Let's Get This Party Started

Maggie's new playroom is finally complete. It looks so great and Maggie absolutely loves it. She constantly asks to "go in my new playroom". It's pretty amazing how fast it came together and I'm quite proud of John that he did it all my himself (with a little help from some friends). Topping off party: TBA

A Visit with family

A few weeks ago we had a really nice visit with Jim, Mary, Kasey and Mackenzie while they were here for a soccer tournament (Go Kenzie Go!). Maggie had a great time visiting with her cousins and aunt and uncle. We got to see Mackenzie play some really great soccer and get cupcakes and go to the park with Kasey. We even got to see our buddies in Baltimore. It was a great weekend. We only wish it could have been longer.

We're on YouTube

I just posted some of Maggie's videos on www.youtube.com Go check them out and maybe if we get lots of views Maggie might end up on Good Morning America or The Today show! Just search for my username, MaggieMagoosMama, and the videos will come right up.

Happy St. Patricks Day

I promised I would be better about updating the blog and here we are...

Here's a quick post to get me back into the swing of things. Maggie and some friends enjoying the St. Patrick's Day parade in Gaithersburg.

Up to the moon...and back.

Tonight for the first time I put Maggie to bed without her nightly bottle. I've been working on getting her off bottles completely for some time now, but we started in earnest last week. With the holidays and all our time away I didn't feel like it was a good time until now. After her 15 month check up I was told to start the process and that very day I dropped the nap time bottle with no fuss at all. About a week later I tried to drop the morning bottle, but I caved after a few days. The truth is I, not Maggie, wasn't ready to give up bottles yet. Every time I thought about it it seemed as if no bottles suddenly meant she wasn't a baby anymore. It was too soon and I wasn't ready to give up that special time yet. I felt the same way when she weaned herself from nursing - she was ready and I wasn't.

So, last week we dropped the morning bottle and replaced it with a sippy cup. Much to my surprise she took the cup of milk on the second morning of the transition. Up until this point I hadn't been able to get her to drink milk from a sippy cup. She drinks about half while we have some snuggle time and then the rest at breakfast. All this week we've been heating her nighttime bottle less and less (she doesn't like a cold bottle) and last night she drank about 1/4 of it and pushed it away. We read two books, brushed our teeth and she went right to bed. So tonight was the final test - no bottle at all. She had her bath and got dressed for bed. We took our usual position in the rocking chair (she is asking for the baba at this point) and we sit down. I offer her a sippy cup of milk which she pushes away and after that she settles in with her thumb in her mouth as we read Guess How Much I Love You. The only protest I got was when I suggested we read Goodnight Moon (which we have read every night for her entire life!) and she cried and wanted to read Guess How Much one more time. Teeth were brushed and she met Monkey in the crib for a date to dream land.

So, I'm trying not to look at it as an ending, but a beginning. She is growing up so fast and I don't think she could ever guess just how much I love her.

A Catholic by nature

I just love this picture. This is Maggie outside of my neighbors house. She is fascinated with her statue of The Virgin Mary and without prompting walked up to it and gave it a kiss. I certainly reminds me to take a step back from the business of every day life and reexamine my faith.

Christmas Morning

We had a really nice Christmas in Albany this year. We said we weren't going to go overboard with gifts this year since Maggie is so young, but of course - we did! She got a Tickle Me Elmo (Extreme!) - it's hysterical to watch and she absolutely loves it. She also got a mini Dyson vacuum just like Mama's. Since we will likely be away from home most Christmases we've come up with a nice tradition for Maggie. Each year I buy her a special pair of Christmas PJ's and that will be how Santa knows where she is. Maggie really loves being with our families which is the best present we could ever ask for. Seeing her play with my nieces and nephews just like I did when they were her age makes very happy. Overall it was a bitter sweet Christmas without Grandpa there, but Maggie makes everything so much fun that you can't help but smile. We had a good time being with family and watching all of Maggie's antics.

What will you bring?

Dear 2011,
First let me say welcome! We're very glad to see you and to bid goodbye to your friend 2010, which was a very challenging time for our family. I have very high hopes for our relationship and promise to do my best to be my best this year. While I don't want to put too much burden on you in these first few days of your new position, I do have some requests:
1) Please keep our families and friends safe, happy, and healthy.
2) Help us to focus on what is truly important - love.
and finally...
3) Please lock Sarah Palin in Alaska and don't let her out.

With sincere thanks,
The O's

Going Viral

The Wally Spot has been know to my immediate family for a very long time, but for those of you who may not be aware here is a short description. Whenever my dad would pull into a crowded parking lot he always seemed to get that one spot right by the door. No matter how crowded the lot, he always got a good spot. It happened so often we started calling it a Wally Spot. It's been a lot of fun to see the 'Wally Spot' page on FB grow and see people post their own stories about getting a Wally Spot.

So this holiday season as you're doing that last minute shopping and you get that great spot, take a look up to the heavens and say 'thanks' because you just got a Wally Spot!

Here is a photo of a Wally Spot John got at Starbucks, during rush hour. As John said to me "Is it any wonder they're together!"

Peace. Joy. Love.

Our blog has been 'Out of Service' for some time now, but with the new year comes resolutions. So, we have resurrected our blog to facilitate our resolution to keep family close. We hope this will keep people better updated on the comings and goings of our little social butterfly.

Here's a quick wrap-up of all that Maggie has been up to:
-Talking, talking, talking! She repeats absolutely everything, but my favorite things she says are: please and thank you. I've never known a 17 month old to use those words so often and appropriately.
- Walking. She's been doing this since a little before her 1st birthday, but now she's really mastered it. She's working on climbing next.
- Family. Maggie loves looking at pictures of friends and family. She knows so many of her cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents and friends by name. She loves pointing out people in pictures.
- Loss. Unfortunately at only 17 months old Maggie has already experienced the loss of two grandparents. We're grateful that she is too young to understand and that her smile gets us through each day.

