Owen & Cooper

Hard to believe that September is already upon us. We're getting ready for the new school year that starts this week.

Owen is starting SK and is entering his 3rd year in the Casa program at Kendalwood. He's looking forward to seeing all of his friends again. While he loves to learn, it's tough to get him to sit still. Needless to say, we haven't done as much practicing with reading this summer as we probably should have. He loves numbers though(clearly got this from his Daddy). He knows most of his numbers to 50 and we've been playing some addition games and he does really well (at least Mommy thinks so!).

Cooper also starts in the (pre) Casa program this year....which just blows my mind. I still feel like he's a baby! Truth be told though,it's time to let that go. He really has turned into a little man over the last couple of months. His speech has really come a long way in the last 2 months. He is speaking a mile a minute and he's quite clear in his pronunciation. He's officially in a big boy bed now. And......dare I say it, for the first time in almost 5 years, I think we are now a diaper free home!!!! Cooper has been potty trained for a few weeks and has even been staying dry at night. The only downside to that is that he is up frequetly through the night for a bathroom run. Owen took quite a while to night train so by the time he did night train, he was able to hold it through the night. So this is actually new for us. Hopefully, as he gets used to his new potty trained self, the night wakings will stop.

Both boys are in swimming. Owen played baseball this summer and has been skating as well. He starts hockey in a couple of weeks. Cooper was in sportball this past year and we'll likely to that again this year but we're waiting for a couple of weeks until we have our schedules better sorted out. He starts skating in January as well. He's a real little copy cat these days so he can't wait to get skates on like his big brother.

In terms of likes and dislikes, both boys love to read and both still really love music. Owen is obsessed with anything superhero(Mommy says dislike). And while Cooper has a real fondness for Diego and Dora, he's also quick to ditch them when Owen pulls out other things. Brotherly rivalry is at an all time high these days, everything is a race to win and every toy is a potential cause for disgruntlement. But they also steal hugs and kisses on a regular basis....typical little boys/brothers I guess.

Doug and I are home next weekend and it will be our first time leaving the boys with someone else for more than one night. They will be with the Arsenault's who are here visiting so they're in good hands. It's Mommy and Daddy who will find this harder than the boys!

Well...that's it for now.

Michelle, Doug, Owen & Cooper
xoxoxox

We're just back from a "staycation" weekend at Great Wolf Lodge in Niagara. We decided that rather than have a party for Cooper, we needed a little family time away from home. Most of Cooper's friends are away on their own vacations right now and life is just so busy with us lately, we thought it would be nice for all of us to pack up and head to the waterpark. The kids loved it!! We'll definitely go back. Owen loved it so much, that there was big tears when it was time to go. We've promised him another visit. He said "next week?" Ummm...maybe not that soon.

Things have been very busy at work for Mommy and Daddy. We've also been through what seems like an especially long bout of flus and colds this year. Spring, where are you???

Cooper started both swimming and Sportball in January. Owen is also in swimming and skating. Both are loving those activities and if we could find more time in our schedules, they would surely love to do more...it's Mommy and Dadddy that can't keep up!

Cooper is turning into a little man right before our very eyes. We really can't believe that he's 2 already. It's making Mommmy a little nostalgiac since he's likely the last so no more baby stages.

He's much like Owen was at this age in that he's still not speaking very clearly. My boys are late bloomers that way! He understands pretty much everything. He's trying a lot of words but he's decided that using the first syllable is sufficient...lazy bugger!

He loves school now and on most days, drop-off is a breeze. When I drop him off in the morning, he promptly runs to the teachers, shakes hands and heads over to play. Wow...how things have changed from one short year ago!

He's also been expressing some interest in the potty but I would say we're in for the long haul there.

He's really developing quite the little personality. Like Owen, he loves to laugh & roughhouse (unfortunately, the roughousing also leads to some tears at times.) Cooper can also be pretty intense, he's perfected a great scowl for strangers! He's also super stubborn....unfortunately, Mommy knows exactly where that comes from and she can't point any fingers!

Owen is doing well....he's had a huge growth spurt over the last few months. It seems like every time we turn around, he needs bigger clothes. He's been doing half time in kindergarten and the other half at Montessori since September and he seems to be doing well. He's also participated in some school programs he really liked, including karate and music. His music teacher plays the guitar for them, so he's developed a newfound interest in playing the guitar (check out his new guitar in our pics!). He loves to sing....his current favourite is Wavin' Flag (coutesy of Mr. Linderman). He belts that one out quite loudly...the song isn't near as good if the neighbours can't hear too.

We're finding 4 a little challenging on some days. He's definitely asserting his independence and he's picked up a few less than desirable habits from some of the big kids at school but overally, he's a pretty great kid.

True story--Owen has a total crush on one of his teachers at the public school. Every Tues and Thurs morning, when I drop him off, he asks me if his cheeks are red. For months now, I've thought it strange but not spent any more time thinking about it as I rush out the door. On Thursday morning, same thing and then suddenly it dawns on me that he feels himself blushing when Kare greets him in the morning! Oh my, he's 4!!!

Anyway, that's it for now...laundry calls (have I ever mentioned how much laundry these two boys generate?!!!).

Missing you all in NB but the countdown is on. We'll be home in about 9 weeks for a visit. We're praying all that snow is gone before we get there...we don't miss the Maritime winters...especially this year!

