Oliver 4 1/2

Our first-born is 4 1/2! Ever since he turned 4 he has been asking when his birthday is, so we decided to do a mini celebration for his half birthday. It turned out that the weekend of his half birthday his cousins were in town to celebrate Bodie's birthday so we took everyone to the Mall of America and the kids rode rides all day on Saturday and Oli had a blast.

This kid is full of life and so full of emotions. He feels things deeply and brings out emotions in us as well, both good and bad. This age is really good overall. He's liking school a lot, has made some friends there, plays well with Jo (most of the time), and shows signs of being a rational little person. He still loves music, dancing, and books and has recently taken an interest in drawing. Chris got him a notebook and he has been filling it with things he likes (which is mostly candy). He's also working on writing his letters and can sound out and read simple words. Since Bodie visited he has taken an interest in Legos and can follow the instructions to put some pieces together by himself. He has the best laugh. Over spring break I volunteered at his school one morning and was struck by how happy he seemed and how often he was giggling. He's young enough still that he was really excited I was there (instead of embarrassed by me, which I assume he will be one day). He wanted me to sit by him at snack time and circle time. Such a sweet boy. He's also full of questions. "How do the clouds stay up in the sky?" "How is cereal made?" "Why is dad smarter than you when you're the teacher?"

This age is also full of challenges. Picky eating continues to be a challenge and is a daily stressor for us. I think the other thing that stands out, as I mentioned above, is helping him learn to cope with his own emotions. Disappointment is particularly hard. As I try to help him it often makes me think about how the things he's struggling with are still hard for many (most?) adults. Chris got him a desk lately and he loves drawing and "working" on it. And it just so happens that when he's really emotional he has been able to leave the situation and go up to his room to work at his desk. Time outs have never worked for him (they usually just amp him up more), so the fact that he's able to do this and calm himself down sometimes has been a real blessing.

He challenges me, makes me smile, and has made me feel things more deeply. Being loved by him and loving him makes me feel incredibly lucky. Happy half birthday my best boy!

Lots more photos below.

Oliver 2 1/2

I wish I had more time to do regular updates on both kiddos, but for now, 1/4 year updates will have to do for Oli. Oliver turned 2 1/2 on March 20th, the spring equinox, during our roadtrip to Kansas City, MO and Austin, TX. What to say about him at this age? He is full of life! Lots of smiles and laughs and some screaming and crying too (he is 2!). He loves music and dancing, is still a picky eater, sleeps great overnight (50/50 on naps), and says the funniest things. We got him some board games (Hungry, Hungry Hippos, Candyland, and Richard Scary's Busytown) and he has started playing with those a little bit which is fun. A few weeks ago we took him out of the crib and let him sleep in the "big bed" in his room. He had been asking for awhile but since we were planning to travel (and he's outgrown the Pack n Play), we knew it was time. I'm happy to report it has been going really well! We let him pick out some new sheets on the first day so he was excited about his new red sheets. He has been doing great with it. He gets up occasionally during nap time but usually gets right back in bed. He saw his first show, Sesame Street Live, in Minneapolis recently thanks to a friend who gave us her tickets. Chris took him and they went with our friend Scott and his daughter Julia. They all had a great time!

I'm hoping to do another post on our roadtrip, but just a few notes here about Oli. He did great overall. He was really good in the car (unfortunately Josie wasn't as happy about the car) and slept really well. I was even able to take him from the car and lay him in a new bed a few times and he went right back to sleep! He had a blast playing with his cousins Molly and Matilda and our friend Carly's daughter Miriam. He loved being outside enjoying the warmer weather (as did well). He had a few meltdowns as usual, but overall was a happy traveler. Overall this is a super fun age. He's energetic, funny and sweet, giving Chris, Josie and I hugs and kisses daily. Love you sweet pea! Happy 2 1/2!

his smile is the best
(and those eyebrows too!)

Lots more pictures of Oli from the last 3 months after the jump.

Oliver 2 1/4

What can I say about this toddler? He is such a great kid! His speech is pretty adult-like these days, he loves music and likes to sing, loves reading, and is developing his sweet tooth. Of course I'd be lying if I said living with a 2-year old was all sunshine and rainbows. He has his frustrating moments (e.g., doesn't want to get dressed or have his diaper changed, says something we don't understand, etc.) but the highs outshine the lows for sure. He's been spending a lot of time doing things with Chris while I have been home with Josie. I miss him but know the two of them have fun on their adventures. I got to take him to his swimming lessons the last few weeks and we had a blast. Here are some photos from the last month or so.

23 months

It's hard to believe Oliver is only one month away from turning 2. He seems more like a little boy and less like a baby every day. We love him so!

22 months

We have been enjoying summer and spending as much time as possible outside. This month I started my third trimester and have been thinking about the changes the new baby will bring. We are trying to savor every moment of being a family of 3 before the baby arrives this fall.

