I've jumped into Etsy!

Well, I've been toying with the idea of putting my baby knits on Etsy.com and today I finally opened a shop! The site is http://luckyduckbabyknits.etsy.com and if you get a chance, please visit it. I'm crossing my fingers that the hats sell because I really want to buy more yarn! If you know anyone who needs a baby gift, send 'em my way please. Let me know what you think about the shop. Also, you may want to check out the other shops if you've never been to Etsy, but be careful, there are lots of great things to look at there...

Hot, hot, hot!

It is sooooo hot here (and it seems to be pretty much everywhere in TX & LA so I know I'm not the only one complaining about it). We've been staying inside almost all of the time - except for quick trips in the car - which heats up in a parking lot in about 2 seconds - or a stroll around the shaded backyard to water the very thirsty plants or a swim (still in the shade) in a very warm pool. Owen is doing so many new things now. It seems that everyday he either perfects a skill or begins to tackle a new one. He's handing things over to you and releases it and really enjoys giving you toys. He pushes a ball back that has been rolled to him. He stands at the furniture and will even let go for a second or two and still holds his balance! He "dances" when he hears music, knocks when you say "knock on the door," and signed "more" after I did the other night! He will be 10 months old in less than two weeks and I still can't believe it. Also, he had Roseola last week - I don't know where he picked that bug up but it's been and gone so I guess it's something we can cross off the "Childhood Diseases" list. Here are a few pictures we've taken recently.

no, I'm not crazy and dressing my baby in winter stuff while it's 400 degrees here, Owen is modeling his new hoodie sweater I just finished for him - he's ready for fall,

if it gets here...

Staying cool in the pool (you can kind of see his Roseola rash here)

9 months

Owen is 9 months old and he had his check-up yesterday. He is 29.5" long and 23 1/2 lbs - both put him in the 90th percentile! He is doing pretty much everything he should be as well as a few other things except crawling. He supports his weight so well on his feet and stands as if he could take off any minute that the doctor said she thinks he may go straight to walking and skip the crawling, we'll see...
Anyway, some things he's doing now

• waving to everyone - hi and bye and he responds with a wave as well as initiates waving himself
• clapping hands for "yay," when someone says, "clap your hands," and in imitation of others
• he "dances" by shaking his little body when you say "dance dance dance"
• he scrunches up his nose and breathes really fast and loud (he makes it a back and forth game if you respond by imitating him)
• he sits and reaches for stuff all around him and then after grabbing it, pulls himself back to sitting position
• he babbles with lots of sounds and syllables and I'm still waiting for "mama"
• he laughs with a really big belly laugh when tickled and seems to be ticklish almost everywhere - feet, thighs, arms, belly
• turns his head to the side to look at stuff and is interested in looking at and investigating EVERYTHING
• isolates his pointer finger and tries to poke stuff
• tries to grab little things with one or two fingers and his thumb
• eating slightly chunkier stuff
• takes sips of water from a water bottle held by mama
• is much better at napping during the day - yay!!
• slightly better at sleeping at night - yawn

These are all of the things I can think of right now. I'm sure he'll be doing something else new tomorrow as it seems that he develops or perfects a new skill in a matter of 24 hours. We can't believe he's 9 months old and that his first birthday is around the corner. I have to say that we are so surprised at how fast time has flown by and we are trying so hard to make it slow down with no luck. Well, I'll try to post new pictures again soon. Ta-ta for now!

New pictures

Here are a couple of silly faces from our little guy

This is what morning looks like without coffee...We took Ben and Owen to the Aquarium in New Orleans and met Laurie & James and their two kiddos to look at the fish, sharks, and other sealife - they all seemed to have a blast and as you can see in the last picture, the boys were VERY tired. They nodded off before we got on the highway to come home!

Owen kept grabbing Elliot's face and giving him kisses (his kisses include lots of pinching!)

shhhh...

8 months

Owen is 8 months old and he's doing lots of new things. In the last few weeks he's learned how to clap, wave hi and bye pretty much consistently, play peek-a-boo, turn pages of a book being held by someone else, clap two things together, eat several different foods, sit up in the tub, and laugh at silly stuff. He has been swimming in a big pool, visited his new cousin, played with his cousins Elliot and Ben, begun to cut a third tooth, and smiled for the camera countless times. It's been a busy few weeks. Here are a few pictures of our cute little guy.

Here are a couple of Owen's newest tricks - waving hi, clapping, and laughing at silly stuff (he likes watching mommy stack up the blocks and then say "crash!" when he knocks them down)

Owen has a new cousin!

Owen has a new cousin - Lillian. She was born on Thurday, May 7 at 8:49 am and weighed in at 8 lbs 7 oz and is 20" long. She's healthy and cute and we can't wait to meet her this week. Congratulations to Nanny Laurie, Uncle James, and Elliot! Here's a picture for you to see and we hope to take lots more when we visit in a couple of days.

a little eye candy...

Our yard is full of spring time blooms and I just love what they look like up close. Here are a few for you to see.

butterfly bush

purple spiky thing (not really sure)

hibiscus

Louisiana iris

Louisiana iris

squash flower - I may have over planted this one - I didn't realize how many squash/zucchini these plants produce on a single plant and I planted a total of 6!

impatiens

mint - I love this plant!

and here are a couple of pics of the little guy sittin' in his "big boy" chair and his high chair

The last few days (read: week) have been kinda rough - Owen had another cold, another trip to the doctor, and more nebulizer treatments for more wheezing. We even had to start an oral steroid which made him more than a little "awake" for the past few nights. So far today he's taken a cat nap, nursed several times (yay!) and even eaten some rice cereal (double yay!). He had stopped eating food and began clamping his mouth shut and shaking his head from side to side every time I offered food so that makes today pretty good! He seems much happier today and his lungs sound clear to me (I've gotten pretty good with the stethescope after a crash course at wheezing identification) so hopefully he's getting over this last illness. I'm really crossing my fingers that I can keep him well for the next few months because I have a feeling this fall/winter is going to be a doozy... That's all for now.