See you soon,
Michelle, Doug, Owen & Cooper
XOXOXOX

We celebrated Owen's 4th birthday this month. This was probably the birthday that hit Mommy the most. At 3, I still could see the toddler/baby in him. Now, at 4, there's no more toddler left in there. It's just so hard to believe he's 4! He's very very proud to be 4. We had a "tricky" party last Sunday. According to Owen, it was "tricky" because he actually didn't turn 4 on the day of his party. That came a couple of days later. The day started like this:

"Mommy, Daddy...I'm 4 now. I'm bigger." He runs into the bathroom to get his step stool. He proceeds to run down the hall, flip the light on in the master ensuite, rush to the vanity, put the stool down, step on it and exclaim to the mirror "I'm bigger now!" In total amazement he says "Wow..." It really was too funny. He clearly expected to see a much bigger boy staring back at him. After all, he's 4 now!

He's doing well at school. This past week was his first parent teacher conferences this year. Both teachers gave a lot of positive feedback....so all is well there. We also recently visited his ENT who said that it was good news...no fluid this time and the last tube is barely hanging by a thread. So, she's feeling confident now that we won't have to have them done a second time. Very good news for us.

O has been taking swimming and skating lessons. He's probably a better skater than Mommy now. He's also doing karate through the school gym program so he's been keeping pretty busy.

Cooper is also doing well. He's trying to speak more but it's probably not very audible to anyone other than Mommy and Daddy. Mommy has just come to accept that her boys are late talkers. If he's anything like O, he'll make up for it later. We're thinking of signing him up for sportball in January. He really seems to love playing ball and hockey so we're going to give it a go if we can find a class time that works. We'll also start him in swimming soon...we're not expecting him to like that part so much. He's not a fan of the cold water!

He and Owen are really playing a lot more. It's hilarious to see them down on the floor wrestling. Who knew it would start so early?? And the disagreements over toys...Cooper has no use whatsoever for his own "younger" toys and he does not mind letting Owen know that he expects him to share. Unfotunately for Owen, the old switch and bait isn't working for him anymore!

Just a little over a month until Christmas and Owen is on the countdown already. A couple of nights ago, I was laying in bed with him reading "The NIght Before Christmas." Afterwards, he said to me "Mommy, if I am naughty and Santa doesn't bring me any gifts, can I go pick some at the store?" I said "Sorry bud...that's not the way it works" He looked a little concerned about that. LOL

As always, we're missing you all in NB!

Michelle, Doug, Owen and Cooper

Only 6 more weeks until our trip to NB! This will be our first trip home in 3 years. It's hard to believe it's been that long. We're looking forward to all but the getting there. It will be a whirlwind trip I'm sure...lots of people to see, not enough time. Still, it will be great for everyone to see the boys.

The boys are doing well. They just started a new school so we're in transition mode right now. Owen took to it quite easily but Cooper found it a little harder (though much better than Mommy expected).

Cooper is really starting to lose the baby...he's all toddler now! He's a runner and climber....good lord Mommy and Daddy can barely keep up. He's into everything and so it goes with second children, he's into everything far sooner than Owen was.

Over the last couple of months, he's really started to develop a sense of humour. He was very serious as an infant but he's definitely starting to come into his own and he's getting lots of laughs out of us lately. Maybe he's just happier now that he's got most of his teething done. He just had 6 teeth come in at the same time. Seriously...I suppose that would make anyone cranky! But he seems quite a bit happier these days.

He's started mimicking Owen a lot more. It's really too cute! They're playing a lot more together now, which also means that Mommy and Daddy are playing referee more too. Who knew it would start this early??

Owen is quite busy these days as well. He recently started soccer, which he really seemed to enjoy. Unfortunately, the weather hasn't cooperated and he's had some trouble with his asthma so he's missed a couple of games but fingers crossed that he gets to play this week. I think he'll full on stage a revolt if he does not get to go. He wasn't at all happy about missing soccer.

He's been talking about going to Moncton for a couple of months now...he says "we have lots of people to see there". I think he's got it all planned out already.

We recently saw his ear specialist and they may have to re-do his tubes again (sigh....). She's going to wait until September to make a decision in hopes that she sees some improvement. Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Other than that, he's much the same. He's all boy, loves to get dirty, ride his bike, keep rocks and sticks in his pockets and he's still quite the character. He loves to get a laugh and his favourite saying these days is "I tease ya!"

So...count down is on to NB, we'll see you all soon!

Missing you much,
Michelle, Doug, Owen & Cooper

The boys are doing well....we're all thankful that spring is almost here and the weather is getting better. Mommy and Daddy are so over all of the winter gear as are the boys. We spent much of the day outdoors today and it was really nice to finally shed all of the layers and have some fun. Mommy went a little snap happy (see April pics)...but hey we've been a little lazy on the pic front since Mommy went back to work. So enjoy!

As you can see, Cooper is looking more like a toddler everyday. He's still in desperate need of a haircut and Mommy is still holding out. I think this will be the month though. At some point, Mommy needs to accept that he can't keep his baby looks forever.

He's still not walking on his own but we're expecting it any day now. He stands on his own until he realizes he's doing it but then drops to his bum. Same with walking, he barely holds on to a finger to walk but then drops slowly to his bottom as soon as you pull your finger away.

He's trying to speak more and even said his teacher's name the other day (Isa for Lisa). We were both shocked! He's also doing some sign language now and signs for "more" and "milk". He also shakes his head no to make it abundantly clear when he's not into something. "Isa" says he also nods yes...but Mommy hasn't seen that one yet. Wonder if that means something?! LOL

His molars have finally broken through so he now has 10 teeth and one more on the way. Hopefully, it will let up soon. He's a very unhappy teether!

