the many adventures of owen, mason, and jack!

Roly Poly

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:34:00 +0000

This is one little boy who is excited to be getting bigger and better at doing things. I can tell he wants to get moving so he can keep up with his big brothers. Well, now he's one step closer!

Jack is rolling both ways now and he's very happy about it! This past week he had been getting his hips and shoulders flipped over but he couldn't quite figure out how to lift his big baby noggin off the ground and un-pin his arm. He had one successful roll but it was kind of a "cheat" since his bottom arm was down by his side before he started. Then he did it once again for Granna on Thursday.

Finally on Saturday it clicked. And now just one day later, he's doing it with ease. In fact, bedtime on Saturday was kind of tricky because of his new-found skill. His instinct was to roll over, which led to his other instinct - mini push ups for tummy time. Not super fun when you're an exhausted baby. He got pretty mad so I had to stay by the crib for a few minutes and keep him from rolling while he relaxed enough to fall asleep.

Here's Mimi trying to entice Jack to roll with one of Owen's cars.

Five Months

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:15:00 +0000

Oh boy has Jack gotten FUN! It seems like every day he does something else cuter than the day before! It makes every day so much fun for the rest of us - and a bit hard to get anything done because we'd all rather sit and play with Jack. The big boys still can't get enough of him and often argue over who gets the seat in the car that has the view of Jack. It's a nice problem to have! :)

At five months, Jack:

14 lbs, 14 ounces (50th percentile)
25 inches exactly (25th percentile)
wears size 1 diapers and size 3-6 month clothes.
is about 2 pounds lighter than Owen and Mason were at this age.
can't get enough of his big brothers! His favorite thing to do is watch them. Watch them play, watch them in the car, watch them make goofy faces, watch them in the tub - you name it!
has discovered his feet and looks so adorable lying on the floor grabbing them.
thinks his hands are delicious!
really loves to talk. His baby language is so fun to listen to and he is quite charming when he does it!
has started doing the SWEETEST thing ever - after I finish nursing him I give him kisses on the side of his cheek/neck area. He turns his head as if to expect it, and gives me the most adorable little coo/laugh I've ever heard. This goes on for several minutes and I can't get enough!
has made the transition from falling asleep in his swing, and being transferred to his crib, to falling asleep in his crib.
is really perfecting his aim when trying to grab what he wants.
can often be found playing with his bumble bee toy or chewing on his giraffe.
has rolled twice from his back to his tummy!
is no longer swaddled at night, and instead falls asleep wearing a sleep sack - more affectionately known around here as his "slanket."
goes back and forth trying to decide if he still loves his pacifier. He discovered his thumb or thumb + pointer finger may be even better.
rarely cries so hard that he can't be calmed down. His crying is more like fussing and is typically easily figured out.
has lost quite a bit of hair compared to when he was born.
has been given baths in several different ways, but his all-time favorite is in his baby tub without the newborn hammock thing. His feet go crazy kicking and splashing water everywhere and his little face is full of excitement! And don't think about adjusting his position should he start sliding down - he will let you know with a howl that he wants to be left alone to splash!
loves to grab and krinkle the plastic wrapper that the diapers are packaged in while getting a diaper change.
takes about 9 ounces of formula a day.
has become effecient at breastfeeding, usually taking no more than 5 minutes per side. He does feed more often but Mommy prefers it this way, so it works out!
still wakes at 2 am to eat - or maybe just to fidget and trick Mommy into snuggling. Due to the fact that his room is about as far from our room as possible, and that there is no chair in there, he still sleeps in our room until we can skip this feeding.
wakes again at 6 or 7 am for another feeding.
has had more blow-outs this month than I care to count!! (usually coming in the early morning hours)
has had some major spit-up action this month too! I think he is just getting "full to the top" as Owen and Mason say.
can often be found smiling or happily looking around at the world.
gets pretty mad when put into his swing or car seat, but only for the first 30 seconds. Once buckled, he's perfectly fine with it.
Love, loves his jumperoo!!
has the longest eyelashes I've ever seen!

