Farm Fun and Upset Tummy Sunday

Saturday morning we got up and went to to the farm for a visit. Owen was still suffering from his diaper rash, so was a little less than thrilled about being couped up in the car for such a long time, but he had a blast once we got there. He loved walking around the farm, and watching Sam Dog and Brigit run and chase each other. It was one of the first times that Owen had to navigate the uneven terrain. He's very used to smooth or flat surfaces and he had a lot of fun feeling out of control running down the hill. He did a great job maintaining his balance and running all over the place. Grandpa and Bev had some cute presents for Owen, and he loves to open the packaging. He especially loved the books!

We had a nice afternoon, and it was good that we were out of the house after all, because we did get a showing of our house in the afternoon. But mostly it was nice to see Owen cracking up and enjoying some outdoor time. It was chilly so we had to limit the outside time but he was such a good sport and had a blast. He also took a nice nap in the pack and play, it's been quite some time since he's napped/slept in the pack and play, but he cried a little in the beginning but calmed down and slept for 3 hours.

Sunday was pretty laid back. Although we'd hoped we would have some showings, no one called... Which was probably good for Owen, but making Mommy & Daddy a little nervous. This morning Owen was funny getting dressed, he DID NOT want his shirt on, so Mommy finally gave in, and we went downstairs for breakfast. Owen dined shirtless, and then finally conceded to allow his shirt to be put on. He looked strange sitting at the table shirtless, and hopefully it's not a sign of things to come...

We did a morning run to Costco and Home Depot, and Owen LOVED walking through Home Depot. It was like Halloween, the staff was handing out stickers and lolly pops and other goodies, every where Owen turned they were wanting to give him something... Mommy was looking for the guy giving out free ceiling fans... :) but couldn't find him.

The afternoon consisted of Owen napping, house keeping and grocery shopping. When Owen woke from his nap he had another round of the runs... Poor kid is just being put through the ringer... This antibiotic is wreaking havoc on his system.

Just when we think he's doing better something else happens. The raging diaper rash turned into a dreaded case of the runs on Saturday and continued today. We seem to have the diaper rash under control, it's not getting better but it's not getting worse either, so hopefully we're winning that battle. Then randomly tonight after a cup of milk, Owen walked into the kitchen and threw up all over the floor. He seemed OK, not running a temperature, I think it's just the medicine making his belly ache.

I'm really conflicted as to what to do with him tomorrow. We have our 15 month check up in the afternoon, but he should go to school in the morning. I guess we'll just have to see how he is in the morning and make a judgement call. It's Mommy's busy week at work, and I'd hate for him to miss school...again. To top it all off the poor thing has to get shots tomorrow to add to the pain and worry about this latest illness.

Here's a cute video of Owen walking around and climbing the "hill" at the farm. He would giggle the entire time while Daddy yelled "careful"... I think he liked the feeling of being out of control.

Bouncing, Golfing and Diaper Rash...

It's been a long and busy week. Keeping the house tidy and ready for a showing at anytime, while minding a toddler is quite a challenge. We've had good traffic so far, and some solid interest, and hopefully the right buyer for our house will be along sooner than later.

Easter was a blast, but the week has definitely been hectic. Owen started back to school on Monday after taking a week off for the latest ear infection/cold. He did very well on Monday, which I was dreading, but he seemed to jump right back in. Not that he missed it, but I don't think he minds being there, I think he has a little fun.

Tuesday we went to visit Great Mom-Mom and had such a nice visit. Great Mom-Mom was delighted to see Owen walking around, and Maggie entertained him with her very high-tech Blackberry... Much cooler than Mommy's cell phone. He showed off his latest tricks, and all the things he could do, and he just had a ball. Great Mom-Mom is recovering from knee replacement surgery, and I know Owen brightened her day.

Tuesday night we briefly went to Bounce Party n Play, to get out of the house while it was being shown by a Realtor. Owen had a lot of fun, bouncing and sliding. We didn't stay that long, because it was PACKED with many big kids, but it was the most fun, Owen has had in ages.

