Has it Been 6 Months Already?

Well...nearly.

I can't believe I haven't posted since Oliver's 6 month photo shoot...so many things have happened since then!!

First, we moved. Tommy was offered a new job with Edward Jones at their headquarters in Tempe, so we made the big move from Utah to Arizona. We had to make the commitment to the job and move in about 3 weeks, so it was VERY fast! We came down to Arizona and were super blessed to find a house to rent really easily that was right in our price range. Then we packed up the Utah house and drove down. Tommy drove the moving truck while Pam and I followed in the Malibu with Oliver. He was actually much better on the trip than I thought he'd be. We stopped about every 4 hours to nurse and eat and stretch our legs, but other than that he mostly slept the whole time we were in the car. Once we were like 30 minutes away from our destination, he got really grumpy so I sat in the back and played with him until we made it. He was a trooper :)

Next, we conquered crawling! Before we moved, Oliver was trying so hard to get crawling down but wasn't quite there. After we got to Arizona, he really took to crawling. Now he is very mobile...he is always standing up using any furniture or person he can find and then climbing all over anything he can. This makes for lots of new bumps and bruises, but I feel like he is also a lot less frustrated now that he can get where he wants to go. For Christmas we got Oliver one of those toys you stand up with and push to learn to walk and he's taken to it really quickly so I'm not sure how much longer we will have a crawling boy...

This is Oliver crawling back in October when he'd really gotten it down.

Then, we celebrated lots of our first holidays with Oliver. We spent Thanksgiving with Tommy's family in Cave Creek. Grandma McLaughlin, Aunt Patty, and Charlie all came over to celebrate with us, which was very exciting-it's always fun to see Grandma play with Oliver. I was in charge of pies this year, so I made an apple, pumpkin, 2 strawberry and cream, and a caramel apple. They were pretty tasty if I do say so myself. While Grandma was there, we also went to a Japanese grill restaurant, where Oliver was terrified of the man making our food in front of us, but did enjoy fried rice, shrimp, and salmon. That little boy got so much food, but he was loving it. We celebrated Christmas in Arizona, too. On Christmas morning, I woke up at 6 and couldn't get back to sleep so I made some cinnamon rolls. By 7, Tommy was up and we were just waiting for Oliver...Finally 8 rolled around and the boy was still sleeping, so Tommy and I went and looked at our stockings and opened a few presents until Oliver finally got up. Then Tommy's family came over and we spent the day playing with new games and toys, watching movies, and eating ham :)

Here is Oliver when he first got up Christmas Morning 

Finally, we had a way fun trip to Florida at the beginning of December! It was so much fun!! Oliver and I went to Disney World with Paul & RaeAnn (and company) and Dad our first day there. I was so surprised by how many rides Oliver could go on! He was a little scared on Aladdin's magic carpet ride, but he seemed to enjoy the Tiki Room, Pirates of the Caribbean, Philharmagic, and the Peter Pan ride (I think that one was his favorite). He was so tired though that when we rode on It's a Small World, he was standing up on the seat next to me and he just leaned against me and totally fell asleep. Haha, sweet boy. The next day we caught up on some sleep and Tommy came to join us. Then we spent 2 and a half days at Universal Studios. We got to go to the Harry Potter Hogsmeade world and ride a way fun dragon ride and go into the Hogwarts Castle (amazing!!). It was so cool all the stuff you got to see in there!! We also got to go visit London and Diagon Alley. The shops in Diagon Alley were so cool, when you first walk in it is just like the movie. All the details they had in each store was just incredible. And then we rode the ride through Gringott's Bank and got to eat lunch at the Leaky Cauldron...it was SO good. Hot Butterbeer is amazing, you must try it. We also did all the other park rides which were way fun, but Harry Potter was definitely a highlight for me and Tommy.

Well, I feel like you are now caught up :) I will try not to wait so long to post again (hopefully I'll post next week after Oliver's FIRST BIRTHDAY!!!!)

6 Months Old

Well, for Oliver's half-birthday, we had our friend Tiffanie come over to our house and take his 6 month pictures. She did his newborn picture session and when she saw him at 6 months she said, "Holy cow, I can't believe how much he's changed!" I thought, I should do a post with all his pictures to document what he's doing now and how incredibly cute and awesome he is so...here we go!