Funny Quotes

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 05:15:00 +0000

We have been keeping a running list of the cute and funny things the kids have been saying lately. The problem is, we never knew when to post the list since they were constantly saying funny things that we wanted to remember. Finally, Aaron made a separate page on our blog where we can keep the list going. So make sure to check the "Funny Quotes" page often! You can find the link at the top of this page just under the heading.

Jack - Four Weeks Old (link)

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 05:08:00 +0000

Click the picture to jump back to October to view the post.

Jack - Three Weeks Old (link)

noreply@blogger.com (Erin) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:40:00 +0000

Click the picture and jump back to the end of September to view this post.

Jack - Three Weeks Old

It's Good to be Owen and Mason (link)

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 08:47:00 +0000

Go back to Fall and view the full post. Click the pic!

Numna's 89th Birthday (link)

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 08:43:00 +0000

Just a reminder of why I am doing this silly link thing! I am so far behind on blogging but I would still like the posts to show up in chronological order. So, I'm back-dating the actual posts so they get put in the month they really occurred in, and am putting a link to it on a post dated today. That way, the people (mostly family, I'm guessing) that care to see the new stuff will know when I post something since it won't be showing up at the "top" of the blog.

Anyway, the picture is the link back to September:

A Special Gift for Jack (link)

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 06:27:00 +0000

Click the pic to view the full post from September!

Jumping Jack or Jumping Jacks?

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:02:00 +0000

Playing Games and LOLing

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 04:57:00 +0000

Jack is a funny guy and getting quite playful! He initiated his first "game" last week. I was lying on the bed nursing Jack like I typically do. Aaron was over on his side of the bed and he had to cough. It kind of startled Jack so he turned over to see what it was. Aaron said "hi Jack! Whatcha doing?" Jack smiled and turned back to me. I thought he was going to continue nursing. Instead, he "faked" latching and then turned back to Aaron and gave a huge grin. Aaron talked a bit to him and then Jack turned back to me, fake-latched again and turned back to see Daddy. Jack played this "roll over and smile at Daddy" game about 10 times in a row. It was too funny. (Then, a few nights later at about 2 am, Jack remembered this game and tried to initiate it with a sleeping Daddy.)

Jack has been really working on laughing out loud lately. At first, he'd only give a little grunt laugh when tickled around his collar bone. (In fact, I wasn't even sure it was a laugh the first few times I heard it. I thought it was more of a sound of discomfort and pleasure mixed together). Anyway, when you were lucky enough to get the laugh, he only had a few to give. Over the next couple of weeks it became easier to solicit a laugh with a tickle - now his underarms were a tickle spot as well. But still no laughing without being tickled.
Until last week. I was sitting on the couch with him just talking to him with him really concentrating on what I was saying. Of course he was smiling and cooing, which made me smile and chuckle back. Then all of a sudden he gave me a little laugh at some stupid mommy noise I was making. I continued to talk to him with a laugh in my voice to see if he'd mimic it. Sure enough, he was laughing right along with me. It was the most adorable thing to-date!!
These days, he has more laughs to give when getting tickled - and they sound more like laughs instead of cute grunts. He even has some force behind it now which gives him a bit of a chuckle. I got a precious video today of him laughing:

The laughing when NOT being tickled is still more infrequent which makes it even more fun to hear it when he decides something is funny. He REALLY loves being raised/lowered above your head and is brought just to the very edge of laughing every time but he never quite gets it going. Just a HUGE smile and some cute little coos.
Today Aaron was making his puppy give him kisses and apparently Jack thought it was hilarious! So there it was - the elusive non-tickle laugh! It's just adorable to watch him start expressing himself more and more.

Another thing to note is that Jack has really been talking lately. He has mastered the "ahhh" sound and loves to show it off. It's funny because he either doesn't do it, or does it a bunch of times in a row when looking at someone or something.

