"My New Bern Travelogue"

Sunday, July 27
Dad had to travel for work this weekend so Mom, Big Bro, and I decided to head to New Bern for a short two-day vacation.

Before we left the house, I did a little online research about New Bern--since the last time we went I was too young to read--and this is what I learned...

Founded in 1710, New Bern is the second oldest town in the state. Royal Governor William Tryon made New Bern the state capitol and decided to build his residence, Tryon Palace, in New Bern in 1770. Located at the confluence of the Trent and Neuse rivers, New Bern was a major port and trading center in the 1800's. New Bern was also captured and occupied by the Union Army in 1862. Today, New Bern has more than 150 sites listed on the National Register of Places. There is lots to see and do here, including Tryon Palace and gardens, the Fireman's Museum (Big Bro has been there before), the drugstore where Pepsi-Cola was invented, some very old churches, and lots of historic homes.

What else is in New Bern? GRAMMA B, CAPTAIN JOHN, and MISTY!!

Boy, was Gramma B happy to see me!














Smoooch! Smaaack!














Snuggle! Cuddle!















Squeeze! Giggle!












Big Bro had to get in on the action...












1, 2, 3....












...DOGPILE! (Where's Misty?)

We unpacked the car, and then Mom set up my Pack-n-Play.













Gramma B gave me some toys to "play" with. She doesn't know I'm a geometry whiz...I played along and acted like I was trying to shape-sort but, really, I was proving algorithmic theorems in my head.












All that number-crunching made me hungry. "Hey guys, what's for dinner?"

After a dinner of pear & apple babyfood, I was ready to get cleaned up in the bath tub. But, I was completely unprepared for what happened next. Apparently, Gramma B used to collect rubber duckies.

LOTS of rubber duckies.

This was before I was born. Heck, I think it was even before Big Bro was born. She's only kept a small number of the 100+ she used to have--each with a unique name written on the bottom. Well, I got a chance to play with a handful of her favorites in the bath tonight. Pretty fun, I must say!

Hey, maybe New Bern needs a Rubber Duckie Historical Society and Museum. I nominate Gramma B as founding chairperson.














"Mom, can you believe all these duckies?"















"Look this one's name is 'Goldie Two.' Think there was a 'Goldie One'?"

Monday, July 28
After a good night's sleep, I woke up hungry and ready for a great day. Gramma B made some really yummy (so I hear) blueberry muffins and Big Bro made carrot juice...

















When my Mom was growing up, this was a daily staple (along with brown rice and seaweed).












This is my first time trying a sippy cup. Carrot juice is yummy!

After breakfast, everyone else went for a walk but I decided to hang back and do a little light reading. Gramma B has loads of great gardening and landscaping books. I thought I might pick up a few ideas for our yard back home.

I've always liked the Rodale series of gardening books. (Well, ever since I started reading--waaay back when I was, oh, about six months old.) In Rodale's Landscape Problem Solver, author Jeff Ball outlines organic approaches for treating pests, disease, and other common cultivation problems affecting trees, shrubs, lawns, and other landscape plants.

















"Hmm, we should be pruning back our ajuga...I did not know that!"

















I even decided to mix up a small batch of potting soil based on a recipe from the book. I mixed together 8 quarts potting soil, 1 quart perlite, 1 quart vermiculite, 8 quarts sphagnum peat moss, 1 cup greensand, and 1 cup gypsum.

















"Yeah, that ought to do it...A nice, nutrient-rich blend for our container plants."

All work and no play makes Ollie a dull boy so, when the fam got back, we all played a couple rounds of croquet.

















We play informal backyard croquet, with nine wickets (or "hoops," as they say in Commonwealth countries). Competitive croquet has, as you probably know, just six wickets.

















"Quiet on the green, please, while I make this Rush Shot."

















Gramma B and Big Bro gave me a run for my money but, in the end, I pegged out first (a.k.a., finished the game, for you weekend-croquet'ers out there).

On Monday evening, we hopped in the car and headed back home. Just a two-hour drive later, we found ourselves back in our lovely home, with Dad already back from his trip, and with happy thoughts of our time in New Bern fresh in our memories.

Thanks for all your hospitality, Gramma B and Cap'n John. I love you both!

Until I blog again,
Oliver William

Post-Breakfast Nap; Cute Little Feet; Baby Calisthenics; First "Grown Up" Meal

This morning, after a breakfast of rice cereal, Ollie fell asleep in his high chair.













So tired!


















Look how long his legs are when he's all stretched out. Gosh, he is getting so big!!

I don't know what it is, exactly, about my kids' feet but they are SO pudgy and cute! Merrit had the most adorable little feet when he was a baby and Roo's are just as cute!

