Four years old!

Over the last four years Oliver has...

Gained 32 pounds. He weighed 3 pounds at birth and had just hit 4 pounds when he was discharged from the NICU four weeks later. He's gone from wearing preemie clothes to wearing size 4T clothing and size 8 shoes. 

My first time holding Oliver (he was 6 days old)

Has been hospitalized five times and ridden in an ambulance twice. He spent the first 4 weeks in the NICU (one week in Harrisburg and three at Geisinger). He had urological surgery at CHOP in February and ended up spending one night in Philadelphia because his oxygen saturation levels were too low to send him home after the surgery. He spent 4 days at Evangelical Hospital in April of 2014 due to RAD and RSV, and he spent 4 days in the PICU at Geisinger the end of December into early January 2015 due to RAD, RSV, and a collapsed lung. His most recent hospitalization was at Geisinger in February 2016 due to the human menopneumovirus and RAD.

1 Year Old

Shown he loves to be the center of attention. He is an extrovert like his big sister. One of his favorite expressions is "hey guys look at me" or "watch me, teacher" (in swimming lessons). He is quick to point out even to his teacher what the class might do next (ex. in swimming lessons). He is definitely a leader not a follower. The downside of this trait is that he has to work more on being obedient. He is prone to defiance far more than his siblings ever have been.

Grown in his independence. Like his big sister, he is prone to insisting that he can do things on his own. Ian on the other hand often has to be prodded to try to do things independently. Oliver is the only one of my three who learned how to buckle his car seat at the age of three. The other two didn't learn until they were switched to a booster seat at the age of four. He prefers to dress himself. One of his favorite expressions is "I do it by myself."

Learned how to eat. At six months old I began introducing Oliver to solid foods, and he has done a terrific job ever since then! He is willing to try anything. He recently was promoted out of his booster seat at the kitchen table. He still likes to be fed sometimes although he certainly is capable of feeding himself. He likes vegetables more than fruit. He is requesting his bib far less often. I think it won't be long until they are put away for good.

Learned to sleep through the night. Currently he sleeps (on average) from 8pm to 7am. Several months ago he gave up his afternoon nap, but he will still often take a nap in the van if he's in there during the afternoon. He's gone from an incubator to a bassinet (in the NICU) to a crib at home to a twin sized bed. 

2 years 

Learned to climb. Although he shows some fear of water (doesn't want to submerge his entire head), he shows no fear of heights or climbing. He scared me once by climbing to the top of one of our very tall apple trees.

Learned to enjoy many different activities.  He really loves to help me cook in the kitchen. It doesn't matter what I am cooking, Oliver wants to help! He has learned 18 letters of the alphabet and enjoys pointing them out to us when he sees one he knows while we are out and about. His favorite game by far is Candyland. He will play that game again and again and again if you are willing! He can now ride a tricycle or a two wheel bike with training wheels. He can do puzzles up to about 60 pieces on his own. The books he asks us to read the most often are the "If you give..." books by Laura Numeroff and Felicia Bond.

We love you SO much, Oliver, and we look forward to seeing how you will grow and change over the coming years! He is having the biggest birthday party that any of my three children have ever had - the five of us, three grandparents (my mom will be missed), two uncles, two aunts, and seven cousins are joining us for a pool party later today! He has been VERY excited about this birthday, but thankfully it's not the gifts that excite him. He truly doesn't have a materialistic bone in his body yet (yahoo!). He is just looking forward to party hats, cake, and party blowers (is that what they are called?). Hope it's a very special day, Oliver Elliot!