Rose and Charley: Oliver's First Day Home

Hi everyone! This is Rose here, (I'm the one with my mouth wide open). Charley is beside me. I'm surprised his mouth isn't open too, since he copies everything I do. Yep! I'm the boss around here. Well, this is us at Christmas. This is exactly 4 days before our little lives changed FOREVER...



This is our family. My daddy is holding me and there's my mommy holding Charley. I am looking at my mommy's belly, wondering what in the world is in there...



Let me rewind just a little...

It used to be just me, mommy, and daddy. This is me and my daddy when I was first brought home. I was about the size of a taco! Hmm...a taco...that sounds good!



Well, not too long after I turned a year old, mommy and daddy brought me home a playmate: Charley.



Ok, back to Christmas day....So, it had gotten to the point where...
(Charley interupts)
Rose, you're not going to talk about my first day home and how you taught me how to come out of my shell? And-
(Rose interupts)
Charley, this is about Oliver's first day home, not yours! So, back to the story...ahem...

It had gotten to the point where there was no more room on mommy's lap for me to curl up and sleep on.
Her belly grew so big that she had no lap anymore! See:



I wasn't sure exactly why it had grown like that. Well, like I said...4 days after Christmas....I found out why her belly was so big:



I wanted daddy to put him on the floor so badly, so I could play with him!



(Charley) I wanted to play with him tooooooooo!



Daddy was so happy to introduce me to my new little baby!



He kept giving me a kiss, then the baby a kiss...over and over. I liked that.



Charley hopped up there once I hopped down. Again, he's a copycat. I mean dog.



Well, that was the day our lives changed forever...and the best part so far?!? I can now sit on mommy's lap again! ;)

Ok, time to go get that taco!

My Little Buddy

My mom and I took Oliver on his first walk on the American Tobacco Trail on Saturday. Oliver LOVED it! He stared into the sky the whole time in amazaement. Sadly, I don't have pictures of this. Next time though for sure...

These days I call Oliver, "Buddy, Little Man, Love Muffin, Darlin, Baby Boy, Sweet Boy and Oliver Wah-li-ver". ;)

He is cooing a lot now, and we happened to catch one of his coos on video, (at 2:06).

I go back to work next week, (only 2 half days though, to start with). I sure am gonna miss hanging with my little buddy... "Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body." -Elizabeth Stone Here are his 7 week pictures:

A Healthy Heart

Oliver had his first visit to the Emergency Room. :(

We took him to the Pediatrician for rapid breathing. She sent us to the ER. After a chest x-ray, an EKG, and an Echocardiogram- it was determined that he is just a "Fast breather". At first though, they were concerned about a heart abnormality called ALCAPA, due to the findings on the x-ray and EKG. They did an ultrasound of his heart to rule that out. We were so thankful his heart was normal. Praise God! However, they told me to bring him back to the doctor if he showed signs of worsening Tachypnea, or other signs of distress. I ended up bringing him back to the doctor because his breathing did seem worse, he was coughing a little, and he would cry so hard in the middle of his feeds.

The doctor then said Oliver has Acid Reflux. I had actually asked the doctor at his 1 month check-up if he thought Oliver had Acid Reflux, because of how much he would cry at night. At that point the doctor said no, because Oliver wasn't spitting up and he wasn't "Screaming" during feeds. At this most recent visit though, all of the symptoms pointed to Reflux. Although Oliver spits some of the medicine out (it tastes really bad), we can tell his symptoms are improving. He still breathes fast though, but the doctor said that is due to the Reflux as well.

Oliver was a champ at the hospital, and surprisingly, his Mama was too! ;)

Dear Oliver,

I pray your heart is full of all things a heart should be full of
The kinds of things God puts in there
The kinds of things that these days- are rare
I pray your heart is full of all things a heart should be full of

May your heart overflow with a love for Christ
The kind of love that runs after him with reckless abandon and counts it as joy
The kind of love that truly lives to give God all the glory
May your heart overflow with a love for Christ

With a heart so full of this kind of passion
The kind of passion that causes others to pursue the Lord too
The kind of passion that as a young girl- I once knew
With a heart so full of this kind of passion

As your Mommy returns to her first love
Her first love whom she gave her heart to at a young age--although he still has her heart
Her first love whom she is running after with reckless abandon--she needs a fresh new start
As your Mommy returns to her first love

She prays for you to have a spiritually healthy heart
Full of a passionate love for Christ
Full of all the things a heart should be full of
She prays for you to have a spiritually healthy heart

Here are his 6 week pictures:

 

 

Rose and Charley: Our First Blog Post!