A Visit From Mimi and Papi - 2 Weeks Old (link)

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 07:34:00 +0000

Click the picture to link back to September.

Jack Meets Numna and Bee (link)

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 07:30:00 +0000

Here is the link to the September post Jack Meets Numna and Bee.

And here's a picture so this post isn't so boring to look at:

Jack's Newborn Pictures (link)

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:19:00 +0000

So again, in order to keep my blog chronological, I back-dated the actual post.

Here's the link back to September to Jack's Newborn Pictures.

Jack's First Weeks Home (link)

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 07:14:00 +0000

Well, since I'm playing MAJOR blog catch-up, things are a bit out of order. It wouldn't necessarily matter, except that I use this blog as sort of an electronic baby book of sorts. So, in an effort to keep my blog mostly chronological, I will be back-dating some entries that happened several months ago. That means these new posts won't show up at the "top" of the blog and interested readers (read: grandparents) may not know they're there. So grandparents, here's a link to a new, but back-dated post about Jack's First Weeks Home.

There are some pretty cute videos and lots of great pictures in there...

Jack's First Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Erin) — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 04:36:00 +0000

We all had a wonderful holiday being with so much of our family! The only person missing was Numna, but she was right where she needed to be - in Houston meeting her new great-granddaughter (she now has 4 greats!)! Our little family is so blessed that we have so many people who love our kids and want to spend time with us! We broke in our new house by having everyone over for Christmas Eve and Christmas day. Jack was adorable in his Christmas jammies that matched his big brothers (they also matched Owen and Mason's 1st Christmas pjs too)! Owen and Mason really enjoyed showing Jack all of the things Santa and the rest of the family gave him.

Here's how Jack spent his first Christmas:

Snoozing with Great-Great Aunt Bee.

Christmas Eve Dinner: lasagna made by my hubby. It sure was tasty! Then we took a group picture...but the silly faces version was more fun to post!

Jack and Great Grandma Mary having a talk.

Watching a Disney Christmas sing-along.

Granna and her boys (O, M)

My three precious gifts! (O, M)

Aunt Lindsay getting some silly kisses!

Our family of five on Christmas Eve. (M, O)

Granna, Granddaddy, Mason, Owen, and Jack on Chrismas Eve.

Mimi, Papi, and G-gma Mary with our family (O, M)

Baking peppermint chocolate chip cookies for Santa. (O, M)

Christmas jammies on and back to frost the cookies (M, O)

Setting out carrots for the reindeer.

Owen wrapping Mason's present.

To Mason, From Owen (SO sweet!!)

Now it's Mason's turn to wrap Owen's gift.

To Owen, From Mason

Jack was in a great mood and enjoyed watching all the activity from his swing.

My three boys in their Christmas jammies and heading for bed. (O, M)

Santa came!

Christmas morning - Mimi and Jack

Mason and Owen checking out their goodies.

Making sure Jack wasn't left out, Owen and Mason took time to show him what Santa brought.

Helping Jack unwrap his present.

Mason showing Jack what he got for him.

Owen telling Jack about the gift he picked out for him.

Too much Christmas excitement for one day!

Awake again and enjoying the handmade blankie from Great Grandma Mary.

Jack's First Christmas train bank - just like the ones Owen and Mason got on their first Christmas.

Enjoying their cool gift from Granna and Granddaddy! (O, M)

Gotta obey the traffic laws!

New, BIGGER, bikes! Here's Mason.

Owen on his big new bike.

Christmas Day cuteness (O, M)

Reading Jack his new book (O, M)

Daddy getting some snuggles from Jack.

Happy boy on his new blankie.

Laughing with Granna.

Jack and Mommy on Christmas Day.

Mommy and Daddy with Jack on his first Christmas.

Mason, Owen, and Jack with Granna and Granddaddy on Christmas Day.

Our family on Christmas Day (M, O)

Lindsay and Brandon

Granna giving Jack his special blankie.

Jack's first stocking.

Cuddling with his new puppy.

