O Screams for Ice Cream

Olivia is back on her ice cream habit. Here are two recent indulgences. She demands seconds and begs for thirds. Our New Year’s resolution? Convincing our daughter that frozen yogurt is “ice cream.”

Happy Family

We’ve noticed that for whatever reason, the phrase “Happy Family” shows up a lot in Chinese restaurants, whether it names the place or a dish (often vegetarian) on its menu. Here Olivia and mama do their best imitation of a Chinese restaurant.

Extreme Close-Up

Olivia shows that although she has not yet grasped basic camera skills, she’ll go cross-eyed and backwards to capture the best shot.

Santa Baby

Our little one must have been good this year – her pile of presents threatened to overtake our tree by Christmas morn. She got a castle set, at least four Elmos, a number of books, and most excitingly, a plastic pony. I was not as fortunate. Aside from all the nice gifts I received, I also got a nasty case of the stomach flu. I spent the entire day wrapped in blankets.

Sweet-Tooth Fairy

Olivia couldn’t resist the pepperminty trips down Candy Cane Lane. She repeatedly raided our stockings and pillaged the candy dish in pursuit of the curved confections.

Bring Your Daughter to Work Day

Beni and I have worked out a sleep exchange – she lets me snore away when Olivia awakes in the night, and in return I let her sleep in when Olivia’s ready to face the day. I think it must be a better deal for me because Beni spends most mornings trying to convince me that it’s Bring Your Daughter to Work Day – again. This is from a recent office visit by our pink-clad, pigtailed princess.

Don We Now Our Gay (i.e., Rainbowed) Apparel

An exuberant Olivia and her ebullient mama deck the halls with their colorful clothing. This year, our ruddy-cheeked daughter is hoping to beat out Rudolph, the reigning (rein-ing?) champ, in the Reddest Facial Feature contest.

Tree Bien

Sleigh rides, Santa pics, Christmas music, crafts, and a chocolate fountain (which now sits atop my “Reason for the Season” list) – all free of charge at the local pavilion. It’s a wonderful life, indeed. Olivia, while hesitant at first, eventually got crafty wit’ it.

Keeping the Más in Christmas

“More, more” is O’s favorite phrase and baby sign. She says it a lot when she’s eating, especially when declaring war on the Christmas Chili (vegetarian chili featuring red and green peppers). Here she’s capping her meal with yet another cornbread muffin.

I Saw Mommy Dissing Santa Claus

Bundled buddies A.J. and Olivia waited patiently for Santa to make his way down the parade route, but in the end, their moms couldn’t wait out the cold. Fortunately, St. Nick puts in hours at the local mall.

O’s Christmas Tree, O’s Christmas Tree…

…How steadfast are your branches! (Also acceptable if you were singing along: How are thy leaves so verdant?) Whether your branches strong or leaves green, nothing ushers in the holiday season like the ornamentation of the Christmas tree. Olivia, apprenticing under G in Yuletide merriment, caught on to the decorations-on-tree concept quickly.

Mirror, Mirror...

…mirror, mirror, mirror, mirror all around, who’s the fairest in the town? My new favorite photo – Olivia practicing her saunter-crawl down the hexagonal runway at the Children’s Discovery Museum.