Since Rose and Charley think Oliver is their baby, they wanted to write some of the posts about Oliver. Here is their first one. Sorry it got cut short.

Rose: "So Charley, I say we start by telling everyone about Oliver's first day home."

Charley: "Ok, Rose. You're the boss! Can I look at the audience now? I want everyone to see how cute I am."

Rose: "No Charley. This is a picture of us talking to eachother. Don't look away yet. By the way, it's your turn to change his diaper."

Rose: "Ok, Charley. You can show off your face now." (Sighs)

Charley: "How does my hair look?"

Rose: "Just adorable. Now, we have to hurry before you have an accident on Mommy's bed. She forgot to change YOUR diaper. Sheesh."

Charley: "Ok, let the story of Oliver's first day home begin!"

Rose: "Actually, our baby boy looks scared. We should call for help! Our story will have to wait."

.....So, look for Rose and Charley's story of Oliver's first day home on their next post.

Sweet Memories

My mom said I was in church at just two weeks old, and I loved listening to the Praise and Worship. I can remember playing with my mom's hands or laying my head in her lap while listening to the preacher preach, (I really did enjoy church though). ;)

I grew up going to church every Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night. Looking back, I can see the dedication my mom and dad had in going to church regularly, as a family.

Proverbs 22:6 says, "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it." I am thankful for my parents bringing me to church at such a young age. I am thankful for God entrusting Bradd and I with Oliver as we raise him in church as well.

Oliver's first Sunday in church was with my Mawmaw. What a sweet memory that is. I know my Granddaddy, Grandmother, and Pawpaw were watching as they were in the greatest worship service there ever was--- Heaven!

Here are his 5 week pictures:

At One Month of Age

Oliver, at one month of age
You have made my heart smile a million smiles
You have filled my arms with the sweetest touch
You have brought out of me what I love so much

Oliver, at one month of age
You have drawn me closer to the Lord
You have helped me to be selfless in this selfish world
You have caused me to obsess over what matters most

Oliver, at one month of age
You have loved me from the start
You have shown me patience when I doubt myself and stumble
You have looked at me and made all my worries crumble

Oliver, at one month of age
You have been happy and calm in my arms
You have been sad and crying in my arms
You have been up all night and asleep all day

Oliver, at one month of age
I have loved hearing you chuckle in your sleep
I have had my heart break upon hearing you cry
I have sang to you when I cannot carry a tune

Oliver, at one month of age
I have you- the baby I dreamed of
You have me- the mommy you have known your whole life
We have eachother- to love and get to know for the rest of our lives

Dear Oliver,

When you won't stop crying, you like for me to walk you around and sing "Jesus Loves Me" in your ear. You do not like to have your diaper changed! When you are crying because you're hungry, you are starting to stop once I put you in my arms, (I think you know what's coming now). You don't like to be swaddled very tightly. You are a loud little tooter, (you're daddy is proud). You are getting chubby little cheeks and your legs are filling out! I love to kiss your little lips! Lines on a piece of paper seem to grab your attention. You like to look at us. You are starting to be awake more during the day!

Happy one month, Oliver Wayne!

Here is how Oliver's weight has changed during his first month of life:

12/29/11...6lb 4oz, 19 inches long
1/3/12...5lb 12oz
1/5/12...5lb 14oz
1/10/12...6lb 2.5oz
1/18/12...6lb 13.5oz
1/30/12...8lb 4oz, 21 1/2 inches long, 15th percentile (Doc is very happy with his big jump in weight, yay!)

Here are his 1 month pictures: