Couldn't resist.

Owen's new backpack for school....so love it!

Experimenting with video.

This is my 1st attempt at posting a video...hopefully it will be a success!

Videoing is so convenient now with my fun iPhone, Owen is doing so many video-worthy things. 

Here's a little clip of bouncing play time...enjoy!

Baby food.

Since introducing Owen to "real food" at about 4 1/2 months, I have attempted to make the majority of what he eats.

I have opted to use boxed rice cerals & oatmeals and jarred carrots (because of the high nitrate content). We also use jarred applesauce at times as it is a convenient thing to have in the fridge as a quick go-to food.
My favorite resource for baby food making is http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com/. There are wonderful charts of when you can introduce certain foods, recipes for how to prepare & freeze foods, etc.

I have had great success freezing most things. I make a large batch & then pour the food into ice cube trays, let them freeze, and punch the cubes out to store them in a gallon-sized freezer bag. Our favorite things to keep in the freezer are sweet potatoes, butternut squash, peas, & green beans.

For foods that don't freeze well (avocado, peaches, apples, pears), I just make a smaller batch & make sure Owen eats it up in a day or two.

Love, love baby food-making!

Zipping zooming zebra.

About 2 months ago, we discovered that Owen loved the sound of the letter 'Z'. We randomly found this out when we were zipping him up in his sleep sack at night & would say 'zzzzzzipppp'. He would just laugh, laugh, laugh.

So, I took this a little bit further (I promise I'm not crazy) & I made up a little song for him.

Zipping Zooming Zebra


(To the tune of "If you're happy & you know it")

There's a zipping zooming zebra at the zoo,

There's a zipping, zooming zebra at the zoo,

There's a zipping, zooming zebra,

There's a zipping, zooming zebra,

There's a zipping zooming zebra aaaatttt theeeee zoooooo!

Now, because the zebra was getting lonely we had to create more beautifully alliterated animals like...

A school of swimming starfish in the sea

A sneaky slithering snake in the swamp

A friendly frolicking fox in the forest

A long leaping lizzard in the lagoon

Despite all of the new animal friends, the zebra is still his favorite. It calms him & usually makes him laugh...whatever it takes! So, I promise I'm sane just trying to have some fun with my little man.

Owen's 6 month.

Owen turned 7 months old this past Saturday (unbelievable!), so it's time to see what fun things happens in his 6th month of life!

• You're making more & more 'babbles'. ..lots of sounds like ma, ga, and pffff.
• You sit up entirely independently, but aren't so graceful at lying down when you get tired of sitting...oh dear!
• You 'army crawl' across the floor & move remarkably fast!
• You love to scoot to anything that you're not supposed to play with (floor vents, electrical cords...). It makes life all the more interesting!
• You now have 2 teeth that are completely in. Growing those teeth was rough for you-you didn't sleep well, were so fussy, and not at all like yourself. Glad we're somewhat back on track now!
• You have developed a severe dislike of green beans & peas. You scream when we feed them to you unless we disguise them in bites of other foods you like. So, that's what we do because we're sneaky & mommy wants you to love your veggies!
• We added more yummy foods to your menu selections-pears, sweet potatoes, zuchinni, & peaches. You weren't so much a fan of the zuchinni so we've given you a break from that but boy do you love all of your other new foods.
• You love puffs...it didn't take you long to figure out how to grasp them & get them into your mouth...now you're a puff-eating machine!
• You love running water! You've always loved water, but now when you see us turn on a faucet you immediately dive forward & try to get your hands into the water.
• Your favorite thing is for us to take your hands & help you stand up & take a few steps.
• You have started reaching your arms out to us when you want to be picked up.

Owen loves to see himself in the mirror

Mommy's Puff Eating Machine!

Helping Daddy drive

1st lawnmower ride!

He loved playing with Grammy's wrapping paper tube

When you thought I wasn't looking.

Chris' grandmother sent me this sweet poem for mothers so I wanted to share it with my fellow mothers...

When you thought I wasn't looking

When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you hang my first painting on the refrigerator, and I wanted to paint another one.



When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you feed a stray cat, and I thought it was good to be kind to animals.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you make my favorite cake for me, and I knew that little things are special things.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I heard you say a prayer, and I believed that there was a God to talk to.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I felt you kiss me good night and I felt loved.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw tears come from your eyes, and I learned that sometimes things hurt but it's alright to cry.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw that you cared, and I wanted to be everything I could be.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I looked. Thanks for all the things I saw when you thought I wasn't looking.

Things people say about you.

I've learned that people will say any number of things to you when you have a baby with you in public.
Most often, they're sweet sentiments about my precious son, but there are times people have said things that make me wonder what they were thinking (i.e. the woman who told me children are only cute for a short while & then they get "mean"...ok, thanks lady).

So, here are the lovely things people often say to you...

• "Look at those big blue eyes"
• "Oh, do you have red hair?"
• "You're such a big boy"
• "Ohhh, look at that smile!"
• "You're so happy" (He loves to go places & behaves like such a gentleman in public!)
• "You look just like your mommy"

I hope that people always notice how cute you are, how happy you are, & how lovely your sweet smile is!

A baby divided.

Poor little guy may be quite confused when he's old enough to understand the basketball rivalry around here!

Owen & I decided to have a little picture fun with Daddy's hat...

 

However, Owen is definitely a Blue Devil at heart!!!

1st trip to the lake.

We took Owen to Lake Hartwell for the first time 2 weekends ago.
We enjoyed getting to visit with grandma, grandpa, Boo Boo, & Aunt Kit Kat.

Owen seemed to enjoy his first swim in the lake, got to wear his super cute Mickey Mouse bathing suit, & got to use his awesome baby float again!

6 month check-up.

Owen went for his 6 month check-up on Thursday. We're a bit off schedule because he's 6 1/2 months old, but that's ok!

She confirmed that Owen was just perfect (we knew that already :-)). He would hardly lay still for her to examine him & was constantly grabbing for her stethoscope & opthalmascope. You were grabbing the paper on the exam table & crunching it between your fingers and trying to tear it. She said "oh my, he has quick hands" & "he's so busy". Indeed he is!


Owen's head measures in the 75%, he is 28 1/4 inches long (95%), & he weighs a whopping 20 lbs. (85%). He's a very proportionate chunk! He had grown just under 3 inches in 2 months-crazy!

Can't believe how big our baby is getting...

Bedhead.

The sweetest bedhead ever...

7 years.

Chris & I celebrated our 7th anniversary on Monday.

It's so hard to believe that we have been married for 7 years-makes me feel just a little old!

It has been a wonderful 7 years filled with so many amazing adventures.

I thought I would summarize just some of the "big" things we've shared in 7 years as husband & wife.

We've lived in 4 homes in 2 states (NC & TN)......We've shared travels to Mexico, the beaches of N.C., Alaska, Portland & Seattle, St. Louis, Sweden, & Yellowstone.....We've endured the difficult losses of my grandmother & your grandfather.......You earned your PhD from UNC & I earned my MSN from Duke.......We've each changed jobs once.......We've joined a wonderful church together & have an amazing church family.......We've watched more football games together than I can even begin to number!.......And above all, we've grown our family & now share our love with our sweet Owen!

I'm so thankful for the blessing of an amazing husband. Can't wait to see what God has in store for the next 7 years, and all the years after that!

Dear Owen.

Dear Owen,

My sweet little man- It's so hard for me to believe that 6 months ago today I met you for the 1st time!

I had waited so long to see your sweet face, to kiss your little head, to count your fingers & toes, and to see your adorable hair!

My first 6 months as your mother have been wonderful, yet have been full of so many feelings & emotions, some of which I would have never anticipated.

