Mealtime Tricks

Owen is not always the best eater, so I've learned a few tricks along the way to help him 

be a little more adventurous.  He'll eat fruit all day long, especially strawberries, grapes

and watermelon, but vegetables and protein have always been a little tougher.

One day as he sat with untouched, cut up pieces of chicken in front of him, I said to him,

"Can Mommy try a bite?"  He was more than happy to share and get the chicken off his plate.

What's hilarious is as soon as I ate a piece he started eating the rest of it.  I thought it was 

maybe just a fluke, but we've tried the same tactic since then and it has worked like a

charm.  I've got him to try turkey meatballs, chicken strips out at a restaurant, and

various other things that he previously would turn his nose up at.  

I discovered my second trick today at lunch.  After he finished up all of his watermelon, he 

wasn't interested in anything else on his plate.  I noticed he was using a pretzel to stab at

the chunks of string cheese he had, and then he would put the pretzel up to his mouth.

He had used a fork once before at Grandma's house, so I went and got him a fork to

see if it would do the trick.

   

Sure enough, once he got the fork loaded, he started eating the cheese he had moments

ago refused.  I can't guarantee these tricks will last forever, but for now it is nice

to have a sneaky way to get him to eat a little bit more every once in awhile.

Splash Pad

As of yesterday I decided to keep Owen up all morning and transition him into one nap per day.

It was taking him so long to fall asleep for each of his naps and at bedtime, so I figured he 

was ready to make the switch.  He's done great so far!  I truly believe that this kid

never runs out of energy though, so staying up the few extra hours wasn't that bad.

I try to keep him busy all morning so he doesn't realize that he might be getting sleepy.

Today's morning activity...the SPLASH pad!

 

We went to visit Val, Ruby and Max and decided to walk over to the park so the kids could

run around for a little while.  Little did I know the splash pad was on.  I wasn't quite sure

how Owen would react, but once he saw the water there was no keeping him away.

At first he slowly walked up to check it out and one of the streams splashed on top of his head

and in his face.  He got startled and ran away, but just as quickly as he was out of reach of the

 water, he was running right back in this time with a little more confidence.  He ran back and

forth over and over again through the streams of water.  The fact that he was getting soaking

wet and splashed in the face didn't phase him at all.  

He was having such a great time and it was absolutely hilarious to watch.  A little terrifying as

well because he would get so excited that he would run even faster than normal.  Thankfully

 we escaped with only one bump to the forehead.  And bump or not, there was nothing 

that was going to keep him from playing in the water.  

The picture with his arms out is one of my favorites.  Though you might think he is at the

beginning of a fall, that was really how he was running through the water with his arms out to

the sides like that.  So hilarious.  What's even more fun is we ran into Owen's cousins

there, so that is Ava Kate and Olivia in the picture with him.  He had so much fun

and I am so happy that he took to the water so well because now we have

another summer activity we can add to our list of things to keep us busy.

Side Note:  Today was the first day Owen got himself up on his own when he fell down. 
Normally he crawls over to me or something else he can help himself up with.  But today he got
on all fours, put his two feet down and used his hands on the ground to push himself up.  
YAY Owen!!

  

 

Memorial Day Greek BBQ

With it being Memorial Day weekend, we decided to have Tim, Val, Ruby, and Max,

and Grandpa Joe and GiGi over for a BBQ.  I wanted to do something a little 

different with grilling, so I decided to go Greek.  

Menu

Greek Salad with homemade Greek Dressing

Grilled Pork Souvlaki skewers in a homemade Greek Marinade

Served in warm pitas with tomato, onion and homemade Tzatziki sauce

Overall I was happy with how everything turned out and I thought it was a fun change of pace.

Now I just have a huge bowl of leftover Tzatziki sauce that we need to figure out how to use up.

Owen was BEYOND excited to have visitors!

He loves having company over and tonight was no exception.  He ran around on an

absolute high nearly the entire evening.  At one point he was so beside himself he laid on

the ground and kicked his little arms and legs as fast as he could screaming out in excitement.

This little boy is definitely never at a loss for energy.

After hours of running around, pushing way past his normal bedtime, and being so overtired he was bordering on being manic, we figured it was time to bring it down a notch.  We turned on

Finding Nemo and he and Ruby were instantly mesmerized.

In case you're wondering, No, Owen does not normally run around shirtless.  

His shirt got wet and dirty during dinner and since we weren't quite ready for a bath yet,

no shirt was our best option.  What a little stud!  They kind of look like an old married couple.

One of my favorite parts of the picture is how Ruby has her thumb up, ready to go 

in her mouth as soon as she decides she needs it.    

Ruby and Owen looked so cozy on the couch that Grandpa decided to join 

and get in on the cuddling action.

Then we added Max to the picture for a great picture of Grandpa with all the grandkids.  

Aren't they cute??

 

What's funny is even though we were taking a picture, neither Ruby nor Owen took their eyes

off of the movie.  Ruby gave her best effort at a smile, but still managed to stay

focused on the  most important thing in the room...Nemo. 

  

Fun at the Park

If it hasn't been made clear in my previous posts, Owen is full of energy.  This little kid

can just go and go and go.  So when the weather permits and we don't have anything

else going on, a typical day means going to the park in the morning, and then

back to the park after he wakes up from his afternoon nap.  

