Some weeks are like that, even in Australia....

One of my favorite childhood books was Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. For those of you who have not read it, it follows Alexander who has a very bad day and wishes he could move to Australia. He wakes up with gum in his hair, doesn't have a prize in his cereal box, has to ride in the middle seat on the way to school and his dentist finds a cavity. These are just a few of the horrible misfortunes that he runs into. In the end he realized that people have bad days, even in Australia. Anyone that has children should have this book in their library.

This week was Mary and Brian and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Week. It starts off with Brian's car breaking down and needing a new fuel pump. We then woke up Sunday morning to find that my car had been tagged. Brian had to travel to the east coast and brought back with him a horrible head cold and a kidney stone. In the mean time, the Beav's lost to Oregon in the Civil War. Needless to say I am ready for next week to start. Thankfully it all turned out okay. Brian's car has returned from the auto shop, rubbing compound and a little elbow grease took the spray paint off my car and after a quick trip to the hospital Brian is on the mend. If there was only some way we could fix the outcome of the game..... In the end I realize that people have bad weeks, even in Australia.

December Already...

Happy belated Thanksgiving to all. I am so excited that it is the Christmas season - poor Brian had to move all of our Christmas decorations into the house last weekend so I could decorate. We will be putting up our Christmas tree this coming weekend and then the house will be complete. It is my favorite time of the year and I think that it will be even better now that we have Owen.

We have decided that I am going to stay at home with Owen. I gave my notice a few weeks ago and am really excited that I won't be going back to work. I would have returned this week and I can not imagine how hard it would have been. I realize how lucky we are to be able to make that decision.

Owen is growing like a weed. He was off the charts in length at the last appointment. He is definitely taking after his dad there! It will be interesting to see how long he is at our next appointment in January. It seems like he is growing out of all his clothes at an alarming rate!

Owen really looks like his dad in this picture.

We finally captured his big grin on camera.

2 months and counting

Owen will be two months old tomorrow, it is amazing how fast the time has gone by. Brian gave Owen his first bottle over the weekend. He took it fairly well but it did make me a little sad because I am not completely needed for feedings anymore. It is nice that Brian will be able to help feed Owen and that we will be able to leave him longer than just a few hours in the future.

Owen is starting to discover his hands. Yesterday he was sucking on his finger and he pushed them so far in the back of his mouth that he gagged. His face immediately crumpled and he burst into tears. Poor little guy, it must be hard to discover fingers.... He is also starting to "talk" to us. He has lots of stories to tell especially when he is getting his diaper changed. It is amazing how fast they seem to change, each week he seems to have a new trick. The best trick that he has done this week is sleeping 4-5 hours at night. I know that I am jinxing it now, but it is amazing to be able to get that much uninterrupted sleep!

Brian and I celebrated our third anniversary yesterday. It is amazing how much has changed in the last 3 years. We added a second dog and a baby to the family, I changed jobs and Brian graduated with his MBA. It seems like the only constant in life will be change! We ended up celebrating by going out for sushi and ice-cream (sorbet for me) with Owen tagging along.

This was Owen's first play date that he didn't sleep through. Reese is 4 months older than Owen. He wasn't so sure of the little one laying next to him! Bobbi (Reese's mom) and I got a good laugh because Owen looked looked like he was trying to box with Reese.

Owen's first bottle.

Owen loves to put his hands under his chin.

Tricks, Treats and Smiles

Life has been fairly normal for us lately. Thankfully Brian has not had to travel much and we are starting to get into more of a routine. I am still getting use to the idea that this little person is controlling almost everything in my life from when/what I can eat to if I can get a shower! It is strange not to be able to do what I want when I want - I never knew that going to the grocery store would take so much planning! As much of an adjustment as it has been I would not trade it for the world.

Time is going by very fast and Owen is growing like a weed. He started smiling a few weeks ago, I am sure this is the first of many new tricks to come. It is amazing how a baby's smile can warm your heart. When he gives me a big milky grin at 3:00 AM all of the exhaustion seems to wash away!

Halloween was fun this year. My family got together for dinner and then all of the cousins went trick or treating together. Owen was dressed up as a pumpkin and we walked around with the nieces and nephews as they had their Halloween fun.

All of the cousins together at my niece Madeline's 12th Birthday.

Owen's first smile caught on the camera. Our neighbor knitted him the pumpkin hat and I was taking his picture for her.

Halloween with the cousins. Poor Carter didn't want his picture taken!

Walking around my parents neighborhood while the cousins went trick or treating. For the record we did not collect any candy on Owen's behalf. It always drives me crazy when people go trick or treating with babies. It is fun to dress them up and show them off but do they really need to collect candy?

I love this picture of Owen peeking out of my mom's sling. We call them "Magic Slings" because Owen can be in a total meltdown and if I put him in his sling he will calm down.

Single Parenthood

I have a new respect for single parents! Brian had to go back east for work this week so I have been able to experience what single parenthood is like.... I have to say that I really appreciate everything that Brian does. Maybe it is easier if you have never had extra help and you don't know what you are missing when it is gone. Thankfully I have had a lot of help from my family so I have been able to get a few naps in.

Owen is doing well, it is amazing to think he will be 6 weeks old on Saturday. Time has gone by fast. We are discovering that he doesn't do well when I eat milk products. Hopefully he will grow out of that in the next few months. If anything it will make it easier for me to lose the pregnancy weight since I can't have ice-cream or chocolate! Owen is getting really close to smiling, I hope that we will be able to capture it on camera when he does.

Tummy time.

Owen loves taking a bath. The bad thing is that he gets really mad when we take him out.

3 Weeks

It is amazing that is has been three weeks since Owen arrived! Thankfully after his challenging arrival things have started to settle down. We are starting to have a glimmer of what the new normal will be like! Hopefully we will be able to keep the blog updated on a more regular basis....

Things have been going well over the last few weeks. The boys (Sy and Harley) have done really well adjusting to having Owen in the house. Sy has finally stopped giving us pained looks and judging us every time Owen cries. If anything the boys are really excited to have people home all day long! They also love to give him sneaker kisses on his feet.

Owen has adjusted to his crazy parents fairly well. We have only had a few rough nights (knock on wood) and we both hope that pattern will continue. It is amazing how well we can function on such little sleep!

Here are a few photos from the last few weeks.

First tailgater ever thrown at the Birthing Center courtesy of Martin and Steve.... I was in my room watching the Beavs game via the internet.

Brian rocking the scrubs. Thankfully they had a larger pair that he could change into.

Brian's first diaper change.

Meeting the boys.

Owen loves putting his hands behind his head.

Owen's Baptism.

Look out blogs, here we come

Greetings everyone.  With a baby on the way and the fact that everyone else is doing it, we figured it was time to start a blog of our own.  Hopefully we'll be up to the challenge.  Stay tuned for something significant to be posted (probably once Mary gets involved)!