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The Monkey Ballerina's are by Margot Curran and are available at Oopsy Daisy: Fine Art For Kids (oopsydaisy.com) Margot paints rembrandt-like paintings of her daughter's stuffed animals.

This morning Grammy woke up to the pitter-patter of little feet running around the dining room. Oliver’s latest thing is to play “Chase” around the table. He will run in circles for what seems an eternity provided that someone is following him. Occasionally he will switch directions to unwind, but he will keep going until he is winded and out of breath. He’s gotten pretty quick too. When he does this he refers to himself as “Dash” from the Disney movie The Incredible’s. He has not seen the movie, but he loves his Dash doll. He even resembles Dash! Sometimes Oliver will run in place as if he is peeling out before actually gaining any actual mileage around the table. It’s a great cardio workout to start his day and it is the only real exercise I get these days.

When Grammy entered the room Oliver was a bit reticent because he did not initially recognize her. That did not last long however, because Grammy was holding a bag of toy cars she brought with her to give The Kid. As soon as he realized that Grammy was holding something for him, he jumped out of my lap and ran to her in order to inspect the bag of goodies.

Inside the bag were four die-cast metal cars that propel forward when they are wound up. [Think big Matchbox cars.] Initially, I noticed the small dangerous parts, but Oliver’s face lit up when he saw the cars. He said “CAR!” and it was all over. He loves these things. So much in fact that I could not pry one of them out of his hands at nap time. Now whenever any of the cars are not in his presence he whines the word “CARRRR!”.

Last night when Papi was putting Oliver down to bed, he had to struggle with him just to keep Oliver from sleeping with it. The first thing Oliver said to me this morning when he woke up was “CAR?!”.

It seems as though he has no other toy at this moment. I think Grammy may have opened Pandora’s box.

(PS:Grammy's luggage arrived at 10:30pm last night)

Grammy is here. Her luggage is not. The Luggage did not catch its' connecting flight in Atlanta and will be delayed. Grammy got in too late to see Oliver because he went to bed moments before I had to pick her up from the airport. Grammy did however arrive late enough to miss the 108 degree heat. (It was only 90 degrees at 9pm.)

When we got home we shared an ice cold lemonade and then hit the sack because we knew our Sunday morning would start early.

Could there be a better way to beat the heat? I think not. After spending the better part of the morning painting a garage floor with no power (and no air conditioning!!) We hit Uncle Walter's Pool Party. Oliver learned a new word when he saw Uncle Dilson in the pool with his wine glass: "Intervention". Say it with me everyone.

Tonight just as I walked in the door from work we had one of Los Angeles’ infamous rolling blackouts. Luckily it was still light enough to eat dinner by. Oliver had no problem eating his spaghetti and meatballs. Today Oliver is 17 months old, it's only appropriate that we make his favorite meal.

Afterwards we had a long bath and then off to dreamland. Around 3am all the lights came back on. So did the Jacuzzi bathtub, the stereo and television and anything else that was on at 6pm. I was so exhausted that I didn’t even wake up. Thanks Papi!!

Today we beat the heat by swimming in Uncle Wally's pool. In case you have not heard, like Lisa and David, Uncle Walter and Uncle Dilson are in their new home too. It's beautiful! I think we will be seeing a lot of them this summer because Oliver loves loves loves their pool! He never wants to get out of it. He already goes underwater (a trick he’s been doing for months in the bathtub) and if you hold him, and tell him to do it, he will kick his feet and move his hands as if he’s in a race. He hasn’t quite mastered jumping off the steps yet, currently it's more of a "leaning fall", but he is working on his “jump” and will no doubt have it down by the end of the month.

Oliver has made himself right at home at Uncle Wally’s and loves to put little dusty white footprints on his dark hardwood floors. On a good day there will be a complete circle around his living room sofa.

After spending most of the day sweating in Hollywood, we invited ourselves over to Ethan's new house. If you have not heard yet, the new house is built and Ethan and his Mom and Dad were setting up the grill for an Independance Day cook-out.

Oliver doesn’t stay up late enough to enjoy the fireworks, however he is definitely able to stay up long enough to eat Lisa’s appetizers and play with Ethan’s toys. Oliver is really good at destroing every bit of block-art Ethan can create. Ethan had to come up with creative ways to keep Oliver from destroying everything he created. Having destroyed one building, Oliver would make his way back to the kitchen counter for more food, giving Ethan just enough time to set up more blocks before eventually returning to smash the new creation. This circle continued most of the evening.

Later, Ethan entertained the guests on his piano. At one point Oliver accompanied him by banging on the keys until it hurt his fingers and he said “OW!” and walked away--opting to eat mounds of artichoke dip, cheese, grapes, and spicy quacomole instead. A child prodigy, no?

Hey Aunt Carol, is that enough Sauce for you?

This is Oliver using the Abacus to try and figure out just how old Grammy is. Sorry this posting is late, but Oliver started pushing those beads over a week ago and just now finished.

We woke up this Fathers’ Day with our usual Sunday trip to the market. After that, Oliver took the Dads’ to breakfast at Fred 62. It was a fairly standard breakfast for Silver Lake: We pet a Labradoodle at the next table; dropped some scrambled eggs on the sidewalk; lots of sweaty people with tattoos melting in the sunshine--breakfast as usual really. Once we finished there, it was off to Oliver’s favorite little store: La La Ling! We did some damage there as you can tell from the photos below.

We did however manage to keep ourselves from buying the cutest little True Religion blue jeans. We could not justify $118 just so that Oli would have a pair of jeans to match his dad. (Papi could not justify it, but I might be going back to La La Ling this week !!)

I suppose that your asking yourself “but Daddy, what did YOU get for Fathers’ Day?” Papi is saving up to get me THIS !!!! (Or at least he had better be.) Seriously, my gift is that I get to dress Oliver up in those elephant pajamas and dinosaur boots and play with all his new toys!! Now if only he would wake up from his nap, we could stop cleaning out the garage and get down to serious playtime.

Happy Fathers’ Day Everyone!

Today Oliver and I had the morning together while Papi was visiting the girls. We went to Woodbridge Park and played with the kids before going to Beverly Hills and picking up a little something for Papi to open up on Fathers’ Day. (See the photoblog) While we were driving across town Oli kept pointing out the cars (CAH!); Trucks (TRUK!); and Buses (BUSSSS). Oliver was having a blast the entire time.

He was very popular with the Sales Clerk at Tiffany’s where he picked out a beautiful money clip for his Papi. When we got home Oliver even addressed the card to Papi personally. If you click onto the hyperlink but have trouble reading Oliver's handwriting, allow me to translate: "Dear Papi: Happy Fathers' Day - I love you."

In the afternoon just before his nap, Grandma Angela stopped by with some melons. Yum.

When I was in Nashville I had brunch with a country music artist named Sarah Buxton. At brunch we talked about Oliver and she was surprised to hear that Oliver could play the harmonica. I mentioned that Oliver’s harmonica was a plastic hand me down one from his friend Ethan, and how Oli has been playing it since his first birthday. Sarah was so impressed that she gave me a real harmonica to give The Kid when I got home. I did just that. Oliver and Papi picked me up at the airport, and as soon as I got in the car I gave him the harmonica and he happily played me a tune the entire way home.

Maybe next year Oliver will come with me to Nashville and play his new harmonica for Sarah in person—until then this picture will be the only proof. For those of you who have not heard of Sarah, you should give her new album a listen. Here is Sarah’s MySpace Website where you can hear a few tracks from her cd.

Happy Sweet 16 Months Oliver!!
Still no broken bones or any major injuries to speak of. We haven't dropped him. No hospital visits. No major illnesses. Oliver hasn't fallen off the couch, fallen from a chair, fallen down any stairs, or fallen down the hillside.

Keep up the good work little man! We love you.

The first thing that I noticed when I got home from my travels was Oliver's crazy hair cut. Papi mentioned to me that he wanted to cut The Kid's hair when I was gone. I asked him to stick to the bangs because I really liked the way his curly golden locks were growing in.

I came back to an "Oh Brother Where Art Thou" hatchet job. It seriously looked like I brought him in from blue ridge mountains. It resembled a bad wig worn askew. On one side it sat about half an inch above his ear, while the other side it was just barely covering the tip of his little ear. The back went at a diagnal. The shorter side had a little duck tail below it off on it's own. The bangs resembled Jaws' teeth.

It bothered me so much that I came home early enough so that I could run him to the barber and try to even it out. They had to take more off than I preferred but it's respectable now. He kind of looks like a little jar head. Reminder to self: when traveling hide scissors.

Papi thinks that this blog entry is mean. It's not meant to be mean. (Hey, at least he was not bleeding--and I didn't notice any scarring.) I didn't have the heart to take a picture of his crazy hair-do (or should I write "hair-don't") but below is a picture of the hair I left a week ago. (You can see some shots of the new "do" in the photoblog.

Oliver and I have had a lot of time together in the past few weeks while Daddy's been working in NY, DC and BNA. While it's been great, and Oliver doesn't quite realize how long Dada has been gone, he does sense something is up. The last few days he's been waking up, walking into our room, and pointing at the unmade bed yelling "dada"...so I suspect he thinks dada is still sleeping.

In any event, we miss you dada (as you can see in the picture above).

We've grown, learned new words, and visited the Aquarium, the Zoo, Ethan's last baseball game, Zoe and Ella's house, the farmer's market, grandma's house and many parks. But we can't wait for you to get home tomorrow.

Oliver's vocabulary continues to grow. This morning, while he was busy scarfing down some scrambled eggs, I went to the fridge to grab a pint of OJ, and served myself a small glass. When I sat it down he looked at the glass, then at me and said "juice"...so I handed him the glass and after a big gulp, he repeated the word. This gets added to "Moon", "Nina" and "Nino", which he's almost got down,"dirt", which he loves to say, "Bus", and "poo, poo", which he shares with us when he's about to soil his diaper.

Since he knows what poop is, and he knows when it's coming, today was also the day we went to pick out training seats. Oliver picked out the Baby Bjorn seat, and booster. We'll start tonight and see how he does. He's just discovered a tiny chair in this room. so he's got the sitting part down. But he's used to pooping standing up, so we'll keep at it.

After breakfast we went to the flower market downtown to look at plants for our landscaping project, and Oliver got to sniff at all the different varieties.

Some of you may know and appreciate Oliver’s fine vocal talents and how he can shriek at octaves that Mariah Carey and neighborhood dogs can only hope to achieve. For some time now The Dad’s have been able to ignore Oliver’s screams in spite of the fact that he often waits until lifted directly near your ear before letting loose with one of his head-splitting shrieks. That is to say until this weekend. Oliver no longer has the patience to wait until we understand what it is he is trying to communicate before screaming. Now he just screams constantly. A scream when he wants to be lifted. A scream when he wants to eat. A scream when he wants a toy. A scream when he is happy. A scream when he is sad. A scream whenever. The same tone, and the same volume--Head Splitter.

In the car, on the way home from a delicious Poquito Mas lunch, Oliver shrieked so loudly and for so long that I had to roll his window down so the wind would whip against his little face--forcing him to close his eyes and hopefully his mouth for a moment. That trick did not work this time. He just kept on shrieking with his eyes closed and his beautiful blond hair blowing back from his face. He was not mad, or annoyed, or anything except loud. The Kid was so loud that people would jump in shock when they heard the screaming toddler from the passing SUV. He did this for miles—even when you could hear his vocal chords literally start to give out and sputter. When his voice would crack, he would take a couple seconds to swallow some spit, or swig from my water bottle and then just keep on screaming-on. If he doesn't get through this phase soon he is totally going to end up like Froggy from The Little Rascals: croaking his way through preschool by the age of two.

Baby Center.com’s “My Toddler This Week” email states that it is perfectly normal for a 15-month-old toddler to sound like a Hyena (or worse). Their email goes on to explain that a parent should kneel down and say “I can’t understand you when you talk like that. Please use your normal voice and I’ll be happy to listen to what you’re saying.” Of course they say that one needs to do this over and over and over until eventually the toddler realizes that the better tone of voice gets them what they want. I should mention that we noticed a three year old at dinner last week still shrieking just like Oliver.

We could not help but make a comparison between Oliver and our Saturday night dvd pick: King Kong. (Yes, we finally got around to seeing that movie!) The comparison is in the scene where Anne dances and juggles the rocks for Kong as Kong roared and beat his chest. At first it was difficult to determine whether or not Kong would eat her or just keep watching. I, of course, can be compared to the lovely and talented Naomi Watts--dancing for my Oliver Kong. Doing my best to keep the beast from getting angry and ripping my head off. Sadly, some times beauty is just not enough to calm the savage beast. I am hopeful however that this phase will pass quickly. We all know how the movie ended.

Sunday night we celebrated a belated birthday and Mother’s Day for Grandma Angela. Papi made some pesto, Dad opened a bottle of wine, and Oliver fed his Grandma some pasta. Later Oliver helped Grandma blow out her candles. Oliver loves his visits with Grandma and Bandit. Sorry Bandit, I didn’t get to snap a picture of you on this visit—but I did get some of dinner with Grandma.

Beth, the Pesto Dinner was in your honor. We were thinking of you all night!!

This Morning Aunt Christine took Oliver and the Dads’ out to breakfast to the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills. We had a lovely; some might even say sophisticated, breakfast. Oliver and Aunt Christine both ordered the scrambled eggs. Aunt Christine brought a couple of presents for Oliver and in return she got to experience Oliver’s high-pitched Mariah Carey scream in person. Maybe the gifts and the hotel reminded him of his baby shower.

The Dads had Eggs Benedict. Yum. Don’t think however, that I overlooked the fact that the hotel has Oatmeal Crème Brulee on their menu. Seriously, it’s like this stuff came outta nowhere when I wasn’t looking. Who in Beverly Hills would order that? I suppose they might order a bowl of it right before going into their liposuction; but certainly not afterwards when they are recuperating from their surgery. I am not quite sure why I am so fixated on OCB, but for some reason I find the combination fascinating.

After breakfast we walked through the Beverly Hills Art Show. This time we didn’t buy any art but we did have a lovely stroll and conversation with Aunt C. We walked and talked and walked and talked.

We owe Aunt Christine a big thank you for the breakfast and the gifts. You spoil us rotten Aunt C!

Today we woke up late (8:45) and had oatmeal and berries. Sorry, no crème brulee in our oatmeal. After breakfast we decided to go to the LA Zoo and play in the Neil Papiano Play Area. Unfortunately for us the playground was closed for renovations. Instead we just ran around in the grass, admired the flower gardens and the pigs and then we headed home.

After our afternoon nap we played in the playroom and then went to Chin Chin’s for some Chinese food. Basically, just a lazy Saturday—one that was much overdue. I took some extreme close up pictures for the blog—you really get an idea of how much Oliver’s face has changed in the past few months. He’s such a little old man!

Happy Anniversary to the Dads!! This marks our thirteenth year together. It’s the “lace” year. In other words, we didn’t exchange gifts. We did however, celebrate with an eight-hour return flight from Rochester to Los Angeles (via Atlanta) in coach. Oliver did great. He slept the entire first leg of the journey and even caught another hour during the last part of the LA portion. He loved the book Aunt Carol bought him with the tractor and the wheels. It was a lifesaver at times.

Once we landed we had our anniversary dinner at AMMO. For those of you who read the blog regularly you’ve heard me go on and on about Ammo before. I don’t know if it was because the dinner was so good; the fact that we had been deprived LA cuisine for a week; or the fact that we were starving; but it was a wonderful meal nonetheless. It started with a couple glasses of chardonnay (The alcohol might have accounted for something too). After the chardonnay came an appetizer of Burrata cheese, on grilled radicchio accompanied with prosciutto; an amazing bowl of homemade soup; asparagus and mushroom risotto; and sea bass with artichokes and tear drop tomatoes.

After dinner we had the infamous ice cream sandwiches. Let me just say that Ammo changed their ice cream sandwiches recently without telling me. Instead of the gourmet ice creams sandwiched between the old school-style cookies, they now serve softer ice cream between homemade cookies. (YUM!) As delicious as the newer version is, I must say that the new version can be made by anyone, and the other variety is harder to come by. Still, I love Ammo, and I’d order the Ice Cream Sandwich dessert again and again.

After dinner, the three of us jumped into a tub to wash all the traveling off of us. Once clean, Oliver went right down in his crib without any fuss. It was clear to us that he missed his bed as much as we missed ours. We were all asleep by 8 O’clock.

We were happy to teach Oliver the sign for "MORE" so that he could tell us when he wanted “more” food at the dinner table. The sign for more is generally done by bringing two pinched fingers together as if they were hand puppets kissing. Oliver’s "MORE" sign is more of a mimed baseball catch into a glove as one hand is a fist and the other is opened. Variations are common when kids learn baby sign.

Oliver knows the sign for “eat” and “more” and uses these signs often. This is clearly evident given his ever-expanding waistline. The fun part about baby signing is that your child learns multiple uses for them so you need to be careful which sign you teach them.

This morning when I was getting ready for work, Oliver came into the bathroom said “dada” pointed at me—there is perhaps no sound better than hearing your son call you “Dada”. However, immediately after addressing me so pleasantly, The Kid did the “more” baby-sign. He then repeated himself signing “more” and speaking “Dada”. If you saw me at that moment you could have watched me deflate right there with my toothbrush in my mouth. “More Dada” is as sad as when he used to refer to me as “bye-bye”.

