Our Big Boy...Sitting all by himself!

Owen is sitting all by himself for brief bits of time these days. He reaches and grabs for his paci or toy that he drops while sitting and sits back up straight. He is getting so strong!


We also introduced some new fruits this weekend. Papaya and Mango. Owen seemed to be a fan of both of them. He no longer wants to recline in his high chair when he eats. He sits up straight and practically dives on the spoon full of food with an open mouth. He is such a great eater. He is eating lots too (hence the fat belly seen above!). He puts down 31oz of milk a day, 2.5 tablespoons of cereal and 4oz of other solid food (green beans, peas, squash, sweet potato, pear, apple, banana, papaya or mango).

The only other update is that we believe it is safe to say that Owen is sleeping through the night. They say it takes seven days to form a habit....well....Owen has slept through the night (dropping both his 1am and 5am feed) for 16 nights! Owen goes down at 7:30pm and we have to wake him to get him ready for school at 5:45am. On the weekends, he sleeps in (just like us!). Hopefully this blog post does not jinx us!

Happy Half Birthday!!!

Owen is six months old today!!! We can't believe Owen has been a part of lives for half a year! He is such a happy blessing in our lives.

The last week has been a bit of a challenge though. Owen had been dealing with a cough and some congestion for over a week. But then last Friday he started developing a fever. To the doctor we went! His white blood count was high, so he was prescribed antibiotics. Owen showed a bit of a loss of appetite on Saturday, but other than that he was still his happy little self.

Today, Mommy took Owen for his six month check-up and shots. Owen sat up and played during the doctor's visit, which made it fun for the doctor to interact with him. He weighed in at 17 pounds, 13 ounces and was measured to be 26.5 inches long. So...technically he shrunk half an inch! HA! Not likely. The decrease probably has something to do with him being stretched out too much at his last doctor's visit or not being stretched out enough at this one. Either way, Owen is in the 50th percentile for both weight and height. All of his other vitals and milestones were right on track. It was a great check-up.

And....here is the ball picture for this month!

More solid foods!

Over the past week we have introduced solid foods into Owen's diet. It has been fun to say the least. Feeding times are now extended and a little more messy...but we've enjoyed seeing his reactions to different foods. We started with sweet potato and have since tried a second vegetable - squash. Surprisingly, he likes it more than his mommy ever will! A few days ago, we introduced pear at his lunch time feed. So, now the big man is up to one fruit and one vegetable serving a day! Tonight...it's green beans for dinner! YUM!
We are making all our baby food. It is a lot easier than it sounds. Cooking or steaming is completed quickly and then the food processor purees fabulously! Most of food then gets stored in ice cube trays in the freezer, but we keep out enough for Owen to try in the "Baby Cubes". They work great!

Christmas 2009

We had a wonderful first family Christmas. As most of you know, Owen was baby Jesus in our church Christmas Eve service. Which meant that we were Mary and Joseph! This is the only picture we have (taken by Arthur Young with his phone and screen captured from Facebook).


After the service, Owen had his bottle of milk and cereal while Mom and Dad enjoyed a nice piece of fish, a salad and a potato. Then, it was off to bed so Santa could come! Santa certainly found us. And Owen must have been extra good....as he enjoyed many many gifts! Too many in fact. We didn't get them all opened until two days after Christmas (we only have a small window with him that he will comfortably stay in our laps to open presents!).

Nonnie and Pop flew in to share the day with us and stayed through the weekend. We had a wonderful visit and enjoyed their help and company as usual. Gram and Pappy cruised the Caribbean over Christmas, but were here in spirit. They surprised us by hiding some Christmas gifts when they were here at Thanksgiving, which included a photo frame containing pictures of them with Owen in his "Baby's First Christmas" outfit and Santa hat that they had gotten for him. TOO CUTE!
Here is a picture of Owen in the outfit on Christmas Day


Here is the family before Christmas dinner


And a little glimpse of our tree


Owen is getting so strong. He has mastered rolling over (both back to front and front to back). He LOVES to show off his new skill. He enjoys being on his tummy more now than he used to. When he is there, he pushes up to look around. He will even stay on his tummy with his head up while being read to or to gum a toy for a while.