Babe in the Big D

I am still in shock that little Oliver is turning one in just a few weeks!   He has such a goofy little personality and each day there is a new noise and a new trick.   Today he opened up the bathroom drawer.  I didn't even realize that he could reach it.   I guess we need to finish those babyproofing locks.  I also caught him positioning his truck up against the trunk in his bedroom and he was trying to climb up to the surface.   Tonight in the yard each time I yelled at Belle, he said "brwww" which is a new sound. 

I can't post without mentioning our latest creature adventures.   After the American cockroach flew over our bed and the cats abandoned us, we had the pest control service come.  He found the cockroaches hanging out by the plumbing in our crawl space - yikes.   The cats redeemed themselves this weekend when Seb discovered a gecko in our living room.   Boon was hunting it for a good hour or so and Seb finally trapped it under a container and scooped it out the front door.  Boon has been depressed ever since, he really wanted to play with it a little longer.  We had Belle microchipped last week.  I took her to the vet for her Heartguard refill and the vet said, wow she is chunky (to the dog - not me) and so she is not on high chair clean up patrol anymore.  It was actually relaxing to take the dog to the vet alone, compared to taking Oliver places. 

We attended our friend Ella's 1st birthday party last weekend.   It was a pool party but we didn't swim.  Last week Gretel (Ella's mom) watched Oliver while I ran a few errands.  Ella fed Oliver Cheerios (she is a month older than Oliver.   Gretel said he was happy and content while I was gone.   He said mama a couple of times and her Grate Dane and Bulldog barked and scared him a little bit.  

We usually go to Mommy & Me on Mondays and Tuesday's are the playgroups.  Friday is Fitness day, we walk at the Katy Trail.  

Today Oliver had his first scrambled egg made by chef Seb for breakfast, so far no allergies.  His new favorite treats are Cheerios and Kix cereal.   He loves to eat and it makes it difficult for us to snack on anything without him wanting a bite.  

We had a nice family lunch out (mexican food!) on Sunday.   Oliver was as happy as could be eating chicken, chips, refried beans and tortillas.  I handed him the crayon (not the smartest mom) and it went directly in his mouth. 

We are on a serious countdown to the birthday party.   I am trying to get the rest of the inside of the house ready and Seb has been busy in the yard.   The garden is doing really well.  I need to spend more time out there offering it some TLC and taking care of some weeds. 

This past weekend was Dadfest 2009, which consisted of a 5K (Seb and Oliver were a team) and then there was a father look alike contest and the diaper dash.   I video taped the diaper dash.   I have a groin strain so I fell back during the 5K and I came jogging up for the last quarter mile and I see Oliver's stroller stopped ahead, so I picked up my pace to find nurse Seb tending to a 60 year old woman who had fallen during the run and cut her nose open pretty bad.   After the ambulance arrived we jogged the finish in together as a family so at least we got a good picture :)  It was super hot and humid.  Oliver has his first race t-shirt.   I am looking forward to the day that Oliver and Seb can run together in the 5K's.  

We have a new swimming pool (inflatable) and Oliver LOVES it.  He shreiks at the top of his lungs in the water and he stands up and gets so excited.

Goodnight Monday. 

The title sums up our last 24 hours.  Seb killed a roach in the living room with Oliver on his hip at midnight.   He set up a bunch of traps and last night the cats were after something.   Biscuit ripped through the living room and then sat staring at the lamp base.   I convinced Seb to lift it up and sure enough there was a GIANT roach.   I have seen them outside and I have been pretending that they couldn't possibly come in the house.  With all the excitement of the roach killing I didn't notice that the kitchen was filled with smoke.   I knew the smoke alarm was going to go off and we had Oliver in bed for the night.   The problem is that the windows are painted shut in the kitchen and the side door is hard to unlock.   Seb muscled it open in a desperate attempt to keep the baby asleep.

The excitement actually started during Oliver's bath last night.   We have an extra tall baby gate blocking the kitchen from the bedrooms and bathroom.    It keeps the cats and the dog out of the bedroom areas and we can keep the door open to see in Olivers room.   I thought the dog was shaking a stuffed animal at the gate and I think I even told her to stop.   Then I heard the most awful shreiking horrible sound, I leaned back to see Biscuit flailing by her neck stuck between the bars at the top of the baby gate (not where the gate opens).   I grabbed her head and pushed her down to the bottom and squeezed her head through while her body was whipping around on the other side of the baby gate.  Seb walked in to me in the living room with a wet naked baby and a freaked out cat.  Luckily she just used one of her lives.   I knew it was only a matter of time that our baby safety precautions would become a hazzard for the cats.

