20 June 2011
Oliver turns 100!
Okay, so officially Oliver turned 100 days old almost a week ago, but "Oliver turns 105" just doesn't sound as good! Here's a status report on Number 2 or Littlest One (as we affectionately call him) or Chuck (as my dad dubbed him because of the amount he spits up).
Weight: 7.1 kgs (15.6 lbs)
Height: 63 cms (25 inches)
Rolling over: Heck yeah! He just started today and he's not messing around. It freaked him right out the first time, but that didn't stop him from trying again and again and again. Now after only an evening of practice, he can flip himself from tummy to back and from his back to his side and nearly his tummy too!
Smiling: Oliver takes after Elliot with this one. He is a very happy, very smiley, very animated little fellow! I'm quite sure that I'm going to have my hands full with these two little charmers!
Sleeping through the night: Not even close! But maybe because I know that this stage doesn't last long and we won't be having any more little babies, it just isn't bothering me that much. In fact, most nights I quite enjoy the alone time that I get cuddling with him in the middle of the night. And let's be fair, with flying back and forth to the States, Oliver has had his little internal clock messed with just a bit. I'm just thankful that he's not waking up every couple of hours like he did while we were in the States and during our first week back. Most nights he's only waking once around 2am and again around 5.30 when Paul gets up with him. And unlike Elliot, Oliver is a pretty good napper most days which gives me my alone time with Elliot which I also love.
Sitting up: Oliver can't keep himself in a seated position or anything, but he loves to be propped up against the couch cushions and look around. He looks so proud of himself too. He's such a strong little guy and is already starting to try to do baby stomach crunches. Maybe he'll be really into fitness when he grows up . . .
Giggling: Although he's been giggling (really 'chuckling' describes it much better) for weeks now, Oliver much prefers the delighted squeal over the giggle. Still, with a little effort (Elliot has been joining in with tickles), we manage to hear an adorable little chuckle at least once a day.
Other really cute things about Oliver:
Oliver is infatuated with Elliot and happily spends a lot of his waking hours admiring his big brother. Elliot has been mostly indifferent to Oliver except for gorgeous momentary acts of kindness when he'll give Oliver a gentle pat or cover him with his blankie. But this seems to be changing as Oliver starts to be more fun. Just tonight, Elliot gave Oliver a great big kiss and hug and said "Goodnight Oliver!" on his way to bed. I hope that this a sign of much more brotherly love to come.
Oliver loves to squeal and attack just about anything within reach. He pulls his prey towards his mouth, growls and rubs his open slobbery mouth all over it. Just recently he's started quickly turning his head when I give him kisses on the cheek and slobber-attacking my own cheek. It is so priceless and I can't help but giggle like a maniac and egg him on to do it again and again.
He is also really really adept at using his hands to play with toys already. He reaches up and pulls the little toy on his little baby gym to make it sing and uses his hands to explore rattles and stuffed toys and his favourite, a little cloth book that we recently bought him. Only three months old and already devouring books, have we another gifted child on our hands?
Mostly, Oliver is just a really easy-going little guy. He is quite content on his own and often happily plays by himself for an hour or more during the day, and then when he gets tired, quietly dozes off to sleep. Sure, life with Oliver isn't always this perfect. In fact, when he's upset he is one of the LOUDEST screeching babies that I have ever heard. Lately, we've been hearing a bit more of this as he has been getting over tired and letting us know about it in the evenings when we're trying to settle him. But since this has only happened a couple of dozen times in his whole life (unlike Elliot's nightly displays), we still consider ourselves quite lucky.
I know that this sounds pretty cheesy, but given the terrifying start that we had with Elliot, we consider ourselves incredibly blessed to not only have Elliot healthy and seemingly untouched by his battle with meningitis, but to now have had the experience of bringing home a healthy gorgeous little baby. I guess that it's because of our scare the first time around that we are that much more thankful and elated to have two such wonderful healthy boys.
Weight: 7.1 kgs (15.6 lbs)
Height: 63 cms (25 inches)
Rolling over: Heck yeah! He just started today and he's not messing around. It freaked him right out the first time, but that didn't stop him from trying again and again and again. Now after only an evening of practice, he can flip himself from tummy to back and from his back to his side and nearly his tummy too!
Smiling: Oliver takes after Elliot with this one. He is a very happy, very smiley, very animated little fellow! I'm quite sure that I'm going to have my hands full with these two little charmers!
