One Year Ago

 Well, I am 15 lbs from my weight goal and Oliver's first year photo album is not complete (or started) but there was no stopping Oliver's First Birthday. One year ago, at 7:57 am, Oliver came into the world. It was a blazing hot day, and the beginning of the end of sleep as we knew it. But Oliver has been a happy boy, so much fun, and the perfect addition to our little family. 

We celebrated the big day with friends and family. Festivities began with breakfast in the park. Kerry, Jacob and I were up a little later that we wanted to be the night before, making muffins and crustless quiches and cutting up fruit for yogurt parfaits. But in the end, we got 'er done. The bubble machine was a hit, and the grownups drank nearly all of the 6 bottles of Prosecco for the mimosas. Oliver met up with most of his baby friends. And the weather was perfect - what I wouldn't have given for the slightly cooler weather a year ago when the AC went out in the hospital. 

The party moved on to the house with a ball pit made from a kiddie pool, cupcakes, football on TV, and a keg. Mitchell's pulled pork was delightful (although maybe we didn't need the Costco size pork shoulder, requiring the use of two crock pots) and we now have a sea of awesome new toys in the playroom. Oliver is certainly becoming a "boy" - delighting in planes, cars, balls and anything that makes noise. Thanks to everyone who came, and the gifts were really nice. My mind is still blown by the iPod holder for babies so they don't break your phone or accidentally call people. The most surprising/cool gift was the record player with stack of 45s. And probably the most appropriate were all of the musical instruments and Duck apparel. 

Hands too full to pick up his food. Obviously.

Overall, it feels like Oliver is growing and developing like crazy. He is crawling like a pro and pulling himself up. Probably just a count down to walking. He's started sleeping on his stomach with his butt up in the air. Pretty cute. He throws balls and feeds himself. He has started putting his face in the water during bath time "blowing bubbles." He's talking a lot. Teeth 5 & 6 are poking through his gums. We've upgraded him to his larger carseat and now have to decide whether we follow the old rule of turning him to face forward at one, or wait until two, the new guideline. I also just realized that he fits in all of his "big" shoes, which are of course, only really appropriate for walking. He's in size 5 diapers and 18-24 month clothes. We go to the doctor in a couple of weeks, so we'll get the rest of his stats then. 

It's been a fun ride so far, and it's always so cool to watch the next new thing! 

10.5 Months

Oliver turned 10 months old on the 8th.

His top two front teeth finally popped through last week. He looks like a hippo! But we had a few rough nights of sleep and finally pulled out the infant Advil. It was worth it.

One of his new things is falling asleep on his belly while playing.

His latest talent has been waving goodbye. He's been putting smaller toys into boxes and larger toys. He's started feeding himself more. And he's getting tall. We're upgrading to his big kid carseat as soon as we get around to installing them! And he's been making good new friends at Stroller Strides and Swimbabes. Lots of fun - and lots of 1 year birthdays coming up soon!

9 Months In, 9 Months Out

Oliver turns 9 months old today. He's growing up so fast! 


He's got two adorable teeth on the bottom front, and is working on some more. 

No crawling yet - but he sits up and rocks on to his belly now, so it's only a matter of time. We've dropped the crib all the way to the bottom (a long ways down when he won't stand to help you) and we've slowly started to baby proof. But he hasn't given us the big push, and I'm in no hurry! I can still set him down and know he'll still be there when I get back. 


He's an eating champ. He may not eat every bite, but he will literally eat any type of food we give him. Oranges, prunes, applesauce, green beans, spinach, broccoli...and an accidental piece of jalapeno during a bad parenting moment. We combine them to make it more complicated, which is always a fun experiment, but he doesn't seem to care one way or another. We've also started feeding him chicken and salmon. When we go out or travel, the baby food pouches (the new baby food jar) are super convenient, but we still make the rest of his food. He has started feeding himself finger foods, like oranges and strawberries cut up. Which he likes and insists on doing, but it takes a lot longer to feed him, and he still lets us feed him with a spoon, or he'd never get enough to eat! We've tried giving him the spoon, but the contents usually ends up only on the floor. 


