July Happenings....

 Daddy's Girl:
 Mark and Nora have really bonded and it is so sweet to see.  It is amazing to me the differences we notice already between Nora and Owen.  She is definitely much more particular.  She likes her bottle at a certain temperature, laying a certain way, and prefers to eat with not much noise around (such as a noisy big brother?!?).  With Owen, if there was milk coming out....he was happy!

 Movie Nights:
Since it is summer and we don't have to get up so early in the morning, I have been a little more flexible on bedtimes.  This has allowed us to have some very fun movie nights that include: popcorn, water, and lots of snuggles! Owen's favorite part of course is eating the popcorn.  (Shh.... Don't tell Daddy but when Nora cooperates.....we have middle of the day "movie nights" too.)

 Watch Out! Crazy Driver!
We don't normally shop at Fareway, but needed to run in there for a few things a couple weeks ago.  Owen was thrilled to see a shopping cart just his size.  I couldn't bare to tell him no, although I was quite scared how the experience would go.  He has a play shopping cart at home, and I know how he drives that thing around the house!!! SCARY.  Needless to say, he did not disappoint.  He drove that thing like a mad man around the store saying "BEEP BEEP, COMING THROUGH!"  He also caught on quickly when it came to putting things in the cart.  I wasn't watching for a second and I turned to see him piling his cart with granola bars saying "Mmmm....these yummy in my tummy."

 Sleeping Beauty/Surgery:
Little Miss Nora got some special time with Grandma Cindy while Mark and I had to take Owen to Children's Hospital for an outpatient procedure.  I couldn't resist the picture below.

 This is pre-surgery.  He kept all the nurses laughing.  I made the mistake of letting him pack his "bag of goodies" to take with us to read/play with.  He picked "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" -- Not a great choice for a little boy that hadn't eaten in about 16 hrs.  Oops...mom fail!  Luckily our room on the 'Cares Unit' was right across from the play room.  He was thrilled to play with all the toys while we waited around for his procedure to start.

 Afterward....poor baby was not feeling great.  He was such a trooper though and liked his new bear that they gave to him.

 Life got a lot better when he was given Teddy Grahams and cartoons.  After he finished one bag, he would just keep asking for anther one.  I think he ate 3 or 4 bags of those! ha.

Painting with potatoes.  Why?  I had some potatoes to use up, and Owen isn't a fan of getting paint on his fingers.  :)

 This little lady is getting to be so much fun.  She has recently started laughing and it is adorable!  Her favorite thing to laugh at his her big brother.  He is quite the fan of her as well.

When Nora lays on the blanket.....Owen lays on the blanket.

 Kisses!!

 This pretty much sums up the dynamic between Owen and Nora right now. Ha.  Owen is obsessed and Nora thinks he's pretty cool, but mostly from a distance.  She would much rather be held by a grown up and have her brother entertain her....from across the room.

 HOT STORMY WEATHER:
The weather has been crazy this summer. As much as I like to get out of the house, the weather hasn't been cooperating....so, I had to come up with some things to occupy our time inside.  Where did I turn??!  Pinterest of course!  Owen thoroughly enjoyed giving all of his cars a "car wash"

 Marbles were also a big hit.  He especially liked turning the noodle so that the marbles either hit Daisy or Mommy.  This was absolutely HILARIOUS!  Daisy thought otherwise....so she found a safe spot on the top of the couch.

"Working Boy":
Owen doesn't go much of anywhere these days without his tools and hard hat.  He walks around the house with a hammer saying "I'm a workin' boy Mommy".  He was especially excited to help Daddy on his project.  He would have stayed out there all night if I would have let him, moving dirt from one pile to the next.

 Then...without being told what to do, he watched Mark bringing shovels full of gravel over to the wall and started doing the same thing.  It melted my heart.  He was so proud too.  It also made me realize how much he watches us.  What a good reminder to be a positive example.

 4th of July:
Fireworks....not a fan.  The O-Man was not a big fan of the fireworks this year.  In his defense the fireworks in our neighborhood are INSANE.  3 of our neighbors go in together and spend $30,000. No, I did not accidentally add an extra 0....30k!! That's crazy business.  Every night when we put Owen to bed the week leading up the 4th he would say "Mommy I don't like those big pounds outside."

 Cheese and Crackers:
Owen has discovered a toy camera that we have had for quite awhile and he has never taken any interest in.  He holds it backwards and refuses to turn it around.  Now when I try to get a picture of him, he holds up his  hands like he has his camera and shouts "CHEESE AND CRACKERS".   What a goofball.

Nora is rolling over now and likes pushing up and looking around.  Wherever Nora is.....Owen is sure to follow.  I have cherished this time at home with them this summer.  It has been so cool to see the way that they interact already just in the first few months.  Just a few weeks left before I will be back in full fledged "back to school" mode.  Trying my best not to stress about school, but to enjoy these moments.  :)