Archive for the 'Owen Patrick' Category

All Boys Here!

Published
by
chloe
on October 29, 2008
in Ayden Thomas, Chloe and Owen Patrick
. 2 Comments

With Owen’s 18-month mark just around the bend (November 17th to be precise), he is growing and developing at an astonishing rate now!  Every time we turn around he’s doing or saying something new… we literally can’t keep up anymore.  In fact, at dinner a couple of nights ago, as I fed Owen his last bite of dinner, he very clearly announced “ALL FULL!”… as Patrick’s head snapped up in astonishment and asked, “Did he just say ALL FULL???”.  I had to shamefully admit that Owen’s actually been saying that for about a week, though I had neglected to mention the accomplishment to his Daddy… there are just so many little achievements like that these days that my head is just spinning as I try to keep up!  A few of the more noteworthy items Owen has added to his vocab of late include: tractor, truck, book, Emery (said “Emreeeeee”), happy (said “ha-peeeee”), Halloween (said “hah-weeeeeen”), blanky (said “bah-keee”), welcome (said “weh-coh”, though with the proper tone and inflection - and he often follows his own “thank you” with a prompt “weh-coh”).

There is no trace of baby left in Owen… he’s all boy now (except that he still loves to suck his two fingers when he’s sleepy and he has to have his special white blanky at bedtime!).  And having big brother around is both good and bad… Owen loves to imitate Ayden - whether it’s yelling “NO NO NO!” in a very obnoxious, bratty 3-year-old tone of voice, climbing a tower of couch cushions that have been stacked into a pile 5 feet tall, or hiding from Mama under Grandma Gail’s bed when I’m searching the house looking for them.   I’m fully aware that this mimicry is just the tip of the iceberg and will continue for many many years.  Oy vey!

Owen has also become rather obsessed with cows - I think largely due to a YouTube video that both he and Ayden can’t seem to get enough of.   Dancing Cow!  Whenever the laptop is open, Owen points to it and emphatically says “MOOOOOO! MOOOOOO!”, which translates into “please play the Dancing Cow video from YouTube!”  Both of the boys get HUGE grins on their faces and start to dance as soon as they hear the first note of the song.  Owen even knows the video/song so well, that about 5 seconds before the end, he’s already doing the hand-sign for “more” and asking us to replay it!!!  I kid you not!!! :-)

Ayden is feeling like quite the big boy these days, since he’s taking 3 classes through the local Parks and Rec program.  He’s enrolled in a swimming class (the second in the series), a “Kids Sports” class (which is basically a variety sports class where they do a different sport each week), and a “Play, Learn & Explore” class (designed to be a pre-school style one-hour class).  None of these classes allow for parent participation, so he’s been forced to be Mr. Independent.  This didn’t go so well for the first week or so (lot’s of crying and separation anxiety), but I stuck to my guns, and though heart-strings were tugged almost to the breaking point, I left him to fend for himself and stand on his own two feet.  I’m glad I did, because he’s absolutely thriving in all three classes and looks forward to going each week with uncontrollable enthusiasm! :-)

Since we’re already nearing the holiday season and it seems like the toy commercials are already ramping up, Ayden has seen his fair share.  The other day he came to me and said, “Mommy, if I had a Candy Castle I would be SOOOOOOOO happy!”.  First of all, I have no idea what a Candy Castle is, and secondly, how does he?!?!  Well it didn’t take long for me to see my first Candy Castle commercial and to learn where Ayden got the idea.  Since then, we’ve received literally dozens of toy catalogs in the mail, which Ayden goes through and tells me each item that would make him “SO HAPPY” if he had for Christmas.  Seriously, where does a three-year-old get that idea???

Summer Keeps Whizzing By!

Published
by
chloe
on August 27, 2008
in Ayden Thomas, Chloe and Owen Patrick
. 1 Comment

I just can’t seem to catch my breath this summer!  Every time I stop to look, another month has screamed by and I’m frantic to scribble down some notes before I forget the details!  Sorry folks, it’s been a jam-packed summer this 2008!  On to business…

A very happy 30th birthday to our dear Uncle Chad! Yipee!  You’re officially old like me!

Uncle Chad turns 30 years old!