Oliver loves his tummy time. He rolls over from his back to his belly way more than going the other way around. He is trying to figure out crawling and, so far, he can scoot backward pretty well, turn in circles, and get his knees under his belly (though he usually has to stuff his head into the ground to do it...he hasn't quite figured out how to push himself up on his hands while his knees are under him).

 Oliver also loves his exersaucer. He really enjoys standing on his legs and loves having the freedom to turn himself around. There is a big apple on his exersaucer and he likes to eat the stem-it's his favorite toy on there.

 Oliver is just starting to sit up on his own. He used to get excited and rock himself over, but he's started to get good control and he can stabilize himself whenever he starts getting excited (though I still stay close when he's sitting, just in case).

 He is always making the craziest faces. He smiles whenever he gets Tommy's attention. He's started sucking his bottom lip a lot (I think he's starting to teethe). He opens his mouth SO wide whenever he's eating, especially with new foods.

 Oliver loves to kicks his legs out super straight and point his toes to extend himself as long as possible. We think he's trying to make up for his shorty legs (that he got from his daddy). All of his onesies get tight on his long torso, but his pants are always rolled up (even when they are a size smaller than his age).

  He is starting to lose his baby hair and grow in lighter hair on the top of his head (though the back of his head still has a lot of the long, dark brown hair). Lately he is very into pulling hair, especially mama's hair. He tries really hard to grab his own, but it's pretty difficult. He also likes to scratch his hands on the wall, his high chair, his car seat, etc. as if he's trying to figure out the textures. Sometimes I can hear him scratching his mattress through the monitor...it's pretty hilarious.

  Oliver doesn't enjoy cuddling-he gets too interested with anything he can get his hands on. When mama is working, Oliver likes to try and grab the keys on my laptop. he also likes to suck on my headphones (he already broke my headset with his slober) and pull out the power cord. When we went to the pediatrician for his 6 month appointment, he was trying to unplug the scale and the nurse said that baby girls never even notice that cord, just the boys. Oh my luck :)

 Oliver is in the 50th percentile for weight, 60th percentile for head size, and 29th percentile for height (our little shorty).

 We love to read books together. On Tommy's nights off of work, we usually try to read a book before bed. When Oliver is getting grumpy but not quite ready for bed, I will put out a book and he will sit in my lap and play with the pages for a good ten minutes before he remembers that he was grumpy :)

 Another activity that is sure to get Oliver in a good mood is bath time. He LOVES to take baths! He has a bunch of bath toys that he will splash with and eat for ever if I let him. He has a big inflatable duck that he takes his baths in so now he can lay back or sit up if he likes (any chance to control his own mobility makes him happy).

Oliver is so much fun, he has completely changed our lives and we are so thankful to have such a happy, healthy baby in our family.

*Pictures courtesy of Tiffanie May Photography

My Golden Birthday

This year I turned 23, and what a special Golden Birthday I had!! We were in New Mexico for my birthday, so after a day of working in the hotel room, we got the party started with Tommy's family!!

On our flight down to Albuquerque, the plane was super empty so Oliver got to keep his car seat...he slept the whole time but he was also flipping his mama off the whole time so...not sure how we feel about that...

We got to go to a BBQ house in Albuquerque that was on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives called The Cube! It was sooo yummy! Tommy got a burger and it was HUGE and delicious, and I got beef brisket and smoked beans that were amazing! I felt so special walking where Guy Fieri has walked haha.

Oliver's Aunts all gave him a bath in Grandma's living room, which is the same spot where Grandma use to give Tommy baths when he was a baby. She showed us a picture of her and all her friends circled around Tommy's bucket/tub just like Oliver's aunts were circled around him; it was pretty sweet :)

After dinner, Tommy and I went shopping with Pam and Monica at Target. I've decided recently that I need to change up my style for a couple of reasons...1. I am a 23 year old now, hello mature., 2. Have you been in American Eagle lately? a little too hipster for me..., and 3. I'm a mama so I should probably look the part, right? haha, so anyway, we went to Target and I got some cute skirts and blouses to help my style out. They are way cute!! Then we also got to go to the mall that weekend (long live the birthday) and I got even more cute stuff from Express! I felt so special in my new clothes! :) I also got surprised with an iPhone from Tommy!! that's right, my first ever smart phone, I felt so special!!

Here we are at the Zoo...you can see me in one of my cute new shirts :)

We also got to go to the New Mexico Zoo while we were down there, which was pretty special since Tommy went there a lot growing up and he loves to go to the Zoo! He was super excited to take Oliver there for his first time, but, of course, Oliver slept through the whole thing...we did get him a monkey toy (his new favorite) and some giraffe play toys for the bath while we were there, so the zoo trip will not be forgotten.

