :)...but she loves it and it's a great way for her to work on her fine motor skills! Thanks Pinterest for yet another great toddler activity!

Milkshakes with Mimi and Poppa

I took Olivia to her favorite park and we discovered they have turned on the "river" for the summer season...she REALLY wanted to play in it so I let her. She had a blast! After about 10 mins in the creek she looked up at me and said "Mommy?".."yes Livi?"..."MUAH!"...I'm thinking that means I love you! Made my day :)
After the park we picked up some milkshakes and headed over to Mimi and Poppa's.
Mimi was working in the yard and Olivia decided to help clear the branches with Poppa. What a great way to spend the afternoon!

Textures: Soft

Olivia and I did a craft project with cotton balls and had so much fun! We are working on textures and last week was "Soft".
As you can see she is very proud of herself and had fun learning.

Family Lake Weekend

We had a great time at the lake with the family this weekend. Olivia especially had fun running around with her cousins and taking a boat ride. I couldn't believe I got her to wear her sunglasses for so long! Max and I were so proud of how sweet she was and despite being pulled out of her routine she did GREAT! Looking forward to lots of lake fun this summer!