A little bit of Livyness

Livy said to me this morning, "Mommy, maybe when I'm twenty-four, I will be a teacher." Not sure where she got that number, but it struck me as funny. And let me tell ya, at age three, she's a pretty darn good teacher to all of her dolls and princesses! She takes them through her preschool schedule, minute-by-minute. It's hilarious to watch, especially when she doesn't know that you are. So stinkin' cute.

Somebody likes Mommy's new camera. We've already had a little "lesson" this morning about it, and I'm hoping that having her own camera will help... maybe?

After our "lesson," she happily posed for pictures with her brother...

And SpongeBob. :)



Woooo hoooooo!

I finally got a new camera! Thank goodness. Those cell phone shots were just not cutting it. Not with a face like this to see:

Check out that mouthful of teeth! My happy little baby model. :) Livy's at her Gaga and Pap Pap's house for the weekend, or I'm sure she would have been posing away for my test shots. Yeah... I'm supposed to be cleaning and organizing... getting this house ready to sell. Which I am. Just not at the moment. I HAD to try out the camera and post this precious face!!!!

Wordless Wednesday

And... we're back to winter

So remember spring in February last week? Yeah, well... it's winter again here in Southwestern Pennsylvania. That was such a teaser it's almost not fair! This is what it looks like now where we were chalk-drawing and playing 4 days ago:

I said I wouldn't complain... or I said it was ok, or something. I lied. We got around 6 inches or so where we live, which made for cancellations and delays and messy commutes. Liv was pretty disappointed when her Reader's Theater class was cancelled. She was happy to see Daddy this morning, though... special treat for a weekday when she wakes up! And I guess spending all of that time outside was a bit of a double-edged sword... we're all sick now, with Owen getting the worst of it. Poor kid. I hate when they're sick. So yes, I'm complaining. Because I can. It's my blog. :)

On the up-side, we had a really great visit with Adam's family (it always makes me laugh when I say that. Da da da, snap snap) this weekend. The kids had a blast with their cousins, aunt, and grandparents. Owen just LIT UP when he saw his Papa, and Olivia completely idolizes and adores her big cousin. They played alot of dress-up, of course, and poor thing bawled when it was time to go home.

Have I mentioned I REALLY need a camera?!? I was going to go try some out last night, but Mother Nature had other plans (refer to beginning of post).  Only 27 days until spring, right?!?

Spring in February!

Yesterday was a rare treat... temperatures in the 60s! We took a nice, long walk around the neighborhood. Livy was a perfect angel on our walk, helping Mommy push the stroller and talking with all the neighbors. Owen kept laughing as the wind would blow and of course smiled at every passer-by. He even loved the sweet Greyhound that kissed his face. :) After our walk and lunch, Owen napped and Olivia and I had fun with some sidewalk chalk.

Temperatures will be back in the 30s and snow is in the forecast for Tuesday, but that's ok. Spring is right around the corner and we CAN'T WAIT!!

God is Great

I step into the kitchen after Olivia sits down for dinner, and I hear:

God is Great

God is good

And we thank Him

For our food

Amen.

My big, sweet girl.



Happy Valentine's Day!

I have never been big on Valentine's Day... nothing against it, I guess I'm just kind of ambivalent about it. Never really needed flowers or fancy dinners (not that I would necessarily complain)... truthfully, the last 7 years I've been with my hubby, I've always been made to feel very special on most days. I'm a lucky girl. :) But, I have to say... getting slobbery kisses and big smiles first thing this morning, (no, not from Adam) and then a giant hug and a "Happy Valentime's Day, Mama! Will you be my Valentime?"... this just may be my new favorite holiday. I mean... how can you not love this?!?

Later this morning, Owen and I went to Olivia's Valentine's Day party at preschool. This is hanging outside of her classroom.

Can you even stand it?!?

Livy had a great time at her party (Owen not so much)...

Of course, after licking all the icing from the cupcake, she wants another. :)

She had a blast playing games and making crafts.