Thursday we finally got back to Gymboree, turns out it will be our last class for a while, because Owen is graduating to the Level 4 class, and they don't have any classes on Tuesdays or Thursdays. So we've made a decision to take a hiatus and do something different. We signed up for Harford Gymnastics Tumblebee class, which begins on Tuesday morning. It's going to be so much fun for both Owen & Mommy... It will also be nice to change things up and do something different. We have loved Gymboree, and will maybe go back in the fall if the schedule meets ours.

Thursday night we had dinner up at the country club for "stir fry" night. Owen has been doing so well out at meals, he's starting to eat well out in the high chair, what a relief, because we really miss going out to dinner!!! Thursday night he was a bit more challenging, but still ate well, and had a great time walking and playing with Daddy on the putting green. They had a ball, and I can hardly wait for the weather to get warmer so he can enjoy more time outside and playing...

Most of his acting out at dinner was because the poor guy is suffering from a severe case of diaper rash. The ENT called on Wednesday and switched his antibiotic, because it would cover the bacteria found in his culture taken a week ago. We reluctantly switched the antibiotic, but the side effects that only affect 10% of takers, have hit poor Owen like a mac truck. He's got the runs and a chemical burn on his bum because of it. Poor kid, was walking around on tip toes, because he hurt so bad to walk. The plus side, is that his nose has completely improved and stopped running, but the downside is this diaper rash.

I feel so bad for him, he screams when we change his diaper in pain. I called the pediatrician and explained the situation and they called in a prescription for a heavy duty diaper cream, so we got Owen on that today. Hopefully that will help him soon. We also gave him an oatmeal bath and lotioned him up good before bed. Poor kid has been through so much these last few weeks, and he's such a trooper.

Tonight we took Owen to the mall to get him some new shoes. His little feet are getting bigger! He's now up to a size 5 sneaker, and $45 we have new sneakers... He wasn't feeling up to much more than that, so we didn't hang out at the mall very long. It's been a long week, and time to have a nice weekend. Hopefully Owen will continue to improve, and the doctors next week won't feel he needs the ear tubes, we'll find out next week...

Easter Weekend Photos

Easter Weekend

Finally, a really fun weekend. After weeks of being on the go, we had a very fun weekend. Saturday we went to the country club for the egg hunt and petting zoo. Owen had a ball, he has been "practicing" finding eggs and putting them in his basket. And his efforts paid off, the little kids egg hunt (age 0-3) took place on the putting green. There were tons of eggs, although Owen only collected about 5. The 2-3 year olds pretty much plow over the little kids and get them all. Not that Owen really cared, he really liked the golf balls. But he seemed to really enjoy finding the eggs.

They also had a petting zoo and pony rides. Owen didn't really touch much (that's OK, we've got enough germs) but he did like to watch the animals. It was chilly outside so we didn't stay out long.

We also had a late lunch before heading home. Owen got a balloon frog and was really enjoying that until he popped it.

Last night we dyed Easter Eggs and then headed to bed.

This morning, Owen woke to find Easter eggs hidden all over the family room and kitchen. With no competition, Owen quickly picked up many of them and put them in his basket. He discovered that some of them were filled with presents. He liked the Elmo and Cookie Monster Figurines.

He loved the toys in his Easter Basket and had a wonderfully fun morning. Then we went to church and Owen was pretty good, it's tough for a toddler to be patient and quiet the whole time, so Daddy took him to the quiet room towards the end.

After Church, Owen took a nice long nap. We had to wake him up and he was pretty unhappy about that, but he adjusted OK. He finally seemed to want food. He ate several bites of fish sticks, several french fries, even ate some chicken nugget. Then he was ready for some milk, and a cup cake! He loved the icing, and also was such a good boy during the whole dinner, we were SO proud of him. It was the first time in months he was cooperative throughout the entire evening.

Granny had some present for him, so we stopped back at their house on our way home. He was a champ all night. Tomorrow will be his first day back at school in over a week. Hopefully it will go well, but hopefully Mommy isn't too busy so he'll be picked up quickly to ease back into the school scene.

Easter is on it's way...