Uncle Chad turns 30 years old!

We said “Goodbye!” to Patrick’s beloved $4.90/gal diesel guzzling truck via private sale on Craigslist.

Daddy's monster truck goes bye-bye!

Daddys monster truck goes bye-bye!

We made our second annual trip to Antique Powerland:

 

Ayden has completed his first-ever series of Level A swimming lessons at the Conestoga Aquatic Center!

Ayden exits the pool after his first-ever swimming class!

Ayden exits the pool after his first-ever swimming class!

A fun family trip to Seaside to visit the family and the beach - it’s been awhile!

Chloe and the boys on the Seaside beach.

Chloe and the boys on the Seaside beach.

We helped Emery celebrate his THIRD birthday!  What a BIG BOY! :-)

Emery devours the traditional BR Clown Cone.

Emery devours the traditional BR Clown Cone.

Our annual family trip to the Clackamas County Fair to let the kids ride the rides, see the animals, walk through the exhibits and generally experience good old-fashioned fair atmosphere!

Lindsay, Emery and Ayden trying to have fun in the 95 degree heat!

Lindsay, Emery and Ayden trying to have fun in the 95 degree heat!

Whew!  I wasn’t kidding when I said we’ve been busy!  This pictorial jaunt takes you through our past four weeks and pretty much brings you up to date.  I’ll try to post the associated galleries that have the many, many other pictures that go along with each of these adventures - but this is what you get for tonight!  I’m going to bed!  Enjoy! :-)

Family Housekeeping

Published
by
chloe
on July 26, 2008
in Chloe and Owen Patrick
. 1 Comment

Time to play catch-up once again!  Sorry folks, consistency is not my forte these days!  Owen turned 14 months old (geez… a week and a half ago already! What kind of mother am I???).  He’s still not walking, though really should be.  He has the strength and balance to do so, but he just hasn’t taken it upon himself to become that independent… still likes to hang on Mama’s leg and whine to be picked up ;-)  Thus far, it’s working - the whining, not the walking.  He has pushed through both his eye teeth, though none of his molars, which the pediatricians says is a bit unusual and out of order - as usual, Owen does things his own way and by his own schedule.  Always has, always will.   His funny little personality is getting bigger everyday.  He has mastered the “fake” laugh (HA HA HA) which he uses when he hears other people laughing… which makes us laugh even more! :-)  He believes fully that every furry animals makes the sound “Meow!”.  He uses the hand sign for ‘all done’ properly after meals and when he’s finished all the snacks on his tray.  He loves taking showers with Daddy and big brother and doesn’t mind all the water running down his face while he sits on the shower floor playing toys.  He can climb up onto Ayden’s bed and Mommy and Daddy’s bed via step-stool without help, much to our chagrin.  Owen’s a much more adventurous and fearless little climber monkey than Ayden ever was, which makes it that much more difficult to keep the bumps and bruises at bay.  He’s very much a music man and will enthusiastically rock back and forth or clap and smile when he hears peppy, upbeat music playing.  It’s adorable to watch him choose a car, truck or train toy and orient it properly on the floor, then crawl along, pushing it as he goes, making his own “engine” sound as drool pours from his mouth!  He’s also learned the sound of the garage door opening when Daddy arrives home in the evening and he’ll squeal “DADA!!” and make a beeline for the garage door to greet him.  He is a total riot and he makes us laugh every single day.  What a beautiful little spirit!  He just gets more and more fun as the days goes by!

As for the statistically significant medical update, here’s how that played out:

Height:  32.5″ (95th percentile)

Weight:  24lb 6oz (60th percentile)

Head:  49.5 cm (100th percentile)

In summary, tall and skinny.  His next official doctor visit is at 18 months.

Owen turns 13 months!

Published
by
chloe
on June 20, 2008
in Owen Patrick
. 1 Comment

So I missed the mark by a few days… what can I say? We’ve been a busy lot around here! Nanna arrived last Friday to visit and help out with watching the boys while Patrick and I frantically try to gut and update the interior of our rental property out in Troutdale (nearly an hour drive each way from our house!).  Each of the past four weekends, in thier entirety, have been consumed by this… so Nanna’s help is very much appreciated, and the boys are LOVING Nanna time! 

