Bonney & Patrick & Rowan & Calvin's Blog

Calvin - Day Three

2012-01-30T20:40:00.000-08:00

By day 3, we were all very ready to come home from the hospital. Calvin was doing great and Bonney was feeling almost human. Bonney also missed Rowan terribly as she was only able to see him for about 1 hour each day - not nearly enough! There is always lots of paperwork on the last day and hurdles to jump before they actually let you go. Rowan was circumcised in the morning and had his mandatory newborn hearing test soon after. Bonney had a final checkover with her OB and then it was just waiting for Rowan to finish his nap so he and Patrick could drive over to the hospital for our getaway! Seeing Rowan run down the hall all smiles into my arms for a big hug was the highlight of my day. We quickly packed up and hit the road. It was a bluebird sky in Yakima the day we brought Calvin home, just perfect.You know, I was pretty worried about welcoming Calvin into our lives, just wondering how he was going to fit in. I was also worried about Rowan and having enough time to spend with him and enough love to go around. But we quickly discovered that your heart just seems to get bigger to fit all the people in your life. We are so in love with our new little man and so happy that Rowan has a brother and seems to really like him. And somehow (I really don't know how this is possible) we seem to treasure Rowan even more now. OK, enough sappy stuff, onto the photos and videos!

Here are some pics from his third day:

From Calvin - Day Three

Photo Session with Samantha Deyette Photography

2012-01-25T22:56:00.000-08:00

We scheduled a newborn photo session for Calvin with Samantha Deyette who shoots using just natural light. She had a great photo session with Calvin. Rowan got home from school towards the end of the session and although it was time for his nap, we decided to give some group shots a try. So, we dressed them in their matching sweater outfits (I felt a bit foolish buying these at the time) and sat them in a chair. As soon as we put Calvin in Rowan's arms, his face lit up and he proceeded to ham it up for the camera. Here is a little sneak peek of the shots. To view all the photos in the session, go to the photographer's website and enter the password "pelley".

"See More Cal"

2012-01-25T21:21:00.000-08:00

The title of this blog post was also Rowan's first 3-word sentence. Rowan is very fond of his new little brother and is very interested in all that he is doing. Which at this point is sleeping, eating or pooping. He is especially interested in the last activity and wants to change Calvin's diaper all the time. He even practices changing diapers on his little stuffed Elmo.

We have to apologize to all of our loyal blog followers (all 6 of you) that we have not posted in so long. We have been busy, busy adjusting to our new life as parents to two beautiful little boys. We have been taking lots of photos and video, we just haven't found the time to do the upload and posting work. Bonney always intends to do this after Rowan goes to bed and during one of Calvin's many catnaps, but someone around 8:30 or 9 in the evening she gets a bit sleepy. Tonight's the night!

While we burned up one week of Patrick's vacation waiting for little Calvin to arrive, we were lucky enough to have a second week of Patrick time. We spent part of this week in Yakima and part of it in Portland. Bonney's recovery was a bit quicker and easier this time around although she wasn't allowed to pick up heavy things - like Rowan. Luckily between Patrick and Bonney's parents who arrived one week after Calvin's birth, we had plenty of help to get through the recovery time.

So, I am going to try to start catching up with all the backlogged photos and videos. Here's a photo gallery and little video from Calvin's first day on earth. Despite a long labor, Calvin getting stuck like Rowan and then the c-section surgery, it was a wonderful day. We are so in love with him!

Here are some pics from his first day:

From Calvin - Day One

And here's a little video taken just 15 minutes or so after Calvin was delivered:

One Day 2, we didn't take quite so many pictures, we just spent the day holding Calvin and enjoying him. I missed Rowan terribly as he was only able to visit for about 1 hour each day. I was very anxious to recover quickly and check out of the hospital as soon as possible!

Here are some pics from his second day:

From Calvin - Day Two

Rowan and His Badge

2012-01-08T18:05:00.000-08:00

This photo is a little blurry, but I couldn't resist posting it. Here is Rowan at the hospital when he came with Dad to pick us up. He was issued a proper visitor badge which thrilled him because he loves to play with Dad's work badge. He carried it all through the halls of the maternity wing saying "bage". Having him run down the hall to give me a big hug was the highlight of my day.

You can also see Calvin all bundled up for his trip home. His skin is still a bit yellow from jaundice, but only when you compare it to the rest of our pink pale faces. We were both checked out and given to green to go home. It was a cold day in Yakima, but the sun was shining and the valley looked beautiful. Riding home as a family of four we felt very blessed.

Home from the Hospital Day!

2012-01-08T09:23:00.000-08:00

Calvin did great through the night, sleeping peacefully and waking periodically to eat and have his diaper changed. All systems are go!

He was extremely alert a few times during the night. We love watching him open his little grey eyes and try to figure out his new world. He and Patrick already seem to have a special connection.I finally got some good winks in last night, what a difference that makes! The nursing staff is so attentive and caring - making sure I get my midnight PB&Js.

We are anxious to get home, but will have to be patient. Calvin has to have a hearing test and a circumcision before he checks out. Bonney has to get the OK from her OB and Calvin from his pediatrician. He has a little bit of jaundice today (just like Rowan) - the best tan he will ever have! So, we are hoping to be home just after Rowan wakes up from his nap. We miss him so very much and can't wait to all be together at home.

Day Two with Calvin

2012-01-07T20:14:00.001-08:00

It has been a quiet day for Calvin here at the hospital. He spent most of the day sleeping and occasionally woke up to eat. Like his brother, he appears to be a very mellow dude. Calvin looks so much like Rowan that being here with him is like déjà vu. His facial expressions and how he rests his hand under his chin when he sleeps, etc. The room we shared when Rowan was born is right across the hall!

Bonney has still not gotten much rest. The hospital is not a great place for rest, they always want to check or adjust or bring you something. Not that I don't appreciate the pain killers and butterscotch pudding! They are very attentive here and have taken great care of us.

Rowan came to visit his little brother again today and so far they seem to be getting along well. He is curious about him, but seems to be far more interested in exploring the hospital wing and charming all the nurses. The hospital helicopter lands outside our window, that is pretty popular! I miss Rowan very much as I only get to see him for about an hour each day.

Patrick slept at the hospital last night while our wonderful nanny, Traci, stayed with Rowan at our house. Patrick spent quality Dad time with Rowan this morning (pancakes and trains) and then visited the hospital in the afternoon, holding a sleeping Calvin while Bonney got her first good round of sleep in the last two days. Same routine tonight, Patrick should arrive shortly to spend the evening on his comfy hospital Dad bed. Sorry Patrick!

Everything with Calvin and I is going well and we hope to be checked out and on our way home tomorrow afternoon. Can't wait for the whole family to be all together at home!

It is not easy to post pictures here from the hospital, will do more when we are back at home tomorrow.

Introducing Calvin Robert O'Brien!

