The view from here.

I'm declaring today a day of rest.

Much needed around here. As you may have {or maybe not?} I went back to work last week.

And boy, I forgot how tiring my job was.

I am exhausted.

Olivia rested much better last night.

I think we may have broken the fever for good.

It spiked to 104.1 Sunday and Monday {working on a post for that, coming soon}

So for now, this is where I can be found.

In my bed,

with Olivia,

resting.

P.S.

I'm going to try {yet again} to complete those precious photo-a-day challenge this month.

I'm sure everyone's seen the one I'll be following.

I plan to do a weekly post, on Sunday's maybe?

I really think these are a great way to document the everyday. Sure, I take tons of pictures of Olivia, but following these prompts helps me to capture the world around us right now.

P.S.S.

Speaking of documenting life.

Thanks to a handy Shutterfly coupon I finally finished a little photo book with some of my Project Life 2011 photos.

I didn't use all of them, I wanted something small that I could carry with me.

I think I'm going to make one for Olivia.

She's really enjoying looking at pictures now, and she loves books.

Click here to look at the entire book.

What makes my world go round.

Let me warn you, I'm THAT mom. The mom that has every moment of every day mapped out. {Now, that doesn't mean our days always go according to plan. But there's always a plan.} I'm addicted to organizing. I cannot live with out my planner. Simply put- if you need me to do something or be somewhere for you, you better make sure it gets put into my planner; otherwise it probably isn't going to happen. I don't mean for that to sound hateful, it's just that I have so many things swarming in my head at any given moment, there's just too much opportunity for something to get lost in the shuffle. And I don't want anyone to feel as though they've been lost in the shuffle. Enter the planner.

My planner is a scary place unless you understand the system. I am a firm believer in color coding and list making. In my planner on any given day there may be a list of calls to make, important notes about Chance's day, appointments, chores I need to do. The list could go on forever. I've also instituted a color coding system. Each family member has their own color, family events have a color, bills have a color and the blog has a color.

One of the most beneficial ways I have used my planners in the past 15 months however, is not to keep track of upcoming events. But to journal new and exciting things Olivia has done. I'm embarrassed to say that Olivia's baby book has barely even been started. {To my defense I worked 60+ hours a week the entire first year of her life, and only now feel as though I'm BEGINNING to catch up.} So, my planner has been a wonderful tool to keep up will all of the milestones and cute moments of her first 15 months. I wanted to remember everything!

Today I get to switch to a new planner. It's something I look forward to every July. I know it's probably silly to most people- but it's something that has helped me as a mom more than I can explain. And if I can help even one mommy who's life is feeling a bit scattered, then that's enough for me.

-- Olivia has her 15 month well visit today. Shots, ugh! I've always done fairly well with them. But I'm anxious about today. Say a prayer for us- that all IS well, and that she handles her shots well. Thanks friends!