Staying Hydrated

Oliver is definitely feeling better!  He spent the day playing in his room, the playroom, and with Mommy.  He watched a bit of Nick Jr. and rested his body some more.  

He is testing Mommy a little bit, not as much as the last time he was really sick...but just enough.  Mommy likes him to drink a lot and he wants to have a variety of things to drink.  So Mommy fills up his sippy cups with yummy things to drink.  This is where he tests Mommy's patience...he wants Mommy to hold the cups up to his mouth so he can drink, while he is laying down resting.  He whines until Mommy comes to him...Mommy takes her time...and then he finally gets his drink choice fed to him.  Ugh.  (He is actually pretty sweet...)  But Mommy doesn't want Oliver to start making this a habit.  It makes Mommy tired!

We spent the rest of the evening taking a bath and he slept at Grammie's for a bit while Mommy had some time to herself.  He is sleeping peacefully and hopefully doesn't wake up too much tonight.  

 Resting in the morning

Oliver's 3 sippy cups

Marble Drink

We had a nice Sunday.  Oliver is slowly starting to feel better, we left in the morning for Grammie's house.  Mommy took a little break to go to the Y, and Oliver was excited to spend time with Grammie.  They watched cartoons together and Oliver got cozy in Grammie's snuggie.  We spent the rest of the day at home, we loved listening to the rain in the late afternoon.  

 Walking to meet Grammie

 Excited to see his Grammie in her hot pink socks.

 Waiting for Mommy to return (wondering when pickup time is...)

He wanted to go get a marble drink from World Market.  

They make him feel a little bit better.

Playing with Mommy.  After he was done 

kicking her, he cuddled with her.  

Oliver's favorite drink from World Market- it has

a marble in it that clinks every time you take a sip.

Asleep for the night around 6:30.  Mommy thinks she will be up

with him later....again!

Off to a Good Start...

Mommy is really enjoying her new parenting book, Calm and Compassionate Children: A Handbook.   Mommy is learning a lot of new ideas to try with Oliver.  There are also a lot of things that Mommy already does with Oliver, so Mommy enjoys learning new twists to the things that we already do at home. 

 She was very excited when reading the chapter titled, “Nature Awakens Feeling,” the author discussed how she had read aloud a book called, The Tracker, by Tom Brown Jr.  Mommy has this book, read it years ago and loves it.  It is a great book that describes the natural world and being calm in the environment in order to discover wonders in the natural world. 

Mommy likes this quote referring to The Tracker, “This book is just macho enough to appeal to the “allboy” types in the class, but also communicates deep respect for nature and for the importance of self-control in order to be quiet and observe.”  Mommy hopes to read it with Oliver one day—he will love it and hopefully learn about respecting our natural world.

Mommy was also excited that the author recommended reading, Little House in the Big Woods in her chapter titled, “The Power of Story.”  That is our nightly read aloud—so cool!  Mommy liked these thoughts on reading aloud to children:

“Children just love to hear a story...The wise parent or teacher responds to this natural yearning with entertaining stories that depict love, courage, compassion, and joy.  The stirring ideals generated by great stories produce a reservoir of aspiration that your children can draw on throughout their lives.” 

Wow!  “…love, courage, compassion, and joy.”  (Those are all things that Mommy has to offer in so many ways…)  Reading and being a mom are amazing!

Mommy's Book

The Tracker

Our Read Aloud and Mommy's Favorite Bookmark.

Mommy just recently found her bookmark again, she got

it her 1st year of teaching from a student (2003).   It holds our spot

each night (it holds a special place in her heart 

too, she doesn't want to lose it.)  

Oliver is still feeling funky today.  Here he is

being a little whiny.  Mommy is glad that he

is getting a lot of rest though.  

Friendly Friday

We had a Friday full of daycare friends and some old friends.  Oliver is still not feeling well, he is a little bit better but took it easy for most of the day.  Danielle came over with her Mommy and brother to play and visit.  Oliver enjoyed seeing his good friend.

In the evening, Mommy and Oliver went for a little drive and got some FroYo.  Oliver is sleeping now.  Hopefully he sleeps through the night, the past couple nights he has been up almost every hour.  We both need a good rest and Mommy hopes that Oliver feels better soon.

Oliver watching cartoons in the morning. (So 

pensive, Mommy likes that.) 

 Mommy felt like baking Zucchini bread this morning.

She got a really great recipe from a gardener that was selling

zucchinis at the Arcata Farmer's Market when she lived in Humboldt

County.  If you want the recipe, e-mail Mommy.

 Still one of my favorite babies- James.

He fell and kind of liked being on the floor so

he stayed like that for a bit.  His sneakers are so cute!

 Danielle visiting with Oliver.  She was trying to cheer him up.

 She was very successful.  (Friends are wonderful.)

Great Mommy/Great Friend- Eileen and her Sweet Baby.

Our New Friend

 Amanda and Mike's baby girl was born yesterday!!!  Awesome job Mama! She is beautiful!

Zoe Bright Landau
January 26, 2011

7lb 15.9oz and 21in long

We can't wait to meet her!  

Fever

Last night Oliver started to feel sick.  Poor baby has a fever.  So of course he didn't go to school today, and he stayed home with Mommy.  He spent most of the day on the couch sleeping, staying hydrated, and watching TV.  He is a tough little guy, but he is pretty sick right now.  Mommy gave him lots of cuddles and helped him with his runny nose.  (Mommy just wanted to hold him all day, my poor babe.)  He is resting with Mommy now, hopefully he will start to feel better soon.  Fevers are not fun.

 Mommy's baby sleeping.

A fuzzy close up.  

