We love Olivia around here

I've been MIA from this space for several weeks now, and every time I tell myself I'll sit down and edit some photos once I get the kids in bed, I inevitably get too tired by then and get stuck on the couch instead. Frankly, this pregnancy is taking its toll on me, and I'm definitely feeling it. I don't know how people in their 30s and 40s do it; I am in awe of them. I end up exhausted most days from the day's activities, and it doesn't help that I have a love/hate relationship with sleep, which complicates things so much more.

Some nights I wake up several times an hour, other nights I wake up in the middle of the night sometime and can't get back to sleep till morning. My bed has become a torture chamber of sorts. My pelvis hurts the worst at night because laying on my side for that long puts a lot of pressure on that side of my hip, so I have to switch sides often to lessen the pain. I also have to do it super, super slow or else the pain is just too strong, so I feel like a grandma who can't even turn in bed. Some nights are better than others, but the pain wakes me up frequently and I end up waking up in the morning, not well-rested, but needing a nap from the get-go. No fun.

I sleep with a pillow between my knees to keep my hips in a neutral position, and it helps so much. It used to be a regular pillow folded in half, but now I just stole a cushion off the couch because it's thicker. I also have to have a pillow under my belly for support, otherwise I wake up with a horrible backache. So that means every time I wake up to turn to the other side, I have to move both pillows with me before I can go back to sleep again.

I turn into such a baby when I'm pregnant, I swear. I feel like I'm whining just typing this stuff, but I am definitely not a fan of being pregnant, if you haven't noticed yet. :) Not my cup of tea, and I'm not afraid to admit it.

All that to say, I haven't had much time between napping and sluggishly getting through my days to blog. The good part is I've had plenty of opportunities to read when I'm just too exhausted to do much else, or I need to get tired enough to fall asleep (reading is always awesome for that), or I need to lie down because I'm having cramps again, which I get when I've overexerted myself. I'm a couple hundred pages away from finishing War and Peace, and the book is really moving right now. I hate that it took at least 500 pages into it for the story to really grab me, and now it's almost over when it's good. I'm kind of ready for some other subject matter, though, so I won't complain.

I wanted to share these adorable books with you guys that are a favorite in our household. We love the Olivia books! Olivia just loves that the little pig has her name, and her antics are just too cute, for kids and adults alike. My favorite part is how they combine drawn illustrations with real photos or famous artwork, and red, black, and white are prevalent in each book. Even the humor is meant to be funny for adults as well, which is pretty brilliant. I think we have every Olivia book there is.

So tell me, what are some favorites at your house? I would love to hear.

xoxo,
Tanya