He's in 12-18 month clothes and we've ordered him his larger carseat But we'll have to wait for our doctor's appointment next week to get the weigh in. 


He was just doing this fun tongue clicking for awhile, but he's introduced babbling noises now. He's practicing clapping and not sure whether he is musical or just likes to shake it, but he loves his rattles and maraca and tambourine. Let's just call it musical. He also pulls his pull toys to him by the string and can find the smallest spec on the ground to put in his mouth. 


We're still swimming and going to Stroller Strides. We go to Book Babies at the library when we can and sing songs with other babies. Oliver takes a nightly bath with dad, listens to the Raffi channel on Pandora and hangs out with his Aunt Kerry and neighbors a lot. He's now gone on a swing, sits in the seat in the grocery cart and high chair, and was babysat by a non-family member. 


To think that 9 months ago we hadn't even met! Love you, little guy. 

Food TIme

Oliver has been eating solid food for over a month now. We've been having a good time coming up with new fruits and veggies to prepare for him. He's eating lunch and dinner now and we are just buying fresh or frozen organic fruits and vegetables, steaming or baking them, and then pureeing or mashing them up. We save a little fresh and then portion the rest out in ice cube trays to freeze for later. We have baggies full of colorful little food pucks throughout the freezer. I've signed up for Organics to You to bring us fruits and veggies weekly. Next week will be the first delivery, which I'm looking forward to. But I'm also a little intimidated by the potential for new things I've never eaten or prepared before. A healthy challenge, I suppose!

We also finally received Oliver's new Stokke high chair. He was sitting on our laps before, but I've gotten too many of my pants dirty, and he's getting big! These high chairs are cool, because they pull up to the "family table" without a tray. They look good, and will adjust throughout childhood and eventually work as a stool for a grownup. An investment and a piece of furniture. This is the one we picked out for the house.

I left him in it to grab my camera for a second and Oliver managed to grab his food and began feeding himself. Shortly before he almost dropped the entire bowl on the floor. :)

6 months

Oliver took his 6-month photos today - so cute! But that means I'm out of excuses for postponing this entry!

Oliver turned 6-months-old on March 8. He weighed in last week at the doctor's at 20lbs, 15 oz. 92nd Percentile. and they measured him at 28.5". 95th Percentile. Generally the equivalent of an average 10-month-old. The nurse measured him at 29", but the doctor remeasured him and deducted a half an inch. I was suprised by the weight because I was guessing 22lbs - his buddy, Wesley is only two weeks older and is weighing in around 24lbs! But they're still both healthy, big boys.

One of the reasons that this post is a little late is that Oliver had his first real cold. A nasty cough and a plugged then running nose. They don't recommend any medicine at this age, so all we could do is elevate the mattress, run the humidifier and drop saline solution into his nose and then suck it out with the dreaded nose bulb sucker. He HATES getting his nose touched or wiped. But, we survived and he's finally feeling much better.

Other firsts include eating solid food. We've been steaming organic veggies and pureeing them. Started with carrots (orange vegetables are supposed to be sweeter and unlikely to be an allergen). Now he's tried sweet potatoes, baked potatoes with parsnips, peas, spinach, broccoli, bananas, avocados and iron-fortified brown rice cereal. He's liked everything that we've introduced, except for avocados. Trying to up the number of meals, so someday breast milk will just be supplemental. Crazy. We're also supplementing vitamin D and will introduce fluoride, since we don't have it in the water here in Oregon. All these things to worry about!

Oliver is now sitting up on his own, (with someone there to catch him when he pitches forward or back randomly) but has no interest in rolling over. His hair is growing longer and looking quite cute. No signs of teeth yet, but he has gotten his toes into his mouth and he has been spitting his tongue out a lot. He's interested in other babies now and will play with their feet if sat next to them. He loves to jump in his jumper, and can now move himself around in his walker. His current favorite toy is his Monkey stuffed animal, but after discovering a little music box inside, rendering it un-washable, I'm busy trying to find a new favorite.