2012-01-06T09:31:00.000-08:00

Born January 6th at 9:31am weighing in at 8 pounds, 8 ounces.

Cookies Can Induce Labor

2012-01-04T21:37:00.001-08:00

It's true.

Christmas 2011

2011-12-26T13:33:00.001-08:00

We had nice quiet Christmas here in Yakima. Bonney is a little less than on week from her due date so we thought it best to stay close to home. We really missed friends and family, but Skype helped us feel a little closer to people.

Unfortunately, Rowan is in the middle of a pretty big teething period (we count 4 molars coming in simultaneously) so Patrick had to get up in the middle of the night to try to comfort him. Then we spent the wee hours avoiding getting kicked in the head while Rowan slept with us in our bed. It has been a while since we have had to do this, but I imagine it is good practice for the coming months when we will be acquainting ourselves with the wee hours again. So, needless to say we were pretty tired at 6am when Rowan decided to start our day. Typically one of us will sleep in while the other pulls the morning shift, but we were both so excited to share Christmas with Rowan we all got up together.

After showers we opened stockings and Rowan opening up his first present, a play utensil and pot set. Rowan loves spending time in the kitchen helping us cook so we decided to get him a set of tools that he can use on his own. This might be the best $9.99 I have ever spent. IKEA has some really cool kids stuff. In the video below, you can see Rowan's attempt to say "ladle". While his ability to say words is still very limited, you can see that he knows quite a few words. It's our job to figure out what he is saying.

After deliberating between getting Rowan a play kitchen and a train set, we decided on train set. Playing with trains seems to hold his attention the longest and a train set takes up a little less space (at least for now). Rowan also has a kitchen set at school he uses every day. I think we got it right. He LOVED his train set and asked for it first thing after waking up the day after Christmas (even before Mama or books).

Here is a little video of Rowan opening his big present from Mom & Dad:

We spent the rest of the day napping, cooking, talking with friends and family and just spending time with Rowan. So nice to have 3 full days off! We hope that you all had a very Merry Christmas!

Here are some pics from the day:

From Christmas 2011

Rowan River Dance

2011-12-23T22:38:00.001-08:00

Rowan has always enjoyed listening to music, but lately he has been much more interested in dancing which makes for some pretty amusing moments. Tonight he treated us to a little Rowan river dance to one of his favorite songs, Skeletons Move Your Bones by Caspar Babypants (his favorite artist). We were lucky enough to catch it on video.

We are very anxious for Christmas to come so that we can give Rowan his new train set (Patrick even asked if we could move Christmas up a day). Bonney had an appointment earlier today and the doctor said that we would most likely still be pregnant this time next week so we are on track for the baby to arrive on or after the due date. We are still hoping that he makes his arrival before the end of the year for both vacation and tax purposes. We have an acupuncture appointment scheduled for later next week just in case :) We will be sure to keep everyone posted in case there are any developments.

We hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas weekend!

Trains in Toppenish

2011-12-18T22:54:00.000-08:00

Every year, there is a toy train event at a local train museum in a neighboring town. I have to say that this is our first year attending this event. We have been keeping an eye out of for train activities because Rowan has grown very fond of trains over the past several months. It is one thing that will keep him engaged for more than 10 minutes. So, we are very excited about his xmas gift - his very own train set.

Earlier today we drove over to Toppenish to check out the trains. It was a great event. There were dozens of train sets set up for the kids to check out, train sets to play with and even a real-life working train that would take you down the tracks to visit with Mr. and Mrs. Claus. After naptime, we finished decorating our tree (this has been a weeklong process). We have decided to go with all wood, paper and fabric ornaments this year. Thanks to Grammie and Grampie for sending us some beautiful wooden ornaments from Germany. It is no surprise that Rowan's favorite is the wooden train!

Here are some pics from the day:

From Toppenish Trains - December 2011

Little Chatterbox

2011-12-11T12:13:00.001-08:00

Well, it is hard to believe, but December is already here. Still unnamed baby boy #2 is due in less than 3 weeks and Rowan is changing faster than ever. He seems to be getting better at using tools of all sorts (dump out box that holds legos, use box as stool to get up on couch), he has been practicing sitting on his potty and his interest in saying words is off the charts. He tries to say just about everything we say, but typically it is only the first syllable. So, we are doing lots of intense listening and translating these days. For example, "baaaay, pince, toest, tchese" means if you want a bagel, you have to pinch it with the tongs, toast it and then put on cream cheese. You can check his developing language skills below:

We feel fairly prepared for arrival #2. By prepared we mean that we have all the stuff, new diapers, some warm clothes for a winter versus summer baby, a new stuffed elephant that Rowan picked out for his brother. Of course, we have no idea what having 2 little ones will be like so we are just excited and hoping for the best. Rowan talks about the baby a lot and likes to kiss and hug my belly. He also likes poking my belly button which isn't very comfortable at this point. We have the baby's bassinet set up in our bedroom and Rowan practices putting his baby doll to bed in it. He even sings songs to him. He is VERY interested in the things the baby cannot do. For example, babies don't eat cheese and they don't walk and they don't read books. Just so we are clear, those are things that big boys do. It is hard to say how much he really understands, but we are hoping that will be happy to welcome a new baby into our family. We have a hunch that he is going to be a great big brother.

We spent the last 2 weeks in Portland. Bonney was able to get in some work in the Portland office while Rowan and Patrick took in the zoo, the Portland Children's Museum and OMSI. Quality dad time. Although Rowan is very energetic and doesn't focus on one thing for more than a few minutes (except trains and play kitchens) he is more fun than ever. He is excited by everything!

Now we are back in Yakima preparing for Christmas, waiting for snow and a new baby. We will be here through the new year and will keep posting until the big day!

Little Brigadier Boots

2011-11-29T21:23:00.001-08:00

We are spending a couple weeks in Portland while Patrick is on vacation. It has been a bit cold and rainy, but Rowan has the proper gear. New boots, wool socks, a dinosaur rain jacket and a hat sent to him by his grandparents. We have been spending most mornings walking around town so that he can explore. As you can see from the video below, even a simple ramp and some stairs can be very amusing. His new boots fit his feet, but they also come up to his knees. Only 4 weeks before the expected arrival of the yet-unnamed baby boy O'Brien #2! We are very excited.

Halloween 2011

2011-11-04T17:27:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Halloween this past weekend by visiting a local farm/pumpkin patch on Sunday and then attending the annual Trunk or Treat celebration the the church of Rowan's nanny, Traci. The event was even bigger this year and a great success. Unfortunately, Halloween festivities still start a bit late in the evening for Rowan who is typically in bed for the night at around 6:30 or 7. So, most of the pictures, he looks a little fatigued. Still, we think he had a great time!

Here are some pics from the weekend:

From Halloween - October 2011

Here's a flashback photo from last Halloween at the same pumpkin patch:

Here's a little video of Rowan figuring out the corn maze at the pumpkin patch:

Rowan Talking About Sarah & Aaron

2011-11-04T16:27:00.000-07:00

This one's for Sarah and Aaron. Here's a little video of Rowan talking about his new friends while looking at their picture:

Nantucket!

