A Great Space.

Thursday evening, I ventured out into the cold icy tundra, for a friend's grand opening of her new photography studio in Holstein. The inside of the building was restored to original features & it has a very Chicago lofty touch to it. A warm ambiance & feel to it. The historic building, for you Holsteinian readers, is located on the corner of Main & 2nd Street, across the street south of the Heritage Bank. I left Mr. Oliver at home with Grandma & Grandpa, so this allowed me some interaction with other young adults. I was able to enjoy a glass of wine with friends & escape conversations that revolved around pooping, tooting & burping. It was nice to sneak in a couple of bittersweet moments outside of parenting, but I was soon happy to be back home, checking out my little man fast asleep.

The photos I uploaded were taken on my phone.

A

Congratulations Christina!

http://christinakjarphotography.com/

Hair Club for Little Men.

Oliver & I are getting very excited for our move out to Colorado. Here are some random shots of us hanging out during the day. As you may have noticed in recent photos...Baby O has lost some of his darling auburn hair. A little cradle cap has set in. We have been working on some tummy time to possibly eliminate further hair loss & the need to enroll our young one in Hair Club for Men (haha, jk). But, on the other hand, the stuff that hasn't fallen out is growing longer, but does make me question if we have a mullet situation on our hands in the future...we'll keep an eye on it. You'll get it back lil buddy!

"Uhh, hey, yeah you see that bottle over there on the table...could you, uh, check to see if I got all the milk out of it? If not, could you pass it over here...thanks!"

"Hi to Daddy."

clip/tuck.

My blogosphere nip/tuck fans, I hope you enjoyed my title reference, but it's not just a clever title, there's an appropriate story to follow... I do not have the steady hands of a surgeon. I was never good at the childhood game Operation. And I will never have a career in pinstriping. That said, I think you may have a clue where this is going...

Du-dundt...du-dundt...(think Jaws theme music).

So the clipping of the nails has to be another one of the most dreaded things (note we just got done with shots 4 days ago) to do to your infant. I had kind of been putting this one off for a while...at first they just seemed to flake off themselves, so I let it go. Then I would lightly take the file, but now the little razor sharp daggers at the end of my son's fingertips just had to be dealt with. The last scratch on his face left me with no other option. Deal with it & just clip them! I went in with pure confidence...& it went down like this...

*clip* ahhhh...first one done...& it was the pinky...if I could get the pinky with no problems, then I would have no problem with the rest of them...the pinky is the tiniest one! My confidence built up.

*clip* Oh yes! Another successful clipping...keep going...

*clip* Oh wait! Oh no! I had done it. I had nipped the skin & he was not about to let it slide! Then insued the wailing and wailing and wailing and sniffling and red-face and sniffling and crying and screaming and sniffling and crying and tears and wailing and screaming and tears and 10 minutes later...we were calmed down & I had lost all my confidence in tackling the clipping of the nails. Done. Dang it!

Once again, after a lot of lovin & cuddling from Mama...

the smiles & good times returned.

Oliver would rather kick his legs instead of holding still for the shot,

so he slides right down before I can get a good one.


Lovin the chunky cheeks.

Mr. Big Stuff.

Oliver had his 2 month Dr appointment this last Friday. He's weighing in at 12 lbs 5 1/2ozs & measures 23 1/2 inches long...this means he's doubled his weight since we brought him home & has grown 3 1/2 inches! Wow. The kid has a clean bill of health, so we are so grateful for that! I am sharing some photos from the day. I don't want to bring up the great debate of immunizations (gasp, boo, hiss)...but, we are allowing immunizations, so he had his first shots at this appointment too. There is a reason why they say it hurts the parents more than it hurts the baby! Oh so sad! Of course I was dreading this part of the visit, & after receiving the instructions for how this was gonna go down...I braced myself for what was surely the hardest I have ever heard my son cry! They stuck him, he looked at me with huge wide eyes, I was sure I heard him shout at me 'Mom! You son of a * * * * *! Why'd you let them do that to me?!' & then his face turned the color of the outfit he was wearing!!! It took everything in me to not cry as his Dr & nurse, who just vanished out of the room...closing the door behind them. Uhhhhhhh...Leaving me there alone with my wailing little baby boy. Ugh. That was quite the new parent experience! He did very well the rest of the day, despite being a little sleepier than norm. With Mike in Colorado, although I know he would've loved to be there with us, dodged being the "mean parent"...so...his turn next time. =(

After it went down.

