Summer Time 2009

We had a very exciting summer with Oliver filled with traveling, camping, and playing at the park. It all began the last week in May when Grandpa Dave, Aunt Becca, her boyfriend Matt, Megan, Juan Carlos and of course Oliver went to Oliver's Great Uncle Scott's Jewish and Hindu/Vedic wedding in Iowa. Oliver had his first experience on a plane and at first was very interested in it. After a few hours however, the newness wore off and he realized that he could not get out of the small area that he was in, and he wanted out. We were all happy for a layover so let him get some of his energy out. With the help of Matt, Oliver discovered the conveyor belts for the luggage and got a big kick of running around on the ones that were not turned on and riding with Matt on the ones that were on.

Once in Fairfield, Iowa Oliver did much better and enjoyed the open spaces that we were in. He also loved meeting some of his family, and seeing his great uncles and great-grandmother again. His favorite new family member that he met was his 3rd cousin Brian. In Iowa Oliver developed a love of oranges, vegetarian sausages, and seeing horses.

At the Jewish Wedding Ceremony Oliver was the ring bearer and did very well for only being 1 1/2 years old. He did not stay to watch the entire ceremony, but did make it down the isle with Grandpa Dave and Great Uncle Rob's help. After the ceremony was over he even danced a little bit with his mom, Aunt Becca, and Great Aunt Debbie. He did not attended the Vedic Wedding Ceremony but did go to the reception afterwards in the park and of course had fun playing there and making some new friends.

For the 4th of July weekend we took Oliver camping for the first time. We went with 5 different families to Loon Lake in Reedsport (about 2 hours south east of Newport). It was a big surprise to nobody that he loved it! He wants to spend all of his time being outdoors and the fact that mommy let him get dirty was very exciting too. He did not make it staying awake late enough to see the fireworks, but maybe next year he will. He even slept through the night, which was very relieving to his parents. He has lots of fun playing with all of the kids and playing ball with his dad.

The last week in July we went camping for Juan Carlos' birthday with Oliver's godparents and another family. We went to Honeyman state park, which has huge sand dunes. Oliver loved playing in the warm sand! He even got in the cold water for a little bit with his dad. We worked on teaching him to say "Happy Birthday" so that he could say it to his dad for his birthday. As of today, he says something close to it, but it sounds more like "Happ Brrtday". Sometimes when he gets mad he says "mama, no happ brrtday" and shakes his head. We are not too sure what it means to him to say that, but it is pretty cute.

In mid-August we went on a weekend vacation to Bend, which is our favorite vacation spot. It is located in the high desert and has mountains all around it. We went with Oliver's Aunt Janet, her boyfriend, and all 5 of their kids. Oliver loved spending so much time with the kids, it was hard for him to go to sleep at night because he was so excited that 2 of them were sleeping in our room. He had the most fun on this vacation in the swimming pool. He figured out how to into jump into the pool (in his dad's arms of course) and likes splashing. He also enjoyed walking around town and seeing the river and ducks.

Oliver now says many more words and phrases. His new favorite word of the week is "caballo" (horse in Spanish). If we tell him to say something he repeats after us, but does not really know what he is saying yet. His favorite phrase right now is "whoa!". Oliver can identify most of his body parts in English, and his favorite one is his tummy. He likes rubbing it with both of his hands. For those of you who have spent time around Oliver, you know that he is really into "Go Diego Go" (a cartoon about a boy who rescues animals). His favorite person besides his mama and dada to be around is his "ba pa" or Grandpa Dave. He also LOVES playing with children, especially his cousins.

Oli still loves playing ball, and he is getting better at kicking a ball harder and aiming. His newest skill is that he can catch a ball (about 15% of the time- but still pretty good for a 2 year old) and drop kick one. He recently has gotten more into toy cars and trucks. Like many children, he is fascinated by big trucks and machines and often stops dead in his tracks to watch them if they drive by or are operating within viewing distance. At the grocery store that we go to there are some carts that are cars- with the front of the cart being the cab of the car and has a steering wheel. He gets so excited when he figures out that we are going to the store so he can drive the cart around. It is the only way that we can get any shopping done with him lately.

Starting in August Oliver definitely started acting his age. He sometimes throws tantrums when he does not get his way or gets woken up from a nap early. Like everybody, he has good days and bad days, but we are all looking forward to when his bad days become less and less. His favorite word is "no", but he is still very loving and fun to be around. He gives hugs and kisses on his own (without us prompting him).

There are many things that we are looking forward to in the next few months. Oliver will be turning 2 very shortly (September 24) and he is going to have a Diego Themed Birthday party. We look forward to being in our good friend Melissa's wedding- Oliver is going to be an adorable ring bearer and wear a tux and his mom is going to be a bridesmaid. Also in October we are going to meet his new little friend Caien for the first time, and of course are excited to see Catie and Dennen also! Hopefully we will have nice weather for a bit longer so we can enjoy going to the parks and playing outside as much as possible. We are already dreading a long and wet winter with a little boy who does not like to stay indoors. But with a funny, smart, and cute little guy like Oliver by our side, we are ready for anything that comes our way.