Owen has had a busy week, trying to recover from this nasty bug and ear infection. But despite the somewhat clingy, somewhat short tempered kid, he's been a trooper. He still doesn't have much of an appetite, but PediaSure is getting us through. He's doing a lot better, now that the fever broke (Wednesday) and his personality is coming back. PHEW!

We took a trip to visit the ENT on Wednesday, and they switched his antibiotic, and put him on a nasal spray to help him clear this bug. The game plan is to wait 2 weeks and see if Owen is clearing up, or if he's still infected. If he's clearing, we'll give his body time before doing the surgery. If he's still infected, then it will be clear that the little guy will need tubes. If this is the case, he'll probably be scheduled for tubes about 1 week after that visit (Happy Birthday Mommy...) Our hope is that he is all clear, no one wants to see Owen have surgery, but we all want him to get better. The downside of tubes, is clearly summertime fun in the pool. He'd most likely have to wear ear plugs, and I have a tough enough time getting him to wear his hat and gloves outside... But we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.

Thursday evening, we took Owen the Ragamuffin to Cartoon Cuts, and he sat like a little angel getting his hair cut. He was a champ, really and looks so much better with his hair cut. Now that he's not dreading it quite so much, and we found a hair dresser that did an amazing job with him, we need to do it more frequently.

Today was kind of fun, after a long stressful week, we finally have a fun weekend planned. Today Mommy and Owen went to the mall with the Waicker Clan, and TRIED to see the Easter Bunny and have lunch. Owen was all excited about the Easter Bunny's chair, but when the big fellow came out, Owen wanted NOTHING to do with him, so we saved our money and decided we'd try for a different picture at the country club this weekend. Despite the fact he didn't want to eat anything, he sat like an angel in the high chair all during lunch. The most civilized meal he's had in quite some time!

Owen got a package today from Grandma, and he also got some Easter Cards. He loved the dancing duck that Grandma sent. Great Aunt Christine & Uncle Henry sent him a card with google eyes, that he thought was quite funny. He's gotten a number of cards this week, and has really enjoyed them. But he won't give them back, he bends it, carries it and walks around with it until he loses interest.

Tonight he also figured out how to blow his nose. This video is disgusting but quite hysterical, and if he weren't a boy, I wouldn't even post it. But, after a long week of serious snot, he figured it out. Next, we need to teach him the tissue.

He also figured out how to open the back door. Guess this better stay locked!

The weekend brings even more fun... we have an egg hunt at the country club, and then Sunday brunch with everyone up at the country club. Should be lots of fun. It's nice to feel we might be breaking this sick cycle finally...

Sick AGAIN!

This poor kid has truly been through the ringer. The last few days have been horrible. Saturday morning was supposed to begin the major cleanup of our house. Instead of Owen starting the day with Grandma, Mommy ended up taking him to the doctor because he had yet another ear infection. He was in good spirits throughout most of the day, pretty cuddly and played low key with Grandma. Mommy & Daddy got a lot of work done at home. The pediatrician recommended Owen see an ENT very soon to discuss getting tubes, because these ear infections are just not clearing up!

Sunday, Owen again was still fighting a fever, but wasn't that bad, until we sat down to dinner on Sunday evening. Owen was drinking from his sippy, and just started shaking. In about 20 min Owen's fever rose to about 103.5. We called the pediatrician, because Owen was shivering, and the temp seemed very high to us. Pediatrician said we should go to GBMC to the Pediatric ER. We went, and Owen was tested for flu, it was negative, but we still spent 4 1/2 hours there. He was pretty good throughout the night, his fever broke around 3:30 in the morning, and stayed a fairly moderate temperature all day Monday.

Monday night he was playful and seeming much more like Owen, which was nice because he had basically slept the entire day on Mommy's chest. Then we put him to bed, and at 5am his temperature was 105! He was burning up! We gave him fluids, and Motrin, and it started to come down, and had broke by 7am. We took him back to the pediatrician this morning, and he was again tested for the flu, and again it was negative. We're seeing an ENT tomorrow to discuss getting tubes, but we're still very concerned that Owen hasn't responded to the antibiotics and still has a fever.


