September Happenings

This should show how behind I am on the blog! But I figure it's better late than never. Most of these are pictures I've pulled off my phone, but there are also some other random September pictures too.

Bath time!!





To get ready for Dori's wedding, Henry got his first official haircut (as in cut by someone other than Mommy and Daddy). He had a lot of fun watching Finding Nemo and driving his taxi while Owen napped in his car seat. And in the time it took me to finally post these pictures, he's already had his 2nd haircut. Ah, but I digress . . . here are the September haircut pictures . . .







In September, Henry also went to his first circus! Owen spent the afternoon with Grandma while the rest of us met up with Claire and her family at the Rose Garden for the circus. Even though Henry's first comment after the circus was, "too loud Mommy", I think he had a good time. He loved seeing the elephants and watching the motorcycles drive around.

Henry and Claire . . .





And some blurry family snapshots . . .





Owen and big brother Henry . . .





A walk around the neighborhood and Henry helping feed Owen a bottle . . .









And Owen back when he still had his dark hair . . .

Henry at 2 1/2

With Henry, we have found 2 to be a super fun age. It can also be a stressful and crazy age, but he always seems to make up for the tantrums with something cute.

He is really starting to assert his independence which makes me so proud, but also slows down our day quite a bit. When I pick him up from school (which is how we refer to his daycare), he insists on walking down every step himself. While this was nice when I was pregnant or even in the summer when I would bring Owen with me, it’s difficult to wait for him on rainy days. As the rain pours down on us, he stops at every step to make an observation, “Look Mommy, a rock!”, “What’s that Mom? A car?”, “It’s not muddy there anymore” (alluding to the spot that happened to have mud there once, and never since that day). If I try and hold out my hand to help speed things along, he stops and firmly tells me, “No Mommy, I do!”

Along with his newfound independence has come an argumentative side. His strong opinions can often be frustrating for us, but can also lead to some fun conversations. One morning we were driving and we had this conversation:
Henry: “Mommy, is it froggy out?”
Mommy: “Yes, it is foggy”
Henry: “No Mommy, froggy.”
Oh, OK.

Another big push towards independence has been his interest in potty training. While he’s not very consistent, he has had success using the big potty and loves to wear his Cars pull-ups. In fact he loves his Cars pull-ups so much that he often refuses to wear his pants in the house just so he can show them off.

We’ve also noticed how much better his memory has gotten. That boy can remember the littlest detail and bring it up months later! It’s so neat to see his mind growing like that, but also a bit scary as I’m not sure what things he’s observed people doing or saying and will bring up later.

He loves to talk on the phone and tends to have his catch phrase of the week. This week’s phrase? “Just a little bit.” He was talking with Grandma Debbie on the phone the other day:
Grandma: “Henry, should we have turkey and pie for Thanksgiving?”
Henry (after thinking about it for a bit): “Umm . . . yeah, just a little bit.”

Another fun thing he’s started doing is pretend playing. His favorite game is to wait on us and bring us all kinds of yummy pretend food. “Is that yummy Mommy?”

And a completely random story, but still cute: After his baths, he looks at his wrinkly fingers and says, “Uh oh, I’m all crumbly!” Wrinkly, crumbly, same thing.

He’s a really good eater and enjoys sitting at the dinner table with us. So much so that he could draw dinner out for hours if we let him! He’s a great sleeper and still loves sleeping in his crib. I know eventually he’ll have to move to a big kid bed, but for now we’re enjoying his great naps and nighttime sleeping. Not to mention the crib makes for a good time out spot, which he’s become a pro at taking.

And some random tidbits about his likes: His current favorite movie is Cars, he loves to watch the garbage trucks on pickup day and he doesn’t seem to have a favorite toy, but likes to push all his cars down his garage ramp. He loves to be a big helper – turning on lights, switching on the flameless candles, opening and closing the garage door, pushing elevator buttons, and ringing the doorbell (“ding dong!”). He loves watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and it’s a house rule (enforced by Henry) that Mommy and Henry must jump up and do the Hot Dog dance together at the end of the show. His favorite food is Mac n’ Cheese.

