Summertime!

Here we are enjoying our summer! Owen is 9 months now and is such a happy little guy! He continues to be at the very top of the growth chart-95 percentile for height, weight, and head measurements!
We have had a lot of fun this summer so far! Owen has been spending a few nights with his grandparents here and there. Mommy and Daddy have been to Long Beach Island, New Jersey for Mommy's 30th birthday. Daddy took a vacation to Cincinnati and California.
We've had some visitors too! Aunt Fern has been helping out A LOT and staying some with us while she's in transition between Manchester and Philadelphia. We currently are mid-visit with Nana from Kentucky. We're excited to have Papaw join us next week!
Owen is starting a new daycare in August. We're pretty excited about it! It's a bit further away, but we are confident that he will be in the best of hands!
Owen's been swimming and had a few play dates with friends Emma and Sammie. He's also enjoyed his first Orioles game!
Check out his new pictures!

6 months with Owen!

We really can't believe that Owen is 6 months old! He's come a long way from the teeny 5 pound 5 ounce baby we brought home from the hospital last October! When he was born he was in the 2nd percentile for his weight and now he is in the 95th percentile-weighing in at 20 pounds!
Unfortunately, Owen has developed asthma over the past few months and has spent some time in the ER. We're learning to control it with breathing treatments and just calming him down when he gets too worked up. His pediatrician is beginning to examine some other causes for his constant congestion-she thinks he may have some kind of GI issue as well. But for all of his ailments, he's a happy little baby! He's currently dealing with teething, but he's smiley and laughs a lot!
Owen took his first trip to Kentucky over Easter and had a great time! He was really good on the plane with the exception of a 20 minute cry at the end of the flight to Kentucky. He got to meet lots of new friends and family members! Most importantly, he got to meet his cousin Brielle! Luke's sister Leslie had her baby girl 2 days before we arrived! Owen looks like a monster next to her, but she'll be catching up soon! We are looking forward to more trips to Kentucky in the future!
In August, Owen will be a cousin again because Rose's sister Ginger will be having a baby! He's excited to have a cousin living so closely by!
He has some new pictures posted in the photo album on the left! Check out how much he's grown!

Owen's big night!

Here is a picture of Owen's nursery, where he slept for the first time last night!!! He had been sleeping in a bassinet in our room, but we decided it was time for his first night in HIS room! I think he handled it a lot better than I did! His room is really great~cozy and perfect! I rocked him in his rocking chair and swaddled him up and laid him in his crib. I have to say that I got the best night's sleep I've had in a long time! I think this is because I didn't wake up to every little chirp and squeak he made. He slept from 11-6, ate and slept for 2 more hours!
I also added a few more Owen pictures that I've been meaning to upload, so check them out by clicking on the "Owen's Photo Album" link in the top left corner! Enjoy!

3 Months!

Our little Owen turned 3 months old today! He has come a long way from the little 5 1/2 pound preemie in the NICU to the 13 pound chunker he is today!
He is just a little behind developmentally, but that is to be expected since he was born early. He's working on holding his head up and has discovered his hands!
One of the nice new things is that he seems to enjoy his baths now! Until about a week ago, baths were a painful experience for all involved. Now he's quiet and even has smiled once or twice while he's in there. This is a good thing because he seems to sleep for a good 7 hours after a bath and a bottle. Instead of screaming when he goes into the tub, going into the tub actually seems to stop the screaming! What a nice change!
Owen had a very nice first Christmas. We spent it with Mommy's family. This was the last Christmas in Gramma and Grampa's house on Greenspring Avenue. They are getting ready to move into a new condo in Towson. Owen got some new clothes and a few stuffed animals for Christmas. He also got a bunch of diapers and some wipes! Yay! Aunt Ginger, Uncle Eric, and Owen worked hard at making an ornament with Owen's hand/footprint...but, it didn't turn out so well. We call it "Owen Art"! It's the thought that counts and we'll treasure it! He also received a beautiful hand-made blanket from Aunt Ginger! She learned how when she found out Owen was on his way! It's warm and soft and we love it!
The day after Christmas, Nanna and Papaw Hazle arrived for a visit from Kentucky. They brought some Christmas presents for Owen and really enjoyed visiting him. Nanna was a HUGE help to Mommy! We were all sorry to see them go and are looking forward to our next visit, in Kentucky, this coming March.
Owen starts daycare on January 15th. Not something Mommy's looking forward to at all, but she knows it's something that has to be done. Right now we're working on getting Owen on a schedule. This weekend Owen is going to try sleeping in his own room for the first time. Hopefully this will all make the daycare/going back to work transition easier!
New pictures coming soon!

Meeting Santa

Earlier this week, Ginger and I took Owen to meet Santa! He didn't seem to care too much, but we had a great time!
Owen was asleep and opened his eyes when he sat on Santa's lap...just in time for the picture!
Owen had his 2 month check up earlier this month and now weighs just over 10 pounds! He is in the 16th percentile for his weight...up from the 2nd percentile at 1 month! The big surprise was that he is now in the 53rd percentile for his height...up from the 4th percentile at 1 month! Wow! He's getting tall quickly!
I will be going back to work on January 15th, when Owen starts daycare. Even though I'm very happy with the daycare center he'll be going to, I'm not looking forward to leaving him. :(
He has had a few nights of sleeping for 8-9 hours! We're hoping for more of those!

2 Months!

Owen turned 2 months old on Monday. We had his 2 month doctor's appointment yesterday. He is now 10 pounds, 2 ounces! At one month, he was in the 2nd percentile for his weight and is now in the 16th percentile! Also, he was in the 4th percentile for his height and is now in the 53rd percentile! So he's getting tall quickly! We learned that his eyes will not be brown. The doctor said that they will get lighter from the blue that they are, but not darker. Luke's happy about that because he wanted him to have my color eyes. So it looks like he could.

He also received his vaccinations yesterday. The polio vaccine is one given orally, and the nurse warned me that it tastes terrible and he would try to spit it out. Well, our little piglet wolfed it right down and didn't even bat an eye! Ah, those Hazle genes! :)

Today it snowed for the first time of the season! We got about 3 inches and it's quite beautiful. I'll try to take some pictures tomorrow. We may put Owen in his little bunting outfit and take him out.

In other news, we found a place in a daycare. We got bumped to the end of the 6-month waiting list that we had been on. So I began, once again, the tedious search for child care. I called a place very close to our house that had just found out one of their infants was moving out of town and would be giving up his spot. So I researched the facility and went to visit. I talked to a few parents while I was there and they all love it. It's in our price range, though still expensive, so I reserved his spot and he'll be able to start January 15th. That means I have to go back to work. :(

That's all for now! I'll try to take some snow pictures and post them! Take care!

New Owen Pictures

If you click on the link that says "Owen's Photo Albums" in the top left-hand corner, you'll get to see a bunch of new Owen pictures.
I added some from when he was first born, his stay in the NICU, when Luke's parents visited, the baby shower, Halloween, and just some cutie pie Owen pictures.
Hope you enjoy!
Keep checking back...I'll keep adding! :)