Note I'm getting "The Look" & his fist is clenched.

Yikes, I was in trouble!

Later in the day...all is good!

The smiles returned & I was let out of the doghouse.

Weekend Visits, Negative Temperatures & Colorado Update.

This past weekend proved to be another freezing cold one! I honestly think that there was a 60 degree difference between Daddy's home & our home right now. We're -30 with windchill & Michael is experiencing 30 degrees above zero...above zero!? This week has been a bit nicer with sunshine & degrees getting up into the 20s. Something to brag about, I know. The sunshine is still rather deceiving, given when you step outside you still mumble numerous unmentionable profanities, shake your fist at the 20 inches of snow still lurking around & silently remind yourself to not leave the house again for 8 more days. Oh...what...is that just me?! =) Let's just be honest here...I hate winter...snow...& bitter coldness. I keep hearing that Colorado offers up better weather so I have that going for me. Moving on...

This past weekend, we finally got to meet baby Stella Louise Doxtad. My cousin, Emily & her hubby (this isn't a word I use frequently, my grandma uses it a lot so I thought that I'd try it out) James, had their lil girlie on Christmas Eve. She is great! And she is so tiny...awww...this illustrated to me how quickly the little ones change! Emily couldn't believe, looking at Oliver, that that's what Stella would be like in 2 months. She's already saying she doesn't want her to grow up =) It was great to share stories & admire what a beautiful Mama Miss Emily is. We love you guys & you'll have to come see us in Colorado =) Get that Stella on some skis...or she can join me in the cozy lodge & snuggle =) But we do look forward to watching her grow...EMILY NEEDS TO START A BLOG!!! And by the way, I love the photo (although a bit blurry I think) of Em, Stella, Oliver & I...I love...Oliver's look of admiration at Stella is cute!

My good buddy Matthew Nobles came over to visit Mr. Oliver this last weekend also. And I have to give him props for taking such a good photo. Let me preface...Nobles gets extremely nervous around little babies...especially babies who can't hold their heads up, gets him all sweaty-palmed & anxious...haha! So, I explained to him that Oliver has a strong neck & he can be held like so (in photo) & tossed (ok not tossed) him into his arms. He held him for a long time too! =) Him & his fiance, Amanda, are getting married this summer & babies are right around the corner, so this experience is much needed Nobles, get used to it!

I also wanted to update everyone on the Colorado Movement. Michael called on Saturday with some exciting news...he found us a place to live! He signed & moved in that day too! I'm sure he's relieved to have that task done...I personally know that house hunting is no fun...it's not as bad as car shopping =) but can be pretty stressful & time consuming...luckily Daddy was on the mission because he rarely stresses (unlike Mama) & he got the job done! He was our new home hero! And, although it took some readjustment on my behalf because it requires a longer waiting period...we've come up with a good moving plan. We've established that the weekend of February 20th will be more appropriate. We have a very important wedding reception to attend that weekend, so instead of moving at the end of January & then turning around & tacking on another 26 hour trip (with Oliver mind you)...we will do everything in one weekend! Ahhh...it's a bit scary for me to think about...but with my great abilities to organize, multitask & prepare...I think I'll be able to handle it =) So...what have I done so far to get us prepared...I've prepared for preparing. Does that count? Most of our belongings are already packed, but I know there is probably a lot to take care of before we leave...so, I should probably start getting after it!

Two.Mo.

Oliver Grows.

Recognizes voices & faces.

Loves to snuggle.

Enjoys bathtime.

Interactive smiling & laughing.

Playful with noisy toys.

Sleeps eight hours straight.

Coos & giggles are more pronounced & integrated with play.

No longer cries during diaper changes & kicks around & laughs when naked (uh oh! I knew this one would backfire).

Shows excitement with kicking & facial expressions.

Holds head up for longer periods of time.

Up & alert for longer periods during the day...curious about lights & fans & faces.

Pushes upper body up when on tummy.

Doubled weight since birth & has a pronounced tummy & double chin.