So back to Owen… in his 13th month he really managed to perfect his “riding” abilities.  If we put him on any of the little tricycle-type bikes we have, he can really rip along (both forward and backward), and if he can pull up along side something to grab onto, he can successfully dismount and crawl off to some other trouble!  He still can’t turn or steer at all, so if he ends up running into something, he just complains until someone comes to rescue him or he gets off and heads for greener pastures.

He also added a few baby words to his vocabulary… besides “da-da”, he can now say, “Nana”, “caca”, and very enthusiastically “Hiiiiiiiiiiiiii!” while doing the rapid open-close hand wave with both hands.  You can really tell that he’s becoming very aware of his world and surroundings.  In the past few days he has starting copying our cat when he meow’s.  He actually almost sounds like a real “meow” - it’s very cute!  He can also oink like a piggy, and sniff to smell things when he hears other people make a sniffing sound.  He’s also become quite animated with the faces he makes during meal time, especially once he’s full or if he doesn’t like the flavor of something!  As of today, four days past the official 13 month mark, he is pushing through BOTH eye teeth simultaneously.  Joy.  He’s a misery guts and not sleeping well because of it… and neither are we.  On to the fourteenth month and Owen’s second Indepence Day, though first one where he’ll actually be aware of all the fireworks and commotion… should be fun!

Owen’s Birthday Party

Published
by
chloe
on May 22, 2008
in Owen Patrick
. 2 Comments

As promised, I have finally posted a bunch of photos from Owen’s birthday party this past Sunday.  It was an absolutely beautiful day and we had a great turnout with family and friends.  As is tradition in our family, Owen had his first taste of ice cream in the form of a Baskin Robbins Clown Cone.  My mom started this yummy tradition with me and my siblings almost 30 years ago - and still going strong.  The highlight of the party were the large household spray bottles that Auntie Korrisa brought for the kids to use as squirt guns (on steroids!).  There are tons of photos for your viewing pleasure!  Happy Birthday Owen!!!  :-)

Oh No! My Baby!

Published
by
chloe
on May 17, 2008
in Owen Patrick
. 2 Comments

Well, the baby of the family is officially no longer a baby.  Owen turned one year old yesterday (May 16th).  We’re almost to the point of NOT counting his age in months… though that seems to last for the first 18 months, and sometimes as long as 2 years.  His twelfth month was an eventful one, full of small developmental accomplishments and discoveries.  It’s the little things in life that make him a happier little person, like figuring out how to tip his head and bottle UP so that he can get the water out.  He now is attempting to point at things by pinching his thumb and first finger together, then pointing with his little pinky sticking straight out.  It’s pretty funny!  He’s really starting to babble like crazy now.  He can officially say “Da da” now… and as excited as Patrick was to claim Owen had pronounced his name first, Owen then promptly pointed at our cat and said “Da-da!”, then at a shoe and said “Da-da.”  Yeah, we’ve got some vocabulary yet to learn!!!  It’s hard to believe that a year has already gone by.  Though it’s equally hard to remember life without our fourth family member.  Since Owen’s special day fell on a Friday this year, we’re doing his official birthday celebration on Sunday when the family is able to get together.  Pictures of the party will follow, but for now enjoy the photos from his “real” birthday on Friday!

Smelly Stinker

Published
by
chloe
on April 16, 2008
in Ayden Thomas and Owen Patrick
. 1 Comment

First order of business… Owen is 11 months old today! One year, here we come! He capped off the day with a record sprint to the top of the stairs - this is day two of his stair ascension prowess. There are a few photos of the triumphant event in the new gallery.

Second item on the agenda - to explain the title of this post. Ayden has recently taken a liking to the game “hide and seek” and has asked to play every evening for the past week or so. In the beginning, as he was still trying to get a grasp on how the game works, Patrick and I would work together by dialogging something like this:

Patrick: Where’s Ayden? Mommy, can you smell him in here?

