Owen's 1st Birthday

Ok, so it's been over 2 weeks since Owen turned 1, and I am just now getting around to posting pictures and an update. Oops! We had such a fun time at his party. Both sets of grandparents were there, plus Aunt Rachel, Aunt Jackie, Aunt Janan, and Uncle Brad (and their respective families), and Amanda and Will Woodruff. Owen got lots of neat gifts, had a blast playing with the other kids, and got to eat cake and ice cream for the very first time! He was all smiles all day long (which is pretty typical for him anyway.)

This picture was difficult to get (and it's certainly not the best one we've taken this year). Owen is so full of energy, it is challenging trying to get him to sit still for any length of time. He'd much rather play with Curious George than sit next to him, or climb on the chair than sit on his bottom. This will probably conclude the monthly birthday photos. Sad!

So, you saw the practice cake in my last post. Here's the final product. Not too bad, if I do say so myself!

The look on Owen's face while we were singing "Happy Birthday" was priceless. He was probably thinking, "why the heck is everyone standing around looking at and singing to me??"

Owen was not too sure about the cake, and especially the ice cream, at first.

"Oooo, ice cream is COLD!"

"Ok, I think I've got the hang of this now."

"Yum! Mom, can we have cake and ice cream every night?"


This picture just doesn't show how adorable and hilarious O looked blowing kisses on the glass patio door, but I'm sure you can imagine.

Opening presents...

Our summer is still going very well. Owen is so much fun now that he is walking well and getting into everything! He sure keeps me on my toes, but I have to remind myself that's what I'm here for now. (The roles and responsibilities of "Mom" keep changing on me!) We've visited Niabi Zoo in Milan and the Children's Museum in Coralville, have spent many an afternoon splashing in either our sand/water table or backyard baby pool, and have had some fun play dates with O's new buddies Jacob and Will.

I realized recently how much our little imitator is listening to us even when we might not realize it. For some time now, I've noticed that O likes to imitate sounds that he hears - like squealing fireworks on the 4th of July, the snores of an old man fast asleep, and Daddy burping, for example. Although he's not saying any words yet, I'm sure it won't be long, so we really need to start watching what we say around him.

The O-man is an excellent eater. He will literally eat anything I put on his tray. Just today, I gave him kidney beans (yuck!) and he ate them up right along with his grapes, bagel, and peas. I'm trying to expose him to as many healthy and nutrient-rich foods as I can now before he starts to get picky.

And just this past weekend, on an evening that Ryan and I went out (of course!), my family managed to finally teach Owen how to wave - something I've been working on with him for months! He is so cute when he does it - he waves his whole arm, and he just grins from ear to ear as if he's accomplished the most incredible feat (which, of course, we let him believe he has).

Here are a few more pictures from the last few weeks. Enjoy!

Blowing bubbles with Grandma Vera

Swimming! We love it when Grandma comes to visit, but we wish her summer wasn't over so soon.

Check out those baby blues! That is probably the single most frequent comment I receive from strangers when we're out and about - "such big, bright, blue eyes!"

Making a big mess with Will in the sand/water table he received as a birthday gift...and loving it! (I've since removed the sand and declared it simply a "water table." Maybe we'll try sand again next year, but it was just too messy for Mommy and Daddy to deal with.)

Still putting everything in his mouth (when will that end?), Owen experiments with his first puzzle.

Owen loves taking baths!

Headband and muscle tee. This boy is styling!

"Mom, why is there a giant jar of cheese balls in our living room?"