At one point she decided to decorate Mommy instead... hearts on my face, glasses, nose... her teacher was snapping photos, so one may make an appearance in a future Wordless Wednesday post. :)

Here's my other sweet Valentine... sweet, slobbery kisses and all...



Photo credit

I have to give some photo credit to my one of my dear BFFs, Kristen Durkin, who took the photo you see below in my first Wordless Wednesday post (I was going to give her credit yesterday, but I didn't want to break the rules, as it IS supposed to be wordless Wednesday, after all :) ) as well as the photo at the top of my blog. She is super-talented and has a great eye. I'm so excited for her as her hobby continues to develop. Here are some of my other favorite shots from that session back in October.

Pretty awesome, huh?!?

I really need a camera. Someone who shall remain nameless broke mine before Christmas, and I've been taking pictures with my cell phone, which just aren't cutting it for me!

Oh, and speaking of someone really having talent and an eye for photography, check out Sara's new venture!!

Wordless Wednesday

Our little actress

Olivia is our little drama queen. Sometimes in not-so-good ways, but often times it's really fun to watch this part of her personality develop. She has always had this amazing memory and of course flair for the dramatic, and her new favorite thing to do is act out scenes from her favorite books and movies. Seriously people, I'm talking word for word, scenes that will last several minutes.

I happened to capture Snow White yesterday just after she ate a poison apple, and was awaiting Prince Owen to kiss her.

I've been looking for several months now for some sort of age-appropriate introduction to theater for her, and through a friend of a friend, happened upon a Young Reader's Theater class for preschoolers. Today was her first day and she loved it!

I sat in on the class today and was just thrilled to see Olivia in her element! :) Adam and I have really been trying to think of activities that will help to nurture and mold these special parts of our daughter's personality and temperament, (or as Adam says- "to help her use her powers for good,") and we are kind of thinking theater... or maybe sports, for that energy level of hers. Though as Aunt Jess pointed out the other day, we may have to find a sport that doesn't require much grace (Liv's pretty clumsy). Ironically, her name was almost Grace, which would have been hilarious!!

We still luv ya, Black & Gold!

We were so excited that our Steelers were in the Super Bowl!

Things didn't quite go as we'd hoped, but we know how lucky we are to see our favorite team in the Super Bowl yet again!!

We still luv ya, Black & Gold!! Congrats on an awesome season!

XOXO,
Two of your biggest fans :)

Catching up in pictures :)

I originally added this album, Catching Up in Pictures, as a gadget thingy but it kept freezing up my computer for some reason, and there's nothing that bugs me more (well, I'm sure there are a few things that actually bug me more) than going to someone's blog and it constantly freezing my computer. So I removed it and decided to just post a link to it instead.

Getting to know us

So I was trying to think of a way to somehow quickly document the last 3+ years since we've entered the world of parenthood, and decided to extract some of my kid-related Facebook statuses from the last couple of years. I was only able to go back to June of 2009, which would put Olivia at 19 months, and Owen a frozen embryo. :) For those of you who don't know, we are an IVF family. We tried to get pregnant for about 2 years right after we were married (that's a whole other blog) and finally conceived our sweet Olivia! Owen was conceived from the remaining embryos from that cycle. Gosh, it seems like a lifetime ago that we were waiting, hoping, praying to have a baby. I'll never forget that time in my life... but boy, once that baby comes, time really does go by quicker than I could have ever imagined!  So here are some of the kid-related postings over the last year and a half or so... enjoy! :)

Tried to trim Olivia's bangs ever-so-slightly and I think I may have made her look like a hybrid of Lloyd from Dumb and Dumber and early 90's Billy Ray Cyrus.  June 16, 2009

Just got back from Olivia's ENT... everything's great, but my little darling turned the place upside-down! Seriously... she had the whole place laughing at her antics... and of course had them all saying "Oh Mommy, is she gonna give you a run for your money!  July 1, 2009

