Post-Thanksgiving Gratitude

Yes, it is almost a week past Thanksgiving but that just means it has given me even more time to reflect on all that I am thankful for.....

Our sweet, adorable and energetic almost-2 year-old. What a blessing he is to us! He fills our home and our lives with so much love and joy that it is impossible to express how much we love him and are grateful to be his parents. As an added bonus, despite a couple of colds this fall, he has been doing very well and is a very healthy kid.....who often is mistaken for being older than he is....

My husband, who loves me just as I am. I am fully aware of how special and wonderful he is and I wouldn't trade him for the world! Owen is an amazing husband, friend and father.

My family - all of them! I added a wonderful and loving sister-in-law and nephews when Blake and Sarah got married this past summer. I am grateful to have Charles, Michelle & Tilly on this side of the world and even better, in the state! I am excited to add another member of the family when Bryan and Miriana get married!

My friends, who are so much fun and supportive! There isn't always enough time to get to spend with all my friends but I am grateful for the times we do get together.

There is so much to be thankful for and I am appreciative of all our blessings. We had such a busy Thanksgiving day in Charlotte and weekend in Brevard that I didn't take a single photo. SO BAD!!

But, I did take a couple of Oliver helping me to decorate for Christmas.....enjoy! :)

Funny things the kid does

So some of these will be hard to appropriately describe since a lot of them you have to see or hear in person.....but let's give it a shot :)

He has started doing a "mmmnnnn mmmnnn" like i do when i tell him no but just shaking my head and saying the same thing....FUNNY.

He sometimes gets so excited that he runs his words together, especially when talking about people. For example, the other day I got him up from his nap and was talking to him about how we were going to go see Grandma and Grandpa....he gets excited and says: "GuhGuhPapaVruVruHmmmnnn".....as one word! :) Translation: Grandma Grandpa Ruff Ruff (Boz the Dog) and he uses that Hmmmmnnn sound for the cat (Baxter) :) Although he has started saying cat. I think the sound is a name for cats but also reflects a feeling (a good one :)).

Cozy time at Grandma and Grandpa's house

He also runs together MaDada (Momma Dadda) and NaDa (Nana and Big Da).

He shakes his finger to tell Boz to sit......and also teases Boz with his food. He will walk by Boz with food in his hand, with Boz desperately wanting to snatch it, and will give him the elbow to keep him away from his food......BUT, if Boz loses interest, he'll intentionally go find him and walk by him again. Of course Boz usually doesn't lose interest because he knows that 99% of the time, Oliver will end up feeding him whatever he has.......so sweet and cute.

The words we hear a lot in our house right now: "No", "uh oh", "oh no boom!" and "Ow".

Oliver's favorite number is "TWO". He wants 2 of EVERYTHING. I give him his water cup and he says, "twoooo".....I give him a cheerio or "cheeto" and he wants 2.....He loves to have 2 of everything and it is pretty funny....

As I have said in a previous post, Oliver goes to gymnastics at the Y every Friday morning which he LOVES! He still won't cooperate with the circle up time at the beginning but he is definitely down for sitting still and has started participating in the singing at the end as well. Why you ask? Because he knows that after that, he will get a stamp on his hand! And he loves getting his stamp :) He even got TWO today :) It is a hoot to watch him run around like crazy at gymnastics.....and jump "ju ju ju" and pretty much wear himself out! I can't believe we only have a few more classes!

Oliver also loves Tuck....If you have met Tuck then you know how skittish he is and he is constantly slinking away from Oliver or hiding under the bed (poor kitty) because I think Oliver would be all over him if Tuck would allow it. He squeals and gets so excited about seeing "Tu Tu". I have to remind him not to scare Tuck be squealing at the top of his lungs. So he'll say, "shuuush" and put his finger up to his mouth....but then he forgets :)

When Oliver isn't allowed to do something or have something or something gets taken away, he'll do this little dance and pump his arms. So funny. He'll say, "Ah dooo". No idea what that means but he says it only in these instances.....

Some of his cutest new words are purple, elbow, turtle (not new but SO cute), hill, here, knee, tip toe, and "cheeto" which actually means cheerio :).

He is also SO close to climbing out of his crib.....he is totally capable of doing it but just hasn't yet....which aside from the obvious problem of him being able to climb out of his crib, would also pose a problem because he is still hooked up to his feeding pump all night, which is attached to a medical pole......so even if he climbed out, he couldn't go very far, unless he pulled down his pole, that would be an issue......

All in all, he is such a joy and a handful. He is smart (too smart :)), funny, sweet, stubborn, persistent, determined, opinionated and kind. There was a little girl at gymnastics the other week who was lying on the floor and crying (I think just crabby and having a tantrum) but Oliver was so concerned about her. He kept going over to check on her and kept asking me about the "baby". I just told him that she was a little upset but that she would be ok soon. So he would go back to running around and jumping and stop back by to check on her every minute or so until she was better. SO adorable to watch him lie down on the floor next to her and look at her.....sweet boy.

