To Be Two

Happy Birthday Oliver!!!

Two years ago today, we were blessed with the arrival of our son, Oliver. OK, so it was two years and 24 hours of labor, 4 hours of walking the hospital halls with contractions, a Rockies playoff game, 2 hours and 14 minutes of pushing and Ta-Da... Oliver was here at 2:14 AM on October 14. I was watching him cruise around in his bedroom last night and I was thinking about all of the long, sleepless nights in that very space when we couldn't figure out how to get him to stop crying. (Sometimes we still can't figure out how to get him to stop crying but Madalyn somehow knows the trick.) I would think of what a wonderful kid he was going go be, how much fun we would have and how much it would touch me to hear him say "Mama" or "I Love You". We have come a long way from two years ago and it has been better than we could have ever imagined.
Oliver over flows with qualities and traits from everything around him. It is fun to watch him grow and learn. We are also learning right along with him that we have to be careful what we talk about. His ability to mimic our words is unbelievable and constant. He also seems to pick up on what we're saying, which is usually apparent at inopportune times, like when I said the word cupcake the other day. Next thing you know, he was eating a cupcake.

Many of year live far away and don't have the opportunity to see him grow daily. I thought I would share some fun facts about Oliver at two.

Some of Oliver's cutest phrases:
I Did It!
Thank You Mommy
Thank You Daddy
I Love You
Madalyn (Madla)
Me Try
My Birthday?
Wash Wash (always said two times)
Outside (OuSide)
Ta-Da!
Mmmmmm (when something is yummy)
Watch!
Mine and No are two of his personal favorites, but I don't think I would classify them as mine.

Favorite things to point out:
Airplane
Ball
Neh (Horse)
Moo (Cow)
Roar (Dinosaur, Lion, Tiger, Bear... Oh MY)
Dog or Ruff
Snake
Most all animals
Rock
Tree
Colors (Blue, Yellow, Red, Black, Brown, Blue again, Orange, Blue some more)
Train or Choo Choo
Car or Vrrrrrrrr
Poop - Ok, he IS a boy
Balloons


Favorite Activities:
Playing with balls and balloons
Coloring
Reading
Playing Outside
Getting the mail and bringing home a rock from the zero scape area by the mail box. (shhhh don't tell the HOA)
Dancing and Listening to Music
Playing with Cars, Airplanes, Trucks and Trains
Riding his new big wheel

Favorite Shows, which he calls, "My Shows":
Finding Nemo
Little Einstein
Handy Manny
Madagascar 1 and 2
Mickey Mouse Club
Winnie the Pooh

Nicknames:
Kiddo
Munchkin
Mambo Jambo
Oli
Sweets
Buddy

Favorite Foods:
Anything on a stick: Corn Dogs, Popsicles, Ice Cream
Yogurt
Peanut Butter and Jelly
Raisin Toast (and sometimes just the raisins)
Dip Dip Dip (Ranch, Ketchup, Salsa)
Snacks "Nacks" (Animal Crackers, Gold Fish Crackers, Dried Blueberries)
Fruit: Watermelon, Cantaloupe, Blueberries, Raspberries, Grapes
Chicken (baked, fried, strips, nuggets, you name it)

It is amazing what two years brings. We are looking forward to the next two and many, many more.

Happy Birthday, Kiddo. We Love You Very Much!!!!!

Oliver's 2nd Birthday Day

Chop, Chop, out the door. It's a work and school day. No freebies for the birthday boy.

Here is Oliver at 2 years, 3 hours and 15 minutes. Uhhh.... 6:30 AM.
Ready to head to school.

Oliver had a great day at school. He even took in cupcakes to have a party with his friend, which was a big hit.

Here he is out front the school pointing out the scarecrow decorations.For dinner we took Oliver for his favorite, Red Robin!

He dined on a corn dog, cantaloupe, milk and a few of Mom's fries.

Keith claims Oliver gets his eating habits from my Dad (Grandpa Garner) and I. He inspects his food carefully before eating. Oliver may take it to the extremes though because the inspections continues through the entire meal. He even inspected the birthday sundae. Maybe the delivery of clapping singers was suspicious. Mmmmmmm
The sundae has the seal of approval. Oliver dove in and gave it a thumbs up! I asked Oliver on our way home if he had a good birthday. With a smile on his face and an exhausted voice he said, "Yaaa".

Love You Oliver!!!

Happy Birthday Buddy!!!