Copycat and Cut-Up

Rowan is becoming quite the copycat! He likes to brush his hair and his teeth, just like mommy and daddy! He's not quite as effective as we are, but that's OK.

He's also developing a great sense of humor. He sneezed yesterday and I started laughing. He loved the reaction so he started making funny noises just to get me to laugh. Talk about a role-reversal!

He also thinks it's really funny when things are out of order or don't make sense. For example, we usually put his plastic mail in his little mailbox for him to find. When we put other things in the box (oven mits, spoons, etc.) he thinks it's sooooo funny and starts giggling immediately. He looks at us like, "Hey, that's not what goes in here! You're crazy!" He also thinks it's really funny when I talk gibberish to him. He can totally tell I'm not saying real words and thinks it's the most hilarious thing ever.

Oh, how I spend my time these days! It's a different pace, but I'm loving it. Rowan's personality is blossoming so much and he's becoming a pretty darn cool person to spend the day with!

Water Fun!

We met another couple from our Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE) class at Heart of the City Park in Burnsville. It was so much fun! The park has lots of cool splash pools and fountains (designed to look like a babbling stream) for kids to play in. Rowan and his little buddy Ethan had a great time crawling and splashing in the water.

Kyle took this cool picture. I love the reflections off the water.

Here's Rowan and his buddy Ethan, who is 11 months old.

Here's Rowan and I walking in the water. It was so funny to watch him try to crawl in the water. He wasn't sure about the texture of the concrete (even though it was smooth), so he'd crawl with only one knee! He eventually warmed up to the crawling, but he loved walking from the get go.

Visit From Uncle Paul!

Paul was in town from Seattle, so Kyle's highschool buddies got together on Thursday. Rowan did pretty well, but he was a little shy (pretty close to bedtime).

Here's Rowan with Paul, Kyle and Kyle.

Here's Lukas (Joslyn and Corey's little boy) giving Rowan a hug. Luke's such a little sweetie!

And here's a sweet picture of J. Kyle holding R. Kyle.

Nine Months!

I know, I know... I'm WAY late in giving this update. So I threw in some extra pics to make up for it. ;-)

Rowan hit the nine month mark on July 12! He gets more and more fun (and CUTE!) with each passing week.

He can now cruise very well around our furniture and even stands for brief periods. He also took a few steps at my parents' house (he was leaning on Scotts leg, then lunged foreward before falling). He LOVES walking while holding onto our fingers.

Rowan's favorite place to be at our house is under the kitchen table. It's like his own personal jungle gym! He also loves crawling up our steps (any steps, actually). I suppose pretty soon we'll have to teach him to go down steps backwards on his belly.

Rowan's favorite foods include fruits (squished blueberries, watermeon and peaches are his favorites), little bits of meat, O-cereal and toast. He's still getting most of his calories from nursing, but he's starting to eat more solids. It's funny to watch him as he gets full. He'll go from putting bits of food into his mouth when he's hungry to throwing large quantities of food on the floor when he's full.

Rowan has six (SIX!) teeth now. We had some rough times as the four top teeth came in, but nothing too serious. They're all through now and he seems to be sleeping a little better.

At his nine-month check-up he weighed 18 pounds, 1 ounce and measured just over 28 inches long. Our pediatrician said he looks happy and healthy as can be! Rowan even showed her a couple of his tricks (waving and clapping).

We think he's pretty great! I guess we'll keep him after all!! ;-)

My Baby Brother is 21!

Kyle, Rowan and I celebrated Scott's 21st birthday with the family on Sunday. As we drove to my mom and dad's house, Kyle reminded me that he was at Scott's 10th birthday (can you believe we've been together that long?)!!!!

We had a great time, and Rowan enjoyed playing with his Uncle Scott. He even took a couple of steps while leaning against my parents' long sectional sofa!


Rowan might be learning lots of new things, but he has a long way to grow before he's as big as his Uncle Scott! By the way, Rowan took a couple of steps just after this picture was taken, but abruptly fell over as soon as he realized he wasn't holding onto anything. Yikes!

Fun With a Canadian!

Rowan met his Great Auntie Pam (Grandma Connie's sister) for the first time at Grandpa Kevin's retirement party. She was visiting all the way from Canada! The last time she was in town was three days before Rowan was born.

Quick Snuggle with Uncle Jason

Uncle Jason got one of Rowan's rare wake-time cuddles at Grandpa Kevin's retirement party.

Rowan Goes to the Zoo!

We took Rowan to the zoo last weekend! He looooooved the farm exhibit. It was, by far, his favorite part of the zoo. We bought a membership so we'll be going back frequently throughout the next year.

Rowan and daddy get up close and personal with a goat!

Rowan peeks at one of the baby goats.

Rowan watches the little piglets nurse.

Rowan gets a piggy back ride (tee hee)!

Rowan and mama check out the roosters and chickens.

4th of July Parade!

We took Rowan to the 4th of July parade in Cannon Falls on Tuesday (he's pictured above with Uncle Jason). He did pretty well until two giant semi trucks drove through with their horns blaring. He cried immediately and found no relief until the trucks drove (WAY too slowly!) out of earshot. We could see lots of mothers comforting their babies as the trucks drove by!