It's been a tough few days, he missed his St. Patrick's day party at school, but got dressed in his T-Shirt anyway, and was so cute... He even danced a little jig to the musical card that Great Mom-Mom & Aunt Denise sent him. (The kid LOVES musical cards!)


Hopefully tonight will be less eventful, and Owen's temperature will remain steady. We need some real answers from the ENT tomorrow as to what's going on, so we can get Owen healthy again.

Warming up

The last 2 days have been a little chilly. Mommy decided on Tuesday afternoon to turn on the AC because the house was so warm. The problem was forgetting to turn it off. We accidentally went to bed with the AC on and the system froze up, so when I realized it was freezing around 6am, I ran downstairs turned on the heat, and put a blanket over Owen to cover him up. It warmed up a little but sometime that morning, the furnace busted, filled with water, and stopped working. In the afternoon, when Daddy got back from his appointment I told him, I can't get the house to warm up past 65 degrees. He went down and discovered the problem.

We quick called the HVAC repair service, and they came out about 2 hours later, but couldn't fix it without ordering a part. They saw Owen, and brought us some heaters, and we got Owen's room all warmed up, but for some reason running the one in our room at the same time kept blowing the circuit, so we decided it was more important to just have Owen's on. We piled on the blankets and tried to keep warm.

I checked on Owen about 10 times last night, making sure he was warm (and briefly warming up myself in his toasty room). So I didn't get much sleep. Daddy left at 7am this morning for a meeting in Philly. Owen had his follow up doctors appointment and good news, the ears are clear. At least the antibiotics work.

The repair service came back late morning and fixed the problem and we got the heat back working and the house warm. I think we'll all sleep well tonight.

Owen and I had a ball today playing with his blocks, when he would leave the room, I would build the largest tower I could and he'd come back and joyfully knock it down. He really enjoyed himself. He is so interactive, so fun, and really smart. These last few days he seems to be picking up a new word almost every day. The latest words are juice, cracker, and hi.

Bouncing, Bouncing, & More Bouncing

Today we headed up to Cockeysville to the Ultimate Playzone. Wow! What a difference it is now that Owen is walking. We haven't had a chance to go to the one in White Marsh since Owen started walking. But Sofia and Robyn wanted to go too, so we decided to head up and have some fun. Sofia wasn't very into it, because it was about an hour past her nap time, so she was fairly reserved and ready to sleep... They only stayed about 30 min, but Owen went full steam ahead for more than an hour!

Owen took about 10 min to warm up, took a lap around the 8 bounce zones, and then was ready to hop in! We bounced around the toddler zone, and then ventured into some of the "big kid" bouncers and slides. Owen had a ball. He loves slides now, and giggled with glee every time. We climbed and bounced and really had fun.

Owen left pretty exhausted, but he still cried and walked back down the hallway even after I put on his coat and shoes, because he wanted to go play more. On the way home, we stopped by Aunt Jessica's office to say hi. They were having some furniture delivered and we helped redecorate. I think Aunt Jess was happy by our surprise visit.

After the bounce place, Owen took a 4 hour nap! (We are definitely going back there!!!) And Mommy got a lot of work done. It's been a crazy busy week already, and it's only TUESDAY!

Dinner At Home

Today was a very busy day. Owen slept in, which was nice because of the time change, and he had a late night. Today was Granny and Pop's anniversary (34 years!) and Mommy & Daddy invited everyone over for dinner. We've had too many ups and downs at restaurants lately, so rather than go out to a restaurant, Mommy cooked a very nice dinner. Owen was a big helper in the morning. He helped Daddy vacuum the whole house and get ready for everyone.

It was nice for everyone to get to see the "real" Owen. Mommy's family reads the blog, and they hear about Owen having lots of fun and being a funny happy little guy, but every time we go out Owen isn't very cooperative and doesn't show everyone how fun and adorable he is. So it was nice having a casual evening at home to let him be the center of attention.

After dinner, we had chocolate cake. Owen devoured it! He even licked the plate! It was so funny to see him enjoy something so much. He kept yelling - YMMM, YMMM! And asking for more. I was afraid he'd be buzzing around on a sugar high, but he was enjoying it so much, I enjoyed giving it to him.

