Early birthday party - 3 years old!

This past weekend, we had a birthday party for Oliver with a few friends and family members.  Since O's birthday falls on Memorial Day weekend, we didn't want to hold people hostage in case they had plans already.

A side note, I am going to be uploading videos to YouTube now.  For some reason, Vimeo does not think my videos are valid files.  I've also updated my YouTube channel so that my prior videos are public, however it made them out of order.  Just a little FYI for you.  :-)

One of Oliver's request was for pumpkin pie (in May, sure, why not?), but we of course had cupcakes. 

One of his gifts was a parachute.  Since we had enough people, we broke it out.  I love how Oliver just walks right through it like it wasn't even going up and down!

We all had a great time.  Oliver loves his new toys and enjoyed the day.

Bonus video of my mom with Oliver playing with Zurg!

New year - new hair

I hope everyone had a wonderful new years!  Oliver rang it in with his FIRST HAIRCUT.  Based on recommendations, we went to The Salon at Kids Club in U Village.  

We were delighted to see that Oliver got to sit in a car while getting his hair cut.  He was pretty delighted, too.  :-)
 

Tim told me before-hand that he was going to be the one to tell how he wants it cut.  Being the loving wife that I am, I LET him have free reign.  ;-)  He wanted to get the sides and back cleaned up but not too short, and just a little bit off the top.  Tim really likes it the way it was, but just a bit shorter.  He didn't want him to look like a doofus.

Pre-haircut:

The lady who cut his hair was VERY good.  She worked quickly on this moving target.  Luckily Oliver didn't mind at all, as he was busy playing with the car and having a snack.

         

The after shot looks pretty similar - since his hair is so light, it's hard to see it anyway!

Here is a bonus video.  Oliver has been "talking" a lot lately.  Here is just a snippet of him telling me things (and climbing on the couch).

I hope everyone had a wonderful new years!  Tim and I had a good 2011 and are looking forward to 2012 when you-know-who turns 2! 

Oliver, aka the walking machine

I was going to update on how I am sick again, but it's really OLIVER who is the sick one.  We were notified by Oliver's daycare that the coxsackie virus, aka, hand, foot & mouth disease, was going around.  We thought little man was in the clear until he was up with a fever last night and had spots on his face, hands, and feet this morning.  :-(

So he is now at home today resting up. 

On to happier note, Oliver is officially a walker!  Yeay!  We went to a local event on Saturday down at the spray park, and Oliver actually walked around just like all the other kids.  I tried to get him to pose with Tim, but he was so distracted.  :-)

A few other cute photos over the past couple of days... first he shows us his new toy - the ever popular corn popper (I think it is LOUDER than it used to be).  He then shows us how awesome sand is.  He hearts Golden Gardens.

                  

G'Gpa was nice enough to buy Oliver some SHOES.  He was in need of them badly since he is walking now, but we haven't found any that fit his chubby little feet. 

Sunday, Oliver visited my mom's friends, Susan and Joe.  They have transformed this sandbox into a wading pool, which Oliver gives the thumbs up on!  Susan is entertaining Oliver with bubbles. :-)



So pre-sickness, Oliver has had a great couple of last days.  It's been SOOOO nice and warm!  One last video of Oliver rocking out on a box.

Weekend!

This weekend, we all laid low as I am still getting over this cold, and Tim was just picking it up.  On Sunday, Oliver was very sleepy all day, so this was fine by him.

Just giving an update on his walking.  He seems to do a bit more of it now at home (where he is most comfortable).  He's also been practicing standing up on his own without holding on to anything. 

He's getting quite good, yes?  He turns 15 months on Thursday!  I cannot believe how time has flown by.  Love this little dude so much.  

BabyLegs & milestone!

Remember a while back when Oliver was in a photo shoot for BabyLegs?  We got the photos that were taken, and we were ecstatic to see that not only was he in the Fall 2011 catalog, but he is also on the website!  This changes periodically, but he is currently at the top of the "Collections" page, here.

Here are some that I thought were also pretty cute.  I gotta print some of these for sure!

We also had quite the shock Wednesday night.  Oliver took his first steps!  Gah!  Only got a little snippet from my phone (sorry Tim, it's on youtube), but we were all so excited.  Since Wednesday he still will go only from person to person, but I'm sure it's only a matter of time before he is sprinting around. 

Oliver's 1st birthday party!

Oliver turns the big ONE on Wednesday, but we celebrated his birthday on Sunday (since no one likes mid-week parties, including myself).  We prayed and prayed for good weather, and although it was partly sunny, it was the wind that drove us to a quick party. 

I've heard everyone had a wonderful time - I was very very busy, and felt like I barely spoke with anyone.  So if I didn't say much or anything to anyone, I am sorry in advance.  I also didn't take too many photos.  Some of these are from my mom's camera (click to enlarge). 

I'm pretty sure Oliver's favorite part of his b-day party was my dad pulling him around in the wagon.  He liked it best when he was in a full sprint!  Luckily, no babies were harmed.  Just big smiles.

          

We were all bundled up (except my brother, who never gets cold, apparently). 
 

         

It was cupcake time - my mom made two different kinds.  Oliver enjoyed a yellow cake with chocolate frosting.  

