Dancing to Katy Perry

One of Archer's favorite activities is dancing.  I apologize for the camera being flipped for most of the video, but you get the idea. Just turn your head to the side :)

The 18 Month Old Chopstick User

Daddy's birthday was on Sunday, and he really wanted to go to the new Olive Garden in town for his birthday dinner.  We waited until Monday, after the crowds from this weekend's OSU graduation would be gone, but alas, a new restaurant in Stillwater still had all the locals out.  Since it was so crowded, we ended up heading over to Nagoya Sushi for dinner.

They gave Archie some goldfish crackers as an appetizer, but he was ready to jump into Sushi eating.  He also took a liking to edemame and chopsticks.  Here Archie shows us how to hold chopsticks, and how to eat with chopsticks, since his fine motor skills aren't yet that advanced.

Enjoy! 

Christmas in Hawaii

This Christmas we have the great opportunity to visit Archer's grandparents in Hawaii. They live on the island of Oahu. Andy and I had the opportunity to come out in 2008 for Thanksgiving, but this is Archie's first trip out here.

Yesterday, we went to Archer's "Mecca", the Dole Pineapple Plantation. We all rode the train, The Pineapple Express, and then ate some pineapple soft service ice cream before heading to the gift shop.

We then had lunch in the North Shore. Today we are planning on going to the aquarium, and we are looking forward to heading the beach the next few days since their is supposedly zero percent chance of rain later this week.

The past Seven Months

Wow, I really let my blogging slide.  Sorry about that.  My New Year's Resolution will be to post at least monthly.  Archer is now thirteen months old.  I cannot believe how fast the past year went and how much he has grown.  Archer loves going to school each day and learning new things.

Here's some pictures of him enjoying his birthday cake!

Rchie D2 at Five Months

It's been awhile since I have posted.  Juggling work and home life now that my maternity leave is over has been a bit hectic.  Archer is now five months old. Time sure does fly by with a little one in the house.  Archie had a great four month checkup.  Our family doctor told us that Archie is tall and skinny.  He's in the 95th percentile for height and the 50th for weight.

Archie started eating some solid foods a few weeks after turning four months old.  So far he's tried rice cereal and barley cereal and has been eating them very well.  He now has rice cereal every day at school for a snack in the afternoon.  He is doing very well at school.  He really seems to enjoy himself while he is there.  This week he had his school pictures taken with live bunnies.  We are anxiously waiting to see them.  The teachers told Andy that they could only get a smirk out of him for the photo.

He still doesn't really seem very into rolling over, but he still really enjoys standing with assistance, and has started working very hard on sitting up by himself.  He has been working very hard on this for the past two weeks and is making some big strides.

Enjoy the pics below!

Archer is Three Months Old

I haven't been great about posting since I am not back at work full-time, so it's time to catch you up.  Archie now goes to day care five days a week.  Archie is lucky to have some very nice teacher's at the Renaissance School.  He plays, reads books and sings songs in his infant class.  I used to get to visit Archie and feed him at lunch time, but we've found that he doesn't like to eat after I leave.  I think he got used to being picked up and brought home when I would come to pick him up the month I worked part-time.  So unfortunately, I have to go the whole day without playing with him.

Archie turned three months old on February 1st.  He's grown so much since he was born.  He is almost 15lbs and over 26 inches.  He is getting more fun by the minute as he smiles, laughs, coos and really enjoys standing up when assisted by family and friends.

 It snowed quite a bit the day he turned three months so we have all sorts of pictures.

Here's Archer experiencing the first time sitting in a highchair.

 Archer wearing his OSU cape and matching tights.

 Look mom, I can suck both my thumbs at the same time!

The Pea Pod

We are planning on taking Archer on some upcoming trips, but that got us to wondering where would are little bubs sleep?  We have a loaner pack-n-play from some friends, but it's really heavy, and while some of our friends have offered to lend theirs to us, not all the places we plan on going will have friends with small children.  Luckily we found the Pea Pod, which is pretty much a tent for babies.  Here you can see Archer demonstrating it's use on our bed.  He seems to be totally chilaxin.  Hopefully, he'll be at ease when we actually need to use it.  There's an added bonus, it's made of fabric that protects against UV rays, so we can also use it at the beach.  

 

Archer's First Swim

Archie and I went to the YMCA today for his first dip on the pool. Unfortunately, the usually sweltering pool was actually cool for a change (great for lap swimming), cutting our trip a bit short. Archie did seem to enjoy his brief swim though. He was very alert and put his face in the water several times. He even got a little dunk at the end from mom that didn't seem to fluster him. I also learned that since he is under 1, I can bring him to the pool without having to pay for a family pass. Yea! I hope to bring him again soon.

Archer is two months old

Hard to believe but Archer is already two months old.  This made it time for us to bring him for his two month wellness visit, and his first round of multiple vaccines.  Archer handled the appointment like a champ.  He first stopped by the scale where he has gain quite a few lbs, weighing in at 13.4lbs.  He then measured a whopping 25inches, putting him in the 95th percentile for height.  

He cried very briefly after his second and third shots, but quickly recovered and for the most part was all smiles and giggles for his doctor and nurse.  Now that he has his first round of vaccines, I am hoping to get him in the pool for the first time.  Maybe this weekend.

Christmas 2010

I've been delinquent in posting again.  Archer has celebrated his first Christmas!  We woke up on Christmas morning and assisted him with opening his gifts which outnumbered everyone else's ten to one.  He didn't seem phased.  The Hoffman family assisted us and him with opening his plethora of booty, as Boppi and Poppi Hoffman and Aunt Courtney flew out for the holiday.

He made out like a bandit, getting everything from a turtle that shines the night sky on the ceiling at bedtime to a travel high chair for future trips over the next several months.  And yes, he did get books for Christmas! 

We had a good time hanging out around the house and making some excursions to downtown Stillwater so that the Hoffman's could check out the local second hand stores.  Unfortunately, they still have yet to get to Elite Repeat.  We'll tackle that next time.

Archer also had several outings leading up to Christmas.  He had lunch out at Sultan's with mom, Tammy and Brid, attended the CASA holiday party and started attending services at the Stillwater Unitarian Universalist Church.

Archie also began flashing social smiles instead of the gassy ones, but we have yet to get one on film.  He also recently successfully grasped a toy for the first time.

Yesterday, we did a trial run of visiting his daycare which he will start attending in the near future.  It's a sad week for mom, as she only has five more days before she has to start working again.  So many first's we are going to miss, but I guess we can think of all Archer's firsts, as the first time we've seen him accomplish them.

Looking forward to a great 2011!

Ice Skating with Friends

Today Andy, Archer and I went to Stillwater on Ice and met up with the Mendez and Mix/Hartman families.  Archie took the opportunity to sleep through an entire afternoon of skating and lunch afterwards.  It hasn't gotten that cold yet, but the wind was definitely blowing.

Archie had his stylish hat to keep his head warm and bunting from the Farr family that kept him snug as a bug in a rug.

Afterwards, Archie spent the day playing with his play mats and enjoying his new travel swing.  He's getting so big.  He's almost 12 lbs and measuring slightly over 23 inches.

 

Thanksgiving and more

It's been several days since I've posted last.  Thanksgiving has come and gone.  We had a full house for the holiday, with Archie's grandparents from Hawaii visiting, Ede and Terry, as well as his aunt Emily, uncle Dave and Dave's girlfriend Myranda.  We also had a four legged visitor, Dave's golden retriever, Penny.

Our first holiday with an infant was interesting.  Andy and I took turns eating in order to take care of Archer.  We had wonderful food made by multiple contributers and had a long lazy day.  Cimmi, Nelson and Lafawnduh all enjoyed some table scraps.

While his grandparents were visiting, Archer experimented with taking his first bottle.  Since I thought it would take awhile for him to figure it out, I decided to leave the house, while his grandmother gave it to him.  However, Archie took right to it, and drained all four ounces in 15 minutes.  Not bad for the first time.

We're sad to see his grandparents return to Hawaii. They were a huge help while visiting, and they left our house a little more modern with the gift of a new television.  Archie has been very into his new Baby Einstein dvds that came with it.

On December 1st, we celebrated Archie turning 1 month old.  Hard to believe that he's already been here for so long.  He's becoming more alert to his surroundings, can pay attention in longer intervals, and is now starting to try and "stand" by straighting his legs when we hold him up over a large surface.  He's growing up so fast.