Owen is also doing well. He had a major growth spurt over the last month or so. He's getting to be such a big boy (and a little clumsy too as he's trying to adapt to his new, longer limbs). Poor kid has more than a few bumps and bruises these days! His teachers say he's doing really well in school and has adapted very well to the new class.

As always, he is quite the character. Yesterday when he woke up, he came in to our bedroom. I said, "good morning sweetie". He replied, "good morning bootiful" (beautiful) Clearly, he's picked up the expression somewhere. It was hilarious to hear from a 3 year old.

We have signed him up for outdoor soccer in May. So that should be fun. Mommy just bought some cleats for him...way too cute. We'll be sure to take pics for everyone to see. We're also thinking about signing him up for skating school this summer but we're still undecided about whether we want to be tied to another scheduled activity this summer. Now that both Mommy and Daddy are working, time is precious and we're trying to jealously guard our time together.

We're still thinking we'll get to NB this July. We just haven't decided how we're getting there yet. It looks like we'll be driving but we are dreading that drive already. Still, we're determined to do it since we haven't been home for 3 years.

That's all of our updates for now. Miss you much!

Michelle, Doug, Owen & Cooper

Well...what a month it's been. You'll see from our pics that none of us look so hot this month. Since the last time I wrote, we've all had the stomach flu, neverending colds and 3 incidents of pink eye. Really?! So this is the way it's going to be...again. Gotta love daycare! Oh well...we trying to make the best of it.

Cooper is 1!!!! We can't believe it's been a year already. Poor kid didn't even get a real birthday party. Mommy woke up with pink eye (for the second time in 3 weeks) on the morning of his party. Given that it's so contagious (as evidenced by the fact that we keep passing it around!), we couldn't chance giving it to the other kids. So we canceled but did celebrate with our own little party of 4 since we had the cake, decorations and all the loot already done. We just made our own fun!

Mommy's been back to work for 2 weeks now and it's been a bit of an adjustment for all of us. Mommy's learning how to get two kids out of the house by 7:00 am (wowsa...not an easy feat. Dadddy's learning how to get two kids home and fed after school also not as easy as one might think!). The constant battle with one virus or another is not helping either! But we're trudging along and things are starting to fall into place.

Cooper is now doing much better at daycare. He's finally decided that the hunger strike was futile and he's eating well again. The teachers say his mood has improved quite a bit as well. He's actually giving them lots of smiles (and he doesn't give those away to just anybody). He's still not walking on his own but he can walk with the aid of only one finger so it's just a matter of gaining his confidence to let go. He's in need of a haircut but Mommy just can't bring herself to do it because she knows it's going to make him look like a big boy...she's just not ready yet.

Owen is doing well. He too has been hit by more than one flu bug this past month but he's a trroper as always. It was always apparent to Mommy that he has Daddy's personality but it shows more and more as he gets older. He loves to get a laugh and what a bugger! Today I was at the grocery store with him and he looks at a woman standing in the aisle and says "Momma." I said "what are you doing...that's not your Momma. I am your Momma!" He laughs like he's just told the best joke ever and says "I'm teasing you!" Of course, because he loved the reaction he got from me...every woman in the store got a "Hi Momma" before we left. Bugger!

Enjoy the pics! We miss you all,

Michelle, Doug, Owen & Cooper

2010 already. Doug and I were marvelling at the fact that Y2K was 10 years ago! Wow, a lot has happened since then!

We had a wonderful Christmas. Owen seemed to really get it this year and he was excited about Santa coming. Half of the fun was the anticipation. We made cookies and a card to leave for Santa, left milk and we ended up leaving carrots for Rudolph on the kitchen table because Owen was concerned about them "getting dirty" outside. We had a great time with all of that. Santa was very good to the boys. Owen got the books and blanket he asked for and a nice little "bonus" as well....their very own bouncy castle. We knew that unfinished basement would come in handy at some point! The Arsenault's were here for Christmas as well so the boys got to enjoy some quality time with Grandma and Grandpa as well. All in all, it was a great Christmas.

Cooper is crawling and cruising like a madman. We can barely keep up. He's into absolutely everything! He has started walking with the help of a push walker too. Before we know it, he'll be walking on his own. He now has a few words that he is saying. His first word was "wow". He's picked that up from his older brother. I never realized how much Owen says that until Cooper picked it up. He's also saying "ball" and "mama" and signing the word "milk". He's a much better eater than Owen was at this stage. Although both enjoy a very healthy appetite, it took quite a while for Owen to move to table food. Cooper, on the other hand, would eat pretty much anything you give him. We finally finished weaning a little over a week ago. What a tough one to wean! He's still refusing a sippy cup but given how long it took him to even consider a bottle, we're not surprised. On the sleep side, he's been doing great. Down at 7:00 up between 6:00 and 7:00. Yay for Mommy! Just in time for me to go back to work... Oh well...I'm not complaining. For a while, we were thinking we would be getting up 3-4 times through the night and working. So, we're happy. Hopefully, it lasts.

Owen is also doing really well. He's given up his afternoon naps. We struggled to get both boys to nap at the same time when Cooper was napping 2X a day. And now that Cooper is ready to move to one nap, Owen has decided to kick the nap habit. Isn't that always the way?! No complaints though, Owen is now going down much easier at night so it's a welcome trade-off. He started in his new classroom on Monday. He looked like such a little man in his uniform (see pic)...it made me a little sad. Before we know it, it will be his first day of high school! He is really enjoying the new class. We thought the change might be hard since it's much more structured and some of the kids are so much older but he's come home everyday excited to tell us about his day. And dare I say...drop-off has actually been easier this week? Again, fingers crossed that it lasts. He and Cooper are starting to really play together a little more and Owen is really liking that. He's also taking his big brother role very seriously. The other day, I firmly told Cooper no and he started to cry. Owen became teary-eyed and says "Mommy don't talk Cooper like that. You made him cry" Being second guessed by my 3 year-old already! But it did make us laugh (if only when Owen wasn't looking).

