14 Months Old Today!!

Owen is fourteen months old today....14 whole months...that's 425 days, 10,200 hours, or 612,000 minutes....wow. He has learned so much in those 612,000 minutes.

This month was all about communicating for Owen. I think he "mastered" the whole walking business during month 13 ;-) In month 14 he did work on running; but, really most of the differenaces I see in Owen from last month to today are centered on communicating with us through words, gestures, and humor.--and boy, is he developing a sence of humor.
I wanted to share my very favorite Owen-ism with you, but I can't pick just one. So, I will blog about them all--it will help me remember them for when i get back to working on his baby book.

I think that the most endearing thing that Owen does right now is that he will turn his head sideways, look you right in the eye, smile as big as Texas, and say "hi." If you are carrying him, he holds on tight with his hand behind your back, and swings his whole little body around so that he is in your line of sight. It makes me smile every single time. Yesterday, he was playing at the playground with a 2-year old girl who spoke French...they were both pushing the buttons on a playground toy, and owen wanted to interact with her. He pivoted 90 degrees, knelt down so that he was in between her face and the buttons, smiled that Owen smile, and said "hi." It melted my heart.

When Owen wants something, whether its for me or Daddy Q to pick him up, hand him something, or help him see something higher, he holds both arms out in front of him, stretched as far as they will go, and then rotates his right hand from side to side.

If something is just out of reach and owen wants it, he says "uh uh" (like bad grammer for no--not sure how to spell that) and reaches toward it. If you grab something too near, then he holds his little arm up a higher to indicate that the object of his desire is further away than what you are about to grasp. Smart little fella.

His favorite game since we have been on vacation is "uh oh". The bed in my and Daddy Q's room is high enough that Owen's balls roll under it and he can't get thim himself. He will say "uh oh", and look toward the ball, until you are able to get it.

Owen has a tendancy to just fly off of the side of the bed (he does this at home, too), and I have always caught him by his foot to help him land softly. It became a game. Here, the floors are tile, so I felt I really need to teach him a better way to get down. So, he now knows to turn around and slide down on his belly, feet first. When he is almost down, he looks up at me and Daddy Q and says "bye-bye". It is histarical.

Owen has gotten really into the adventure of seeing what we do next here in Mexico. Before we leave the room, I tell him we are going bye-bye. He tries to get into the stroller himself so he isn't left behind. That's a first...ususally he is kicking and screaming if I try to get him in the stroller.

Owen is working on putting his shoes on by himself. If one falls off when playing, you hear "uh oh" and then see him sit down and try to get it back on. Yesterday, I was going to put his shorts on him...he took them from me, sat down, held the shorts by his feet, lifted both feet, tried to put them through the shorts, and fell backwards. It was a good start ;-) As I was getting dressed, I put on my pants, and then went to get my shirt to put on...Owen had it and handed it to me.

Owen gives the sweetest hugs, complete with a pat on the back. Then, he pulls back to look me in the eye and smiles so big. It lasts only a second, and then he is off to play. It is that look and those moments that I hope never to forget.

Happy 14 months, Owen!!! Mama loves you so very much and is having so much fun "chatting" with you these days!!!

BTW....Daddy Q won another gold medal in tennis tonight...the competition is a joke, but he is having fun! And, I have a sunburn. ouch. its my first time in ages to get one...I missed some spots with the sunscreen and they BURN.

Lastly, for the record, Owen did not like the dolphins one bit. There were three in the tank with us, and the other two were playing with a football. Watching them was the only thing that kept Owen from crying the whole time. I should have gotten out of the water with him 'cause he was so unhappy, but I was so loving it. So, I was selfish and kept him in there so that I could pet the dolphin. I gave him big hugs and kisses after, so I hope he will forgive me.

And, the uber sandy face in the pictures above (where his face is half brown) is after one of his temper tantrums where he throws himself on the floor. Well, this time, he threw himself in the sand. It was kinda funny once the tantrum ended. It was over a pina colada. I would have just let him have it, but the bar tender didn't give me a virgin one, and so neither of us (me or Owen) got to drink it. Owen was so mad.