We have a new method and bedtime routine for Oliver, so far it is working.   It includes Wheel of Forture and Seb rocking him to sleep and we have had several 11 hour nights with him in his crib.   Last night something went wrong and we were all up watching TV at 2AM with an unhappy constipated baby.   One night at a time.

Today Oliver and I met the girls at the Dallas Zoo.  Several of them are members so we get in free.  Oliver was awake and smiled at the penguins and looked at the animals a little closer.  We all pack a picnic lunch and we go to the cafeteria area and push our strollers through with a high chair on our hip, we look like a crazy mom high chair stroller train.

We were looking at the Gorilla exhibit and I decided that I wanted a picture of Oliver sitting in front of the glass with the Gorilla behind him.   I did feel like a bad mom for setting my baby on the ground in front of a gorilla exhibit for a picture.   Oliver turned around and put his hand on the glass.  The gorilla (Patrick) looked over and saw him on the ground and walked over, he gently got down on his elbows at eye level and touched the glass by Ollie's hand.  They had a total connection.  Everyone was like oh my gosh, look at the gorilla and the baby!!!!!   It was totally cute.  A bunch of children rushed over, practically trampling Oliver and their loud kid noises were startling to Ollie.   I have attached a pic of Ollie with the gorilla.

Oliver has 4 teeth now, number 4 popped through yesterday.  His favorite books are Richard Scary's Biggest Word Book Ever & Hickory Dickory Tickle and Bounce.

Seb has Monday off work so we are looking forward to a 3 day weekend. 

Goodnight!

We have had a busy week!  On Tuesday we met up with the dangerous group of moms that I hang out with at the Arboretum.  Ollie and I got there 45 minutes early so that I could get a good walk in, since Charity was bringing cinnamon rolls and muffins.   It was Tiny Tot Tuesday at the Arboretum so they had the petting zoo.  I parked Oliver in front of the goats and chickens and I guess one was a rooster.  He kept squaking at Oliver - Cock A Doodle Doo - and he smiled.   I guess my Old Mac Donald songs have made an impact.   In case you were wondering, yes, I was afraid they were going to eat my baby.

I decided to set Oliver up for a nice picture under the oak trees with the fountains centered in the back.  I got the camera settings just right and he took off crawling!!!!!  I am used to plopping him down and taking my picture but now he just crawls out of the frame.   Above is the picture.

On Wednesday we went and hung out with my friend Tina who has a tiny one month old baby girl named Emma.  She is so sweet and cute!!!  I ended up wrestling Oliver the whole time, so I am not really much of a help but it was great to visit and catch up.

This morning we met a couple of friends at the Katy Trail to walk.  We are officially starting Fitness Friday and we are going meet every week at the trail to walk or jog.   I also need Workout Wednesday so we are going to try to walk at one of the malls (this summer) that also has a childrens storytime.  

Tomorrow is swim class week 3!!!

I was treated with Dunkin' Donuts and Starbucks for Mother's Day - my choice !!!!  Oliver had his very first munchkin and he loved it.    Seb and Oliver made me a special card with Ollie's hand print, that of course made me cry.  He bought me a t-shirt that I had wanted and two Gel Pro mats for my kitchen.  The mats are amazing - they are so comfortable and they look great in the kitchen.   I have one in front of the sink and one in front of the oven.   I have reached that age in life where I really want things for the house / kitchen as gifts.  

Saturday we had our second swim class adn he did really well, in fact much better than I did.  It was submerging day - the instructor took each baby and dunked them under the water.   Then Seb and I had to do a pass with him completely under the water.   It was a little scary for me.  He took in some water but he did great.  We are pretty sure he is going to be an Olympic swimmer - hee hee.

We hung up his artwork in his bedroom this weekend.  I will take pics of his room and send soon, it is so magical.