We are finally online once again. Thanks for being patient while we worked out the Snafu’s. I missed blogging about every little event, but the time off from has been very useful for me. I managed to get a head start on capturing all the video from my camcorder into my computer. Every night after putting Oliver to bed, I have been capturing about an hour of footage. I can’t believe how much he’s grown.

Speaking of growing, he’s been acting out a bit lately. Out of frustration, and sometimes out of nowhere, he takes an open handed swing at our faces. Yes, he’s become quite a hitter. A common occurrence at this stage of development according to my more seasoned parent friends, however it’s really annoying just the same. We are trying to be firm and consistent with him until he out grows it. Still, it’s like living with an abusive lover. He puts his hands up and whines to be picked up and loved on, only to slap you the minute pull him near.

One of the cute things that happened in the past week is he’s really taken to the word “boo”. He loves to play chase around the house and when you jump in front of him and say “boo!” he lets out the biggest laugh you’ve ever heard. (Or for those of you who only know Oliver through the blog, it’s the biggest scream you’ve never heard.) My favorite part of “boo” happened last week when I walked into his room in the early hours to wake him and as soon as he opened his eyes he let out this little “boo” and a big smile. He melted my heart.

Super nanny has made some great developments on the baby signing front. Oliver is great with the signs for “hungry”, “shhh” and “more”. It really is amazing to see those baby signs come to life.

Now if we can just teach him to stop hitting.

Hey Grammy,

We got your present in the mail today. Thanks for the box full of clothes! Oliver will grow into them in no time. You might be able to tell from the photo that he was hoping for toys. The Kid is getting better at ripping the wrapping paper off boxes.

XO

Easter Baskets; Candy; Hollywood Farmer's Market; Breakfast (Scrambled Eggs, Sausage, Tortilla); Melissa; Euchre; Naps; Playground; Poquito Mas, and Baths.

The Easter Bunny managed to hide a couple of baskets for Tori & Ella. He hopes that they find them before the chocolate melts.

The morning came early, but Oliver managed to sleep in. It was not the prettiest morning because the rain clouds still lingered. The threat of rain, however, was not enough to keep Cousin Shawn off his motorcycle—he showed up bright and early at 8:30. Papi whipped up his famous scrambled eggs with goat cheese and we all sat around the dining room table scarfing down the food. (Ella managed to swipe some extra pieces of bacon.)

None of us could believe how grown up Tori is. The last time we saw her she was Ella’s size. Oliver’s reaction to Ella was priceless—we were bummed that we didn’t have it on camera. When he saw two girls come into the kitchen he just stared Ella down—not sure what to make of this little girl who kept wanting to pick him up. She’s almost his size but bigger. It’s unfortunate for Ella that although she has size on Oliver, he may actually way as much. It looks as if she is going to throw her back out every time she tries and lift him. That does not stop me from allowing her to try every time she asks me: “Um Joe, Can I hold Oliver?” The way I see it, he can use a little rough housing from a well-intentioned little girl. It’s hilarious actually.

We went for a walk around the neighborhood, played some Euchre, ate some quesadilla’s with fresh guacamole and Oliver and the Girls took naps while the Guys played some more Euchre.

Later on the sun came out and we went to The Grove to visit the Easter Bunny. After hanging out in the lawn and doing a little shopping, we had dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. You can see from the desserts that we brought home that Tori liked the Cheesecake.

Mike, Rose, Tori and Ella arrived late Friday night (around midnight) and pretty much went straight to sleep. The rainstorm did not make for a very nice welcome to Los Angeles, however, the Hertz Neverlost system in their rental car did get them safely to the house. Ella first question to me was: “Um, Where’s Joey?” I think she was expecting Aunt Kathy’s baby to be smaller. Mikey and I had a glass of wine while everyone else slept. I kept Uncle mike up until about 2am which meant 5am NY time. Oops.

There was an interesting twist to the night time routine tonight. Oliver was particularly cranky when Papi handed him off to me around 7:30. Papi had been reading some of The Kids’ new books to him so we had ½ an hour of quiet time before actual bedtime, and he was not particularly interested in any more books. My singing was not going to help him either. I can’t imagine why my singing has grown old. I only know two songs: My Funny Valentine and Amazing Grace. I have mentioned in previous blogs how I can slow the tempo of the song, or speed it up to keep it interesting. I also mentioned how sometimes I hum a whole verse before singing it again softly. Now I can even seamlessly blend the two songs together in a way never done by any other vocal artist. I amaze myself sometimes.

Alas, my voice and song choice were not enough for young Oliver tonight. He wriggled and squirmed on my lap as I tried to rock him. It was at that instant that I pulled out the heavy artillery. It was time for a back rub. I placed him seated on my lap facing outwards into the room. I started out with a light rub, more of a Swedish massage style. He immediately stopped writhing and crying. As he started to warm to the massage I switched up the technique, imploring more of a Shiatsu/Deep Tissue thing. Oliver was eating it up. He especially liked the deep pressure point technique behind his shoulder blades.

He was putty in my hands at this point. Silent as a lamb he just sat there taking it all in. Occasionally I would do his arms, hands, and then legs and feet. I know how hard he’s been working on walking and lifting things so it must have felt amazing. Eventually his head just fell forward, he let out a fart, and he was asleep sitting up.

I pulled him back in so that he was lying down on my chest and looking up to the ceiling for a moment. Yep he was out cold. I picked him up, stumbled to the crib in the dark, dropped him into bed and covered him up with his favorite blanket. He didn’t even wake up for a second. It was 8 o’clock on the nose.

Tonight after our very relaxing bath, Oliver and I read book after book after book. (Or as Oliver refers to them: “BAH!”) Finally, after about a dozen books I started to sing my usual lullabies to Oli. He has come to realize that singing means bedtime, so he began to cry in frustration at the thought of having to go to sleep. The funny thing is, if the lights are on and you sing to him, he cries; if the lights are off and you sing to him, he sleeps. So I completely understand why he was getting grumpy but instead of jumping up and turning off the lights, I decided to take this opportunity to test Oliver a little.

This time, when Oliver screamed at my singing, I just let him wriggle down off my lap and onto the floor. He was screaming and squirming so much, I just didn’t want to fight him. Once he was on the floor I was left there holding his blanket and his stuffed monkey while he looked for yet another book for us to read. Instead of reading another book or the same one for the third time, I decided to hold his stuffed monkey in my arms like a baby and then pulled Oliver’s favorite blanket around the monkey and continued my singing and cooing—only with the monkey instead of Oli. This infuriated The Kid.

Oliver took one look at me and the monkey and he turned as red as a beet and screamed even louder than before. He raised his hands in the air in signaling for me to pick him back up onto my lap. Immediately I stopped singing to the monkey, and picked him up and wrapped him again in his blanket. He smiled, kissed and hugged his monkey, and was as cute as can be once again.

Then I started sing to him again, and he started to cry and wriggle out of my arms just as before. Once again I let him squirm and wriggle to the floor. I snuggled the monkey in the blanket and restarted my song. Oliver reacted with his primal scream again until I picked him up and snuggled him. This little cycle went on for three or four times. It was really quite funny. The entire time I thought, if this is how he reacts to me and the monkey, what’s he going to do when he has siblings?

Finally, I picked up The Kid and the monkey; turned off the lights; and sang him peacefully to sleep. With the lights off, he took much better to my song. He also held tight to his monkey.

Today was a very tough day for the boys. We continued our New Year’s resolution in a big way. If you remember one of our resolutions was to downsize and the other was to clean out the garage. Today the biggest item in the garage was downsized. The photos show Oliver saying good-bye in a way that upstages even Brittany. It was going to be his eventually so we thought it only fair that we let him take it for a spin before it left our lives forever.

Good-bye Z8. You’ll be missed.

Oliver's back on a normal sleep schedule. The last couple of nights I've taken a little extra time earlier in the evening to get Oli ready for bed. Last night, we started "quiet-time" around 7. Tonight we had our bath at 7. Both nights, Oliver has been sound asleep before 8.

I think he needs the sleep...it looks like he is growing, and may be breaking a few new teeth. I swear the kid looks 3, but he's only in the middle of his 13th month. He's really not a baby, but he will always be our baby boy.

He's starting to say more and more words. The last couple of days he's been working on "car"...he's got the hard "c" sound, and then follows it with "vroom, vroom", so I know it's what he is trying to say. He understands me (in both English and Spanish). I can have a conversation with him and even though I don't always understand his responses, I keep right on as if I do.

He's also now in mimic-mode. I have to pay so much attention to everything I do and say around him, because he's so quick to copy whatever I am doing.

Today Supernanny hung out with us all afternoon so that we could do some much needed chores around the house. Later in the afternoon we went where every parent and child in Los Angeles hangs out on a Saturday afternoon--The Grove.

At The Grove we went to Janie & Jack to look at the cute baby clothes—so many cute things in pink! Then it was off to Potterybarn Kids where Oliver made some friends. Seriously, the place is like Gymboree on Saturday nights. The kids were playing with everything from jamming on the musical instruments, to jumping into toddler beds. One curly haired 2.5 year old Lolita even propositioned Oliver--she him to get under the covers in the toddler bed with her. Who knew Potterybarn Kids was such a meat market?! Oliver politely declined, he was more interested in the cute blond with the red maracas. (See the pictures.)

Next it was Nordstrom’s, Baby Gap, The Easter Bunny, and then Barnes & Noble where Oliver found some cute books: “That’s Not My Dragon…” & “Este no es Mi Monstruo...” (aka That’s Not My Monster…) written by Fiona Watts and Illustrated by Rachel Wells. Oliver loves these books when you read them dramatically with lots of attitude. He especially tactile and enjoys the various textures and colors in these books.

After shopping we hit The Cheesecake Factory where we Oliver ate most of our bread, his own cheese pizza, all the chicken from our lettuce wraps and a quarter of the rice from our Orange Chicken. Seriously, I don’t know where he packs it away. Needless to say he was the hit of the night with the table next to us.

Okay, enough from Saturday. Turn your clocks ahead tonight.

This week's playgroup was just the boys as young Olivia was sick with a virus. The picture is dark, but you can see that they are playing well together. Oliver still has the tendency to hog the camera, even if that means he has to grab it himself. Thanks to Remy’s mom for the pics!

Sunday morning began with a trip to the Farmer’s Market, and then Ammo for breakfast. After breakfast we popped by another new (to us) park: Woodbridge Park—a “pocket park” in the valley. Woodbridge is open from dawn to dusk and has a large kid’s play area with sand and rubberized matting and a big grassy yard. It falls somewhere in between Beeman and Shane’s Inspiration. Not as good as Shane’s, but better than Beeman. There are pictures of Young Oliver running around Woodbridge with a ball in the Photoblog.

Later that afternoon we went for Chinese food with Cousin Shawn and Melissa. We played some Euchre when Oliver would allow us. Melissa and Shawn kicked The Dads’ butts in cards. Ok, we let them win.

The Wednesday play date was a lot of fun today. Oliver and his neighborhood buddies, Olivia and Faber (and their nannies), tore up the playroom for about an hour and a half. Eventually Oliver got hungry and a little grumpy but he was pretty good about sharing his toys—provided nobody wanted what was in his hands at the moment. Olivia (9 Months) is crawling, and she spent most of her time watching the boys. Sometimes she would use them to pull herself up to standing. Other times she made for a good speed bump and tripped Faber a few times. Faber is a week older than Oliver and he’s a super cool little guy. He is just getting the hang of walking and he does so with Frankenstein-like grace. Oliver played his harmonica for us all. The balls and the tunnel were a big hit; however everyone was pretty fixated on the ceiling fan.

Afterwards it was back to work for me and later that night we had a mediocre rib dinner at Zeke’s in Weho. Seriously, it was mediocre at best. Once we got home The Kid was pretty tired and hit the sack at 8:15. Tonight he fell asleep in my arms, woke up when I put him down, and only cried for three minutes before falling back asleep—I left the room.

So the Ferber-ization of Young Oliver seems to be working. Last night Papi put The Kid down and hung out for a few minutes before ultimately leaving the room for our alloted 15 minutes of crying. 10 minutes in, all was quiet. It's working!

Now we just hope that the whole Daylight Savings Time thing doesn't screw it up again.

Oliver has not been going down easy at night. For the past week he has been fighting sleep. We start by making the house quiet and dimly lit between 7-7:30 pm. We read stories and have a nice warm bath. 8 pm rolls around and we are put in PJ’s, usually read our last stories and rock in our chair. In the past he’d be fast asleep after a couple of songs in the dark room by 8:15-8:30. This past week however has been very different. At 8:30, he sits up and cries when you try to rock him to sleep. He also tries to wriggle out of your hands onto the floor. We’ll struggle with him for a half hour or 45 minutes before he finally falls asleep in our arms. That puts us after 9 pm, usually 9:15 to half past.

Once he’s asleep in our arms, and we go to set him down in the crib he lifts his head up shortly after being placed down and starts to cry again. We rub his back and or head so that he will fall back asleep, but he usually stands up bouncing on the side of his crib in full scream mode. We'll put him back down and say “bed time Oli” and then he gets back up and screams again. This dance goes on until we say ok, the Super Nanny trick isn’t working on a 1 year old, so let’s Ferberize the Kid.

We try and do something distracting for 15 minutes (watching the hot topics portion of The View, Elimidate, or something equally vapid that Tivo has suggested) while ignoring the screaming kid in the other room. After 15 minutes, The Dads' switch and one or the other will go in and lay him down again. To which, Oliver usually gets up and screams again while I sit on the floor next to the crib and try to meditate or otherwise ignore him. After about 15 more minutes of that hell, here’s where I screw up the Ferber, I pick him up and wrap him in his blanket. He puts his head down on my chest and lets out an exhale that melts my heart, and then breathing heavily he falls back asleep in my arms. Usually he’s out so I lay him back down for the night. Lately however, once he’s put back down and I start to walk out the room, I hear his little head pop back up and he starts to cry all over again. Eventually this routine exhausts him for good, say around 10 or 10:20 pm; 2 – 3 hours after we began the process. The Dads' too are exhausted by this time as you can probably imagine.

In an effort to get The Kid used to other children, we have been setting him up on playdates in his playroom. In this picture it is apparent that he is very good at sharing his balls. His friend Remy is one of the three neighborhood blond boys who were all born within a week of each other.

The time they had went well, and nobody got hurt so it looks as if this will be the first of many weekly playdates.

Today Oliver is 13 months old!!

Oliver is well again, but his Dad is still coughing, hacking and blowing his nose.

This morning was all about running errands. We went to The Griddle for breakfast, and then we hit Babies R’ Us for diapers. We almost bought an Elmo doll because Oliver loved it so much, but the Dads' were not sure that they were ready for Elmo’s voice to be echoed throughout the house just yet. We backed away from the Elmo and then hit The Right Start where we bought some cute bath toys and a couple of cars he wouldnt put down. We checked out the Juvenile Shop, a couple of open houses, and then Mexicali for lunch. Oliver gobbled down a couple of tomales and most of our quac and even some of my fajita.

As I type this, Oliver is asleep in the car and Papi is reading the newspaper. Just a typical Saturday…

Oh Yeah, The Kid is 32 inches long and weighs 32 pounds....how weird is that?

Here is a picture of Oliver contemplating his navel. His belly button is his latest discovery and when you ask him to show you where his belly button is, well, the above picture is the result... However, when Oliver (aka Baby Huey) pronounces the word "belly button", it sounds more like "beh-yee bubba".

I almost forgot to add that Oliver has also discovered Child Safety Outlet Covers. And although he cannot take them off the switch, he has decided that the ones we have stick out far enough that he can actually put his mouth over them and suck on them. You will have to imagine the visual of a child with his mouth up against a light socket because when it happens, one does not think to run to the camera first.

Apparently these outlet covers work. I am thinking perhaps they should be flavored. Just a thought.

We woke up early and hit the fifty-percent off parking lot sale at Riginals. (2042 Westwood Blvd. b/w Santa Monica and Pico) Loads of great merchandise for boys and girls and we bought quite a bit of cool pants and long sleeve T’s for under 10 bucks. They also have Little Giraffe blankets and bath towels on the cheap. The sale is from 10am to 4pm and runs Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. If you miss this one there will be another in April.

Oliver is 11 month’s old today. It’s hard to believe that he will be one year old soon. It seems like he should be turning two given the size of him. Oliver is still not really talking except for a few words like DaDa, Bird, PaPa, Button, and BaBa. He babbles on and on as if he has something to say, it’s just impossible to comprehend it. He does like the “B” words though. He is making some interesting new sounds too. This week he started grunting like a pig at mealtimes. I know that this practice may not be polite, but given the manner in which he eats, it is entirely appropriate.

Aside from mealtime, Oliver’s second favorite time of the day is bath time. He would soak for hours if we let him. He has mastered crawling and standing up by himself in one place, but he has not shown much interest in actually taking any steps on his own. In fact, if you grab his hands to try and walk with him now, he just melts to the floor and crawls instead. I’m in no hurry to have him walk… the crawling is fast enough.

He has started kissing, and will it’s often the way he likes to great strangers too. They say hello and he leans forward with his mouth slightly open making an “O” with his lips and just the smallest bit of tongue. People are like, “what is that”? and I tell him he’s trying to kiss them. By that time the stranger will inevitably lean forward to return the sentiment only to have Oliver pull back and put his hand up in front of their face. A chip off the old block, no?

