"Buh, buh, buh"

Oliver practices his new noise while he plays in the Exersaucer.

A Laughing Baby Makes Your Day!

Exterior Paint

David determined that the exterior of our house needed to be painted before this winter so we've been scrambling to get it done. As you can see in the pics, it will be quite an improvement (when we're finally finished.) The jasmine plant growing on the front of our house had to be seriously trimmed back and David did a lot of scraping and prepping. We labored over the color choice and finally decided on some that we thought would be fun - the green is "Mother Nature" and the brown is "Cocoa Chocolate." We still have some trim to paint and David has to re-hang the gutters but we got the bulk of it done before the rains started!

Before picture:

Primer:

The North Side:



The South Side:



Having loads of fun (that's my bro helping):

Making progress (my mom braved a ladder):

More Baby Noises

Oliver was laying on the floor in my office next to David and they were waiting for me to finish up a quick project at work. Oliver starting making some noises for attention and I grabbed my camera to catch some of his sounds.

Date Night!

Oops. I loaded these pics awhile back but never published the post. David scored free tickets to a Timbers game and Jamie stayed with Oliver so we could go watch it. Our team lost but it was still fun to go out and cheer them on!

Autumn Updates

It's hard to believe that September is already drawing to an end! Winter is swiftly sneaking up on us and I know I'm not ready for the cold and rain. If only summer would last a little longer.

My new job is keeping me very busy but I'm really enjoying it at the same time. I've had to put in some extra hours in the evenings and worked over a couple of weekends too - all that and I still have a lot to catch up on! I sure look forward to seeing my baby every afternoon when I get off work. I appreciate our time together all the more now that our days are spent apart. He's still growing and changing before our eyes and it is so fun to watch him learn and try new things.

Oliver can sit very well with his back supported and even for a few seconds unaided.




Although he's only done it a few times, he can now roll over both ways!



Solid foods tried: rice cereal (getting used to it), carrots (not too tasty), bananas (willingly opened his mouth for more), and peas (big yucky face, can't blame him!)




His feet continue to be a source of entertainment and his socks never stay on for long!




Oliver recently was reacquainted with his friend Zoe who is only a week younger than he is.


He was mesmerized by her!






Two weekends ago was our church family retreat at Camp Yamhill. Oliver had his first experience on a camp mattress.




And David enjoyed the bouncy house.




Oliver and I just watched. :)



David teased Oli when he wore this outfit. I thought the lion was kinda' cute.



Stay tuned, more adventures are sure to come!

Squeaker

Oliver loves trying out new sounds and his latest is a high-pitched little squeaky noise. I can only imagine what he is trying to communicate!

Busy Baby

Oli is 5 months old already and it seems that he changes every day. He sits up very well now with support, and he can balance for a little while on his own. He will lean very far and reach for things but hasn't started scooting or crawling just yet. He continues to "talk" and squeal and it's fun to imagine what he might be trying to tell us. Of course we try to take as many pictures and videos as possible so we can always remember these precious moments.

Oliver - 4 1/2 Months!

I've had a gap in my blog updates and my only excuse is that we've been BUSY! I don't know how I ever thought I had a packed schedule before I had to deal with working full-time, supporting David in his ministry, AND juggling the details of having a young baby. I can't even imagine what it will be like when we have more children! I suspect that the craziness and joy will just grow exponentially!

Anyway, our sweet Oliver is continuing to grow and mature and we enjoy each day with him. He's making some new sounds (that I describe as hooting and blowing his lips) and still working on his teeth. His hands are constantly in his mouth or trying to grab onto his toes, and sometimes his toes end up in his mouth too (ew!) He likes to play in his exersaucer and does pretty well on car trips. Here are some recent(ish) pics:

"Solids"

At Oliver's last appointment, our pediatrician gave us the okay to start introducing solid foods. We've tried rice cereal two nights in a row now and it actually went pretty well. He seems interested in eating but he's not very sure of the flavor and texture of the cereal. Well, you can see for yourself in these pictures and videos!

Oliver - 4 Months

I can't believe it's been 4 months since Oliver came into our world! Time just seems to be flying by! Little Oli had his check-up with the doctor yesterday and we are glad to report that he is growing and developing (and as adorable as ever!) His length is 2' 2" (in the 89th percentile - maybe he'll be a tall boy!), his head circumference is 16.5 (in the 38th percentile - small hat size like his dad?), and his weight is 16 lbs 12 oz (in the 82nd percentile - he's solid.) I am back to work now full-time so David took him to the appointment and he said that Oli did better with the vaccinations this time - poor baby. The pediatrician gave us the go-ahead to start solid foods so I imagine we'll try to introduce rice cereal in the next couple of weeks.

Oliver continues to be such a joy in our lives and he really is a good baby. He's still got the remnants of the cold that hit our whole family. His poor tiny nose is still pretty stuffed up but he doesn't seem to be too fussy over it. He's also started the adventure of teething. One of his bottom teeth was just starting to poke through a couple days ago but it seems to have retreated for now. Oli is constantly gnawing on his fingers, hands, toys, blankets, and about anything else he can get his little paws on. Hopefully his little pearly whites don't give him too much trouble coming in!

Milestones

Oliver has now successfully rolled from his tummy to his back twice! His arms are getting much stronger and he pushes himself up and from side to side. His legs are also continuing to develop. He can "stand up" while we are holding him and he loves to play bouncy interactive games with us. He is also getting better in his exersaucer - pushing off his feet and moving around to the different toys. He can scoot and turn a little bit now too. Some mornings I find him facing the opposite end of his bed or pushed up into a corner of his crib. It won't be long now until he's mobile!