No News Is Good News!

You wonder where I have been the last 5 months? We have been rocking along just fine here in Shreveport. One of my friends said she was still waiting to see if Ian had recovered from his surgery! After a couple of people recently asked me when I was going to return to my blog, I decided to take some time to give a little update, with the goal of doing it at least once a month, if not more.

For starters- Ian did recover from his surgery with flying colors! We just had a checkup at Shriners last week, and everything looked good. School continues to go well, and I'm starting to think about summer school. It's usually 1/2 day for about 6 weeks. We joined a gym in January so Ian can swim year around now. He really loves it, and it's his main form of exercise in the winter. He and Brian swim twice a week while I work out upstairs, and Olivia goes to child care or kid fit, which is her own workout class. It's been so good for Ian, and he LOVES the water. His overall development seems to be about the same, with maybe a little progress. The summer is so much better for us so that he can get some stimulation from outside- swinging on his tire swing, riding his tricycle, swinging on the proch swing, or just listening to the outdoor sounds around him. He starts his horse riding lessons next month, and he really likes that too.


Olivia is doing great. She is getting more social all the time, depending on the setting and who is vying for her attention. Women and kids continue to have the best luck, but she is getting a little less intimidated by men all the time. She loves church and school, and is often carried around by my friends and their kids. Her favorite thing is for her Baba (Daddy) to give her bubbles (gum)! It is the first thing she says when he walks in the door after work. I'm not sure exactly how she got started on bubbles, but I do know her Memi (my mom) was the first one she started going to for it. She also loves to cook! Santa brought her a kitchen, and she cooks rice in her kitchen every day. She also received a mixer, so when I make cookies, she wants to be in the real kitchen with me on the barstool using her mixer to mix her real sugar and flower. It's a test of patience for me! I have told many people about her treats for Santa, but I must include it here too, even though it was 3 months ago. I have had a Christmas plate and cup for years that say "Cookies for Santa" and "Milk for Santa". I decided to get those out this year, and let Olivia leave something for Santa to snack on. She insisted that he wanted rice and chocolate milk! One other thing she loves to do is watch movies. Every day she wants to watch a full scale movie. Although we have a few now and are getting more as gifts all the time, she continues to beg for Happy Feet. I have to admit it is my favorite too, but we have seen it enough times to last a life time!

Brian has been traveling quite a bit lately but thankfully he is planning to be home all this week. Although trucking has really been hit hard, there are some new projects coming along. It's great for business of course, but not so great for me! Luckily, we do have a couple of sitters who are wonderful and can come help me out when he's away. They have been lifesavers!

We just returned last night from visiting Brian's mom in Tahlequah. We finally wisened up and got a DVD player for the car. WOW, the return home was the best we've ever had!! Ian seems to enjoy watching (listening to) movies too. I even got to take a little nap myself!

Well, my free time is up in 15 minutes, when Ian gets off the bus, so I guess that's all I have time for right now. I will try to get some new pictures on tomorrow.

Hope everyone is well! Take care!

Leah