Learning to walk

Owen is using various things around the house to help him learn to walk...his highchair, the bar stools, and toys are the favorites.
Here is a video of him going across our living room with a toy.

Family BBQ 7/19

Jake's family had a get-together on Sunday. What a beautiful day!

Beyonce 7/16/09

First time out without Jake and Owen...it was a great concert!

Pool Time

The summer feels like it has only just begun...and the pools are already on clearance?!?! That said, we couldn't resist getting a pool for Owen (it didn't hurt that we had a giftcard either...a special thank you to Rodney, Christy and Dylan).

Do we have the next Michael Phelps? He sure is excited about the pool!

Just a swingin'

Finally, we have our very own swing at home!

Fun around the house

Owen helping with the dishes

The high chair is not just for eating anymore...it is actually a fun toy!!! Just watch this video and see :)

July 5th

Jake had so much fun on Saturday that we got to spend about 3 hours on Sunday at the Monticello hospital. He injured his ankle after just a few minutes on a wave runner. Luckily there were no broken bones!

6 days later...still a bit swollen...and a lot more black and blue.

The Monticello hospital is basically right on the Mississippi river and there is a nice park behind...Owen and I left Jake to fend for himself and enjoyed the beautiful day!

He LOVES to swing!!!

July 4th

We celebrated the 4th of July by going out to Jake's aunt and uncle's cabin...located in Isanti county, so it's not too long of a drive to enjoy the cabin life! It was a beautiful day!

Owen tried swimming/floating...wasn't a big fan...not yet.

Hanging out with mommy after trying the lake

Courtney (Jake's cousin) let Owen try his first Pina Colada (freezy). DELICIOUS!

Such a big boy...Hanging out in a lawn chair

Owen made a new friend...He's giving 'High-5' to Ethan. (Uncle Bryan in the background)

July 3rd

Friday, July 3rd was an extra day off work.

Angie's parents came out to visit and brought sweet corn...Owen enjoyed it before it was cooked.

Baby Birds!

So...I was weeding our flower garden in the front yard one day...and as I pulled on some weeds I looked down and noticed a birds nest with 2 little eggs in it. I quickly let go of the weeds (which were still slightly attached to the ground) and backed up. I kept an eye on the nest while I finished weeding and sure enough...a Mama bird came to check on her eggs. I instantly decided that these birds were mine to "adopt"...which basically means that I need to look into the nest a couple times each day. You can't imagine my surprise when the next morning when I checked on the nest and there were 4 eggs! How VERY exciting! Anyways, it has only been almost 2 weeks since I first noticed the nest...as I approached the nest tonight...2 little mouths opened up to me!!! The baby birds have hatched!!! They are beautiful. I ran back into the house to get my camera...and here are the new babies!

Mama bird came back...she's sitting on the nest...kind of hard to see...I will work on capturing a better picture.

New picture of Mama bird...right before she enters the nest...

Ear Tubes

We visited Children's hospital in Minneapolis again on Wednesday, July 1st. Owen had surgery to put tubes in his ears. The tubes are recommended for children who either have recurring ear infections or have fluid behind the eardrum that doesn't go away. Owen had both. During this procedure an ENT surgeon makes a small incision in the ear drum and places the tube through the hole. It takes all of about 10 minutes.

I think the hardest part of the day was watching the doctors take Owen away to the operating room. He has been quite the lil' trooper through this all...he even slept through the night on Wednesday...we thought for sure he would be waking up for more Tylenol, but never did. Now we pray the tubes will do their job and we will be rid of fluid in the ears and ear infections for good!

Some pictures before surgery...