Sleeping through the night: Not even close! But maybe because I know that this stage doesn't last long and we won't be having any more little babies, it just isn't bothering me that much. In fact, most nights I quite enjoy the alone time that I get cuddling with him in the middle of the night. And let's be fair, with flying back and forth to the States, Oliver has had his little internal clock messed with just a bit. I'm just thankful that he's not waking up every couple of hours like he did while we were in the States and during our first week back. Most nights he's only waking once around 2am and again around 5.30 when Paul gets up with him. And unlike Elliot, Oliver is a pretty good napper most days which gives me my alone time with Elliot which I also love.
Sitting up: Oliver can't keep himself in a seated position or anything, but he loves to be propped up against the couch cushions and look around. He looks so proud of himself too. He's such a strong little guy and is already starting to try to do baby stomach crunches. Maybe he'll be really into fitness when he grows up . . .
Giggling: Although he's been giggling (really 'chuckling' describes it much better) for weeks now, Oliver much prefers the delighted squeal over the giggle. Still, with a little effort (Elliot has been joining in with tickles), we manage to hear an adorable little chuckle at least once a day.
Other really cute things about Oliver:
Oliver is infatuated with Elliot and happily spends a lot of his waking hours admiring his big brother. Elliot has been mostly indifferent to Oliver except for gorgeous momentary acts of kindness when he'll give Oliver a gentle pat or cover him with his blankie. But this seems to be changing as Oliver starts to be more fun. Just tonight, Elliot gave Oliver a great big kiss and hug and said "Goodnight Oliver!" on his way to bed. I hope that this a sign of much more brotherly love to come.
Oliver loves to squeal and attack just about anything within reach. He pulls his prey towards his mouth, growls and rubs his open slobbery mouth all over it. Just recently he's started quickly turning his head when I give him kisses on the cheek and slobber-attacking my own cheek. It is so priceless and I can't help but giggle like a maniac and egg him on to do it again and again.
He is also really really adept at using his hands to play with toys already. He reaches up and pulls the little toy on his little baby gym to make it sing and uses his hands to explore rattles and stuffed toys and his favourite, a little cloth book that we recently bought him. Only three months old and already devouring books, have we another gifted child on our hands?
Mostly, Oliver is just a really easy-going little guy. He is quite content on his own and often happily plays by himself for an hour or more during the day, and then when he gets tired, quietly dozes off to sleep. Sure, life with Oliver isn't always this perfect. In fact, when he's upset he is one of the LOUDEST screeching babies that I have ever heard. Lately, we've been hearing a bit more of this as he has been getting over tired and letting us know about it in the evenings when we're trying to settle him. But since this has only happened a couple of dozen times in his whole life (unlike Elliot's nightly displays), we still consider ourselves quite lucky.
I know that this sounds pretty cheesy, but given the terrifying start that we had with Elliot, we consider ourselves incredibly blessed to not only have Elliot healthy and seemingly untouched by his battle with meningitis, but to now have had the experience of bringing home a healthy gorgeous little baby. I guess that it's because of our scare the first time around that we are that much more thankful and elated to have two such wonderful healthy boys.
Second Generation Mum's Group Babies
Oliver with Cailey's little sis, Jessica, and Aine's little brother, Jareth.
And there are even more second generation babies to come!
What a Day!
Elliot successfully counted to five for the first time today, and Oliver started rolling over (tummy to back and back to side!) On top of that, they were both complete delights as we looked after Aine all day while her baby brother Jareth was sick in hospital. I have the two most cleverest, gorgeous, wonderful boys ever!
15 June 2011
Giggles for Gramma
Little Oliver was taken over by the spirit of my gramma (who had the most incredible unabashed knee-slapping laugh) while driving away from her funeral and cut loose with his very first giggles. It was absolutely precious and something that I spent much time trying to get him to do again to no avail. Turns out, his gramma was the one who knew just how to keep those giggles coming. Take a look as she works her magic inducing some awesome Oliver chuckles.
13 June 2011
12 June 2011
Proud mother's moment
I hoped that this moment would happen someday, but I wouldn't have dreamed that Elliot would be asking to have his pimples popped at such an early age. I couldn't be more pleased. We've got years of popping pleasure ahead of us, Elliot.