Oliver loved hanging out with his Great Grandma. He laughed SOO much for her; it was adorable! And I got to talk to Great Grandma a lot while we were there about growing up in Japan and how her and Great Grandpa met, which was way cool. It was a very fun weekend with lots of love for the Oliver and the Mama :)

Trip to Germany!

This month our destination was Germany. We really wished we could've gone to the real place and visited Kenna, but our much cheaper solution was the following:

For dinner, we had homemade cheese spaetzle (Americanized with cheddar cheese as opposed to Emmentaler cheese) and mashed potato pancakes...yummy :)

Spaetzle Noodles

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 cups flour, all-purpose
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 eggs
• about 1/2 cup water

Instructions:

• Mix flour and salt in a bowl.
• Add eggs and mix well.
• Gradually add just enough water to make a smooth, light, and firm dough.
• Let stand for 10 minutes. Meanwhile bring a large pot of salted water to boil.
• Push dough through the largest holes of a grater or metal colander directly into the boiling water. If dough is firm, it can be pushed through a ricer.
• Noodles will float when they are done (will take a few minutes). Remove with slotted spoon.

Cheese Spaetzle

Ingredients:

• 3 cups cooked Spaetzle (12 oz. dry Spaetzle)
• 2 - 3 cups shredded Emmentaler cheese
• 2 tbsp. butter (or olive oil)
• 2 small onions (sliced)
• salt and pepper

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 325° F.
• Heat butter (or oil) in skillet and sautee onions until tender, about 5 minutes.
• Butter casserole dish. Begin by layering with 1/3 of the spaetzle, season with salt and pepper, sprinkle with 1/3 of the cheese. Repeat, until you have layered 3 times.
• Top with the sauteed onions.
• Bake, uncovered, about 20 - 30 minutes, or until bubbly and slightly browned on top

Then we watched the Bourne Supremacy (since it's the one in Berlin).

Stayed tuned for our next (real) trip to New Mexico next week :)

Oliver's First Easter

I'm a little behind in posting, but we had a very fun Easter this year and I need to document it! Even though Oliver will have no recollection of this Easter, Tommy and I had a lot of fun making it a memorable, special day for him. I decided to make Oliver an Easter basket this year-I always loved the special basket that my mom had made for me and I wanted him to have something that I worked hard on for him. Of course, I don't quite have the skills my mom did, so I searched on pinterest for a basket idea that didn't require a sewing machine...what I came up with was one made out of construction paper. Sounds silly, but it actually turned out pretty cute (though I don't know how long it'll last). Tommy and I picked out Hop for Oliver and a couple of fun toys that he will hopefully start being interested in sometime in the next few months...I also stole one of Tommy's Reese's eggs to put in his basket, cuz even though he can't eat candy, I thought he might like one piece in there haha. When we woke up that morning, I locked Oliver and Tommy in our bedroom so I could assemble their baskets and hide them in the house. Tommy helped Oliver search (I was actually surprised out how long it took him to find them...I must be a good hider...). And Tommy surprised me by setting up some Easter presents for me on the bed while he was locked away.

We took pictures of smiling Oliver, then played with his toys (i.e. I put them in his hands and he waved his arms around until the toys fell out), watched Hop (which made me miss/talk about Jenna a lot since I use to watch it with her all the time), and then we went to church! Our sacrament meeting was really cool that day; they had a narrator sharing testimonies from different apostles and prophets on the atonement and then, between each testimony, the choir would sing a song. It was very cool! It reminded me of the Christmas programs we normally have each year and it was very moving to see all the work that went into creating an Easter program that was just as special.
Then we picked up Monica from the airport because she was on her way back up to school after spending a week in Arizona. She got to play with Oliver for a little while, which was very fun for him; he always loves his auntie time. We had Tommy's aunt and uncle and their family come over for Sunday dinner so they could see our new place, so we made ham, mashed potatoes, and salad and Cheri brought yummy rolls and strawberry shortcake. We had a lot of fun eating and chatting and, of course, playing with Oliver. Man, I wish I had taken more pictures (as always), but here is a video of Oliver laughing to make up for it.

The New Digs

As promised, here are some pictures of our new place!!

Here is the front room, as seen from the front door...

Here's our kitchen (view from the dining room table)

And here's our dining area...woohoo for having room enough for a kitchen table!!