A cute Chip and Dale ornament for Jack's first Christmas from Mommy and Daddy.

Lindsay, Mason, and Owen playing Magic Kingdom Candy Land.

Pooped out after a great first Christmas!

Four Months Old

noreply@blogger.com (Erin) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 06:57:00 +0000

At four months old, Jack:

weighs 13 pounds, 1 ounce. (25%)
is 24.5" tall. (50%)
LOVES standing up on laps and marching his feet in excitement!
has ticklish spots around his collar bone and on his tummy, and even laughs when tickled.
still likes to be swaddled at night.
must be going through a growth spurt because he has consistently (for the last week or so) been waking around 4 am to eat when previously he would sleep until 7ish.
enjoys his jumperoo!
thinks the baby in the mirror is very entertaining and loves to grin at him.
likes chewing on his hands but doesn't hold toys purposefully or bat at things yet (3 days after his 4 month birthday he reached for a toy for the first time).
is still a content baby and very tolerant, but has had several times when he just wants to be vertical...and sitting up isn't good enough! He wants his whole body straight up and down!
really enjoys the mobile that Santa brought.
makes Owen and Mason's day when he gives them the smile they're tying to get out of him.
took his first airplane ride to his first vacation in Disney World.
got sick for the first time with RSV and had his first trip to the ER.
knows what he wants to do and what he doesn't want to do and seems to have more than one way to communicate it. Of course he smiles and coos if he is enjoying something, but he will also squak (or cry) to let you know that he was enjoying being held a certain way, even if it means your arm is about to fall off!
is taking 9ish oz of formula a day to make up for Mommy's slowing supply.
enjoys the outdoors.
can see farther and will smile at things/people across the room.
is absolutely beautiful! He has long eyelashes like big brothers and big blue (teal in this picture) eyes.

Three Months Old

noreply@blogger.com (Erin) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 07:57:00 +0000

To say we are all really enjoying our Jack-boy around here would be an understatement!

At three months old, Jack:

weighs a bit over 12 lbs. (we do not have an exact measurement for this month - no well-check this month).
smiles ALL the time.
is finding his voice in the family. He is starting to coo but he is still mostly an observer.
is an extremely tolerant kid. He pretty much just goes with the flow. Aaron and I are wondering when this will change! We suspect it may disappear as he becomes more self-aware.
sleeps from his twilight feeding around 10/11 pm until about 7 am.
gets more hugs and kisses in one day than is probably legal. :)
is a great night sleeper. Once he is asleep, he doesn't make a peep until he's hungry in the morning. This is quite different from his brothers who used to wake a few times a night for a pacifier replacement, or other various reasons (and still do on occasion).
puckers his lips, breathes quickly, and kicks one or both legs when he sees something he really likes.
loves Mickey Mouse and does his previously mentioned excited dance when he sees Mickey (okay, this was technically discovered a few days after he passed his 3 month birth date).
thinks Owen and Mason are fascinating, and Owen and Mason love him to pieces.
went on a month-long nursing strike.
still enjoys being swaddled at night. Not sure what we are going to do when he out-grows his velcro swaddler thingy. I hope they make bigger sizes!
loves to kick and flail his arms with a big grin on his face during diaper changes, especially if he is only in a diaper.
thinks his crib mobile is amazing.
is getting close to rolling from back to tummy, and still consistently rolls tummy to back, proving to mom it wasn't a fluke at 7 weeks old.
loves baths.
enjoys standing on laps. He will usually do a little dance by stomping just one foot in excitement. His brothers think this is hilarious.
has elicited not an ounce of jealousy from his big brothers.
really loves his pacifier - gumdrop pacifiers to be exact.
loves his head/face covered when he wants to sleep. He will almost immediately pass out as soon as you cover him up. Of course we only do this while we are holding him (and constantly checking that he has room to breathe)!
loves to clutch blankets and pull them close to his face - specifically his bamboo blankets.
still loves his swing.

