Santa Claus is Coming to Town!

I actually attempted to post this on Sunday night, but had some issues with Live Writer (the program I use to write my blogs) So after messing with it a couple of days and giving up, I just copied and pasted into blogger and had to upload all the pics individually, anyway, just had to give that little update - since otherwise some of this post won't make sense when I refer to the days, etc that we did things...Plus, I didn't want you all to think I was a slacker or anything and didn't post for so long! :)

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Owen was very excited when we told him we were taking him downtown to ‘See Santa’ – for the Santa Parade last weekend. He was so in awe of everything, he loved the lights and the crazy Santa hats everyone wore – he was just entranced and I think this picture says it all…



He was a little freaked out by the hot air balloon flame – he yelled out ‘hot’ and buried his face in papas shoulder – and didn’t care too much for the loud semi horns either. But all in all it was a great time – he saw horses, ate some tootsie rolls, and even saw Santa at the end of the parade!
We also took Owen downtown this weekend to see Santa – he was excited once again, until he actually laid eyes on him, then he grabbed his papa and freaked out. But he did let papa sit down with him next to Santa – that was about as close as he was going to let himself get. But by the end of the visit with Santa, Owen had kind of warmed up – even gave Santa ‘five’. This picture taken before that point, the look on his face says, uh, no thanks, not so much!



In other news, I was away at a conference last week Wed-Fri and when I got home, I discovered Scott had been VERY busy! He moved all the furniture downstairs, including setting up the computer, tv, etc, and had set up the storage shelves in the play room that we bought at our trip to IKEA earlier in the year – what a surprise to come home to! And since we had the first snowfall of the year – he also had the garage all cleared for me to be able to park my car inside (we have a one stall garage, and my husband, what with being a man an all, had quite the extensive collection of ‘stuff’ preventing me from parking there before) What an awesome hubby! I feel like we are definitely getting closer to making room for baby girl!
It was nice to be gone for awhile, but good to be home!! When I picked up Owen from daycare – he was obsessed with the “no” (snow) and told me all about it the whole way home. So, I took him out ‘sledding’ (if you want to call it that) today – he got all bundled up in snowpants, his little boots, hat, mittens, and coat – and I pulled him around the front yard for about a half hour in his little sled! He had such a good time!

Lately, we have also been trying to get a good family picture of the three of us for Christmas cards, here are a few attempts …

way too into this cool snowman to look at the camera…



This was at Tim and Emily’s house (cuz we haven’t even gotten to the ‘tree going up’ point yet) – and as you can see, someone was not interested…



What a little goober boy we have….Here are a few more of his antics…

sly face…(notice the cheerio on his chin)



he makes this ‘ducka ducka’ sound and pulls goofy faces all the time – here he is doing that tonight when he was getting ready for bed… (also sporting a fine mohawk)

ISO

We have been 'In Search Of' a back-up 'Froggy Buddy' for Owen for awhile now to no avail (we've searched EVERYWHERE - we've googled it, checked ebay, specialty stores, even put a posting on a lost toys website) so we were wondering if anyone out there in blog land might be able to help!

Owen can not and will not fall asleep either at night or for naps without Mr Froggy Buddy and the poor little green guy is getting pretty worn out!

Froggy (or Grrrah as Owen lovingly calls him) is made of a chenille sort-of-ish-kinda fleece fabric. He is shaped like a frog but he is flat (not the kind with the blanket attached to a frog, the entire blanket is a frog) - has a tan belly, tan hands and feet and a tan mouth. See his mug shot below.

We originally received this as a baby shower gift before Owen was born (was purchased at Peeble's) but of course I cut off the tag long before I knew it would become his 'can not live without blankie' so I don't even know the brand name.

I also wanted to note that this little frog is not to be confused with a recently stocked item at Target which is also a dog toy...I was shopping at Target not too long ago and saw it and freaked out - but then found out it had crinkly in the belly along with a squeaky - it is also a bit smaller and not the same fabric.

Anyway, any help or any leads (even as to the brand name) are so very very much appreciated!

# 1 and # 2 update

So its been awhile since I've posted 'status' update on Owen - its like each month for the first year is such a landmark occasion! Then once a year comes and goes, time just seems to be flying by too fast! So in an effort to 'Chronicle' as much of Owen's life as I can, here is an update on the just-over-16-month-old boy...

• LOVES to read - could literally spend hours each day looking at books and pointing out objects and animals and trying to say their names - his favorites are the 'Little People' books - he has two animal ones, a 'class trip' one and an 'around the town' one and can NOT get enough...he just amazes me when he 'reads' them - he is able to recognize SO many things


• Wears 18-24 mo clothing


• Wears size 4 diapers


• LOVES beans, bananas, and corn


• Still gets one bottle each day - at night before bed time


• Can not sleep without his frog


• Bedtime is around 7:30 and he sleeps until 7:15 on weekdays and 8 or sometimes even 8:30/9 on weekends!!


• Takes a 2-3 hr nap ea day


• Loves to sing the itsy bitsy spider and roly poly (and rolls his hands/arms in a circle)


• Has a crazy walk - kind of like a sumo walk - where he walks with his legs spread really far apart


• Still using his signs for more, please, drink, eat, all done - but has learned to say most of these words also along with signing


• Vocab gets bigger every day and just amazes me: up, please, no, yeah, frog, hippo, kitty, turtle, mama, papa, dada, ma (grandma), fish, banana, beans, cookie, cracker, hot dog, teeth, shoes, book, flower, apple, blocks, boat, deer, and i'm sure others i can't think of at the moment. (When he learns to say a word, at first he just makes some of the sounds in the word with the same amount of syllables as the word has - sooo cute - alligator is ga-ga-la-la)


• Still doesn't have much hair - but what he does have is a dark blond and is getting really long and kinda curls up when it gets wet or he gets warm


• Loves to dance


• Mickey Mouse Clubhouse is his favorite show


• Thinks building with blocks is a great time


• Loves to give hugs and kisses

Every day it seems he learns something new - he seems more and more mature to me each day - its amazing to see him grow and learn

Playing with his animals with Papa...

...yeah, you!!

reading with Aunt Al and Uncle Greg

Huggin on his Murphy...

Just rakin' some leaves...

And since #2 can't be forgotten (and actually I feel like I'm neglecting to 'Chronicle' her existence to date), I've got to throw in a few tidbits about her and my pregnancy with her too!

• Wakes me up at night kicking and punching - something Owen never did - uh oh - hope this doesn't mean we will have a non-sleeper on our hands....


• Seems to go through growth spurts about once a week - where I'll feel a noticeable difference in the amount of movement (she'll be really quiet for a few days) then I can feel a definite difference afterward in the strength of her kicks and punches


• According to baby center she is the size of a one lb bag of coffee beans this week (random, i know)


• Still has her mom feeling a little sick now and then


• Giving Mama swollen ankles already (not too bad yet - and hopefully won't get too much worse!)


• We're working on getting a space for her to live once she arrives - and hope to be done over the holidays with her room.


• Mom and Papa still debating on what to name her - and nothing is really jumping out at us, so we'll see - she might just have to be one of those nameless babies for the first day or so of life... :)

Can't wait to meet this little peanut, she is so loved already!!

# 2, ca-ca, & doozers

No, this post isn’t about poop! It’s about a baby, my brother, and socks….you’ll see….

 

 

First, we had our much anticipated ultrasound on Thursday afternoon and learned #2 is going to be a little GIRL!  And she’s doing great, heartbeat was about 145 and she was moving around like crazy (like always)!  We couldn’t be more excited!  Here is one of the U/S pics (yeah its a pic of a pic, but you get the point) – isn’t she cute?!

and I’m feelin like I’m neglecting #2 a little – haven’t even gotten ONE belly shot yet, well better late than never!  Here she is at 21 weeks….

Jen, Kenz, & Dylan surprised us by stopping by on Fri night to drop off some girly stuff for her – they even made her cards!! So sweet! Thanks guys!! 

So ca-ca you wonder?! ….we’ll my brother was in town and we told Owen that he was going to see his Uncle – he’s totally going through the stage of repeating everything especially new words – so he got all excited when we told him and started saying Uncle – except it came out exactly like “ca-ca” – so Nathan is now proud to be “ca-ca” – Owen  had fun with him – showing off all his toys and playing!

 

Now on to the doozers….Doozers are what Scott and I have called socks with Owen since he was born – kind of an evolution of socks to “socky-doos” to “doozers” – yeah we’re dorks – anyway…Owen loves to wear fun doozers – especially tube socks – so here is a little photo collage just for fun….

Fabulous Fall Fun

What fall would be complete without a trip to the pumpkin patch and some pumpkin carving, topped with some lazy days just hangin’ around!?!

Last week, Scott picked me up at work and we headed down the road to pick some pumpkins. Owen was more interested in checking this little guy out than he was about anything else for awhile….

That was until he started his wagon ride….

He loved it, can you tell?

“OOOOH, ball” he kept saying out in the pumpkin patch

Cheese….

Family photo op…

Last night, we decided it was a good night for pumpkin carving, Owen thought that was a pretty darn good idea too…

But, come on, what pumpkin carving event would be complete without a family sing-a-long of the “itsy bitsy spider”?

Give the kid a spoon, he tries to eat, no matter what…

help me carve my pumpkin, mom…

mmm….seeds…are good for baking…and eating!

goof ball…

sinister little baby…

I started to crop this picture down, but then decided better of it, since i thought it was quite humorous that #2 had to get in the shot also (look closely on the bottom – I’m wearing a green shirt – the black and red is just the camera strap – come on, i know my belly is big, but not THAT big)

Scott wanted #2 to be a part of the festivities too, so he carved a little foot print….so sweet!

carving w/ papa!

Owen did great during carving time, he sat right on the table and didn’t even try to move for almost a whole hour…he loved scooping the pulp back into his pumpkin and then giggling about it and he loved just sitting and watchingus scoop out and carve pumpkins …

Here is the finished product…

and as I mentioned earlier, what fall is complete without some lazy down time? Here is Owen on the day he never got out of his jammies, just hangin out w/ Granmuffin…

Nothin says Sunday morning like loungin w/ Papa and catching some Mikey Mouse Clubhouse on the tube…

Happy Fall!!