Only 3 more weeks at home with my boys...sniff...sniff. Part of me is sad about it and the other part is looking forward to getting back to work. It's that initial transition period that I would like to skip over. We're now in the process of getting Cooper transitioned to daycare. He just started this week and it didn't go very well in spite of the fact that we started slowly (just a couple of hours a day). He's been crying a lot. He's refusing to eat at snack time (that's how I know it's bad! LOL) Poor little guy is finding it hard (as are the teachers...my boy has a temper and is LOUD when he's unhappy!). In 6 months, he probably won't even flinch when I leave but it's sure tough seeing him sad now. Luckily, we had the foresight to enrol him early so we've got a few more weeks to get him used to it.

That's it for now. Missing you all in NB but not sorry that we don't have all that snow (so far...).

Michelle, Doug, Owen & Cooper
xoxox

It's hard to believe that Christmas is just around the corner. Now that Owen is older and understands a little more, he's starting to get a excited about Santa's visit. We went to visit Santa last weekend and Owen told him he wants books and a blanket. Wow...I guess our list to Santa could have been shorter! Owen absolutely loved his visit with Santa. Cooper, on the other hand, not so much. He was wailing and shaking. Needless to say, we did not get a decent pic. Oh but the one we did get....it'll be one to pull out and show Cooper's first girlfriend! LOL

Owen's birthday was on the 16th so we had a party on the 15th and then celebrated again on his "real" birthday. He was a little miffed to find out on the 17th that we were done celebrating. He also attended a classmate's party in November so I think he was starting to think that parties are now a weekly occurrence. He'll be disappointed this weekend when it's just the four of us! One of the other moms told me that her daughter says she's going to marry Owen. Really? They start early now! I think O might be saving himself for Gabby...wink wink Joey....

Owen is really starting to express himself these days. The other day, I was apparently not listening to him as intently as he wanted and he says (not so nicely) "Mommy, yisten to my words!" Huh? I wasn't sure whether to scold him or laugh!

Cooper had an excellent month sleep wise. He's consistently sleeping until early morning (5am). I say this as I note that he was up from 3 o'clock on last night...but I think that may have been the result of some discomfort from his H1N1 shot yesterday. A lot has happened with Cooper lately. He's still primarily army crawling (but he has crawled on all 4's). He seems to prefer the army crawl in spite of my repeated assurance that crawling on all 4's is less labour intensive. He's now pulling up to a stand and just starting to cruise a little. Although he's a pro at getting up to a stand in 1.2 seconds, he hasn't yet figured out how to get back down so that means several trips back and forth to the nursery for nap/bedtime. Funny how you forget about these things! He's also waving bye bye now and we're starting to venture into some real foods. Hands down, yogourt is his favourite (cracker and bread are close behind). He would eat it all day long if we would let him. He's taking a bottle once in a while but it seems to be whenever it suits his fancy. Not enough for Mommy's liking...I'm ready to wean him.

That's about it for now. We're decorating the tree and house this week so we'll post more pics soon. Owen has been talking about it for days! He's also been asking me when winter (snow) is coming. He thinks penguins will be coming with the snow no matter how many times I explain that they won't be coming here.

That's all our updates for now. Missing you all in NB, especially now that the holidays are near.

Lots of love,
Michelle, Doug, Owen & Cooper

Germs...germs...germs. My house is apparently full of them. Over the last two weeks, I had strep throat, both boys got sick and Doug had/has bronchitis. It's going to be a VEEEEERY long winter.

So do you suppose Cooper will figure out that it's much faster to crawl than to drag your 22lb self across the room? He really is too funny....and stubborn! On a very happy note, we're into our second week of sleeping through the night. He's going down around 7:30 and waking between 4:45 and 5:15 and then back down again until 6:30 or 7:00. I'll take it! What a difference a full night of sleep makes. Oh....and we've managed to get a few ounces from a bottle into him on a few occasions. It doesn't sound like much but it's huge progress for us. Mommy even got away for 5 hours one day (albeit for a very sad occasion...a funeral).

Owen is doing well. His breathing seems better now that we're on daily treatments. He's just getting over a bug but you would never know it. Amazing how resilient kids can be! He's enjoying school and we've been asked if we're interested in moving him to the Casa (JK equivalent) room a little early so it looks like he'll be moving to the big kid class in January. He'll be moving with "my Gabby" as he so affectionately calls her (and a few other current classmates) so I'm sure they'll do well together.

Hard to believe he'll be 3 in less than 2 weeks. Sniff...sniff.... He told me he wants a blue party. What? Hopefully, a cake with some blue will do.

That's it for now.
Michellle, Doug, Owen & Cooper

What did I (Mommy) get for my birthday this year? 3 full nights of sleep this week! Yay Cooper!!!!

October already? Things have been busy over the last couple of months. We've had some visitors and had loads of fun (Nanny, Denise, Ryan Brooke, Grandma and Grandpa). Having company and so much to do made August and September just a blur. We won't know what to do with ourselves now that the house is more quiet. Actually, who am I kidding? There's never a quiet waking moment with 2 boys in the house!

Owen is back in school full-time and he seems to be really enjoying his new classroom and teachers. They now visit the library on a weekly basis, which he loves. They also have a big field trip coming up. Mommy is going to help supervise. We'll see how that goes!

Owen is now talking a mile a minute and his vocabulary has really expanded over the last month or so. Maybe a little too much? He's even starting to get a little cheeky, which sometimes leaves us wondering why we were in such a hurry for him to speak more. LOL

O has been having some respiratory issues over the last 6 months or so and we finally saw a pediatric respirologist last week. Unfortunately, he has been diagnosed with asthma. On the bright side, at least now we know and can treat it properly. It seems to bother us more than it does him...he's a trooper!

Cooper is...well...still not sleeping through the night. He's doing a little better but he sure is giving mommy a run for her money. Not one single full night of sleep in almost 8 months. Mommy is starting to hear the tick tock of the back to work clock, so we're really getting antsy about this sleep thing (or lack thereof). I'm sure it doesn't help that he seems to be getting a new tooth every time we turn around. We're at 5 now (2 new ones just cut the gum this week) and we're pretty sure there will be another one in the next couple of weeks.

Cooper has been sitting on his own for quite a while and has just recently learned to put his arms out to cushion the fall when he loses his balance. He's not crawling yet but he's already trying to pull himself up on furniture, etc. Maybe he'll be one of those babies who skips crawling altogether? He's still not a huge fan of being on his belly so who knows how you learn to crawl if you're never on your belly!

Personality wise, Cooper is very different from Owen. He's much more serious and he definitely doesn't give smiles away to people as easily as Owen did at this age. He does have a good belly laugh though and it warms our heart every time we hear it. He's also very inquisitive (the polite way of saying that he's going to be our baby who gets into EVERYTHING). LOL

Now that Cooper is getting older and interacting more with Owen, things are getting interesting. Cooper is no longer content to pass over the toy in his hand as easily, much to Owen's dismay. We can just see how this is going to play out a few months from now. LOL. Still, it is awesome just watching them together. Owen's new favourite saying to Cooper is "nice job Cooper!" or "look at you big boy". Cooper loves the praise from his big brother. It makes me smile just to write this down. They really are very cute together.

Doug turned 36 today. When Cooper and I picked Owen up from school and told him we had to go get Daddy's cake, he said "I'm going to Daddy's party". Unfortunately for Owen, it was a party of 4 but still, we had lots of fun getting the cake ready and surprising Daddy with Owen's very own rendition of the Happy Birthday song. "Butterfly, Butterfly, Happy Birthday. Butterfly, Butterfly, Happy Birthday." Seriously, where does he get this stuff?! Happy Birthday Doug. We love you! XOXOX

Lots of love to everyone back home,

Michelle, Doug, Owen & Cooper
xoxox

Lots of milestones this month..Cooper started rolling from back to belly but still refuses to roll the other way. He has now started sleeping on his tummy. Mommy originally kept flipping him back over but then started to wonder if that might help him sleep longer at night. Nope! We finally moved him to the nursery. Maybe THAT will help with the sleeping. Nope! Wishful thinking! He also sprouted his first tooth this week and a second should be making its appearance any day now. So that hasn't helped things either.

He has started sitting on his own for very brief periods (15-20 seconds). Before we know it, he'll be crawling around. All this growing up is too much too fast for Mommy and Daddy!

Personality wise, Cooper seems to be a little more reserved and serious than Owen was. When he smiles and laughs though, it lights up the room. Owen is loving it. He is hands down Cooper's favourite person these days and that's made him a very proud big brother. It really is great to watch.

Owen is doing really well too. Without intending to be, he is hilarious. The things that come out of him have us in stitches on a regular basis. This is a great/fun age for us. He's been perfecting his rough-housing skills and Daddy's convinced that he'll barely be able to keep up with them once both boys are at it!

Nanny is coming for a visit next week so we're really looking forward to that. Hopefully the weather will hold up!

So that's all the updates for now. We're missing you all in NB.

Lots of love,
Michelle, Doug, Owen & Cooper

Out of the mouths of babes... Here is a conversation between Owen and Daddy:

Owen: Daddy, I brush your hair?
Daddy: Where's my hair?
Owen: There (pointing to the sides)
Doug: What about here (patting the top of his head)?
Owen: No hair there
Doug: What happened to it?
Owen: Broken

Hilarious!

I can't believe it's June already. Thank God for nicer weather! We've been out to the zoo a few times and went to the Brooklin County Fair this week (a sure sign that summer is around the corner). Owen loved the fair....maybe a little too much (hello meltdown when it was time to go. The joys of having a 2 year old!). He actually went on a couple of rides for the first time but was scared of all but the pony ride. Still, he kept asking to go on more. His favourite, as always, was the animals.

Owen is doing really well with potty training. At home, he's pretty much got it mastered. He's even waking dry most mornings but Mommy hasn't been brave enough yet to get rid of the pull-up for nightime. We're also still working on getting it down while at school. All in all, he's doing quite well with it.

Owen has a new pet in the backyard (see pic), who drops by on a regular basis and Owen has taking quite a liking to him. We'll see how much Daddy likes him when he sees the nice "piles" he leaves behind.

Cooper is 4 months old today. Developmentally, quite a bit has happened over the last month. He's now grasping and holding toys, he's doing much better with head and limb control. We also kicked the swaddling habit (not like it helped much anyway...he's still up every 2-3 hours through the night.) He has started to get a few 4-5 hour stretches in but they are from 7pm-12am. That doesn't help Mommy much! Oh well...in time. He's also babbling a lot more, particualrly when he wants us to know he's not happy. :-) Good news, his umbilical hernia has pretty much healed on it's own. It just looks like an "outy" now...yay!