2011-11-03T22:25:00.000-07:00

We were very happy this year to return to our annual tradition of taking a week-long vacation with our dear friends Sarah and Aaron. They are the ones responsible for setting Patrick and I up (we were introduced at their wedding 10 years ago!), so in a way they are kind of like gods to Rowan. We typically try to visit an island on our adventures and this time it was Nantucket. Aaron, Sarah and Bonney all grew up in Massachusetts, but oddly had never visited the island. Not knowing quite what to expect, the island was a wonderful surprise. It has a rich history, beautiful old homes and stunning scenery. Even though there are lots of vacation homes and developments, much of the island has been set aside in public trusts and will not be developed. Parts of the island are wooded while others look very wind-swept like scenes from a Scottish moor. The cost of things on the island were not a wonderful surprise, but we were warned about this ahead of time. $20 for a lobster that we still have to cook?!?!?!

We had a wonderful week on the island staying in a rented house on the ocean. We did a lot of hiking, playing games, reading and playing with Rowan. Despite being late October, the weather was beautiful. Not swimming weather, but with the exception of one very stormy day, beautiful-spend-a-lot-of-time-outside weather. Rowan had a great time at the house and spending time with Sarah and Aaron. He seems to have adopted a Scarlett O'Hara way of saying bye-bye that they found especially amusing. We will try to catch it on video at some point.

Here are some pics from our trip:

From Nantucket - October 2011

After we left the island, we stopped by Bonney's parent's house for a quick visit with family before heading back to the west coast. Even though it was a short visit, Rowan always loves seeing his Grammie and Grampie. And homemade sphaghetti and apple crisp to boot! A truly great week!

First Day of School!

2011-11-01T18:41:00.000-07:00

Well it was a big day for Rowan. This morning he started a 3-hour-per-morning toddler class at a nearby Montessori school. He has visited the classroom a few times and seemed very excited to return to visit with Miss Anita, Miss Alejandra and the other students. Patrick and I both took an hour off this morning so we could drive him there together. According to school instructions we were not supposed to linger which was very hard to do. Bonney only cried for a few minutes after dropping him off.

According to his teachers, he had a good first day. He cried a little after we left and then cried again for the last half hour before being picked up. We think that this was due to him being tired more than anything else, but it must have been a big adjustment for him. We shall have to see if naptime will require us to pick him up a bit earlier. He is already busy around the classroom exploring all the activities and making new friends. The Montessori method emphasizes independence so we think it will be a good match for Rowan's personality and we are thrilled that he is spending more of his time socializing with other kids. Up until this point he has spent more time on business trips with Bonney than he has spent with other children! It is a big adjustment for us as well, but we are also very proud and excited for him.

Here are some pics from his first day:

From First Day of School - November 2011

This One's for Grammie!

2011-10-10T14:20:00.000-07:00

My mom has been recovering from surgery and is feeling a bit down, this video is for her. We were in Portland this weekend for Patrick to run the 1/2 marathon. It was a cold and rainy day. Here's Rowan walking through a bike rack tunnel on Mississippi Ave while we were waiting for our lunch:

Summer 2011

2011-09-29T20:48:00.000-07:00

Well, we have not been very good about keeping up with the blog this summer. I usually upload pictures and write late at night after dinner and these days I just can't seem to stay up past 10:30! We are about 7 months pregnant now. We are expecting Baby Boy O'Brien #2 in late December. Patrick and I are very excited and we so look forward to introducing Rowan to his new brother. Apart from feeling tired, I have been doing great. Rowan certainly keeps me very busy each afternoon after I finish up work!

As you can see from the pictures below, Rowan has turned into a little boy over the summer. Apart from when he sleeps (and looks so very cute) he doesn't look like a baby anymore. He even has a little hair! He has gone from walking to running in just a few short weeks and he is very happy exploring the world around him. He still communicates mostly through sign language, but he is starting to practice and say words like dad, cheese, and pasta. These are a few of his favorite things. He also knows how to say "uh-oh" which he does quite a lot these days.

We had a busy summer travelling for both fun and work. Rowan still travels with me on most of my business trips. My Mom and Dad have been amazing travelling babysitters for me ever since I started travelling after Rowan's birth (at about 4 months!). I feel very lucky to be able to do this and the added benefit is that Rowan has gotten the opportunity to spend a lot of time with his grandparents even though they live on the other side of the country.

In July we spent some time back in Portland and some time at the Oregon coast. Our favorite spot there is a little town called Manzanita which has a big beautiful beach and a quiet little village. Rowan had a great time exploring the sand and the water. In Portland Rowan has become a fan of both the zoo and the children's room at OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science & Industry).

From June - July 2011

In August we took a trip to Georgia, South Carolina and Florida to visit friends and family. We started with a mini-family reunion in Atlanta where we celebrated the birthday and anniversary of Patrick's cousin Katie. It was so nice to finally get to meet more of Patrick's family. Rowan was a big hit and we had lots free babysitting during the party. On our last day in Atlanta we stopped by to visit Rick, a childhood friend of Patrick, and his family. We had a lovely brunch in their Four Points home and then walked around the neighborhood. Hot-lanta certainly lived up to its name that day!

After Atlanta, we drove down to Fripp Island off the coast of South Carolina to visit with some of our favorite people, Brett, Susan and their four wonderful kids, Emma, Jake, Bennett and little Petey. Rowan could not have been happier to spend so much time with other kids. Each morning he would wake up, run to the bedroom door and make the sign for "play". He spent a lot of time in the ocean and playing in the sand. It was very hard to leave! Narrowly missing Hurricane Irene, we drove to Jacksonville, FL for the last part of our trip. Visiting some more of our favorite people - Scott, Lisa and their two lovely girls Betty and Violet. We had a great trip!

From August 2011

Rowan Practically Running

2011-08-02T22:41:00.001-07:00

We had a nice family vacation last week, we spent part of it in Portland and part of it in Manzanita, a quiet Oregon coast town. Rowan has been to the beach before, but this was the first time he was able to walk around and enjoy the sand and the water. We stayed at a nice condo in town and Rowan took advantage of the wide open spaces to really stretch his legs. These days he loves a game of hide and seek with Dad.

San Francisco & Alameda

2011-08-02T22:23:00.000-07:00

July 4th weekend we went to visit our good friends Laura, Jeremy and their son Luke in Alameda, just across the bay from San Francisco. It was a wonderful trip, full of fun stuff for the kids. We also got to meet up with Patrick's dear old friend Paige. We explored the city, went to a local petting farm, rode a miniature train (coal-powered, it was the real deal), and walked around Alameda (a truly beautiful small city/big town). Rowan is still a little young to play with Luke, but they had a good time together, held hands, hugged, really cute stuff. We had a few travel snafus, but it was hard to get upset about it when it was such a great trip!