This week Oliver started to go to sleep without putting up a fight. After the past few weeks of endless crying and fighting, it’s been well received. Now he sits with us, reads a book or two and then conks out at promptly 8pm without so much as a peep. I think it has a lot to do with losing his second nap and/or restricting the second nap to before 4pm only. In large part it is also due to the fact that we sort of have a bedtime routine now: We read Good Night Moon, and then Good Night Gorilla and after that I turn the overhead lights off. Leaving only the crib light on (which shuts off in 5 minutes) and his turtle that shoots the stars on the ceiling. We sit in the rocking chair together for a few minutes while I tell him a story that I made up on the spot and within a few minutes of the crib light shutting off, I have bored Oliver with my story and he’s asleep. He likes the boring stories much better than the off-key singing. How many times can a kid hear “Amazing Grace” before they scream anyway? I don’t know what I was thinking last week. 11 months and we are finally making some good decisions.

Happy 11 Months Oli!

Here’s a little Southern CA warmth for all of you stuck in Rochester! I lifted it from Today’s NY Times Arts section. We were sitting around the booth enjoying breakfast and the paper when I saw this article and thought of all of you. Then I jumped in the convertible and drove to work…

Today was a quintessential day in Los Angeles. It started with a late lunch at Fred 62 where Drew Barrymore was in the next booth having her lunch and flirting with Oliver. Then it was off to an open house in Silver Lake where we viewed a large 4 bedroom 1930’s Craftsman home with the other Affleck (Casey) and his family. Finally once we were home and taking our evening walk we bumped into Will Farrell and his little boy walking the neighborhood in a really cool jogging stroller. I mistakenly called the little one a “her”… What can I say; I thought Will said his name was Agnes. Oops.

The Lunch was really the highlight as we have begun ordering Oliver his own meal at restaurants. When the waiter brought him a huge plate of spaghetti with olive oil and Parmesan cheese I said “is this the kids’ portion”. Papi confirmed that it was indeed the kids’ portion, although it was a serving I would not even be able to finish myself. Oliver ate more than half of it—sucking one noodle at a time at first. By the end he was just taking two handfuls and shoving piles of pasta into his mouth. He was the hit of the restaurant and people could not believe the way he just kept shoveling it in.

It’s pretty much like that at every meal now. Lately if we try to feed him he grunts and shouts for another bite before we can even secure the next spoonful. He is a bit of a Young Frankenstein. Just grunting and barking. He definitely has my patience level.

We are doing fairly well with our family New Year’s resolutions. Today was our second day waking up and taking our morning walk through the neighborhood. The mornings have been much sunnier since our storm last weekend, but it’s still cool in the mornings so we put on the new SWEAT SUIT that the Ackerman’s sent for Xmaskuh (Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!!) and toured the neighborhood.

I know what you are probably thinking: with all the things we could resolve to do in 2006 we chose walking? Here’s the thing, we never keep resolutions so why not pick something that we know we can actually do. The other two resolutions we were considering for 2006 were breathing and eating, but we figured that we would need to save something for 2007.

70's and sunny once again. (Fascinating blog, no?)

It poured all night long and we woke up to a wet dining room because we had a bit of a leak at the crown molding/ceiling area. Water seeped in and backed up behind the wall creating a little bubble of water on the wall. We popped it like a zit and then pushed the wall back together so that it might dry back in place.

Anyone know any good contractors?

We ventured out in the rain to visit and break bread with some of Aunt Monte’s friends. We had a lovely meal of Prime Rib, Truffle/Mac Casserole, and Squash. All of it delicious! Of course the bottles of wine helped everything go down smoothly—especially the various topics that came up in conversation. I am polite, and apparently children read this blog occasionally so I won’t get into the topics here. Let’s just say they ran the gamut from: “Is there a Santa Clause”; to “which religion treats women less awful”; to “the various ways we were taught about the birds and the bees”. I am not really ready to think about how I will cross those bridges with Oliver when the time comes, but it was fun to hear the ways other people’s parents screwed that up.

Oliver and I were a bit late as he decided to take a pre-party nap in the car on the way over. He probably would have kept sleeping through the entire party if I hadn’t finally gotten him up. Seriously, he was snoring in his little blue parka and didn’t feel the cold when I rolled the windows down. Nor did he hear the police sirens as they passed by on neighboring streets. After and hour and a half, there was a break in the rain, and I had to pee (and craved some wine) so I basically just yanked him up and out of his car seat.

Once at the party Oliver played and played. He also ate more than just about anyone at the table—I think he was probably a close second or third to Matt and myself. Once Oliver finished clearing his Papi’s plate he crawled into Aunt Monte’s lap and proceeded to clean her plate as well. He especially loved Aunt Tim’s casserole. Once Monte’s plate was clean, Papi and I kept tossing bits of macaroni onto her plate just so O could gobble it up.

We discussed it in the car and the three of us came to the conclusion that Aunt Monte needs to have more dinner parties because that was a wonderful way to ring in the New Year. In fact, we could not think of a better way than with new friends! Thanks to everyone. We truly enjoyed meeting everyone and we had a blast.

PS. We need to get Aunt Tim’s Truffle Mac & Cheese Casserole recipe!

Happy New Year Everyone!!

I didn't get much opportunity to take pictures at Ella & Zoe's party tonight, but I did get a few and I added the non-blurry ones to the blog. Oliver was the only boy crawling amongst a gaggle of girls. I think he's still to young for the twins because Zoe flirted more with all the Dads than with Oliver.

Oliver met a special litte girl named Ruby who pushed him around in a babydoll stroller. It was the hightlight of the evening. I can't tell if Oliver fancied Ruby, or if he was just amazed that someone smaller than he could walk so well. Oliver's big booty barely fit in the babydoll stroller. Ruby has a few months on Oli, but O is considerably larger. When she started to push him in that tiny stroller, it was quite the site. Ruby's dad and I both ran for our camera's however, by the time we grabbed them she was bored and left him stranded. O was getting antsy all squished in that little seat. The visual was high-larious! Alas, you had to be there because I have no pictures of it.

Happy 2006!

PS I realized tonight that I have 24 more Hawaii pictures on the digital camera that I still need to add to the photoblog. Keep an eye out for them in the photoblog. They took me straight back to the big island!

Let me begin with an apology for neglecting the blog. As of late I have been trying to live life a little bit rather than blog about it. OK, wait, that's not entirely true. I have been really busy for some reason at work, Papi has a cold, and I have not had much time for anything other than work and kid.

Here's a quick recap of Christmas. The after Christmas Sales totally sucked. Oliver got some more clothes but his dad's did not do too well.

Oliver's favorite toy he got before Christmas was the BMW Z3 Roadster Ride-A-Long from The Chavez Family. That kid in the picture is not Oli BTW, but if you want to see pictures of Oli and the Beemer, you should peek at the photoblog.

The BMW was parked on Christmas morning when he opened his Babystyle Hook & Ladder Fire Truck from Aunt Christine. You can get your very own at Babystyle.com, there are pics of Oli with the truck in the photoblog. This was his favorite toy on Christmas, but then came Boxing Day gifts...

The Day after Christmas, The Dads' needed to make a comeback and did so with a cute little toy car. It is "The First Friends Car" made by Tolo. When you push the driver's head the car starts up, the motor rev's, the horn blows, the head lights and tail lights blink, it peels out and drives forward a few feet before the breaks squeal and light up and the driver lets out a hearty giggle. It's totally loud, annoying, and we all love it! It is now Oliver's favorite toy and it was about 30 bucks at Needless Markup, er, Neiman Marcus. You can find the "First Friends Car" and more Tolo Toys by clicking here.

I want to thank everyone for the lovely gifts. I will blog about them all at some point and I hope to get shots of Oliver in all the wonderful outfits that were sent.

Thank you for your support and your love. It is truly appreciated.
May everyone's holiday be as special as ours!

Thanks again.

PS: Tonight's favorite Christmas gift was Aunt Monte's classic Radio Flyer Horse. This is the only ride-a-long toy (he got three different ones) that Oliver actually wants to ride on for a few minutes. He's still not totally comfortable stradling the Beemer or the fire truck and prefers to push those from behind rather than actually mount. The Radio Flyer Horse however, he will sit on and push himself -- although he only seems capeable of pushing himself backwards. (What can I say, he's his fathers' son.)

The night started out fairly quiet. Papi, Daddy, and Oliver ordered a pizza and settled in with Charlie and The Chocolate Factory. There's nothing like a peaceful Christmas Eve with the family.

We had just finished our third piece of pizza, and Charlie's Grandpa was telling the tale of how the factory started working again without any of the laborers, then the phone rang. It was Grandma Angela, Aunt Loraine and Uncle Bob. They were downtown and on their way to our house. It was about 10 minutes till Oliver’s bedtime and he was exhausted but we figured “why not, it’s Christmas, right?”

Grandma brought presents for The Boy, and Aunt Loraine brought wine for the Dads’. Just when things were getting merry, the phone rang again. It was Aunt Christine, and her brother and they were just finishing with dinner in Hollywood and they wanted to visit too. Lucky for us The Boy was back in full swing from all the excitement Grandma brought, so it was perfect timing.

Aunt Christine looked beautiful as always and we sat around eating chocolates, and drinking wine until Oliver was so tired that he fell backwards (from a seated position) onto the front fender of his new toy BMW (Thanks Darin and Alex!! Er, I mean thanks for the BMW, not the fall). Oliver landed with a thump and his eyes were just looking up at the ceiling. You could tell from the expression on his face that he had totally fallen asleep and was only surprised to have woken up with all those people in his media room looking at him. He just smiled and laid there for a bit before Papi picked him up and took him upstairs to bed where he would sleep peacefully until around 3:30 am when Cousin Melissa arrived.

It’s never a Christmas party until someone passes out and hits their head on the fender of a BMW. After that drama, the house cleared out pretty quick.

Merry Christmas everybody!

PS I almost forgot to write about my favorite part of Christmas Eve…

So for some reason The Boy has been staying up late the past few nights. It started yesterday when Uncle Walter and Dilson brought Oli some great Christmas presents and his dads’ some great chocolates… which we are still eating btw! But I digress, back to The Boy’s sleeping habits; he will not go down without putting up a big fight. It’s crazy really. He has been up to 9:30 and 10pm-ish for the past two nights. Yesterday we thought it was because of all the holiday excitement. Last night Papi tried putting him down without the pacifier and without his last bottle (The bottle has been the cause of the 3am wet diaper changes). It was not easy for Papi as Oli cried for about a half hour before finally knocking out for the night. We’ll see how many nights we have to do that before it becomes habit… I have to admit that it was kind of nice because Oliver slept in until 8:15am and when he woke up he was in the sweetest mood. Our family New Year’s resolution will be to get him on a real schedule. He doesn’t really need that second nap in the late afternoon any longer. (I have a feeling that may be the reasoning behind the late nights.)

He’s still teething--those teeth just keep coming in.
He points at everything now and says “bur-duh!” (Myself included!) Papi is taking him to the zoo today so that he can see some real birds, and hopefully learn the difference between Dad and Bird. He is such a big boy it’s tough to remember that he’s only 10 months.

Oliver seems to be doing much better today. I think his Rosie O’Donnell virus is finally over. This morning he was super cute and loveable and with no little spots. We were back to normal eating habits and he was not nearly as cranky as he was in days past.

Today we picked out a small tree for Oliver’s first Christmas. The kid who helped us get it on the car was kind enough to snap a photo of the moment to document it. Oliver has been very cranky sitting around the house so any trip we make seems to make him happier, at least for a few precious moments.

So the morning after our return, Supernanny pointed out a new tooth. Oliver already has two top and two bottom teeth. Now he has a top lefty coming in. This (we thought) explained his fever and crankiness on the plane ride home. The poor kid is growing up so fast. He’s too young to be dealing with this much mouth pain. It prompted us to get some over the counter numbing gel for him. He is crankier than ever. All of his other teeth came in uneventfully, this one is different. Fever (102), crankiness and drool.

Today was a sunny and cool autumn day so we packed up a lunch and went to Lake Balboa with the kid. It was extremely windy so we wound up eating our picnic lunch in the car while Oliver napped in the warm sunshine. After he woke up we walked around the lake and fed the ducks. As you can see from the pictures Oliver is getting some use out of the new hat Grandma bought him.

This was Oliver’s first experience up close with the ducks. He loved them. Now when we sing Old McDonald Had a farm, he will be able to recall the sound of a duck. Next, I just need to find a cow in Los Angeles.

The TURKEY came out wonderful again this year thanks to Papi's good cooking! Ethan, Lisa & David visited and Ethan read a book to Oliver. The first thing Ethan said when he walked through the door was "Oliver looks just like Walter". It must be the little old man in him.

Grandma Angela and Bandit came by for turkey dinner. It was a wonderful meal and Bandit enjoyed the turkey too. Grandma Angela had a hat made for Oliver that has his name on it. If you check out the pictures in the photoblog you'll see the hat and my favorite picture of Bandit and Oliver kissing under the table.

So today marks The Kid's first Thanksgiving. We started out by watching the beautiful sunrise from Oliver's nursery window. These moments with my boy are what I am most thankful for on this most thankful of days. If you look at the photos in the photoblog, you'll see Oliver waving to you.

It's a bit early to blog about what the day will bring but I wanted to say hello to everyone and give you a couple of new pictures to look at. Right now Oliver is down for his morning nap, and Papi is chopping up celery for his stuffing. I just cut some fresh rosemary from our garden and the Turkey is going in the oven. The house still smells like pies from last night's baking. Actually, just now as I type this entry from the booth in our kitchen, the aroma of cranberry and orange is wafting over my computer screen. Papi has begun the prep for his famous cranberry sauce.

Wish you were all here again with us. Stay safe, and have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Today the Dads’ let Supernanny spend the day with The Kid while we went out on a breakfast date. After breakfast and spa appointments, we needed to hit the grocery store and cook a small turkey for just us. We decided that this year we would hunker down at the house; stay in our PJ’s and watch movies all weekend long.

Every year we generally have all of those without family over to spend the meal with us. Some years this has meant moving a meal for eight to a meal for 23 with only a moments notice. It’s hard to believe that just two years ago, Oliver’s Nursery was a make shift dining room for our Thanksgiving friends & family. Traditionally that kind of Turkey Stress is exactly what made the holiday fun. This year that is definitely not the case. Oliver’s first Thanksgiving is going to be a memorable one cause it’s just the Dad’s and Grandma Angela. Everyone we know has someplace to be this year. Maybe that is a bit indicative of the way our friends have flown the coup (no turkey pun intended) since the baby was born.

Tonight Papi started preparing for tomorrow’s Thanksgiving meal by baking (and eating) two pies: One Apple, and One Pumpkin. Papi had to bake the pies this year because Nicholas at LaBrea Bakery annoyed us to no end. We called on our way over to ask if they had any of their delicious pumpkin pies left and he said they did but that he was not going to hold any orders for me. After fighting traffic on LaBrea, we arrived only to find that he sold the last one. Happy Thanksgiving Nicholas at LaBrea Bakery—“thanks” for nothing! As good as the bakery’s pumpkin pie is, and as much as it was (note the past tense) a staple at our house on Thanksgiving, it won’t be any longer. I ultimately won out because Papi’s pies are way better. It did not take us long to dive into the apple pie. Maybe Papi can bake an extra one to throw at Nicholas. Since this is Oliver's first Thanksgiving, perhaps it's time for a new Thankgiving ritual.

Here are some pictures!

Well, it looks like we're getting close to letting the pacifier go. We had been limiting the binky to really tired times, but we are now going cold turkey just before Thanksgiving.

Where has the time gone? I thought it best that I make a comparison between what Babycenter.com says a nine month old should be doing, and what Oliver is actually up to these days so that you could see how he is pretty much right on schedule.

Almost Walking: Oliver is very close to walking—The Grammy’s will testify to that as they constantly lead him around the house by his hands. He pulls himself up on everything and has even begun to take a step between the coffee table and the couch. That is a development that came about on Saturday after Grammy left. I am sure she was hoping that that happened while she was here, but she missed it by an hour or so.

Not in Shoes yet: The topic came up when the Grammy’s were here, and whether or not Oliver should have new shoes. Babycenter says no. I agree as he only kicks them off and I lose them anyway. I am, however, a firm believer in his little Robeez elephant slippers. They are soft sided, stay on with elastic, they are warm and so damn cute.

Playing and Learning: Oliver is right on track with the learning thing. He should be (and is) playing with shape sorters, wheels and big plastic cars. He has not exactly gotten the shape sorter thing down just yet, but with the help of some of the new toys from his Grammy’s he is definitely on the learning fast-track. He still prefers his toys meant for three month olds which is a little disheartening especially since he’s wearing the clothes of a 1.5 year old. Yes the comparison to “Baby Huey” and “Bam Bam” are frequently made.

Separation Anxiety: Oliver will cry occasionally when one of us comes home at lunch and then leaves, but it never lasts for long and it only happened a couple of times. For the most part Super Nanny or one of the many visitors has kept him so preoccupied that he hardly misses us. It’s a double edge sword!

Trying to travel: Babycenter says that it’s tough to travel with a nine month old because they are clingy and apprehensive towards strangers. Oliver loves traveling so far and has not exhibited any negative actions with regards to strangers—except sometimes he has a way of starring people down that is very interesting. It usually happens in restaurants and is directed towards waiters and neighboring tables.

Language Comprehension: Babycenter says that he should be saying “da-da”, “ma-ma” and “ba-ba” but not really understanding their meaning just yet. We have banned the “m” word in the house and he’s been really good about not using it. The others he says regularly and he clearly does not understand them. He also likes to babble incessantly, and stick his tongue out and blow raspberries. I am sure he’ll be cursing like a sailor in no time.

