The Homestretch

With baby girl coming just around the corner, we have been eagerly trying to finish the basement and have some good quality time with Owen before he has to adjust to a sibling.  

We have been so blessed with the basement in that so many friends & family have helped Jon in doing the work.  At one point, he counted 22 different people that had helped and I'm sure that after this week the number has gone up to 24 or 25.  Today, the texture and primer went on the drywall - it is a beautiful sight to see!  Tomorrow, the real paint!!  We are so near the end, it is almost surreal.  Hold off a few more days baby girl!

At the beginning of the week, I was feeling so bad for Owen because it has been way too hot for his 9-month pregnant mama to play with him outside.  One day, he brought his shoes to me twice hinting at his desire to go play.  I put his shoes on but we definitely stayed inside - I felt so bad.  Then one morning (wednesday?) we woke up and it was so pleasant outside.  So we wasted no time and headed to a nearby park that has lots of shade and played!  The rest of this week Owen & I have gotten some good Mother-Son time in by going to the zoo (we even rode the train!), the splash park a couple of times & cuddling which watching Dr. Doolittle on Netflix. 

 

I am so thankful for Owen & little man he is turning out to be.  He is a delight to be around and bring so much joy to my life - even when he is mischievous.  The other day I left the kitchen for two minutes and when I returned this is what I found:

Such a stinker.  Owen continues to be a people lover - always waving, always trying to get laughs and now always giving a hug or wrestling.  Here he is attacking Ava G for 20 minutes straight on the couch. She loved it.

We are so excited at the near-arrival of our little beauty, but we are also thankful for these last few days to finish the basement & have some more Owen-loving time.  God's timing is perfect & we continue to be excited to see what He has in store for us!  In case she comes before I post again, please pray for a safe delivery, a healthy baby girl & a good transition for Owen to having a baby sister.  We appreciate it!

photo booth fun

"Hello world."

"Oh mama... stop embarrassing me."

"Get BIG"

"and again..."

"this is the only pose I do.  p.s. did you check out my new haircut?"

Brave Big Boy & Big Baby Belly

Now that I am full-term (37 1/2 weeks) I keep wanting to make sure Owen & I have some special time together before baby girl comes.  We have been spending some good time together at home coloring, reading books, playing in the gravel, & watching dog you tube videos.  We also enjoyed a day at the pool with Shaly & Bo last week.  He is growing up so fast and is so brave!  I love my little man.

Our sweet baby girl is going to be here soon.  So we decided to take some pictures just the three of us so that she can see how big she made her mama get.  :)  Enjoy the baby bump to all of my out of Des Moines family and friends.

summer & friends

Despite the intense heat this week, I have been EXTREMELY thankful for summer and all of the fun there is to be had with a toddler.  Owen loves being outside and frequently can be found at our front door saying "do-do" which means "door" which means "I want to go outside."  Here is a photos from when Kaisa was over the other day and we played outside:

Later that day, when we were back inside, Kaisa had grabbed the broom and was sweeping the floor while Owen grabbed a rag to wipe under his high chair.  I love watching kids mimic! 

We got to go with Jon to Jazz in July the other day off of Grand.  To our surprise there were ponies there for kids to ride on.  So, Owen got to nervously sit on the pony.

One thing I am so grateful for is the community within our church, The Downtown Church.  Owen & I get to see some of the moms & kids multiple times throughout the week.  One of our favorite times of the week is on Friday mornings where we meet up at the church nursery.  It is a great time to chat with the girls and the kids get a chance to play together.  As Owen has grown, it has been so exciting to watch him interact more and more!

A rare image of all of the kids playing in the same area without it being snack time.

A few of the kids tackled Rex.

Sweet McCabe most of thought Owen was left out and came and tackled him! 

One of my best friends from high school, Juhi, had a baby at the end of June.  I got to take a quick trip to KC one saturday to meet precious Afsana.  Here she is with her proud mama!

Say Cheese!

Here is a collection with Owen and his new goofiness in front of the camera.  Especially take note of the squinty eyes and cheesy smile!  What fun to see his personality emerge... we love him so much!

I love bread!

 Get Big!

Minnesota Family Time

This past weekend we got to go to Owatonna & Springfield to hang out with Matt, Melanie, Katherine & Wesley (Jon's brother's family).  And as a fun addition we got to see both of Jon's grandparents and some cousins & Aunts.  We love our family that we have all over the country.  It was especially a sweet time to spend with the Idaho clan.

Here are a multitude of pictures:

The car ride up to Minnesota.  This is one of my favorite things Owen does - sleeping with his hands behind his head. 

The Scott Schreiner clan with Grandpa Schreiner.

Four Generations

Owen teaching cousin Wesley "Get Big!"

Take 1 of all the cousins.

Take 2 (of many) to try to get them to all smile.  We decided it was impossible.

Playing with Grandma Deb with the hose.

The Deb Brecht Clan with Grandma Maurer.

Trying to get the grandkids with Grandma Deb.  Again, impossible but so cute!

36 week ultrasound

So we discovered two things at my 36 week ultrasound:

1.  Baby girl is so cute!  We think she looks like Owen.
2.  Baby girl will follow in her brothers footsteps and be in the 90ish% for height/weight.  According to the ultrasound tech she is already 8 lbs 3 oz.  She claimed an error range of +/- 6 oz.

Here is the little lady ready to introduce herself to the world:

Isn't she so cute sleeping?  Now picture her all cuddled up in the blanket I made for her: