Our sweet girl turned FOUR MONTHS old on July 12th, and I’m finally able to sit down and write up her monthly update post!  July has been a busy month for all of us here at L&S, and we are looking forward to two wonderful and unique weddings this weekend: one in Malibu and one in SLO.  Amidst all the busy-ness, I have been loving every moment with my little Olive.  She is my constant companion and I am blessed and thankful to spend my days with her.  It is a gift to be able to work from home where I can personally care for and nurture my darling babygirl.

A typical day for us includes a walk on our beloved forest-to-ocean trail, a giggle-filled lunch with Daddy, a dramatic reading of “Olivia” or another children’s book, and a hilarious bathtime that always leaves me drenched.  Olive LOVES to splash around and I think she receives special delight in getting mama covered in water, too.  ;-)

Olive’s fourth month has been especially marked by increased vocalization… aka she is continuously babbling and shrieking and screeching.  I never tire of her outbursts…  They crack me up!  Erik and I think she’s already trying to imitate our sounds.

Olive’s four month updates…

• At 4 months and 12 days (her 4 month check up), she weighed 14 lbs and 9 oz.  (61st percentile)
• She is 25″ long — coming in at the 67th percentile
• We celebrated Father’s Day with a seaside stroll and Mexican food: Daddy’s favorite
• We traveled to Ojai where she was a flower girl (aka just a cute baby in a cute dress) in her aunt Anna’s (and uncle Sean’s!) wedding.
• She turned 100 days old!  This milestone is called “baek-il” in Korean.
• She lounged by the pool (but didn’t get in it yet…) in her first bathing suit.
• We road-tripped to Palm Springs and Idyllwild.
• Olive saw her first fireworks on the 4th of July, with some headphones to protect her little ears!  She was captivated.
• She went to her first drive-in movie with Mommy & Daddy (double feature: The Amazing Spiderman and Men In Black 3)
• She started putting EVERYTHING in her mouth… She is exploring the world by taste, it seems!
• She began “army-crawling” on her belly!  It is insane.  I cannot believe that in a couple months she’ll be up on all fours and scrambling everywhere!  She’s most efficient when she’s shimmying toward her Daddy.  <3
• She’s sleeping pretty consistently 8+ hours a night now.  If she does wake up, it’s once around 2a, for about 5 minutes.

I included some photos of Olive on Father’s Day in the last post — whoops!  That was technically past her 3 month-day.  ;-)  Here are some photos from month four, mostly via Instagram.  Follow me here! (@loveandsplendor)

Sweet Olive — My heart bursts when I look at you.  I told Daddy today that I can’t go a day without kissing you at least 100 times.  Seriously.  You are pure joy wrapped up in cuteness.  Everywhere we go, people have been talking about how you have “eyes for Mama.”  It’s true that you can spot me across a room, and your eyes just lock on me.  Daddy even gets jealous sometimes and says I’m distracting you from his time with you.  ;-)  When our eyes meet, time slows down just a little bit.  I am taken aback by both my deep love for you and also the responsibility I have as the mother of such a precious girl.  I feel like we can already connect in a meaningful way, even through something as simple as a glance.

I love the way you love me.  Of course at this age, you love me because I am the silly face that feeds you, bathes you, and is always doing something ridiculous to make you laugh.  I don’t mind embarrassing myself to make you laugh.  It is a labor of love to care for you, sweet girl.  I cherish every moment of it and being a mother is the most joyful role I have taken on, second only to being your Daddy’s wife.  (Oh, how I pray you would one day find and marry a man who is as wonderful as your Daddy.)  Over the next 18ish years, I look forward to sharing amazing experiences with you.  From the everyday chats we’ll have after school to the heart-to-hearts late at night in your room, to the vacations we hope to take you on and the Savior we will tell you all about, there is much in store for us.  And I hope that even 18ish years from now, you will spot me across a room and we will still share those knowing glances.  You will always have a special part of my heart.  I love you wholeheartedly, Olivia Iris.  xoxo, your blessed Mama

Thanks to each of you for stopping by the blog!!  ;-)  Make sure to hop on Instagram this weekend for sneak peeks at our weddings and we will see you again soon… xoxo, Angel

xoxo, Angel