Oliver is One!

We had a fun celebration of Ollie's first birthday full of family, friends, tasty eats, local brew, and - of course - cake! Here are a few photos from the celebration (with a photo credit to our talented friend Ryan Carlson who brought along his camera and helped us capture the day).

The cake was a big hit!

Happy birthday boy

Reading one of his favorite books, "DOG," with Dad.

Big Brother, Isaac

Brothers - "posed"

Brothers - "real life"

Our other sweet boy

Isaac was more than happy to help put together Ollie's new toys 

Balloons! He was equally excited and scared by them...

family

grandma!

Capturing a few stats... my "guesses" for height and weight were right on! A couple days later he weighed 28 lbs and measured 32 " tall at his doctor's appointment (99 percentile).

There are a few more photos of the day in this online photo album (click here).

Happy birthday, Oliver!

11 Months Old [Oliver]

Hi, it's Oliver here again.

I'm 11 months! My Mom says I am growing so fast, although I am just excited to wake up each day to explore something new. Forget crawling. I haven't done that in weeks. I am on to walking and running. Yup - running. It's fun to see my mom run after me when I am getting in to the dog's bowl or trying to go down stairs.

This month, I am really working on telling my mom, dad, and brother what I mean. For example, I can say "Dada," "Isaac," and sometimes "Mamma." I also click for the dog (like Mom and Dad do) and I say "Uff" to dogs I see on our daily walks. I use my hands to say I want milk, that I'm all done with food, and that I want help. I also find pointing to be very effective, and I love to wave hello or goodbye. Oh, and it is so fun to clap at my accomplishments, or just clap when others clap too!

My favorite  activities this month are looking at family photos, playing with balls, reading books, and anything to do with water. I also love sneaking into the bathroom to lift the toilet lid and watching my mom chase after me frantically. That is the best!

Oh, and come to my first birthday party. My mom says it will be kick a$$.

10 Months Old [Oliver]

Look who is 10 months old! The big themes this month have been mobility, communication, and free will.

Oliver is fully walking now. He is able to get up and down without holding on to anything, can start and stop fairly well, and is starting to pivot. He is still faster crawling, although seems to favor walking. It's still a trip to see him waddling down the hall or across the room.

He is also communicating so much, and boy is he vocal! He is pointing, grunting, and babbling a lot. He started clapping (adorable) and we're working on a few sign language words with him. He did the sign for milk today, which was so cool, and as soon as he wakes up he points to where he wants to go - which is usually outside.

Along with mobility and communication is a sense of independence and free will. He is an opinionated little guy and lets us know what he wants.

Oh, and he now has four teeth!

I feel like he is growing and changing so fast right now. We love getting to know his little (big) personality, and can't believe he'll be one in a couple short months!

A few outtakes...

9 Months Old [Oliver]

Oliver is 9 months old!

At his appointment this week, our big little dude weighed 26 lbs and measured 31" (staying at the 99th percentile for height and weight).

He is a crawling and cruising machine. And, he took his first solo steps this week! 

He is charming, assertive, funny, inquisitive, and such a joy.

8 Months Old and On the Move! [Oliver]

Oliver here.

My Mom is pretty busy chasing me around the house, so she asked I write an update about what I've been up to (I wrote one at 6 months, too. See that post here).

Well, I am 8 months now. Which feels pretty big because I am doing some pretty cool stuff. For example, I figured out how to move around the house... on my own! At first, I figured out I could pull up, stand, and move my legs to get around. My mom sure looked surprised (and pleased) when she saw me standing in my crib that first morning...

After I mastered cruising around on foot, I figured I'd finally try that thing they call crawling. I got the hang of it this month, although I much prefer to stand up if I can (see videos below that my mom uploaded).

My favorite things this month are:

• Playing "take the ball" with the dog
• Grabbing big brother's toys when no one is looking (I've got a ninja-speed grip)
• Harassing the doggy (who I call "augh")
• Babbling in different sounds and consonants
• Following the doggy
• Laughing with big brother
• Pulling at the doggy's ears
• Pulling at mommy's hair
• Waving and clapping
• Figuring out how objects go together (like sunglasses go on on daddy's head) and sharing objects (like giving the doggy his ball, or a piece of food...)

Can you tell I really like the doggy?

Well, I'm off to bedtime. My parents have me on a pretty set schedule these days, but I feel very rested and only wake my mom once or twice at night to eat. 

Also, I will have my Mom write soon about our recent adventures to the Tri-Cities. So check back soon for a new update.

Until next month!