Unfortunately, we've decided that we won't be able to make it home to NB this summer...sniff..sniff. The flights are just too pricey right now and the thought of driving all that way with and infant and toddler is just too much for Mommy and Daddy. But we'll make our own fun here. Owen will only be in school part-time this summer so we'll spend lots of time together.

That's it for now. Hugs and kisses to everyone in NB...we're missing you!

The boys are both doing well.

Cooper turned 3 months old this week. He's babbling a lot more but Mommy can never seem to catch it on video. Much like his brother, he refuses to perform on command. His 3 month MD appt is tomorrow so we'll know just how much he's grown then. It sure seems like he's getting heavy. Mommy is already tired of lugging that carrier around. Good news, his umbilical hernia seems to be getting better on its own (though I'm sure it probably looks alarming to someone who did not see it at its worst). The surgeon wants to wait until after he's 6 months old to see him as she's confident that it will heal spontaneously before that. Other than that, there's not a lot that's new...still refusing the bottle, the 23 different pacifiers Mommy has tried (he's very close to finding his thumb and Mommy was hoping to avoid that). We're still nowhere near sleeping through the night but he's done three 4 hour stretches this week (baby steps, right?!)

Owen has turned into a little man virtually overnight. We catch ourselves just watching him and looking at each other in amazement at just how much he looks and acts like a little boy...no more baby here. Over the last couple of weeks, Owen seems to have turned a corner with his sleep issues. Thankfully, he's back to going to bed on his own (which he had not done since we brought Cooper home)and he's only waking through the night on the odd occasion. Hopefully,it lasts. O turns 2 1/2 this month and since he seems to be well adjusted to having Cooper here, we've decided to throw in something new yet again. We're officially going to start potty training this weekend. He actually peed on the potty last weekend but has refused to get on the potty since. So...we're in in for the long haul and we're thinking it is indeed going to be a long haul....wish us luck!

Owen and Cooper are both growing like weeds.

Cooper is now 9 weeks old. He was 14.5 lbs at his 8 week appt...MD says there's no doubt that he's healthy! LOL On the downside, Cooper was born with an umbilical hernia, which typically resolve themselves but his seems to be getting worse so we're being referred to a pediatric surgeon. They will likely just monitor it for now. Luckily, he doesn't even seem to notice it's there! He's now smiling all the time and starting to babble...which makes up for the every 2 hour wake up calls through the night.

Owen is doing really well. He seems to have adjusted to having Cooper here although he's still going through some sleep difficulties since Cooper's arrival. He absolutely adores his brother though and has become a great little helper. When Cooper cries, he yells out "sec Cooper" (as in wait a sec Cooper) drops what he's doing and runs over to soothe him. It melts a mother's heart! Owen is now talking a lot more. He's also a pro at mimicking us now and he thinks he's hilarious. His new thing is to get a rouse out of Mommy by calling out for her saying "Chelle" (as in Michelle). Mommy's inital reaction no doubt reinforced the behaviour so he thinks he's telling the best joke ever! He's also starting to take a little interest in the potty. He asks to go but has yet to actually stay on the potty once we get him there. Now that things have settled down here and he seems to be adjusted to having Cooper here, we might take a serious crack at potty training within the next month or so.

Other than that, there's not a lot new. We're just trying to enjoy every minute because we know just how fast it goes.

We've been home from the hospital for a week now....it's all been a blur. How quickly we forget the sleepless nights! Cooper and Owen are both doing well. Owen's a great big brother and helper...even if he is unsure about the crying. When his teachers ask him what the baby's name is, he says "cry". Too funny!

All is well with us...hard to believe Owen's 2nd birthday is just around the corner.

Owen had tubes inserted in his ears earlier this month. He did really well...he was a real trouper through the whole experience. It was probably harder on Mommy and Daddy.

Owen is starting to talk about the potty but it so far he's much more interested in talking about it than actually doing it. All in good time, I suppose.

It looks like Owen is going to have a little brother. 2 boys...do Mommy and Daddy have enough energy for that? We should have done this 10 years ago! LOL

Hi everyone,

Owen is doing really well. He just moved to the next classroom in school and the transition has been fairly easy. He's talking a little more but still not stringing any words together to form a phrase. His new obsession is Barney and Elmo (much to our dismay). He's growing like crazy...moving into size 3 and turning into a little boy right before our very eyes. When I tell him it's time for school, he now puts his chair away, shuts off the tv and grabs his backpack at the front door. He also managed to escape his crib recently. When did our baby turn into a little boy?!

For those of you who don't know already, Owen is going to be a big brother in February. Whoa...are we going to have our hands full!

Has it been a couple of months since our last update?? Owen is such a little boy these days..he seems to have lost his baby face almost overnight. New words include hi, ball and yucky (not sure where this one came from!). New signing words include please, thank-you, outside and bath.

He absolutely loves the outdoors...so much so that coming in is sometimes quite a production. Can you imagine...a mind of his own and STUBBORN....wonder where he gets that from?! He's also obsessed with dogs....we're working on Daddy..every little boy needs a dog of his very own! If only we were home more...

We're looking forward to the warm weather for the obvious reasons. But we're also dying to get into the summer as it means we've finally made it past his first cold and flu season at daycare. What a challenge that's been!

Happy Spring everyone!