Here are some pics from our visit:

From San Francisco - July 2011

Rowan Walking!

2011-07-10T22:19:00.000-07:00

Well, we were sure it was going to happen any day now and today was the day. Rowan has been more interested in walking around with us this week and today he took his first major steps on his own. It was just joyous to watch him realize what he was doing and get so excited. We are so proud of him. Here is a quick video of some of his first steps:

Other bigs steps this week, sleeping in his own room all night and putting himself (crying himself) to sleep. He seems so grown up to us all of a sudden and we have a strong feeling that he understands every word we say. New favorite signs include flower, silly, hot and pancake. It's also time to get a new crop of clothes, his existing wardrobe is getting a little snug. I really thought we would last through the summer!

In other exciting news, Rowan will become a big brother at the end of this year! Bonney is now about 4 months along in her pregnancy and feeling almost human. Chasing around after a 13-month old certainly makes pregnancy a bit more challenging! That said, we are both very excited that Rowan will have a little brother/sister in his life very soon. Not sure how excited he is about that quite yet...we have been practicing the sign for baby.

Rowan at the Fountain

2011-06-29T20:08:00.000-07:00

There is a wonderful fountain in downtown Portland that is very popular with kids. We suited and slathered up Rowan and took him down there for the first time this past weekend. He LOVED it. Here he is playing with his new boat:

Rowan Reading

2011-06-27T22:29:00.000-07:00

The first thing that Rowan does when he wakes up in the morning (and this is pretty early as of late) is to ask for his books. He sits and peruses them while we get a few more winks. This is a little video I took of him one morning as he conducted his morning ritual. I just love how serious he is about Goodnight Gorilla and how he uses his feet like a little monkey to hold the books!

First Birthday Bash!

2011-06-15T16:27:00.001-07:00

We had a wonderful time celebrating Rowan's first birthday with friends in Portland. They day started very early with the opening of Rowan's big present - a new bike from Mom and Dad. The bike is a little big for him right now, but it has a seat strap to keep him in and a handle for us to use to push him around. After he opened it, he knew just what it was and made the sign for "bike". After we got him on it, he squealed and sang with delight for the first 5 minutes. We all walked down to our local coffee shop for some breakfast.

After his morning nap, we all headed down to the park to have a little picnic party with friends. Alex helped me bake a special 1st birthday cake which we all enjoyed after some great take-out lunch. We finished the day opening presents that friends had given Rowan. After all that he was totally exhausted and fell right to sleep.

We can't quite believe that Rowan is already a year old. The amount he has changed and learned in this first year continues to astound us. He is not walking on his own just yet, but we think that this will happen in the next month or so. He certainly likes to get around!

Click here to see more pictures from the big day.

From Rowan_First_Birthday

Birthday Pictures Coming Soon..

2011-06-13T16:44:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful time in Portland last week visiting with friends and enjoying the amazing cuisine. We make it a point not to use our kitchen for dinners when we are back in town. Some highlights were Screen Door and Gruner. Yummy, yummy, yummy. Part of the fun last week was the celebration of Rowan's first birthday on June 5th. Yep, he is already over a year old! We had a great day in the park celebrating with friends. Pictures from that event coming soon. In the meantime, here is a little video of Rowan trying out his new Y-bike, a present from his grandparents:

Rowan at the Park

2011-05-06T11:43:00.000-07:00

Now that this weather has improved, we have been going to the park most afternoons so that Rowan can play at the playground and meet other kids. I am amazed at how adventurous he is at the playground given that he can't walk yet. But, he is happy to climb up the stairs and crawl around and then go down the slides while looking in awe at the bigger kids. He is pretty fearless!

First Assisted Steps

2011-05-03T21:54:00.000-07:00

I meant to post this video in March when Rowan started using his new walker to take his first steps. He is even better at it now and uses it to walk all over the house!

First Signs

2011-05-03T20:59:00.001-07:00

We have been working with Rowan on sign language since he was about 3 months old, but it was only recently that Rowan began to make signs apart from "milk". In the past few weeks, his willingness to learn and attempt new signs has been accelerating greatly. This is due in part to a new video that Rowan watches each day called "Baby Signing Time". He loves this video and the woman who is featured in it. It is very good, but I have to say that the songs are quite annoying and have a tendency to stick in your head ALL DAY LONG. We have ordered more videos so we can mix up the rotation a bit.

It all began with "dog". One day we were walking the park, saw a dog and he spontaneously made the sign. Other common signs are "eat", "change", and "all done". Not only is is great to be able to communicate more with him, he seems to be very proud and satisfied when he makes a sign and knows that he is understood. Here is a little clip of Rowan signing "eat", one of his favorite activities:

Visiting the Statons in Saratoga Springs

2011-04-30T21:45:00.000-07:00

On our trip, we got a chance to stopover in Saratoga Springs, NY to visit Lisa, Mark, Hunter and Katherine. They moved from Seattle a few years ago and we miss them very much. Katherine was also born last year so this was my first chance to meet her in person. We had a great time watching the babies interact, going for walks and visiting the local library playroom. Here are some pics from our visit:

From Staton Visit - April 2011

A little late easter...

2011-04-30T21:28:00.000-07:00

We were all traveling last week so we decided to celebrate Easter today with Rowan in Yakima. This entailed a few plastic eggs, a $1 basket and about 15 minutes. But it was fun and Rowan enjoyed finding the eggs and putting them in his basket more than we expected. It just so happens that putting things in and taking things out of things is one of his favorite things to do right now, so we got lucky. It was nice to have a quiet day at home after so many days on the road. Mom might have even snuck out for a movie while Dad took bedtime duty :) It was strange, I wanted to see Jane Eyre, but Patrick wasn't interested! Here are some photos from our hunt earlier today:

From Easter - April 2011

Here's a video of the easter egg hunt that I just uploaded:

Rowan loves animal sound comedy

2011-04-11T20:50:00.001-07:00

Big fan.

Pasta!

2011-04-07T19:36:00.001-07:00

Rowan loves dining out these days and tries to leave the restaurant as messy as possible.

10 Months Old

2011-04-06T21:00:00.000-07:00

Rowan is now 10 months old. He has started walking with the help of a walking cart which he pushes around very diligently. It probably won't be long now before he starts walking on his own. He LOVES eating and keeps us busy finding new foods for him to try. We are pretty sure that he understands most of what we say at this point and we are trying to get him to use more sign language to communicate. So far, "milk" and "more" are the only signs he has made. Hopefully, he will start making others soon.

Here are a few pictures from this last month:

From Portland - March 2011

Some Pictures from Portland

2011-04-06T19:59:00.001-07:00

Just a few pictures from our trip to Portland in March:

From Portland - March 2011

Playing with Emilia

2011-04-06T19:36:00.001-07:00

We miss our friends in Portland very much and try to see as many of them as we can when we are visiting town. Rowan's friend Emilia is one of our favorites. Her parents, Robin & Seth, always host a mean dinner and it is great to hang out with good people while your kids have some fun together. Rowan loves exploring other kid's toys! Rowan had so much fun, we went back a few days later for Rowan's first official playdate.