40 Week Picture

Here I am at what should have been 40 weeks pregnant - surprise, where there was a big belly there now is a little Maggie! Big changes coming to the blog soon. Now that Maggie is here she can start doing her own blog entries. And of course we are no longer "Waiting for Baby O", so a title change is on the way too. Keep checking back!

37 Week Picture

So, I know we got a little lazy at the end with posting my belly pics, but here is the last one we took. It's me at 37 weeks and 5 days in the hospital waiting for Maggie to get here. She just couldn't wait any longer, she HAD to get here a few weeks early. It was a lot of hard work, but she was definitely worth it. Pictures of Maggie coming soon...

Here it is...Maggies room

So even though she is not going to be sleeping in here for a while, here is what she has to look forward too. Lots of pink! Ill bet you want pictures of the baby don't you? Well just hold on a second.

Willa likes the baby's room

We were putting up some finishing touches in the baby's room yesterday - well, John was putting up some finishing touches while I supervised from the comfort of our new glider rocker, when Willa comes running in with one of her favorite toys (her "baby" that she carries around). She sat on the floor contentedly playing with her toy while we worked. Isn't she just adorable!

35 Week Picture

I'm getting caught up on posting my belly pictures. Here I am at 35 weeks - my God just when I think my belly can't get any bigger it does! I'm still feeling good in general, except for this pesky pain in my neck (No not John. It's an actual pain in my neck.) This is a preexisting ailment which I think is flaring up because of all the extra weight. I go back for my weekly appointment on Monday and I'm hopeful that my doctor can refer me to someone who can help with the pain. Unfortunately all I can take is Tylenol and that doesn't do much for muscle aches. This injury has added a new level of complication to my already restricted state of movement (and sleep!).

I've been thinking

Not that this is something new, but I've been thinking about my mom a lot. I just can't help but wonder what advice she would have given me at this point; how she would feel right now on the verge of seeing her baby have a baby; what would her face look like as she held my daughter, her 20th grandchild. It's harder than I ever could have known to not have her here, particularly right now. This feeling of loss doesn't get any better or any easier. I still shake my head at least once a day because I really just can't believe she isn't here and that she won't be here when my little girl arrives.

I love you Mom and I miss you so much.

34 Week Picture

Ok, so I'm still a little behind on posting my belly pictures. With less than a month to go things are really starting to get busy. So here I am at 34 weeks. As you can see Willa is just thrilled about the baby! I went to the OB yesterday and I'm now officially on the once a week plan until I deliver. Everything still looks good. She is really active, although it's a different kind of movement now that she is getting bigger. I feel a lot of rolling, or a foot sliding across my belly. My belly changes shapes on an hourly basis! It's really just amazing to me that in a few short weeks she'll be here! There will be an actual baby in this house. For so long now it has felt like this idea just floating out there and now it's getting more real every day.

Yesterday I also met with the Birth Advisor at the hospital where I will deliver. She was very nice and put my mind at ease about a lot of things. Overall I feel well prepared for the delivery - mostly because I know I can't control what happens. It's all about managing my expectations. I'm just ready to meet our daughter!

Look at That Little Face!

So Erin went for her ultrasound last week, and we got some great pictures.

I think the first picture is the coolest, I don't know how it will translate to the web, but you can totally see her little face (in this picture it looks like shes lying on her left).

In the second picture you can see how much hair she has already. As she is floating in fluid, the hair is sticking straight up. I'm sure shes going to cost me a fortune at the salon ...just like her mother.

33 Week Picture

Sorry, no 32 weeks picture. We got busy and missed our window of opportunity, but here I am at 33 weeks. Yikes - I'm really getting big! Believe me I definitely feel it. Way back when I was in the 20's I thought I was starting to get uncomfortable, but that was nothing! I laugh at myself. Now, I'm lucky if I can find a comfortable position to sleep in, but even when I do I have to get up at least 2 times a night to go to the bathroom. Not that I'm complaining. I have had a relatively easy pregnancy and I know I'm lucky. For the most part I feel good and I still like being pregnant.

Something I was expecting to happen during pregnancy that hasn't happened too much is all the unsolicited help your supposed to get from strangers. I haven't really had a lot of experience with that. I've seen some people look at me like they should help, but they usually just keep going. Twice I've loaded a 20lb bag of dog food in my car while a male PetSmart employee looked on yet offered no help. Maybe I just look exceptionally fit and capable or maybe it's because people in this area don't really care. Who knows? The good news is I've managed just fine so far. Thankfully John does all the heavy lifting when he's around - including going up the stairs to the kitchen to get me a Popsicle. Mmmmm, I like popsicles!

It's Definitely a Girl!

I went to the OB yesterday for my 34 week check up and ultrasound. I'm now going every two weeks and after my next visit it will be weekly. Everything looks great. She is growing at a good rate and currently weighs about 5lbs 2oz. She's moving around a lot, although she doesn't really have the room to do a lot of big karate kicks anymore. I mostly feel her rolling around and moving her arms and legs. The best news from yesterday is that her head is down and it doesn't look likely that she will move from that position - yay! It was really good to see her - it's been about 14 weeks and I liked checking in on her. I got to see her opening and closing her mouth and sticking her tongue out (she's being fresh already). Her room is almost ready. We've got all the furniture set-up, bedding is washed and on the mattress, and now we just need to put on some finishing touches. I'll post pictures later in the week of both the ultrasound and the progress on the nursery.

Is it possible for this to be going so fast and so slow all at the same time?