He also has a pretty good hold on the following baby signs: Eat; dog; and flower. He does not know exactly when to use them yet as he tends to do the "eat" sign just before being fed when he is already at the table, and "dog" and "Flower" are really only used when he mimics one of us and not yet used on his own.

Saturday morning came early. The Grandmas were sleeping next to Oliver’s baby monitor so that he would wake them up with the sun in order to do the final packing and make it to the airport on time. Oliver stirred around 5:15 am so he was actually up before the sun. It gave us some time to have coffee and muffins before taking off to the airport.

I almost had Great Grandma convinced to stay for a month. The only reason she felt she had to leave was that she was afraid to fly home alone. A week goes by too quickly! Especially when you wait 15 years to come and visit! Now that Great Grammy has seen how easy it is to fly maybe we’ll get her here again soon. It was a wonderful trip and Grammy got some much needed time on her knees with the Kid while this Grandson got some much needed time with his Grandma.

I’m thinking that maybe Grandma and Aunt Carol need to make the next trip. For now, I am so grateful for having gotten Great Grammy to Los Angeles (baby steps!).

After Breakfast we kissed the baby good-bye and drove the Grammies down the hill, through the morning fog and to the airport. I know Oli is going to miss having his Grammy there to hold his hands and walk him around the house. I think the Dads’ are going to miss that too.

Have a safe trip Grammies!
xoxo

Last night we had dinner at home and a visit with Grandma Angela. That’s three Grandma’s under one roof. Great Grammy stayed up late talking and we all slept in a bit this morning. After breakfast and playing with The Kid, Great Grammy and Daddy took off in the convertible to enjoy the afternoon driving around LA. Grammy and Papi stayed home and played with the Plumber who was destroying our pipes and the Baby-Proofing guy who was putting up safety gates. Great Grammy and I had the better morning. We drove West on Mullholland Drive in order to see the beautiful views. We tooled around The UCLA Campus a bit. Then went to Beverly Hills and picked out a few houses we would love to have. A cruise down Rodeo Drive allowed us the opportunity to fly-by the Gucci, Cartier, and Prada stores. Then we went to Joan’s on 3rd in order to pick up some lunch (and cupcakes) for the rest of the gang back at the house.

Once we returned we had a lovely lunch, followed by more playing with Oliver, then another lovely meal and more playing. Grandma Angela stopped by again on Friday night so we stayed up chatting over wine, tea and extra cupcakes. It was great to have all the Grandma’s together in one place for a picture. (I’ll post it soon.)

The morning came early. It was around 6am when Oliver stirred in his crib and Grammy came upstairs to give him his morning bottle. We played all morning and then after a long nap we went off to the Aquarium of the Pacific
in Long Beach.

Grandma reminisced about visiting Long Beach, the Queen Mary and Aunt Carol’s apartment. We went in and looked at the fish for a couple of hours—Oliver was mesmerized by the huge fish tanks. Sea Horses, Jelly Fish, Sea Stars and Fish, Fish, and more Fish. Everyone’s favorite was the Sea Otter exhibit. One otter in particular was putting on quite a show. The otter was chasing his tail and swimming in circles right in front of Oliver. When you put your hand on the glass tank and moved it in a clock-wise circle, the otter would follow it round and round. The shark exhibit was interesting but because it was outside, and it was sprinkling, we didn’t spend too much time with the sharks.

After the Aquarium we had lunch with Melissa and drove home. Once home Oliver had a bath with his dad and then played all night with The Grandma’s.

We woke up early again. Had some breakfast, and hit the stores.

The trip began with a drive up Ventura Blvd in The Valley. We hit the following baby stores in search of toys for The Kid: Storyopolis; The Juvenile Shop;
and The Right Start.

Grammy bought some books for Oliver at Storyopolis, and Great Grammy bought a toy fire truck, a rainbow rattle ball and a little something to take home with her. At the Juvenile Shop we got a couple of place mats, a couple of sippy cups, a toy fish bowl that Oliver can put fish in, a cribside aquarium toy, and a couple pairs of PJ’s. The real kill came in at The Right Start where Grammy bought Oliver two really cool toys. One toy is a car that he can sit on and push himself across the floor with.
It's called the The 4-in-1 Ride On.
The other big ticket item Grammy bought is the Babysteps Activity Walker.

After all that hunting, we went to lunch at The Lobster in Santa Monica where we downed a bottle of wine, some lobster, shrimp and crab. We took a quick stroll on the pier and then fought the traffic on Sunset all the way home.

Once home we played and played and played and then passed out.

The Grandma’s are in town this week. They arrived safely last night—Great Grandma mentioned that First Class is not all it’s cracked up to be and I agreed. Alas, they had a smooth flight and they both looked great--even after a looong day of traveling. We got them home and after a quick tour of the house everyone went to sleep to prepare for The Kid’s early awakening.

Great Grandma was up at the crack of dawn and Oliver followed shortly. We had some coffee, played a bit and then went to the farmer’s market to get some fruits and veggies for brunch. The remainder of the day was left to playing with Oliver, playing with Oliver, and more playing with Oliver. The Kid managed to get one short nap in on the way back from the market, but skipped naps for the remainder of the day until he passed out at 7pm. And of course the rest of us followed shortly.

You’re going to have to wait for the pictures because my computer is having technical difficulties.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot to mention that Grammy only let Oliver fall and hit his head on the ground one time so far.

Tonight we captured Oliver eating one of his favorite meals: Spaghetti. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves. I am certain that it will be clear how much he likes the pasta.

It’s a little unnerving watching him suck it up, but at the same time it’s really cute.

Before Oliver, daylight savings in autumn was a great thing as we would get an extra hour of sleep. Unfortunately for us, “Fall Back” does not work when your kid's sleep schedule conflicts. We were up an extra hour early, and our day was extra long as Oliver was playing all day and late into the night with visitors. I can’t help but feel robbed of my extra hour of sleep!

Since we were up extra early we had ample time to get ready for The Farmer’s Market. We put Oliver in his Halloween costume and just about everyone at the market loved it. How could they not? He was the cutest brown bear at the market. A little “Bruin” in the making!

After the market, we spent the afternoon playing with Beth, and after we shipped her back to San Fran, we had a meeting with Mark aka “Mr. Safety”. Mr. Safety is the baby-proofing guru who came to give us an estimate for baby-proofing our house. It took a while as some of you may know our house is on three levels and scales a hillside. Mr. Safety went through the rooms commenting on the various gates, locks, etc. His best comment was when he walked down the stairs to our front door and said: “So, you’re not to even let the baby play outside of the house!” and he proceeded to point out the necessity of having to secure any door to the outside.

I am so not looking forward to a baby-proofed house, but we are left with little choice. I think Mr. Safety will be able to take the rest of the year off of work when he sends us the invoice.

Aunt Monte popped by in the evening to get some much needed baby-time with Oliver. She got a kick watching Papi try and get Oliver to go to sleep. Due to all the activity in the house, Oliver fought sleep and stayed up to 9pm. (Which is actually 10pm if you don’t count the daylight savings bs. Yeah, I'm bitter, So?)

Beth is in town for the weekend again. Today Beth and Papi slept in while Oliver and I were up early and out the door. We were on a mission to find a costume for The Dad’s to wear to a party (Thanks for babysitting Beth!) and after we bought the costumes Oli and I went for coffee in Larchmont to discuss how we were going to talk Papi into dressing up as a Priest. The Pete’s Coffee House in Larchmont is very popular with early bird parents, children and dogs. It seemed that there are other people up at ungodly hours in Larchmont. Oliver loved practicing his Baby sign for the word “dog” and everyone in the coffee house thought it was really cute. The only thing is Oliver kept doing the baby sign for “dog” (sticking his tongue out and breathing heavy) whenever anyone spoke to him.

The rest of the day consisted of pulling Beth’s hair, chewing on her charm bracelet and crawling and drooling. Later we went shopping and bought some new clothes for Oliver (Including a cute bear outfit that will be his Halloween costume). It’s really cute… pics to come.

After putting Oli to bed we left Beth and The Kid at home to go party hopping with Uncle Chris. Because this is a children’s blog, I will not go into the details of his costume. And don’t even ask me to post the pictures! Needless to say, Uncle Chris’ costume did not disappoint—it offended just about everyone who happened to see it, including a neighbor who unfortunately caught a passing glance of him through their kitchen windows while Uncle Chris was dressing.

I came to the sad realization today that The Kid is starting to recognize the fact that when I visit him at lunch, I inevitably must leave once again in order to return to work. Today he just looked at me and started to cry when he knew I was leaving him. It seems that in the morning he has too much going on to focus on me leaving, but the separation anxiety in the afternoon is tougher.

As we progress through the seperation anxiety stage, I will let you know who handles it better: The Kid; or The Dads.

Aunt Christine mentioned that she didn't like her picture we posted, but that she could "live with it" because Oliver was looking so lovingly at her. She attached the above picture to her email response stating that "This is what shopping in Beverly Hills is really like". In the interest of fairness, I am willing to post it. No one can say we don't "keep it real" on this blog.

PS - Did I mention that Aunt Christine is SINGLE? Anyone out there who would like information on Oliver's Aunt Christine should feel free to comment to this entry. I will be happy to screen and forward any potential candidates.

Today was Aunt Christine’s turn to shop with Oliver. We went to Barney’s for brunch, and after a couple of omelets later, we walked the Hills of Beverly. Actually we walked from store to store trying not to buy anything. I managed the impossible and did not buy a single pair of shoes. However, we did manage to wrangle a couple of gifts and I got a set of soft alphabet magnets to attach to the playroom wall. (See the next entry for a description of the toy.)

Today’s discovery was Oliver’s tongue. Whenever someone would say what a cute baby, Oliver would inevitably smile and start sticking his long tongue in and out at them. When people would react to him he would smile even wider and stick it in and out even faster.

A chip off the old block.

Monte came by this morning to keep Oli and I company while Papi was at a "bored" meeting. Our coffee and breakfast, turned into Lunch and shopping as Auntie M was fashionably late, and Oliver decided to go down for his nap. By the time Oliver woke up, Auntie M and I were starving so we bolted to AMMO for some lunch. Oliver was kind enough to let us get not only get through our meal, he let us have ice cream sandwiches for desert too. Auntie M and Daddy had some serious catching up to do! After lunch we walked the shops on 3rd street (Hollywood, not Santa Monica), bought some things we didn’t need, and then bought some Cupcakes and Latte’s that we very much needed. It was over cupcakes and lattes at
Joan's on Third when Oliver decided he was going to go down for another nap. He had no regard for the delicious cupcakes (did I mention cupcakes and lattes?), or the noise of the traffic, or even the noise from a Harley that was trying to park right next to us on the sidewalk. He slept through it all.

It’s amazing how indifferent The Kid is to ice cream and cup cakes. I wonder when that will end? I know Papi was certainly envious when I told him about our day. He’s probably envious thinking about it now as he reads this post too. (cup cakes!)

PS Thanks Auntie M for letting me eat your marshmallow filling.

Papi has been wanting to take The Kid to the zoo for a while now and it didn’t disappoint. It was a beautiful afternoon in Griffith Park. Oliver loved walking around the zoo and he really enjoyed the waterfalls. As far as the animals are concerned it appeared that Oliver liked the Bears the best. After one of them let out a big roar Oliver decided to mimic it. It really was cute to hear The Kid growl back at the bears. When he let out the growl it surprised the little old lady who was standing behind us.

Zoo Hours 10am-5pm daily (Closed December 25th) Although the literature says that the zoo is closed at 5pm, they start to put the animals away at 4pm so keep that in mind if your planning to visit.

It’s happened again. Oliver is another month older. Today marks the beginning of The Kid’s eighth month. It’s amazing how fast the time is flying by. Oliver has no intention of slowing down anytime soon. Looking at the pictures that flash on this website I am amazed at how he has grown and I can’t imagine that that baby in the pictures is the same boy crawling around on the floor in front of me.

Oliver is still babbling his words. He likes Dadada, and Mmmm, and Baba, but I don’t think he completely understands what they mean. He also blows raspberries, shakes his head from side to side, and lays his head down to the side of his shoulder and gives a sly smile. He is also really good at giving kisses… although they are wetter than I would prefer. He is really growing up.

We have been spoiling him with attention so he does not really like to be alone in a room. He wants to be where the action is at all times, even if that means being permanently attached to his dads’ hip. Oliver is content in the mornings when he lays in his crib babbling and patiently waiting for us to get up. Once we are up however, all bets are off and he will yell at you if you leave the room or if he is stuck in a seated position and can’t stand up. When you lift him up to a standing position, you soon realize that he is not that concerned with whether or not “your” there provided he has a set of hands to hold while he practices walking around.

His favorite toys are still the remote, empty water bottles and his books—despite his dads’ attempts to get him interested in stacking games and other learning toys. He is eating just about everything you give him. In addition to the fresh fruits & veggies from the farmer’s market, he is eating chicken, attempted spaghetti & meatballs this week, and has had a little ham from some split pea soup. His little bottom teeth have grown even bigger and now when he goes for your fingers and or nose now you WILL end up with a couple of tooth imprints afterwards. Ouch.

Happy Birthday little man!

Oliver has found a new toy. Yes, he may have finally moved beyond the empty water bottles! Last night’s toy of choice was the remote control. He still doesn’t understand the power that this device yields in our household, but he is amazed by the little blinking red light that goes off whenever he hits a button. When I told a stranger of my baby’s interest in the remote, she said deadpan: “he must be a boy”.

Papi was at a board meeting so The Kid and I played fetch with the remote. I would move it to the far end of the bed and then watch him inchworm his way across until he got the remote in his little hands. Before he put it into his mouth, I would remove the remote from his death grip and place it in the opposite corner of the bed. Oliver would stare at it intently, as if to will it towards him. When that didn’t work he would inch his way to the corner once again. Grunting and moaning until he reached it. This went on for about an hour and a half before he tired himself out, had a bottle, and fell asleep.

As a test, when he knocked the remote off the edge of the bed I held my hands close to his ankles in the event that he attempted to try an go for it. He did. He didn't even think twice about the two foot fall. He just inched himself right over the edge. I did think for a moment, that this would be an ideal way to learn about gravity, but I thought differently just in time to grab his ankles and slow down his fall.

He slowly descended the side of the bed until he hit with his right ear flat on the floor and the rest of his body stacked above his cocked head. I held him in that position for a few seconds so he could think about the position he let himself get into, then I let him fall comfortably onto the hardwood floor.

At that point he just kept inching his way to the remote, as intent as ever to just keep on keepin' on. I don't think he learned anything from that test, but I know I sure did.

Last night, just after I proudly put the kid to sleep without a pacifier (he is nearly weaned), Papi and I were watching a news report about how pacifier usage at bedtime drastically reduces the risk of S.I.D.S. (I'd go into more detail on the report, but it was the national news so I am assuming everyone has seen it.)

Ok, so there we are glued to the television and thinking hmm, should we run in and stick the pacifier in his mouth? Papi said it didn’t matter because Oliver is nearly 8 months old now and we used the pacifier since birth. He’s too old now for us to worry about it at this point. The next sentence out of the reporters’ mouth was that parents should use the pacifier for the first year as that is when the risk of S.I.D.S related deaths decrease. Ugh.

We decided to stay the course and not use the pacifier mostly because The Kid doesn’t really seem to care too much for it anyway. As it is we only cork him now if he’s cranky. What will they tell us next, "potty train your kid at six months" or "rice cereal is no good"?

Yep! I won't even get into the potty training at six months-thing (who seriously has that kind of time?!), but here’s an interesting article lifted from the blog "daddytypes" regarding FIRST FOOD MYTHS.

Of course, I just bought 3 more boxes of rice cereal at the market last weekend. Double Ugh.

We have had a fun-filled weekend at home. Oliver has been very busy playing, eating and sleeping. I actually caught him on camera with his first baby sign. Papi told me that I could not post this picture, so I decided to link it instead.
Here he is in action: Baby Sign for the Number 2.

Happy belated birthday Uncle Walter, Aunt Christine and Aunt Lisa!!! The picture is just a hint at what Oliver has gotten for all of you!!

I think it's safe to say that the cold is finally over. Oliver is doing well and his favorite thing to do now is to stand up, hold onto the side of his crib, and bounce. Sometimes he will shuffle himself to a different part of his crib, babbling with enthusiam the entiretime.

The other day Papi and I took turns letting him walk to each of us. He was holding our hands the entire time but at this rate he will be walking before he crawls.

When he is down on all fours he prefers the barrel-roll inlieu of the forward motion crawling affords. He can do two or three rolls at a time now. If he wants to go in a certain direction he has figured out that he can turn himself clockwise or counter-clockwise and then barrel-roll to the destination of choice. He still prefers yelling for one of us to pick him up to moving himself, but who wouldn't, right?

All of this movement has made for some close calls when he is sitting in bed with us. Now he is always in between us, or blocked by a wall of pillows. From what I understand, this is just the beginning of the mobility issues we'll be forced to deal with in the upcoming weeks.

...After the farmer's market I left The Sick Kid and Papi at home to race down to Huntington and say goodbye to Jen and The Kids. It's sad that in order to eventually say hello once again, we have to first say farewell. So until we see each other again, farewell and safe travels!

Here are a few pictures from our bittersweet Sunday:

This is Supermodel Jess working the U-Haul Runway and a box. She really knows how to sell it. Aren't you just dying to know what's inside that box? Perhaps it is the computer?

