6 Months

Olivia is 6 months old! Wow, that flew by. My friend Rachel says the days drag on and the years fly by... I'm starting to agree. Olivia is getting better at rolling over, to the point where we have to be careful now where we set her down. She's getting a little better at sitting, too, but still needs assistance. I am told that babies this age should be saying repeated syllables (ba-ba-ba, da-da-da, etc) but Livi isn't there yet and that's fine with me. She looooves the doorway jumper and will stay in it for... ahem... at least an hour. Jumpy-jump, jumpy-jump, jump and twirl... I want to (but probably won't get around to) post a video of that set to "Cotton-Eyed Joe" because it looks like a hoedown.

What else is new? Lots of drool, everything goes in the mouth (toes!), no teeth yet. She likes to stand on your lap, and her legs will give way which looks like she's dancing. I ordered a book on baby food to hopefully give me a little more guidance on introducing solids and how and when and how much. Solids are annoying, but I have started to notice that bottles aren't lasting as long and she wants MOAR! It's time.

Last weekend was gorgeous and Steve was home from his trip so we were happy to have low-key visitors, my friend Cheryl from Delaware and her man Jeff. Cheryl is one of people that I just click with and I can't always figure out why. Jewelry-making aside, we even vacation well together and that says a lot. On Saturday we all went to a beer festival and sampled microbrews from all over the country. My favorite was not beer (big surprise) but Woodchuck cider. Then we went to Sweetwater Tavern, one of our favorite restaurants. My goal for the week: try and recreate their mixed greens salad... grilled chicken, romaine, craisins, pine nuts, dates, chevre, grilled corn, and champagne vinaigrette. (For those of you who love the IJ Canns salad, it is exactly the same - right down to the "sun dried" cranberries - and I don't know who copied whom.)

Steve had a meeting in Delaware this morning, so Olivia and I tagged along. Unfortunately yesterday morning I noticed a little patch of blisters on my hand and a small lump on my lip, and this morning my lips were swollen with what I have determined to be poison ivy. Again. I have no idea how I got it this time, especially on my lip. At 1:30 I decided it was bad enough to curtail my Delaware visit and call my doctor's office in Virginia. They had an opening at 4:30, exactly the time I needed to make the trip home. (Steve took the train.) It was nap time for Olivia anyway, and I made the tough decision not to stop and feed her until she complained. She ended up sleeping the entire. Way. Home. Such a trooper. Meanwhile I had called my mom and asked for her to meet me and watch Livi during my appointment, so she graciously came and fed my starving child, played dress-up with a new outfit she had finished, and gave OJ a stuffed rabbit Mom brought home from last week's visit with my aunt. (Thanks, Ruth!) Seeing that makes me realize that I'm not just nagging her to babysit; she loves my girl. I hope grandchildren are as much of a blessing to her as she is to me. Anyway, the PA prescribed an oral steroid and I'm hoping it takes effect before my lips explode. Seriously, who gets poison ivy on their lips?

So to my Delaware pals, I wish I had more time there so I could catch up with more of you. We did manage to squeeze in another visit with Cheryl and Jeff last night at beloved Cheeseburger in Paradise (there's never enough time with her). And Steve and I had more cheeseburgers at Jake's today before Olivia and I drove home. Sensing a theme? Hopefully the next time we'll have more time to visit.

A little more about the DE trip is over on my jewelry blog...