Is wondering... how bad is it that my daughter laughs hysterically, saying "NNNNNNNOOOOOOO"! as she stands up on her toybox, colors the tile and/or wall, throws things over the gate, hits the TV screen with toys, and countless other antics. HELP!!!!!  July 3, 2009

Just watched Olivia attempt (successfully, I might add) multiple somersaults in her crib!  July 5, 2009

When will my child stop eating everything she finds outside?!? So far today it's been a leaf and some sort of tree flower... Saturday it was rocks and sand... last week it was bird poop. Seriously- bird poop!!!   July 6, 2009

Dear Lord, please give me the strength to be a mother to this toddler today... :-)  July 30, 2009

Off to the ENT again... let's cross our fingers that my little wild woman didn't break her nose! Ugh.   August 19, 2009

Loves listening to her baby "read."  August 19, 2009

Can a child survive on Dora yogurt alone?   August 20, 2009

My baby is 22 months old today... where does the time go?!?   September 10, 2009

Day 3 of the nap boycott... ugh.   October 22, 2009

Olivia and Adam at swimming lessons... a few minutes of peace for me. :-)   November 7, 2009

Happy 2nd birthday to my sweet baby girl, Olivia Claire!!   November 10, 2009

Seriously can't stop laughing. Watching Olivia on the monitor as she yells "Why I do that?" over and over! She took her new Dora jammies off instead of going to sleep. "One knee, two knees" is another phrase she keeps repeating. Where did this goofball come from?!?   November 17, 2009

How can one little person make you feel so many different emotions?!?!?!?!?!?   December 3, 2009

OMG we're having a BOY!!!! :-) I still can't believe it! I thought for sure that Adam was destined to be surrounded by all estrogen!!   December 8, 2009

Hmm... to sum up the last couple of weeks here in "Toddlerville," we now have to duct-tape diaper tabs to keep diapers on, turn sleepers around backwards to prevent naked sleeping, and had a surprise transition to a toddler bed after a crib dive! Fun stuff! :-)   January 5, 2010

This child is never napping again, is she? Now that she can run around her room and play at naptime...   January 6, 2010

Shocked at the moment... Miss Olivia is taking a nap in her big girl bed for the first time!! It's been 2 weeks!!!!    January 18, 2010

If I'm hearing Olivia singing Flo Rida's "Low"- aka Aunt Ali's song- on the monitor when she's supposed to be napping... things aren't looking good, are they? :-) Hey, I'm a stay-at-home mom... naps are like gold!!!!!   January 21, 2010

It's such a rare occurence that I have to post it: 3rd nap in 3 weeks- wooo hoooo! Now I suppose I should try to go catch one, too...   January 26, 2010

So I just went to check on Olivia since it started to get too quiet during her "nap time," and found someone snoring under the rocker in her room!!!! :-) Oh well, at least she's napping, right??   February 2, 2010

So I keep attempting to put little bows and barrettes in Olivia's hair (mostly to get it out of her face- it drives me crazy!)... they don't last more than a minute, but the most recent attempt was the funniest to date. She rips it out immediately and says forcefully "Mommy, throw this pretty in the trash"!!!!   February 17, 2010

Only my kid would end up in the kitchen at Chuck E Cheese before my pregnant butt could get to her! I could NOT keep up with her!!!   March 4, 2010

Finally- the nesting instinct has kicked in- now that I only have 9 weeks to go!!! Olivia arrived at 38 weeks and was a peanut... this guy is BIG so I am anticipating an early arrival, but he'll probably surprise us all and come late! Either way, we are getting this house in order this weekend!!!!  March 6, 2010

I seriously can't get enough of this weather and being outside with Olivia! She was running like a maniac at the park!!! :-)   March 17, 2010

Needs Supernanny!   March 19, 2010

OK, Moms and Dads of extremely active children who throw caution to the wind: if we are getting our first cast at age 2... is this a foreshadowing of more broken bones and ER trips in our future? My poor baby fell at the playground on Sunday while playing with her Pap Pap (who is beside himself... I feel soooo bad) and apparently broke her wrist!!!! :-(   March 23, 2010