I apologize for all the writing, but 2 is such an amazing age and I know how different he’ll be in another 6 months. Henry is learning and changing so much every day, I don’t want to forget all of the funny things He does.

Our unofficial stats:
Height: 35 inches
Weight: 26 pounds

And now for his 2 1/2 month photoshoot. . .

















And after the photoshoot had run it's course, it was time for a fort in the living room!

Owen at 4 Months

I'm a little slow again with Owen's monthly post, but since he just had his 4 month well check with the doctor on Friday I figure I'm not too far behind. Everything went well at the doctor and he was a champ about getting 3 shots. His stats are:

Weight: 14 pounds, 4 ounces (29th percentile)
Height: 26 inches (80th percentile)

(As a comparison, Henry was 24 3/4 inches long and 13 pounds, 8 ounces at 4 months)

Sleeping: His sleeping patterns are similar to last month. He is still waking every 1-2 hours to eat or be comforted back to sleep with an occasional stretch of 3-4 hours. He is still sleeping swaddled, although he has moved to the crib in his own room. He's difficult to lay down in the night, but we're hoping if we stay consistent it will start to get a little easier. As far as naps, he loves to nap in his swing and sometimes on me (when I'm needing some extra snuggles).

Eating: Pretty much the same as last month, mostly nursing, but needing a few formula bottles as a supplement. The doctor cleared him to start solids, so we'll be trying that soon.

Accomplishments: His big accomplishment this month is giggling! It's hard to get him to do it, but it just melts my heart when I finally succeed. He is mastering his grabbing skills and has become pretty successful at grabbing what he wants and bringing it to his mouth. Preferably this object is a toy, but sometimes it is hair or clothing. Henry is still working at understanding that he needs to give Owen a little space if he doesn't want to be grabbed, but he's a pretty patient big brother to Owen. He loves to talk to us and we find every grunt and coo fascinating. He's not a fan of being put down, but if he's in the right mood, he can entertain himself for awhile on the playmat, in the exersaucer or even on his tummy.

He also started daycare this month and has loved going with big brother Henry. He's the only baby there at this point, but I think he loves watching the big kids run around.

And now for the 4 month photo shoot . . .




















I had the bright idea to pose him sitting up. I don't think he's quite ready for that, but he did humor me for a couple of shots.

Roadtrip to Idaho

Last Thursday morning, we hit the road bright and early and spent the day driving to Grandma Connie and Grandpa Gary's. We had a few rough stretches, but overall the boys did very well for such a long time stuck in the car. Unfortunately we didn't think to let Owen try out sleeping in the Pack N Play prior to our trip over there. We quickly found out that it was not a good substitute for his crib at home and spent our nights there switching off holding Owen every few hours. While he may not be the best sleeper, I now appreciate him sleeping in his own bed at home, even if only for 2 hours at a time. Other than missing out on some sleep, we had a great time.



Henry got to go on a tractor ride with Grandpa to pick up some farm equipment. He took his farm chore pretty seriously, but I think he had a great time. He informed me that the ride was "bumpy mommy!" when I asked how it went.













While Henry was taking care of the farm, Owen was holding down the fort back at the house with Mommy. . .





We took time to walk around, take some family pictures and Henry had a good time checking out the big shed with Grandpa . . .









On Sunday, we woke up to find snow! While we waited for enough snow to play in, we watched as a sheep herder moved his flock down the road. I was pretty impressed how just a few men and dogs could keep all the sheep together and organized. It was quite the entertainment . . .







Hanging around the house . . .









Then we bundled up and headed out to play! Henry had so much fun in the snow, I wasn't sure we'd be able to convince him to come back inside and warm up. Even Owen was pretty relaxed as he snuggled up with Grandpa and even tried out the sled with Henry. Since we all love playing in the snow so much, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we get at least a few snow days in Portland this year!







































We can't wait for our next trip out there!