A Week Without Aidan

So, it's been awhile. I know I've said that before. I apologize. Lately it's been hard to find the time to sit and write, and when I do find the time, it's hard to work up the motivation. I will try to get caught up soon, I promise.

August started off with a last minute trip to Iowa for the kids and I. My brother and his son were down from Alaska for the Boy Scout Jamboree in Virginia. Since I hadn't seen Zac since he was the ring bearer in my wedding, I figured I should make the effort to go see them. This led to another last minute trip, but for Aidan alone. We had been talking to Nana and Grandpa about Aidan going to spend a week with them. Aidan was very excited about this idea and since we were heading North, it seemed like a good a time as any. We packed up, and after a little bit of hesitation from Aidan, we were off to meet Nana in Iowa City. From there, Olivia and I went off to my parents' house for an overnight visit. We expected to go get Aidan on Sunday. (This was Thursday afternoon.) Sunday came and went, and no Aidan. It was decided that he wanted to stay the rest of the week. As he told Nana, "I don't want to live here. I just want to stay this week. But you can come live with us. " Gotta love that boy's sense of humor. At first I really missed him but, the week gave me an opportunity to spend quality time with Olivia. I was able to really get to know her personality and give her my full attention. My mother-in-law always remarks what a happy baby Olivia is and I always thought to myself that she couldn't be that happy. Being busy with paying bills, cleaning, errands, playgroup, and Aidan (who I realized that week hijacks a lot of my attention) I usually notice the crying and fussing she does. Not so much the smiles and her laid back nature. During the week, I realized what she was talking about. Olivia is a really laid back toddler. She's a smiley, outgoing, fearless, funny little girl. And a complete daddy's girl but we'll talk about that later. The week alone was also the perfect time to say goodbye to bottles. The switch to milk started out rough. Olivia wasn't sold on the idea and was attached to her bottles. Julien and I were able to focus both our attention on making the switch completely. By the end of the week, we had stopped mixing milk in with the formula and stopped using bottles altogether. It feels really great to be done with formula and bottles forever. I have to admit, it was a little sad to throw out that last container of formula, especially since it was half full and that stuff's expensive, however I gladly welcome this new chapter for our family. And carrying a sippy cup of milk in the diaper bag is SO much easier than all the fixings for bottles. That Olivia is a big girl. Walking all the time now, using a sippy cup, even trying out forks and spoons. I had so much fun hanging out and playing with her. What a great week. And I now I can say I really know who she is.