Photo #2 Is Kristin being directed to deliver a "very sad" face for the camera by yours truly. Wow, what an actress!!

Photo #3 Young Dylan sitting on the appropriately named box that holds all of his worldly posessions: a couple of pizza crusts; some Kool-Aid; and a Dora the Explorer dvd. "dios mio!"

Photo #4 The Baby Emee Bear. She can't speak her words just yet, but she certainly can communicate her feelings about this move through her actions in this photo. Take note Shawn!

Oliver needed to get out of the house, and we needed fresh produce, so we got up early, got dressed and ventured out to the Hollywood Farmers Market. It was a blustery morning (nearly 60 degrees!) but a welcome change from the sweltering heat and the fire fueled air that had taken over the area for the past few days.

Oliver makes friends wherever we go. Usually folks come by and talk to him while we are strolling, because they want to know who the cute kid is in the fancy stroller. Today, Oliver traded his comfortable ride for Daddy's arms...and boy did that make him happy. This time people said under their breath "that's an expensive shopping cart".

Papi did his usual shop for the family, and Papi helped Daddy find the organic fruits and vegetables for Oli's week of meals. Then Daddy and Oli realized that all this food was making them hungry, so they snacked on their hands (as babies, big and small, are prone to do).

..still sick.

He really looks and acts well, but he still sneezes occasionally and still blows those little snot bubbles. We see the light at the end of the tunnel, but we kept him home from the Baby Sign Classes just the same.

Oliver was really cute this morning. For a kid who is not really allowed to watch TV yet, he has managed to find and operate the remote control. It's the one thing that he grabs and DOES NOT put directly into his mouth. He actually points it towards the television and pushes buttons. It's spooky the power television has on kids. Where did he learn to do that?!

Oliver is still sick. He only gets frustrated now when he sneezes and we need to wipe his nose. When he babbles you can tell he is still conjested. He has trouble hitting his high notes because of the conjestion, but other than that it looks like he is going to get through it eventually. Everything we have read says it will take a week or so and there is little that can be done in the meantime.

We finally made a call to the doctor's office this morning because he had a bit of blood in the snot. The doctor's office said it was normal and probably due to some irritation and some dry skin in the nose lining. We haven't used the bulb syringe for a day, and I think that the blood in the snot means that the bulb syringe has been officially retired. Oliver prefers a warm wet wash cloth to the bulb and hankies anyway.

He's still as cute as ever and he continues to pack on the weight. You might be able to tell from the recent pics that he's getting a bit of a pot-belly and an adorable double chin.

Oliver is still sick, but he's feeling better. He managed to sleep away most of the afternoon. When he was awake, he would happily play as he usually does, except for the occasional sneeze that would send snot shooting from his nostrils. It’s mostly clear and runny. He is getting better about having his nose wiped, and we have not had to use the suction bulb too often. It all seems to be coming out fine.

I, on the other hand, am pretty sick myself. Sneezing and snotting just like The Kid. Oliver laughs every time he catches me sneezing and he stares and a sly, almost sinister, smile spreads across his face when he catches me blowing my nose. I am not sure what’s up with that, but I think he is quite pleased with himself for having given me his cold. Now if we can just keep Supernanny and Papi from catching it.

Papi whipped up a batch of his home made chicken soup. We downed it for dinner last night and Oliver loved it. He even drank some broth from his sippy cup. Thanks PAPI!! Bedtime came relatively easily compared to last night and he slept from 9pm until 8:15am--straight through.

I, on the other hand, had to get up periodically to blow my runny nose. At one point in the wee hours of the morning I had to run outside and rip down some wind chimes that were driving me (and probably the neighbors) crazy.

Oliver woke up cheerful and the two of us sniffled through our morning bottle. This time when he looked up at me with those beautiful eyes and tried to grab my nose, eyes and lips with his cute little pudgy hands, I deftly dodged those germ carriers and shot him a look to say not this time bucko! Oliver just flashed that sly smile of his once again and kept on drinking.

Tonight was not as good as last night. Oliver is still as juicy as ever and what little fever he developed (99) went away after a drop of Tylenol around 6pm. We went for a walk around the neighborhood and played for a bit with his toys. Oliver seemed to have some energy so we kept him up until around 8:30 (instead of his usual 8pm bedtime). We figured keeping him up a bit later would help him to sleep longer, right? Nope.

Instead Oli cried, no wait, screamed when we cleaned out his snotty nose. The nose clearing allowed Oliver to breath. Our proof of that was the fact that his screams were that much louder, and the crying jag went on for about two hours. Sometimes it calmed down to a short wail, maybe a pained moaning, but it would always revert back to a full on cry. Tears and all.

Papi took the first calming session. After forty-five minutes or so he passed The Kid on to me. I rocked him; talked to him; let him play in the vibrating chair; whatever soothed him. When I put him in his crib he proceeded to cry for another half hour. I just sat next to him, watching him cry through the slats of his crib and trying not to make eye contact. I could see that he was still sitting up and the tears were real. The whole time thinking to myself “Ugh, I AM that parent on Supernanny!” It was at that moment that I realized this kid is 7 months, and sick. Not a two-year-old brat with an attitude problem (not yet anyway). I needed to do whatever it takes to make him comfortable, right? I took him back into the bedroom with Papi.

So there we are. The three of us comfortable and lying in bed watching the Tivo’d premiere of Grey’s Anatomy. About 20 minutes into the show Oliver began talking over the television. “LA LA BLAH [snort] WAH GABUZUH [snort] WHATEVAH BLAH” The babbling just kept on going. It was peppered with the occasional snort of congestion. We paused the Tivo and just listened for a while. He was literally talking himself to sleep. It was after 10pm and he was not going to let us put him back in that crib so we thought we should just sleep together.

Runny nose, sneezing, labored breathing, drooling, coughing up phlegm, dried boogers, and thick green snot. Basically one big petri dish of a baby!

Mentholated/humidified nursery, anti-bacterialized toys and hands, fluids, tons of hand-washing, face wiping, naps, petrolium jelly around his nostrils and occasional walks in the fresh air. We put a pillow at one end of his crib to give him an elevated sleeping position so that the juice drains and allows him to breath a bit better. I can't forget to mention the saline nose spray followed with a nose suction ball and Oliver crying from the assault on his nostrils. (He really hates it when we mess with his nose, but it allows him to breath long enough to fall asleep or take a bottle much easier.)

None of this has stopped him from eating, and playing on his blanket with his toys. He just occasionally sneezes a boatload of snot out and he sits quietly on your lap while you read to him. He's not trying as hard to stand and walk around like he normally does--probably because of all the energy it takes just to breath. Sometimes Oliver gives you this look like "what's happening to me Dad?" and "make it stop". However, through it all, he somehow manages to continue to smile, squeek, and squawk.

Anyone else care to comment on what to do for a kid with a cold?

Runny nose, irritable, cranky, but still a trouper. We learned Oliver has a cold early Sunday morning when he woke Daddy from a dead sleep (and then Daddy woke me from a dead sleep) with congested breathing and a stream of snot.

We were exploring the city most of Saturday. We had breakfast at Ammo. Daddy had a salmon pizza, Papi had the frittata, and Oliver had apples, apricots and oatmeat. After breakfast we brought the Kid home for his nap. By midday, we were off to the Valley for a late lunch at ChinChin, where Oliver flirted with all the girls and repeatedly shared his elation with the restaurant about the Mango Iced Tea. Let me explain, for several months now Oliver has had a crazy love for tall glasses of iced-tea. At home, whenever I pour myself some tea, he giggles or gives me the "mariah-carey-high-note", pulls the glass toward his face, and smiles. The frosty cold glass feels good to his little hands, and somehow relieves the pain of teething.

Anyway, after lunch (and a few high-octave belts from the Boy) we were off to Storyopolis, which just moved to Studio City from it's digs in West Hollywood. http://www.storyopolis.com This is great place for Oliver to explore, and it gives us a chance to test out books, games, and toys without having to purchase them. We've learned that Oliver finds joy in half-empty plastic Evian containers. He can get forty minutes of fun out of the label on a plush toy! Also, he made friends with a 9-month old, who showed him what it's like to reach straight for the eyes. Oliver is bigger than anyone his age, but he's still a big baby.

After buying Oliver a bouncy horse and some plush toy balls, we went home to give him dinner...only to find that the power in our neighborhood was out. We hung out until it got too dark to see, then ventured out to Whole Foods to grab some groceries and some dinner for dads.

Oliver slept until 4:30 am, then started the cold cycle that left Daddy sleepless on Sunday morning, and me sleepless last night and this morning. We set up the humidifier, vicks vaporized the room, gave him a bath with lots of steam, and still he was up about every 20 minutes to half hour. At 1 am I put him on my belly, sat in the rocking chair in his room and let him sleep for a couple of hours. By 3 am I pulled him into bed with me. He slept for another half hour, I still had not slept. At 3:45, I walked him back into his room and had a little man to man conversation. We were both clearly exhausted, but I told him I was going to put him in his crib, and then go back to my own bed and that he needed to sleep so I could too. I put him down, he fussed for a few minutes, then out he went until 7:30 this morning, when Daddy could take over the morning shift. He's still got snot the size of Rhode Island coming out of his nostrils, but he's not lost his appetite, and he doesn't have a fever, so we're just watching him, giving him lots of liquid and lots of love.

This morning at 5:45 am The Kid woke up to something new: thunder and lightning in LA! I dare say that it hasn’t really rained like this since he was born and we fought the storms on our drive home from up north. (I think that I will always think of that trip when it rains.) The thunder was booming and it shook the house. Large spindly bolts of lightning were striking the buildings downtown and lighting up the hills. It was really beautiful. Oliver had his breakfast bottle in his rocking chair with me as we watched the rain beat against the window pane. Oliver is as beautiful to watch as was the storm. Truly beautiful.

The lightning image is from today and I borrowed it from abc 7.

The afternoon was spent lounging by the pool at The Beverly Hills Hotel with Crazy Uncle Jimmy and Mikey (& friends). Check out the photos in the photoblog. You'll see that Oliver and his Papi had fun swimming in the water while Daddy swam in a few Mojitos. It was a lovely pre-Emmy's afternoon. There is something about a cabana and a pool that Oliver and his Dads really appreciate. I don't want to sound all Kato Kailin on everyone, but If there is anyone else in the Los Angeles area who would like to donate their pool/cabana we would gladly supply the Mojitos and baby formula.

No longer is Oliver a Vegetarian. We stepped it up a notch tonight with the addition of fresh oven roasted organic cage free chicken. I suppose it doesn't do the chicken much good to be cage free when its fate is sealed from birth... but that's for some other blogger to write about. Oliver has tasted the white meat and he loved it. We also gave him some navy bean soup which had a bit of ham in it so I suppose it's safe to say he was exposed to both white meat, and the "other" white meat in the same sitting.

Oliver continues to pack on size and weight. He is still not crawling but gets very frustrated trying. He also babbles constantly. When he's not babbling he is moving his mouth as if he is speaking but no sound is coming out. Currently he says DADADA,BABABA, MMM, he blows the messiest rasberries, and he spits like a camel. His two bottom teeth are still sharp as ever and there are more coming.

Lately Oliver punches himself in the face and he likes to rock back and forth and from side to side. He can throw himself backwards from a seated position to the floor with great force. Thankfully we have a padded carpet in the playroom! He is completely nuts! Yet he remains the happiest little kid around.

Last weekend we got a new neighbor courtesy of Michael and Linda. They introduced little Georgia Lili to the world and Oliver can't wait to meet her. I am sure he will be breakin himself off a piece a dat sometime soon.

Oh yeah, everytime we try and sign "ball" or "more" he just looks at us like we are completely insane.

It took me all morning, but check out the photoblog for the latest and greatest.
(The photoblog is the little camera icon just above this entry.)

Now I have a playroom to decorate.

Today we spent the day at the beach with Ethan and his Mom and Dad. We saw the progress on the new house and then walked down to the beach (of course we stopped for cookies, ice blendeds, and sodas). When we got to the beach Ethan caught some sand crabs in a bucket. Oliver has been to the beach a few times to go for walks in his stroller, but this was the first time he actually set foot in the sand and had a wave hit his toes. The water which was about 70 degrees, which is warm for us, but when the cold water hit Oli's toes he screamed. The water was too cold for him, but he did however love the feel of the sand under his feet, and he also liked it when I carried him into the ocean (provided the water touched no part of him). Oliver's most favorite part was napping in the afternoon sun on Papi's lap while the sound of the ocean waves played a lullabye in the crashing surf. Lisa, David, and Papi watched from a nearby beach blanket as Ethan and I jumped the waves. A few of the waves were fairly powerful--they knocked us around and had Ethan calling out "I'm too young to die!". Afterwards we walked the town, had a lovely dinner, some gelato on the walk back and then drove home and crashed. All in all it was the perfect beach day that I waited all summer to have! Thanks D, L & E!

We look forward to moving into Ethan's guest room soon.

Yo-Baby? More like NO BABY!

Papi bought Oli some YO BABY yogurt because he liked it so much when we were at San Diego and he tried some of Taylor’s. We could not figure out why a kid is not supposed to have milk before year 1, but he is allowed yogurt at 6 months. I imagine it has something to do with whole milk, and people tending to substitute it for formula. Not to mention kids can develop dairy allergies if it's introduced too early. If anyone else knows the answer to this Dairy dilemna, please feel free to weigh in. Either way, Oli digs the Yo Baby so we were excited to give it to him. And the packaging is so cute, extra small and it has "baby" in the title. What could be bad, right?

It wasn’t until we were feeding him tonight that I really looked at the ingredients: There is a TON of sugar in that stuff (18 Grams). No wonder he loves it. It’s actually the second ingredient listed. On top of that it has a boat load of Sodium. In an effort to avoid making him a Diabetic, we immediately cut him off. Seriously, why is this product marketed to kids?

The family spent the day taking over Uncle Wally and Uncle Dilson’s pool. Melissa, Shawn and the clan came up from Huntington along with David, Lisa, Ethan and Christa & Future Baby Schild/DeAlmaida. (Thanks fo the cute bear!!)

The kids got waterlogged from hanging out in the water all day long. We played a mean game of Marco Polo and ate tons of food, most of which consisted of Lisa’s carrot cake and her brownie Sundays! I must have had four servings of each of them over the course of the afternoon.

Little Dylan entertained us with his ability to count to ten in Spanish. Oliver was really mellow and enjoyed floating around in the hot tub--which wasn’t too hot because we kept spilling it into the freezing pool in order to warm it up a bit. Shawn was the grill master and we ran Dilson ragged trying to entertain us all. All the while Walter caught up on some magazines. Eventually I will get my act together and post some of the pictures.

Thanks guys for hosting such a wonderful afternoon!!

Oliver is still teething like a mad man. He has two bottom fronts that have erupted and more on the way. We've been giving him frozen fruit packed inside a teething net that allows him to suck, bite and chew on the fruit but not choke on the skins. Oliver likes this teether best and he really enjoys sucking the juice out of the netting once there is nothing left inside.

***The Fresh Food Feeder by Munchkin can can be found at BuyBuyBaby for about five dollars.***

He has been surptisingly good during this whole teething process. Only occasionally can you tell they even bother him at all. He still drools non-stop, and only those with thick skin will even dare to put a finger in his mouth. (Very Sharp!)

This week we hope to add some organic chicken to the diet. For those of you keeping track with what we have been introducing food-wise, the current list is as follows:

Fruits: Avocado, Banana, Apple, Pear, blueberries, Peaches,
Plums, Watermelon, Cantelope;

Vegetables: Butternut Squash; Green Beans; Eggplant;
Peas; Carrots (jar only)

Dairy: Yo Baby Yogurt, Formula (Enfamil)

Carbs: Rice Cereal and Whole Grain/Multi-Grain Cereal.

So today was a day spent laying in bed. The Dads had an exhausting week of work and Oliver is exhausted from trying to walk and speak everyday. He gets so frustrated that he can’t just will himself around the room. He sits there grunting, moaning and groaning until we grab his hands and help him become mobile. He’s just dying to live. All that exertion has tired him out so we all spent the day in bed together.

We slept in late, had a breakfast bottle in bed, and hung out all day long. I can’t remember the last time we did that, but I am sure it was sometime before Valentine’s Day.

Below is one of the Jeeto paintings in Oliver's Nursery... Visit Jeeto's website by going to the link in Oliver's Favorite Things

I just added the remainder of the photo's from our trip to Carlsbad, San Diego, Four Seasons Aviara trip to the photoblog. Enjoy!

Additionally, I have word that a certain set of twins are now blogging too. For more info on the HOT TWINS NOW follow the link.

Oliver is doing great. His little sharp tooth is getting bigger and sharper by the minute. He is still under the impression that if he rigorously stiffens his body with his arms stretched outright he will magically stand upright. Although holding him by his hands and walking him around the house is great fun for us, we have given The Boy the false impression that a stiff upper body will cause him to rise. He loves standing so much that he is forever stiffening-up and grunting until one of us invariably helps him to stand. I know we should not be encouraging this behavior but its is fun to see his face light up once he is upright… even if he has no real idea of where he wants to go once he gets to that point.

We have bombarded him with a bunch of new toys in the last week or so. It feels like Christmas in our living room. Empty boxes galore. Oliver does not know which toy to go for first, and he is not quite sure what to do with them once he has them. The adults certainly are having fun opening the boxes. Grandma Angela came over last night for Chinese food and some quality time with her grandson. We let The Kid stay up extra late because he was having so much fun with her. After he went to bed, we ate dinner, caught up on conversation, and played with Oliver’s new toys.

