Owen's Monkey Business

For posterity, I thought it would be fun to track my day with Owen at 6 1/2 months. He is such a joy at this age, rolling and smiling and singing. He loves the tags on toys, blankets, and clothes. Two days ago, he started to do this chewing motion as he is starting to teethe we think. It's so cute! Today he took a shower with daddy- his first shower! We had three naps and lots of rice cereal and sweet potatoes, and a great walk in the park. Here is the rundown: 6am ish- Owen wakes up. Daddy brings him in for me to nurse him. We both fall back to sleep for a bit. 6:45 am- I ask Derek to get up with him and change his diaper. I get up ten minutes later for the day. 7 am- I prepare Owen's rice cereal with 3 T of cereal and 1 3/4 oz. pumped milk 7:15 am-Owen eats cereal and plays in high chair 7:35 am- change poopy diaper/get dressed 8:00 am-play in exersaucer 8:10 am- saline rinse nose for stuffiness (this works like a charm!) 8:15 am- play in pack and play 8:30 am-mommy a...

Sunday afternoon we drove down to Long Beach to find Naples Island and walk around to view the holiday light displays. The whole area reminds me more of Florida and the canal neighborhood was a lot like Ft. Lauderdale. It wasn't too cold out so we really enjoyed walking around. After an hour and a half or so we found a wonderful Thai restaurant for dinner and finally got home a little after 9.

Owen's first Christmas was a wonderful day shared with my parents. I'll let the pictures tell the story. We were also able to speak with family members far away, though we didn't reach Derek's dad Joe until later.

On Christmas Eve, Derek made shrimp scampi and bacon-wrapped scallops for our mini-version of The Feast of the Seven Fishes. Since I am not Catholic, I was unfamiliar with the idea of eating fish the night before Christmas until this year. My dad, a big shrimp and scallop fan, was in seventh heaven! After dinner, Owen, dressed in his holiday nightwear finery, opened his first Christmas Eve ornament. Growing up, I always received a new ornament for the tree on Christmas Eve. We put Owen's ornament in a reusable holiday box that we will hopefully use every year for this purpose. He enjoyed tapping the cover for a bit, then grabbed the bright green tissue paper when the lid was lifted. Tissue paper is the most fun part of the gift this year for him. His first ornament is a bear sitting on a crecent moon, with his name and birthdate on yellow stars. Then momma read daddy's copy of The Night Before Christmas from 1975, and baby went to dreamland!

The first Saturday in December we went to our friends' home in Mission Viejo for a holiday open house and cookie exchange. They have a six month old too- his name is Will! We got to try out Will's cute seat that attaches right to to the table. The boys posed in front of the tree. Next time they see each other, they can just sit on their own. So exciting!

On Sunday afternoon, Dave and Michael came to visit! Dave had seen Owen in the hospital and a couple times at Derek's work, but it was Michael's first time meeting him. We had fun showing them the nursery and Owen's newest "tricks" (rolling over and just being darn cute!) They gave Owen his first Christmas present, adorable moose pajamas to wear Christmas Eve and a touchy feely snowman book that Owen just loves! He had fun ripping the wrapping paper off.

We decided to beat the crowds and go to the mall to see Santa Thanksgiving week. Will try to scan santa pic and add it later! Naptime's over, so off we go!

We drove around our city looking at holiday light on Dec. 19. The first home we visited had music that coordinated with the light show. It was way out in the country, in an area called Castaic. Really chilly and wintry out, so it was just right! We visited a total of six award-winning displays; the winners from our local newspaper. A colleague of mine is holding O. in the pic.

Thanksgiving was a very special day this year. Not only was it Owen's first Thanksgiving, but my parents were also here to celebrate with us. It was also Owen's first time trying vegetables. I pureed butternut squash for him, and well, I will let the photos tell the story! It was a lovely day, and our friend Nicole was able to spend it with us too!