Oliver's First Birthday!

Our birthday story starts with an impromptu trip to Toys R Us in a neighboring city (our town's only toy place is Walmart which I try to avoid - I'm not comlpetely successful!).  There's something about stores completely dedicated to toys.  When I was little, I didn't even know such a thing existed, except in books or on TV!  I can wander Toys R Us happily for a long time - even better are little privately owned toy stores.  My goodness - I wish our little town could support a store full of unique toys!  I'm just not into "movie toys" put out by Disney.  Anyhow!  Silas went happily off to play with his Gramma while Oliver and I piled into my mom's van to shop. Strolling the aisles of a toy store without a little dictator (aka Silas) was heavenly, and Oliver helped pick out his gifts!

I had made a cake in a regular sized pan on Monday, then froze it for decorating later.  Scott took Silas riding on Friday morning, so I took advantage of the favorable mom to kid ratio and decorated it then.  I just cut it into train car sized pieces, iced them and added cookies and candies to look like wheels and different cargo. I'm not a professional cake decorator by any means, but we had a lot of fun making it,  and it turned out pretty good, I think.  Everyone loved it,especially Silas. He's already decided he would like a train cake for his birthday next year!

It was a hot day, and just as hot inside as out, so we gathered in the shade of our yard and enjoyed each other's company.  Here's Oliver with three sets of grandparents (one set are his great-grandparents!).  How lucky is he?

After a BBQ lunch, he blew out his candle (with much help from big brother!) and then we unwrapped his gifts.  He was spoiled, as usual!  With help from Carisa at 1+1+1=1 I'd compiled a wish list for Oliver's upcoming graduation from Tiny Tot school to regular Tot School and the grandparents came through, just as they always do!  He also got several tractors and trucks, of course, and he really enjoyed them too!

A little late due to technical (assembly!) difficulties, he also received this:

                                        

Both boys love it, and it's produced some challenges and opportunities  to continue learning about sharing and turn taking.  Here's one alternative Silas discovered:

                        

They both enjoy this - it makes them giggle, which in turn makes me laugh.  So a good time is had all around!

On a more serious note, I have to say that I cannot believe he's been with us a full year already!  This time last year, I was still grouchy because I woke up in the morning still pregnant, AGAIN!  My midwives fixed me up with this deadly, horrible, nauseating 'cocktail' and Oliver was born 59 minutes later.  Ahhhh, good times.  

Happy First Birthday Ollie!

Where's the Ranch?

Looking back through some of my posts, I've noticed a distinct lack of outdoor pictures.  Considering we spend at least half of our day outside (gardening, feeding chickens, going for walks, playing in the river, and just plain hanging out) I find that odd.  So, in honour of the fact that we've FINALLY got some nice summer weather this week I've made it a personal mission to record a few more of our outdoor pursuits.  Here are some of my favorite shots:

Ranch kids practically grow up on a quad.  Seriously.  Oliver and Silas both began riding on them when they were newborns in a sling.  Heck, Silas was making midnight checks on the calves with dad, in a sling, on a quad.  Wow, that line was kind of Dr. Seus-ish, wasn't it? (Yes, Silas is sticking out his tongue in this picture.  That's just the way we roll around here!)

An ancient tradition among ranching families is bringing refreshment out to those making hay in the hot, dry weather.  I've been bringing ice cream, popsicles and ice water out to my dad for as long as I can remember, and now Silas and Oliver are continuing the tradition.  Since getting out into the field almost always involves a bumpy walk or drive, we usually bring liquids out in a mason jar - just like the one above.

We've been spending a lot of time at the river in the evenings once the heat isn't quite so brutal.  We're all sweaty and sticky and grumpy at that point and it's the only way we can enjoy each other.  It's a great way to reconnect and cool down before tucking the little ones into bed.  I love living near water!  It shows off the seasons like nothing else, it draws wildlife, provides a place for activities and fun, and can have such a calm, hypnotizing effect for young and old alike.  And what's better for a little country boy like Silas?  A stick, some water, a hot day, and his family nearby.  What else could he ask for?! 

And where's Oliver you ask?  Good question!  He is getting SO FAST, scuttling around from sand, to puddles, to rocks, to river, to bushes, then back to sand.  I try and keep an eye on him and ensure he's safe, while still letting him be independent and follow his curiosity.  Sometimes I have to glance around quickly to locate him!  Can you spot him here?  Don't worry, the river shore is in plain view - it's just the rock, sand and bush "dunes" that provide a bit of cover for him to hide in!

Here's a parting shot of our barns.  You can only see the roof of the Old Barn tucked under the big Fir tree.  It was there when my great-grandad bought the place almost 100 years ago.  He built the red barn with his own two hands, his own two sons (my granpa and my great-uncle) and his own many trees cleared off the field I'm stranding in while taking this picture.  Int he background you can see the little community of Shulus, which we don't really have access to as there's no river over the bridge any more.  I used to work in a daycare there, though, and when the water was low enough I would just wade across the river for a nice ten minute walk.  I've taken a lot of ranch pictures over the years, and it seems like no matter what angle, or what season, they're all gorgeous!

Things are happening around here!

Oliver has been changing in leaps and bounds and I just had to report!

For starters, he has started to discover books. He's especially into books with shoes, tractors or birds.