Oliver is also pretty good at taking care of himself. He isn't exactly shy or reserved but if he feels intimidated or unsure he'll stay on the sideline until he has a handle on what is going on and then jump in. He also isn't aggressive towards other kids but he doesn't back down either. If he is playing with a kid who takes the toy he has, he'll just follow them until he gets the toy back :) But, sometimes he is the kid who takes the toy, too, which of course is totally age appropriate but we just have to have talks about sharing :).

There is so much more that makes my day exciting with Oliver but those are just a few of the funny things that the kid does :)

Oliver "whaling" on Uncle Jack's djembe drum

Happy Halloween!

This year, Oliver was pirate! And an adorable pirate, too! :) It was hard to get a good picture of him....but you get the idea.......

Running around in Grandma and Grandpa's yard!

Trying to take his hat off.....

Oliver and Grandma.....he didn't want to take a picture!

Owen's brother Charles and his wife Michelle came down with their daughter Tilly and we all went to my parents' neighborhood Halloween party!

Mom, Dad, Oliver, Grandma and Grandpa

Dad and Oliver in the costume parade (Owen was Robin Hood)

Owen, Oliver, Michelle and little pumpkin Tilly!

Checking out the costume competition :)

And the donations keep on rolling in!

YAY! We have gotten some more donations to Oliver's Army!!

Thank you to: Charles and Betty Taylor, John & Lisa Ruggere, Karen Bald, and Jean & John Parr.

You rock!! That brings our total to...... $2,922!!!

AND then today (October 21).......Ginny Wheelock and The Rager Family!

I am overwhelmed....

....with joy! The Hopebuilders 5K was on Saturday and wow was it an amazing experience. It was an inspirational and fun morning walking with so many other people out supporting Levine Children's Hospital. The weather could not have been better, it was cool and crisp, perfect for walking the beautiful route along Kings Drive & Queens Road.

Owen carried Oliver in his backpack, which Oliver actually enjoys and that worked out much better than last year (Oliver was antsy half way through the walk in his stroller so the last half of the 5K, my friend Liz and I switched off carrying the kid - our arms were SORE the next morning....). We were joined by Grandma and Grandpa, Maggie, Elizabeth, Tati, Liz & Steve, and Emily & Matt and their 4 month old twins, Claire & Will! Thank y'all SO much for being a part of Oliver's Army!

Tati, Elizabeth, Maggie, Grandpa, Oliver, Owen and Grandma

Tati, Elizabeth, Maggie, Grandpa, Oliver, Owen and me

Cheering before the start of the race!

He learned how fun it was to say "YAY!"

Emily & baby Will, Elizabeth and Maggie crossing the finish line!

The team at the finish! (except Liz & Steve)

After the walk, we went for breakfast at the Original Pancake House and other than a brief barfing incident from Oliver, we had a very pleasant and relaxed breakfast - chowing down on well-deserved pancakes!

Waiting to sit down at breakfast (he actually wasn't as unhappy as he might look, I just took his attention away from "The Wonder Pets" in an attempt to get a photo).

And, back to watching "The Wonder Pets" on my phone....

I just want to say thank you ALL for your support and generosity. I get teary-eyed when I think about how many kids will benefit from your donations and I am grateful to be surrounded by so many people who care. As of the time of this posting we have raised $2,767!! That is over last year! Thank you to our donors: Julia Pridgen, Michele & Bob Lowe, Amanda Davee Lomax, Wade & Angie Pridgen, Jennifer & Ryan Nicholson, Melissa & Matt Frazier, Anna & John Townsend, Carol & George Gill, Emily & Stu Pratt, Alyson & Jarrett Davis, Cindy & Craig Katzman, Jennifer & Matt Lockhart, Amy Brandt, Patti & Ron Curtis, Maggie Curtis, K&L Gates, Stacey & Chris Henderson, Liz & Clark Crowther, Eddie & Jean Pridgen, Nea & Terry Hennessy, Sarah & Jimmy Gamble, Kevin & Rose Jackson, Jamie & Gene Pridgen, Natalie Hennessy, Bryan Taylor, Lisa Austin, Karen Dunlap, Jack, Ike & Ben Kadis, Chelsea Brack, Matthew Mahoney, Melissa Ryder, Michele Davies, Christine Dondero, Olivier Veille, Natalie, Rosie Molinary & Mike Kessler, The Gores, Ed & Jessica Arnold, Clay & Lynn Lewis, Jimmy & Heidi, Sam & Maggie, Tom & Susan Ingham, Emily Ingham, Mary Dolph, and The Bollenbacher Family.

Thank you for donating, for walking with us, for keeping Oliver in your prayers and for providing so much moral support. We are so grateful.