Little Baby O has grown so much this past month! He is starting to develop a little personality already & we're so happy to have a cheerful smily baby on our hands...most of the time ;) I'm not gonna brag & say that my kid is perfect all the time...he does have a nice set of lungs that he'll use (which is good) but it usually ends up tearing my heart up when I hear him! He surprised us with sleeping like a big boy this last week and will continue to give us so much more to anticipate. Love you baby boy!

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star...

...how I wonder what you are...no seriously, who are you...& what did you do to our little boy...because I LOVE YOU little twinkly star man! Big news here. Oliver decided this past week that he was going to skip the whole waking up in the middle of the night thing & sleep all the way through! Out of nowhere! And I didn't want to jinx it by bragging about it right away, but he has done it all week! All week! He does fight the daily naps now unless I'm holding him so we'll have to iron out those details, but I'm very excited & proud of my little guy for being such a big boy. I told him that he can sleep like a big boy, but he should put the halt on the other big boy stuff for now so we can enjoy these "little" moments for just a while longer. For eight whole hours a night my body can sleep...except I'm having to adjust to this myself...I find myself waking up thinking I should be doing something. Warming up a bottle or going to the bathroom or...something, right?! So...I guess if by sharing this awesome milestone with you all I do end up jinxing it...then at least I got 1 full week of 8 hour sleepful nights. And I know that it's not a world record of 'the first baby to sleep through the night in the shortest duration of time' by any means...but as a new mom...this is monumental. Thank you little pea.

Other than that...there hasn't been a lot going on. I've been watching a lot of 'Always Sunny' reruns and job searching (story of my life). And I haven't been that motivated to blog. We're just really anticipating getting out to Colorado to join Daddy. He's been working hard at work & at trying to find a place to live. We think he's close to finding something, so it shouldn't be too much longer! Here's the babe & his moose.

Hello Yr 2010.

New Year. New Baby. New Mommy & Daddy. And the holidays are finally over, we survived & had such a wonderful Christmas with family, Oliver was a very spoiled little boy =) And I was able to introduce Oliver to friends, Leighton, Sarah, their son Henry, the Henrys (best friend Kim & her fiance Tom) & Marcell & her mom Jeri came over for a visit. It's so fun to introduce our little boy & convince them that they need to have their own...soon! Haha.

Michael & I celebrated New Years 13 hours away from each other. =( Mike made it to Colorado the day before New Years Eve & began the search for our new home in Basalt. =) Oliver & I rang in the New Year together by watching the Iowa State bowl game, I made Mac & Cheese & we fell asleep by 9:30! Wow, a bit different than years past, but so much better than waking up the next day in a glitterized stale champagne haze! We sent Daddy a 'Happy New Years' text at 1 aM to compensate for the hour change & he sent us a photo of the fireworks that woke him up at midnight there! We are so excited to start the year 2010 as a family. Oliver & I cannot wait to get out to Colorado to join Daddy real soon! And Michael & I are so happy to have a healthy little baby who continues to grow & make us laugh everyday. Cheers to a great 2010 everyone! Here's Oliver on NYE, swinging & watching the Cyclones win...

Rocky Mountain Hi.

This morning, as Oliver had his morning milks & I had my first coffee, we watched GMA, discussed life, politics, the preceeding golden shower given to Mom & the weather. Overall, a nice little morning with some quality bonding time. Mornings are usually spent with Daddy, as Mom sleeps in a little ;) but... Daddy left for Colorado yesterday! It's sad that he's sooooo far away, but we're thinking about how much fun it'll be after he finds a place & we move out there too! I just have to keep repeating to myself...it's not forever, it's not forever & soon he'll be back for us. Anyway, I've come to realize that our little baby is a morning guy! An obvious personality trait from his Dad...as I cringe at mornings! (And don't judge me...as you all are going to bed by 8:30pM because you were up since 4aM...I'm just coming alive). My point is...Oliver loves the mornings & was just a smiling away...happy loving baby! And as you can see, I tried to capture his smiles, but by the time I grabbed my camera & settled back in, he was over it & didn't have too many more to give up! Either way, it made my day & his Daddy's too as we are swapping photos of our day.

Later on...napping with my sock monkey =)

And I also wanted to add a couple more photos from Christmas.

We finally made it to Sioux Falls after the Christmas storm!

Making Christmas cookies at my parent's.

A new family tradition!

(I had some video footage of Michael frosting, but I promised I wouldn't post it ;)