I have had moments filled with anticipation, overwhelming love, joy, fear, exhaustion, pain, anxiety, pride, confusion, guilt, grief...I have laughed, I have cried...I have felt older than my age at many moments, yet have also had the pleasure of feeling so youthful all over again...I have felt competent at some moments & yet so ill-equipped at others...I have been humbled, I have had my patience tested, & I have prayed constantly for strength.

I have learned that being your mother is the most  important job I will ever have. It takes precedent over all of my other responsibilities. I am slowly learning how to balance being your mother with my roles as a wife, nurse, teacher, daughter, sister, friend.

I love that I have had the gift of spending these last 6 months at home with you. I wouldn't trade our time together for anything in this world.

Daddy & I love you sooo much & you should know that you are the most precious gift we have ever been blessed with. We give thanks for you everyday & pray that we can learn to be the best parents possible.

I love you more than ever little man,

Mommy

Owen's 5th month.

Owen will be 6 months old on Wednesday (wow!), so here's the rundown on the 5th month of little Owen's life:

• You love to make noise...squealing, oohhing, babbling, and you're even starting to imitate sounds we make. 
• You rarely take your binky anymore, only if you are sooo sleepy & will be still enough to leave it in your mouth.
• You are almost sitting up on your own. You sit up great in your bathtub & do pretty well with just a little help when you play on the floor.
• You are rolling over like it's your job! You roll constantly & are also scooting on your belly. We've watched you get up on your knees a couple of times, so we know crawling is not too far away-oh my!
• On stroller outings, you sit up in the stroller now & you love being able to see everything going on around you. 
• You love to touch our faces & unfortunately, you also love to pull everyone's hair.
• Your hair has grown like crazy. You have enough hair that sometimes after you sleep it has a "messed-up look". It's the cutest thing ever. 
• You have become super ticklish especially on your deliciously chubby thighs and under your neck :-)!
• You make the most adorable little "snorty face".
• You love the simplest of things-the tags on your toys & blankets, and anything with buttons. 
• You love to read & lift-the-flap books seem to be your favorites. 
• You have learned that you can throw toys from your highchair...oh dear!
• We love to play peek-a-boo together!
• You are eating like a champ...your menu options include rice cereal, oatmeal, bananas, avocado, butternut squash, green beans, applesauce, and peas. Next up-pears & sweet potatoes (yummy!). 
• You have been so fixated watching us drink from cups so we bought you a sippy cup. It took you a little while to figure it out, but now you love drinking water from it & you think you are such a big guy. 
• We bought you a Baby Einstein stationary bouncer. It took you a little time to warm up to it, but now you love it & are getting the hang of bouncing in it. 
• This month, you celebrated your dedication at WBC & your first 4th of July. 
• You decided to adjust your sleep schedule this month (without my permission!) & some nights you reverted back to waking up several times to snack. Hopefully we're back on track, with you going to bed around 9p.m. & sleeping until about 6 a.m.
• You love to sleep on your belly. We start on your back, but you always roll yourself over to get cozy on your belly.

      You are wearing 6-9 month clothes & we estimate you weigh around 18 pounds!

      You are growing soooo fast & we love you more everyday!

I caught you mid-laugh!

A hard-to-capture smile!

Checking out your baby "bounce house"

You still love bathtime!

Big guy!

I love your serious faces...

Sweet face!

Snorty face!

You are so silly!

Daddy, Owen, & Daddy's new grill!

Little things.

The tiny wrinkles on your teeny toes after your bath, the way you raise just one eyebrow when you're curious about something, how you squeal when you look at yourself in the mirror, the fact that you have become super ticklish :-), how eager you are to try new foods, the way you smile at Sadie ("your puppy"), 

the way you reach to touch my face, that now you have just enough hair that it looks messed up when you wake up, catching your big smile in a picture (finally!), the way you smile as you drift off to sleep, the way you play with your feet & toes, how you learn new things everyday, your sweet little laugh, kissing your chunky little leg rolls...

So many sweet little things about our days together that I want to never, ever forget.