Sitting...Sort of

Tonight Oliver and I worked on sitting. He seems to be able to sit for about 3 to 5 seconds and then he realizes he is sitting and falls over. Here are some photos from our various sitting attempts this evening. The video is of the longest successful sitting attempt of the night - enjoy!

Oliver, Chicken. Chicken, Oliver.

We had a great morning with Melanie and Emily today. We met up at the farmers market in Minneapolis and then went back to their place for some delicious broccoli salad, lattes and bruschetta. This summer Melanie and Emily have been raising chickens in their beautiful backyard, so Oliver got a chance to meet one of the chickens.

Rice Cereal!

Oliver had his first solid food last Saturday. Of course, the first time around much of the food ended up on him instead of in his mouth, but in the last week he seems to be improving his technique and actually swallowing some of it. Here are some photos from his first attempt.

The food.

The game face.

The technique.

Looking good!

Abs of Steel

Oliver's New Tricks

Oliver doing "boat pose"

Oliver is now 5 months old and he has a bunch of new tricks. He still absolutely hates tummy time, but it is clear that he would like a different vantage point than he gets just laying on his back, so he has started doing what they call "boat pose" in yoga, lifting both his head and feet off the ground. I would recommend trying this yourself - it is really hard! He also has perfected the technique of putting his own pacifier in his mouth. Also, last week he held is own bottle and fed himself for a little while. His last new trick is our least favorite. He has started to squeal with excitement quite frequently. The sound of the squeal or scream is deafening and high pitched -- lots of fun!

Dancing!

Some video of the kiddos bustin' a move!

Brock and Rayna's Birthday Bash

Today was Brock and Rayna's birthday dance party. Rayna is 1 and Brock is 3. We had a great time and Oliver even got to wear a party hat. The kids were really throwing down. Here are some photos from the fun event!

Aunt Sandy - A very special lady!

As I mentioned in the previous post, Matt's Aunt Sandy is very sick right now. Sandy is an incredible quilter and over the years she has made us many gifts that we will cherish, a quilt for our wedding, a skirt for our Christmas tree and a Christmas pillow, but Oliver's blanket might just take the cake for the best Aunt Sandy gift ever. It hangs over Oliver's changing table and he loves to look at all of the colors and animals.

Sandy, you are so loved!

We love you Aunt Sandy!

This video is from a very fun night at the Outer Banks. A couple of weeks after returning home from the trip, Matt's Aunt Sandy discovered she has a very aggressive form of cancer. She is very sick right now and we are all holding her in our thoughts and prayers. Sandy is so much fun and full of energy. We love you Sandy!

A Visit From Aunt Sarah and Kyle

Lucky Oliver has spent the last couple of days with his Aunt Sarah and her boyfriend Kyle who are visiting from Little Rock. He has been playing hookie from daycare and having a great time. Oliver has been showing them around the Twin Cities. Today they went to the farmers market on Nicollet Mall and then to Target Field. I think we may need to convince Sarah and Kyle to move into our basement permanently and be Oliver's full time nannies... As you can tell from the last photo, all of this activity has been pretty exhausting for the little man.