This morning Oliver was extra cute. He played in his crib for about a half hour before I got out of bed and I gave him his bottle. We read his “rooster book” and then we went for a walk around the neighborhood. Oliver and I were surprised by how many people are out and about at 8am. There is quite a cast of characters living in our neighborhood and seemingly no end to the crazy. More on that later…

Oliver may not quite know what to do with the people in the neighborhood, but he is still fascinated with the trees.

The Farmer's Market, Fred 62, and shopping at LaLaLing, all before 12pm.

Oli has been sleeping through most of it, although he woke up just in time to watch his dads drop a couple hundred dollars on him at LaLaLing--guess he takes after me. Seriously, what's to stay awake for at the farmer's market? All those expectant mothers who drool over the stroller and ignore the kid? Gary V. introducing Oliver to everyone he knows? The "woman" who stands on the corner asking for donations to benefit the transgendered community? Who wouldn't save their energy for the serious shopping?

At LaLaLing we bought Oli some sippy cups, a couple bowls, a cute hat, and some toy cars and trucks. We also signed him up for the baby sign language classes that Papi and Supernanny will be taking him to in September. I guess that means I can write off today’s shopping spree as "back to school" shopping. I wonder how one says that in sign-language...

We just returned from the store and Oliver is sleeping so I am sitting in the car with him running the air conditioning and waiting for him to wake up again. He didn't really get his long nap yesterday and I don't want to repeat that day again, so I'll let him get an extra half hour or so now. He had better wake up soon though because this car sucks up the gas and with prices nearly at 3 bucks it will be an expensive nap.

This week we'll introduce peaches, pears and green beans. All fresh from the market. Yum.

Following are the comparison photo’s Aunt Carol requested. A Newborn and a couple of Six Months photo with his bear.

It’s 4am on Friday and Oliver just woke up. He’s crying for his Dads’ who are both awake but pretending to be asleep and ignoring his pleas. Neither Chris nor I say anything to each other. We just lay there pretending not to hear him and feeling extremely guilty. What if his diaper is wet? What if he rolled onto his stomach and he can’t roll back? What if those spots on his thigh where he received the shots yesterday are bothering him and he just needs to be loved on?

I think to myself that I can listen to this for 10-15 minutes then I’ll get up to help him regardless. It’s now 4:15 and he’s still at it. Not really a full on cry, but lots of moaning and groaning. I figure I’ll wait until 4:30 and then I’ll definitely run in there. Papi and I still haven’t said anything to each other. He can’t be sleeping through this, can he? Why can’t we talk about how this makes us feel? (I don’t know, maybe because it’s 4am?)

It’s 4:20am and the moans have softened to a purr. He’s back asleep by 4:22am. I however am not. I get up to go check on Oliver now. I need to know he’s not on his stomach and not sitting in his own feces. Papi speaks! He tells me to let him sleep and not to wake him. (Did he really think that I wasn’t sticking to the plan all this time? Did he think I did not hear Oliver moaning for the past 20 minutes?) I sneak in and look at him regardless.

Oliver is on his side, back arched and head tilted back to keep from lying in the huge wet spot on his mattress created from his own drool. He looks totally uncomfortable, but at the least he’s breathing. I carefully adjust him, cover him back up and tuck him in before going back to bed.

Once I am back in bed, Chris is already back to sleep (or pretending to be), and I continue to stare at the ceiling. I’m now thinking about everything I probably should not be thinking about at 4:30 in the morning: My friends and their crazy lives; The war in Iraq, or whatever the administration is calling it these days; The numbers of soldiers that have died or been injured; the fact that ABC News finally showed images of the flag-covered coffins on the airplanes that contained the dead; Why is every terrorist who is captured these days called “the most wanted”? I thought Osama was the “most wanted”? Didn't Kaysar from Big Brother kind of get all terroristy on Maggies ass last week? I think about the fact that I have not seen many of my friends lately; I hope they are well and that they are not staying away because we are now parents; Are they lying awake at night thinkng about me? I think about the usual work issues; I think about whether or not the Toyota Prius really should be able to drive in the carpool lane even when only one passenger is aboard? Seriously, isn’t it better for that car to sit in traffic? That is when it’s actually electric. It’s better for the environment if that car is idle, no? Am I the only one that thinks the new Pope has something evil in him? Maybe it’s his past involvement with the Hitler Youth thing… I’m not sure.

All these thoughts run through my head until around 5:50am when I hear that familiar cry again from the other room—or at least the build up to a cry. Like a stealth bomber I swoop in, roll him onto his back, change his super-soaked diaper, re-cork him with his pacifier, cover him up and exit the room as he immediately falls back asleep before even knowing what hit him. I return to bed, Papi is still asleep, or doing a damn good job of pretending. It’s getting lighter outside, and I have been up since 4am, why should I try and sleep now? The Kid will be waking for real soon enough.

I wonder if this is what life will be like from now on. If I will constantly be taking care of this little boy without him even knowing that I was there. Did he know I was home with him for three months? Does he remember that I was there waiting for him when he was born? I wonder if the lack of sleep is only the first of many sacrifices I will have to make in order to see that he is raised well. I think about this now at 7:10 am with my cup of tea, awaiting Oliver’s awakening and these thoughts make me smile. Come on kid, wake up already! I am ready to play with you. Of course he decides to sleep in today until 8 am. After I have been up for hours making home-made apple sauce for him. Damn he's cute when he just wakes up! It's all so worth it.

Beth, Nathan and Emily are visiting today through Thursday. It’s hard to believe it’s been six months since Beth brought Oliver into our lives. Nathan and Em have grown so much. Emily is so Beautiful and tall. Her legs are so long it looks like she is walking on stilts! Oliver is completely fascinated by Nathan. Oli also gets a huge grin when he sees Beth.

All the activity in the house is great for Oliver, he’s having a blast. He loves pulling on Beth’s hair and playing with her sparkly jewelry. Emily was having fun trying to lift Oliver up but she wasn’t too fond of his crying. (I feel the same way, em!)

Em and Nathan were happy to see us but they were still more interested in the Scooby Doo DVD. (Who can blame them?) The DVD gave Chris, Oli and I some quality time with Beth. Once Oli was asleep, Papi made some pasta and we got the lowdown on Beth’s European vacation. We were all in bed by 10pm but of course it felt like 2am to the three of us!

Be sure to check out the Photo Blog.

Oliver is Six Months old today. Woo-Hoo!

We spend the day as we usually do--at the Farmer's Market and fixing up his playroom. Papi put up some shelving, and some new blinds and cleaned the apartment out for Beth's visit with the kids on Monday. The room is really starting to come together. Now I just need to find the time to baby-proof and paint the characters on the walls. I still have some time however, because the only place Oliver seems to like rolling over is in his crib. Usually in the middle of the night he rolls on to his stomach and then gets stuck there. He dreads being on his stomach and has not really figured out how to roll back to his side or back. Once on his stomach he has taken to grunting, moaning, and finally crying until one of us wakes up, runs in, and flips him over. Once on his back again he immediately pulls his little blanket over his eyes and falls back to sleep.

While at the market we bought a couple more cute onesies from a new vendor. Really great clothes and artwork for babies. I am not sure how long she has been selling at the market but Doris Oswald-Burrell's business was new to us, and it's called I Can Fly.

Click on the link to the website and check out her wares. I think you'll like her artwork as much as we did. I'll be sure to post pictures of Oliver and his new Onesies soon enough.

BTW--Oliver added Roasted Eggplant to his menu today. Yum.

With all the week’s excitement I think I neglected to mention that Oliver’s latest food is Applesauce, not Watermelon as noted earlier. I whipped up some apple sauce from the early apples at the Farmer’s Market. Oliver ate them just like anything else he has gotten his hands on lately. Quickly.

The Kid is drooling and drooling and drooling now. He is also saying dadadadada. I don’t think he knows what it means yet but needless to say we are drilling it into his head on a regular basis. He’s also been spitting up more often than usual. It’s because he constantly has his fingers in his mouth (teething) and sometimes they go in too far and before you know it we are changing an outfit. I don’t mind changing the outfits because it’s the only way he gets a chance to wear all his clothes before growing out of them. I hope this doesn’t make him anorexic/bulimic.

Oliver has been up at night every few hours crying and babbling. Our guess is that the nighttime dramatics are a direct result of teething. You can’t see any pearly whites popping out of his gummy smile just yet, but I am sure that those teeth are just below the surface waiting to make an entrance. Oliver loves sucking on the cool teething toys his Papi got him. He is also standing on his own when propped against a table or the couch or his Dads’ knees. Check out the latest pictures in the photoblog. Oli gets really frustrated when he’s sitting or lying for too long. When he whines, all you need to do is stand him up and he smiles again. Of course he gets frustrated because he can only stand a second or two before falling. He will however lead you around the entire house and nearly clear the stairs if you’re holding onto both his hands.

That’s all the news this week in Oliwood.

Thank you Marshamellow for coming to visit me and lovin' on me. You are the tallest woman I know. And a special thank you for my new monkey!!

XOX,

O.

PS -- It's not to late to change your mind about Rochester.

This week Oliver has been sleeping in until around 8am everyday. He wakes up, rolls over, crawls around his crib and plays quietly until his dads get up and give him his breakfast bottle.

Squash is his latest food--the yellow, butternut variety. He eats squash with as much vigor as any other food we have introduced thus far. As a reminder, here is what he is eating: Squash, Peas, Rice Cereal, Avocado, Plums, and Banana’s.

This kid just keeps on growing. Papi has been going through his clothes for the past couple of days. We’ve been boxing up all the clothes that no longer fit. Oliver is now wearing his 9-12 month clothing. Sadly, this morning we pulled out a nine-month outfit and it’s already tight on him. You might have noticed too that his hair is getting a little reddish/blonde. His eyes are still as blue as ever. He weighs 20 pounds.

While it's true that the sizes on baby clothes aren't exact, it's been especially true for Oliver. I guess we should have expected that from a 10+ pound baby. But at five months, Oliver has managed to push through to his 6, 9 and 12 month outfits. And some of the cutest stuff never even made it on his back (some 0-3 outfits never even lost their tags). Oh well, let's just hope our next one is a boy, since the hand-me-downs are going to be terrific.

Aunt Mikki stopped by for a visit and got her hair yanked on (See pics below). Oliver flirted with Mikki for about half an hour and then promptly fell asleep in my arms at exactly 8pm. He woke up at a quarter to ten with a wet diaper and after I changed him and tried to tuck him in, he pulled the covers over his face as if to play peek-a-boo with me. I thought it was adorable at first, then when I pulled the blankets down to see what I thought would be a smiling face looking back at me, all I got was a dirty look. This was followed by Oliver immediately pulling the blanket back up over his face. It was clear he didn’t really want to play peek-a-boo so I waited to see just how long he would hold the blanket up over his face--his little fingers peeking out from behind the top of the blanked.

I waited and waited and waited for what seemed a lifetime. I got a bit nervous at the thought of him sleeping with the covers over his face so I pulled them back down only to catch his cold stare once again. Oliver quickly pulled the covers back over his face once more. At that point I figured I had better just let him be. I walked out of the room and let him have his way. Clearly he is beginning to develop an attitude. …Ah, a chip off the ol’ block.
Do you think he knew that Aunt Mikki and I polished off a bottle of wine once he fell asleep?

Oliver decided that he needed a lot of naps today. It's 4 and he's on his fourth nap. He does periodically just decide he needs rest. I'm sure he'll wake up another inch taller and another pound heavier. Frankly, his Papi's been exhausted lately too. I'm sure Daddy has been tired, but he can rest on the weekend...somebody's got to work.
Speaking of work, I was driving to my office today when "nothing really matters" came on the stereo, and it made me realize how much our wonderful son has changed the meaning of my life. While I don't necessarily believe Madonna is a philosopher, I do think that the message she learned on the birth of her daughter resonates with all parents. I was just feeling particularly sentimental about it today.

I almost forgot to mention that this week's newest food is the Plum. The picture will tell you what Oliver thinks of them. I decided to stray somewhat from the Doctor's food outline I wrote about earlier and just go with whatever fresh fruits and veggies are available from the Farmer's Market. Next week should probably include a new veggie...

Oliver's Menu: 7oz Formula, 3 Tbsp Rice Cereal, and one of the following: 1/2 Organic Banana, 1/4 Avocado, 1/2 Jar Organic Peas, or 3 Tbsp Plums. (The Plums and Bananas will probably be combined with the Rice Cereal at Breakfast time.)

He only gets the food combos twice a day... Breakfast and Afternoon, the rest of the time it's formula only.

Read more for the preparation on Plums:

This morning (at 5am) I woke to the sound of a baby screaming, more of a YALP really and the sound of the crib banging. I feared the worst. I thought he fell out of his crib. I jumped up, with my heart racing, ran into his room and there he was. Fast asleep. He must have kicked the side of the crib with his feet as he talked in his sleep.

He is beautiful. Although Oliver has not rolled over on his own yet, he is close to doing so. He manages to slide himself around in the crib so that he wakes up in a different spot than where we put him down at. Papi has been warning that we need to lower the crib, but our backs have not let us follow through on that yet. We did take down the mobiles... that's a start right? I think after my rude awakening this morning I am going to lower it post-haste.

Today is a full one. Farmer's Market followed by brunch at Walter & Dilson's. Lisa David and Ethan are coming too. Maybe even Aunt Christine if she got my message.

We are definitely looking forward to seeing everyone and jumping in the pool today with Oliver and Ethan. It will be Oliver's first time swimming in something bigger than the bath tub. I'll be sure to add the pictures to the photoblog after.

Oliver slept for what seemed an eternity today. Papi thinks it's because I feed him too much. I like to think it's because I tired him out playing all morning long. While Oli was asleep Papi was downstairs turning the guest room into a playroom for the baby. Finally a place to put all that baby gear!

Around 4pm we decided to go for a walk and since it's about 100 degrees in Hollywood today, we went to Santa Monica where it was a lovely, breezy 77 degrees. We walked North on Ocean from Arizona to the end of the park and back. We zigzagged a block or two through the craziness of 3rd Street Promenade and had a bite at Johnny Rockets, followed by an Vanilla Ice Blended at Coffee Bean. Oliver loved the people watching.

We left as the sun set. Oliver was fast asleep as soon as the car started moving.

Today we had a flashback to the summer when Enron screwed CA's electric companies with rolling blackouts. It was one of the hotest days this summer and we were stuck at home all afternoon and into the evening with no electricity. It went out at 2:30pm and didn't come back on until around Midnight. That meant no air conditioning and the three of us hangin out by candlelight in our t-shirts and underwear. Lucky for us Oliver's battery operated Crib CD player and his rechargeable nightlights came in handy.

Photo of boy in his T-shirt is in the Photoblog. I'll spare everyone from the shots of his Dads'.

Cousin Peter came for a visit and brought some Chineese food with him. Thanks for bringing some food for the Dad's! Here's a photo...

Sunday was a busy one. The usual Farmer's Market trip followed by a visit from Cousin Shawn and Cousin Melissa. We had a wonderful afternoon and a big spaghetti dinner. Shawn and Oliver made out on the couch. You'll have to see the pictures in the photoblog...

The three of us had a lovely Saturday...running errands, playing in the yard, and just hanging out. Oliver doesn't always get both of us, what with work and other interruptions. He's a serious little man...as you can tell by this rare picture of the three of us. And I guess Papi looks a little serious too...Daddy is always smiling. Oliver loves the gift that Grammy got for Papi for his birthday, a glider that sits on a porch filled with fresh herbs and lemon trees in bloom. From the glider, he can see the entire canyon and the LA Skyline. He can stare for minutes on end (trust me that's a long time for short-attention-span-theatre-patrons like Oliver) at the vista. He also loves trees, particularly on his walks (which we got a couple in today)...he giggles everytime he goes under them.

Today we introduced "Peas" to Oliver's diet. He made his usual grimace upon the first taste, but quickly barked for another bite. He is really starting to fill out. His thighs now have to squeeze into his Bumbo Chair and he's developing a substantial double chin.

So Far the foods are: Formula, Rice Cereal, Bananas, Avocado and now Peas.

Oliver has moved up and out of his infant car seat and into the Britax Marathon. Note the cute outfit!

Today marks 5 Months for lil Oli.

Oliver can stand with the help of his Dads' hands and he even tries to take a couple steps. It seems as if he'll be walking before he rolls over or crawls.

He likes to blow lots of rasberries and still hits those high notes although not as frequently as he did in previous weeks. His bass and treble seem to be working better so he gets some normal sounds out now too.

He's sleeping though the night still although he does wake up from time to time moaning for his pacifier. Once he gets it he falls right back to sleep. I realize that this is a potentially dangerous habit--especially at 5 months, but it works so well. We've been weaning him slowly for a month now and hopefully it will be gone by the end of this month... I don't really care either way to be honest. So long as The Kid is happy.

Last night I looked at both my sleeping boys and cried tears of joy. They were both sleeping so soundly and looked adorable. I could not help but think how lucky I am. Then I took some Ambien.

This morning Oliver slept until 7am. He’s been doing that more often lately. He woke up in his own poo. He looked like he fell on a bowl of guacamole. After giving him his morning bottle we walked to Starbucks for a muffin and a double tall, one-pump vanilla latte. Oliver loved looking at the morning traffic and he fell asleep on the way back up the hill.