Ollie

7 Months [Oliver]

It seems like just yesterday Oliver was born, and yet here we are with a 7 month old! Where did the time go?

Every day Oliver is getting more mobile, more animated, and more fun!

This month he is:

• Pulling up easily from a sit to a stand, then cruising around the furniture. (He's far less interested in being on his tummy. He will get up to all fours, but shows no real interest in crawling. He is super happy standing, though. Maybe he'll skip crawling altogether?)

• Laughing and giggling a lot, and making a lot of different sounds (see video below).

• Eating more of a variety of foods, and starting on some finger foods. He's great at asking for more by touching our arm, or waving his arms up and down.

• Sleeping through the night! We implemented the "Sleep Sense" program, and it worked wonders. We're on a consistent schedule and we're all getting so much more rest.

What else are we up to? Well, Eric started a new job this month. Here is Oliver cheering for his dad.

It helps to know that when Dad says this ("Did Daddy Nail It? Nailed It!") it gets a huge giggle from Oliver, just as it did from Isaac.

Ollie also likes to "help" Mom with conference calls.

And, here we are enjoying the sunny spring weather.

6 Months - Weighing In [Oliver]

Last week, Oliver wrote an update about being half a year old. As a follow up, here are Oliver's "official" 6-month stats.

Weight:      22 lb 5 oz (99th percentile)

Height:       28.75" (99th percentile)

Head Cir:    45.5 cm (96th percentile)

He's a big boy, but as our doctor noted - at least he's proportional. And, like his brother at 6 months, he's doing great developmentally.

I love watching his personality come to life. If I had to describe Ollie today I would say he is charming, social, intense, and stubborn. 

He has started cutting his first bottom tooth and he is really determined to get on the move. All of a sudden he loves standing, and really is determined to crawl/scoot to shiny toys.

Here's a cute picture of Ollie and Isaac from this weekend, and one of him showing off his standing skills.

6 Months [Oliver]

Oliver here.

This month the world has changed for me. When I see something I want, I no longer just sit there and watch. I go for it. Granted, I usually need to grab, lunge, roll, beast-mode, or cry to get it... but gosh darn it, I get it. I've also figured out how to stand, which I love doing if Mom or Dad helps me.

I really like my Mom a lot because she has a magical milk chest, but my Dad is also really cool and so is my brother and dog. One of my new favorite games is to grab at everyone's hair to see what it tastes like. Except for Dad's. He's bald like me.

Mom and Dad started calling me Hank the Tank, which is confusing because I thought my name was Oliver - or Ollie for short. But that might be because when Mom weighed me at home I was 24 lbs. But we'll see what the Doctor says Wednesday when we visit.

Strangely, Mom and Dad started spooning food into my mouth this month. Sometimes it is orange or green or white. It feels funny in my mouth - especially since I don't have any teeth yet - but usually I swallow it. At least it is better than those bottle things they try to make me drink. Shenanigans.

And speaking of shenanigans, Mom and Dad think I should be sleeping by myself all night. That's a really long time to be by myself! I've shown them. Many nights I end up right where I want to be... snuggling at the all you can eat buffet with Mom. I've heard rumors that once we get over these bad colds we'll be back to "sleep training" - whatever that is. We'll see...

Until next month!

- O.W.

5 Months Old [Oliver]

Oliver is 5 months old and:

• Weighing ~20-21 lbs (9-12 month size clothes)
• Grabbing everything in sight (the more breakable, the better) 
• Passing objects back and forth between hands
• Rolling both ways (though he much prefers to be on his back then belly)
• Inching/army-crawling (just a little bit)
• Sitting unsupported in a tripod (for a couple minutes)
• Eating a little bit of rice cereal and veggies
• Sleeping a little better than last month - but still not sleeping great on his own...
• Laughing and talking a lot

 A few highlights from the last month:

Go Seahawks! Win or Lose, we love our team.

Out and about at Lantern Brewing

First cereal - he ate it all up - no spitting out! survey says, he's ready for solids

Brothers

We've uploaded more photos in our online albums:

• January 2015
• February 2015

4 Months Old [Oliver]

As of January 15th, Oliver is 4 months old!

At 4 months old, our big little dude is:

• 19 lbs and 26.5" long (96th percentile for height and weight)
• Flipping consistently from his belly to his back! He is really trying to flip from his back to his belly, too, but usually he can only get to his side. He's also starting to scoot/army crawl when he is on his belly - usually with a lot of grunts and groans.
• Starting to sit up in a tri-pod -- but that's a lot of belly to hold up!
• Using his hands so well! He grabs at everything with great precision.
• Sleeping worse... for the past month he has been back to waking up every 2-3 hours at night... 
• Still smiling and giggling a lot!
• Wearing 9-12 month clothes.

