go olly it's yo birthday.

those of you familiar with 50 cents 'in da club' in reference to the post title...the actual lyrics are highly explicit for a one.yr old, let alone anyone, but i managed to change the words about a month ago & i have been singing them to oliver ever since.

"go olly, it's your birth-day.

we're gonna party like it's your birth-day.

we're gonna sip some milkies like it's your birth-day.

and we don't give a hoot, cuz it's your birth-day."

he liked it. and so came the day. i'm not gonna lie, i was getting a bit emotional come the day. it's the realization that you don't just have a baby...you have a child...you have a teenager (yikes)...you have a young adult...you have an actual human you created that will eventually start walking & talking like it's no big deal...you have a lifetime. crazy. it's really an amazing emotional experience to have! so onto the partay...

oliver had two parties. we wanted to celebrate on wednesday, the actual date, despite the scheduled birthday party for friday. we had friends paul & sonya join! and my parents skyped in on the first cake tasting! i picked up an impromptu birthday cupcake that day, just so we could give him something to enjoy! 'oscar the grouch' turned out to be a giant hit! and oliver then turned into a green monster. i think michael was nervous he was going to get too much frosting...& this was a very surprising reaction from mr. sweet tooth himself =) he scored some sweet books from paul & sonya & a little doggy pull toy. and he also recieved some great "sensory" gifts from my parents. and by "sensory" i mean, all the music, lights & craziest toys ever! he loves them all! i think my favorite is the talking mailbox...so he can deliver letters & packages just like mailman papa hanny =)

on late thursday afternoon, mary & steve (michael's parents) arrived from sioux falls, sd. we were so happy they could make the trip out...especially to spend time on oliver's first birthday. on friday, i toured them around our area. and after informing steve of the mammoth excavation...we were on a mission again to find the site. this time...we did! but they have that place on lockdown. security guard. gated fences. so, i guess we'll give up on that ;)

then it was party number two time! our menu consisted of smoked ham sammies & a pesto quiche with sun-dried tomatoes...hence 'green eggs & ham'. the menu also consisted of plenty of sweets for the older kids =) brownies...licorice...salt water taffy...and thing 1 & 2 cupcakes...made by yours truly =) the hair on these funny things were supposed to be fluffier...but the only cotton candy (hair) i could find came in a non-see-through package...& it was a tri-color mixture. i freaked a couple days before i made them; thinking...what if there isn't any blue...not enough blue... (wow, i am chaotic sometimes)...so, i opened up the packages to make sure i wasn't going to have to go on a literal circus search for some fresh blue cotton candy. luckily, there was enough, but then it turned into mike & i remembering how much we love cotton candy & while separating out the 'blue' to save, we devoured the other colors. don't judge. the night was again filled with more cake (this one was my creation) & more presents. grandma & grandpa schweitz found oliver the best seuss books to add to his collection & he even added to his 'sock monkey' population =) thanks to everyone for making oliver's first birthday so special. by either gifts, a visit, a phone call, a card or a birthday wish...thank you so much! it was such a great memory for michael & i as well =) and now that all the anticipation is over...i am bushed.

but...the weekend wasn't over there. that was only friday. michael had planned with our friends, aaron (butcher) & ashley, to meet in boulder & go to the colorado buffaloes vs. iowa state game. so, early saturday morning (of course, it had to be an 11:30 game), we packed up & headed to boulder. a slightly longer than 3 hour journey later, we were in the lovely boulder, co. mary & oliver stayed back in the hotel while steve, mike & i headed to meet ashley & aaron. to enjoy attend the football game. okay...i just have to say...i will support the cyclones (as long as they aren't playing iowa or kstate)...but it just embarrasses me when i make the effort & then they get trampled. and isu was picked to win that game...nothing against u of co, but have you heard what their record is?! and their head coach was just fired earlier that week, due to extensive loss these past seasons. ugh. so, there i was, trying to convince everyone that i wasn't really a clone fan...but then again, i didn't really have much more to say about the hawkeyes last weekend either. bummer.

liz...this photo is for you...you wanted a shot of the cheerleaders ;)

and for the record, i felt really creepy taking it. we were literally. that. close.

 we met up with michael's cousin & wife, jay & sarah for brunch...

delish mimosa at 'the buff'.

the rest of the weekend included feeling extremely exhausted, snow & a lot of brownie eating (sorry mary). we had so much fun, but not used to all the "action". better get my "action" pants on...the holidays are creeping!

going through the copper mountain area.