A visit to Pamperin Park

Even though we've driven by Pamperin Park every day for the past 4 years, heard great things about it, and enjoy going to parks ... we never went until Saturday. Owen's Godfather was in town for a wedding and suggested meeting there.

When we arrived we were surprised to see the following scene. Owen didn't know where to start. No one else did either.

Owen and his Godfather, Bryan, discuss the next move.

Owen didn't have time to pause for a photo - too much to do.

Owen received a wonderful IKEA Pelican storage basket from his Godfather, Bryan. It's meant to hang on the wall and store toys or clothes ...

... but Owen had other ideas.

Shawano County Fair

We took Owen to the Shawano County Fair on Saturday. This is the second year that Owen has attended. We visited the barns, the machinery, the food stand, the beer stand (not really, but it was open at 8:30 AM), and the show ring. Owen was very interested in all of the animals and was intent on looking at each one. Owen may very well have forgotten the entire experience on the way home, but Mommy and Daddy enjoyed seeing him take in the sights and experience new things. Plus the trip was free since we came so early.

Owen couldn't understand why the pigs were not pink - like the ones in his books.

Owen wasn't sure what to think of the sheep. He proceeded with caution.

The goats were fairly content with ignoring Owen's screams and giggles.

Owen didn't have a problem petting the rabbits ... especially since he couldn't read the sign that stated "Don't pet the rabbits".

It looks like we'll have to attach a large block of wood to Owen's feet for him to reach the clutch.

We're always looking out for Owen's safety. That's why we only let him drive John Deere Gators with safety roll bars.

After completing his inspection of the manure spreader tires Owen was very concerned that the lug nuts were not tightened to the 100 foot-pounds the manufacturer recommended. It was too bad Owen left his Little Tike's torque wrench at home or he could have fixed it right there.

Owen was a little disappointed when he realized Barack Obama would not be showing up at the grand stands. Maybe John McCain will.

Second Time Around

It's amazing how fast time goes by. Now that Owen is over a year old, we're now doing things with Owen for the second time. On Friday, Owen helped Daddy kick off the football season before the season opener. When Owen came to watch Daddy perform last year he was just a little guy who couldn't even hold his head up. And yes, the chain crew hit the ground running. It really looked like we were in mid-season form already. It's going to be a great season. The football team won, too.

Owen was so exited to be in the presence of a real athlete.

Owen was a little upset when he realized the yard markers were staked to the ground.

First Day of School

The school year has officially started for Owen and Mommy. It was in-service last week and Owen started his second year of daycare. While Owen is looking forward to being one of the "big kids" in his class, Mommy is hoping to make it through the year without being confused as one of the kids.

Owen was so upset the first day that he refused to let go of his bear, didn't eat breakfast or lunch, routinely screamed in anger whenever something didn't go right and skipped both naps ... but other than that it was a pretty good day. I didn't get all of the details on Mommy's first day of school, but I think it went better then Owen's.

Day 2 and 3 were improvements for Owen, though he is becoming very clingy with his bear. So much, that we ordered a second identical bear just in case the first one become lost - or has to be washed.

Owen was just started to realize that his summer of watching "The Young & The Restless" and Oprah are over.

Baby no more...

Owen is a baby no more... He is officially acting like a toddler or mini-adult!

