Designer Genes

The consensus is nearly unanymous, Oliver is his father's boy. But it can be hard to tell by looking at the adult versions of Chad and me. So here's a little help. Who does Oliver resemble most? Mom....? Dad....?

Justine 1st Day


Oliver 1st Day






Chad 1st Day












Chad



O


Justine




Chad


Olie

Justine




OR...

Bella...?

February Showers

Oliver shed his first tear this weekend. You might already know this, but babies don’t shed tears at first. They cry (a lot), but they don’t tear up until much later. Lately, Olie has become much more communicative about his needs and wants. He used to sit quietly, happy to be along for the ride, content to go with the flow wherever that might lead. But no longer. He now bores easily and pipes up when he feels the situation needs to change. He squeals his dissatisfaction often and, unfortunately, loudly.

But back to this tear…It was Friday afternoon, and Olie was hollering out his displeasure as his mother changed his diaper for the 15th time that day. He’d been there done that and wasn’t interested in putting up with it yet again. He screamed, he yelled, he cried and cried some more. Then came that first tear. And, with that tear, he wrenched his mama’s soft heart.

When not ratcheting up the volume over his demands for change, Olie is now often working out his vowel sounds. As you’re talking to him, explaining how snails and turtles carry their homes on their backs, how giraffes have spots and very long legs and necks that allow them to pluck leaves from the very tops of trees, or how elephants use their trunks to give themselves showers and dirt bathes, suddenly he’ll utter a long oooohhh or a laden aaaahhh as if he’s really following along with the conversation quite easily. “That’s very interesting,” he seems to be saying. Then, to clarify his delight with the new-found knowledge, he sometimes follows up with a giggle, or even a chuckle.

Thumb sucking is also a new hobby. To be fair, Olie found his thumb and started sucking his very first day, but he didn’t really adopt it as a habit. However, in the last week or so, Olie has begun sucking his thumb, particularly at night or as he’s falling asleep. His mama calls it self-soothing. Whatever name you give it, he’s sleeping much longer now, sometimes even through the night. Hallelujah for that opposable fifth digit!

Letter from Grandpa Updyke

Oliver

As I walked out of the house this morning to the blanket of pure white covering the world as far as I could see, I realized it was time to write to you. Although it's been just a little over a month since I saw you, which at my age is only a short pause, to you, it has been almost a third of your time alive.

The snow made me think of the record snowfall that just happened in New York where you live. I sure hope that your Mom and Dad took you out to experience it. I'm sure that they did, but just in case they were too busy, or didn't feel like it, the next time they're holding you up to look out the window, do that giggly, wiggly, wave your arms and legs thing that all little guys know how to do, and let them know you just have to get out there and feel that stuff for yourself. It's cold, and wet, and takes a while to get used to, but once you do it sort of grows on you. It's also very quiet, pristine, and beautiful allowing you to just kind of sit back and enjoy, which is sort of hard to do in the fast-paced world we now live in.

Just to let you know the kind of big mark a little guy like you can make, Grandma is already talking about starting to plan her next visit with you. It's seems that you have just the right touch when it comes making your Grandma want to spend time with you. Although I'm sure it won't be in what's left of the winter season, maybe the next time it will be warm weather, and we can take you out and introduce you to some bugs, or flowers or some of the many other wonderful things the world still has to show you.

Judging from the new pictures and stories of you I'm seeing on the blog, you're becoming more and more alert and interested with the world with each passing minute. That's just the way it should be, and though it sometimes can be overwhelming for a new guy, in the long run it is that sense of wonder that will always let you appreciate the moment you're living in so try never to loose it.

Bye for now, Love Grampa Updyke

Olympic Strides

As we watch the epic achievements of the athletes during the Olympic Winter Games, we can’t help but note the Olympian strides of our own little champion. Oliver gets a 10 in technical marks for his increasing hand-eye coordination and immense strength.

Brow furrowed in concentration, he reaches for and continually makes contact with his targets - the animals hanging from his activity matt, the bears on his Baby Bjorn Bouncer, his books, and our faces. Demonstrating strength that comes from weeks of intense training, Olie closes in on the world record for standing for great lengths of time. Tummy time is also no longer a challenge, as Olie pushes up and up, achieving an easy 90-degree angle.

Oliver also gets a gold in performance as he holds his head up with the best of them and even sits up on his own (oh are those my toes!?). Grabbing rattles and bring objects to his mouth with his hands is also a cinch. Not to be restricted to winter games, Oliver is training for summer equestrian events; straddling Mom’s tummy, he pushes up with his legs while pulling against Mom's hands: “ride em cowboy” is a new favorite game. Yes, the Olympics certainly are exciting, but they’re nothing compared to the nail-biting action at home.

In other sports news, Oliver keeps up with Updyke tradition, attending his first bowling game yesterday. Maybe someday he’ll join Great Grandma Updyke in the bowling hall of fame.

AND Oliver’s greatest achievement to date…. Sleeping a full 8 hours from 7pm to 3am last night and then not waking again til 7:45am. Rahhhhhh!

Truly exciting sports action at the Updyke household these days. Tune in next week Sports Fans for more exciting action as Oliver attempts, dun, dun….rolling over.

Who's In Charge Here?

Oliver becomes more aware of his environment and more self-aware every week. Of course, this happens to all babies, but nonetheless it is an amazing thing to witness that transformation. He now watches as you move around the room, cries when you leave, and turns toward the sound of your voice. He also watches Bella the Bulldog, seemingly curious about her shifty moves and odd noises. That's all new. And it just kills you when you’re feeding him a bottle and he notices your arm, then reaches out his hand and begins to work his fingers gently through your arm hair. While it is clearly curiosity that drives these actions, it is easily mistaken for affection (a little emotional mixup that adults make all too often).

Even better, Olie is starting to manipulate his parents. He's grasped that crying brings response from the parental units, that crying louder brings more urgent response. And this boy understands what it is to want something and want it yesterday. Patience is not in his vocabulary (to be fair, there are no words in his vocabulary just yet). It's as if he's yelling "double time" to his lazy, slow-moving parents. He simply can't believe how slowly we're addressing his wants and needs. "Step It Up!!" he cries. And we respond.

But this leads us to a new beginning, to the next phase where we attempt to train our little cub, as well as ourselves. Most importantly, Olie needs to learn to sleep through the night. More to the point, Olie's parents need Olie to learn to sleep through the night. With his mom back at work, we can no longer afford to be up 2 or 3 times a night. So, we've entered the realm of the crying game…he cries to get attention, which we ignore, which causes him to cry louder, which we ignore with more effort. The cycle continues until he eventually exhausts himself and falls to sleep. Trust you me, this is an empty victory at best, since of course we've all lost valuable sleep in the exercise.

Sounds fun, eh? Just one of many hills to climb, I'm told.