Thursday, January 24, 2008
Handsome Dane
I needed a nice photo of Dane in a pinch this week, and my good friend Holly was kind (and talented) enough to help me out. Isn't Dane a handsome little guy? And doesn't Holly take great pictures? Thanks Holly!
Cake-Smushing Fun
We celebrated Dane's first birthday a few days late, on Monday night. It wasn't a big celebration, just Mommy, Daddy, Ava, Dane, and a small cake with one candle. But it was a good time!
The cake (NOT decorated by Mommy ~ the local grocery store bakery gives away free mini-cakes for first birthdays):
The cake (NOT decorated by Mommy ~ the local grocery store bakery gives away free mini-cakes for first birthdays):
One lonely candle for the birthday boy:
Let the cake-smushing commence!
BIG first bite!
"This is good stuff, Mom!"
Everyone had blue tongues from the frosting:
"Aw, can't I have one more bite?" For the record, we gave Dane one-fourth of the cake pictured above, and he ate the entire cake part of it (more frosting ended up on him than in him). He probably would have eaten the entire cake if we'd have let him!
And last, but certainly not least, video footage of the cake-smushing action:
Mommy's taking a vacation!
If you look to the right, you'll notice that I added another ticker. That's right, I'm counting down to a VACATION! My dear friend Margaret and I have booked a Caribbean cruise for the week after Easter. We'll be setting sail with Royal Caribbean on the Majesty of the Seas on Monday, March 24, and taking a 3-day, 4-night cruise to Nassau and Cococay in the Bahamas, and Key West, Florida. I am so excited! I am not ashamed to say that I really deserve this trip. It will be the first time I have spent a night away from the kids since Ava's birth (so, three years), and first vacation I've had, period, since Russ and I visited Savannah, Georgia four years ago, shortly before moving back to Missouri from Georgia. I only feel slightly guilty that I'm leaving on Ava's third birthday, but I'll just make up for it by bringing back a nice gift for her from my trip. And I don't feel the slightest bit guilty that Daddy will have to fend for himself (and the kids) for five whole days. :)
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Happy First Birthday Dane!
A year ago today, at 2:19 p.m., Dane William Oelrichs entered this world! He weighed a whopping 9 lbs 2 oz and was 21 inches long. I'll have the official stats from the doctor's office tomorrow, but now he weighs nearly 24 lbs and is about 29 inches tall.
Update 1-19-08: I took Dane to the pediatrician yesterday for his 12-month well-check, and he's doing great! He weighed 23.2 lbs and measured 30 inches long. I guess gravity makes him shrink an inch when he stands up! As big as he seems, he is right at the 50th percentile for both height and weight. Those big hands and feet must make him seem bigger than he really is!
Update 1-19-08: I took Dane to the pediatrician yesterday for his 12-month well-check, and he's doing great! He weighed 23.2 lbs and measured 30 inches long. I guess gravity makes him shrink an inch when he stands up! As big as he seems, he is right at the 50th percentile for both height and weight. Those big hands and feet must make him seem bigger than he really is!
The last year has just flown by! That wrinkly, squished-faced newborn who bore an uncanny resemblance to a little old man is now a sweet, cheerful, rambunctious, and quite handsome (in his mama's humble opinion) one-year-old. He's walking like a champ, and babbles non-stop. I don't know if he's said any "real" words, but I've heard "Mama" a time or two, and he says "cap, cap, cap" when he claps his hands. He is constantly on the go, trying to keep up with his big sister. Even though he (and his sister) have me totally exhausted at the end of the day, when he looks at me with those adoring hazel-brown eyes and flashes that charming smile, my heart just melts!
January 17, 2007:
January 17, 2008:
Lookin' sharp in all his bling:
"I eat people like you for breakfast!", or supper, in this case:
And we can't end this blog post without one picture of the infamous big sister:
Lookin' sharp in all his bling:"I eat people like you for breakfast!", or supper, in this case:And we can't end this blog post without one picture of the infamous big sister:HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY DANE!!!
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Dane's First Haircut
Dane got his first haircut on Friday ~ a whole lot earlier than his sister did! He was starting to look a little scraggly with the long hairs around his ears and the wisps in his eyes. Now he looks so cute ~ more like a little boy and less like a baby.
Before:
After ~ no drastic change, but can you tell the difference?
Sorry there are no pictures of the actual cutting of the hair ~ he wasn't about to sit in that big chair by himself so I held him on my lap. That left no hands free for picture taking.
Ava got a haircut, too. Before:
After:
Side view:
The "after" pictures aren't all that great ~ Ava refused to pose for the camera. She had about an inch cut off, and her hair looks like it's cut in an actual style. It's just a little shorter in the back than in the front and lays so nicely, even when she first gets up in the morning. That's really convenient for me, because it's not very often that she allows me to even comb her hair!
Before:
After ~ no drastic change, but can you tell the difference?Sorry there are no pictures of the actual cutting of the hair ~ he wasn't about to sit in that big chair by himself so I held him on my lap. That left no hands free for picture taking.Ava got a haircut, too. Before:
After:Side view: The "after" pictures aren't all that great ~ Ava refused to pose for the camera. She had about an inch cut off, and her hair looks like it's cut in an actual style. It's just a little shorter in the back than in the front and lays so nicely, even when she first gets up in the morning. That's really convenient for me, because it's not very often that she allows me to even comb her hair!
Getting Back to Normal
Since our epic holiday adventure, we've just been hangin' out at home, trying to get back into our normal routine.
Ava and Dane playing nicely together, a phenomenom that is seldom observed in our house:
Ava bumming around with Spots, Jo-Jo, Princess, Simba and Kia, gifts from Grandma:
Ava bumming around with Spots, Jo-Jo, Princess, Simba and Kia, gifts from Grandma:"Are you talking to me?" Adorable red hoodie compliments of "Aunt" Margaret.
Dane loves spaghetti. Can you tell?
I don't think I've mentioned here on the blog that Ava is now, for the most part, completely potty-trained. Yes, she has accidents from time to time, but I feel comfortable taking out on short trips in her big-girl underwear. One result of potty-training has been a preference (on Ava's part) for nakedness. In this photo, she happened to be wearing a pull-up, but not much else:
Time for bed! Ava loves to brush her teeth with her Dora the Explorer toothbrush, which happens to coordinate perfectly with her cute new Dora jammies from Uncle Kyle. 
Dane loves spaghetti. Can you tell?I don't think I've mentioned here on the blog that Ava is now, for the most part, completely potty-trained. Yes, she has accidents from time to time, but I feel comfortable taking out on short trips in her big-girl underwear. One result of potty-training has been a preference (on Ava's part) for nakedness. In this photo, she happened to be wearing a pull-up, but not much else: Time for bed! Ava loves to brush her teeth with her Dora the Explorer toothbrush, which happens to coordinate perfectly with her cute new Dora jammies from Uncle Kyle.
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