Owen In a Nutshell

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 06:49:00 +0000

Counting in Spanish!

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 04:52:00 +0000

Two Months Old

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 04:20:00 +0000

At two months old, Jack

weighs 10 lbs, 14 oz - a gain of 4 lbs, 8 oz since birth (25th percentile)
is 21.75 inches tall - a growth of 3.25 inches since birth
Is transitioning from being a newborn to a baby
Loves to look around and discover the world
Concentrates hard and tries to copy when you stick your your tongue out
Loves lights and the stripes of the light coming through the closed blinds
Started smiling at seven weeks
Rolls from his tummy to his back (although he needs to be propped up on his arms)
Has slept for 8 or 9 hours a few times
Still drinks breast milk
Is pretty easy going
Loves his swing
Is a perfect little boy, according to his doctor

It's Good to be Owen and Mason!

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 05:06:00 +0000

The fun hasn't stopped for Owen and Mason since Jack has arrived. These silly, energetic, playful, funny, carefree boys are still enjoying being 4 year olds! It's definitely good to be Owen and Mason!

Mason and Owen enjoying bath

Owen playing vet, complete with headlamp

Dr. Mason

This is how Owen wrote his name for his homework, complete with 3 exclamation points!!!

Making some treats (O, M)

No idea, really. Buckets, a vet costume, bar stools, and some tv watching. (M, O)

M and O with their guitar hooked up to the iPad

Volleyball with Daddy

It started misting so under strict orders, Daddy had to join them under the tiniest tree to stay dry.

(M, O)

Big brothers at the park (O, M)

Monkeys (M, O)

Mason

Cutie Owen

This was just about the funniest thing I have seen Mason do. It was right after Jack had started smiling. Mason was trying to imitate the way Jack looks when he does his wide-mouth smiles...no teeth (hence the funny lips) and mouth in a "D" shape (top lip straight across, bottom lip curved). It was absolutely hilarious seeing him try to figure out how to make his face into what he thinks looks like Jack's cute little smile.

Now they are just in a silly mood!

Mason being a toot!

Mason and Owen

Owen and Mason were "serving" us drinks - diet coke, bottled water, juice boxes...

And then Mason heard a big noise from Jack's little bottom...

Owen offered Granna a Tecate!

Mason thinks Owen his hilarious!! His laugh is contagious!

Mason and Daddy

Owen and Daddy

Mason being a goof!

Owen

Hanging with Daddy after some yummy pancakes! (O, M)

The boys loaded up some small cooler bags and headed out for a picnic of beverages. (O, M)

Just in case he needs to rest his head. (O)

Mason helping Daddy build the trampoline in the new backyard.

Owen holding some pieces together.

Owen inventing new ways to wear his cape.

As you can see, these boys are nothing but goofballs! They love life and love having fun!!

One Month Old

noreply@blogger.com (Erin) — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 05:11:00 +0000

At one month old, Jack

weighs 8 lbs, 7 oz - a gain of 2 lbs, 1 oz since birth
is 20.5 inches tall - a growth of 2 inches since birth
is just about the size of "Baby Bear," made especially for him by his brothers
sleeps about 16 hours per day
eats for a total of about 3 hours a day - around 30 minutes at a time
has slept 5.5 hours straight, but only once
gets LOTS of hugs, kisses, and attention from his big brothers
drinks only breastmilk
will take it in a bottle with no problem
is gaining neck strength and can hold his head up for a minute or so
doesn't absolutely hate tummy time and will last about 6 minutes at a time (Owen and Mason tell Jack he is doing "head ups")
tracks with his eyes
localizes to sound
loves when his big brothers sing "Twinkle Twinkle" to him
is a very good/easy baby with not a lot of crying during the day
is tolerant to lots of big brother noise
can't decide if he likes pacifiers
calms down when he is laid on the changing table, but only until you start messing with his diaper
has a hard time at night beginning around 11 pm that usually lasts an hour or so
has met most of his immediate family, but is still anxiously waiting to meet his Uncle Kyle and his great-grandmother, Mary
is one lucky little boy to have been born into a family where so many people love him

