Thursday, August 20, 2009

Birthday Boy

IMG_6576.JPGWow. Three years. 36 Months. 1095 days. All Owen, all the time. We're a little freaked out about all the change that is about to come and how we'll all adapt, but hopefully we've learned enought over the past three years to muddle through.

  1. You can lead a boy to the potty, but you can't make him pee.
  2. Don't touch Owen's haircut.
  3. Not all sticks are created equal.
  4. Watching too much Mary Poppins may induce your child to break into song and dance, as well as panhandle.
  5. Mommy and Daddy are not perfect substitutes, and if they try to be there will be tears.
  6. Never underestimate the value of a good-sized box.
  7. Naptime does not come with a moneyback guarantee.
  8. Farm relatives have the best toys ever.
  9. Always be jumping.
  10. The twos really aren’t so terrible.

Monday, August 17, 2009

Diving into the County Fair

Sunday was just about as full as a day can get. We started out the day waiting in line with the crowds for delicious dim sum at Oriental East in Silver Spring with Mom Mom, Grandpa Don, and Jen. Somewhat surprisingly, Owen actually did pretty well eating, although we weren't quite adventurous enough to order the chicken feet off of the secret menu.

After dim sum, we went back to Mom Mom and Grandpa Don's to squeeze in a little swimming in their neighbor Rose's pool before nap time. For the last month or so, Owen has been taking swim lessons every Saturday. So far those lessons have consisted mostly of Owen fearlessly leaping into the pool and trying to doggy paddle back to the edge (with a little support from Daddy). Last time we went with Brad and Marlo to their pool, we remembered to bring Owen's water wings, and Owen had such a great time swimming free in the big pool, that he even convinced a reluctant Mia that swimming could be loads of fun. Well, combine Owen's love of leaping, a pair of water wings, and a diving board, and our little boy had the best time ever jumping and flipping off of the diving board swimming to the ladder, climbing out and doing it all over again. In a little over an hour he probably jumped off the diving board thirty times, and squealed with joy the entire time (the video at the bottom of this post gives just a little taste of the fun).

Exhausted from a big morning, Owen and Daddy took a nap to prepare for an afternoon at the Montgomery County Fair, and Mommy headed home for a well deserved break (can't blame her for not quite being up for lots of walking around in the August heat while nine months pregnant...). Well rested from our naps, we met up with the Brown's for our second annual trip to the Fair. We were joined by Marlo's family to make for a quite the crew, and armed with our knowledge of the fair grounds from last year we made a bee line for the animals, fire trucks, and the combine slide. But the biggest hit this year was something Owen and Mia were too small for last year, the pony rides! Mia was a bit scared at first, but eventually they both had a grand time riding around on their beautiful ponies. To top off the evening we had dinner at the fair with ice cream for dessert, Mia even shared her cone with Owen. Next year the family will be a little bigger, but we'll be sure to go back for more fun at the fair.

(click here for all the pictures)


Monday, August 10, 2009

Party of 13

Owen's 3rd B-Day Party 

Historically we've shied away from big birthday celebrations for Owen, primarily because 1) we have a very small home which will only accommodate a limited guest list; and 2) renting a venue to celebrate a day that will never be remembered by the guest of honor has been hard for me to justify. But this year is different, mostly because we've been a little worried about how Owen will feel about his place in the world once the new baby comes and want to make sure he realizes he's very important to us, but also because Owen is turning three which means there's some chance we'll get credit for this in the future. We decided to go big. To that end we spent a month or so investigating various venues before deciding to hold his third birthday bash at "The Little Gym" a few weeks prior to the actual DOB (lest baby #2 decided to crash). 15 friends were invited; 12* were able to make it, and for an hour and a half on Saturday August 8th, they ruled. But despite the parachute, the air track, the balance beam, the uneven bars, and even the Conga line to the party room afterwards, Owen informed us that his favorite part of the day was blowing out the "3" on his cupcake. Afterwards, we went over to Mom Mom's and had a lovely dinner Mom Mom and Grandpa Don as well as Mia, Marlo, Luke, and Claire before getting a very happy and tired little boy back home and into bed. *Thanks to Leo, Brady, Fiona, Sophia, Tadashi, Will, Katie, Gavin, Chloe, Sophie, Luke, and Mia for making Owen's birthday party such a success! (click here to see all the pictures)