From Playing with Emilia - March 2011

Old Kitchen

2011-04-06T19:15:00.000-07:00

One of the reasons we have been a bit remiss in our blogging is that we are in the middle of renovating our kitchen here in Yakima. It was the one room we did not touch when we first moved in because we weren't quite sure how to approach it. We finally decided to do a modest upgrade with IKEA cabinets and some new appliances. The planning an execution have been quite an adventure and I have never seen so much dust inside a house. We sweep and mop every day and just can't seem to make a dent in it. We have also acquainted ourselves with a variety of frozen food entrees while our stove is offline. Here are some pictures of the old kitchen (Rowan might have made it into a few of these):

From Old Yakima Kitchen - March 2011

Welcome Baby Elliott!

2011-04-06T19:09:00.001-07:00

Earlier this year, our good friends Denise & Bill welcomed Baby Elliott into their lives. We got to visit Seattle a few weeks ago to meet him in person and pass along baby clothes and toys that Rowan has already outgrown. It was very convenient of them to also have a baby boy. The new family is doing great and Elliott is just as cute as a button. Rowan was very curious about his new friend. It is amazing to me that just 10 months ago we were still learning how to care for Rowan (I guess we are still learning) and now he can walk, feed himself and laugh at jokes. It is exciting know that they have so much to look forward to. Here are some pictures from our visit:

From Elliott Dougall - March 2011

Montana Snowboarding!

2011-03-22T21:39:00.000-07:00

For the past 3 years, I've been lucky to get the time to go snowboarding with 2 of my favorite guys in the world, Pete and Brett. This year, we trekked all the way up to Whitefish, Montana, and spent 4 days on what was formerly called Big Mountain, now known as Ski Whitefish. Bonney stayed in Portland, and took care of Rowan while Dad played. I missed them both a ton, but it was really great to get out there and board again. We were lucky enough to get 8 inches of fresh snow the night we arrived, and it turned out to be our best snow conditions ever. Check out the gallery for a few shots of us on the mountain, as well as our dogsledding adventure! There are 2 movies below as well, of Pete and Brett tackling a sharp lip we discovered off the side of one of the frontside runs. Good times!

From Montana - March - 2011

Rowan's Developing Sense of Humor

2011-03-10T10:02:00.000-08:00

Rowan is now 9 months old. One of the greatest recent developments is Rowan's sense of humor. He laughs when he finds something amusing and this seems to happen more and more these days. I caught a little clip of him in the bathroom playing with the shampoo bottles on the bathtub. The sound on the video is pretty bad, but you can still hear him laugh with delight at the bottles falling down into the tub:

Rowan's diet has also expanded pretty quickly in the past couple of months. He really enjoys feeding himself (lunch can take up to an hour!) so we have been trying to find finger foods that he will enjoy. Peas, eggs, wheatie-os, fruit are all very popular. He also loves hummus and red pepper which I discovered after he kept eyeing my snack plate.

Aloha from Hawaii - The Continuing Travails of Rowan S. O'Brien

2011-02-24T20:07:00.000-08:00

I can hear you saying it now. This kid has travels more than I do! Well, this is probably true. We have taken him at least half way around the earth by now and he has put up with it amazingly well. Patrick and Bonney have really been looking forward to this vacation. It has been a challenging year so far and it was good to get back to one of our favorite places, Hawaii. This time we travelled to the big island. Patrick was attending a radiology conference in the mornings with old friends while Bonney and Rowan explored the beach and the pool. We all spent the afternoons together. The hotel was a beautiful place situated right on the ocean complete with waterfalls, gardens, swimming pools, a sandy beach and cabanas to protect our fragile skin. We were very proud to bring Rowan back to the mainland without a sunburn. This was no meager feat.

Here are photos from our week:

From Hawaii - February 2011

Rowan liked the pool better than the ocean and he got more comfortable in the water more and more every day. We even got him to semi-jump off the side of the pool and go under the water with us. Rowan worked hard to charm everyone he met. For some reason, this was particularly effective with older Japanese women. At least two asked (by motioning, they did not speak English) to hold Rowan and have their picture taken with him. Maybe they thought he was a celebrity or maybe they just thought he was a giant pale baby. Either way, we were happy to oblige.

The one full day we had off we travled to Volcanoes National Park. Unfortunately, after driving two hours and arriving at the park station, we were met with a downpour of rain. We couldn't see a thing from any of the vista points along the caldera. Instead of trying to push it, we decide to head on down the road and make a day of it in Hilo, a little town on the rainy side of the island. This town gets over 260 inches of rain per year. Unsurprisingly, it was raining in Hilo when we arrived. We had a lovely lunch in a little cafe and then walked around town. After lunch we drove back to our hotel over the Saddle Road, a road that runs through the middle of the island through the two major volcanoes, Mauna Kea and Mauna Lea. It was overcast until we reached the middle of the island and then the sky opened up complete with a beautiful rainbow. The scenery was breathtaking.

We were very sad to leave Hawaii, but are happy to be back in Yakima with no imminent travel plans.

Test Drive

2011-02-21T13:22:00.001-08:00

We returned to Portland on Saturday from a wonderful week in Hawaii where Patrick was attending a conference. We have tons of pics from that trip that are not quite ready to post. Hopefully we will get to it later this week. We had a nice little day in town yesterday eating at some of our favorite places and going to Powell's bookstore. We also visited a great local toy store where Rowan tried out a few of the kid bikes. He is not quite old enough for his own bike, but he did have some fun (see below). Instead, we purchased him a very nice wagon/walker thing that he can push around once he gets more stable on his feet. It won't be long now before he is zooming around the house!

Sweden

2011-01-30T08:36:00.000-08:00

Finally posting pictures of our trip to Gothenburg, Sweden, and while it was a break from work for me, it was a working week for Bonney. However, it gave me the chance to play Swedish Dad, which is a pretty fantastic position, one i'll be applying for any day now. Our days were pretty much like this: Bonney would head into work around 8 or so, and after a full Swedish breakfast, Rowan and I would venture out in the mornings to explore the city with its beautiful buildings, markets and streets. Rowan would take a small nap on these walkabouts, and we'd come back to the hotel for lunch with Bonney. Afternoons were a similar experience. The sun would barely rise above the 2 story buildings in town, and while it was rarely above 0 Celsius, the days were sunny and beautiful. I'm lobbying for a summer trip now.

Highlights during the week included fantastic food, seeing a game of Team Handball in a local pub (The World Championship was going on right in Gothenburg, Swedes LOVE Team Handball), and exploring the city with the help of our friend Jessica, who has just relocated to Gothenburg with her husband John. Jessica was a great resource for delicious places to visit throughout the city, and also cooked us an amazing meal!