We've been taking a weekly swim lesson, along with his friend Wesley, and his mom, Alyson. It's a survival swimming class (or at least will be) and we've already gone for 3-second underwater swims! It's a lot of fun for the boys (Oliver just passes out in the car afterwards) and fun for us, and will be a great skill for them! We've already signed up for 2-day a week classes coming up for the next 3 months. This is where we're taking them. Mitchell has been getting into the bath with him every night in order to practice his back float and "bubbles" where we dump water on his head to teach him to hold his breath.

I've also been going to Stroller Strides most weekday mornings. I take Oliver along in his stroller and we work out bootcamp style with other mothers and kids. It's actually a really good workout, and nice to hang out with other moms. It's at the Clackamas Town Center Mall and Mt Scott Community Center on alternating days, at 9 or 9:30 am. So I have to get out of bed earlier than I was. But the routine is good for both Oliver and I!

We went to a workshop on sign language and are excited to teach Oliver. Hopefully it will reduce some frustration on both of our parts before he is able to talk.

All-in-all, this is a great age, with lots of smiles and fun new things, but he hasn't gotten mobile and out of control yet. Definitely enjoying it!

Upsizing

Last night at about 19 weeks old, we decided to give Oliver some more space. We moved bathtime from the kitchen sink to the bathtub. He can't sit up yet, but he had a good time splashing daddy while laying on his cushion.

He was already in his own room, but we also moved Oliver from his small co-sleeper bed into his crib. We discovered that it had a mean lean to it, but we managed to fix it up, and Oliver slept like a champ last night (yes, a 3:30am brief wakeup is still considered good sleep). And it's a good thing too, because I wasn't sure what we were going to do once he starts to grow out of all of his infant things - which he's doing so quickly!

Four Month Update

Oliver had his four-month doctor's appointment last week, so taking the opportunity to check in again.

First, I am now keeping track of months by the calendar, instead of weeks. So, the 8th of every month is now his birthday! Hard transition to make after pregnancy, which counts by the weeks.

Oliver's measurements come in at: 18lbs, 11.5oz (99th percentile), 27in long (99th percentile) and his head is 43.5cm (80th percentile). The doctor went across the curve chart, and Oliver is the equivalent in size to an average (50th percentile) 7-month-old. He's a big boy. I've packed up all of the 3 month clothes, and pulled out of lot of 9 and 12-month clothes.

He's now playing with toys - holding rattles and small toys. He is shoving everything in his mouth. The pediatrician calls this mouthing, which means he's just practice teething, until suddenly teeth show up, and then its teething. He's drooling a lot and biting down on anything he can get his mouth on. Oliver now sleeps in his own room, in his smaller bassinet. Next step is the crib, which starts this week. He often sleeps 7 to 9 hours without waking (although occasionally throws in waking up after an hour, or just periodically throughout the night). The only catch is that he doesn't go down for the night until 11:30 or midnight. He sleeps with a noise machine, which I think helps, and is quite soothing for us when we hear it through the monitor all night.

Oliver has started to "hug" - wrapping his arms tightly around you. But he also PINCHES when he does this - usually on the underside of your arm or your neck. The sensitive parts that hurt! But, he's sitting up with assistance, and holds his neck up like a champ. We've started giving him a lot of chances on his tummy, since he doesn't like to stay there for long until he cries, but occasionally he rolls himself over from front to back. This is all in preparation for crawling. He likes to look at himself in the mirror, and he's started to notice, if just a little bit, other babies. He's very aware when I'm not around and will eventually start to cry, but he does let other people hold him, thank goodness. We take him out to dinner with us and he does very good - just sleeping. So we've been trying to do that as much as possible these days.

Can't wait for him to start enjoying his playmates - Opal, Wesly and Asher. And to welcome a few more waiting in the wings!

Winter Blowout

Mitchell was in charge of Oliver during a 3 hour ladies spa excursion today. I felt a bit bad that he cried on and off the entire time, per usual. So while I was feeding him after I got home and Mitchell says he needs to help the neighbor "move something" with two beers in his hand, I say go ahead - he deserved a break. And this is what transpired.