Oliver is changing so much everyday.  Below are a list of new tricks he has mastered:

He waves back when you wave to him

Crawling on his knees

He sticks his legs between the crib bars :(

He barks in response to hearing a dog bark (it is more of a waa waa instead of a woof woof)

He kicks his legs and smiles when we get ready to walk out the door

He signs "all done" after eating

His front right tooth is now visible and the left one should pop through anyday

He is helping more when getting dressed by pushing his arm through his shirts

He is starting to sway to music a little more

He chases the dog around the house, he grabs her foot and she steps sideways and he grabs it again, and she leaves the room

He is pulling drawers open, trying to shut doors and is curious about everthing

He has a completely fake cough that he uses to get our attention

We are starting to find out what we need to babyproof.  Oliver is attracted to all cords, outlets, door hinges, door stoppers and drawer handles. 

This Saturday marks our second swim class.  We are putting their faces in the water and I am very nervous. 

Tomorrow we are all three going to Oliver's last Kindermusik class.  Seb will get to meet the teacher Miss Lisa who Oliver always smiles at and adores.  We are then headed to the King Tut exhibit for a little early Mother's Day treat. 

Today is the first day Oliver got both knees up and belly off the floor crawling.  Seb was getting ready to leave for work and Ollie showed off his new skills for both of us.  We captured it on video (see post below).

Yesterday we joined some friends at the Dallas Zoo for a day out.  It was great to visit with the group of moms.  We all packed picnic lunches and enjoyed the empty zoo.  Oliver slept in the Ergo through most of the zoo, but I know he would have liked the penguins and gorillas.   They have a nice childrens area and Oliver smiled when he touched the minature donkey.

We promise to get some new pictures up soon.

Happy Nurse's Day Seb & Chloe!

-Tracy

Enclosure

Well it has been so long since I have blogged I hardly know where to begin! I am going to list a bunch of random things and thoughts just to get them on the journal.

Growth

Oliver had his 9 month appointment on April 6th. His weight was 19.5lbs, length was 27.5cm, head circumference was 45cm. He is 25th percentile in height and weight and 75th percentile in head circumference. He is one strong little guy and I caught him standing in his crib last week. It is time to drop the crib mattress down a few more notches. He has two bottom teeth and his two top are on there way in, bringing teething and slobbering to a whole new level.

New Behaviors

I am in complete denial that he is crawling. He isn't up on hands and knees crawling about but he is doing the pull crawl on his elbows. This past weekend was the first time he crawled himself out of the room we were in. Of course he is after the vacuum cord, the laptop cord, the dangerous bookcase, dog toys and outlets. We have pulled out the baby safety kit and have plans to start latching the cabinets. Perhaps my inability to open the cabinets with the baby locks is my best diet idea yet. He knows where his "toes" are now. He says Mama and Dad.

Foodie Baby

At his 9 month appointment the pediatrician told us to have him eat 3 meals a day and to eat what we eat. He loves roasted chicken and he really loved a curry chicken salad I made him for our last picnic at the arboretum. The only problem with his new love of all things food is that he tries to eat things quickly and he chokes. We are also used to eating bed time snacks and cookies so now whenever he catches us eating he gets VERY upset if we don't give him some food. The only food he hasn't really liked is carrots. When Ryan was visiting Oliver went to several restaurants with us and tried many new things, refried beans, chips, arugula, garlic cream soup, salmon, bruschetta, etc. He is such a foodie!!!!

Friends / Extra Curricular Activities

He is really getting into Kindermusik. On Easter he received two egg shaped maracas (from Kindermusik) and last week he was playing in his room listening to the Kindermusik CD and the La Cucaracha song came on and he looked all around the floor and picked up his maraca and started shaking it and bouncing up and down just like we do in class. I feel so proud that he has more rythym than I do. We are still going to our Mommy and Me group and we also have a Beyond Mommy and Me playgroup on Tuesdays that I hit and miss on occaision. We have been going out to lunch more with the other moms and babies. It is fun to watch Oliver communicate with the other babies in the highchairs next to each other. I say - they shouldn't put the massage table at Whole Foods right next to the cafe tables.

New House

We are just about settled into our new house. I love it here! We have a gorgeous yard and the house just feels like home. Last weekend we painted our master bedroom. We are trying to get Oliver's room ready to paint. I am learning all about wallpaper removal and I am thinking about starting an anti-wallpaper movement - in my spare time.