Owen will be 15 months old this week. We can hardly believe how grown up he is. He's walking/running like a pro (started a few days before 13 months). He's saying more words but we're pretty sure only Mommy and Daddy really understand them. He's also signing now, which helps when we're not 100% sure what he's saying.

He just had his first haircut and it went much better than we expected (see Feb pics). He looks like such a little boy now...sniff...sniff.

We also all survived Mommy's first business trip. She was away for 5 days. Mommy found it much harder than the boys did!

Merry Christmas everyone! We had a great morning. Owen was up bright and early as usual (5:50). I'd like to say that it was the excitement of seeing what Santa brought him, but he's just an early bird (he obviously did not inherit that from Mommy!). We probably had more fun opening gifts than Owen did. He was much more interested in taking the tree down. God help us keep it up for a few more days.

We miss you all in NB. A special shout out to Nanny since it's her birthday too.

PS. We have a walker (albeit a very unsteady one)!

Owen is officially a toddler now! We had a very low key celebration yesterday...we let him sleep in and sang happy birthday to him when he woke up. He wasn't quite sure what he had done that had us so excited but he clapped along anyway :)

Today was his birthday party. It was great to see all our friends. Really missed family though. We now have more toys than we know what to do with...better get started on finishing that basement some time in the near future!

The past month has been an interesting one. Owen has been sick for a few weeks...yes..you read right...a few WEEKS. Our healthy little cherub has been initiated into daycare and it's been rough on all of us! Rashes, fever, colds, ear infection, stomach bugs and many sleepless nights...just some of the things our little guy has been battling. Thank you daycare! Oh...and mommy is back to work so the transition has been fun (do you sense the sarcasm here?).

On a more positive note, Owen is getting bigger every day and learning lots of new things. As every day passes, we are more amazed by him. It's great to see the world through his eyes!

We were out today to enjoy the outdoors for the first time in a few weeks (courtesy of a variety of illnesses as noted above) so we had a great time and went completely snap happy. Hope you enjoy the pics!

PS. Can you believe he is going to be a year old next month??!!!

Just a quick update. Things have been busy around here. Owen is now FINALLY drinking formula but is not liking it much. We'll be moving to whole milk soon I think. He's doing much better with table food but still stores food in his cheeks from time to time. We're probably about half way there. He's a quirky kid!

Owen has been spending some time at daycare to get him ready for when Mommy goes back to work (who are we kidding this is as much for Mommy to get used to as Owen). He's really enjoying it. Mommy probably finds it harder leaving than he does. On a more sour note, he has been sick for the better part of 3 weeks. Welcome to daycare I guess! Mommy goes back to work a week from today. How is it possible that 10.5 months have already gone by???

We've been back from New Brunswick for a week now. Who knew 2 weeks vacation could go by so fast??!! Owen got to go in the ocean for the first time and he loved it. The sand was a big hit too. We also visited with Nanny, Grandma, Grandpa and other NB relatives. We were lucky enough to be vacationing in NB at the same time as Uncle Steve, Aunt Andrea and Julia. Owen and Julia had a great time together.

As soon as we got back, Owen got down to business and learned to sit on his own from a lay down position, crawl and pull to a standing position. That's a lot of milestones for a week! Mommy needs to get babyproofing!

Mommy's in the process of trying really hard to wean Owen (let's just say he's not a formula fan) and get him eating some table food because he starts daycare in September. Yep...you read right...daycare. Mommy goes back to work in six weeks. Seriously, where has the time gone??? He'll be 15 before we know it so we're making sure to enjoy every minute.

Where is the time going...our baby is 8 months old! As you can imagine, Owen is changing every day. He's been sleeping through the nights for about two months (yay for Mommy & Daddy!), he still only has two teeth but we're pretty sure #3 is on the way, he says Dada, he waves bye (when he feels like it...yep...stubborn), he's sitting on his own and able to get from sitting to tummy but not the other way around just yet, he rolls across the room faster than we can catch him and he's in the midst of trying to master the crawl (see recent pics)...we expect it to happen any day now. Watch out Bailey and Tish!

Mommy and Owen leave for NB on Thursday. We're excited for our trip and hoping we bring the beautiful weather with us to NB. We hear it's been chilly there. Daddy will join us next week. Playtime just won't be the same without Daddy...we'll be counting the days.

To all our NB family and friends....3 more sleeps!

Our little man is 6 months old! Owen is growing like a weed and showing more of his personality every day. He's full of laughs and starting to assert his independence already. Daddy says he gets his stubborn streak from his Momma.

He's now rolling all over the place. Mommy can barely keep up with him. He hasn't yet figured out that crawling would actually get him from point A to B much faster...why crawl when you can just roll there!

He finally has his two bottom teeth. And he has slept through the night a handful of times (6X to be exact...not that Mommy is counting or anything!) We're hoping to make some more progress in this regard before our next post. Wishful thinking??

We are spending as much time as we can outside after having been cooped up all winter long. Owen loves to pull at the grass. We're looking forward to our trip home in July so that we can introduce him to the beach and the ocean. We're sure he's going to love it as much as we do! We love you and miss you all in NB. July will be here before you know it!

5 months...where is the time going??? We have been pretty busy over the last couple of weeks. We started swimming lessons, which Owen really enjoyed. He didn't even mind the under water part! We're also doing a strollercise class and we're still meeting up with our Babyville friends on a weekly basis (check out the pic of Jillian smooching with Owen). We've been on a few playdates with Gabrielle as well...he's turning into quite a ladies man!

