Throwing, catching, singing

Lately, one of Owen's favorite activities is to play "catch" with a little help from Mom & Dad. We can get him outright shrieking with delight when we assist him in catching a ball in midair, but haven't yet caught that moment on video. No matter- here's a little video action of him playing catch with his frog toy.



And here's a longer video of him singing to himself while flipping through his books. We'll call this the "na-na-da-da-ba-ba" song. The reason I'm sort of far away is that I didn't want my filming to interrupt the performance...

Happy St Patrick's Day

Our St Patrick's Day photo shoot was the most challenging one yet - I attempted to get Owen to let me put a crown of shamrocks on his head while holding a shamrock cookie cutter in his hands and keeping a St Patrick's Day sign nearby. Thank goodness for digital photography. We got this one pretty cute shot out of many, many, many more that are funny in their own ways:

Earlier this week, our whole family came down with a 24 hour stomach flu. Luckily, it hit Nate and I at different times. I don't know what we would have done otherwise (as I commented on Facebook, I have renewed appreciation for indoor plumbing and laundry amenities). Owen got his first taste of ginger ale, and now we're all trying to recover and gain back the pounds we shed.

Here's a picture of our vegetable eater, prior to his unexpected weight-loss program.

And a video of some 'walker' action:

Grandma

A couple of weeks ago, Owen and I made a trip up to Jeannette PA (east of Pittsburgh) to visit my Grandma and some other extended family. My mom and sister Stef made the trip over, too. It was both a wonderful and a bittersweet trip - we got to see Grandma the morning after our arrival, in her apartment at a local assisted living facility, but the very next morning, she passed away. Though her death was sad and unexpectedly quick, I am so glad that I got a chance to see her one last time and be there to support my Mom and her siblings, especially my Uncle Chris (who took care of Grandma for many years). I know that Grandma found extra peace and happiness during her last days with a visit from her happy great-grandbaby boy and a taste of my Mom's delicious homemade cookies. My Grandma was everything you could want in a grandmother - generous, loving, funny, with a quick wit and an easy laugh. We'll miss you Grandma.

Four generations (taken January 2010):

And here's a funny video of Owen entertaining himself at a mirror during our visit: