Well, it finally happened -- Buttercup has a word for Oliver! She used to call him "Uh-Oh" -- or maybe it was just a coincidence :-) -- but yesterday she started calling him "Ah-vuh." And she doesn't just say it sweetly in her usual voice, she yells it. "AH-VUH! AH-VUH!!!!" Oliver refuses to believe that she's saying his name though. He says, "No, Buttercup, it's OLIVER. Can you say OLIVER?"
We had a really fun day today. This morning we were playing with some old(er) toys and Oliver thought it would be fun to pretend the toy box was a boat. Here are the two kiddos in the "boat" with their "oars" (inflatable guitars).
Then we headed to the outlet mall to get some bigger PJs for Oliver and meet up with our friends Robyn and Leah. Oliver very kindly pushed Buttercup in the stroller while she finished her snack.
We stopped for a bit at the mechanical rides and the kids rode the carousel.
After naptime, Oliver asked if he could have some chocolate milk. We didn't have any chocolate syrup, so I used the cocoa mix Mom gave me for Christmas. Oliver did NOT want his milk heated up, so we had to stir for a while to get it all mixed in.
Tasty stuff!
Then we headed to the duck park so Oliver could try to catch something in his net. He caught: leaves, rocks, a minnow, 2 sticks, and an empty beer can. Lovely!
We even had time to play at the playground for a little while before heading home.
When we got back home, I got dinner ready and Oliver watched Lady and the Tramp . . .
. . . while Buttercup played with the shopping bags . . .
. . . and I tickled her with my foot.
Then after dinner, Dennis took Buttercup on an errand while Oliver helped me fix Dennis' lunch for the next day. Here he is helping me wash celery. What fun kids we have! They are the best!
We have been pretty busy for the past couple of days! The weather has been mostly nice, so we've been spending a lot of time outside. Here are a couple of pictures from yesterday afternoon.
Oliver was playing his "sort and pour" game with foam shapes and construction trucks. Apparently it was also raining near his worker site -- very nice of him to keep Mommy Sharkie and Baby Sharkie out of the rain!
Meanwhile, Buttercup was playing in the kitchen with her baby. :-)
And here's a video of Oliver being spastic before bedtime tonight. Enjoy! (Note: yes, his shorts are on backward and his shirt is partially tucked in -- he dressed himself)
These are some of the funny things that Oliver said today!
"I think I want a baby brother. No, I think I want a baby whale shark instead."
"I want to live in the Mississippi River with the bull sharks and Granddaddy." [I pointed out that Granddaddy doesn't actually live in the Mississippi River, just near it.] "Well, I still want to live there. And Granddaddy can come, too, if he's not scared of the bull sharks."
"Now I am going to sing Buttercup a song. Fe Fi Fo Fum . . . SPAGHETTIOS!"
Buttercup: "Ball?"
Me: "Oliver is playing with the ball now, but he'll share it in a minute."
Oliver: "Actually, I do not plan to share the ball with Buttercup at any time."
Oliver: "Do sharks need to wear lotion at night time?"
Me: "No."
Oliver: "Because they have skin like foxes?"
"Mama. You shouldn't run that race. You should go to Chuck E. Cheese's instead!!"
"Mama, are there different colored jellyfish? You know, like strawberry or grape?"
Me: "Can you sing with me?"
Oliver: "No, I'm sorry, I can't. I'm under my umbrella."
1- Her favorite person in the world is Oliver.
2- Her favorite foods are: blueberries, cheese, avocado, pasta, fish, bread, grilled cheese sandwiches, raisins, grapes, chicken, tortillas, applesauce, and yogurt.
3- One of her first words was "cheese."
4- At 15 months old, she is the size of the average 2 year old girl. She is almost the same exact weight and height of two of Oliver's 3 year old friends!
5- She probably spends an hour of every day clucking like a chicken and laughing at herself.
6- She loves to eat crayons. And sidewalk chalk.
7- Her favorite toys are balls.
8- She is a climber! She climbs onto the couch, the recliner, in Oliver's bed, onto the dining room chairs, onto the piano bench, etc.
9- She is much more of a daredevil than Oliver was at this age. She already climbs up slides backwards and slides down headfirst. She doesn't let the big twisty slides at the playground phase her one bit.
10- She loves to play inside the kitchen cabinets.
11- She adores animals, especially chickens (see #5), cats, and dogs.
12- One of her favorite games is to crawl/walk into Oliver's room, open his lower dresser drawers, and throw his clothes around his room.
13- She rarely allows us to feed her anymore, and almost always smears her food in her hair.
14- She loves listening to music and dancing, just like Oliver!
15- She can throw a ball overhand.
16- She loves people and is very outgoing. She won't always let other people hold her, but she'll always wave, smile, and say "hi!".
17- She's a very snuggly baby girl, and will never turn down a hug or cuddle time in the rocking chair.
18- She can destroy a magazine or paperback book in 5.8 seconds.
19- She loves to splash in the tub.
20- She loves to laugh, and is such a happy baby girl! We are just so blessed to have her in our family. :-)
Oliver loves sharks right now. LOVES them. He talks about them all the time, dreams about them, has several books about sharks, has a shark poster on his wall, and asks to watch shark documentaries when he gets to watch TV.
So it's no surprise that he picked out a huge stuffed shark toy from IKEA a couple of months ago! The shark's name is "Sharkie" or "Mommy Sharkie", depending on the day. Here's a picture of "Mommy Sharkie" about to take a bite out of Oliver's Mommy's leg. (note: Looks like Oliver's Mommy needs a pedicure.)
Lately (probably from watching Shark Week videos) Oliver has been pretending that he is a marine biologist, "te-ta-bititating" (rehabilitating) hurt sharks. Here's a picture of "Mommy Sharkie" all bundled up and resting from her treatment.