Here's a few more pics of Ollie:

3 Months Old [Oliver]

Oliver is three months old!

At three months old, our big little dude is:

• Using his hands a lot more (grabbing for toys, sucking on his hands for comfort, etc.)
• Rolling from his back or tummy to his side (not all the way over, but a great start!)
• Starting to have a more consistent sleeping schedule, but it's still a little all over the place. At night he usually sleeps at least 5-6 hours, followed by a couple 2-3 hours stretches.
• Smiling and giggling!
• Wearing 6-9 month clothes.
• Holding his head up very well on his own, and pushing up for a little bit in tummy time.

2 Months Old [Oliver]

Oliver William is two months old! Well, he's almost 10 weeks old now, but I started work again and life just got a whole lot busier. But I digress...

Oliver's two-month stats are:

• Weight - 15lb 2 oz (95th percentile)
• Height - 24" (88th percentile)
• Head - 41cm (91st percentile)

Like his brother at two months, he is a healthy, fast growing boy.

Here is our little big guy...

Here's a two-month milestone snapshot:

• Oliver is sleeping longer stretches through the night! He usually goes to bed at 9pm and sleeps 5-6 hours, wakes up to eat around 3AM, and then goes right back to bed until 6 AM. Then, he usually sleeps another 2-3 hours until it's time to take Isaac to preschool.
• He is still eating frequently, and like a champ. He's got the rolls to prove it. He's quickly growing out of 3 month sized clothes...
• He is talking up a storm! It is so fun to have a conversation with him, and he loves being sung to.
• His head control is getting better every day. During tummy time he can hold his head up pretty far, and only occasionally needs neck support (usually when he is "boob diving," as we call it).
• He is getting less fussy at night. He still has his moments, but he has less of the uncontrollable, colicky, "witching hour" fussiness (knock on wood).
• He makes the most charming and funny facial expressions! Sometimes he looks just like his brother, sometimes he looks like Chris Farley, other times he just looks like Oliver.
• He is usually a great trooper when we are out and about. But he still likes to exercise his lungs in the car...

Cheers!

Now There's A Smile!

At six weeks, Oliver is starting to smile a lot! Somehow, a little smile makes us forget about the sleep deprivation and his "witching hour" screaming...

And speaking of sleeping, this little dude is now sleeping up to 5 1/2 hours straight at night, and falling right back asleep after eating. This is a big change from waking every 1-3 hours to eat. It's amazing how good that uninterrupted sleep feels...

Dad

There's something very sweet about a Dad with his son....

One Month Old

Oliver is one month old!

He is:

• Making new (non crying) sounds ("ahhhh" "oooh")
• Looking around a lot more and tracking with his eyes
• Starting to smile (probably just gas... but it melts my heart every time)
• Crying a lot during his evening "witching hour" and on car rides. He really doesn't like the car...
• Sleeping a lot during the day, but starting to get more consistent with sleep patterns (he's still waking up every 2-3 hours at night to nurse but usually feeds quickly and goes right back to sleep)
• Very happy in the Moby wrap (the red baby carrier in all the photos below), on walks, and in a nice warm bath
• Lifting his head during tummy time and getting stronger every day
• Eating great and has the chubby cheeks to prove it. According to our scale he now weighs over 12lb and measures over 22"

This last month I've learned:

• What Oliver's different sounds and cries mean 
• How to type one-handed
• How to juggle and balance two children (ex: grocery shopping with both boys is manageable!)
• How to breastfeed anywhere, because with two kids you can't always pony up at the couch or bed...
• The dog's barking doesn't wake Oliver up; however, me yelling at the dog for barking does...
• Eric is an awesome dad (well, I already knew that), and Isaac is a great big brother who already loves Oliver a lot
• We'll never be perfect parents. But we're doing our best and that makes us great parents. 
• We have an amazing support system of friends, family, and co-workers 

Lastly, here are a few photos from the past couple of weeks:

Watching the Sounders at The Yard pub while Isaac was at a playdate

Speaking of playdates, here's Ollie with Emery (my friend Heather's 5 month old son)

Isaac loves to take pictures with Oliver

The Moby wrap is so helpful to manage both boys -- especially when Dad is away for the weekend!

Yup, he cries too :)

Ahh... "milk drunk"

Mr. funny face man....