Jack - Four Weeks Old

noreply@blogger.com (Erin) — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 04:06:00 +0000

At four weeks old, Jack finally tried out his first bottle. I wanted to make sure I was able to leave him with family if I needed (or wanted) to. I kept hearing I shouldn't introduce it too early because it could mess up breastfeeding, and at the same time I shouldn't wait too long because then he won't take it! What's a mom to do?! Well anyways, he liked it fine and guzzled down some breastmilk like it was going out of style! Both Owen and Mason were excited to get to help feed him for the first time - as was Granna, who was the baby holder!

Mason feeding Jack

Owen feeding Jack

The boys were sent a Halloween care package from Mimi and Papi with some different goodies, including some matching jammies. We dressed up all the kids and set them out on the festive front porch for some pictures. This marks the first time that all three kids are in matching clothes! And let me tell you - it was ADORABLE!! (even if Jack was camoflauged with the boys pants)!

Here's Owen and Mason - they're pretty excited that Halloween is coming up soon.

Add Baby Jack to the picture - even more cuteness!

Almost 5 weeks old

Snoozing with Granna

Tummy time with big brothers (O, M)

Owen and Mason call it "head-ups"

Snoozing at the park

Owen playing at the park and looking like such a big kid!

Mr. Mason at the park.

More stroller snoozing.

Playing with Granddaddy (O, M)

Jack - Three Weeks Old

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 03:34:00 +0000

Fall is upon us and this little guy is just under a month old already! It's also coming up on my favorite time of year! Since we don't have our house just yet, Granna and the big boys did some decorating for the season at her house.

They were very excited to go pick out pumpkins with her! They wanted to carry all the big ones and I think they tried to load about 10 into our shopping cart! We really only needed a couple, so in the end they each chose a pumpkin and then of course they had to choose one for Jack - they picked out a bundle of the "baby pumpkins" for him.

Finding the perfect pumpkin.

Owen trying to get another pumpkin into the cart.

Blurry, but cute. Mason trying to help lift the pumpkin into the cart.

Then it was porch decorating time.

Just like their daddy - tounges sticking out always help with concentration! (Owen)

Now look at Mason.

My boys admiring this amazing little guy.

Stroller rides are relaxing.

Owen watching some tv.

Mason patting Jack, who was getting fussy.

Maybe kisses will help.

Mason hanging out with his little brother.

Mason showing Jack a toy.

Owen is showing off his sticker from school.

Evidently babies don't care about stickers - so Owen showed him the toy too.

Owen really proud of Jack in his outfit! This was something Owen picked out himself (before Jack was born) and asked me if we could buy it for him. He is very excited it finally fits him!

Mason can't stand to not get some sugar too. So here's Mason.

Sweet baby!

Here's a sweet little video of Jack making some of his newborn noises...you know, the ones you hope you never forget. You can hear him do his little snort and see him do his jerky newborn movements. So adorable!

Owen and Mason have a little mp3 radio and they decided that Jack really wanted to listen to music so they thumbed through their music and chose this song. As you can see, Jack is so excited! Ha!

Numna's 89th Birthday

noreply@blogger.com (Erin and Aaron) — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 05:37:00 +0000

What better way to spend your birthday than with your three great-grandsons!? Numna was right where she wanted to be!

Here's Bee

Mason sneaking some kisses.

Numna with her great-grandsons (O, M)

And with her newest great-grandson!

Bee needed a pic with her boys too!

Singing "Happy Birthday" to Numna.

Numna was so caught up in us singing Happy Birthday to her that she forgot to blow out her candles. We are all trying to get her to start blowing before the wax is all over the place - but being hard of hearing makes it a little difficult. She finally realizes what she's supposed to be doing and joins in. The kids had fun with the trick candles though.

Opening gifts - the kids picked out a singing card.

Beautiful picture.

Numna with Jack.