Oliver continues to be sweet, smart, and funny. He's talking up a storm and says new words and phrases all the time. He has gotten really into vehicles and one of his favorites is going outside to watch the garbage or recycling trucks. He has moments of frustration (as do we), but overall he's so much fun! More pictures and some fun things we did this month to follow.

21 months

21 months old

This month has been fun. Oliver is talking more everyday and it is so fun and funny to hear the things he says. He still loves numbers and now we take walks for him to see the numbers on all of the houses. He'll look at each house and say "Numbers!" or "Lots of numbers!" and then as we walk away "bye bye, numbers." He's also very observant when out on walks and excitedly points out what everyone is doing or riding (I'm sure they love it), "running!" "two bikes!" "red car!".

One of my favorite things he has started doing is...

20 months

This age has been really fun overall. Oliver's language development has continued to where we have a hard time counting how many words he knows and he can repeat almost any word. It's amazing to hear him saying so many words for the first time. This month he started saying names (Auntie, Izzy, etc.) and putting words together more ("bye bye, kids", "water great"). He still loves counting (can count to somewhere between 13-19 - the teens all sound the same at this point when he says them). We continued teaching him the alphabet with help from some alphabet magnets on the fridge and he can now recognize and say almost every letter. J and K sound alike when he says them and W is still tricky (he currently says "double"), but otherwise he knows them all.

19 months

In some ways Oliver is not much different than last month and yet when I was re-reading last month's post, I realized how much he has learned this month. Last month he counted to 2 and now he can count to 10. He said 1 and counted to 2 last month and this month he counted to 3, 5, and then 10! He recognizes 1-10 and can say them all (although 6 and 7 trip him up a little). We are now starting to teach him letters. Right now he can repeat most of the letters, but he calls every letter "B". When he's repeating the alphabet and I get to "W", instead of repeating it he just says "X" (can't blame him as "W" is senselessly long compared to the other letters).

Unfortunately he was still sick much of this month with an ear infection but (finally!) seems to be feeling better. We've had an unusually long winter season (snow in late April!?) and we're all hoping that spring is around the corner!

After using his cousin's chalkboard, we decided to get Oli his own easel with chalkboard. He has been loving it and often brings us chalk so that we'll come draw with him.

He has a ton of new words, too many to keep track of. He likes to name everything on his plate during meals and is starting to name a lot of things in books too. My current favorite is his word for quesadilla. He just shortens it to "dilla". He also says "Toby" and "Oscar" now and can tell them apart. He has been saying "nice" and "alright" for awhile but this month added "cool" and "I did it".

frozen blueberries are a new favorite

enjoying one of the sunny days before we got more snow

first candy, a dum dum at a Korean restaurant in town 

blocks are fun to play with...

... and eat.

music making with dad

already a pro with technology 

goofy face

reading 

exploring the neighborhood 

baby legs 

joy 

serious at the chalkboard

a coffee to celebrate turning 19 months

And last, a few videos from this month.

One year ago, at 7 months. I know I'm biased but I think he was such a cute baby!

18 months

Oliver, the 18-month old, is pretty great and also challenging. This month he has continued to hone his verbal skills. He can now count to 2 and recognizes numbers. He knows a lot of shapes and can say triangle, circle, oval and square.  He's started saying "alright" in response to being asked if he wants something, which is cute. He has shown a renewed love of books in the past couple of months and still loves playing balls and coloring. This age has also brought some tantrums, perhaps the result of him having ear infections again or maybe just the result of him being a toddler. I experienced my first public tantrum with him, which was humbling. He's also an increasingly picky eater. He'd be pretty content to eat crackers and raisins for every meal. Overall this age has been both exhausting and really fun. He's sweet and gives hugs and kisses, sometimes unprompted, and we just love him so. Happy half birthday Oli!

working on combing his own hair

post-bath goofiness

pretending

loves music

texting his friends

cute toddler pout

on his way to the racquetball courts

showing his cow some love

toddler smiles

first time with playdough

reading a good book to celebrate his 18th month of life

And one year ago, our 6-month old!

17 months

17-month old Oliver continues to move into toddlerhood, looking more like a little boy and less like a baby every day. I have been really lucky that my workplace has allowed me to have a flexible schedule since Oliver was born. This semester is a little less flexible so that's been an adjustment for all of us. I miss Oli but I know that he is in very capable hands with Chris. Chris sends me photos and videos throughout the day which I love. 

waving bye to me from the front window
as I leave for work

befriending Oscar

This month he also got his first haircut, thanks to Chris.

We've had a long cold, snowy winter this year (hurry up spring!). Oliver says "snow" now and loves playing in it and helping shovel.

This age has been pretty fun, watching him learn new things and become more independent He has been feeding himself with a spoon a little which is messy but cute. He is talking a lot (at least 50 words now!), can stack blocks and do simple puzzles, and has been having fun dancing and playing music with his blocks, xylophones, guitar, and keyboard. 

eating his first macaron

 

celebrating my birthday with some french pastries

excited about eating a pickle

getting good at stacking blocks

he gives kisses now,
which is pretty much the best

And a look back at one year ago, when he was just 5 months old.