Baby's First Halloween!

Happy Halloween!! O's first Halloween was a very, very busy one. Here are some photos of O in costume--I think he is too cute too spook! He didn't wear his hat much, but when he did...darling! I just love his little face and something about this costume made me just want to love on him even more (after he got over his craziness of the early morning, that is).

This morning, the Mom2Mom group at church got together for a Halloween play date. I left my camera at home (much to N's mom's disappointment)! I was in the mood for not being in charge of photos ;-) But...Cathy was there (to see more of her photos and superfun blog posts, click on Abby's blog to the right), and her photos are awesome! So, she got put in charge of taking shots of all of the little ones in costume! Her photos of O are awesome--thank you for taking them and thank you for giving me a break from those crazy mom's of N and P ;-)

Tonight, we attended the 1st Annual Boo Bash in the neighborhood. We had dinner at one house, trick or treated, and then had dessert and drinks afterwards. So much fun to get all of the kids together!! Here is O with Talia (butterfly) and Caden (spider).

O and Daddy Q walking around the neighborhood. O didn't trick or treat...he just watched all of the older kiddos and took notes on how to do it for next year (or the year after that...we'll see).

Paw Paw Mc....some of the houses here were really decked out. You would be in Halloween heaven. One had a casket with a skeleton in the foyer that the kids went inside to see. Wow!!

It got late and O got hungry...good thing mommy brought him a roadie!

To everyone we hung out with today, thanks for making O's first Halloween so much fun! We had a great time!

DIY: Jack 'O Lantern

We carved O's first pumpkin tonight. It was no work of art...a 9 1/2 month old won't allow you to spend too much time on any one task ;-). But, here is the play by play of our fun family event. Daddy Q thinks this should be the first and last annual Quinlan Family Pumpkin Carving Night...but, I think I will veto that one! I get to do that if I clean up the mess, right?

O and his big, huge pumpkin he helped me pick up at the store yesterday (and the trusty Mum Mum--can't forget those when we travel to England in a few weeks!!).
O feeding Daddy Q is Mum Mum. O has started "sharing"....he waves his food in front of your face, but won't let you actually take a bite ... so sweet ;-)

We cut a hole in the top and expected O to dig right in...

Not so much, Ma!

Hum...this does feel pretty cool?!?

And...How did that raw pumpkin seed taste? I guess he thought it was yummy, 'cause it went down. When O has pumpkins sprouting out of his ears in a few months...you know why!

O quickly got over the excitement of the pumpkin and just wanted us to finish and play!!!

We went out to the front porch for a photo with the finished product...

Where ya goin' Owen?

Fun times!

Picture for mommy--thanks, hun!

O says ... there's your memories, mom! See you later 'gater.
Here's to the 1st Annual Quinlan Pumpkin Carving. Its a wrap.

Last Sunday evening, we went to the Fall Festival in our neighborhood. The kiddos were supposed to wear their costumes, but it was incredibly hot out, so O wore his "alternative" costume--he was an Aggie Yell Leader--thanks Grammie!

Some kids from the high school volunteered for the event. During the set up, O was hanging out with them. When I returned over to their group...my little Yell Leader was donning a mohawk.

Tonight, I was trying to cook dinner and keep O entertained. Keeping him ocupied with something that is both nearby and safe is getting harder and harder! In a quandry, I remembered hearing over and over (and over) from folks that you don't have to buy them toys. Pots and pans and spoons and such work just fine.

I was skeptical, too, O?!?

Who knew? O was happy for the 15 minutes it took to make spaghetti. I gave him the boxes the different ingrediants came out of when I was done and they were empty. He had a blast! And then, he enjoyed the dinner he helped create!! So much fun, huh O?

Don't you wish you were this flexible? I mean...seriously, can you enjoy a drink in this pose? That is quite a feat...

Not much happening but the mail and a short game of fetch

So...life is getting pretty still when I am posting photos of checking the mail! We do this most afternoons and I was searching for a reason to post something today...so, here you have it...me and O checking the mail.

Today, fun catalogs came in! O searched through the FisherPrice one and flagged a few toys he would like. Then, he started gliding on the catalogs down the incline...ohh what fun. Its almost like snow-sledding....

After the mail was read, then O made his way up the steps and to the flowers. This part of the afternoon would last for ages...he is loving the steps and loving, loving picking the flowers and...putting them in his mouth...so I re-direct back to the grass...he bee-lines for the flowers...I re-direct...broken record? No...normal operations for my nine month old!!

Today a neighbor from across the street came over and introduced herself to me and O. It was very nice--since we started hanging out there most afternoons about 4 months ago, she is the first person to come say hi. I really appreciated that!!

Lastly, I wanted to post a quick clip of O throwing the ball. O throws everything and today, this was the object of choice. Baseball (dodgeball?), here comes O!

Then, O turned his attention to Tobie...sometimes she will fetch the ball he throws...today, it didn't go quite far enough ;-)

Okay...so this post bored even me....sorry all. I will try to do something fun over the weekend!

Wagon Ride!

We (me and my assistant, Baby O) took photos of N and his family today! We had great time and at the end, the boys got to ride in N's cool wagon! O loved it! He held on tight and rolled with the flow.
This was my fave shot of N. His dad made him laugh up a storm...it was so much fun and got us all laughing...there is nothing like the sound of a baby laughing...luv it!
and a shot of my assistant just 'cuz I think he is so darn cute.

Pumpkin Patch with N, O, and P

Last Tuesday, we loaded the boys up for a trip the pumpkin patch in the arboretum with the Mom2Mom group at church. We took advantage of the fabulous fall scenery to snap some photos of the boys together. Any idea how hard it is to get a 15 month old, 11 month old, and a 9 month old to all look the same direction and smile? Impossible!

A fun shot of O with his new cheesy smile! This boy took steps on this own today....did it for Mimi this afternoon and again for me when we got home. Slow down, buddy!
This one of N. is too stinkin' cute...I think he looks just like his Grandbear in it!
And...how precious is P? P turns 1 next week--can't believe they are getting so big!!
Check out O's shoes in the photo below...luv them! They are his next-to-newest pair of Converse. I am addicted to Converse on babies...
The funniest bit of the day (aside from O storing fajita meat in his cheeks at Uncle Julios) was the petting zoo. O is checkin' out the goats from the outside.

P and O stayed on the outside of the enclosure 'cause Megan and I couldn't stand the thought of them crawling around in there...ick...and we didn't trust them to stand along the fence like they did on the outside. this is the closest they got to that funky chicken!
N, on the other hand, got a front-and-center look at those goats. If we asked him if he wanted to pet one, he'd say "Umm-hmm". But, did he? No way! I don't blame ya N....they were pretty different from the dog in your backyard!!

Weekend at Grammie and Paw Paw Mc's

We traveled to Grammie and Paw Paw Mc's house last weekend. Great Aunt Julie came, too! Daddy Q and I went to the Aggie football game...what a dissappointment. But, Grammie, Paw Paw Mc and Julie spent time with Owen. I heard they had fun while he was awake, but a runny nose and slight fever made him less fun than usual. Ick.

Before O was born, Grammie started on a project for him/her (in case you don't remember, we didn't know if we were having a boy or a girl). Well....soon after his birthday, we got a pair of awesome overalls all decked out like an Aggie Yell Leader....complete with Baby Q's class year on them!! O sported them over the weekend...

Whoop!

I thought it woudl be fun to take photos at the entrance to Aggieland. I asked Paw Paw Mc to help O stand up. This is just before Paw Paw Mc let go....
Letting go...
He is so big now... you can scroll down to my Sunday night entry to see the result. O stood there for a good 30 seconds or so. We were all so proud of him and he of himself. I can't beleive he is growing so fast.

A shot of me with Baby O just cause we don't get many....
...and one of Grammie and O in their Maroon Out gear....And last, Paw Paw Mc sharing his gadgets with O...
I didn't get any of O with Aunt Julie... but, I hear they played with the ball quite a bit while we were at the game. O is a big fan of that game ;-) Thanks for a great weekend, all. Daddy Q and I enjoyed the sleep!!!

Does this guy need a pillow?

I looked in on O because I heard some rustling on the baby monitor during his nap this afternoon. Do you think this is a request for a pillow in his bed? He was still sound asleep...

Little Yell Leader

We just returned home from a weekend in Aggieland. I will post more about our weekend tomorrow, but wanted to upload this one--it couldn't wait until tomorrow. Too bad the football team wasn't as strong on the field as our little man is now!!

Whoa! Remotes and Balloons...Wow!

O is fascinated with our remote controls. So....when I saw an Elmo one in Target I picked it up for the little dude. I added batteries and then set it out next to our other remotes. Later, O came over to the ottoman to play with the remotes... First, he picked up our old one, then our newer one, and then...the Elmo remote. When he touched the button, it talked. This photo is taken after about 5 minutes of pushing buttons and getting a reaction from the remote. To say that he was absolutely astonished by it would be an understatement. Wow...what a happy dude. Now...if only it would TiVo Dancing with the Stars, the Backyardigans, and Sesame Street.


Saturday, we went to Brennan's birthday party...this is O and Daddy Q leaving. Sweet, huh??

Nine Months Old Today

Seriously?? Nine whole months? I truly cannot believe how quickly little O is growing. This morning's scale photo was really, really a funny experience. O has gotten the hang of this. Today, I tried to lay him on his back first...no way Jose. So...I sat him up, starting singing, and he just posed, smiled, and stayed still so that I could get the shot and he could go back to playing. Does that mean that he is on this side of a camera too often?

Happy Nine Month B-day, O! This last month, you have really started to enjoy reading books. Your favorite is So Big, with Elmo's Playday a close second (it has the buttons that make noise when you push them--great fun). Right behind those are the "Where is Baby's..." books. The one in your hand is from Parker--it is "Where is Baby's Pumpkin" and you LOVE to lift the flaps.
You have become a serious mama's boy this month. I can't leave the room for a second without you getting mad and quick-crawling behind me. And when we see each other first thing in the morning, or when I walk back into the room, I always get a bigger-than-you smile. You are a doll. Your kisses have gotten way more frequent and you even give them to Mimi when you go see her in the morning.
Your sense of humor is beyond words. After most things you do, you look for a response from your audience. If we laugh, then you do it over and over and over. Really fun stuff, dude! This morning, you hit me in the nose and I said "honk, honk." Then, I tapped your nose, and you made the same noise and then grinned from ear to ear and looked for a big laugh from mama--you got it, little man!
This last picture is posted by request from Aunt Julie ;-) No...he isn't wearing the A&M shirt, which would make it more funny for all. But, the infamous Hook 'Em finger suck is captured on photo and posted! O is in the playroom watching a movie. The car used to keep him from going to stand right by the tv; but, this week, he perfected a dismount and will only stay on it as long as he wants.

Nine things at nine months:

1. O can throw a ball like nobody's business. He is so funny. He stretches his arm overhead and then catapults the ball. Sometimes it goes all wonky, so O quick-crawls after it to do it again and get it to me. Yesterday, O and his friend Parker actually played their first game of catch. They each had a mini-football and threw them to each other. Only did it a couple of times, but it was funny.

2. Nicknames: Punkadoo, Boogga, Mr. Fuss (its back).

3. He can walk if you hold one of his hands and walk beside him. But, for the first time in his little life, he prefers to sit/crawl, to stand and walk.

4. He and I go out and check the mail in the afternoon and then sit in the yard and look through it. This month, O had more mail addressed to him than Daddy Q and me combined (not counting junk mail, of course). He looks at his cards, invites, etc. forEVER and doesn't tear them apart. He is proud of his mail. After the mail, we sit and watch folks driving by. I am trying to teach him to wave, so we (ahem, I) get lots of practice waving.

5. O has gotten so much personality. When he is in a good mood, he is tons of fun. But, when he is not....anyone want a nine month old for a day?

6. His two bottom teeth are well on there way in. His two top teeth just broke through!!!

7. This is the first month O lost weight--he is 19 pounds 5 ounces. Poor guy, he was so sick and has not had much appetite. I hope we gain it back and then some, 'cause I love the chubb.

8. If he hears the Gerber can with his snacks in them, he's gotta have 'em. It is serious business if he doesn't get any.

9. My heart melts every single time I get a kiss and hug from the little man. It is the absolute sweetest thing in the world.