Vote Carefully

UPDATE WITH DISCLAIMER - The comment below does not mean that we are supporting Obama. All we're saying is that with such a small legislative resume, people are only going on "hope" and what the media (who love the guy) are saying. Please actually read the article below to better understand the point we're trying to make. Thanks.

Like many of you, we too have been somewhat swept into Obamamania. I mean, the brother knows how to rally a crowd. And while this blog is not a place where we typically promote political dialogue, I felt that I should at least point out an article that my friend Scott references on his blog about Obama. So, the only statement I'm trying to make is to be sure to dig deeper and get all the facts before casting your vote - the media only promotes the hype.

Check it out here.

Stuff White People Like

Ok, I thought we fit so many of these categories (except 1 & 2) that I had to post this. Enjoy!

http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.wordpress.com/full-list-of-stuff-white-people-like/

What Owen's Been Up To

So enough about trips...what has Owen been up to lately? Well, a lot has happened in the last 2-3 weeks.

!!!Breaking News!!! We have teeth...er...tooth. Friday a tooth appeared! And it looks like the other one is working on popping out any day now. Owen can't wait for the second one to come out because it's driving him batty, which has made for a long week for Tara! If what Dr Rayne (our pediatrician) says is correct, Owen will be a righty. Dr Rayne says that a majority of the time the side the first tooth comes in will be your dominant side. Way to be like the majority of the world, Owen - originality is overrated!

Movement - good grief the child will not sit still. Why did we ever say we couldn't wait for him to become more active?! And the crazy thing is that he's not even crawling yet. He's lunging for things, occasionally rolling around, but constantly moving. He can support himself on his hands and knees now, but he's not real interested in it.

This is the look of a child whose mother just put him in a position that he didn't like. And you all thought Owen was a little angel all day long. Don't worry, there's a picture below that will make you believe that again.

As much as he does like to move, there are some spots where he will stay put for a while. One of those is at the door. Tozer doesn't like it though because that's usually his spot.

Words/Sounds - It's now official that Owen's first word is "DaDa." (obviously tonight Ryan is writing this post since the word "official" was used instead of less definite words like "maybe," "it seems," or "probably.") Yes, he does still use it as a babbling noise, but it is noticeably directed to Ryan. It seems that he's even learned how to talk about the dog before his own mother! He calls Tozer "t" - as in the sound of a t. It's really hard to write down what that sounds like so I hope you understand. Despite our best efforts, there is still no progress on the "Mama" front.

Sign Language - In the last 2 weeks sign language has caught on around our house - but it's our own version. While in Iowa, Gale taught Owen a trick to hold up his hands when she said "Owen is so big!" At the same time we were trying to teach him how to sign "More." Well, the hands above the head quickly morphed into "more" and it's so stinkin cute, we couldn't correct him (see below). So, it stuck. He's also learned "all done" but he doesn't fully grasp the concept yet. And just this week he's figured out waving, although you have to prompt him to do it. But all good progress.

Catching Up - Pt 2 - Iowa

Tara and Owen made a last minute trip up to Iowa for a week to hang out with her parents. They went to see what winter was really like - in Siberia! When they landed the temperature was -5! It snowed over a foot while they were there and it finally "warmed up" enough for Owen to go outside one day when it got in the 20s. Iowa apparently hasn't seen the ground since before we went there for Christmas. So, it was a good time to sit around the house and just relax.

Tara did have a chance to go to a baby shower for an old friend, Pramila. It was so much fun to see all her old friends and catch up on what everyone is up to!

Owen checks out all the snow outside.

Hangin' with Grandpa and Willie. Grandpa's in China right now, but Owen's been hearing rumors that he's going to bring back lots of bootleg dvds of cartoons for Owen!

The one trip outside to play. Owen has his own "special" tobagan (it's special because it has a little seat for him to sit on) that stays in Iowa for occasions such as this."#$%! it's COLD out here!" Check out that grin!

Catching Up - Pt 1 - Louisiana

Yeah, we stink at this. Everytime we're back in the groove, we go out of town and throw everything off. So, we'll try to play catch up in order. Terri, hopefully we'll get to everything fast enough to satisfy you.

First was Louisiana. We made a real quick trip to Ryan's parents' house.

Talking to the horses. A trip isn't complete without talking with Dolly, Woody and Scarlet. Owen and Papaw love to go play with them. Owen has stuffed versions of Woody and Scarlet he plays with all the time at home, but that's not nearly as fun as the real thing. He also picked up a pair of Ryan's cowboy boots from when he was a baby, so as soon as he grow into those, we're all gonna be in trouble!
What's a trip to Louisiana without waking up Aunt Ta...who will probably want to strangle us for putting this picture out for the public to see (hehehe).

Aunt Ta went hairstylist on us and came up with this new 'do. That's a rock-n-roll baby if I've ever seen one. If you look closely in the background you will see a football floating in the bath tub. Apparently Tara has kept footballs from every high school we've ever been associated with - Tioga, Ruston and Lakeside. The one in the tub is from Ruston Bearcat football.

17

This is the number of times I put Owen's socks on yesterday. That calculates out to once every 42 minutes. You add that to 5 diaper changes, 4 meals, 3 stories times and never ending laundry, that leaves me with exactly 2 mintues to sit down and tell you this...

Owen loves chewing on his socks and I love being the one who gets to put his socks on all day so that he can take them off again.

Happy Valentine's Day!

From Owen, with love!

Front Yard Photo Shoot

Owen's Favorite Game

Owen loves to play "Where's Owen?!" We throw a sheet, pillow, blanket or towel over his head. He's just figured out how to pull the sheet off. He doesn't do it here, but usually he gets a big ol' grin on his face when he pulls the sheet off. We also play it in Spanish and Turkish - "Donde esta Owen?" or "Owen, neredesin?" Yeah, we're geeks, but at least we know it.

You can also see at the beginning of the video Owen's common stance - hands parrallel to the ground like a basketball player guarding someone. We're not sure what's up with that!

Super Bowl

We were torn going into the Super Bowl on Sunday night. Cheer for the Cowboys' arch rival, the Giants, or for the team going for perfection, the Patriots. By the time the Giants scored their first touchdown and Ryan shouted "Yes!" it was pretty clear we were cheering for the underdog. What a great game.


Owen got in on the Super Bowl festivities. He quickly took the remote form his dad and got to lick his first salty chip. It was a blast - until bed time halfway through the second quarter.