It gives me a chance to get some exercise (I try to walk to some of the farther parks) and it

gives Owen a chance to run around and burn off some energy.  Perfect activity!  The best part is Oak Park has SO many parks to choose from.  And a lot of them have Tot Lots which mean the equipment is geared towards toddlers.  Lower to the ground, shorter slides, etc.  And all of them have turf underneath which make it safer for my little speed demon.

Thankfully he has become much more steady on his feet.  I used to have to follow one step behind him to hopefully catch any crazy falls, but now it is easier to let him be.  He still

prefers to run over walk which means there are times when his feet just can't keep up and he tumbles, but for the most part he is pretty steady, which is a relief.  

Now our new dilemma is this kid if fearless!  

He's started trying to walk up and down the stairs on his feet rather than crawling up or scooting down.  He doesn't quite realize that he is not completely balanced and if he falls, he has a whole flight of stairs to tumble down, not just one or two.  And when we're at the park, if there is a ledge on the equipment that he wants to scoot off, he'll turn around, lay on his belly and keep scooting over the edge until his feet find the ground.  Thankfully most of the ledges are only 2 stairs high at the most, so he does fine.  But there are some parks where the ledge goes off to a rope ladder or some other activity and is 6 feet tall.  He gets on his belly, and scoots his little body over the edge the same way he would on the shorter ledge.  So while I try to sit back and let him play and explore, we're not quite at the point of him being on his own just yet. 

One of the funnier things we've noticed about Owen lately is he has gotten a lot more vocal.

If he gets excited, upset, or just wants to let everyone know how he's feeling, he's not shy.

I would love to know what he is thinking.  He speaks as if he knows exactly what he is saying

even though I haven't got a clue what he is saying.  He just sings, talks or yells to himself.

 

  

The best was when we were in Wausau this past weekend. We were at dinner and he and my nephew Aiden were sitting across the table from each other. Aiden was singing a song to him and drumming on the table and Owen was drumming along.  Grandpa, who was sitting right next to Aiden started drumming along too.  Owen immediately stopped what he was doing, got a stern look on his face and started shouting gibberish at Grandpa.  Once Grandpa stopped, Owen and Aiden picked right back up where they left off, laughing and singing.  Just to see what would happen, Grandpa started drumming again.  Sure enough Owen stopped drumming, whipped his gaze around to Grandpa and very seriously scolded him.  Maybe he was trying to tell him he was drumming off beat, maybe he was trying to tell him this game was only for him and Aiden, but either way it was absolutely hilarious.  I think we are going to have our hands full once this little guy really starts talking.  Until then, I'm enjoying his funny little one man conversations. 

Swim Pants

Another 80 degree day = More fun in the sun.

Or in Owen's case,  more fun in his protective SPF swim gear.  ;)

It's rough having such fair skin, but he doesn't seem to mind.

 

And speaking of swim gear, when did they start making swim shorts so long??

Don't get me wrong, it is great to protect the knees of a little guy who refuses to do 

anything but run, but I can't help but think they look a little silly. 

Don't worry buddy.  If anyone can pull it off, you can!

Happy Mother's Day!!

This year was my 2nd Mother's Day and per usual Ryan found a way

to make me feel extra special.  He started by coming home from work on Friday with the most

beautiful bouquet of flowers.  He was so proud because he worked together with the 

florist and picked every single flower himself.  It was beautiful and so sweet

that he took the time to make it perfect.

 Then there was a large bunch of cookies delivered directly to my door with a note from Owen that read "You are the best Mommy a kid could ask for.  I love you so much, Mom!"  

The cookies are absolutely delicious, and for a sweet tooth like me, it is the best gift!  

We were introduced to these cookie bouquets when Owen was born and

ever since I have been hooked!

Thanks for making Mother's Day so special Ryan!  I am so lucky to have the most amazing

husband and the cutest little guy around.  Hard to believe that next year at this

time there will be another little guy in the picture.  Love you guys!
 

And speaking of LOVE, Happy Mother's Day to my Mom!!

 

I love you so much and am so thankful for everything you've done for me.  You are the most caring, selfless woman I know and I am so fortunate to have you in my life.  I love being able to call you and talk to you when I need advice, need an opinion, or most importantly just

need a friend.  Thank you for always being there for me.  I love you!!

Water Table Fun

I'm always trying to think of fun things to keep Owen busy.  So when I happened to spot this water/sand table at Costco, I couldn't pass it up.  What a great purchase!!  

I put it together yesterday while he was napping so it was ready for an 

afternoon of fun when he woke up.  He had so much fun with it!

For a while he played pretty calmly, exploring all of the new ins and out of the table.

Then he realized he could splash and neither he nor I stayed dry.  I was a few feet away

innocently trying to get a few pictures of him, but somehow he managed to fling

the water in my direction. 

The one thing we need to work on is drinking the water.  He thinks it is hilarious to take a cup or

bucket, fill it with water, and drink it.  I should be happy as this is his first time actually drinking

from a cup without a sippy lid, but who knows what is in that water.  Gross!

Overall the table is well worth the money.  He spent nearly an hour playing out there

and had a blast!  I'm sure this water table will be getting plenty of use this summer.