I especially love to look at them when he sits like this:


















And his feet are all folded up under his rump like this:













Oh gracious...I could just eat 'em up!


















The play area in our kitchen has become Roo's own personal gym. Here, he does deep knee bends.













...And now, stretch...













...Hold it for eight counts...













...And, exhale...













Jenga says, "Look kid, you go your way and I'll go mine."

Tonight, I decided to puree some leftovers for Ollie...ya know, give him a bit of a break from the green beans and carrot mixture he's been eating for the last nine straight meals. Poor fella.

Dinner tonight was a welcome change I'm sure. He had what the rest of the family had--brown rice with stir fry (Japanese eggplant, chicken, bok choy, thin-sliced celery, and shitake mushrooms...all ingredients from our trip to the market yesterday.) It was pureed to a smooth consistency. Kind of gross looking, if you ask me, but he loved it!

This was also Ollie's first taste of meat, come to think of it.

Trip to the Asian Market; Still a Night Owl!

My friend Brandy and I took our kids to the Asian market today. How much fun was that?! She was looking for bento boxes and I was just tagging along for the ride. (How, then, did I end up spending $22.00?)

We plopped Roo into the back of her double stroller (alongside Brandy's youngest, Natalie) and navigated the store with The Merrit Man and her son, Weston, "on the loose."











A good luck omen. Could this mean the kids will ACTUALLY listen while we're in the store? ...Naaah!


















Buckle up, kiddos!


















Fish on ice...















...Or fish still swimming. Take your pick!














Who needs a trip to the aquarium when you've got the Asian market? (But seriously, Brandy and I discussed how in the world we'd take a live fish home and fix it up for dinner.)


















Weston and Merrit really loved the fish tanks.


















Ollie on the rice noodle isle.















Home again, home again, jiggity jig. Thanks for a fun day out, Brandy!!

Tonight, at bedtime, I was reminded of how "Roo" got his nickname in utero...

He would "wake up" every night at about 10:30 and start kicking away at my insides. You know, using my kidneys as punching bags and my bladder for kickboxing practice. Mike and I would be sitting on the couch, watching a movie or something, and I'd feel Roo start kicking away and, sure enough, it'd be getting on toward 10:30 or so...Mike would put his hand on my tummy and we'd just crack up as Roo would "open up a can of...," well, you know the expression...

So tonight, I was laughing because Roo is still such a little night owl!! Even though he goes to bed EARLIER than he did when he was younger (9:30pm instead of 11:30pm), he still turns into Mr. Personality when the moon comes up.

Need proof?



















































































And what, pray tell, is going on on the other side of the room?













Big brother sleeps soundly through all the ruckus!

Close-Ups

I know that all moms think their babies are beautiful, but Ollie is just ridiculously adorable. Am I right or am I right?

Sleepless Nights: Growth Spurt? Teething?

Ollie has been up at night a lot more than usual lately. Last night, he ended up sleeping in bed with us all night. He nursed off and on throughout the night. I guess he's either hungrier than normal or is nursing for comfort because his teeth hurt. In any case, I'm happy to oblige. I'm tired today but I feel bad for the little fella.

Olliology 101

One cool thing about nursing your baby is that you have a chance to study them so closely, so often. Just this evening, as I was feeding Ollie before bed, I noticed that his entire hand (from tips of fingers to base of palm) is the same as the length of my pointer finger. It seems like Ollie has grown SO MUCH since November (and, he HAS!) but then when you look at how tiny his hand is, it sinks in all over again that he's still such a tiny little baby!

Other things I have studied up close:

• There's a small freckle on his left thigh.
• He has two birthmarks, the kind they call "stork bites"...one between his eyebrows and one at the base of his head, just at the hairline.
  
• When he's starting to fall asleep, he starts to moans softly: "Nnnnnnnnnnnnnnhhhhhhhhhhh."
  
• His eyelashes aren't as long and his cheeks aren't as fat as Merrit's were at this age.
• He doesn't have any cowlicks.
  
• The boy has A LOT of ear wax!

Family in Town

After the party, there was lots more entertaining to do, since Mike's sisters and their families came to visit us! Good thing Ollie is such a social butterfly!

















Ollie LOVES his Aunt Rita!













Ollie soaking up good family time. Aunt Kim and Aunt Rita fight over who his favorite is. Now, now, ladies...There's enough Ollie to go around!













Tyler kept us all entertained with his most awesome guitar playing.













Mike set up the tripod and took a photo of us all in the low-light of the late evening. By this time, both kids were in bed and we had a fire going in the firepit. What a great time with family! Come back soon, y'all, hear?