Chloe: Yep. I smell him. [audible sniff]

Patrick: Oh, me too. I think I’m getting closer… [sniff, sniff, etc]

Somehow or another Ayden managed to interpret this version of the game with a new name… Smelly Stinkers. So instead of asking us to play “hide and seek”, we’re now asked to play Smelly Stinkers every evening! :-)

Crawling to Cruising in 2.2 Days

Published
by
chloe
on April 14, 2008
in Owen Patrick and Uncategorized
. 1 Comment

Owen has finally managed to accomplish that which separates us from most of the other animals on the planet… he stands! At the end of last week he figured out how to crawl properly up on his hand and knees (rather than dragging himself across the rug with one arm). He’s gotten rather quick at that now and I’ve had to recommission the gate at the top of the stairs. So I’d say it was Friday that he had the crawling nailed, and on Saturday he experimented with pulling himself up onto his baby grand piano. He was feeling quite overconfident at that point and has several large knots on his head to prove it! Then the rest of the weekend was spent figuring out how to not trip over his own feet as he cruised along the ottoman, couch, bathtub, etc. I’m already having to move things up in the house that I haven’t had worry about in almost two years! The other unfortunate side effect to Owen being able to stand is that he can do so in his crib - though he can’t get back down. He therefore screams bloody murder until we come to lay him back down - or he ends up falling and adding another braille bump to his skull! Ah well, one step at a time I suppose! This too shall pass! Enjoy the newly added pictures from the weekend.

Owen’s 9 Month Checkup at 10 Months… Oops!

Published
by
chloe
on March 20, 2008
in Owen Patrick
. 0 Comments

The only explanation I can offer is that the two-week hospital ordeal managed to throw off our “regular” doctor visit schedule.  So here we are, Owen is now beyond the 10 month mark, and I just took him to his 9-month checkup.  Oh well.  What can you do?  Cutting to the chase, here’s how he checked out:

Weight: 21 lbs 8 oz. (50th percentile)

Height:  29 1/2 inches (75th percentile)

Head:  47 1/2 centimeters (90th percentile) - following in his brother’s footsteps!

Owen also had to suffer through two shots, Hepatitis B and Polio.  He cried for about 5 seconds and then sucked on his fingers.  No prob.   Everything else checked out fine and we were told to come back for his one-year checkup (relatively on time if possible!).  Ayden thought the whole trip was a blast since it was Owen that got the shots AND Ayden got to choose a toy from the basket for being so good!  Reality check next time though!!!  :-)

Owen Reaches Double Digits!

Published
by
chloe
on March 16, 2008
in Ayden Thomas and Owen Patrick
. 3 Comments

Ten months and counting! The baby of the family is rounding the last corner to a year old! I don’t think I’ve mentioned that I think Owen’s hospital stay may have set him back developmentally a bit. Right before we headed to the hospital, Owen was SO close to crawling. By the time we were back home and he’d had a week and a half or so to rest and heal, he was basically back to square one on the crawling front. Over the past two weeks in particular, he has really been perfecting his skills… well, in an Owen sort of way. Even though he is physically capable of holding himself up on his hands and knees, he just can’t or won’t figure out the coordination. Instead, he has developed a sort of belly crawl wherein he stretches an arm out in front of him and then drags/pulls his entire body forward. It’s progress. And it gets him to where he wants to go. I told Heather that he resembles a half-squashed bug that only has an appendage or two still functioning, and dragging the rest of it’s body behind. Pretty picture, huh? ;-)

img_9238.jpg

In other accomplishments over the past month, Owen is now feeding himself little stars and dehydrated fruit pieces (and attempting a chewing motion once he manages to get them in his mouth), splashing enthusiastically in the bathtub with Ayden, babbles and gabs constantly as if we should all understand what he’s saying, is actually helpful while being dressed (meaning he’ll push his arms through the sleeves and straighten his legs at the appropriate time for pants! - A HUGE milestone as any parent can attest!), successfully drinks from a bottle by himself, and has passed the 20lb mark (by two or three pounds) and therefore no longer fits in his infant car seat. I’m sure I’ve forgotten something, but I’ll make up for it in future posts this month!

In Ayden news… [Warning: Gratuitous potty humor to follow. ] Ayden has been perfecting his counting skills in recent days. He now takes great pleasure in counting the number of “caca’s” he can put in the potty. Yes, it’s gross. But hey, his counting skills are great! :-)

Check out the latest gallery too!