A few minutes later while nursing, Oliver loudly craps his pants. I patiently wait for him to finish. I pick him up and realize his back is damp. He managed to poop out of his diaper, through his onesie, shirt, overalls, and into MY pants. I drag him to the sink, peel his sticky layers of clothes off while holding him to stand, get everything out for a bath with one arm, warm up the water and clean off the poo-slick that covers his back from the shoulder blades, on down. During the impromptu "bath" I find myself also counter-spraying his pee spray with the kitchen faucet, and cleaning off spitup from his front.

I take the opportunity to get him in his jammies and into bed. I then change my own pants, throw his outfit away (sometimes, it's just not worth it) and sit on the couch. Mitchell comes back and says, "what's going on?" I don't feel as bad about the crying anymore. ;)

I did capture a shot of the onesie for perspective.

Photos with Santa

Pay no attention to the fact that Santa looks different in the photos.... or the $1,600(!?!?!) dental bill I had just received. Randomly selected Santa photo day at the vet to get the boys' teeth cleaned, and subsequently several of them pulled. Hence the reason they look a little F'd up in the photo they took after because, uh, they were. Pretty cute, though.

And we received Oliver and Opal's photos via a photo order site. So glad we did it. The pediatrician recommended we do it this year, because next year we'll probably get the screaming photo.

Oliver Out and About

I should have gotten a photo today. Burned Oliver's sleeping time with a drive out to Hillsboro and lunch, so he was awake and wanting to be held by the time we made it to our manicure appointment. Great... I held him for a bit, but then I needed both hands. So the guy went in the back and recruited the ladies who were not working at the moment to hold him. They whisked him to the back (where I could still see him) and he totally hung out with them contentedly for 10 minutes or so. Hilarious. I tipped the guy well, and felt bad for not paying the ladies!

On a side note, Andie suggested I get shellac instead of regular polish, since it bakes on and is then dry, so I wouldn't ruin them with Oliver. Verdict: so far, so great!

This story also reminds me of all of the other places that Oliver will be someday be embarrassed having been with me to:

• The nail salon
• The hair salon (Wednesday he actually insisted on sitting on my lap through the whole color process, but did fall asleep just in time for shampoo!)
• The bra store - "Just Like a Woman"
• The ladies lounge in Nordstrom
• Mom & Baby yoga
• OBGYN appointments
• Hanging out in my bathroom
• Shopping

Please remind me if I've forgotten any... Te he he

A few more gift ideas

Still shopping for Oliver and I? Probably not. But we could use:

Music. I've been enjoying the Rockabye Baby - Good Day, Goodnight CD where they make lullaby versions of popular songs. Soothing for Oliver to listen to, and still entertaining for me. I here the lyrics in my head while I listen and sing along (not very well, but Oliver doesn't care). I know they have a lot of versions, including country. Other music is good, too. And then some is truly terrible.

Kid's books. It's amazing how quickly it feels like you've read everything in the collection too many times.

Paci Tether. We've gone from 3 to 8 pacifiers, and somehow they're even harder to find. And the worst is when we make it out of the house without one. So, attaching one to Oliver in the morning just makes sense. It needs to be something that works with his funky soothie pacifiers, and it looks like this kind with a thin loop would work.

First Visit to Santa

Oliver and his girlfriend Opal visited Santa this weekend. We even managed to find one not at the mall. Not a lot of smiles - Oliver was very serious - but no real tears from either of them. So cute! Waiting to get the official photos. We should have had them sit together, but we didn't. :( We always have the Easter Bunny...

They look so nervous!

Diaper bag

It is time for Mitchell and I to part ways - at least when it comes to the diaper bag. He likes things orderly, and to only carry the necessities and emergency survival gear. And while I love our sleek, unisex diaper bag, by the time I pack my wallet, sunglasses, a bottle with ice pack, bottle for feeding and a burp cloth, I can't zip the bag. Then when he does use the bag, it's like handing over my purse and telling him to organize.

I think I've found the winner for diaper bag #2. It is a Petunia Pickle Bottom bag, which I swore I'd never own, as they're as mainstream as Uggs (yes, I note the irony with the previous post). But, it IS pretty. Girly, but not so girly that everyone assumes Oliver is a girl. And most importantly - it is the biggest diaper bag I can find. I suppose that is indicated by the "weekender" in its name, but that makes it the winner!