While we really only had one full day together as a family to sightsee, we made the most of it. Rowan seemed fascinated with the fish and aquariums at the Universeum. We went back to the wonderful Cafe Kringlan, and Bonney was very impressed. One thing that we were lucky to experience in the winter was the Semla, a cake-like bit of deliciousness made with fresh whipped creme and marzipan, only available in the winter from Christmas til Easter. You can see a few in the photo set by clicking on the picture below.

From Sweden - January 2011

Some Sad News and Crawling

2011-01-29T18:22:00.000-08:00

Rowan is now almost 8 months old. Rowan is doing very well, but the last month has been very hard for our family. Earlier this month we received the devastating news that Bonney's sister had lost her baby after 9 months of pregnancy. I don't think I can write about this right now, suffice it to say that our feelings of shock, anger, sadness and loss our indescribable. Please keep Molly and Matty in your thoughts and prayers.

We have tried to be good parents to Rowan despite being emotional wrecks at times. The complicate matters, we had a planned trip to Sweden for Bonney's work this month as well. We did have a nice trip, but the timing was horrible. The big development this month is Rowan's newly developed crawling ability. He has been crawling backwards for the past couple months, but only figured out forward in the last week. Once he figured that out, our lives changed pretty quickly. He is now exploring everything less than 3 feet high in our home. Here is a little clip featuring his new-found ability:

Bath Time Again

2011-01-07T18:58:00.000-08:00

From Bath Time - January 2011

Happy New Year!

2011-01-06T22:02:00.000-08:00

Rowan is now 7 months old. Now, he seems more like a little boy and less like a baby. He is very fond of standing and walking with help. He is still crawling backwards, but has not figured out forwards quite yet. We had a nice little New Year getaway in Seattle with friends and are now getting ready for a trip to Sweden for Bonney's work. Rowan just got his passport in the mail today. I wish I had a passport when I was seven months old! Before the trip to Sweden, Rowan and Bonney will be making a stop in Massachusetts to throw a baby shower for Bonney's sister, Molly. Her first baby and Rowan's first younger cousin is due in February! We are all very excited about the impending arrival.

Click on the picture below to view more photos from January:

From January 2011

OOOOOOOOklahoma!

2010-12-26T19:54:00.000-08:00

We traveled to Oklahoma earlier this month to visit family and friends. Rowan was introduced to the O'Brien side of the family including his Aunt and Uncle, Kathy and Bruce. We spent a few days at their home in McAlester and then drove to Oklahoma City. During the day we visited nephew Colin at his new school, the Oklahoma School of Science & Mathematics. That evening, Ava, Robert, Vallie, Jerry and Mason hosted a great holiday dinner at Robert's home. Bonney got to stay on an extra day with Rowan to visit her friends Courtney & Tim and their lovely daughters Olivia and Delancey. The weather was beautiful and we had a wonderful trip! Click on the photo of Rowan and Bruce below to see the album.

From Oklahoma December 2010

Christmas Photos 2010

2010-12-26T11:07:00.000-08:00

Rowan had a great day yesterday, but he was overwhelmed with all the new toys and experiences. Two, two-hour naps and then an early bedtime. We got to finish the day over a nice Christmas dinner. We then headed down to our cozy little home theater to watch Holiday starring Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn. What a great movie! Here are some photos from yesterday:

From Christmas 2010

First Christmas!!!

2010-12-25T14:57:00.001-08:00

Although we miss our families very much, it has been nice to have a few quiet days here in Yakima. It is nice to take a break from airports! Rowan has had quite a day so far starting with a 5:30 am wake-up call. I don't know who told him that Santa was coming, but he seems to have caught the early morning bug that every kid on Christmas catches. We let Dad sleep in until after Rowan's first nap and then it was time for stockings! Patrick is still getting used to the Bonney family tradition of getting health and beauty supplies in his stocking (I thought everyone did it!), but he enjoyed opening his refills of razorblades, moisturizer, chapstick and aspirin. Rowan got his first toothbrush as well as a new set of keys in his stocking.

His stocking is very special. It was knit originally for Rowan's Aunt Vallie by Rowan's Grandmother Betty Jo who passed away in 2006. Vallie found the stocking, removed her name and sewed Rowan's name in its place. Now Rowan has a stocking that was knit by his Grandma Betty!

After breakfast (another Bonney family tradition of fried dough), we opened presents. Rowan received so many wonderful gifts from family and friends. Here are a few videos from this morning:

First time on the swing!

2010-12-25T09:41:00.001-08:00

A little preview...

2010-12-23T20:42:00.000-08:00

It has been a very busy December for the O'Brien-Pelley clan. Trips to Oklahoma City, Florida and Portland! We have a nice quiet weekend planned back home in Yakima with Rowan. We are looking forward to our first Christmas with our little dude. Rowan had his six month check up earlier this month. He is now 27.5 inches tall and weighs 19 pounds 5 ounces. We were betting he was over 20 pounds this time, but he came in just under. We will be posting more pictures later this weekend, just thought we would give you a little preview.

From December 2010

Playing & Eating

2010-11-26T16:51:00.000-08:00

Rowan has received so many wonderful toys from friends and family. Here is the latest favorite, a piano that was given to him by his friends Lauren and Maddy in Massachusetts who have graduated to real versions of the piano and violin, respectively. We heard them both practicing on our recent visit, they were amazing!

From November 2010

Here is he is looking very stylish in his SoCal tracksuit. Thank you Aunt Annie & Uncle Mack!

From November 2010

This is one of our first meal attempts:

From November 2010

Doing much better this week!

From November 2010

Just Playing

2010-11-25T12:05:00.000-08:00

Rowan is almost 6 months old and we continue to be amazed by how much he has changed since June. Every day he becomes more social and interactive. He enjoys just playing with his toys for long periods of time and his eyes light up when we ask him if he would like to play in his jumper. He is now eating a little bit of rice cereal and sweet potatoes every day and is getting the hang of getting most of the food in his mouth. It was with a mixture of pride and sadness that I watch him eat food for the first time. Proud that he is growing up and learning new things, sad that he no longer depends just on Mom for food. I guess that's being a parent, huh?

We are spending a quiet Thanksgiving day at home. Since we only have the one day to enjoy, we decided to forgo the big meal and instead are making a triple batch of Bolognese sauce, Patrick's favorite. It's easy to make, it just takes time. Patrick and Rowan are playing on the floor in the living room while Bonney catches up on the blog. A great day at home with the family.

We are off next week to Oklahoma to introduce to introduce Rowan to the O'Brien clan. We are looking forward to see them all!

Ba Ba Ba

2010-11-23T08:43:00.000-08:00

Bonney and Rowan recently used some wait time at Newark Airport to practice talking. We have been focusing on the sound "Ba". Rowan has been working hard trying to get this right.

