Look, Mom, I made a bird!

This is what Owen told me at breakfast yesterday. He had eaten his bagel into the shape of a bird!

We've had a nice week full of friends. We had dinner at the Cagle's Monday, the boys had an afternoon of Molly Tuesday (our sweet babysitter - while I went to yoga!), more time with the Cagle's Wednesday, a playdate with a boy from Owen's school on Thursday and playgroup at the Campbell's today! To top it all off, Molly came again today so Jer & I could go see Slumdog Millioniare this afternoon. What a week. 

I was also pleased to expand and update our picture wall this week. Walter is 19 months and there are now a few framed photos of the sweetheart in our house. All in time...

And I am walking on a 2 inch wide mountain cliff.

Owen received a new Your Big Backyard magazine Friday and it was all about bighorn sheep. After reading it a few times, he decided he needed to become a ram. He dressed himself all in brown, then talked me into dressing Walter similarly, topping both outfits off with pipe-cleaner ram horns. He crawled around the house head butting pretend rams and climbing on furniture telling me how he was walking on a 2 inch wide mountain cliff - a direct quote from the magazine.

At the end of yet another bitter cold weekend we got a bit stir crazy and decided some family bowling was in order. When we arrived at the alley, something got into Walter and he turned into an intense little dude. He was so excited about all of the balls and the idea of throwing them that he couldn't stop screaming. Half of the screams were of delight and the other half were of frustration that he had to wait his turn. I think the picture below sums it up quite well - proof that our sweet little laid back boy does have a pretty strong opinion sometimes.

Batman.

We discovered Walter's newest word in the tub tonight. Owen decided he had to then dress in his Batman pj's to celebrate.

Walter had his 18 month check up today, even though he is 19 months now. (I've never been known for my promptness.) He is a healthy 28 lbs 11 oz and 33.5 inches - ~80% for both! He had one vaccine today and didn't even flinch when the nurse did it.

I will decorate his bowl with treats.

Today was an exciting day. In addition to being the inaguration of President Obama, it was also Griffin's 8th birthday. When I told Owen about Griffin's birthday this morning, he decided he was in charge of Griffin's breakfast and was going to 'decorate his bowl with treats.'

Walter & I had our last day of music class today, we may be signing up for next semester. I'm just not sure yet. Owen enjoyed going back to school after a 4 day weekend today. He wore is "Obama Rama" pin to school today and they got to watch the inaguration at school. At home we celebrated with a cheers and some sparkling juice. 

Here is one of the pictures Owen made for Grif today (I drew the outline of Griffin):

It starts with 'd, d', has a collar and runs faster than a t-rex.

Owen & I were playing animal guessing games in the car on the way home from MI/WI today. Can you guess what animal he was describing? (Answer is at the bottom of this post.)

We had some ups & downs this weekend. First, the boys & I went to Stevens Point for a night at Jer's corporate apartment Thursday. Friday morning, Walter threw up and then was acting just normal, so we went on with our plans. My parents drove down and picked up the boys while Jer & I went to Chicago for his project's holiday party. It was a fun night with a nice dinner followed by some dancing and socializing. Saturday we lazily got out of bed and went across the street for breakfast (maybe we should say lunch!). We walked along the Magnificent Mile and found our way to a movie. We did some shopping on the way back before returning to our hotel to get ready for dinner. Well, we never made it to dinner as Jer started to get quite sick and was sick all night. Sunday morning we checked in with my parents and found out that my dad & Owen had both gotten sick in the middle of the night. So, I guess Walter was truly sick and it wasn't some random incident. As of today, both boys are doing just fine, however Jer & my dad are still on the mend.

We made it home this evening. I felt pretty badly being away from my boys when they were sick and then also getting my dad sick. Knowing how terrible Jer felt & looked, I'm sure my parents did a ton of work this weekend. Still, they both said they would love to do it again (thankfully, as Jer & I enjoyed having some alone time together...even if he was ill half the time!) and felt lucky to have the extra time with the boys. Luckily they had a nice healthy day together Saturday, during which they went sledding, made soap, wrote some books, played ping-pong and played and played and played some more.

Last year we met my parents in the Dells to go to this party. Here is a picture from that weekend. The boys were just really starting to play together then, as Walter was beginning to sit up and interact more. They are such buddies now, its fun to see the development. Thank God for siblings!

(Answer: a dog)

That's mines.

I'm not sure how Owen decided mine should be mines, but he whenever he says mine, it comes out mines.

We had a nice weekend together. The highlight was an impromptu sledding outing at a nearby hill. Luckily there was a broken sled left for the garbage trucks waiting for us at the hill, as our garage door was frozen shut, so we only had one sled. (another bit of luck that we didn't put the one sled away!) Both boys loved sledding and Owen mainly wanted to ride solo. He tried his hardest to make it onto the creek every time. The hill was quite speedy and slick. Here's a clip of Jer & the boys zipping down together (Walter is in the middle):

How to clean your fingernails.

Owen was sad that he did not receive a presentation today at school and that Jamie did. When I asked what her presentation was on, he told me this. I know some people think Montessori is a bit wacky and don't quite get it and I have to admit I couldn't stop giggling to myself after Owen said this, but really, isn't it great to hear them wanting to care for their bodies. 

Owen has been asking me over & over when I'm going to start sewing again, so today when he asked, I said what should we make? He decided he'd like a hat so we set out on a journey to make a hat. I've never been a pattern person, so wung it and after tossing out half a hat and then using my seam ripper a few times, we ended up with a hat! He choose the red & black fabric colors along with green bobbin thread and pink top thread. So the seams don't quite match up, oh well, I don't think he cares. He's looking forward to wearing it to school in the morning.

Walter & I had music 

again yesterday after a few weeks off for the holidays. He was happy to be back boogieing again. One of his favorite parts of class is when he gets to put a ball under his shirt. It always makes him smile. He also loves the parachute and bouncing to 'Jelly in a Bowl'.

Flashback

Here's a couple photos from a year ago. So cute.

Dada.

Owen & I weren't the only ones missing Jer today. Walter was saying 'dada' all day. He'd walk around looking for Jer saying it, he was saying it in the car, he'd find a shoe or hat of Jer's and say it. 

We are easing back into reality. Owen had school today and was happy about it. After Walter's nap the boys & I ran a couple errands and grabbed dinner at Noodles. I decided to take the easy route today.

The bath got a bit rowdy tonight with fights over toys and some hair tugging by a younger sibling. Owen milked it all for all it was worth. Thankfully bedtime was in site so my patience lasted through it all. 

No.

This is Walter's new favorite word. He says it perfectly clear, nice and loud, and with great emotion. At first this meant no and yes, but just yesterday he began to give a yes nod (accompanied by a really sweet smile). I'm hoping this will be a new favorite.

We've been enjoying a nice holiday vacation together. Christmas was wonderful in da U.P., complete with a visit from Santa. Owen was star struck when he walked into my parents' house, answering all his questions very seriously. It was pretty cute. 

Since returning home we've been busy visiting with friends & family, going to yoga, ice fishing, ice skating, going to movies and relaxing as a family. One more day until reality and we will be enjoying every minute of it.

Here is Owen practicing for our upcoming Hawaii trip. Maybe he'll get called up on stage at a luau with these skills.