More to come and more frequent posts - I promise!!!!!

- Oliver's Personal Assistant / Mom

Whew - things are a little crazy.  We are in the process of packing up our house.  Well maybe not actually in the process of packing, but it is on my mind and I have A LOT to do.  We are going to look at some houses for sale this weekend.  Oliver is just getting more and more personality.   He has some stacking cups and he is enjoying sitting up to play.  He is still eating everything we feed him and he loves to eat.  He loves the "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" book.   He is really starting to blossom in Kindermusik and interacting with the other babies more.

I went to a baby shower this week and I was eating some cowboy caviar in the kitchen, and Julie called out, "Tracy, Oliver is pushing,"  and sure enough I looked over and he was trying to push Ella over.  Last week he chewed on her feet.

Last Friday we had a picnic with some friends at the arboretum.   I am going to post some pics. 

Hopefully the pics are worth a thousand words.

Today I got the question, "what is your occupation," and I sort of drew a blank.

-TKM 

It has been so long since I have blogged I barely know where to start. I have an unfinished post from my trip to Arizona andmany details to write about New Orleans. We have had soooo many house showings. I feel too overwhelmed to journalabout everthing sobelow are some of Oliver's newest milestones and highlights fromthis week:

Oliver nowuses mmma-ma, muh-mah quite often when he is ready for milk.

He can now get his butt in the air and forehead down on the floor and can scoot a couple of inches at a time.

He still loves to eat - ALOT!

His sleep pattern has not been so great.   However, on Monday and Tuesday night he slept 8PM-4AM.  I felt like a new woman!!!!!   The rest of the week has not been the same.

We went to Itsy Bitsy Yoga on Wednesday which was also Oliver's 7 month birthday.  This is the first time he has lasted through the hour of baby yoga, the 30 minute core workout and the hour of post-natal yoga.  He played quietly with Sophie on the yoga mat.  I am more sore than ever.  

We had a house showing this week from 5-6pm and I decided it would be easy to spend an hour walking around the park.  After 19 minutes I was tired and ready to go home and so was Oliver.  We played on the swing at the park and giggled the entire time I was pushing the swing.

We attended our second class of Kindermusik this week. He smiled when everyone sang his name during the introduction song.  Below is a synopsis of a few songs and things we learned this week in Kindermusik, this semester is "The Rythym of My Day":

HELLO SONG: AFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
Affective communication between Adult and Baby can be encouraged through touch, eye contact, vocalization and listening-all part of the greeting ritual.

THIS IS THE WAY: LABELING MOVEMENT
Children can recognize an object and understand movement long before they can use the language to tell you. We can help Baby in developing her ability to speak by labeling movement and objects. She will then begin to connect the relationship between the work and the movement or object. After months of babble Baby will begin to imitate these sounds and speak the words that previously she knew only by sight and sound.

JINGLE GO THE BABY BELLS: OBJECT PERMANENCE
When Baby begins to search for a hidden object, this indicates that Baby remembers that the object continues to exist even though it can not be seen. Object permanence is memory of behavior and/or things seen but out of sight.

BABY-O: MOVEMENT POSITIONS
This activity allows the adult to move Baby in a variety of ways such as crossing Baby's arms, lifting Baby into the air, folding Baby's legs up to the head and swinging Baby. Experiencing these movements and positions helps to develop Baby's vestibular system, muscle tone, and body awareness. 

We went to the Central Market Festival of Chocolate today to stall during two house showings. Oliver played with his cart cover and we lost a sock somewhere between the white chocolate pear fondue and the bittersweet chocolate pound cake samples.  Tyler Florence has a new line of organic baby food called sprout.  They are tres gourmet.

Lots of hand chewing and slobbering but still no teeth popping through.  I have noticed that he is really starting to observe and listen to everything we do and say.   I took him with me to visit my friend Sherrey who gave birth to twins this week.   I got to go into the NICU to see them.  Skye and Brady are soooo tiny and so precious.    Oliver was listening to everything Sherrey was telling me.   Today I called the cats a name that I shouldn't be calling them  - - and I cursed at the dog who depositing hair on the rug while I was trying to vacuum it up.   Ugh!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I hate setting good examples, but I guess that comes with the parenting job.

good night friday!