Monday, April 25, 2011

Easter 2011!

We did something a bit different this Easter. Typically we have had a huge lunch out with a crazy dessert bar....then we feel gross and tired the rest of the day. This time, we planned a picnic lunch at Freedom Park. We had been thinking about doing it but jumped on it late last week. We decided that we wanted the Princeton Road Shelter with the playground. Low and behold, that was the only one NOT reserved, YAY!! It worked out perfectly. The area is totally fenced in and complete with covered picnic tables under the shelter, sandbox and playground! It was fantastic. I thought ahead (go me!) and brought Oliver's pack-n-play.....thank goodness we did. It allowed us to eat and to corral him while we unpacked and packed up! Mom and I divided and conquered when it came to cooking/gathering lunch and I think we all had a great time. Grandmommy joined us as did Jack so it was a nice way to spend Easter Sunday together! Oliver immediately grasped the idea of the Easter Egg Hunt....well, not so much "hunt" more like "pick off the ground"!

So, instead of ending the day feeling gross and exhausted....we were just exhausted! :) But in a good way....

Our festive table Mom put together!



Oliver's new wagon from the Easter Bunny via Grandma and Grandpa! He loved it and has even been given rides in it around the house today.

Kids in Motion!

So a couple weeks ago we packed up the kid and went over to Symphony Park near Southpark Mall for the JLC's Kids in Motion. It was so much fun!!


Family escape to Blowing Rock!

The first weekend in April, Owen, Oliver and I decided to go up to Blowing Rock for the weekend. It was so nice to get away and we even woke up to snow on Saturday morning! It was all melted by noon so we went downtown and walked around with Oliver for a little bit. It was a great weekend full of weird weather!
He's a blur these days!!
SNOW! Owen being goofy with Oliver Saturday morning!
Goose egg....what happens when you are moving too fast, not looking where you are going and not 100% steady on your feet!
All better now, playing in the bathroom!
On the way home!

The Carolina Raptor Center

One rainy day, Mom, Owen, Oliver and I headed to North Charlotte to go to the Carolina Raptor Center. It is AMAZING! Owen and I went about 8 or 9 years ago but we had groupons to use so we went on a less than sunny day. At least we pretty much had the place to ourselves! The place is full of owls and other birds of prey. Most (if not all) have come there because they have been injured and the CRC has rehabilitated them. Some have actually been able to be released back into the wild. The birds on display are so cool and I have a feeling we'll be making many trips back.....especially since Oliver now says "whooooo" for owls (adorable!).

Thursday, April 7, 2011

A Dah?

Oliver is really very good at communicating. If he doesn't know exactly the words I am saying, he definitely knows the tone :) His most common phrase/word is "a dah?" - which basically means, "what's that?" OR "look". He'll point and "a dah" and then point to something else.... "a dah". OVER AND OVER AND OVER :) But it is sweet and funny. When he gets something he shouldn't..... "a dah" and then a sly smile, a laugh and his speed demon crawling to get away from me! :) He just puts his head down and charges like a bull.....funny boy.

His walking is great, he is trying to run! He is letting go of things himself and walking instead of me always prompting him. He knows he is still faster at crawling so he'll drop and crawl when he is trying to get somewhere quickly.

Oliver is a chatterbox, too. No surprise there - have you met his father!? :) I remember when I was pregnant and working one day at Paper Twist, a mom came in with her little boy who was probably about 5.....he was talking to her about EVERYTHING, all he saw and liked, etc etc....At one point she said to him "Bobby (or whatever his name was) can you just not talk for a few minutes, just be quiet, let me think"......She wasn't cruel when she said it, it was more in a pleading tone of voice but still.....being a little judgemental of this mom, i thought "Geez, all he wants to do is talk to her and tell her things, that was a little mean of her to tell him to be quiet". But then, I got a glimpse into my future and saw PRECISELY this scenario several years down the road and understood her situation. It was almost inevitable that Oliver would be a talker (like Owen), just as it was inevitable that he would be stubborn, independent and sassy - NOT as in a fabulous "girl you look sassy in that outfit" (like me) AND opinionated (both of us....).

So there is a constant stream of chatter, "a dah" and various animal sounds all the time. But, the sweetest sound in the world is "ma ma".....oh it just melts my heart every single time he says it. I love it! He has started stringing it together with "a dah" and a point which i find to be quite impressive :) translation - "Mom, what's that?".

It is hard to believe that Oliver is almost 16 months old....He is such a big boy now!

He also has a bunch of "tricks". He can wave good-bye, hold up one finger when we ask how old he is, give me a hug when I ask, he claps and rolls his arms when we sing "Patty Cake", he can put both arms in the air for "SO BIG" when we ask how big he is, he can blow a kiss and his newest trick is he can "ear muff it". That is when he puts both hands over his ears - if you have seen the movie Old School, you know what I am talking about :)

He is a pretty good mimic....I'll have to keep that in mind before he mimics something he shouldn't!
Going for a walk in the neighborhood!