Family photos & October fun

It's family photo time! I work with a very talented photographer and asked that she do some family photos for us. Since I love the Bay Area so much, I thought some very casual outdoorsy shots would be really great (especially since we may not be Californians for much longer). I know Owen won't remember our hikes through the redwoods, but hopefully we can revisit and show him when he's a bit older. For now, we have some photo evidence.

We also went to a pumpkin patch with Jes and Bob and family! We climbed hay bales and rode a tractor trailer through a pumpkin patch. It was a lot of fun, and Owen loved picking out his first pumpkin.

At the top!

I like this one.

Just my size!

Peek-a-boo

Best way to get around!

Bob and Piper on the hayride!

Jes and Colin learning about pumpkins

Owen: Ten months

It's been a nice while since his surgeries, and Owen has been happier than ever. He's definitely still working on some frustrating milestones--mainly teeth, and crawling/walking--but overall he's quick to laugh.

I can tell he's learning so much each day, and he seems to catch onto things more quickly now. There are still some things that he just can't quite figure out, but we're definitely getting there. He's eating like a champ, and could group quite a bit into his "favorite foods." He likes to feed himself honeydew melon and small bites of cheese. Who doesn't? After 10 long months of pumping every three hours, I've finally been able to drop a couple pumps and get 6 hours of sleep--in a row. I feel like a new human being. I'm still getting up once at night, but it's not so bad.

Baby tricks: He waves goodbye and gives high fives. His vocabulary is a much more refined "daddy" and yet no "mama" quite yet. He just laughs and says "dada" again. He can get around pretty well, but mostly backward. We're working on crawling and walking at the same time now and he's pretty eager to be on his feet walking around. He can stand for a few seconds on his own, but I don't think he'll be walking on his own just yet. He just loves to hold hands and wander around the house.

One of my favorite things is to sit and read with him. I used to be able to read stories, but now the books are expected to be a bit more interactive. He likes to turn the pages, feel the fuzzy spot, or open the various flaps. I love that he remembers what to do. Hopefully we'll get to revisit our Dr. Seuss books when he's a bit older, but for now, we like short books.

He looks more and more like a toddler every day. It's bittersweet to watch each stage pass. I'm enjoying this phase so much, but I'm excited for what's next.

Honeydew melon: new favorite food