Owen's 5 month check-up was today. He's just shy of 18 lbs...no wonder mommy can barely lug that carseat around anymore! Dr. K gave us the go ahead to start on solids (veggies, fruit and meat)so that will be our next adventure.

Owen actually slept through the night for the first time this Tuesday but it was apparently just a "teaser" as he was back up for a middle of the night snack last night. Poor Mommy!

He's still soaking about 10 bibs a day...but still no teeth.

It's supposed to be beautiful this weekend so Owen will be making his first trip to the zoo with his good pal Mikayla.

That's it for now!

Happy Easter everyone! It's been cold over the last week but we did have a week or so of great weather before that. Mom and I have started getting out a little more. We even met some neighborhood friends for me! Now we have gone back to hibernating this week. But we start strollercise and swimming lessons next week. Can't wait!

Hi everyone,

Owen is now 4 months old. He's growing so fast and he is learning new things everyday. He's able to stand (assisted) for prolonged periods of time. He is loving his new jumper though he doesn't seem to have figured out that he can actually bounce it in. I guess Mommy and Daddy's laps are more fun anyway. He's now starting to sit up (with the help of a pillow just in case since he's still a little wobbly). He's even starting to laugh now....which is awesome for us.

He's still drooling like a crazy man...but still no teeth. On the sleep side, we are not doing so well. Owen has decided to revert back to his newborn hours...aye ya ya. Hopefully, this is a temporary set back. Mommy is thinking about thinking of moving him to his own room. It's gotta happen some day, right?!

Owen received his 4 month shots yesterday. Again, he was a real champ. Mommy...not so much.

We've made lots of new friends at our Babyville group and we're dying for the nice weather so we can get out some more...maybe even meet some other neighborhood kids and moms. The doctor gave us the go ahead to go swimming so we might try that soon as well.

That's it for updates.

PS. We have booked our tickets for our trip to NB this summer. See you on July 19th!

We've been really busy over the last few weeks. We just got back from Owen's first trip to NB, where everyone finally got to meet Owen. He did wonderfully on the flight and was spoiled by family and friends while we were there. He loves to be the center of attention! Things sure seem quiet around here now with only the three of us! We'll be back in July so we'll look forward to that!

We're sure that Owen has gained at least an inch in the last few weeks..he's growing so fast. He's drooling like a crazy man these days...maybe signs of early teething??? He's now loving to stand up and to jump on someone's lap and best of all, he's starting to giggle...who knew that would just melt our hearts. As soon as we can get it on video, we'll post for all to see.

Hi everyone,

Owen had his 3 month MD appt today and he's now up to 15 lbs. Doc says he looks healthy and that we are doing something right (go figure!). It seems like everyday, he's doing something new. He's talking more (albeit in his own lingo), smiling, and he loves to sit up and to stand on mommy or daddy's legs now. He also likes to be naked--he likes nothing better than to be stripped down to his diaper...he's easily entertained!

Today we are packing for our trip to New Brunswick where Owen will finally get to meet the rest of our family and friends. At this time tomorrow we will be landing in Moncton (weather permitting). This will be Owen's first week away from Daddy---we'll sure miss him.

Owen was two months old yesterday. We can't believe how fast time is flying. Seems like only yesterday that we were driving home from the hospital. Now he's cooing and laughing all the time! Owen's first shots were this morning, he took it like a champ (better than his mother!). He's up to 13 lbs 7 ozs...and mom was worried he wasn't eating enough...crazy!

We've booked our ticket for a visit to NB, leaving on Feb 15th. We can't wait for Owen to meet the rest of our family and friends. Now...the extra cold weather...that we can wait for but it will all be worth it.

Hi everyone. Happy New Year!!! We've all been really busy. Owen is growing fast (up to about 12lbs now) and smiling all the time (we just can't get it on camera very much...he does not perform on command!).

Santa was very generous this year!. Nanny surprised mommy and Owen with a Christmas visit. We were so happy to see her when she arrived and sad to see her go. Owen finally got to meet Uncle Steve, Aunt Andrea, Julia, Grandma and Grandpa. They didn't spoil him much (wink wink)! Grandpa and Grandma even made sure Owen had his very own Santa.

Grandma and Grandpa are here until Sunday and we're also expecting more family this coming weekend so we're trying to cram lots more fun in before then.

We're all doing well. Owen is one month old today. He's growing like crazy. He had his one month check-up on Thursday and the MD says he looks great....healthy and chubby (he gained just under two pounds since his 2 week check-up). MD also says he has Daddy's hairline. LOL

Owen's also starting to smile (just a couple of times but enough to melt mommy and daddy's heart). Hard to believe a month has passed already!

Nanny left for New Brunswick last night and we miss her already. Not sure who will miss her more...Owen or mom. We're planning a trip home to NB in late Feb or early March to meet the rest of the family (and friends)...we'll be counting the days until we see her again then.

On a separate note. Owen's second MD appt was today and he's gained 10 ounces since last week...that's a lot of milk!

Sorry it has taken so long to update the site...who knew it would be so hard to find a couple of minutes! Owen came home on Saturday and we're all trying to get used to the new routines (especially mommy and daddy!). Owen's doing his very best to break us in slowly....thank goodness.

Stay tuned for more pics....Daddy's gone "snap happy".

After a really long day and intensive labour, Owen was born at 2:13AM this morning. Mom and baby are doing great and hope to be going home tomorrow. Proud and excited Daddy is going to grab a quick shower and nap and head back to the hospital to help out Mommy.

Stay tune for more picks and videos !

Doug