7/28/08 - FUN AT THE PARK

PREVIOUS
NEXT
RETURN TO ORION'S BLOG
I was bold today and actually took both boys to the park. I haven't done that alone since Ollie started walking because it's too hard to keep track of both of them. They tend to run off in separate directions.

But, I laid out the rules ahead of time with Orion. Rule #1; always stay near Mommy. Rule #2; when Mommy says it's time to go there will be no crying, fussing, or whining. Rule #3; if all of this happens you get rewarded later with chocolate ice cream. It was Rule #3 that made the whole thing work. Orion was very well behaved.

Ollie seemed to be stunned to be at a park filled with so many rambunctious kids. He clung to Mommy at first. But then he spotted some cute little girls his size and was interested in seeing what they were all about. He observed from a close distance. He completely refused to go on the swings but he seemed to like going down the slide and trying to climb up the rope steps.

Maybe I will be bold again and try another park with both boys soon.

7/21/08 - ALONE MOMENTS WITH MOM AND DAD

PREVIOUS
NEXT
RETURN TO ORION'S BLOG
While camping in Sequim, we met up with Grandpa and Grandma and they took Orion for a few days. This left Ollie with some quality time to spend with Mommy and Daddy. It also allowed him to play with whatever toy he wanted without a fight. He really enjoyed this luxury.

In the evening, we wanted to have some special moments with just Ollie so we took him to Burfoot Park to have a picnic. Then we walked down to the beach front and he had a great time throwing rocks in the water and playing along the beach. It's rare that we get this kind of quality time with Oliver and we really enjoyed it. That being said...we still miss Orion immensely.

7/19/08 - LAVENDER FIELDS AND SPOTTED OLLIE

PREVIOUS
NEXT
RETURN TO ORION'S BLOG
Last week Ollie was very sick. He spiked a fever of 105 so the Doctor asked us to bring him into the office. It turned out that he had Roseola, also known as infant measles (although not at all as serious as regular measles). It's quite common in young kids and starts with a high fever and after the fever breaks they break out in a rash all over their body. But, once the rash arrives they are no longer contagious. So, when Ollie's rash went away we asked the Dr if it was okay to take him camping and he said yes. So, we dragged our spotted but chipper child on our family camping trip. He didn't sleep well in the tent but he still seemed to enjoy being outdoors.

Our camping trip was in Sequim during the annual lavender festival so we decided to head over to a few lavender farms and check things out. We even found one farm called Oliver's Lavender Farm. Ollie was more interested in the purple balloons than the lavender. But he enjoyed being in the front pack with Daddy.

7/9/08 - BOO BOO BOY

PREVIOUS
NEXT
RETURN TO ORION'S BLOG
Last night Ollie was roaming around playing with stuff and he wandered upon a tiny wrench. I didn't see that he had it in his hand and he stumbled and fell and cut his face right above his right eye. It was really frightening because head injuries always bleed a lot and he reached up and smeared his blood on his face. So, to me it looked like the whole side of his face was bleeding. As it turns out it was just two cuts above his eye.

I debated whether to take Ollie in for stitches but it was almost 9:00pm and Daddy was out-of-town. The concept of me and the boys waiting around in the emergency room after their bedtime seemed like a horrible one so I cleaned the wounds and just checked Ollie frequently in his crib for bleeding. Not a fun night.

The first thing Ollie said when he woke up was "Owee...band-aid" and then he held his head. Then today, after a walk with Carol and then picking up Orion from summer preschool, we all went into the backyard to play and Ollie was insistent on playing in the pool. He keeps saying "poo, how"...which in his language means "pool, help". He tried dragging the hose over and filling up the pool but I didn't want him getting his wound wet and getting bacteria in it. So, instead we played in the sandbox.

It is likely that we will end up in the emergency room with these boys more times than we can count before they leave our care. It's totally the grace of God that any of us actually make it to adulthood.