Our Little Traveler

2010-11-20T09:03:00.001-08:00

Sorry we have not posted over the past couple of weeks, we have been traveling and just arrived back on the west coast last night. We spent a wonderful week in Boston visiting family and friends. The first day of our trip, the family walked around Cambridge and Boston, something we never seem to get to do when we go to MA. We met our good friends Aaron and Sarah for brunch and dinner on Sunday. Rowan got to spend a lot of time with Grammie at Grampie at their house in West Newbury while Patrick got to spend a couple of days board gaming with friends at the annual LobsterTrap event. We also visited our friends Peter & Kathy in Western MA and spent some good times with the two Elsea girls.

Bonney and Rowan goofing around in our hotel room. Hotel Marlowe in Cambridge was great!

From Drop Box

Here is Patrick and Rowan walking in Hahvad Yahd:

From Drop Box

Rowan and Patrick in Boston Common:

From Drop Box

Peter, Kathy and Bonney in downtown Northampton (taken with Hipstamatic camera). Another great day:

From Drop Box

Here is Rowan on one of our flights (don't worry, Mom holds him in her lap for takeoffs!). The Captain of this plane came back to given Rowan wings because he heard a rumor that there was a really cute baby on board. We are saving the wings for later when Rowan doesn't want so much to put them in his mouth!

From Drop Box

Last Saturday, Patrick headed back home for work while Rowan and Bonney traveled down to nyc for more visiting. We crashed at the Brooklyn pad of Bonney's Uncle Kim & Aunt Lisa. We had many good discussion about education (Lisa is the principal of a NYC school) while they made us delicious things to eat. Then we had a great picnic in Ft. Tyron park (near The Cloisters) with Leslie, Bonney's college roommate. We capped the weekend with a quick visit with Cousin Ted and Renee before driving down to Pennsylvania where Bonney was going to be working for the week.

Here is Rowan with Leslie in the park, it was a beautiful day!

From Drop Box

Here is Rowan and Cousin Ted in Ted's NoHo apartment:

From Drop Box

Rowan spent an afternoon in Bonney's office visiting with all his Aunties. The box seemed the only safe place to put him! In the mornings, Rowan would spend time with his "East Coast" Nanny, Dawn. Rowan loves spending time reading and singing with her. In the afternoons, Bonney would take over although we had a few afternoon meetings with Bonney bouncing Rowan in the baby carrier.

From Drop Box

Here is Rowan the morning of our departure from the east coast. Rowan was very well behaved on both flights and slept most of the way. The guy sitting next to us in first class admitted to me at the end of the flight that he was really upset when we sat down next to him because he had had along work week. He couldn't believe how well behaved Rowan was. They both slept most of the flight! We were both very excited to see Patrick at the airport when we arrived in Portland for the weekend! It is good to be back home.

From Drop Box

Rowan looking cute on our flight back home:

From Drop Box

Rowan continues to be a great traveler and is very happy meeting new people. He would much rather look and people and smile than play with his toys. I am not sure when kids learn that it is rude to stare, but the people on these flights didn't seem to mind too much, he had many admirers. Rowan is certainly more active these days and we think that he will be crawling in the next month or so. He is already making the motions, he just needs to build up his strength and put it all together.

Visit from Uncle Mark & Aunt Anne

2010-11-03T22:31:00.000-07:00

We recently got an unexpected, but very welcome visit from Bonney's great uncle and aunt, Mark and Anne. They were visiting their daughter in nearby Seattle from Georgia and graciously drove down to Portland for the day to visit. We tried to not talk about politics too much, but it was unavoidable given all that is going on! We always have good talks with Mark & Anne. Too bad we didn't have time to play cards!

Rowan was on good behavior so we enjoyed a nice outdoor meal at a local restaurant. We then proceeded to one of our favorite local bakeries for a few delicious little somethings. Here's a picture of the group in front of the bakery:

From Drop Box

Little Dragon

2010-11-01T13:15:00.001-07:00

Bonney could not resist buying this little dragon number off the discount rack. For Halloween we went to a Trunk-or-Treat event sponsored by Traci's church. Traci is Rowan's nanny - we are very luck to have found someone who cares for Rowan so well. Cars line up all around a parking lot and each trunk is decorated with a different theme. The kids can travel very safely from one candy stop to the next. Traci said the event was so successful they ran out of candy and had to make some emergency trips to get more provisions. There was also a playground inside so that the kids and their parents could warm up. Again, Rowan was a bit overwhelmed by it all, but next year he should enjoy it much more!

From Halloween 2010

Here is Rowan with Traci, our very special nanny. Her church sponsored the Trunk-or-Treat event.

From Halloween 2010

Rowan at the Pumpkin Patch

2010-11-01T09:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we went to the Pumpkin Patch because it seems like this is something that people who have kids do. So, we found a pumpkin patch (easier than we thought), put Rowan is his new hat and drove over to the local Thompson Farm. It was a great place and I think Rowan will enjoy this much more as he gets older. There are hayrides and lots of animals to feed. Next year, we might even attempt the corn maze. Patrick was post-call so we thought this might be a bad idea, we didn't want to get lost and miss trick-or-treating. We will post pictures of Rowan in his dragon costume later tonight!

From Pumpkin Patch October 2010

Here is Patrick trying to convince Rowan that donuts are far better than both chickens and cows. I don't think Rowan was persuaded.

From Pumpkin Patch October 2010

New Hat

2010-10-31T13:05:00.001-07:00

The weather has turned cold in the Northwest and it was time to get Rowan ready for winter and his big trip to Boston to visit family and friends next week. So, we went down to the local REI with cousin Alex and found the perfect fleece hat to keep his little cabeza warm. It's a little big, but given the way Rowan has been growing, that is most likely a short-term condition. Bonney and Rowan had a great weekend in Portland. Bonney saw a Sufjan Stevens concert thanks to a friend who is playing in the band and we had a nice day on the town with Cousin Alex. Now back to Yakima to spend Halloween with Patrick!

A Little Bit of Cereal

2010-10-28T23:00:00.000-07:00

One of the side effects of getting food poisoning was extreme dehydration. This had a pretty extreme effect on my milk production. It was pretty frightening to think that I wouldn't have enough milk to feed Rowan. I wasn't worried about him not gaining enough weight (weight doesn't seem to be a big issue for this little guy), but he wasn't sleeping well because he was so hungry. He was a pretty good sport about the whole ordeal, but he couldn't hide the fact that he was frustrated he couldn't get more to eat.

So while I drank gallons of water each day in an effort to get my milk production back online, we tried feeding him a little bit of cereal to fill his belly. It was his first taste of anything apart from breastmilk. He took to it pretty well (see video below), but I think we are going to wait a bit longer before we try again. It is pretty clear that he is going to be a very good eater after we start up again after 6 months. For now, it is back to 100% breastmilk!

Manzanita!

