It's official, Oliver is walking!

After a week of testing out the water, Oliver started walking a few feet at a time yesterday June 20th (11 months and 4 days old). Up to that point we would only catch glimpses of it out of the corner of our eyes. We were convinced he was secretly walking, and only crawls to keep us from not picking him up.

This morning during our usual routine of me making breakfast in the kitchen and Oliver watching his sign language video (By the way, he can sign milk, eat, all done, and his new favorite animal-dog) I watched from the kitchen as he walked around the living room holding a balloon. It was the cutest things I've ever seen.

I've also noticed today that he didn't want to be picked up as much. Oh...how quickly things change.

Happy Birth+Mother's Day to Me!

This year my birthday fell on the same day as Mother's day. Since I've been taking the cake decorating class, I thought it was a good chance to show off my skills to the family. I even decided to make all the food. Here's our Sunday Brunch menu:

Soy Chorizo Burrito with Cheese and Refried Beans, topped with Enchilada sauce
Egg White and Turkey Sausage Frittatas with Parsley
Fresh Baked (Pillsbury) Croissants brushed with butter and topped with Parmesan cheese.
Fresh cut fruits
And Natural Italian Soda from Whole Foods in Pink Grapefruit, Blood Orange, and Tangerine

The larger cake is a yellow cake with chocolate frosting, both from a sugar free cake and frosting mix.

The cupcakes are angel food cake. the recipe has been altered with egg whites and apple sauce so it's lower in fat.

We all had a wonderful time, and everyone loved the food and the decor. Needless to say it was truly a happy day!

Baby Milestone - Eleven Months

So much has happened in this past month. Oliver took his first swim lesson with his dad on June 7th. He did so great! (and Daddy did good too.) He went completely in the water and floated on his back, even crawled across a floating bridge. He seemed nervous and held on to Daddy very tight, but never cried. This week he'll be back again, I hope he is looking forward to it.

Oliver also took his first few steps on June 12th. They were tiny little steps, but he look so cute doing it. It's funny that he only does it when no one is watching. I think when he sees us, he knows we'll pick him up. So he goes back to crawling, which gets him around the house very fast.

We've started showing him a dvd for sign language. Each morning he watches the show while having some Special K corn flakes. He also needs his favorite drums nearby, so he can play the drum while the songs are playing on TV. And just over a week, he started to sign Milk, and lately he does the "all done" sign when he is full after a meal. He also signs dog, which comes in handy because he's been very friendly with the neighborhood dogs.

Our little boy not only loves to play the drums, he also loves to sing. When we go for our morning walks, sometimes he'll sing in his stroller while checking out the scenery. We also sing together in the bath, and pretty much any time he is in a good mood. Although he mostly says BaBaBa, he has discovered he can change his pitch. He can hit quite a few high notes.

It's amazing that he is truly a little person now with his own thoughts and ideas. He loves to point to things that he doesn't know the name for. Or he points to the places he wants to go. He can communicate so well. He also has started to share with food and put away his toys.

I can't wait to see what he does next! running? talking? oh my...

What has Ann been up to, that's not baby related.

So somehow this blog has become an update on what Oliver has been up to. Hey! get your own blog Oliver! (Just kidding, mommy loves you) I thought before I enter another milestone update. I should write down my latest projects.

During the first few months of Oliver's arrival. I had a really hard time adjusting to my new life. Postpartum depression hit me pretty hard, and I had trouble coping with being a stay at home mom. All that seem like so long ago, and I've since recovered and feeling 95% like my old self. The other 5% is my never ending nursing and pumping schedule that keeps me close to home. And the other is waking up at 5:30 am each morning and taking a 2 mile walk with Chris and Oliver.

The hard days have inspired me to write a guide book with tips to help new moms. I had one draft that was put to use when our friends Corri and Kristin were about to have their baby. Brielle was born the next day after an "in-home consultation". She must think her mom is a fast learner. I tried out the book on another new mom who also has a little Oliver. Both times I felt great helping someone going through a tough transition in their life. I was surprised that I have somehow made myself an expert at this subject. On and off I found time to rework the book and redesign it. It's been on hold for a little bit because of other projects, but I will get back to it for sure. My plan is to find a publisher as soon as it's finished.



I've also started to take cake decorating classes. I've been watching all the cake decorating shows on Food Network thinking "I can do that!" I found a class at Michael's craft store, and I have completed course 1, 2, and now taking course 3 making tiered cakes. I was never a fan of eating frosting, but now I'm making frosting and baking cakes almost every week. I am enjoying it a lot. The ladies in my class are all very nice, and they like to sing along to the music inside the store while piping frosting to a cake! I will be using this new skill to make the most awesome birthday cakes for Oliver!

Here are some "practice" cakes I've done.







And my latest project is designing a logo for my sister who is trying to open her own nightclub/restaurant in Shanghai. She's been an amazing jazz musician for many years, and it's time she takes a big step. We emailed back and forth and came up with the name Shanghai La Vida. After a few rounds of designing and revision. I'm still working on putting together a presentation for her while she looks for investors. Fingers crossed she'll soon be a happy club owner. Here's the final logo:



And last, we've just started to look for our next house. It's something we've talked about, but it always feels like it's a long time away. Now that Oliver is almost one, we are starting to think about where to move to so he can get the best education. That will keep me busy for a while I'm sure. I can't even think about packing and moving right now.

Until next time...here's another baby milestone update.