6 month update

We took Oliver to his 6 month check up on Friday, and he did great! Oliver was happy and talkative the whole check up and then only let out one big scream after getting shots and was done. Seriously, easiest visit yet! Brian was able to make it to this one too, but the punk retreated to the corner of the room for shot time because and I quote he "didn't want Oliver to associate him with pain." haha So I was left to do all the distracting/comforting myself. :) Bottom line - We feel very grateful that Oliver is healthy and happy.

At 6 months, Oliver

-weighs 15.2 lbs /11th percentile (Yes. He is a small baby. But he does have cute, chubby thigh rolls, and I can promise you he is definitely eating!)

-is 26 inches tall/27th percentile

-wears size 2 diapers

-wears 6 month clothes

-sits up unassisted

-rolls as his preferred method of getting around

-pushes himself up into crawling position and rocks back and forth

-loves to drop things and pick them back up again.

-can put himself to sleep after a bit of protesting (we keep several pacifiers in the crib at all times)

-sleeps from 8pm-8:30am, usually wakes up once around 4am to babble to himself or eat

-finally has consistent nap times at 10:30 and 2:30

-eats solids twice a day at breakfast and dinner

-does not like bananas

-still loves standing and bouncing best

-sits still through the whole entire "Old Macdonald" youtube video (best time to cut nails)

-loves to splash and lean back to put his ears in the water during bath time

-has zero teeth

I already posted my favorite two pics of Oliver from our diy 6 month photoshoot on instagram/facebook, but here are some of the rest from our photo session.

the first half birthday

Baby Ollie - Six months old today

Six months ago, my life was changed forever. I remember looking up at Brian, looking down at this tiny human just placed on my chest for the first time, and feeling...TIRED! But in that moment, I also felt this overwhelming sense of awe that I had just witnessed a miracle. Oliver was our miracle. Our family feels more whole with him now in it. Now six months later, Oliver still amazes me everyday. Sometimes he will just grab my face with his tiny hands and stare into my eyes with the biggest smile, and my heart feels like it is going to explode! It's been the craziest, happiest, most wonderful six months ever!

Halloween 2013

I'm counting Oliver's first Halloween as a success! :) I'm usually all about holidays, but the last couple Halloweens have been a little anti-climatic for Brian and me. Having Oliver around this year though put the spark back into the season (and I know it's just going to get better as he gets older and actually understands what's going on.) I even had our costumes picked out and ready all the way back in September! 

We didn't have the most exciting Halloween plans, but we sure did have a fun night.

Since Oliver can't say 'trick or treat' just yet (or eat candy,) we spent this Halloween at home watching scary movies and passing out candy to the cute trick or treaters in University Village. Halloween was made even better because Kim came over to hang out with us! Here are some pics of Oliver's first Halloween.

Picking out a pumpkin at the farm in Washington.

Oliver and his Winnie the Pooh pumpkin (I was really proud of myself :))

Eeyore, Christopher Robin, Winnie the Pooh, and Tigger too!

I love this little guy!

I'm pretty sure I've got the cutest "Pooh Bear/Jack-o-lantern" around! 

Quick Trip to Seattle

Last week, Oliver and I were able to head up to Seattle with my mom a long weekend visit to see my grandma, grandpa, aunts, uncle and cousins. It was a little last minute, but I was so excited to see my family and introduce them to Oliver. I haven't been to Seattle since before my mission when I still had flight benefits, so it has been at least 6 years since I had seen my Grandma and Grandpa Hurst. In fact, they have never even met Brian! Even though we were only there for 4 days, we were able to pack a lot in. Oliver loved meeting and playing with everyone and was a GREAT traveler. Really, I couldn't have asked to a happier, more flexible, content baby to travel with last week. He was on his best behavior for Great Grandma and Grandpa Hurst and was thrilled with all the attention he got...especially from Nana Jones. :) I took a ton of pictures of the memories we made. 

 Our first stop after landing was to Nielson's Pastries: home of "the potato." This is seriously my favorite bakery treat of all time. It is basically a giant pastry puff covered in marzipan and cocoa and filled with the most heavenly cream center. I love them so much that I had to share a small bit of cream with Oliver so that he could experience the awesomeness as well. I may or may not have had 3 1/2 potatoes over the course of the whole trip. 

 Then we headed over to Pike Place Market downtown. It was so foggy that you could barely see the ocean, but we had fun checking out the vendors, walking past the original Starbucks, the gum wall, and Dr. Sheldon Cooper, and selecting some beautiful flowers to bring to my grandparents. 

 Oliver loved hanging out with Great Grandma and Grandpa Hurst. I'm their first grandchild, and Oliver is their first great grandchild. It was such a treat to see four generations all together.

We were lucky enough to also get to see more family. My Aunt Melanie and cousin Brittany were gracious enough to let us stay with them. We also got to go visit my Aunt Dayleen and family on Friday. Garrett, Melina, and Breena basically changed Oliver's life forever by introducing him to the balloons Melina had received her surgery. He was so fascinated by them!

In the spirit of Halloween, we took Oliver to his first pumpkin patch. He almost slept through the whole things but luckily woke up in time to enjoy some of the farm. 

The next day, Brittany and I carved our pumpkins. I'm pretty proud of my Winnie the Pooh. It's the fanciest jack-o-lantern I've ever made. As you can see below, Oliver was pretty into it too. :)

Of course, you can't stick your baby in a pumpkin without getting a messy. So Oliver got to play in the sink too!

Even though it was a quick trip, we had so much fun. I love my family! Hopefully, we won't have to wait 6 plus years for the next visit. And we'll have to bring Brian along with us next time too! :)

How cute is my little flyer?!?!?

October Break in St. George

Every October, Brian gets a week off for Fall Break. We have never been able to go anywhere because I have always been working then, so this year was pretty exciting because we got to go down to St. George to see Grandpa and Nana Moote's new house and pool! Gorgeous House. Beautiful Pool.

The only pics I have of the whole trip are of the pool, but that is appropriate since that's where we spent most of our trip. We didn't stay all whole week, but we were down there long enough to relax, enjoy some downtime, and soak up some sun. I really enjoyed having family time with nothing on the to do list. It will be exciting to go down more often with family, especially as Oliver gets older. I can't wait for Oliver to be old enough to go down the slide! I have a feeling a lot of great memories are going to happen here. :)

Here is a video of Oliver playing in the hot tub.