After the cake, Owen chased Aunt Jess around the house, and they had a ball. Owen also showed her his arts and crafts - the non-messy version.

He also climbed up into Granny's lap, and snuggled with her, and chewed on her bracelet.

It was a great evening, one I think everyone really enjoyed, and despite all the cooking and cleaning, it was well worth it, because my family got to see the real Owen.

Play Date Dinner

This morning, we headed off to Wegman's up in Cockeysville, for some shopping. We're having all of Mommy's family over for dinner on Sunday, so we needed to get some supplies. Owen was really unhappy about the whole plan. He was still overtired from the aquarium, and was very very fussy. Which was very unlike Owen. He loves to push around the cart, with Daddy guiding it, but if you know Wegman's it's a VERY busy store, so we couldn't do too much of this. He was rejecting his sippy cup, and was generally unhappy... Ironically, when we got home from this challenging adventure we offered Owen some lunch - chicken tenders again, and he gobbled them up like he hadn't seen food! He had eaten breakfast in the morning, but I think it's finally clicking that most people don't drink their meals, and that food is good...

He took a nice nap, and woke up around 5pm. Robyn, Jaime & Sofia all came over about 6 for pizza and play time. We all love these evenings, dining out with the kiddies is no fun, and we all get to have a ball, socialize and the kids play. They loved eating a handful of graham crackers.

Owen was so funny after he was done eating... He just sat back and chilled while the rest of us ate. Sofia used her plate as hat, and Owen just looked on, as if HE was the pro eater... He might have 3-4 pounds on her, but Sofia LOVES her meals, and Owen is just starting to eat more.

After dinner, Sofia tried to give Owen a hug, but it ended up as more of a tackle... It was very cute.

It was lots of fun, even though it ended with a thump... Sofia fell on one of Owen's toys and got a nice size knot on her head. She calmed down quickly, though and was OK, but it was a scary few minutes that's for sure. They headed home about 8:30, which meant it was another late night for Owen, and we also lose an hour tonight... not good. Well, that's what weekends are for...

Aquarium

Today has been a lot of fun. Owen got the day started off well with a great breakfast (his appetite is coming back), and then a terrific day at school. Despite the ear infections, which I can't really blame on the school, I am so pleased that he is enrolled there, I'm seeing such positive changes in him it's incredible! When I picked him up, he was in such a good mood, we decided to see if Daddy could meet us at Wendy's for lunch.

Owen never usually eats when he's out, but he rarely eats a good lunch anyway, and I figured he was in the mood to at least have a french fry or two. We decided to order him a kids meal, and sure enough, he ate it! He had about 2 chicken nuggets (more chicken than he's ever consumed in his life), some french fries and milk. Mommy and Daddy were in shock! We usually pay complete attention to Owen and praising him for even just putting the food to his mouth, but Mommy & Daddy were talking and barely noticed Owen chewing on a chicken nugget! He continued to eat well and that made me the happiest Mommy in town! I was so proud!

After his nap, and Daddy finished work for the day, we decided to head downtown to the aquarium. They have a promo called Friday's after 5, where admission is only $8. Since Owen doesn't really have the stamina to walk around the aquarium for hours, we figured this was a great option. The promo ends next week, so we decided to venture out in the rain and go tonight. Owen was a little overwhelmed at first, but that didn't last long... he quickly warmed up and was running away from us to get to the next exhibit. Some exhibits were nice and low, and they were the best, because Owen could watch and explore with out us holding on to him, but he really enjoyed himself. There were a lot of other kids there too, which Owen was really interested in.

We walked around for about an hour and a half, then thought we should get Owen some dinner. Sure enough the little guy gobbled up pizza. I can't believe the transformation, but it's finally clicking (and his teething pain is subsiding too). After dinner we went back up to the exhibits and checked out discovery cove. Owen loved playing with the shells in the water, and even touched the horseshoe crab. We stayed about another 45 minutes (MUCH longer than I ever expected) and headed home. Owen was exhausted, but we managed to keep him up on the car ride home. We got him to bed before 9pm, way late for Owen, but hey, it's a weekend.

It was a great evening at the aquarium, we can hardly wait to go back...