Family Skype Date
As much fun as we had in America, Mommy and I sure missed Daddy and Elliot heaps. Thank goodness, we were able to catch up with each other on Skype. ~ Oliver
I was a big hit in America!
I wasn't sure about flying on an airplane all the way to the United States, but once I got there and started getting all that attention from Mommy's friends and family I didn't mind the trip at all.
I got to play with my cousins Evan and Claire.
Evan was super cool . . .
. . . but Claire loved giving me cuddles just a little too much!
I met my Uncle Ryan . . .
. . . and snuggled with my Auntie Jen.
I even got to meet my second cousins Dustin and Cordell. Mommy says that she'll be really happy if I grow up to be as nice as they are when I'm a teenager.
And I got cuddles from lots of Mommy's friends. I especially liked sucking on Melissa's arm . . .
. . . and hanging out with Matt . . .
and riding their doggie. He's a bit bigger than Nacho!
But best of all was getting lots of time to play and cuddle with my Gramma and Grumpy! ~ Oliver
I got to play with my cousins Evan and Claire.
. . . but Claire loved giving me cuddles just a little too much!
I met my Uncle Ryan . . .
. . . and snuggled with my Auntie Jen.
I even got to meet my second cousins Dustin and Cordell. Mommy says that she'll be really happy if I grow up to be as nice as they are when I'm a teenager.
. . . and hanging out with Matt . . .
and riding their doggie. He's a bit bigger than Nacho!
But best of all was getting lots of time to play and cuddle with my Gramma and Grumpy! ~ Oliver
Just Daddy and Me!
Too be honest, I wasn't that happy when Mommy told me that she and Oliver were going to go to America and I'd be staying home with Daddy. But when Daddy started telling me about all the fun stuff we were going to do, I was all "Good-bye Mommy" and "I want presents!"
And Daddy and I sure did have fun. We went to Nana's birthday party, played at Activate, watched Rio in the theatre with Nana, invited Aine and her family over for a play, and even planted one of the veggie gardens in the backyard.
Mommy, you and Oliver can go to America to shop for shoes and books anytime! ~ Elliot
And Daddy and I sure did have fun. We went to Nana's birthday party, played at Activate, watched Rio in the theatre with Nana, invited Aine and her family over for a play, and even planted one of the veggie gardens in the backyard.
Oliver as World Traveller
I've never met a baby that HATES going in the car as much as Oliver. As you can imagine, this left me more than a little nervous about our massive trip to the U.S. But, holy cow, was he ever a great traveller every leg of the journey. Too bad I didn't have a hand free to take a picture of him along the way. But here's a shot of his passport (note the resemblance to Kim Jong Il yet again!)
And despite having the airline lose our stroller and us nearly missing a plane, we clumsily made our way from Perth to Pasco thanks to a lot of kindness from strangers who generously offered to hold Oliver or help with bags all along the way. (And thanks too to Monica who happily agreed to meet us at LAX so we could spend a long layover catching up over a Starbucks!)
I'm so happy that both of our boys seem to have inherited Paul and my travelling genes because we have big travel plans for these boys as they get older!
And despite having the airline lose our stroller and us nearly missing a plane, we clumsily made our way from Perth to Pasco thanks to a lot of kindness from strangers who generously offered to hold Oliver or help with bags all along the way. (And thanks too to Monica who happily agreed to meet us at LAX so we could spend a long layover catching up over a Starbucks!)
I'm so happy that both of our boys seem to have inherited Paul and my travelling genes because we have big travel plans for these boys as they get older!
Ta-ta for now, Gramma!
My strong, creative, silly, inspirational, loving, and totally wonderful Gramma passed away on May 20, and I felt like I just had to go to the States to celebrate her life and share wonderful memories of her with my family. In fact, I tried really hard to make it there before she died, but unfortunately with getting Oliver a passport and arranging visas and airline tickets I wasn't able to give her that one last hug like I would have liked.Nevertheless, I'm so glad that I decided to make the trip and brave the 32 hour flight with Oliver. Gramma meant the world to me, and it was so good to be able to say good-bye to her properly.
I hope so much that I will be able to share my memories of her with my boys and teach them how to find the joy in life's simple things and how to always find a way to laugh even when life doesn't seem so funny.
I'm such a lucky girl to have been given such an incredible grandmother and I'll love you forever, Gramma!
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