Birthday Buck

Today is Scott’s 30th Birthday! 

One of his birthday rituals is going out hunting – and this year was no exception, so around 6:30 he got up and was out the door on his way to hunt down a biggun’.  And, this year he actually did get his birthday buck!  It wasn’t the ‘monster’ he swears is out there, but that was just fine with him, this one was a keeper! I asked him if he got ‘buck fever’, cuz I just think that’s ridiculous and hilarious at the same time (I’m also the wife who always asks, “honey, did you catch a deer'”).  No buck fever, but he sure was one very  proud birthday boy! 

Here are Scott and his dad dragging the deer in from the woods…

Scott with his birthday gift to himself….

 

 

and of course, what hunter would have a complete record of the day without including his son in on the action in some pics?

 

Owen thought the deer was pretty cool!

Happy Birthday, Scotty Kole and congratulations on your first birthday buck!  :)

picture update

not much new – lots of trying to get the house ready for #2  – projects, projects, and more projects.  Still painting the basement, but we’ll get there! 

We’re planning to get our pumpkins this week – so I’m sure we’ll have many more pictures to post later! 

In the meantime, here are some recent ones of Owen, the boy of many expressions!! He’s such a performer, he loves to put on a show….here he is a little curious of the camera…

Then he remembered something….Look papa….

yeah, that’s right, I’m a ladies man! 

 

Cheese

Playing is serious business!

 

Oooooh…..

 

whoa…..

 

cute little man!

what a cute hairdo

that’s all for now!

Do I Hear an Echo?

Yup, one of Owen’s favorite spots, on the desk – where he sits and plays with pens and pencils and stays relatively occupied while I manage to catch a few quick minutes online. Oh, and yes he also LOVES switching the monitor off and on...I tell him 'uh oh' and he he decides to add that new phrase to his vocab....

Adventures

So, we’ve been trying to get out on as many excursions/adventures as we can with Owen – just so he gets the chance to experience new things. 

Its been good to get out, since when we’re at home, this is the typical view from my perspective when someone gets bored….

I came down with a cruddy cold last week, but I didn’t want that to stop our fun, so on Friday, we headed out to dinner together then off to the playground.  Owen thinks he is such a big shot walking around on the playground.  He loves the slide (and says ‘weee’ as he goes down).  An unfortunate event occurred at the playground  though – Owen got his first bloody nose – the kid is accident prone beyond belief – and somehow has the highest pain tolerance ever – he was walking along and walked right into a bar – it hit him just barely under his nose – he cried for a little bit, then was fine, so we were like ok, he must not have hit that hard- then suddenly we noticed the blood – it wasn’t too bad, just scary.  But everything seemed fine and he played for quite a bit after that! 

Saturday was a LAZY day!  I really felt crappy and just needed some rest so we pretty much hung out at home all day.

Sunday we decided to head out to the zoo.  Owen had such a fun time checking out the fish….

…and the penguins……                                                            

and he loved the waterfall

and the petting zoo… 

we ended up spending about an hour and a half there and headed home around noon.  Owen was beyond ready for his nap, but was such a trooper! We packed a lunch to eat on the ride home and that kept him busy – then once we got home he crashed out for 3 1/2 hours!!!

When he woke up he and Papa decided to spend some time outside doing some weeding…

Owen was so excited to help!

Tonight we spent some time inside reading and playing – since it was so windy and rainy outside… It was a fun evening  together. 

Then around 7 or so we decided to take  a quick ride out to the beach to see how ‘ferocious’ the waves were.  It was amazing how backed up the traffic was on OBR just to get into the beach!  We ended up in traffic for over 1/2 hr – and when we finally got into the park, it was pretty dark out  - but we could still see the water – it was crazy how huge the waves were and how windy it was – people were actually out walking it that stuff too - getting sandblasted like crazy! 

We’ve had fun lately spending time together and its so fun to see Owen change and learn things every day.  He is really starting to mimic things we do or say - if you’re scratching your head he’ll do the same thing, or if you wave or reach for something he does it too!  He’s also remembering what different things are used for – he will take a comb and start to comb his hair with it, or put a phone to his ear and say ‘…oh’. 

He’s also started to give really good hugs lately – which is so adorable – when I go to pick him up from ‘school’ in the afternoons he runs over and throws his arms around me and just squeezes for awhile – awww! 

His newest words are “uh-oh” (I have the cutest video that I’ll have to try to get uploaded), and “eeys “ (keys). 

The latest news with #2 is that I have felt some movement within the last few days!  Usually at night I have been feeling some definite fluttering! So exciting!  At my last appointment the HB was going strong at about 160 bpm.  We have an appointment next Wed, where I’m thinking we’ll probably schedule our US! 

Seems like time has just been going by so fast, I’ve really been just trying to make the effort to just soak some of it in – and not be on such a fast track!! I think if you just make a effort to do that – it really does make a difference!  :)