Edisto Trip #2

What an amazing time we have had! We have been so fortunate to go on a week long vacation with Grandma and Grandpa Piepkow, so many memories are being formed. Although it has been extremely HOT (heat index of 115), we have somehow managed to make it to the beach each day! And to be honest, the reason we have to leave the beach is because of the hot and sticky adults, not because of Owen. He is a trooper!

It is amazing how much more of a production it is to get to the beach now that we have a little one, but it is so fun to see how excited he gets in the water, he sure is a water baby. The ocean temp is like bath water and so enjoyable to be in. We just have to watch out for all of the jelly fish, Uncle Teddy found out the hard way :(

Yesterday we went to a fishing tournament hoping to see some big fish...we were a little disappointed when they seemed to be proud of 13 lb fish, I think I've seen bigger in Devils Lake :) But it was neat to see everyone having a great time and some beautiful fishing boats, which looked more like yachts.

Today is our last day here in Edisto, but more beach adventures await us next week...

Pics will be posted next week...

6 Months: 16 lbs 8 oz, 27 inches

Look how much I've grown!

What a wonderful 6 months this has been! We have gone from two people who really had no clue how to care for an infant, to a family of 3 (OK, 4 if you include Marlow) who seems to understand each other. Owen is a wonderful little man who is usually always happy and seems to be happier when he is around a lot of people--just like his dad! We have hit a lot of milestones; sleeping through the night, solid foods, rolling over from tummy to back, sitting up for BRIEF periods before tipping over, ALMOST rolling from back to tummy, taking SOME naps in the crib, smiles, giggles, da-da, ba-ba, lots of yelling when excited, jumping in his bounce toy, and the list just keeps getting bigger!!

I will admit that some days are more difficult than others (these always seems to revolve around the sleep issue--in the beginning it was not sleeping through the night, now it is fighting his naps) but the good far outweighs the bad and I wouldn't change a thing! I have been so truly blessed to be able to spend so much time with the little guy and I will miss him when he starts day care in a couple of weeks...

Growing, Growing, Growing!

I quickly realized when we came back from our trip to Michigan that Owen had outgrown his swing. I put him in it and it squeaked and creeked and Owen could now reach the mobile that hangs above it. I was at a loss, how could I possibly get a break (I mean, where would Owen take his naps)?? So thus our loooooong nightmare began--taking naps in the crib! Let's just say that this boy has a set of lungs on him! After two days of screaming for a good 15 minutes, and only taking naps in increments of 30 minutes, he seems to finally have this napping thing down (hopefully I didn't just jinx myself). Yesterday he took his morning nap for 1.5 hours and his afternoon nap lasted 2.5 hours--yippee!! Hopefully we can keep this up since he will need to be used to this in just a few weeks when he starts day care :(

Michigan Trip

Wow, where do I begin?? We just got back from a fabulous trip to Michigan to see both of our families. Owen enjoyed his first plane ride, first time on both Devils Lake and Clark Lake, got baptized, partied at the sandbar for his first 4th of July, and just had lots and lots of FUN!!

We arrived in Michigan on June 22nd after enduring an uneventful plane ride (which is a fantastic thing). Grandma Kim and Grandpa Zippy came out to Grandma and Grandpa Pfister's place and had a nice cookout followed by a sunset cruise on Devils Lake--he really enjoyed that and even ended up falling asleep in Grandpa Zippy's arms. He is a natural laker :)

One of the main reasons that we traveled to Michigan so early was to celebrate Owen's baptism into the Catholic Church. On Sunday, June 27th, Owen was welcomed into the Church. We had a lovely ceremony in my parents' church and were fortunate enough to have the priest who presided over our marriage, baptize Owen. Afterwards, the Piepkows hosted a party at their house, where Owen was able to see a lot of his great aunts and uncles. It was a fantastic day!

Owen really enjoyed all of the people that he was able to meet and see again for a second or third time. He even had his first night away from mommy and had an overnight trip with Grandma Kim on the 3rd of July so mommy and daddy could party it up :) Owen hung out with us during the day on the sandbar and had a delightful time--he spent the majority of the time napping. I think the waves and the breeze were just the thing he needed.

On the actual 4th, Owen was a doll. Grandma Julie and Grandpa John watched him for a couple of hours while I got to go to the sandbar with an old friend (and unfortunately daddy had to get back home for work). He was a trooper in the evening and he slept throughout the entire fireworks display, hopefully next year we can take him on the boat to see the fireworks up close and personal!

What a great way to spend a couple of weeks in the summer!