Baby Owen is 9 Months

Baby Owen is approaching 9 months old!! Here are some fun things about him at this cute age:

1. Owen is so very aware of everything around him.  He watches everyone and is so smart and aware.

2.  He just learned how to clap his hands.  He learned that in Utah.  Grandma and Jaxton and Dillon were clapping their hands to him at the water park and he simply put his hands together too.  When he got squeals of delight and encouragement from everyone clapping with him, he realized he had done something great and kept clapping.  Cute boy!!

3. His first word is definitely "banana."  He says "nana."  Grandma in Utah was feeding him bananas one day and he was very much focused on her and the food he was being fed.  Grandma kept saying "banana" over and over and over as she fed him and then he actually repeated it.  "Nana."  She kept encouraging him and he kept saying it.  Adorable little man!

4. Owen is a traveler!  He has traveled more than any other of our babies.  And he does fantastic on the airplane.  He's traveled to Las Vegas, and then the gulf coast for a cruise, and now to Utah and back.  

5. Owen is very close to crawling.  He will sit on his bum and wiggle and turn till he's on his belly.  He can roll back and forth in order to scoot forward.  And scooting backward on his belly is easier for him.  And he can pull the carpet with his tight grasp and army crawl wherever he wants to go.  But it will not be long before he is full blown crawling everywhere.  

6. Owen is a very lucky baby because he has so many little people that love him dearly.  In our home, he is rarely ever alone.  There is always someone playing with him or spending time with him.  It's something that most of the other kids never experienced.  But when I have to get stuff done, and I have to put him down to play, one of his siblings will always want to go play with him.  So I feel less guilty about putting him down, knowing that he is loved by so many little people who always love to spend time with him.

7. Owen has a funny blocked tear duct.  Ever since he was born, his eyes would get gunky with green goo because his tear ducts were blocked.  Over time, his right eye has cleared up, but the left one still gets yucky.  Its something we will never forget about little Owen though, that when he wakes up from the night sometimes, his eyes are glued shut by the green goo.  Yet he wakes up happy as ever, smiling and cooing while he can't even see.  Lately he has been waking up with just 1 eye glued shut, and still happy as ever.  It is the cutest, funniest thing to see him so happy in the mornings with his eyes shut.  Sweet boy!

8. I will always remember Owen at the office with me almost his whole first year of his life.  All my other babies were able to be at home when the office was in our basement.  Owen is the first one who has had to come to work with me in an office full of employees.  It has been a unique experience, but fun too.  One of our employees recently expressed that she has never been in an office with an infant, and how fun it is to have him there, even though its sometimes disruptive and hard to get work done.  But his smiling little face and cute presence lifts the spirits in the office.  He will sit on the floor next to the desk and play in the corner or he will sit in the high chair with cheerios coming at him every minute or so.  And when he squeals and someone is on the phone I whisk him around the corner or out into the warehouse as quickly as I can so the calls aren't disruptive.  And when I can't whisk him away in time, Melissa, our employee, simply tells the customer on the phone that is indeed one of Nate's little angels, and the customers usually don't mind his squeals (I think). 

9. Owen doesn't like the grass.  Actually he doesn't mind it.  He takes care of the problem simply by lifting up his bare legs one after the other, or both at the same time to balance on his bum so the prickly grass doesn't tickle his skin. I remember Jaxton did this too when he was a baby.  Cuteness!

10. Owen also can say Dadadada.  He will say Da,  Da,  Dada,  Da.  He is always smiling. He is a very happy baby, very patient.  Though he gets mad to be in his carseat for long periods of time.  He does have an opinion about car seats.  Other than that, he is very happy, content, patient, and loving to all.  Of course he is forgiving too.  The kids feel that from him.  Always forgiving.  Owen is our family medicine.  When any of the kids or me are down, frustrated, angry, upset, or anything negative at all, we go spend time with Owen.  And after just a few minutes of time with him, our negativity dissolves and our anger disappears.  Kaylee especially will tell one of her siblings or me to go get our medicine when she sees its needed.  And it totally works!  Jaxton tends to get frustrated a lot and he adores Owen.  So he will shut my door and play with him in there.  He likes to take him to the mirror where Owen can see his "friend" in the mirror.  After just a few minutes, Jaxton's mood is transformed and he is all better.  It is an amazing thing.  Owen's little spirit is so special in our family.  He was not a planned baby, but he needed to be here and I am so grateful that he is.  Love you Baby O!