Owen is 18months!!

WOW! I can't believe we have an 18month old little boy! He is the greatest blessing God has given Joe and I (and Mason of course!) Over the past month while all of our lives were changing with the addition of Mason, Owen decided he was ready to start repeating what we say! Here's a list of the new words Owen has said over the past 2 weeks!
-football
-fumble
-milk (sounds more like a grunt though!)
-more
-moo moo (when asked what a cow says)
-Ooo Ooo (when asked what an owl says)
-Bubba (for Mason!)
-Choo Choo
-Book
-cheese
-chicken (kinda!)
-keys
-night-night
-waffle
-Amen
-Elmo
-Night-Night
-Eat
-and a few others that I can't think of right now....
Owen also has another word he says all the time-"con-yah". We have no clue what it means but he loves to shout it as he plays and when he gets excited!

He also can show us two new parts of his face: his chin and cheeks!




Here's what our lil' 18month old likes to do these days:
-Cars! cars!! cars!!! He now likes to take turns pushing cars back and forth with me, lining them up in a row, crashing them (sometimes), sorting them (based on colors, type, etc), and so much more!
-Blocks! He likes to build ramps, bridges, and garages for his cars out of his wood blocks!
-Books! He still loves a good snuggle time with a good book! I don't think we've ever read a book only one time in a single sitting...he usually likes to read each book at least twice!
-Horse! Owen's new favorite thing to do with his Dada is to ride on his back like a horse! If Joe sits on the floor Owen will gently roll his Dada to his stomach so he can mount his back for a horse ride! It's so cute!
-Prizes! When Owen's Mimi came to visit when Mason was born, she gave him several "prizes" each day of her visit. He now knows what a Prize is, and he knows that he's gonna want whatever it is!
-Tunnel Time! When Owen's Grams and Uncle Nick and Uncle Sam came to visit they brought him tent and tunnel. He now likes to crawl through the tunnel and he loves to be dragged around in the tunnel too!

-Friends! Owen has some great friends! Whenever we get together with Owen's friends Reid and Lana, he chooses one of them to copy for the day! On our visit to the zoo, he copied Lana--at the pool he copied Reid...etc! He has so much fun with his friends that he usually breaks down crying when they leave! (He ALWAYS sheds some tears when Ms.Bev leaves our house:)
-Touch! Our little Owen is quite the little affectionate boy! He loves to snuggle, hug, kiss, or simply reach out his hand or foot to touch his Momma or Dada while he plays! We're thinking he gets his "love languages" directly form Joe and I: touch and quality time!
-Independent Play Time! Owen is so creative and imaginative! Each day Owen spends some time playing independently in his play room or around the house. It's so fun to spy on him or listen in to the conversations he has with himself and his toys! It's great to know that he has developed this skill to entertain himself while knowing Momma and Dada's security and love is always there!
-Arts & Crafts! Owen enjoys some arts and crafts. He still finds plain crayons kind of boring but he loves the messy stuff like markers and paint!
Burping Baby Mason!


First Nap on the couch!

"Playing" video games with his Mimi!

This is how Owen starts his day! After milk and a little snuggle time with Momma, he's off to his car lunchbox (which holds his Hotwheels)!

Owen and his adorable cousins Bennett and Lawson!

So so cute!

Eating a banana!! He ALWAYS takes BIG bites!

To celebrate Owen's 18month b-day and Mason's 1month b-day we decided to go to
Chuck E Cheese's!!

Mason Alexander Graziano

Mason was born on July 10, 2010
at 9:22am 21inches long 7 lbs. 2 oz.

It was a very stressful delivery for both Baby and Mommy. Ashley spent five minutes pushing before the doctor realized Mason was not going to cooperate. Mason was laying sideways and refused to position himself head down despite nurses pushing on him and making Ashley push in awkward positions. Additionally, Mason's heart rate was dipping to dangerous levels when she would push which meant the cord had to be wrapped around his neck. Ashley was quickly prepared for a C-section which was the worst part of the whole process for me as I had to be separated from her for about 10 minutes (It seemed like an eternity). The surgery started almost as soon as I entered the room and in a matter of seconds Mason was hoisted out into the world. Mason had the cord wrapped around his neck twice and he was not crying and very blue at first. I was relieved to hear him cry and we later found out some of the blue was not from having his circulation compromised but from bruising he received on his face while Ashley was pushing. We had to wait 5 minutes to see the little guy because he was being worked on. I know this was very disappointing for Ashley but as soon as they put him on her chest she began to throw up and I was escorted out of the room with Mason in my arms. It was probably a good 2 hours before Ashley would even get to see Mason but I was able to get a lot of father son time and love on him. The bruising on his face is almost gone now that we are home. Owen was so confused when we showed him Mason. Owen's face seemed to say "Why didn't you leave him at the hospital." However, he warmed up to his new brother quickly and before nap time Owen gave us all a kiss including his new little brother. We are very blessed to have two handsome and healthy little boys. It is a huge blessing to have Owen's and Mason's Mimi here to help us while their Pops, Aunts, Uncles, and Grams and Gramps all wait on deck to visit and help. Thank you for the prayers we are very blessed to have such a wonderful addition to our little family.