Sweetest moment of my life: "So-and-so hurt your feelings, Mommy... I make it all better." <wipes tears>   March 26, 2010

It's the little everyday victories that keep me going... a great time at the park without a toddler meltdown! :-)   April 1, 2010 at 11:25pm

Owen Emilio Garczewski decided to surprise us with an early arrival at 35 weeks yesterday! He was born at 2:49 p.m. weighing 6 lbs 13 oz, measuring 20 1/4 in. He will be in the NICU for 4-7 days at this point until he gets a little stronger and meets some necessary milestones, but he's doing well! His lungs sound better today and he ate pretty well for me this morning. Will post pictures soon of our sweet baby boy.   April 6, 2010 at 1:02pm

Thank you so much to everyone for your congratulations, thoughts, and prayers. They mean so much to us! Owen is doing well, other than his bilirubin levels. He will probably need some time in phototherapy before he can come home... we are hoping this weekend. XOXO   April 8, 2010 at 9:52pm

As all of you NICU mommies and daddies know, things change pretty frequently there. Owen is doing great overall! They switched him to a preemie formula to get him to gain weight instead of still losing before they will let him come home. Bilirubin is up a little higher, so we're hoping that will have peaked when they test him again. If all goes well, we may be able to bring our sweet boy home with us on Monday!   April 10, 2010

Owen gained 2 oz. yesterday and bilirubin was down this morning! Keeping our fingers crossed!!!   April 11, 2010

We're home!!  April 12, 2010

Coffee... NEED.MORE.COFFEE.  April 16, 2010

Was locked in the garage this morning by my two year-old... with my newborn... yep, another day in the life of being Olivia's mommy!  April 30, 2010

My baby is 5 weeks old! And my other baby is 2 1/2 today! Geesh... where does the time go??   May 10, 2010

Somebody is following in his big sister's footsteps... ugh. First Alimentum and now torticollis?!? Really, Owen?? Well, thankfully both relatively minor issues!  May 13, 2010

Zebes- you'll get a kick out of this! Olivia is "napping" and singing "You Are My Sunshine" and she just said "Yum yum yum" at the end!!!!! :-)  May 14, 2010

THANK YOU Mary Sheedy Kurcinka, for validating everything I already knew in my gut about my Olivia!!! I have been crying reading this book realizing that not only am I NOT ALONE, but I was right in feeling that traditional methods DO NOT work with my spirited child!! Here's to learning how to parent my baby without breaking her spirit!!!! Now if I could just find the time to do a little more reading! :-)   June 16, 2010

Had a wonderfully fun afternoon at the pool with Olivia yesterday, while Adam had some much needed relaxing quality time with Owen.   June 21, 2010

So proud of my baby girl. She's so big... how is this happening so fast?!?   June 29, 2010

SUCH a fun day yesterday! Happy birthday, Ty!!! And OMG- Olivia LOVED the fireworks!!! So cute!!   July 5, 2010

My favorite Olivia quote of the day so far: We're on our way to drop her off at her 2nd day of school. Owen starts crying. Olivia says, "Owen, it's not cry time. We wait 'til we get TO HOME to cry!" :-)   July 7, 2010 at 11:30am

Olivia to school... Owen to PT, now he's napping... so guess who gets a little Mommy time? :-)  July 13, 2010

Thinks we might be breaking the record for time-outs in one day today...  July 14, 2010

Great day so far! :) Haircut for Olivia... it's finally all one length for the most part. Then a couple of hours at E2 Toys 2 Try! She loves that place (and so does Mommy!). Except for the fact that the store part is on the way out. Left with two little princesses, but whatever!  July 19, 2010

Is having a mommy time-out. I wish there was something to drink in this house other than crappy beer. Though I only have a few minutes and goodness knows it takes me longer than that to finish a drink...  July 28, 2010

Seriously... this kid... where did she come from?!? She woke us all up at 12:30 and 4:00 a.m. singing "California Gurls"... just now I hear her on the monitor during her "rest" time singing "Ga lup, ga lup, ga lup, is my dub. I like your beard." Apparently Ke$ha??  July 29, 2010

Pretty sure I need an exorcist.  July 30, 2010

needs a babysitter. And a Leinenkugel.  August 11, 2010

I'm probably jinxing it, but sleep-training my easy, laid-back little boy is COMPLETELY different than when I did it with Miss Olivia 2.5 years ago!!! <sigh of relief>  August 28, 2010

Has really had to let go of my germophobia now that Olivia is potty-trained... I totally thought it would be the opposite but eeeewwwww... now that she can go herself! Not that I'm complaining, mind you...  September 2, 2010

This is going to be a loooooooong day...  September 3, 2010

REALLY needs to start a blog for all of these Olivia-isms and stories... my head is still spinning from our shoe-shopping trip today!  September 9, 2010

Sooooo excited for Jeff and Jamie's wedding today!!! Now kiddos... be good for your grandparents and stay healthy so Momma can have a much needed night out!!!! :)  September 11, 2010

Is REALLY not going to do well when other kids are mean to my babies. How in the WORLD do you do it, mommies and daddies?!?!?!???? I just cried on the way home from dropping her off at PRESCHOOL. She's TWO, guys... seriously. What will I do when she's a teenager????  September 17, 2010

Just had lots of snuggles with my boy... now waiting for Miss Serena to wake up so I can have snuggle time with her while my boy is sleeping! Ahh... babies. :)  September 21, 2010

God love my spirited child! Got my first call from school today... PREschool. Yep... happening already. She's a runner. And not a runner because she's sad and wants to escape. She's an ornery little stinker, is what she is! Laughing hysterically, running down the hall after she escaped the classroom... numerous times. God, give me strength...  September 22, 2010

Drinkin a Leinie (or 2... or maybe 3) for dinner... cuz it's been one of those days...  September 22, 2010

My baby girl is 3 years old today!! How did that happen?!?  November 10, 2010

Still cracking up at the fact that Olivia named her Elf on the Shelf "Dopey..." because "he looks like a Seven Dwarf." :) Sounds kind of funny saying "Dopey's watching..."  December 7, 2010

Thank GOD my sweet baby boy is feeling better today... rough night. :  December 9, 2010

Hmm... wonder how long I've had these Tinkerbell stickers stuck to my butt? We've been out and about today, so I'm hoping not too long. :)  December 15, 2010

So... Olivia is in her Snow White dress. She says "Mommy, you're the stepmother, and you're 'jelly' (jealous?) and heartless." Nice.  December 20, 2010

Getting ready to bake cookies for Santa with my Livykins. :)  December 23, 2010

After Olivia fed and napped her babydoll: "I'm the mama. And I'm the boss. Cuz mamas be bosses." J January 5, 2011

·           We are huge Justin Roberts fans in this house! If you love music, and your kids love music, you HAVE to see him! I'm not sure who had more fun, Olivia or Mommy! :) January 15, 2011
     
Wish I could have recorded Olivia's completely unprompted "Here we go Steelers, here we go!" cheer as she walked down the stairs... complete with a sort of fist-pumping, train whistle blowing motion. Priceless. January 18, 2011

I did it!

I finally started a blog. I've been wanting to for quite some time now... and after some coaxing from my wonderful friend, Sara, (who is an awesome blogger btw... I have alot to learn from her!) I finally did it! It's been hard to find the time to actually sit down and get started, but I know that I have to... if for no other reason than to start documenting this wonderful craziness that is being a mommy to these two kids! I have not been very good at journaling this chaotic, amazing, guessing game called parenting... and I have ALOT of material (those of you who know Olivia and her antics know what I mean). If friends and family want to follow us or check in and see what's going on in our world, welcome aboard! It's almost always sure to be a wild ride!!