He's really starting to communicate now! It's so exciting to witness that evolving. The expression on his face when something connects for him is priceless.

I'm teaching him sign language, just like I did for Silas. I'll have to post about my conviction when it comes to signing for infants and toddlers, but for now, let me just say that I think it's fantastic.

Oliver has 6 signs: more, all done, dog, tractor/car/truck, shoes and bird. He had the first three for months! I was beginning to think that I just too busy to have the focus and consistency for signing with my third child, when all of the sudden he learned the next three signs in just a few days! He's also using more and all done in more situations than just at the table which is so gratifying. He uses some words already, too: tractor (tah-tuh), dog barking noises (his favorite), uh oh! and wow! (both very adorable).

Last, but certainly not least, after months of pulling himself up, cruising furniture and standing on his own in the middle of the room, Oliver has finally discovered that he can actually take steps! He began to pull himself up on furniture when he was only six or seven months old so I thought he'd be walking ages ago. Once again, I have to remember that kids do things in their own good time.

I love this shot, the smile just says it all and his dad behind ready for a catch is great.

Tot School

We started out with the best of intentions. I had six activities all ready to go. Silas really enjoyed the first few one day, and another activity another day. Then the dreaded stomach flu hit. Let's just say there was no time for Tot School on Wednesday and Thursday!

Silas seemed to be challenged by these little clothespins. Not too hard, but definitely not easy. The matching was no problem at all. We've never really done a specific matching game, so I was pleased he understood the concept. Next time I'll add more colours.

He REALLY enjoyed this float or sink activity. He was able to correctly predict whether an object would float or sink before putting in the water, and he enjoyed wandering around the house on the hunt for more things that would float or more things that would sink. He requested to play this one three times over the week (each day we did Tot School).

This wooden beading necklace was a lot of fun for him. He's played with them before, but not often. He was easily able to name the colours. I might make some pattern cards for him with these beads as they're all primary colours and easy to match with crayola felts.

Once again, I underestimated his abilities with sorting and matching. He easily sorted green and orange beads. It didn't hold his attention long - too easy! I'll ramp this up a bit next time.

I also set out a jug of macaroni and a pretty bowl for pouring. Once again too easy. . . I'm impressed what he can do! The School of Life is pretty educational! The last activity was a Color Wonder colouring book in a Cars theme. He loved the cars theme, wasn't so big on the colouring. That's okay - I like it when kids draw their own pictures anyhow!

Tiny Tot School

Oliver loved the beads! Just picking them up, testing them, tasting them. He watched me put them in the plastic jar for a while, then tried it out himself. Dumping them out proved to be a challenge and he needed my guidance to figure it out. He was always delighted whenever I left this jar out for him, even with the lid on!

For some more truly fantastic ideas for Tot School, please see 1+1+1=1 !

My Boys

These are my boys. Gotta love 'em. I'd like to do a post on my own and only girl, only now that she's 15 she's not around nearly as much as these guys and I'm having trouble scaring up some decent pictures (and by decent I mean ones she won't kill me for posting haha)! Now that I'm aware of this shocking deficiency you can be sure I'll correct the situation.

This is Silas's first fish. Let me tell you about my dear husband - stuff like a first fish, that's big deal. He doesn't have any sisters, and his mom drives logging trucks in her spare time, so he's definitely a man's kind of man. You know, rifles, dirty beat-up trucks, rodeo, beer, that kind of thing. So a son who's as into fishing as ours? A Big Deal, indeed!

Oliver looks a bit concerned in this photo. Maybe he's afraid he'll be in his big brother's shadow forever? Don't worry Ollie, this next photo's all you, buddy:

This was taken a while ago during a quick break for snacks during branding in the heifer pen. Typically, by the time the morning chores are done and things get set up, it's around nine or ten. There's no way to get all those calves branded by lunch, so we bring a hefty coffee break down to the workers at noon and then have a late lunch whenever they're done - be it two o'clock or after four. Oliver was chewing on a pear and I felt it my motherly duty to try and keep that juicy fruit out of the dirt. So I put him in a grain tub. I'm sure dried cow slobber was a much better element than dried calf poop and mud.

I stand by that to this day.

And look at him, he seems to be okay, right?! It's funny, you'd never guess that he freaks out if his dad puts him to bed at night, 'cause he sure likes hanging out with dad during the day. He's actually wearing Scott's work hat right now which just proves how much he likes him as I wouldn't touch that thing with a ten foot pole and arm length gloves. Do you know what ranchers use arm length gloves for? Never mind. The point is, I wouldn't do it, but this kid sure doesn't seem to mind. I love this smile!

Okay, one more photo before I end this randomness:

This is the epitome of Silas. A puddle and a big truck. In fact, I'm suprised I don't have more pictures of him like this! He goes NOWHERE unless he's pushing this truck. He's actually worn the wheels right through, we wrapped them in black hockey tape. If ever they make one of these great metal tonka trucks with rubber tires, I will buy at least five. The plastic tires on these trucks are SO LOUD on a gravel road. If I'm with someone, we can't even have a conversation, it's ridiculous. On the upside, I can usually tell where he is on the ranch when he's ripping around with his dumptruck - the sound carries a ways!

So that's them! Some time in the near future, I'll be sure to post a bit on my lovely daughter. She's been such a gem lately, I'm pretty sure there's a good chance that she'll end up human before all's said and done!