2/28/07 - SNOW ON THE LAST DAY OF FEB.

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Today it snowed big flakes but nothing stuck to the ground. Thankfully, Orion went to school.

Ollie was happy, as usual. He had a nice warm bath and then took a snooze in the bassinet for what may be the last time since we are selling the thing. He's just getting too big for it. He's a growing boy!

2/27/07 - SOME ALONE MOMMY TIME

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Big brother Orion went back to school today after a week off for mid-winter break. Ollie enjoyed his alone time with Mommy this morning. He was giggling and smiling.

Ollie's disposition is so calm, happy, and charming. Grandpa Gadget remarked on how he almost never cries. It's so true. If Ollie is crying or fussing then there is a REAL problem. Unlike his brother who fusses regularly just for attention. Let's hope the charming personality continues into toddlerhood.

The squeaking still happens but it seems quieter to us. That's odd because they told us it would get louder up until he was 6 months old and then get quieter. But it's either quieter, or we've just gotten used to it.

2/22/07 - SHOTS AND AN X-RAY FOR OLLIE

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Ollie had his 2 month check-up the other day and had his typical shots. He ended up having a fever of 100.7 as a reaction to one of the vaccinations. He was a bit lethargic for a while and didn't do his typical smiling. Now his fever has gone down and, as you can see, he's back to his usual, smiley self.

He had a chest x-ray yesterday because his Pediatrician wanted to verify that everything was as expected. It was. He has typical Laryngomalacia chest dimples and it's not a concern apparently.

Grandpa Gadget paid a surprise visit this afternoon to pick-up some lamps. Ollie slept through the whole visit allowing Orion to capture all of Grandpa's attention!

2/16/07 - DINNER PARTY W/OLLIE

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Today Ollie and I went to MOPS. He was pretty calm throughout. He did start making loud squeaks and people near us were staring...but I'm getting used to that now.

Afterwards we rushed home to prepare the house for a dinner party.

We had our friend's Christy and Jeff over for the first time to play rook. Ollie quietly hung out the whole time in his car seat while Orion played upstairs with a babysitter. The food turned out pretty good and everyone had a good time.

Here's a picture of Mommy adoring her little man!

2/14/07 - OLLIE'S PHONE CALL

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It was Valentine's Day and big brother Orion stayed home from school because they suspected he was sick. He was not. Anyway, he was quite a source of entertainment for Ollie.

Ollie is having a lot more awake hours in the day. His eyes are tracking things around the room a lot now. He seems to be fascinated by Orion and his constant noise and chaos. He looks all wide-eyed at him like he's trying to figure him out.

Orion got a new toy with a phone and kept trying to make Ollie take a phone call. It was funny.

Then in the evening Daddy and Mommy went out on a date and took Ollie with them. One of the ladies at the japanese restaurant asked if our baby was okay because of his breathing noises. We were surprised she noticed over the noise of the restaurant. Ollie stayed awake through most of dinner but was calmly observant. Then he fell asleep on the car ride home.

2/10/07 - OLLIE STANDS UP!

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Well, Oliver has been a little backed-up these days...if you know what I mean. So, the doctors told us to try and get him to move around a bit and work things out of his system.

John was holding him upright and he just started to stand on his own. It was cute. Here's a picture of him.

He eventually worked things out and now he's much happier!

2/9/07 - OLLIE IN DADDY'S CHAIR

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Another typical day. Big brother Orion went to preschool and Mommy and Ollie stayed home.

Daddy had a half day at work so he came home to play with us.

Oliver is growing like a weed. He has a lot more awake hours now and he likes to giggle and make happy squealing noises. Here he is smiling in Daddy's chair.

2/7/07 - OLIVER'S DEBUT AT BIBLE STUDY

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Oliver made his debut at my woman's bible study last night. All of the ladies kept wondering when we'd finally make it in. Well, last night was the first night I wasn't so sleep deprived that I had to stay home.

They had heard about Ollie's squeaking but didn't expect the volume. Some ladies hadn't heard and I was constantly explaining why my baby was so loud.

It seemed particularly loud at the quiet prayer times and during the class lecture. I suppose eventually I will get used to the disclaimer I have to make and the public noise we cause.

Regardless, Ollie slept through the whole thing. He's very good at sleeping for long lengths after a warm car ride.

Here's a picture of him sleeping in my arms this morning. He's my little angel.

2/6/07 - SLEEPING SEPARATE

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Well, Mommy finally decided that she couldn't sleep in the same room as Ollie because of all the squeaking and noises he makes. So, Ollie is now sleeping in his room with a sound machine on to drowned out the squeaks. But Mommy can still hear his food requests. Mommy is happily sleeping in her own room now and getting a bit more sleep.

Ollie's disposition is so mellow considering everything. He just sits back and curiously monitors the world around him. He rarely cries...unless really hungry. His smiles can just melt you too. Living with a baby can be the hardest thing and the most amazing thing all at the same time. Ah, what a gift from God children are!

2/2/07 - SQUEAKY OLLIE!

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(Photo taken: 2/2/07, almost 7 wks old.)
Okay, I'm trying out this blogger software until I have time to actually design a blog for Oliver. I have been so busy that I have not posted a single thing about Ollie since he was born. So...here's an update...

Oliver is now almost 7 weeks old and it's been an interesting 7 weeks. When we first brought him home from the hospital it was a huge challenge for Mommy to manage both boys. Orion is not exactly a quiet, verbally obedient fella. He likes to move around a lot and is hard to instruct from afar. But, since I'm frequently nursing, that poses a dilemma. So, I've lowered my standards. Before it used to be "No, Orion...don't ever touch that pen". Now it's like..."Okay, you can play with the sharpie and color the dog, but please stay off the couch". Oh how things change.

Anyway, Oliver started making some strange hiccup sounds and labored breathing at about 4 or 5 weeks of age. We took him to the Pediatrician and were told it could be one of 3 things...2 being minor things and one being a life threatening, major thing. So we were sent to Children's Hospital in Seattle for X-Rays. Then we were sent to Mary Bridge in Tacoma so they could stick a tube up his nose and view his voice box.

Fortunately, it turned out to be one of the minor problems. It's a condition called Laryngomalacia. In simple terms that means that Ollie has an underdeveloped larynx (voice box) that collapses and blocks his airway causing him to labor a bit and make squeaky noises. It doesn't hurt him. It doesn't really effect his sleeping or eating either. It just means that he will make lots of noise for a while. They say he will grow out of it by age 2. So..now we will tell all caretakers.."If the baby's squeakin"...don't start freakin'!"