A Busy Couple of Weeks

It has been awhile since I updated Oliver's blog. We have had a very busy couple of weeks. Matt's aunt Sandy, who was an absolutely wonderful woman, passed away a few weeks ago and last weekend we flew to Arizona for her memorial service. It was nice to see everyone during this difficult time and most of all, it was really wonderful to take some time to remember Sandy. Sandy was extremely loving, encouraging, creative and a whole lot of fun. We will miss her so much. Below are some photos of Sandy that I thought were particularly beautiful.
We stayed at a very nice hotel while were in Arizona. Here is Oliver and Matt snugglin' in the big king sized bed - pretty luxurious - a king sized bed would pretty much take up our entire bedroom :)

The other thing that kept us busy in the last couple of weeks was that Oliver got his first illness. Poor kid had what we think was hand, foot and mouth. He had a fever and a sore throat and we were pretty much homebound through the entire Labor Day weekend. But, he healed quickly and he is back to his happy self!

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!