Updates on Owen

I can't believe it, but our Owen is 17 months old today! What an amazing 17 months it has been! He has added so much joy to our lives and I am so incredibly thankful that God specifically chose Joe and I to raise this amazing little boy! Here are some updates on Owen, and since this update is WAY overdue, some of these things he's been doing for months! (sorry this is going to be super long...this is really my way of documenting Owen's sweet life...this is probably a blog that only Owen's parents and grandparents will appreciate!:

-Owen has almost no interest in talking!! This has been extremely frustrating for Joe and I. I'm going to attempt to make a list of the words he says, but honestly he said more of these words when he was 14 months old and now prefers to say "That" for just about everything!
-dada -mama -yaya(this is what he calls me) -dog -car -nanana(banana) -duck -that -teeth -God -no -yes -all done -I want that
-what's that -clock -dig, dig, dig -shoo (shoes) -thanks -gone

-Two extremely cute things he enjoys now is jumping and taking "big steps" When he "jumps" he bends over a little and then throws his arms up in the air in a some what jerky motion (his feet barely move)! And "big steps" is when he takes extra wide steps! So funny!
Here he is jumping!

-The boy LOVES to be outside--In the heat or in the rain. When he wants to go outside he brings me my shoes and his shoes and then points to the door!


He brings me my shoes and helps me put them on!

Here are a few of his favorite outdoor activities:
-playing in the water hose -Digging with his shovels -pushing his cars down the driveway -drawing with chalk -"mowing the grass" -chasing and popping bubbles -playing in the pool -playing at the park

-One thing Owen doesn't like outside, is for his Dada to cut the grass. He is so concerned for his Dada's safety so he follows him around the yard at a "safe" distance crying out for his Dada. This usually ends by Joe scooping him up in his arms and cutting the grass while carrying Owen. :)

-Luckily Owen is showing some signs of being a little neater than his Dada! Owen already enjoys putting away his clean dishes from the dishwasher, pushing in his chair (and his Dada's), organizing his toys, and he always wants the pantry door completely closed as well as all the drawers! He also helps by throwing away his diapers!


-Owen is still a pretty good eater. His favorite foods are bananas and chicken!

-In an effort to prepare Owen for the arrival of his brother, I would say "Where's Mason" and then he would pat my belly. Well, this has back fired a little! Now when I say "where's Mason" he pats his own belly. I guess he thinks Mason=Belly! oops!

-Also in preparation for Mason's arrival, Owen has already transferred to his new crib and bedroom (which was the playroom). In the mornings when he wakes up, he used to say "Ya-ya!"...but now that he's in his new room with all his toys around him, he now wakes us and says "CAR! CAR! CAR!" as he points to all his favorite toy cars and car pictures on the walls!

-I think I've mentioned this before, but Owen truly enjoys our visits to Publix! As soon as we start walking to the Publix entrance he starts saying "Car!" because he knows he gets to "drive" in the "car-cart"! The other day when we walked in Publix and he caught his first glimpse of the "car-cart" he screamed louder than he ever has "CAR!!!!!!!" Everyone around stopped and stared at us!

-Funny story- Yesterday I was preparing for us to go to church so I already took his beloved Monkey and packed it in his diaper bag. Owen began to collect his other blankets and seemed to notice that Monkey was missing. So, he went to his bedroom and got his plush "Baby's 1st Photo Album". He flipped it open to a picture of him holding Monkey, pointed to Monkey and signed "Please"! It was pretty clear, he wanted me to help him find his Monkey! What a smart boy!

-Owen ADORES his Dada! While Joe is at work Owen occasionally carries a picture with him of his Dada! So sweet!

-A "not so fun" new thing Owen is doing, is taking us by the hand and dragging us with him. Sometimes he takes us to the fridge and asks for milk or water, sometimes he takes us to his playroom to play, and sometimes he uses our hand to touch or pick up something that is a "no-no" (like our cell phones, TV remotes, or keys)!

-Owen likes to dance! He really only has one dance move, but it is uniquely his and we LOVE it!

-Owen makes the sweetest "sleepy noise". When he's tired he likes to get his blankies, suck his thumb and make the sweetest "sleepy noise". I love it!

-Owen definitely knows what "all done" means. He initially learned the sign for "all done" in order to tell us when he was done eating, but now he signs "all done" (and often says "all done") for several reasons, here are a few:
-Whenever we reach our destination in the car -When we've been waiting a long time at one of my doctor appointments -When he's ready to be done shopping -When the TV gets turned off -When I'm done eating something -When he's done playing with a particular toy or in a particular place

I'm sure there are so many other things that I could and should document but my brain is done (10 days till due date and my brain is a tad bit mushy!) Somehow I hope to get better about documenting Owen's life, but I'm fully aware that it's only going to get tougher when we add little Mason to the mix! All I can do is try!

I've never been this pregnant!

Well, I'm 38 weeks pregnant, which means I'm more pregnant now than I ever was with Owen!! I know many women have been in my shoes before but somehow I feel like I don't deserve this! :) Owen was 3 weeks early and the doctors kept telling me this baby was measuring early...but apparently none of that matters! I guess on a good note I went to the doctor today and I am dilated 3cm. But as my sister would say...that doesn't really matter since she was 4cm forever and my nephew was born a few days late! Ahhhh! I guess now I just wait. I'm not miserable, I'm just so anxious to go through the whole amazing birth experience again and I CANNOT wait to meet my baby Mason! I'm also VERY excited about my mom coming and I'm REALLY looking forward to sleeping in my bed with my husband again (I've been sleeping on the couch upright for the past several weeks because it seems to be the only way that my acid reflux doesn't cause me to wake up choking on stomach acid in the middle of the night!) Man, now that I've thought through all of that, maybe I am miserable!

37 weeks and counting!

Recently we've really just been preparing and waiting for Mason's arrival. Even though technically I have 3 more weeks until his official due date, we are extremely anxious (partially because my docs kept saying I was measuring early & because Owen was 3 weeks early)! In order to enjoy these last few weeks as a family of 3, here's what we've been up to:

Zoo Day! We are taking advantage of our zoo passes even in ths crazy FL heat! On our latest visit we spent the majority of our time with the goats!

This fat goat LOVED Joe and Owen!

We celebrated Father's Day with some yummy food (the true way to a man's heart is through his stomach)! For breakfast I made Joe whole wheat pancakes with chocolate chips and walnuts-I shaped the pancakes to say #1 Dad! I also made him a mango smoothie and cheese grits...all of his favs! We also had tortellini and shrimp...and of course a chocolate fudge cake!

We've all been taking advantage of uninterrupted sleep (since that will all change when Mason arrives) Here's a pic of Owen sleeping like a frog!

One of our favorite games to play as a family is "FUMBLE!" We take turns throwing the football, and then we all try to "recover the fumble"! Roxy likes to participate as well...Owen LOVES when Roxy joins in!

Since Owen won't be the baby much longer, we are fully taking advantage of each moment he slows down long enough for a quick snuggle!

There's a lot to be done in order to prepare for a new baby, and one of those tasks is cleaning! Who knew cleaning doors could be so fun to a 16 month old! He is such a good helper!

Owen is starting to really enjoy building with blocks...or maybe he just really enjoys knocking over his Dada's towers!

I recently spent my baby-sitting money on a new ottoman. Owen loves climbing on it, watching TV from it, and of course driving his cars on it!

Owen Loves his dog (I'm not exactly sure why though)!

Trip to St. Augustine

We had a great trip to St. Augustine, FL with the Graziano clan over the Memorial Day weekend! We were able to spend awesome quality time with all of Joe's brothers, his parents and Elise! And Elise took some great family pictures for us as well, here are a few! Thanks Elise!!






Here are some other fun pictures from the trip!


Flying a kite with Dada and Gramps!

Owen with his uncles!

Uncle Matt and Aunt Elise!

Grams and Gramps!

Owen likes to wear our shoes!

All the brothers! --Poor Joe may end up being the shortest brother (even at 6'4)!