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

TWO 2 1/2 YEAR OLDS = ENERGY, EXCITEMENT AND LOTS OF FUN IN OUR HOUSE...

Two and a half years ago today Charlotte and Jacob arrived in our family and our lives have never been the same since! They fill our house with endless amounts of energy, tons of excitement and so many laughs and giggles it's hard to keep up at times! 

It is hard to imagine that my first babies are 2 1/2 today. So much has happened in their short lives and Doyle and I have enjoyed having a front row seat to all the action. We have watched them go from extremely tiny vulnerable people to confident toddlers who want to do everything on their own. As frustrating as it is at times to let them try it themselves it is all part of the growing process and I need to constantly remind myself of this as I stand over them thinking "just let me do it...or we'd be done by now if I did it....or hurry up we need to get out of here". Sure time is precious and we all lead busy lives but watching the world through a 2 1/2 year old's eyes is priceless and really shouldn't be rushed! 

CHARLOTTE

Weight: 26 lbs 6 oz
Length: 33"
Favourite foods: 

• Ham and cheese sandwich 
• Noodles 
• Any kind of fruit

Favourite word(s): 

• No way
• That's mine
• I want to pick one
• Myself
• What's making noises
• Who buy'ed that?

Things she loves to do:

• Play outside (especially in the front and backyard)
• Go for walks 
• Play in the park (especially on the slide)
• Go to music at CECC
• Read books and play with our nanny Claire
• Play with Jacob and Oliver
• Visit with Grams, Grandpa, Grammy, Grandma, Grandpa and GG
• Play with her friends Wesley, Ethan, Ali, Ben, Myra, Brinkley and Mia
• Crawl into Mommy and Daddy's bed for snuggles when she first wakes up in the morning
• Swim (in the Turtle Pool or a big pool)
• Talk

JACOB

Weight: 26 lbs

Length: 33"

Favourite foods: 

• Cookies (or anything sweet) 
• Peanut butter toast 
• Cereal (especially Rice Krispies and Cheerios)

Favourite word: 

• Mommy!
• Myself 
• How about...
• Where I supposed to be a sitting
• Who buy'ed that
• What's making noises

Things he loves to do:

• Play outside (especially in the front and backyard)
• Go for walks
• Play in the park (especially climbing up stairs and ladders on the play equipment)
• Go to music at CECC
• Read books and play with our nanny Claire
• Play with Charlotte and Oliver 
• Visit with Grams, Grandpa, Grammy, Grandma, Grandpa and GG
• Play with his friends Wesley, Ethan, Ali, Ben, Myra, Brinkley and Mia
• Crawl into Mommy and Daddy's bed for snuggles when he first wakes up in the morning 
• Sing (especially his ABC's)
• Dance in front of the mirror while playing his piano
• Go to the library and pet store
• Play in the bath
• Help with everything 
• Clean up (put toys and books away)

SOME PICTURES OF CHARLOTTE AND JACOB

Ms. and Mr. independent!  

Sibling love

Always getting into mischief together
(hiding under the podium at GG's b-day party)

Overall...best buds who light up our lives! 

CENTREVILLE FUN....

Today Doyle and I hopped on the ferry over to Centre Island to enjoy a fun filled day at Centreville Amusement Park with Charlotte, Jacob and Oliver. The kids loved the ferry and all the rides at Centreville and were exhausted when we left.

We started the day at 9:30 a.m. and ended our island adventure at 3:15 p.m. The kids have already said they are ready to go back tomorrow!

Team "red"...this is how we roll! Waiting for the ferry

Jacob and Charlotte watching the waves in the water

Nice boobs Doyle!

Just cruising around in the fire truck car 

Hanging in the boat

Jacob not so sure about the Toronto Island Monster roller coaster

Oliver hanging out in his new stroller at Centreville

Charlotte loving the Bee ride (she was the first to go on it...
Jacob went only after he watched her go!)

Hey...these Bee's aren't so bad after all

Driving in her red car

Loving life in his car

Jacob and Daddy on the log ride...woosh!

Funny faces....