Here's the hallway next to the kitchen which leads to....

 The office on the right hand side..here's a view from the door

and a view from the window

Followed by the nursery (during nap time, so only one shot from the door and then a very quiet exit)

And on the left side of the hall, a guest bathroom (aka my bathroom)

 Followed by our bedroom...

 and the master bath (aka Tommy's bathroom)

And check it out, closet doors!! woohoo!!

From here we go down the stairs (view from the family room)

 Here's our laundry room/family room in the basement. It's pretty empty right now, but eventually we want to get a futon (for guests to sleep on) and possibly a projector...we will see.

And here's our scanty food storage under the stairs. Tommy wanted this to be Oliver's bedroom (to make it very Harry Potter-esque), but we decided to be good parents haha

Well, there you have it; that's our tour! Feel free to come again (in real life next time!)

Lots of Trips!!

We have been traveling fiends these days...First we had our trip to Jamaica for our monthly date around the world...We made jerk chicken wings and fried bananas for dinner and they were super yummy!

Jerk Chicken Wings

First you have to make your wings....

Chicken Ingredients:

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts (cut into 1” chunks)
Oil (for deep frying)1 cup all purpose flour2 teaspoons salt½ teaspoon ground black pepper½ teaspoon cayenne pepper¼ teaspoon garlic powder½ teaspoon paprika1 egg1 cup milk

Chicken Instructions:

Heat oil in a deep-fryer to 375 degrees. In a large bowl combine flour, salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, and paprika. In a small bowl whisk together egg and milk. Dip each piece of chicken in the egg mixture, and then roll in the flour mixture. Repeat so that each piece of chicken is double coated. Refrigerate the breaded chicken for 20 minutes.
Fry chicken in the hot oil in batches until the outside is nicely browned and the juices run clear (about 5 minutes per batch). Drain on paper towels. Repeat until all of the chicken is gone.
Mix fried chicken bits with your wing sauce.

Jerk Chicken Wing Sauce

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons green onion (minced)
1 cup water
¾ cup ketchup
½ cup dark brown sugar
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons hot sauce
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 ½ teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon cornstarch
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoons nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoon sage
1/8 teaspoon thyme

Directions:

In a small saucepan sauté onion in butter over medium heat. Whisk in the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes.

A couple weeks later, we had our trip to Arizona (this one we actually got on a plane for...)

Here's Oliver getting prepped for his fun in the sun with some slightly-large sunglasses :)

 This trip was Oliver's first time on an airplane and he did SO well!! Maybe it was because everyone on the plane kept telling him how adorable he is, so he thought, yea...I won't get fussy today. Whatever the reason, he was an angel and slept most of the flight there and back.

Here he is sleeping in Daddy's arms on the way home

Grandma and Grandpa got Oliver a convertible car seat, so he felt like quite the big boy sitting in this seat (and he was looking a little too old for me...what happened to my newborn??)

Aunt Kati said he always made this face at her...on the way to church he just started at her like this until he fell asleep!

 The main reason for the trip (other than it having been way to long since we were last there) was for Oliver to meet his Great Grandma McLaughlin and his Great Aunt Patty. They gave him so much loving!! He was so spoiled; they would never let him go too long without being held and they gave him lots of toys and cute clothes (we had more luggage for Oliver than for me and Tommy combined!)

Great Grandma holding Oliver...do you see the Japanese resemblance??

 We went and saw Divergent and Veronica Mars (they were both great!), met a lot of friends in Mesa, and ate lots of yummy food (I've been craving The Good Egg for like a year and a half). Our baby was so exhausted that he started falling asleep when we set him on the bed to get his swaddle blanket ready-no binkie or nothing!

An exhausted bear after being set down for like one second

 But when he was awake, he was the happiest baby! He also had his first giggles with Daddy on March 25th; it was so cute and exciting.

Aunt Coey got this way cute shot of him smiling and I love it

 While we were there, we also got to meet James, a 9-month old baby of some of Tommy's parent' friends. As you can see, that 7 month difference is a pretty big one...

We had a super fun time and were pretty sad to leave, but we got to come home to our new place!! That's right, we've made the move upstairs and no longer live in a basement. We are really liking the space in our new apartment/house and as soon as decorating is done (which is taking forever since we have to work around naptime for hanging things up), I will put up pictures :) Stay tuned!