           



Oliver then very delicately ate sucked on the cupcake like a vampire.  He did eventually eat the whole thing, but it did take a while. 

He nommed and nommed on his little hand like that for a long time.  

This was about the dirtiest he got.  Kept it pretty clean, there, Oliver!   We wrapped it up a bit after that, deciding that Oliver was cold enough.  After a warming bath, Oliver opened up his presents!  He loved immediately playing with all the toys as soon as they came out of a bag or were unwrapped.  He got some nice new toys and clothes and money for college. 

Tim and I were just WIPED after all the activities of yesterday, and so was Oliver, so we all called it an early night and went to bed.

I cannot believe this year has flown by already!  More birthday updates as they come about!

Oliver is legit!

On the suggestion of my mom, I submitted the spaghetti video to icanhascheezburger and sure enough, they thought he was cute, too!!

http://babies.icanhascheezburger.com/2011/03/18/funny-kids-pictures-spaghetti/

Another first for the little man!

This weekend, Tim, Oliver, and I had a first.  Oliver's first overnight away from me and Tim!  Gah!  Tim and I went to a joint birthday party for two of our close friends, and decided that we would benefit by having an adult night out, and Oliver would get some quality time in with my Dad and Jana (Grandpa Carl and Granny, to little O).  Tim and I were very nervous about the whole thing - almost 10 months of the little man every night and every morning - but we did enjoy coming home and just being able to crash and sleep in (note: I still did not sleep in.  Argh.).

So Tim and I went and got Sunday brunch, did some cleaning, and a little bit of grocery shopping before they dropped him off.  The report?  Oliver was perfect.  ::whew::  I was so concerned he was going to be crying uncontrollably or something but he was normal and stuck to his same routine.  He even got an open invitation back, so I suppose that means it went REALLY well.  Yeay!

So little man was back and after a barrage of smooches from Tim and me, we had some play time. 

Always a good time when Daddy is behind the camera!

And although Oliver did not get to bed until very late - thank you Daylight Savings Time - it was wonderful to spend some extra time with the little guy.

Lots of new stuff

First a caveat that Tim and I are, in fact, not insane.  

Oliver has mastered clapping (which so far has not gotten old), and after every time he clapped, we would say, "You did it!" or "I did it!"  And soon, it started to sound like HE was saying it, too.  I know he doesn't know what he is saying, but seriously.  I caught a little bit of it on video (but definitely not the clearest rendition). 

Well?  Did you hear it?  Or are Tim and I like those people, as my mom puts it, "who look for Jesus in burnt toast."  

Okay, yeah, and the clapping thing is just too adorable.  

I also got a much better picture of Oliver's teeth - pay no attention to the acorn squash around his mouth.   

One last new item is that Oliver had his first bit of chicken this weekend (which he thought was delicious).  First protein!  Yep!  He is growing up TOO fast.

Teeth count: 2

Less than 2 weeks since #1 tooth popped through, tooth #2 made it's debut on Friday!  So far, I have only been able to capture those pearly whites with my camera phone...

He hasn't been grumpy or fussy at all about the whole thing, so seeing another tooth was quite a surprise.  He has turned the drool factor up to the max.  Another cute pic of the little man..

Sunday, it was pretty nice out (especially compared to the windy day we had Saturday), so Tim, O, and I went down to the Ballard Farmer's Market.  Oliver had a lot of things to look at - his favorite was the street musicians.  Even though he is almost 9 months old, he still gets looks and compliments from strangers!  "Oh, what a cute little guy!" 

Lastly, a video of Oliver watching "Wheel of Fortune."  Something about the colors and spinning wheel really catches his attention. 

Do you see what I see?

Do you see something different about this little guy?

 

No?  Let's zoom in a bit.  On the mouth.

 

 Okay, so it isn't much, but there is a tooth!  Yeah!  Oliver says, "Oh yeah!"

Alright! 

Je déteste le ventre.

Per Google Translate, the above title in English is, "I hate tummy time." You would think after 8 months Oliver would understand that if he kept his knees under him, he would get moving! As of late, here is typical tummy time.

Oliver up on his hands, and kicks his feet. We attempt to hold up his belly to get his knees under him, but, no dice.

After a few minutes of this, Oliver knows the maneuver to escape tummy time - rolling to his back!

Oliver is now kicking and throwing his hands around, excited that he is done!

Mommy has been defeated again.

And although tummy time is protested greatly, he loves to stand and pull (sometimes tries to) himself up. Last night, he was doing it on the sides of his crib.

The king of sitting

Well, maybe not yet. It is amazing to see how he is getting to control his balance. Just thinking back to a week ago, he could not sit up this well. What a big boy.

Here's a video showing him sitting on the bed while Tim and I were putting the sheets on.

A few minutes prior, he was playing with his BFF Spike. Oliver is really taking to him, although we are doing our best to not have him grab a chunk of cat flesh... luckily Spike is pretty easy going, but I know one of these days, he will tell Oliver, "No more!"

First pureed food!

Now that Little O is feeling well, we are starting on the "solids" train! Solids in air quotes, because it's just puree and rice cereal. I pureed the pears we got in our CSA box. I first lightly boiled them to soften them up, and then put them in the blender with a little bit of water. A few seconds later, delicious, puree pears!