I went to the office while he slept and Papi ate the muffin we brought back for him. I got to work and realized why I don't sleep well at night...ugh.

Is it too late to register for these T-Shirts?

Oliver officially drank his last 6 ounces of Beth Milk this morning. We are sad to see it go, but ever so grateful to Beth for pumping such a huge supply. Nearly 5 month’s worth is a great head start for The Boy.

I know we keep saying it but: Thank you, thank you, thank you thank you, Beth!!!

Oliver started to fuss immediately after his 6am feeding (6oz of breast milk) and he didn’t stop all day long. He was not really crying per se, but he was moaning and groaning and whining no matter what we did to try and make him happy. By 8am I was trying to wake up Papi so that he would take us to the Farmer’s Market. Maybe Oli was just tired of being in the house and needed a change of scenery. I know I did. Papi was moving slower than Oliver wanted so Oliver and I walked to Starbucks for a Latte and a Blueberry scone while Papi showered. I have the feeling that this kid will get my lack of patience, a Latino/Cuban temper. Someone help us if that happens. The entire walk Oliver kept on moaning and groaning. Could it be teething? Could it be that he just woke up on the wrong side of the bed? Whatever it was it was getting old fast. Somehow pushing him downhill made it more tolerable, at least more tolerable for me. We had just sat down at Starbucks when Papi pulled up. After we all had our muffins and joe and breast milk, we made our way to the market. While at Starbucks, Oliver flirted with a homeless man. They kept smiling at each other while Oli was drinking his bottle. I didn’t really care, I was just glad that Oliver was smiling. I have to admit that it was odd seeing the toothless grin on the homeless guy. He sort of looked like he wanted to eat Oli, or rather gum him. When we walked back to the car, I was pushing the empty stroller while Chris was walking behind me with The Kid. The homeless guy started saying “Where’s my baby?” “Where’s my baby?” That definitely creeped me out a bit. I don’t think he realized that Papi was right behind me holding him. I just smiled and moved a bit quicker for the car.

Oliver made it half way down one street of the market before falling asleep just before we reached the Pasta Guy. Thanks JM for referring us to the Pasta Guy! Oliver stayed asleep for the remainder of the Farmer’s Market trip. The rest of the day Papi and Daddy took turns dealing with the fussy baby. We put him in the bathtub around 6pm and were hoping for an early bedtime in order to finally get some peace. It was not until after his bath and during our dinner that we realized what the matter was.

This morning we tried Avocado for the first time. According to the Avocado Lady at the Hollywood Farmer’s Market, Martha Stewart calls avocado “baby brain food”. Whatever it is, it has to be better than the sugary fruits right? Oliver likes avocado best when it’s just a little warm and served with his rice cereal—but you can tell from the pictures he is quite happy eating them straight.

So far we are at Rice Cereal, Banana, and Avocado. Next week? Who knows what we’ll add to the diet. I know one thing for certain--there will be no more breast milk after this weekend.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY UNCLE JIMMY!

OK, I said that I would not get more baby crap to clutter the house with, but that was before I got an email from Uncle David C. alerting me to this really cute chair. It's the weirdest little chair but it's great for kids who hate tummy time. You can travel with it, put it in the sand, the grass, or just plop it in a corner of a room. Oliver likes to read in it, however, you have to hand the books back to him after he throws them across the room because kids can't bend over in this chair and they can't really get out of it. They just sit there and drool. Stuck.

Its the Bumbo Seat and as you can tell by the picture Oliver recommends it.

Oh yeah, tonight Oliver ate half a banana, grew out of his infant car seat and we had to lose the Pram part of the Bugaboo and can attach the actual stroller seat to the Bugaboo instead. Oliver likes to pull himself up and look around when we walk the neighborhood.

Oliver, Papi, Daddy, and Aunt Monte went to brunch today at Fred 62. We spent most of the day staring at the kid and watching his every move. He really is adorable. Monte got to hear Oliver imitate Mariah Carey as The Kid was unusually squawky all day long. Sometimes he hits those glass-shattering high notes when he is right next to your ear. You can almost feel your brain splitting into two pieces.

Grandma Angela and Bandit the dog came by for a visit. We chatted and played with Oliver while Papi set up his high chair. (Yes the house is filling up with more baby stuff!)

Oliver, Papi and I watched the fireworks from the balcony. Oliver didn't seem to pay much attention to the light show but he dug the booming noises that echoed through the canyon. Around 8:30 or so we had our last bottle before bed and listened to the booming from his chair in the nursery. Some of the booms would literally shake the house. Oliver was particularly loveable after his bottle. I held him over my shoulder to burp him and after letting out a considerable burp, he nuzzled my neck and cheek. He then lifted his head and sucked on the tip of my nose. My face was wet with baby spit, but it was so damn cute. Is it wrong to let your baby make out with you under the fireworks on the Fourth of July?

Once Oliver was done sucking face with his dad, he let out another huge burp and fell asleep in my arms. It turned out that he would be up and down all night being woken up by the fireworks that continued through the night.

Oliver LOVES LOVES LOVES his new hat! We got it in the mail this afternoon and, as you can tell by the picture, he wore it immediately. Later I read him the Monkey book and you two now share your names with Monkey numbers 3 and 4. Thanks again guys! We love and miss you something fierce. Marc Jacobs fierce.

Friday morning is an early one. Oliver and I walk around the garden and enjoy anther beautiful sunshine-y day. Sometimes he wears me out before I even get a chance to shower and get to work.

Oliver has had a boatload of visitors from Rochester, NY. First Tracy, Eric and Cory (ok, Cory is from LA) and then Billy S. who lives in NYC but went to grade school with me. I can’t believe I have friends from grade school still?! Cousin Melissa (originally from Rochester too) and then there was Steve. who lives in LA but is probably from Mars. The intent was to have a game night; play some Euchre or Scene It, maybe get a wild hair and bust out to a club to show Eric how the old people bust a move. Instead we drank some [too strong] vodka lemonades and everyone got tired and went home early.

Since I am talking about Rochester friends I’ll give a shout out to Jamie K--thanks for the comments you posted on the blog earlier… You have no idea how hard we're trying to come home for the July 3rd party this year...We had such a great time at the last one we came to. Alas work is killing all our fun. It’s funny too that you wrote when you did because I was talking at dinner tonight about how great the fireworks were on the lake. I think I still owe your dad some video footage. Congrats to you and Rene on the whole wedding thing. I guess our invite got lost in the mail. (LOL) When that day comes I promise i'll send a baby gift!!

Cousin Melissa and I lasted the longest on Friday night. After everyone went home we sat at the booth in the kitchen talking until what seemed like 3am, but was actually half past midnight. Man, what happening to me?! Lame. Pathetic really. I suppose it was fun talking about the old days with Tracy and Cory. If only we had some rocking chairs.

Check out the photoblog for pics of Oliver with Billy S., and Cousin Melissa.

So this time after the shots Oliver ran a bit of a fever. 100.5 to be exact. This morning when I got up with him, his temperature was normal and he was back to his usual smiley self.

We spent the better part of the early morning digitizing our cd's onto the new computer Papi bought me for Father's day. It was fun going through the songs with Oliver. Who knew that Oliver would be such a fan of Basia... I knew he had an old soul, but I didn't think it circa 1983.

Oliver wants to wish his Grammy a very happy birthday. It's too bad Grammy is not here to get a big wet kiss from Oliver. He has loads of them to give away--at least three wet bibs worth each day.

Happy Birthday Grammy!

I know that Avi will take good care of you. You did remember it right Avi?

5am came early this morning. Oliver woke up with gas and was moaning for 15 minutes before I got up to soothe him and give him a bottle. It's a good thing he is so damn cute in the morning. I kept him wrapped in his blanket as I fed him in the rocking chair. He's getting big and I could feel the weight of him under my arm. After he took his last sip of the bottle he looked up at me with his big blue eyes, snuggled his face into the side of my stomach and fell back to sleep. These are the moments that make the sleep deprivation worth it.

So here I am on Father’s Day, too tired to really blog about anything inspirational. I know its Dad’s Day, and I am supposed to be having a blast, celebrating fatherhood, but really I am just plain old tired. Tired and Uninspired. Oliver was up a few times during the night, but he slept in this morning. When I was getting his bottle ready I burned my finger---ouch. That was the start of my Happy Father’s Day.

Chris made me breakfast, and we opened our gifts for each other. Home electronics was the theme of the day. Later we met Walter and the Brothers’ DeAlmeida for brunch at Barney’s. Afterwards we strolled the streets of Beverly Hills and looked at the classic cars at the car show. It’s a beautiful day here in LA, but I am kind of seeing it through a sleepy haze. Oliver has been up all day, he caught a quick nap in his pram, but it was not enough. Now he’s just screaming upstairs with his Papi. WHAAAA!!! X 10.

Why isn’t Father’s Day more like Mother’s Day? Where are the spa treatments, massages, mani & pedi’s? I would kill just to go see a movie. No I have not seen a movie in a theatre since we saw Pooh’s Hephalump thing with Beth and the kids in San Fran. Yes, that was my last movie. Enough said. OK all you babysitters, where are you now?!! Chris and I agreed that we would find time one day this week to hit a movie during the day when Super Nanny is around. Feel free to post any suggestions on this site. Maybe we’ll make it a double feature and sneak into a couple.

Seriously, Father’s need to get together and reclaim this day for themselves. Maybe one of us needs to Usurp Mother’s Day and the other take Father’s Day? That way we can each have our own spa days…. BTW, Oliver is still screaming upstairs still as I type this.. . 10 minutes now.

I just poured myself a nice cup of Chamomile Tea, but something tells me Chris may be giving me the screaming baby soon. Ah, at least I got to smell it while it was hot. I’ll continue my rant in a few moments after I go upstairs and relieve him. After all it is Father’s Day, no?

Chris won’t hand him over. It’s so hard to listen to him scream. I have to either take Oliver in my arms and sooth him or barricade myself behind closed doors and try not to listen. I’ll have to settle for the former as Chris is insisting upon taking this one. Funny how we complain about the screaming baby, yet neither of us would trade it for the world. It really is different when it’s your kid screaming. I won't tolerate it in other's but for mine, sure. I am back now and where was I? Oh yeah, I was writing about Father’s Day. I can't think of a single thing I'd rather be doing right now. Ok, maybe the Brangelina movie... no, not even that.

After our brunch and tour de Beverly Hills’ classic cars, we left Walter and Dilson at the Nike store and drove home to meet Uncle Chris at the house. UC stopped by for a brief appearance and he was waiting for us when we pulled up. It’s amazing how much time passes that we don’t see people. You can measure it in their expressions as they see how much Oliver has grown. I’ll be sure to add some of the pics to the Photoblog in the next coming days. We fired off a couple on Papi’s flashy new digital camera.

Oliver loved seeing Uncle Chris. He lit up when he saw UC making googlie eyes. UC (That’s an unfortunate but funny abbreviation for Uncle Chris, no?) UC didn’t have much time, but he managed to tire us all out—it was very entertaining really. I apologize for all those nasty things I wrote about UC earlier in the blog. When we watch him play with Oli we light up just as much as The Kid does. UC managed to escape to a perfectly timed meeting just as Oliver began to meltdown.

I wish I could time those meltdowns better. They can be really useful when you want to get off the phone with relatives, and associates or avoid someone you know in a restaurant. It sounds as if Papi was successful in getting the Kid to sleep for his nap. The pillow over the face thing is so barbaric but it really works. Ok, I think I may take this moment to find some sleep for myself.

Good Night & Happy Father’s Day to all you Dads, and "Soon To Be confirmed, but We are Not Announcing it Publicly Yet Dads".

Now that the kid likes to stand (with help) we took the Super Nanny's suggestion and Papi bought Oliver a new toy. The Baby Einstein Activity Center. Oliver LOVES it! He likes it better than the swing, and better even more than his Bouncy chair. He has not yet learned to spin around in it, so we have to move him slightly once he gets boared with one section.

Our house is beginning to be filled with baby gear. When will they come up with Baby crap that matches my Italian furniture? I'd settle for more stuff in earth tones.

Oliver felt his first earthquake today while playing on his mat. SuperNanny says "...he was wide-eyed and looked around", Oliver then went back to drooling on himself. The earthquake was 4.9 centered in Yucaipa—70 miles east of us. I didn’t feel it at all.

Sorry no drama to report.

Oliver is growing by leaps and bounds. The hair is starting to come in a bit more with the exception of that bald spot in the back. He is standing up with some help from his dads, and has not yet perfected the roll over. If he's on his stomach with his elbow a bit folded he'll roll over real quick still, but then he's stuck right there on his back.

Oliver loves his Baby Bjorn carrier more than his buggy these days. He likes to be dangled in mid air strapped to whoever will carry him. It’s a sight to behold. He looks like he has a human jetpack strapped to his back.

He's outgrowing most of his PJ's now. I get a sad feeling every time I iron another outfit that he doesn’t fit into. To celebrate his 4 month birthday Papi purchased the Baby Einstein activity bouncer thingy online. It should arrive tomorrow and I'll be sure to post some pictures of the kid in it so that you can all see him in his glory.

He is still the world’s biggest drooler.

I took my first trip away from the boy this past weekend. Work put me in Nashville, TN for 5 days. I was there for a graduate course in Country Music 101. It's official, I am a Keith Urban fan now. I did however, think of Oliver often.

First, I thought of the kid when I had to endure the bumpiest plane ride ever. Tornadoes and Thunderstorms in St. Louis made landing one the pilot did at our own risk. As the plane bounced into St. Louis (my layover) I thought "When this plane slams into those ST Louis arches I'm never going to see my baby again".

Secondly, I thought of Oliver again as I sat in the St. Louis airport watching the gate attendant put the words "delayed" on the board every half hour for nearly 6 hours straight. I thought to myself, thank god I didn't have the family with me on this trip. There was a little girl sitting on the floor in front of the customer service desk crying, no pleading, to her parents: "please, I just want to go to beeeeeeed". You know it isn't right when a toddler "wants" to go to bed.

Given our landing, I was not too eager to go back into the air. It's amazing how a near death experience lends one great perspective on their work.

You'll have to click below to hear the third thought...

Oliver's been such a trouper since this first cold hit him last weekend. Daddy's got the room well prepped...with vaporizer and humidifier. Oliver's moved through it with a smiling face and growing appetite, all the while tolerating swabs in his nose, and the constant mucus evacuations. While it seems to be running its course (both Daddy and I have gotten it and are healed), it's created a new ritual for Oli: calling for Papi to get up in the pre-dawn hours to fix the blankets he's kicked off in the night, or to set the pacifier back in his mouth. I do this, sometimes a couple of times a night, and then watch the little angel fall right back to sleep. I know it's the cold, and it will be over soon and then I'll miss the sight of his little twitches turning to deep breathing and sweet dreams.

Our memorial Day was spent seperately... Oliver and Papi stayed home and recovered from the weekend sniffles, while Grammy, Avi and Daddy went to Huntington Beach to spend time with the family. Daddy mixed drinks while Cousin Shawn BBQ'd some chicken and Cousin Melissa made the Salads. Everyone had a great time and Grammy and Shawn beat everyone at Euchre. Later Daddy would realize that little Oliver gave him his cold.

Little bubba enjoys a popsicle.

This morning's New York Times (Front Page) includes an article for which Beth was interviewed for but noticeably absent from. I knew she should have made up a horror story so that she would be certain to grab headlines.

What fun is there writing about a great group of people who get along and have formed a long-lasting bond? Who would want to read something so bland? She should have said that the experience made her repent or something along the lines of "those boys were mean". Someone in her church did want her to be excommunicated for just helping a couple with surrogacy. Can you imagine if she told that person she was helping a gay couple?

Maybe it was our fault Beth didn't get in the article. When she asked us if she could speak to a reporter we agreed provided we were not mentioned by name. Ironic that we didn’t want to be mentioned by name in the NYT but here I am blogging our life away over the net.

The kid was really good today. He soaked his Papi two times before I even got out of bed. When I did get out of bed, there they were laying on the couch in the sun room. Oli wrapped in his Papi’s arms, and Grammy starring at the two of them.

I tried to get my few moments with him before rushing off to work, but Oliver just looked at me with a vague recognition for the man who used to stay home with him 24-7. I swear he stares at me dismissively lately as if to say: “Why bother, I know you’re leaving me anyway.”

I created this entry because I just launched the site.. once you have had a chance to review, let me know your thoughts.

I am home from work on a quick break before driving down the other side of the hill to go to a set. Chris is not home, Avi is asleep in the media room, Kathy just disappeared downstairs and Cjaisey our SuperNanny is trying to get the kid down for a nap.

I hope everyone enjoys the site, it's been a long time in the making so you should have lots to read.

...oh and I almost forgot, today is Papi's birthday so wish him well.

Grammy, Chris and I were having dinner last night when Grammy said she was going to have to lie to Avi about the Santa Barbara trip this weekend. He would be so depressed knowing we went without him. We’ve been going to Bacara since it opened, but apparently Oprah went there recently for an event that was broadcast on her show so that makes Bacara cool now. Having baby boomer parents is like having teenagers. Oprah is the new Brittany.

As Grammy goes on trying to come up with a story to tell Avi, Chris and I looked at each other knowing that Avi arrives in a couple of hours.

This Morning I woke up at 5:30 am before anyone else in the house. I thought I heard the cooing of a beautiful boy in the other room so I thought I might as well get that bottle ready.

