Thursday, August 25, 2011

Life with our toddler

Oh, how life has changed now that Owen is 15 months. It is amazing how his personality, curiosity, and determination have come alive in the last three months. Luke and I have enjoyed every minute with this little guy. Here is a quick picture of how life is going with our little toddler:
  • Owen is now 22 lbs 8 oz. He is still gaining slowly, but since his activity has shot through the roof I am not all that surprised.
  • Owen LOVES to climb. He has learned to pull his shorter toys over to the furniture to use as a step stool in order to get to greater heights. He has climbed into our friends high chair all on his own, and he has even grabbed onto the handle of the stove and tried to use his feet to climb to the top. The last one was quite startling and has tested our parenting skills as we try to teach him that the stove is dangerous.
  • Owen has really improved his vocabulary both with sign and speaking. He regularly signs milk, please, eat, and all done. He has also signed thank you, but not very often. However, what Owen wants to do most is communicate by speaking. His list of words include: daddy, doggie, bye, hi, mamma, shoe, tree, bush, cheese, ball, this, that, out, book, two, and up. It amazes me how often he tries to mimic what we say. He is close to saying A, B, C, and we have caught him a few times trying to sing the alphabet song in his own baby language. He also tries to count 1, 2, 3, but just like the alphabet song only the number two is very articulate.
  • Owen still loves people. He freely gives hugs and is now starting to give kisses. When we are on Skype, he will blow a kiss and wave goodbye at the end of a conversation. It is fun to watch him be social and interact with people around him. He especially loves playing with other kids and wants to be right in the middle of the action whenever people are playing near him.
  • He absolutely loves the outdoors. This kid would live outside if we let him! It is not long after he gets up everyday that he starts asking to go outside. If he doesn't like our answer, he often grabs our hand and tries to pull us toward the door. If that doesn't work, he walks behind us and tries pushing our legs. Poor guy probably thinks mommy and daddy aren't very good listeners. He was in heaven when we took him camping earlier this summer, because we spent every waking moment outside of the tent. He had hours of fun playing in dirt, throwing his ball, and marching around in the woods. He also loves to watch for planes whenever we are outside. As soon as he hears the sound of a plane overhead, he point to the sky and looks around rapidly until he finds it. Once he sees it, he wants everyone around him to look and throws his hands to his head in amazement. Needless to say, we have quite a character on our hands.
  • Owen is becoming rather clever. He is constantly trying to find ways to get what he wants when he knows the answer will be no. For instance, he loves to play with the light on the refrigerator door (he pretty much loves pushing any button), however, he knows I will not sit and hold the door open for him. So whenever he wants to push the button he signs for his milk, and follows me to the refrigerator. When I open the door, he quickly walks in front of me and starts pushing the button. Then, when I try to hand him his milk, he will push it away.
  • Owen has his first best friend. He absolutely adores our friend's daughter, Avery. I have been watching her two days a week lately, and he just beams whenever she comes in the door. The play really well together, and Owen frequently showers her with hugs.
  • Owen loves spending time with his3 month old cousin, Annorah. He is completely fascinated with her. Whenever we are visiting, he continually checks on with her and gently leans his cheek close to hers. If she starts crying, he feels the need to make sure she is really okay. He hasn't quite figured out that she can't play catch with him or hold his toys, but I am sure those days are coming soon.
I might be biased, but I am pretty sure this little guy is the cutest!









Owen has spotted a plane!

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Owen and his pink princess pjs.

Last night, while playing Carcassonne with Josh and Kristen, Owen decided to reach up on to the table and grab a blue plastic cup full of water.  He then proceeded to dump the entire contents of the cup down his face and pajamas.  This led to a look of utter shock and bewilderment.  Since we didn't bring any spare clothes he had to borrow Avery's pink princess pajamas.  I thought to myself, "I should take a picture to embarrass him when he is older". 

Today, when retelling the story to my coworker David Miller, he recalled the time when his older sister put him and his twin brother in 2 piece bathing suits when they were a year and a half and took pictures.  I guess Owen's circumstances are only modestly humiliating in comparison.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Monday, May 30, 2011

Has it really been 12 Months?

I can't believe we have already spent an entire year with our sweet little boy. It seems like time has moved so quickly, yet at the same time, it is hard to remember what life was like without him. He brings us such joy, and we are so blessed by him! Here are some of his accomplishments and our favorite things about our sweet little man.
  • At Owen's 12 month appointment Owen weighed 20 lbs 5 oz (20th percentile) and he was 29 7/8 inches long (60th percentile).
  • Owen's first two molars have started to come in. He is now up to 10 teeth, and as a result we took him to his first dentist appointment. He did such a great job allowing the dentist to check out all his new teeth, and he really enjoyed the new toothbrush and rubber ducky they gave him after his visit.
  • Owen is walking! He still chooses to crawl whenever he wants to get somewhere quickly, but he often walks across the room and plays with his toys. He is a pro at doing squats and can easily catch himself when he starts to lose his balance. I can't believe how quickly he is growing!
  • Owen has learned how to give hi-fives. He thinks it is great fun when someone asks for one, but be prepared to get about five in a row. He hasn't quite figured out that you only need to hit the other person's hand once.
  • Owen's vocabulary is also starting to grow. He has added doggie, hi, juice, and cheese to his list of words. It is fun to watch him try to communicate with us and mimic the words we are trying to teach him.
  • Owen has used his first sign! We started signing to Owen around 6 months, but it has taken him quite a while to pick it up. He didn't seem very interested at first. But just a few weeks ago, Owen signed milk for the first time. We found that whenever we would say the word and hand him his sippy cup he would sign the word for us. Now he will sign it all on his own whenever he wants milk. Just this past week we realized he is also starting to sign all done. We are hoping that his signs will rapidly increase so that he can better communicate with us.
  • Owen is such a people person. The larger the crowd the happier he is. It is so fun to watch him in a room full of people. He just seems to light up with all the attention. We attended Grandma and Grandpa's church the past two weekends, and Owen stayed in during the praise and worship. He LOVED it. He wanted to be down on the ground dancing with the beat. Needless to say, he entertained everyone near him with his cute dance moves.
  • Owen is such a happy boy! He loves to play, and we often find him laughing at himself when he babbles at his toys. Oh how I wish I knew what was going on in that little head of his. He usually only gets upset when he is hungry, tired, or hurt, so it makes fussy times pretty predictable. We have been so blessed to have such a content little one!
Get ready for an onslaught of pictures!










Sunday, May 15, 2011

Owen's First Birthday!

What a beautiful Saturday we had to celebrate Owen's first birthday! I am still coming to terms with the fact that an entire year has already passed us by, and my baby is actually 1. What a year it has been! We invited a few friends and family over to celebrate our little guy. Here are the pictures from his party. I will write an "official" 12 month post soon.

Proof that the sun was shining :)
Owen opening his gifts



I made a Cookie Monster cake for Owen and cupcakes for the guests. One of my fondest memories from birthdays growing up were the themed cakes my mom would make for us. I decided it would be fun to continue the tradition with my own kids. I started with this easy design that Bekah found for me here.

The whole dessert spread
Owen's very own "smash" cake
The guest cupcakes
Owen getting ready to blow out his birthday candle (with a little help from mom and dad)
Not so sure about this cake stuff
But with a little help from dad,
He was ready to dig in



Happy Birthday sweet boy! We love you!