September Update

Man, it's hard to find time to update this thing. Sorry for the delay, folks. Here's what's new with Mr. Owen Peterson these days...

• He recently discovered how nicely his finger fits inside his nostril. I don't think he's "picking" (yet), but he thinks he's pretty clever for finding a new hole to stick his grubby little fingers into.

• I am having a hard time keeping him away from Kinnick's dog food. I think he just enjoys reaching into the bowl and picking up a handful of kibble, but if I don't catch him in time, he also thinks it's ok to put a piece or two in his mouth. You would think that he would have discovered that it doesn't taste that great by now and stop doing it, but alas, he must be a slow learner.

• One of the cuter things he started doing is "standing" on his head. He likes to bend over and rest his head on the floor and just stay that way for a moment or two. Not sure where the fun is in that, but he seems amused.

• The boy finally claps!!! I've been working with him on that for several months now and just when I had given up, he started doing it out of the blue. He loves to congratulate himself on all kinds of things. We're pretty proud of him, too.

• It's no mystery where he picked it up (since I only say it about 400 times a day), but he's started saying "no." It's more like, "niyo," so it's awfully cute, and I don't think he's actually communicating "no" (yet); he is just imitating the sound he hears Mommy make over, and over, and over again. Another continued favorite is "uh-oh" which he says A LOT!

• His favorite toy is is little lion - and has been for several months now, but I hadn't ever documented that anywhere and thought it was worth mentioning. I haven't figured out what he calls lion yet (I just refer to him as "lion"), but he definitely makes a specific sound when he reclaims him (after tossing him over the crib repeatedly) and gets very excited to be reunited with his little pal.

• He's pretty well down to one nap a day on most days, though I think that's because Mommy's been keeping him pretty busy with activities throughout the day. On days when we don't go to the library, MOPS, or some other place where he gets to play and keep occupied, he does still tend to take 2 naps, but those days are becoming less and less frequent (which is fun for Mommy!)

• Owen really loves books. He has a special drawer in the living room designated for all his books that is usually wide open with books strewn about the living room (similar to the Tupperware drawer in the picture below). When he wants you to read to him, he will come up to you with a book in his hand, saying "uh, uh, uh" until you stop whatever it is you are doing, put him in your lap, and read it to him. Sometimes he makes it through a whole book and then gets up to get another one. Other times, he makes it a few pages in and then abandons it for some other toy or sippy cup lying around.

Photos

How my kitchen looks on a typical day...

Mr. Mischief: "What?"

Go Hawkeyes!

Our own little Ricki Stanzi.

Getting another haircut. I had planned to let it grow out for that cute shaggy look that's in style now, but I just couldn't stand it any longer. It was driving me nuts!

Handsome boy!

Carousel attempt #2. It went a little better this time than the last time (at the Great River Days festival). This one was at the Coralville Mall. He's still pretty unimpressed with it, though.

Another new favorite thing (he's revisiting this, actually, as he used to enjoy this a few months ago) is hanging out in Kinnick's dog bed. He just climbs in there and gets comfy with a book, a ball, or - this time - a remote. Poor Kinnick has to share everything!