• Uses a fork. It has made mealtime SO MUCH cleaner and easier. Well that and his Walmart bib. It's like this, but with snaps and cheaper and bigger.
• No more bottles! Owen is a sippy man. And he has a "big boy" night-time routine as we brush his teeth (now he is up to 7 teeth with more on the way!) and do not give him milk right before bed.
• Toddles. Walking was a slower process than I remember crawling to be, but now we can say that Owen is officially walking because it is his mode of choice. He can walk from one room to another now. He is not running yet - thank goodness. He just has a cute little toddle walk.
• Takes water breaks. Owen loves to play at the playground nearby! We walk him there in his Push Around Buggy and he points and squeals in excitement as the park comes into view. He plays, climbs, slides, crawls and when he is thirsty he toddles over to his car, opens the trunk (where his sippy cup is stored), pulls out his sippy cup, takes a few sips, puts it back in the trunk, closes the trunk, and then toddles back to continue playing. SO CUTE!
• Goes up and down stairs. The up part is easy. Owen now has the down part figured out. He whips his little butt around to safety crawl backwards down the steps.
• Climbs. He loves his Little Tikes Cube Climber Mommy got super cheap at a rummage sale. We play "Where is Pink Pig?" with it. Mommy hides a stuffed pig toy somewhere on it (above, below, under the slide, etc.) and Owen goes and finds it and gives it to Mommy.
• Has created his own language. Owen really only says Mom, Dada and maybe the occasional Grandma. But he can hold whole conversations with us using his own distinct language. It is like someone taught him a new language - that mommy and daddy doesn't know! Though Mommy swears today that she heard Owen say "with the envelope" over the baby monitor this morning.
• Follows commands. So Owen can't really talk to us yet, but he understands what we are saying. We can call him into a different room, we can tell him to bring over different items, close/open things and take things to Mommy or Daddy.

It's crazy to think that almost a year ago Owen was this little baby just learning to open his eyes and cry. We often refer to that stage as the "blob" stage because that was what Owen was like: a little, cute blob for us to carry around and feed. Now that Owen is "all grown-up" Mommy finally thinks that having another baby wouldn't be so bad. Daddy, however, will need a little more coaxing as the late-night newborn memories are still too fresh in his mind!

Ain't No Party Like An Owen Party

Owen was so lucky to have all of his family come to his house for a birthday celebration. (We're pretty sure some of the family members came for Nick's signature Old Fashions). The weather was beautiful and we were able to enjoy grilling out, opening presents and eating cake outside. Owen was so excited about every gift he opened that he couldn't wait to play with them. Now he thinks every day should be his birthday!

Owen was so impressed with the cake Mommy made for him. Not only did it taste great - the picture was a mirror image of Owen - three teeth, dirty hands, cake all over the face, and big blue eyes. Great job Mommy!!

To reduce clean-up we decided to move Owen outside for the cake eating - his first cake and ice cream. He thought the cake was okay and spit out the ice cream. Moving the highchair outside was such a success that we are considering feeding him outside all of the time. We'll just rotate his position so the food droppings are spread out on the lawn.

Vacation - Without Owen!!

The day following the wedding we began our first vacation without Owen. Our 3 day jaunt to the Spring Green area was relaxing and entertaining. We're pretty sure Owen had more fun without us too. A quick run-down of our Owen - free events:

Our vacation began with a tour of wine country. Well, we were in the country and vintners were at work.

The vineyards at Wollersheim Winery - Prairie du Sac, WI

Group photo. I wish we got the photographers name - he did great work!

The highlight of the trip for Melissa was definitely a visit to the American Players Theatre in Spring Green, WI. We really lucked out when we purchased tickets for Ah Wilderness! the night before. We were surprised to find front row tickets available to a sold out crowd! The seats were great. We were so close we could see the mosquitoes on the actors.




We stayed at the wonderful Walking Iron Bed and Breakfast in Mazomanie. The house was wonderful and the whirlpool passed as a pool for Nick.

Melissa in front of the bed and breakfast

Nick's highlight of the trip was a 3 hour walking tour of the House on the Rock. To be fair - Nick's idea of a perfect vacation involves anything that was popular in the 50's or can be described as "the world's greatest / largest / oldest / etc". The House on the Rock had all these including the world's largest paper weight collection.

The Holy Grail of Paper Weights

On the final day we rented a canoe and embarked on a 9 mile journey down the Wisconsin River. No one fell in so the trip can be called a success. After being told the trip would take 3 hours if "we paddle all the way through", we paddled as fast as we could since we thought of ourselves as novice paddlers. Apparently we should have spent more time looking for the Mazamanie nude beach because we arrived at the portage location an hour early. The rental company came to pick us up and bring us back to our car. Halfway there the van began to shake and rattle. Upon inspection the wheel had thrown a weight. We couldn't figure out what the big deal was - our Jeep rattles and shakes all of the time ...