Oliver's Blessing Day

Oliver's blessing day was a very special day. We took our time in the morning getting ready; Grandpa McLaughlin gave Oliver a bath and we had fun video taping them playing together at the sink. We put Oliver down for a nap so I could take my time getting ready, then we made lots and lots of chili and woke up our baby to eat and get dressed. Right after we got him dressed, most of the family showed up to head over to the church. We snagged the front benches in the chapel. I was feeling super nervous and when I told Tommy that he was like, "I don't know why, you're not really doing anything..." haha but I was very anxious to hear Oliver's blessing. I kept asking Tommy if he knew how to start the blessing and he reassured me with, "I'm sure I'll figure it out when I get there."
During the meeting, the first counselor announced the blessing of a different baby and after that baby's blessing, he moved on to the next part of the meeting. Our three rows of guests were waving our hands to try to get his attention and when he saw us, he said "Oh man...this is what I did last time we had two baby blessings..." it was pretty funny. But our whole group got up and moved to the front. I felt very blessed to see a group of 12 loved ones and priesthood holders holding my baby boy. I felt the way I did when Oliver received his priesthood blessings in the NICU; we are so blessed to have such a wonderful support system for our family. The blessing was very sweet and I was very emotional the whole meeting...I mean, who wouldn't be looking at this sweet baby??

Update on Oliver

Today a lady from Kids on the Move came to do a home study of Oliver. They are an organization that helps underdeveloped babies and toddlers and they were coming to evaluate Oliver's development and see if he qualifies for their services. The lady observed his motor skills and he gave her some good smiles and showed her his head holding skills. She said that he was right on track developmentally and he's actually advanced in tracking objects and holding up his head (he's a STRONG baby!!). We are so happy to hear he is doing so well!! He doesn't qualify for their services, which is a super great thing, and the lady said he seemed like a perfectly normal, healthy baby :)

...and I would add super super cute as well :)

This week we've moved out of Newborn sizes and moved into 0-3 month clothes (though some of them still have quite a bit of room for growing). Oliver's blessing is this Sunday and he has a pediatrician visit in 2 weeks, so keep posted for more updates!!

Trip to GREECE

Among the chaos of figuring out our new schedule with Oliver, handling the new set of chores that seem to have come along with a new baby, and spending our first 2 weeks without any visitors since Oliver's been born, we still found time for our monthly trip out of the country...this month, we went to Greece.
For our trip we had Saucy Chicken Gyros! I was very happy to find this recipe because I knew Tommy wasn't the biggest fan of Greek food, but this was just Americanized enough that he enjoyed it while we still got to feel pretty authentic.

Saucy Chicken Gyros

For the Chicken:

4 cloves garlic, smashed
Juice of 1 lemon
3 tsp. red wine vinegar
3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
3 Tbsp. plain Greek yogurt
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. dried dill
salt & pepper (to taste)
1 1/2 lbs. boneless chicken breasts cut into thick strips

For the Tzatziki:

16 oz. plain Greek yogurt
2-3 cloves garlic, minced or grated
1 Tbsp. white wine vinegar
1 tsp. dried dill
1 tsp. dried oregano
half a lemon, juiced
1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

Other ingredients:

pepperoncini, diced
cherry tomatoes, halved
feta cheese
6-8 pitas

Directions:

1. Prepare the chicken, combine the garlic, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, olive oil, greek yogurt, oregano, dill, salt and pepper to taste in a medium bowl. Whisk together until mixed well. Add the chicken pieces to the bowl and mix well to coat. Cover and refrigerate for about 1 hour or overnight.
2. To prepare the tzatziki sauce, mix together the greek yogurt, garlic, white wine vinegar, dill, oregano, salt and pepper to taste, and lemon juice. Drizzle with olive oil. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow the flavors to meld.
3. To cook the chicken preheat your broiler. Remove the chicken from the marinade, reserving the marinade. Place the chicken on a baking pan and broil the chicken for 5-7 minutes until cooked through. Pour the remaining marinade in a medium size skillet and bring to a boil. Simmer for 3 minutes and then toss the cooked chicken with the sauce.
4. Heat pitas. Top with chicken, tzatziki sauce, sliced tomatoes, pepperoncinis, and feta cheese. Serve immediately.

After dinner we watched Hercules, which was very enjoyable. Tommy and I picked up some funny jokes that we hadn't picked up before when we were younger ("Somebody call IXII!")

Oliver & James

Pictures from Ashley's visit!! When Tommy saw these, he said "I hope they're best friends" :)