HAPPY EIGHTH MONTH "BIRTHDAY"...OLIVER

Yet another month has passed in our house. This month not only marks eight months since Oliver's arrival but also triggers my eight week count down to returning to work  from my maternity leave (I'm heading back two months early)...gulp.

It has been an incredibly fast eight months but I will look back on these past months with so many fond memories. Oliver continues to be an amazing little man who brightens each day with his incredible smile and easy going personality.

This month Oliver has:

• Grown and gained weight: We won't have Oliver's official eight month weight / length measurements until June 13 but I am quite confident Oliver will tip the scales at over 20 lbs. 
• Begun to sit unassisted: On May 27 Oliver decided it was time to change his vantage point and began to sit unassisted! He is quite proud of himself and really enjoys being able to play upright vs on his back or front
• Said so long to his bath support seat: This past week we threw away Oliver's bath support seat. Now that he sits unassisted he prefers to play in the bath that way as well. 
• Sprouted his first tooth: On Friday June 1 I noticed Oliver was fascinated with pulling his lips into his mouth and biting on them so I decided to explore his gums to see what was happening in his mouth...much to my surprise I felt his first tooth poking through.  (bottom right front tooth) It is still very small but means we no longer have any toothless children in our house....oh how I'll miss those "toothless grins"....sniff sniff
• Moved from pureed food to small chunks of real people food: Oliver is now eating the same meals that we eat in our house. We have officially said good-bye to baby food purees and hello to small chunks of whatever food we're eating. So far he has enjoyed Rice Krispies cereal, turkey meat, cheddar cheese, yogurt, peanut butter, hummus and pita, mushroom pizza, pesto pasta, steak, green beans, broccoli, french stick bread, brie cheese with fig sauce, peanut butter toast and chicken - in addition to all the other food we've introduced over the past four months - - so long baby food! 
• Wished GG's a happy 90 birthday: On May 19 we all gathered to honour "GG" as she celebrated her 90th birthday...if only we can all be so lucky!
• Celebrated his baptism: Oliver was baptised on June 2 at St. Anselm's Catholic Church
• Become more mobile: Oliver continues to enjoy rolling to get where he needs to go. Although he remains stationary in his seated position he is no longer stationary while on his stomach or back
• Started to wean from his dream feed: We have started to experiment with weaning Oliver from his dream feed. We are on night number two...stay tuned over the coming weeks for his progression from the dream feed to sleeping completely through the night without a feed before we go to bed
• Shown more of an interest in being part of the "action": Oliver loves being anywhere that Charlotte and Jacob are. He is always laughing at them and watches them in amazement. He has also started to react when someone takes something from him that he was playing with - grunts in frustration and makes his feelings known! 
• Continued to sleep through the night: Oliver by far is the best sleeper out of all the kids. He continues to sleep from 6:30 p.m. to 6 or 6:30 a.m. (with a feed between 9:30 / 10 p.m.)
• Continued drinking from his straw sippy cup: Oliver continues to enjoy drinking from a cup. Most of his feeds are still from the bottle but I do give him his sippy cup throughout the day so he can get used to drinking from it
• Not missed a moment to show off his clapping or vocal abilities: Clapping, smiling, screaming with excitement or making sounds are just a few of Oliver's favourite things! Not a day goes by when he isn't engaged in one or more of these skills!
• Activities outside the house: Walks in the neighbourhood, Stroller Fit, Music at CECC, yard / porch time, visit to Mommy's office

IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER...SON...AND HOLY SPIRIT...

Yesterday we celebrated Oliver's baptism at St. Anselm's Church. We all gathered at 1 p.m. for the service and by 1:45 p.m. we were back at our house for the party! It was great fun and a very special moment for all of us. Thanks to everyone for sharing in Oliver's day.

Oliver and GG sharing a moment before the Baptism

The first blessing - Oil

The second blessing - water

Oliver getting baptised

Fr. Clough blessing everyone

Oliver with mommy, daddy, and his god parents Sean and Sally Ann

Looking "handsome" in his baptism gown

All smiles for Oliver

Jacob, Oliver and Charlotte 

Thanks everyone for your generosity!