Roarrrrrrr!

As promised, here are some goodies from my photo shoot with Owen this afternoon. Ryan took him trick-or-treating later this evening and he had a blast. I'm told that several people complimented him on having the best costume of the night! (Probably just because he's so gosh darn cute!)

(P.S. These are the same ones I posted on facebook.)

Oh, and the reason behind the lion costume is that his favorite "lovey" toy that he sleeps with every night and always has close at hand is a lion. Until he can tell me what he wants to be for Halloween, I will just continue to guess based on what I know. And a big thanks to Janan for letting us borrow this awesome costume!

We love Fall!

Halloween is one of my least favorite holidays. So many people are SO into it (in a crazy way!) that I think it makes me feel the opposite. But, there is no denying that this time of year is absolutely one of my very favorites! I'm looking out the window now and getting excited for Owen to wake from his nap so I can put him in his costume and try to take some pictures of him under the sunshine in our back yard. If only we had a tree or two to show off the pretty leaves....sadly, we have NO trees at this house!

I've started a list of the fun new things Owen has accomplished since my last post. I'm sure I've missed some, but I realized recently that if I don't start writing these down, I'm going to miss more and more because he does something new almost every day! So, here's the latest:

• I'm not sure how it started, but over at G'ma and G'pa's house recently, O tried jumping for the first time. His feet don't actually leave the ground, of course, but I'm not sure if he knows that. He gets so excited squatting down (with his butt almost touching the ground when he really gets into it) and swinging his arms on the uptake. Need to get that one on video!

• He also discovered every child's favorite past-time, walking around in a circle until he gets so dizzy he falls. The best part is watching him get up, only to fall right back down again!

• Some new words include, "Ah-dee" (def. "all done," heard after most meals), "bah-by" (def. "baby," in reference to new cousin baby Brody), "hhhhhot" (def. "hot," obviously, regarding the stove, coffee mugs, and some things that are actually cold - he must be confused on the real meaning of that one), and "BOWWW!" (def. "Pouch!," which is the name of one of his books about a baby kangaroo that gets scared and repeatedly cries out to go back to the safety of his mama's pouch).

Pictures

This one shows O's joy at the fact that his head touched the top of this tunnel at the park.

Just hangin' back with G'ma's cell phone, calling my homies.

Aren't we the cutest cousins you've ever seen?

Learning to share Grandma's love.

Big shoes to fill...checking out Aunt Jackie's kicks.

On the way to church with Mommy.

Hangin' with G'ma V on a gorgeous early Fall day.

Mama's coffee mug is much more fun than my sippy cup!

Hmmmm...what kind of trouble can I get into with this hose?

Gus has found a new buddy.

Visiting a small pumpkin farm in Muscatine, Owen enjoyed the little games and toys they had set up. He especially liked the hay maze, but unfortunately, none of those pictures came out very well.

According to this chart, he's about 30 inches tall. According to the doctor, he's actually 31 1/4 inches.

Goofing off with Daddy at the pumpkin farm!

He insisted on riding in the wagon with the pumpkins we picked out.

Our "salesman" farmer pulling our loot into the barn to weigh. I doctored this photo a little bit, and think it looks so retro and charming!

Mama trying to teach O how to color with toddler crayons. He didn't really get it. Maybe in a few months...

Pasta face! Uhhh, how much does he look like Ryan in this picture???

Mommy and Owen's very first pumpkin carving experience. O had fun smashing the guts all over the kitchen table while I carved. Didn't get any pictures of that because we were all by ourselves and covered in goop! But he did VERY well sitting on the kitchen table while we worked and then playing with his toys while I cleaned up. My little guy is getting to be such a BIG boy!

Stay tuned for (hopefully) some fun shots of Owen the Lion. Grrrrrr......!

Welcome, Cousin Brody!

Owen's first cousin on his Mom's side was born this week. Aunt Jackie gave birth to a very handsome boy named Brody Lee Petersen on Tuesday morning (Grandma Vera's birthday!) and Owen can't wait until he gets big enough that they can be best buddies! Ok, so maybe it's Mama that is excited about that one. So far, Owen has shown no real interest in the new baby upon meeting him for the first time, but I know they will be very close one day...getting into all kinds of trouble, no doubt.

Here's a couple shots of the gorgeous little Brody. Isn't he adorable? Mom and baby are both doing well and adjusting to their new lives together. Our family is so blessed!

Gazing lovingly up at his Mama.

Such a little bundle of joy!

Here are a few other pics from the past week or so.

Reading books with Papa Vern.

Picnic lunch with Mommy's MOPS group at Wilson's Apple Orchard in Iowa City.

Owen wasn't so much interested in the apples at the orchard (we actually left before the picking even began), but he sure was intrigued by the pumpkins!

"This one looks different."

"This sure is a funny looking ball."

It wouldn't be a successful trip to a pumpkin patch (or apple orchard, as it were) without getting a little dirt on your pants.

"Hold on a sec, Mom, I'm playing with the mulch."

Too bad that sun was right in his eyes or this would have been a cute(r) photo.

Enough said.

Pretty mums. "Be gentle," says Mommy.

The John Deere tractor that pulled our group on a "hayrack ride" through the orchard.