CRAWLING...TESTING, TESTING...ONE...TWO...THREE...

Oliver is becoming more mobile everyday and beginning to test his limits more and more. I captured this video recently of him trying out his crawling skills! He is a little wobbly but is becoming stronger each day - he's even starting to pull himself up on things. 

So long to "staying in one place"....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM / GRAMMY...

Today we celebrated my mom's birthday. The kids were very excited to help me wrap her presents and of course eat the birthday cake we bought her! 

Thanks for being such a great mom / Grammy...we feel very fortunate to have you in our lives!

All smiles for Grammy's birthday

Grammy and her grandchildren - Charlotte, Oliver and Jacob

Charlotte and Jacob very excited to help open presents

Hurry up and blow out those candles....we want cake! 

HAPPY NINE MONTH "BIRTHDAY"...OLIVER

We have now had Oliver in our lives for as long as I carried him in my tummy and what an amazing nine months it has been! He fits in so well with our family that I honestly can't imagine life without him. 

Charlotte is especially drawn to him and loves to help in any way she can. She always asks whether he can have a piece of something she's eating or see a toy she is playing with and she continues to want to know where he is when he's not around. She has also been concerned lately with where Oliver will sit in Grammy's car since she only has two car seats! "No room for Opiter" or "Where Opiter sit" is what you'll hear her say from the back seat when she travels in Grammy's car! It's really quite sweet the bond she has developed with him. 

Jacob loves to come and get Oliver with me in the morning - he climbs into his crib to give him a hug before I take him out to change and feed him! He also likes to shake his bottle after I put the formula in the water and hand it to me to give to Oliver. Like Charlotte, Jacob is also interested in knowing where Oliver is when he's not around. Although Jacob still has his moments with Oliver (the odd scratch here or push there) he is a great big brother. 

I am feeling bittersweet about yet another month flying by in our house. As much as I've loved seeing all the new things Oliver has accomplished I still wish I could find that magical pause button to freeze time so he'd stay small for a while longer.

This past month Oliver has:

• Grown and gained weight: Although we won't have an official "doctor" weigh-in and measurement this month (no well visit with Dr. G) our home scale says Oliver is 22 lbs and the measuring tape has him at 29 inches
• Sprouted a second tooth: Not long after tooth number one made an appearance number two sprouted beside it on the bottom. They are coming in quite nicely although I'm still enjoying Oliver's mainly toothless grin! 
• Started to pull himself up on things: Yesterday (July 8) I walked into Oliver's room after his PM nap and found him on his knees with his head / chin far above the crib bar. Thankfully I came in before his top heavy head propelled his body over the rail and onto the floor. Because of his new found daredevil tactics Oliver's mattress was lowered as soon as Doyle got home from work!
• Developed a bit of attitude: When Oliver wants something or doesn't want something he makes it known by flailing his body (if seated or lying on the floor) or banging his head (if seated in his high chair). This is more of a Charlotte trait than a Jacob trait...I'm not sure I'm ready for two Charlotte's in the house ;) 
• Become more mobile: Although Oliver has not officially started crawling he has no problem getting himself around. A shimmy of the bum here and a roll there and he is where he wants to be! He can go from a seated position to his tummy and back up to a seated position without any issue. I continue to enjoy the fact he isn't officially crawling yet but know it's only a matter of time before our lives get a little more hectic! 
• Increased his vocal sounds: Oliver has added a few new sounds to his vocabulary including "a da", "gah" and "ca". I'm still anxiously waiting for "ma ma"...
• Started waving: "Oliver waving" or "Oliver bye-bye" are the cues for him to wave. He always seems quite proud of himself when he waves his arm to say hello or good-bye to people
• Enjoyed his first swim in a lake: This past weekend we spent time at our friends Paul and Judy's cottage on Lake Muskoka. While there we introduced O to the lake and although he was a bit scared at first he quickly warmed up to it and loved splashy around
• Become better at eating solids: Oliver continues to enjoy his meals and has gotten better at eating larger pieces of food that we give him - his favourites from this month have been grapes, raisins, blueberries, pizza, chicken and pork
• Said so long to his dream feed: We no longer feed Oliver before we go to sleep. His last bottle is at 6:30 p.m. before he goes down for the night.
• Continued to sleep through the night: Oliver loves his sleep especially from 6:30 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.
• Continued drinking from his sippy cup: Although Oliver still prefers a bottle over a cup he is taking more milk from it when I give it to him. This skill will be something we practice more of over the coming month. 
• Celebrated his first Canada Day: We enjoyed a low key Canada Day long weekend at home complete with lots of backyard time and walks around the neighbourhood! 
• Activities outside the house: Trip to Centre Island / Centreville, Huyer / Joe's Team cottage weekend, walks in the neighbourhood, Yard / porch time, Swimming at the Spence's Pool and Nordahl / Sacco pool