Samuel is growing up quickly into a little man as evidenced by the photos below. It probably helps that we dressed him like a grownup this past weekend. Both of the grandparents came for the weekend and it was a fun time.

On Halloween we had a lot of fun dressing up Samuel as a Starfleet Officer. To be more specific he wore a uniform from Star Trek:The Next Generation and the color he is wearing is for Security, Operations, and Engineering. We choose it obviously for Engineering. My mom made the incredible shirt that he is wearing and we found a pin that worked well as a communicator. He wears it well with his intense stare that he likes to do.

Then on Sunday, November 1st we dedicated Samuel to the LORD. It was a really special moment for us because we went onto the same stage that we got married on. Pastor Tonye had some great words to share about the meaning behind a dedication, that it is a time for the parents to declare how they want to raise the child. Also he mentioned that it is not a baptism because a baptism requires that the person has made a commitment to follow Christ. Also praying with us was Pastor Jack, Brian (head of Chidren’s Ministry and friend of Joe), and our good friends Josh & Sandra who are his Godparents.

We came home and had a quick little family photo shoot that turned out well. It’s crazy to think the last family photo was almost 3 months ago.

P.S. Joe also got an early Christmas present of a MacBook Pro which allowed us to download all of the photos that were on our camera. Take a look at the new Samuel 3 Months album for more photo fun.

A fun part about being a parent is watching your child grow. As Samuel gets bigger I am enjoying putting him in new outfits and seeing more of his personality emerge. Although I get sad sometimes when I miss how tiny he used to be.

A side benefit of watching your children grow is getting to look at baby stats. Since I find it interesting, I’ve decided to put an interactive chart on the journal so that others can see his progress. Below, in this post, is a big version of the chart and there will always be a small version in the sidebar on the right of the journal. Both versions allow you to right click on the chart and go to full screen to see it bigger. Hover over the data points to see what the exact value is. The newest data point is from yesterday when Samuel had his 2 month well visit. Enjoy!

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Samuel has started to get more animated lately, including starting to give us some real smiles. He also likes to smile at electronics – he must belong to us.

Take a look at this video to see his excitement over electronic items:

There are also some new photos up – Samuel 2 Months. Enjoy.

Samuel has been able to meet both sets of grandparents now.

The day that Samuel was born Kristen’s parents came down to visit for a week. Samuel enjoyed sleeping in Nonno and Noni’s (Italian for Grandpa and Grandma) arms.

Last weekend he got to meet his Grandpa, Grandma, and Great Grandma Olsen.

We also took a trip to Avila Barn, so Samuel could experience being outside and the family could enjoy some good food.

It was really great to see family and they were such a great help with Samuel.

Check out the different photo albums for more pictures:

• Nonno, Noni, and Samuel
• Grandpa, Grandma, Great Grandma, and Samuel
• Avila Barn with Grandparents

On July 25th at 6 p.m. we welcomed Samuel to the Olsen Clan. He was 20″ long and 7lbs 6oz. This means he was born 2.5 weeks early (kinda glad because he would’ve been a big baby). Here is the, not so brief, story behind that:

Thursday we went in for the standard prenatal exam after eating a late lunch. Kristen’s blood pressure was high and had elevated protein levels. The midwife told us she wanted to have Kristen monitored at labor and delivery. Between 5 and 9 they watched her blood pressure as well as test the levels in her body. At 9 we were told they believed she has preeclampsia and told us the treatment for it was to deliver. We trusted their judgement and decided to start inducing Kristen into labor. They got us all situated and started her treatment with an IV that included magnesium sulfate to fight the elevated blood pressure. After that they got her started on something to get her to induce. We quickly came up with a list of stuff for me to go and grab, as we hadn’t had the chance to pack a bag beforehand, and I went home to get it. We spent the whole night not getting much sleep as Kristen started to have contractions. We spent all day Friday doing this and the midwife wanted to break the her water but didn’t because Samuel was still not low enough. Come early Saturday morning the inducing was having less of an effect so she was taken off for a few hours and we were able to get a good amount of sleep. They then restarted her later in the morning and had her try to walk around to get Samuel to drop a little. This had the desired effect and one of the doctors came in and broke her water. Labor progressed much quicker from this point as the contraction started becoming stronger. A little after 5 Kristen was ready to start pushing and at 6 p.m. sharp Samuel was born. Everything went great and we have a healthy mom and baby. After two days they discharged both of them and were told to get lots of rest these next two weeks. We’re all really excited to start this new season of life.

Go to the photo gallery to see a few pictures of this guy.