As the bottle was warming, that little boy started to coo again. He cooed just enough to turn his head and fall back asleep. He's really the sweetest thing. I open the blinds and let some natural light in. It’s a gray morning in LA and cooler than the last couple of days. (65 degrees according to the new thermometer in the kitchen window that Grammy bought for Papi's birthday.) I look in the crib and there is that smiling baby Oliver. My heart melts when I see that toothless smile.

I change his wet diaper and hold him close as I feed him his breakfast. The blue eyes on the other end of that bottle fill me with a joy never before imagined.

Chris woke up with Oli this morning. Papi loves his boy. I heard him moving around, but I was so tired I couldn't get up. By the time I did, Oliver was already back asleep. Up at 6 and down by 7:30? He does have his own schedule. I didn't get to play with my angel this morning. I did watch him sleep though.

At work, I think of that little kid and wonder what he's doing. I run home at lunch time with just enough time to play with him before he falls back asleep. When I hear that tired groan start I my cure-all is blasting Diana Ross and the Supremes while we rock out to them with an interpretive dance. Usually half way through the second song (No Matter What Sign You Are) he's out in my arms. Of course I keep on going for at least four songs. You can't stop a groove like that.

I drop him in his crib and run out of the house before he wakes up. It's so much harder to leave when he's awake.

By the time I return from work at 7:45 he's already asleep for the night. Thoroughly depressed I do what any normal person would. I take it out on the ones closest to me. I spend the remainder of the evening uploading journal entries for this blog while Joelle helps me by adding pictures to the FLASH program. I get to bed some time after Midnight.

Sorry Papi and Grammy. Let me give a big THANK YOU to Grammy and Cjaisey for all the effort.

I was on my way to work this morning thinking how with Oliver every day is Valentine’s Day. Then I get to work and am reminded of a different kind of Pink.

All the homosexuals, closeted and otherwise, were at Long Beach Pride this weekend celebrating. After a few Apple-tini’s the ladies tend to be forgetful of the SPF. It’s Monday and now they are back to work--burnt to a crisp! It’s funny to see all their pink faces, the tan lines from the sun glasses, the bad cover-up, the self-loathing. Don’t get me wrong, I would deny going to LBP too (Ick, it’s gross!), however, it’s funny that all these “straight” guys who otherwise never see the beach, have all of a sudden decided to go outside and get sunburn on the same day. Think about it, how often does this happen? If your reading this, and your straight you’ll probably start to see this phenomenon happening in your town too. If all of a sudden everyone is sunburned, check your local Pride Festival listing to see if one happened the day before.

I guess we should feel sorry for these sunburned closet dwellers. They abuse whatever substance is available to get the courage to go into the streets shirtless and celebrate their sexuality by making-out with random people. It’s not an easy thing to do sober, and what better excuse to justify the bad behavior. Unfortunately all they get for their effort is sunburn and crabs. It’s like Spring Break for straight people.

Tonight Chris and I got tickets for Chris to take Grammy to the Alicia Keys Concert at the Hollywood Bowl. The tickets were our $mall way of thanking her for helping us out with the kid.

Apparently when Alicia was playing in Rochester, NY the audience got a bum show. Grammy and her friends were so disappointed. They were looking forward to it for weeks; they actually had a beautiful night weather-wise; everyone got the night off, and bam! A lame concert!

Prank Phone Calls recorded off the WONKETTE Blog.

Phone Call One

Phone Call Two

It’s 3am and I won’t be able to sleep any longer tonight. Oliver will wake up at 4am and fuss a bit. I’ll give him a pacifier and he’ll go back to sleep for another half hour. I stare at the ceiling trying to sleep, trying to ignore the thoughts I have about my father. When Oli wakes again at 4:30 I’ll feed him the 4 ounces he missed because he fell asleep earlier than expected the night before.

While I feed him in his nursery, we watch each other. This little soul sees right through me. He makes everything better. I know how much he needs me, and he knows even better how much I need him. I can feel it in the weight of his stare. After his bottle he curls up, burps and falls asleep in my arms. I decide that I am not going to return to bed. I just want to hold him until the sun comes up. I take comfort in being the father I never had.

I can’t really explain what I am feeling today. I am happy because: Oliver has a great nanny; his Grammy is here to keep him completely over stimulated for the next three weeks; Chris gets home early from work and works from home a couple times a week; I don’t have to get up early because Chris is really taking charge of the mornings now; I am back to work; and Oliver is still very happy.

I am sad because: Oliver has a great nanny, Grammy is over stimulating him; and Chris will get those moments with Oli that I cherished for the past three months; I am back to work.

Just yesterday, Grammy and Cjaisey got to see Oliver grab his first toy. He was on the play mat and pulled on the vibrating elephant toy. He grabbed it, pulled it down, and laughed as he watched it vibrate back up the string. Or at least that is how it was told to me. I have been trying to get him to do that for the past few weeks. If I am sad for having missed that, what’s it going to be like when some bigger event occurs?

Is this blog beginning to sound like every other whining working parent? I’ll try and keep the whining to a minimum.

I stayed awake long enough tonight to watch Finding Neverland with Chris and Grammy. Amazing movie. Beautifully shot. Inspirational. That cute kid Peter. We were all balling by the end. Every father needs to see it. That’s all I am saying.

You had all better get used to the late movie reviews as its all about dvd’s and cable movies now. Is there even anything worth seeing anyway?

My Dearest Oliver,

My son, I am so sorry for leaving you each day.
You are a beautiful boy. You’re in good hands.
Everyone loves you.

Joelle says that you look wise beyond your years.
You are. You are wise enough to forgive me for disappearing each day. That man who was with you through everything for the past three months,He is in your heart. Will you recognize me when I return each day. For how long will you remember me? Perhaps on weekends?
I am your father and I love you.

Your Disappearing Dad

Today is our Anniversary and thankfully Grammy is here to baby sit. Gee, It’s almost as if it were planned that way. This IS the first time we have been to dinner together without Oliver. We’ve been arguing lately so it’s much needed time together. Is it wrong to be thinking about the kid while I am celebrating 12 years with Chris? Is it wrong to feel guilty about not having the baby with us? Nah, it’s late and he’s sleeping anyway.

Thankfully we are at Osteria Angelini, my favorite Italian restaurant. And lucky for us it is truly NOT kid friendly. Way too crowded and too small. The tables are right on top of each other and it’s really loud. But Gino’s Grandmother can make a mean Green Lasagna. It’s awesome.

The food made me forget about the guilt (again).

Here’s why:

Lobster Pomegranate salad.
Spaghetti with Olives
Salted Branzino
Affogato for dessert.
And a big glass of Italian Brunello.

The kid is 3 months old today. Where has the time gone?

Next week appearing at Oli's house, it's the Grammy and Cjaisey Show. Between the girls and Chris, how will I ever get my hands on him? Work begins again for me so that will probably answer that question. I am going to have to think of new and creative excuses. Feel free to post any suggestions you may have for getting me out of work.

I have definite feelings on the subject of returning to work, which I will refrain from posting in this journal. I am trying to never talk about work around the kid. More for my sake than his, and I think it wise not to mention it here. Can you sense the frustration? Good.

Grammy arrived today. She looks great, and I am not just saying that because she will be reading these entries. We were at the terminal waiting for luggage and I pointed out a kid who looked similar to Oliver. He wasn’t much bigger than Oliver and I told Grammy to be prepared. When we asked the parents how old he was they said 9 months.

This kid has grown too much. Maybe if I keep him in his small clothes he won’t grow.

The kid is 3 months old today. Where has the time gone?

Next week appearing at Oli's house, it's the Grammy and Cjaisey Show. Between the girls and Chris, how will I ever get my hands on him? Work begins again for me so that will probably answer that question. I am going to have to think of new and creative excuses. Feel free to post any suggestions you may have for getting me out of work.

I have definite feelings on the subject of returning to work, which I will refrain from posting in this journal. I am trying to never talk about work around the kid. More for my sake than his, and I think it wise not to mention it here. Can you sense the frustration? Good.

Grammy arrived today. She looks great, and I am not just saying that because she will be reading these entries. We were at the terminal waiting for luggage and I pointed out a kid who looked similar to Oliver. He wasn’t much bigger than Oliver and I told Grammy to be prepared. When we asked the parents how old he was they said 9 months.

This kid has grown too much. Maybe if I keep him in his small clothes he won’t grow.

Wednesday morning and Oliver has slept through the night. The last time he slept through the night it was probably due to the shots. We didn’t think that the doctor was correct when he said that Oli should sleep from 8pm to 6am. Last night he went from 8:30pm to 6:30am so that was close enough for me.

Cjaisey our supernanny-in-training got a “no right turn” ticket on the way to the house this morning (Camrose and Highland). Curse the Outpost Homeowners Assn and all their sign-posting! The poor girl can’t turn on Mullholland and now this! I offered to pay for the ticket. It’s the least I could do since I suggested it as an alternate route.

Oli was very cute this morning. Smiles all the way around. I really do love that kid. I hate the thought that I will be leaving him during the days soon to return to work. The thought of it as I right this paragraph depresses me so I won’t delve into that now.

Promo’s for today’s Oprah show Brooke Sheilds talking about her battle with post-partum.

Beth is staying with us again this weekend. Another convention brought her to town. Beth brought with her another batch of Breast Milk for the kid too. We can’t believe that she is still pumping for us. The woman keeps on giving!

Poor Oliver was crankier than usual this visit. He’s the gassiest baby alive. Distended stomach, farting, burping, hiccups, fussiness, you name it. I think Beth thought it was her. Whenever she held him he seemed to stiffen up and scream. I think he just needed someone familiar to comfort him while he was so gassy, but Chris thought it was the boobs. True, Oliver doesn't get daily exposure to that part of the female anatomy, and Beth’s boobs are bigger now than any other girl we know. It’s amazing that these skinny little legs can even hold them up. Oliver just isn’t gonna grow up to be a breast man. How could he be such an ingrate? Biting the hand that feeds him...

To his defense, Oliver’s been really gassy lately and we were thinking it might be the breast milk. When we asked Beth about her diet she said she eats a ton of garlic and broccoli. Two things that make breast milk gassy for babies… so we’ve read. Dr. Peter disagrees with the diet and gas correlation. He doesn’t think her diet really matters. He’s been right so far. But if he’s wrong about this, it might explain why Oliver was so angry at the thought of being held by Beth. Those two big breasts are like gigantic gassy WMD’s. Loaded with broccoli and garlic. Sure to make him uncomfortable for a day or two.

Daddy broke away to have lunch with Uncle Walter and friends at La Cachette’s fund raising luncheon for MEG foundation that helps children who were orphaned by the Tsunami Disaster. Jean Francois Meteigner and a host of other prominent chef’s came up with the menu. Papi stayed home with Oliver. Guilt. Here’s why:

The Menu:
Crème Brulee of Foie Gras
Smoked Fish Terrine with Caviar
Lobster Ravioli
Lamb Chop with Fresh Morels and light jus.
Spring Berry Napoleon with Vanilla Filling

And a slue of delicious champagne and wines.

The kicker: There was another baby sitting right across from us. Oh well, maybe when the next Tsunami hits…

Beth is back in town this week getting some more baby time clocked. This time she came without the kids. She also has a conference to attend and decided to pad a couple days on both ends to spend it with us. Beth never comes empty-handed! She brought with her TONS of breast milk for the boy. Filled every shelf!

Jax, Andre and Maxwell also came for breakfast. Maxwell couldn’t be bothered with a baby but Jax sure looked comfortable holding Oliver. Perhaps in the future there will be another little one running around? Hmmm… It's so much fun to watch Maxwell grow.

Here's a picture of the parents with Oliver...

Oliver slept through the night, and that’s no April fool’s joke.
He did it again on Saturday and Sunday...

Today was Oliver’s first real laugh. He did it when I tickled his cheek and chin. Melts my heart. This kid is adorable. He looks just like Papi Chris.

Molly and Tracy came by for dinner tonight. Chris picked up Italian from Ca'Brea. We had a blast catching up with them and talking about their upcoming trip to Italy. It brought back such wonderful memories. Beth and the kids returned mid-way through the dinner. They missed me blending the two types of risotto together in a bowl. I didn't realize that they were different when I mixed them, even though Chris had just told me they were. oops.

Oliver has begun to gurgle and coo. The closest thing to a conversation we have ever had together.

Beth and the Kids came down for a visit this week. We planned this trip because the kids never really had much time with Oliver after his birth. They were at the sitters, Beth was still out of it, and we needed to leave early so that Chris could get back for his Grandmother’s funeral.

It was a fun-filled, action-packed week. Nathan and Em are great with the baby. In Emily’s words, she is Oliver’s "Surrogate Sister". Nathan is such a good boy. He took such good care of his mom when she was pregnant. It was great to see them play with Oliver.

I think Nathan is happy to have his mom back again. It gives him the chance to be a kid again. I know that they waited so long to see what Oliver would be like. I think they probably thought he’d be doing more. All he does is sleep and eat and we don’t get much of an opportunity to get out and play outside with Em and Nathan. I think they will be fine not seeing him until he can move around and talk more.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day.

Today we had our one month check up with doctor Shulman and OLT is doing well. He has been gaining an ounce a day, just as the doctor ordered, and he weighed in at 12lbs even. Everything looks great for our boy Oliver. Next appointment, the two-month visit. Shots. Yikes.

Chris and I celebrated Oliver’s One Month with some wine, lamb chops and the 10 year anniversary video courtesy of our friend Dilson. It was great to watch the video and see our anniversary trip to Tuscany through the eyes of a crazy Brazilian. I never realized that Italy was so sideways.

It was fun revisiting Italy. Anyone who tries to watch the dvd’s should probably just start at Part II. That’s when the drinking, singing, and cross-dressing happens.

The video got me thinking about how our life was before young Oliver came into it. While not everyone could make it to Italy with us, those that did come really went the extra mile to celebrate it with us. I am so grateful for the friendships that we have. I guess When your an only child, you tend to think of your "friends" as family, and you cherish them as such.

I met Uncle Chris at Starbucks in Weho today. I can’t help but think I totally cramped his style. Walking in I noticed two Weho’s sitting next to him in the typical uniform: tank-top / low-rise jean and flip-flops. (Pedicure anyone?!) Uncle Chris seemed purposely placed in clear view… I don’t know who sat down first--Uncle Chris or the boys, but it was clear that when I wheeled the big red pram into the café and gave baby to Uncle Chris while I grabbed a coffee -- I definitely spoiled their fun.

KELLY, THE FED EX LADY delivered the latest shipment of Breast Milk. Beth included some of her (and Emily’s) cookies. Mmm Cookies and Breast Milk! My favorite.

Beth asked if a NY Times reporter regarding gay couple’s and surrogates could interview her.

The Girls (Chris Landon, Dilson DeAlmeida, Grandma, Oliver and I) lunched at The Grove. It was a modern day Sex & The City gossip session. Grandma and I walked around, bought a pillow at PBK and had some Italian food for lunch. Dilson cruised some guys and drooled over the waiter. Oliver was alert and happy to observe the whole thing. Papi was mad that he wasn’t with us. SUX2BHIM.

Uncle Chris got his hair cut at Sally Hershberg Salon and it looked really cute. I guess you really get your money's worth there.

The Grove seems to be the place for parents and babies. I have to admit it is the Disneyland of malls. Loads of restaurants, great kids clothing stores, but NEVER go there on the weekend. Weekday lunches only. It’s WAY too crowded otherwise.

Grandma Kathy is in town for 10 days. I would not let her come with Avi. (I'm horrible I know!) The two of them together can be a bit much for an adult, imagine the two of them with a newborn. Who am I kidding, I didn’t want them bugging me! Sorry Avi, it was you or mom but not the both of you at the same time.

I only have three months with this kid and as it is I don’t feel like I have enough time to myself. I keep getting this feeling like I wish I was a single parent. What's wrong with me? Barring the occasional lunch date with friends, I just don’t want to share this boy with anyone right now. Is this normal?

Good afternoon, evening, morning, whatever it is…

Tomorrow Oliver is two weeks old and we still haven’t dropped him once. Oliver lost his umbilical cord in Chris’ lap last Saturday. The little cap on his willy also fell off last week so we are looking forward to his first bath tonight. He is eating normally (3.5 ounces every 3-4 hours), fussing normally, sleeping normally and soiling diapers regularly. He is happier in the mornings and gets fussier in the early evenings. Kind of like me.

Oliver takes to falling asleep in our arms, laps and over our shoulders more than his crib. We can blame Chris for this habit. I can’t say that I really should blame either of them though because I would probably choose likewise. It’s really amazing to watch the two of them in each other’s arms.

Today we officially took the stroller out for a test spin. We didn’t get far before it started misting and we had to turn around. However, what sunlight we did see was nice and it was just long enough for Oliver to fall asleep. Actually he was asleep by the time I opened the garage door.

We watched our first ever Academy Awards presentation as a family on Sunday. Truthfully, we expected more from Chris Rock…. Oliver’s favorite part was probably the buzzing of the various helicopters, planes, and The Goodyear Blimp over the house. For some reason he also got really excited when Julia Roberts presented. He’s a breast milk baby, what can I say… funny that he didn’t have the same response to Gwyneth, hmm.

Oliver gets his first bath today. I am sad to report that I don’t like any baby bath tubs on the market. Nothing compares to getting into the tub with the baby and holding him and teaching him to swim. The baby bathtubs don’t let him really soak. The water barely covers his bum and the rest of his wet body is exposed to the cooler air.

Play some music, strip down, hold on tight and get into the tub! Oliver loves the bath but hates getting out. Woo, can he scream.