Donut Wednesday

Another Donut Wednesday!  Oliver had fun at the donut shop with Mommy this morning.  He had a great day at school.  In the evening, Oliver went with Grammie to her house.  Mommy had a special meeting for her daycare--so much to do when starting your own business.  Mommy is so glad to have Grammie help so much with Oliver.  Thanks Grammie!

 He was considering the chocolate cake donut,

but decided on a coconut one instead.

 He likes the hand chair.  He wants to know what 

all the fingers are called.

 Ready to order.

 Yum.

 Pretty donut hole.

Wednesdays are turning into Wheatgrass 

Wednesdays for Mommy.  Yum.  (It is a good

way to stay healthy during the cold season.)

Time

Oliver had a wonderful day at preschool.  In the evening we wound down and talked about time.  We have been talking a lot about the clock in his room and the calendar hanging on his wall.  He doesn’t know how to tell time yet, but we read a book about it tonight.  He knows that Mommy wants him to go to sleep at 8:00, or at least start our story by then.  We also looked at his calendar and circled the days he goes to school.  When Mommy asked him what tomorrow was, he shouted, “School day!”  Mommy asked him what else it was and he said, “Donut Wednesday!”  He is catching on! 

We are still working on the bath routine.  (In time, Mommy hopes things will fall into place.  Hopefully.)  Mommy has to wrestle him to get his clothes off, trick him into getting his hair washed, and encourage him to play more in the water.  Mommy wants him to enjoy baths and look forward to them.  We will keep working on it.

This evening he fell asleep listening to two more chapters of our Little House book.  Mommy has also started reading a new parenting book that is on her and Amy’s reading list.  Mommy liked this quote that was at the beginning of a chapter on “The Power of Story”-

“Each time we read a book, we go on a journey.  And as with all journeys, books change us and bring us back to our deeper selves.” –Patricia MacLachlan, author of Sarah, Plain and Tall

The Little House series is definitely taking us on a wonderful journey.  

Playing with our magnets in the morning.

He is having a lot of fun with the numbers.

Winding down in the evening.

We wrote on his calendar the days he goes to school

this week, and of course donuts!

Bedtime 8:00.

Mommy's new book- 

Calm and Compassionate Children: A Handbook

Little Climber

Oliver on Mommy's Desk

We had a nice Monday.  This morning Oliver was climbing on everything.  He likes to climb on Mommy's desk--(there is a couple/few things on it that Mommy is trying to work on...) Oliver wants to cut all Mommy's important papers, so she is trying to redirect him to the work table in the playroom.  He is starting to get it, thank goodness!  

We had a nice afternoon, Oliver spent some time with Grammie while Mommy went to the dentist and the Y.  He had fun showing her his big snake and little dog that he brought from home.  We came home in the evening and tried to rest.  Oliver was so wound up that Mommy read two chapters from our Little House book.  He is finally sleeping.  

A Little Hike

Mommy picked up little man in the early afternoon.  We came home to rest, play, and work on some chores.  Oliver was pretty tired and antsy so we decided to go on a short hike to get some fresh air.  We drove over to Daley Ranch.  We only went about 1/2 mile round trip, the sun was setting and it was beautiful.  Next time we go we hope to make it to the old ranch house.  We love exploring together.

In the evening Oliver took a nice bath, without a fuss.  He fell asleep listening to the second chapter of our novel.  We had a nice day.  

 Daley Ranch in Escondido

 Oliver was so excited to hike he started to run

and slipped on the loose gravel.

 He was okay, got up smiling and brushed 

the dirt off.

 Beautiful sunset.

 Mommy was glad we were out there when

the sun was setting.  It would be nice to be out there

when the sun is rising too.  (Sunrise or Sunset--

either one would be perfect...)

We took a couple together pictures, Mommy liked this one.

It looks like Oliver is scared of something, silly kid.

Snapshots from Today

We had a busy day with our daycare kiddos.  Oliver was very helpful and was excited to play with Viana!  Oliver had fun seeing more friends in the evening and then we went to Grammie's house for a bit.  Oliver slept on the sofa while Mommy went to the Y.  He loves getting cozy with his Grammie.  

We had a wonderful day.  Oliver will be off with his Daddy in the morning for a Monster Truck Weekend...

 Playing with Mommy's rainstick she got in

a neat shop in Bellingham, WA.

 Oliver playing with his hook in the morning.

 Mommy got two babies and a toddler to sleep at

the same time---and look what Oliver was doing...

He is such a monkey, a monkey that should take naps.

 Emmi, Lily and Shelley came over for a bit in the 

evening.  Can you spot the monkey?

 Emmi liked Mommy's hoop.

The Remick girls are known for getting lots of boo boos.

Of course Lily got one in our playroom 

and she is showing her Mommy.

Little House Series

Oliver had a great day at preschool!  He came home and did his night routine nicely.  He just had a bit of a hard time going to sleep tonight.  He couldn't turn off his little mind!  So, Mommy read the first chapter from, Little House in the Big Woods the first book in the Little House Series by Laura Ingalls Wilder, to try and calm him down.

Mommy loves reading fiction, but even better she loves reading historical fiction!  The Little House Series is perfect, we are learning how people lived off the land in the late 1800s.  Oliver already had tons of questions, particularly about the wolves that were howling outside the families log cabin home.  Mommy thinks that we will learn a lot by reading the series, and it will probably lead us to seek out more information about their lifestyle and where they lived.  The family lived in the woods of Wisconsin!   (Mommy loves reading about the past, she just can't get enough.)  

Oliver finally fell asleep when Pa was butchering the pig.  Mommy is kind of glad he missed that part, because she knows he would have lots of questions...Oliver is always asking questions and loves to learn!  (Maybe one of these days we can visit a historical museum together--there are so many neat places to visit where you can learn about the past!)  Sweet dreams Oliver! 

"I can't get up..."  

Our Little House Series

 The first book in the series

Reading the first chapter with a flashlight