And no, I won't purchase anything of this matter until after Christmas... Hint. Oh, and they sell it at Goodnight Room

Thanksgiving 2011

We celebrated Oliver's first Thanksgiving out at our Cabin in Sunriver this year. It was the perfect place to converge and allow both sets of grandparents to hang out. It happened to not only be Oliver's first Thanksgiving, but his first trip to Sunriver and first view of snow (there was only a bit on the ground, but it was cold enough to make up for it.) Hopefully our next trip out there to celebrate his first Christmas will result in a lot more snow fun!

We were able to use our overhauled bathrooms (photos to follow - I can't believe I forgot to take any...but I will say the 90's fabulousness is gone.) Mitchell and I got a new mattress, the ripple effect of which will make things more comfortable for everyone in the Cabin. The full-fledged Turkey Day feast was cooked by Kerry and I, with the assistance of the other ladies. Three of us finished the Hunger Games trilogy. We even broke out a few board games. All-in-all a success! Cannot wait for Christmas in a few weeks...

2 Month Check-In

Oliver turned 9 weeks old today and we went in for his 2 month doctor's appointment. Thought it would be a good time to reflect on all that he has going on.

At two weeks, he was weighing in at the 50th percentile and 90th percentile for length. Today, he is 14 lbs, 11 oz - 97th percentile! And he is 24.75" long - 96th percentile. He's certainly developed his chubby baby cheeks. Dr Schunk said he could probably be in a room of four month olds and look just like them. I'll vouch for that - he's wearing 3-6 month clothes, and wearing size 2 diapers. I just today adjusted his carseat straps from the lowest slot of three to the highest (whoops, didn't think to check on that earlier). His fingers no longer look freakishly long - his hands just look large. Crazy how big he has gotten!

He has some new fuzzy hair quickly growing on the top of his head (adorable). Lighter than what he was born with - possibly the same color as my hair. And, the verdict is still out, but I'm still holding out hope for blue eyes! His skin has stayed clear since he was born, and he is of course looking quite adorable. Still looks mostly like Mitchell, except for his eyes.

He has been smiling finally. It's usually during certain times of the day, but he'll be very happy and smile in reaction to you, which is very fun. He likes his pacifier, but not as much as he did before. He really enjoys his playgym - staring for long periods of time at the dangling toys - mostly the octopus. He also likes his swing, which is a lifesaver at times. In general, he's much more alert - so, finally getting ready to finish putting the art on the walls in the nursery so he has something to look at, and the pressure is on for book reading and adding new stimulation.

Next up is working on a bedtime routine. Currently he goes to bed between 11 and 1, sleeps until 3 or 5, and then again until 6 or 8. He no longer sleeps in, which makes me suspicious that he's not really my son... We're going to try to get him to bed at 9, with some nursing, a "bath" and a book. Also going to start to phase out the swaddling, and start to think about moving him into his own room eventually. Going to up the tummy time, too. Can't wait for more personality - like laughing! It's all moving so fast, and except for the crying and lack of sleep, it's all so fun!

Not the Mommy

So, the latest phase in Oliver's 2 months of life is that he really doesn't want anyone holding him other than his mom and dad, and even then, if he gets upset only his mom can calm him down. It's pretty exhausting to be the only one who can calm him down, and nearly the only one that can even hold him. There goes leaving him with someone to babysit, and now is supposed to be the time to do that before they hit the "stranger danger" phase. Boo.

Compiling some unofficial research together, my best guess is that he's about to make a developmental leap - I'm hoping for smiling in response to things, or finding his hands - which is overwhelming, and therefore he wants to be with the person he is most comfortable with. He cries because he can't talk and he can't just walk himself away. Sigh. Here's to hoping it's a short phase, and thank the lord that he loves his swing and other baby holders....

Newborn Photos

Taking a break from trying to select which photos I want to have enlarged prints of. We took Oliver in at one week old - on his original due date - to get his photos taken. It was rough getting out the door for only the second time and making it out to Hillsboro by 10 am. But we made it! Oliver did great, despite two peeing incidences. But what can you expect when you take a newborn's diaper off! I was convinced that he was being the worst baby ever, but Rebecca assured us that he was one of the easiest newborns she's worked with in a while. And the photos she took were amazing!! Hence the fact it is so difficult to select the photos to frame.