Rowan also had his first Cannon Fair experience (oh, the excitement...). Kyle and I ate cheese curds while the carnies tried to goad Kyle into winning a styrofoam-stuffed toy his "little safari man." Oh boy, why did we even bother?...Oh yeah, the cheese curds!

Assisted Walking

This week Rowan has really taken to assisted walking. We used to try it and he would just want to fall to his knees and start crawling. Now, he likes to go 'round and 'round the island and up and down our little hallway. We're even walking around outside, where the uneven ground is quite a bit more challenging! It's fun, but I wish he was a little taller so I wouldn't have to bend over to reach his cute little hands!



In other news, Rowan added "so big" to his repertoire. He started doing it a couple of weeks ago, but it just recently became more consistent. When he does do it, he's so proud that he immediately starts clapping to congratulate himself! Now I've been blowing him lots of kisses hoping he'll pick up that cute little gesture too. So fun to know he's watching and listening!

Man, what did we do with all of our free time before we had Rowan?!?!

Electrical Hairstyle

I guess we should have put those safety plug thingies in the electrical outlets... (ha ha!)

Hangin' With Uncle Joel and Auntie Courtney

VegetaBoys (and Girl)

With CSA boxes arriving each week, we've been eating lots and lots of veggies around here! So far, we've had salad greens, beets and beet greens, spinach, swiss chard, kale, snap peas, blue potatoes, garlic and garlic scapes, radishes (we give all of those to Heidi), and cilantro. Kyle has tried everything and discovered that he really likes most of the veggies! That might not sound really impressive, but Kyle was only eating canned chicken soup and peanutbutter sandwiches when I met him. He had never even tasted fresh garlic!!!! Rowan really liked the blue potatoes, and he had a few bites of my beets.

We can't wait until we pick up our next box tomorrow! We'll get a box every week until the middle of October. If you've got favorite healthy veggies recipes, send them my way!

Silly With Mama!

Have I mentioned that I'm nuts about this kid?!

Up North!

Rowan, Kyle and I enjoyed another fun weekend up north! We went swimming once and we even took Rowan on a boat ride. Unfortunately, he didn't enjoy his life jacket (understatement) so the boat ride was pretty short. Rowan slept really well at the cabin (so did Kyle and I since my mom played with Rowan early in the morning and let us sleep in). We came back feeling quite refreshed!

Eight Months!

My little baby is growing up! We celebrated Rowan's eight-month birthday on the 12th. The seventh month brought many large-motor skills, and the eight month brough many small-motor skills. Rowan is waving and clapping (he even claps when you just say the word clap!). On the large-motor front, Rowan has stood on his own for brief periods, usually when he's too distracted to realize he's not holding on to something. Everyone tells us that walking is just around the corner, but he's such a fast crawler I wonder if he's motivated enough to walk yet.

Rowan likes picking up little bits of food with his fingers. Mushy foods are no longer appealing to little Ro (not that he ever found them very appealing). He'll take some food from us, but he mostly likes table foods that he can feed himself. At the cabin, he liked eating tiny bits of chicken, carrots and green beans. O-cereal is a big favorite too. Although he's learning a lot about eating solids, he still gets the vast majority of his calories from nursing.

Rowan is still a very social little baby who loves to laugh. He's a pretty good dancer, too! I'll sing "dance, dance, dance...dance, dancey dance" and he'll start wiggling his little tushy and shaking his head! So fun to see that he's connecting words like clap and dance with the things that he's doing! He really is listening (pretty soon we'll really have to watch what we say;).

I brought Rowan in for a quick doctor's visit just before he turned eight months (he had a little irritated skin under his eye), and he weighed 17 pounds, 8 ounces. I forget the length measurement, but he's still long and still lean (although his belly is actually pudging the tiniest bit lately).

He's an amazing little baby boy, and we can't wait to witness what he'll learn over the next month. So fun to see the world through a baby's eyes!

Budding Actor

Rowan shows off his acting abilities by portraying three different emotions.

Weary: please help...got lost in the desert...been crawling for days...need milk...

Scared: No NO! Not a bottle! I thought I gave up on those months ago!! (tee hee)

Suave: That's right baby, I can drink my water from a cup. Check me out!

I Love My Teething Biscuit!

Oooooh, I just love my organic barley teething biscuits! Mom calls them "cookies," but I know better.

They taste best when I smear them in my hands and all over my face. It releases all of the yummy goodness!

I might look sweet, but don't mess with my biscuit!

Our Little Puppy

Before Rowan was born, our midwife asked Kyle if he was hoping for a boy or a girl. He replied matter-of-factly, "I'm hoping for a puppy." Well, we've discovered that a baby is actually a lot like a puppy (but much more fun, we think)! Rowan loves carrying his little shoes in his mouth. He starts panting when he crawls really fast. And, he gets really excited when Kyle comes home from work! He's learned some fun tricks too, like clapping, waving and shaking his head when we say "no way!" Hmmmm...maybe we should teach him to do his business in the yard. ;-)

Rowan and Great Grandma Alice

Rowan saw Great Grandma Alice and Great Grandpa Obert at Kyle's cousin Justin's graduation on Sunday. Rowan had a fun time crawling around Brian and Jenny's new house (lots of space!).