Snuggle up!

One of the best things about bathtime is the towel snuggling afterward. If only the masses got to have towels sooooo cool like this one.

Gr-Owen Update: Jan. 28

We don't have much of an update for body size and weight, but it has been about a month since the last update. Owen's solidly over 11 pounds now, but the real growing has been happening with the PKU management.

We now do blood tests every week, at least for a while. Owen's PHE levels have been fairly low and the folks at OHSU seem to think that Owen only needs to submit a sample once a week instead of every 3 days. Owen appreciates the change of schedule quite a bit.

We're still on 8 ounces a day of formula, and he's still continuing to eat fairly well in genera. Enough to keep a boy growing, at least.

The other thing is that Mom and Dad are going to start learning how to count the PHE levels in the foods we eat. It will be a daily exercise when Owen begins to eat table food, so we will need to understand the practice before Owen decides to go solid. Mom and Dad even have a homework assignment that we've got to turn into the dietitians.

There was a hat...

Mr. Right found a hat. Or... perhaps the hat found Mr. Right. It's always tough to tell who found whom... This is one of those unique situations where the sum of cuteness of each element is greater that the individual parts.

And, for those of you wondering, the top photo is Owen's 'Blue Steel'. If you don't know what that is, ask Ben Stiller. If you don't know who Ben Stiller is, Owen requests that you pay more attention to the bottom photo.

It's snOwen!

While Owen was snoring this morning, it started snowing. Normally, waking a guy up from a nap is forbidden, but not today. Bundled up in his snOwen suit, he got out and felt snowflakes on his face. His acceptance of the cold air and snowflakes point to a long future of winter sports up in the mountains. Yippee!

Hurricane Owen

When in need of a weather map, use Owen's head.

All Bounced Out...

Grandma and Grandpa got Owen a bouncer, the kind that hangs from the ceiling. The only problem, though, is that sometimes Owen runs out of bounces.

Mobile sleep...

There's no better pillow than the one who knows Owen best...

Chatterbox

Party Snaps

Without any further delay, here are the pics from Sophia's second party, now with extra 8-month-old!




To view a gallery of the photos, instead of the slideshow above, click here. That gallery should also allow you to download the photos and order prints, should you decide to do so.

There was another party...

Trust me, a good time was had by all. We're headed up to Dorenbecher today for a CDRC visit, more pics from the party will be posted when we get back.

A new diagnosis

Owen had a doctor's appointment this week, and he was diagnosed with a new... something. The symptoms are a mouth wide open, and a funny repetitive noise coming out of the little guy's mouth. Yes folks, he has a serious case of the giggles.

Actually, it's worse than just the giggles. We had some belly tickling going on on the exam table, and he opened up with a full bodied belly laugh. What a wonderful sound!

It was short lived though. First, Doctor Amber had a stethoscope that must have been somewhere in the region of 4 degrees above absolute zero. Then she had a ophthalmoscope that was probably brighter than the sun. Well, there were the four shots, his first round of immunizations... but I'm pretty sure the real pain came from the stethoscope frostbite.

All in all, Owen is a very healthy little guy. Everything is checking out just fine, his PHE levels are very stable in the 'good' range, and he's laughing now... All is well.

1/6 of a year down...

Introducing to y'all: A 2 month old Owen! We should have a length and weight update on Thursday...

Date night!

We had visitors tonight...

Sophia and Owen look pretty good together.

Even if Owen isn't too sure about things all the time...

Eventually, though, a good time is bound to be had by all.

Word on the street is that there's going to be another baby party. Oh... what fun!

Getting ready...

... for G-Owen out on the town. Normally, a hat like this would be reserved for summer, but when a little guy is born in November, hat practice is necessary, even if the sun isn't beating down.

PKU update

It's been a while since the last PKU update. During this update, we talked about how Owen's PHE levels had gone out of the targeted range which triggered an adjustment to Owen's diet.

Just to let everyone know, we've received two subsequent results back from tests, and his PHE levels are right back down where they need to be. Owen seems to react wonderfully to the adjustments in his PKU management plan.

Go Owen!

Oh... and, Owen tipped the scales today at an unofficial 11 pounds. Just about 2 months old too. So, if we run the math out, on his 30th birthday, now he's bound to weigh somewhere around 54o pounds. That's down from the 720 pound estimate we had previously given... so we're on the right track.

OWEN TECH: The new bottles

Owen got an upgrade! We've ordered these bottles by 'born free' which are a bit different than the run of the mill bottles. They have a very nice vent system, which Owen really appreciates, but the real difference is in the materials used to make the bottles. Most bottles are made from a run-of-the-mill polycarbonate plastic, most of which contains something called bisphenol-a. Now... some recent research has shown that the little bit of bisphenol-a that leaches out into fluids isn't the best thing for little people. (It's a little confusing to know which bottles contain this chemical, but since it's a somewhat controversial issue, most of the companies that are bisphenol free let you know.)

These Born Free bottles are free of bisphenol-a, which gives them a slight bronze tint. You can't really see it in this photo, but the tint is there. They come highly recommended!

All who are cute...

please stand up! Please stand up!

This is for G-Owen outside!

This wonderful outfit is perfect for going on walks out in the extremely mild winter weather we have here in Oregon.