Happy 4 month birthday Tucker

We love you!

Owen saying, "I love you Tucker" early this morning

on the eve of the big day

playing in the crib with big bro earlier in the week

swingin' in the yard last Saturday

My Monday

Mondays usually get a bad wrap. I understand it - it's easy to feel blue when you have to wake up early to go to work after a perfect weekend.

This weekend was pretty much perfect for us. We planted our garden, went for a really long walk along the river, had lots of outside play time, watched a movie during nap time, ate some yummy homemade meals and we even went out for milkshakes on Saturday evening and took a last minute trip to the park as the sun set. Perfect.

But instead of feeling blue on Monday, I just felt happy. The weather was gorgeous and I had the day to spend with my two little boys. We ended up going on a 2 hour walk along the marsh in Folsom. For most of the walk, Owen joined Tucker in the stroller and he and I chatted about the birds and the grass and the snacks he wanted to eat. Owen ran along side the stroller for part of our adventure and luckily we also found a new neighborhood playground to check out. Tucker napped a bit and enjoyed the breeze and was happy when we stopped at a pretty park bench for a feeding. It was peaceful and special.

After nap, we had our second adventure of the day. We visited a farm that I found through localharvest.org, known as 'My Sisters' Farm. Three retired sisters have 10 acres in Shingle Springs ( a 20 minute drive up the hill) where they have decided to fulfill their life long dream - operating a small farm. They raise sheep for wool, chickens for eggs, turkeys for eggs and meat, and cow's for raw milk. They have ducks, a llama, two horses and a couple of dogs, too. When I called, I asked if they do tours and the woman, Patty, told me she'd be happy to show me around and that she had time right then and there. It was random and very last minute, but since Owen woke up that morning asking to visit a farm, I was motivated. At the farm, we got to pet a pretty brown cow, walked through a mini grape vineyard, chased ducks, checked out her barn, strolled through the tall grass to see the turkeys, pet the horses, and looked at the sheep and a baby lamb. Patty was very generous and kind and it was just a lovely little outing. We even left with 3 dozen eggs which should keep for 2 months. Owen was cautious around the animals, but happy to check it all out and explore the land. He really enjoyed it and I'm so happy I finally gave the farm a call.

So unlike many Mondays, this last Monday was pretty much perfect for me. I say pretty much because we had two major poop leakage issues before we left for the Marsh and we also had a super-major poop experience after dinner when Owen went poop in the tub! Owen started talking about poop but the accident happened before Kris realized that Owen needed to use the potty. We managed to draw a quick bath in our room and clean Owen and empty the tub while Tucker happily played. Still despite messy poop, extra dirty towels, and a tub to clean, I fell asleep trying to impress the events of my day into my memory bank, knowing full-well that someday, most likely a Monday, I will want to close my eyes and be back on the Marsh or on the Farm or even at home, carrying Owen from one tub to the next poopy and all.

Tucker's 4 month check-up

Officially, Tucker celebrates his 4 month milestone tomorrow, but we kicked it off today with his check-up appointment. We learned that we have a chunky monkey! Of course, we pretty much already knew this - his legs tell all, but still the confirmation is nice.

The stats - Tucker's listed first followed by a note about Owen:

Weight: 16lbs 4.5oz (79%) - Owen was 1 pound lighter but still very chunky, too

Height: 25 inches (56%) - Owen was just about 1/2 inch shorter

Head circumference - 43 inches - Owen was 40 cm

Tucker also received his shots and received a good bill of health! WOO! He and I both have mild colds, but the doctor isn't worried. And as far as milestones go, Tucker has started to roll-over from belly to back. It's only happened a couple of times so far- both times because he was in reach of a toy. He likes to stuff his toys in his mouth and continues to be very happy and mellow. He likes to sleep from about 8pm to 8am, but no- it's not straight - he still wakes 3-4 feedings a night. Oh yeah, and he's laughing now. He smiles and laughs at Owen all the time and it's seriously one of the most precious things to watch. Owen smiles and laughs and states that Tucker's laughing and keeps repeating his actions to make Tucker smile and laugh! I LOVE it!

I'll post Tucker's monthly photo tomorrow.

Happy Cinco de Mayo.

The many faces of Owen

I love when Owen wants to make faces. I think this is something most 2 year-olds love to do, but nonetheless I get a major kick out of it. Before Owen's school play, he warmed up by practicing a few different faces; in order they went:

Regular Photo Smile:

Woo!:

Super Happy:

Sad:

Bad:

Surprise:

and Super Excited (aka, let's go!)

Tuesday morning

Owen's 1st School Performance

Owen's daycare put on a Spring Gala last week where each class sang a song and performed on stage for family and friends. Maybe calling it a performance is a bit of a stretch, but Owen and his classmates did learn two songs and they did stand on a stage and sing and dance to parts of it. Some of them also cried for parts of it (or most of it like Owen) and some of them also stood staring at their teachers and the crowd. The kids dressed up as pirates and sang about slippery fish and a pirate counting song.

The entire event was a bit chaotic. More people attended than they expected and it was fairly unorganized because of a last minute directive from the corporate office, but the kids had a great time playing in the lobby and in the classroom before they were called to the stage and they especially loved the bounce house and playground time afterwards. All in all the night was a great success- especially since it was the first-ever live school play put on at this center. It was definitely a special night- filled with many very cute moments.

A few pictures of Owen playing before he and his classmates hit the stage:

Here is a short clip of the video-

And the winner is...

A few posts back, I shared some photos of the boys that my brother-n-law, Ryan, shot. His instructor liked one of the photos he used so much (above) that he suggested that Ryan enter one of the school's photo contests. We just found out that he won. Congrats Ryan!