Take a look here at her blog entry with a few of his super adorable shots. And as she pointed out, I think he unfortunately inherited my wrinkly feet and palms. Would highly recommend Catchlights NW for newborn photos in the Portland area!

Stinky

Went to Babies R Us to pick up some things we discovered we "need" for Oliver. While there I grabbed a pack of disposable diaper bags. They're basically doggy poo bags, but branded for babies. I have plans to do a price comparison, because they're literally the same thing. Except for the fact that the baby ones are scented (I have no idea why they would be and the dog bags wouldn't be...) As I looked at my BRU store-brand bags, I noticed an overwhelming odor of baby powder. I couldn't figure it out for a moment until I realized it was coming through the box packaging of the bags. It was an overpowering scent, and while reminiscent of "baby," it's also kind of sickening. So I put them back and selected a more neutral Arm & Hammer brand.

Flash forward to diaper changing time when I go to apply our new Babies R Us (Vaseline knock-off) Petroleum Jelly in a tube. The only kind they had. To my horror, as I was about to place it on my son's freshly circumcised part, I realized it reeked of... you guessed it... baby powder. I thought, this can not be, it's just Petroleum Jelly... as the active ingredient. With "fragrance" as the only "other ingredient". In a very unofficial and incomplete study, I think every store-brand product that they sell is Baby Powder Scented!

Maybe it's just me, but perhaps one or two items should be scented baby powder if you want your baby to smell like that. Or possibly even just use baby powder?? I go out of my way to buy unscented products, so I found it just a wee bit frustrating...

Growing up too fast

Umbilical cord fell off today. What?? I think that's supposed to take a little while. Could Oliver possibly be 5 days old already? And of course I dug it out of the chair I was nursing in and saved it. Suggestions on what I should do with it? Frame it in a shadow box? Probably not - Mitchell won't even let me frame the x-ray of my back, which I think would make rather cool piece of statement art. Anyway, keep or toss the shriveled piece of lifeline?

Oliver also passed his first doctor's appointment with flying colors. Been a mellow day that has flown by here are the Wright household. Somehow, it is already 4 pm.

Oliver George Wright

Oliver joined our little family Thursday, September 8, 2011, at 7:57 am. He was 8 lbs 2 oz, 21 inches, with a 14 and 3/4" inch head circumference (We were told that is pretty huge and that I should be glad I had a c-section). He was delivered via cesarean one week before our original due date at Portland Providence because he was in a breech position. He had a nearly perfect "APGAR" score when he arrived and seem to have no issues being a week early. This score was assessed shortly after he emptied what appeared to be his entire bladder on the observation table after being delivered. He did the same thing when he received his circumcision on Saturday. His system seems to be working just fine!

Mitchell was able to be in the Operating Room with me - holding my hand during the surgery, and was the first to hold the little guy when he arrived. The surgery was super fast and it was very strange to be awake and just feel a lot of pressure on the other side of the curtain. I had a "spinal" anesthetic, which numbs everything from the chest down and took a few hours to wear off. My mom, Kerry and Alice were there we came out and had to "patiently" wait in the waiting room while we got settled in our room and had the first breastfeeding experience. Breastfeeding has gone really well, and the whole sleep schedule thing is a work in progress. I was pretty much out of it the day he was born from the surgery drugs, and have been just a touch loopy since then from the pain meds. We were in he hospital for 3 days and had several visitors over the couple of days, including all 4 grandparents and his one aunt. We watched the Duck and Michigan football games on the ancient TV in the hospital room.

The biggest complaint was that the first night the air-conditioning went out in all of the maternity rooms. The combination of the hot weather and my raging hormones caused a bit of a sweaty panic attack, but we rigged up a few fans and managed to make it through until the AC was reinstated.

We were able to come home today. Things have been smooth so far, although the dogs are still in transition mode and not sure what to think. We're so excited to integrate Oliver into our lives and introduce him to more of our family and friends. He's a cutie!