Busy Week

The weekend of July 19th was a busy one for us. On Thursday night Nick worked in the FFA Alumni Food Stand at the Pulaski Polka Day's. It's amazing how many polish sausages and perogies can be eaten in an evening. The next morning Nick was the go-getter again by running in the Pulaski Polka Trot 5K. He didn't win - but he was the oldest in his age category. We'll say that is the reason ...

Owen was distraught when he heard that walking was a prerequisite for the race.

The sign reads "Keep On Going, You Can Do It!"

That afternoon we attended another big family wedding. Owen was an all - star throughout the day. Not only did he sleep the entire 2 hour trip to the ceremony, he was well behaved (quiet) and didn't throw too many Cheerios. We lucked out again with a short nap between the ceremony and the reception. Before Owen went to spend the night at Grandma's house, we took the mandatory 128 cousin pictures. Here are some highlights:

"Seriously, you couldn't pick out a different shirt?"

Big cousin Mya took control of the boys and made sure everyone smiled for the camera.

Occasionally we feel overwhelmed with Owen. But this picture of Nick's brother and sister-in-law reminds us of how easy Owen is.

Owen is so easy. Or do we just make it look easy?

1 YEAR Update

Owen has passed the 1 year mark and is now officially a toddler

Official Stats: 31.75 inch. long (95%), 22 lbs. 1 oz. (40%), head circumference 47 cm (69%). Owen is still a very LONG baby! He has 4 clearly visible teeth (2 top and 2 bottom), but his mouth is in constant turmoil as at least 4 more are starting to poke through. He is also walking. He takes about 6 step strides places.

Owen when he had just 3 visible teeth.

Loves....

• playing with life-sized toys like the Little Tikes House or Play gym


• going to rummage sales every week with Mommy because it usually means he will get a new toy, book or clothes for less than a dollar. Daddy had to recently sit Mommy down and give her the "I know its a good deal, but our house is getting full..." speech.


• his Step 2 Push Around Buggy he got for his birthday. Just the sight of it gets him excited. He now knows how to climb in (although sometimes he is backwards). He gets in, sits, and waits for someone to push him around. He screams when he is taken out, even after multiple laps around the house, outside the house and around the block.


• raspberries. He saw a picture of raspberries in his Baby Words book, got excited, pointed at it and then tired to eat the picture.
  
• to read books.


• to take off and put on Mommy's and Daddy's sunglasses.


• climbing. He has magically appeared crouched on top of an activity box and on a child-sized chair. Mommy and Daddy both realize it won't be long before Owen is swinging from the rafters.


• mallets or any cylindrical object. He just likes to hold them.
  
  


• whole milk. Bye-bye icky formula and hello cow's milk!


• Mega blocks. He loves to put the single ones on and off of other mega blocks, often destroying Daddy's complex Mega block contraptions.
  

Hates...

• Diaper changes. Mommy and Daddy do not like them either.


• Peas. Picks them out of his mouth and flicks them.
  

• Finger Pricks at the doctor's office. Lets just say that it took 3 adults, 4 sets of kid bandages, 1 set of adult bandages, a spattering of blood on 2 adults and the floor and screams heard well into the waiting room to successfully test Owen's blood for iron. We got the results back, at least he passed.
  

Things that are starting to grow on Owen....

• bike rides in his bike trailer. It is a 2 seater. He seems to get mad that he doesn't have a friend to ride with him.


• sippy cups. He love the juice filled ones and is so-so about the milk filled ones.


• silverware. He can occasionally stab and sweet potato chunk with his fork and eat it. After 10 min. or so he tries to overpower the suction cup on his bowl and everything goes over the side of his highchair.