2010-10-24T22:51:00.001-07:00

We traveled to Manzanita this past weekend to celebrate Patrick's birthday. Sadly, Bonney came down with a horrible cold following a vicious bout of food poisoning earlier in the week so it was not quite as relaxing as we would have hoped. Still, the weather was incredibly beautiful and we just dig the relaxed feeling of Manzanita. This was Rowan's second time in the coastal town, having spent a few days there in utero back in April with Bonney's girlfriends.

Rowan is now 4 months, 3 weeks old and still growing. At his most recent checkup he weighed 17 pounds and measured 26.5 inches. These days, he is sitting up on his own more and more and is very interested in grabbing whatever (fingers, hair, phones, silverware, books, various dangerous objects) he can reach. He loves tummy time and is already making an effort to crawl. He still charms people wherever he goes with his winning smile. He also seems especially cuddly lately and is more interested in snuggling with Mom and Dad, especially during reading time.

Here he is looking dashing (click on the photo below for more pictures from Manzanita):

From Manzanita

Portland 1/2 Marathon!

2010-10-11T18:10:00.001-07:00

We traveled to Portland this weekend so that Patrick could run in the Portland 1/2 Marathon. It was truly an awful day for a marathon. It poured the entire time! Despite the horrible weather, it was still an amazing event. Over 13,000 people participated in the marathon and 1/2 marathon events. Despite being a Super Dad to a 4-month-old baby, Patrick managed to squeak in some training time and pull off a great race. He was very disappointed to learn that his time was 2 hours, 1 second. If only he had remembered to bring his contacts from Yakima. Rowan and I watched the race from the sidelines, driving to different parts of the course to catch Dad and other friends who were running. Afterwards, we all got together at the house for a little brunch to celebrate the day. Here is Patrick and Rowan before the race in our kitchen at around 6am. Yep, it was still dark when the race started!

From My Blog Photos

4 Months Old Today!

2010-10-02T13:48:00.001-07:00

Well, we haven't been very good about posting to the blog lately. We have tons of photos we haven't managed to get off the camera quite yet. Bonney has been busy getting back to work and Patrick has been training for the Portland 1/2 marathon. Rowan and her Mom actually accompanied her on a business trip to Miami last week. He is turning out to be quite a traveler, he has already covered 7 states! He continues to charm flight attendants all across the nation, usually scoring Mom some free snacks in the process. I have been very impressed with how people are so willing to help a woman traveling with an infant.

Rowan is much more vocal lately, practicing all the sounds that will ultimately turn into words. He will typically smile big when he sees Mom or Dad and now he is adding cute sounds to the greeting which is pretty heart melting. Still a very happy kid who graciously lets us get quite a bit of sleep. Doctor's appointment next week for the big weigh-in. We are thinking he is close to about 20 pounds now! Here's a little video to keep you until we get those pictures posted!

Maine Summer Vacation

2010-09-10T19:35:00.001-07:00

We had a great time visiting family and friends in Maine just a few weeks ago. We have been busy since then so we haven't had much time to post, so this is a bit of a catch-up blog entry.

Rowan was very cooperative when we dined out. If we timed it right, he would fall asleep in his sling and sleep through dinner so we could enjoy whatever lobster-themed entree we had chosen for the night. People were very curious about our Moby sling in general, Rowan always seemed to create quite a scene!

The weather was poor the first part of the week, so we took some day trips. Portland, ME had a great art museum and amazing pizza. We also took a day to hit the outlets with the grandparents to stock up on new duds for Rowan. Rowan is growing so fast, he is running out of clothes that fit! The latter half of the week the weather much improved so we were able to take Rowan to the pool for his very first swim. He looked very fancy in his new monkey bathing suit that his Grammie bought him. I can't say that he loved it, but at least there weren't any tears!

Mom's Little Reader

2010-09-10T19:23:00.000-07:00

We still part a big part of Rowan's day reading books. When we were on an airplane ride the other day coming back from California, I noticed that he kept reaching for the edge of the book. When I held the page up for him, he was able to turn the page. So now a big part of our reading sessions is giving Rowan a chance to turn the pages. What's cool is that he actually waits until I ask him to turn the page. I hope that he continues to love storytime!

Visiting Cousin Sofia

2010-09-10T19:19:00.000-07:00

Bonney and Rowan made a trip this past weekend to California to visit Aunt Annie, Uncle Mack and Cousin Sofia. It was a great trip. Rowan isn't quite old enough to play with Sofia, but they were certainly interested in one another! Sofia kept pointing at the baby and saying "Da". She was very gentle with him and kept touching his feet and hands. It was so cute! Here are a couple of videos from the weekend. Can't wait to visit again!

Changing Everyday

2010-09-01T18:42:00.000-07:00

Rowan seems to be learning faster than we can catch it in video. This past weekend he found his tongue and rolled from his tummy to his back. He also Conti use to master his favorite spinny toy. Check out some recent video clips:

Flashback - Six Days Old!

2010-09-01T14:57:00.000-07:00

We finally received the newborn photos that we had taken of Rowan when he was just 6 days old. I know that many of did not have a chance to see these because the gallery was difficult to access.

We are so glad that we had these taken! Our photographer, Michelle Pinheiro, had us heat the room with a space heater and then feed him just before the photo session began. In this warm and satisfied state, he was a malleable ball of cuteness. Hard to believe that he is already doubled in size!

From 6 Days Old

First Vacation!

2010-08-21T19:40:00.001-07:00

We hit the road last night to head to the Seattle airport - our final destination was Ogunquit, Maine where we will be spending the week. Rowan slept the entire car ride to the airport and then again the whole flight to Boston in a sling Bonney was wearing. Many people on the flight commented on what a good baby he was. On planes, quiet baby = good baby. There were also quite a few bad babies on board, we felt very lucky. We even managed to get a couple hours of sleep.

Grammie and Grampie were waiting for us at the Boston airport with a car seat already installed in their car, it was great. After a nice post-red-eye nap, we headed over to my sister Joy's house. She is by far the best cook I know and we had an amazing backyard meal with the family. Her husband David is the king of the backyard firepit. It was a beautiful night. While everyone was happy to meet Rowan, the big news of the night is that Rowan is expecting a new cousin! My sister Molly and her husband Matty are expecting their first child in March! Yipppppeeeeee!!!!!!!!

Now we are settled in our cottage in Maine with Rowan asleep between us and the sound of the ocean drifting through the windows. We are looking forward to a fun and relaxing week at the shore.

Bath Time Again

2010-08-19T16:08:00.000-07:00

Ok, we have given him a bath since the last set of bath photos, but Rowan has not enjoyed a single one! He is not so much into bathtime. We are slowly winning him over to the concept, but he still is quite dubious. Here's a couple of pics from one of our recent attempts.

From Bath Time Again

Little Bear Attacks Bee

2010-08-12T17:50:00.000-07:00

One of Rowan's favorite toys is a little stuffed bee that has that baby-crinkle stuff in the wings. He reaches for it, does his best to hold it and, most importantly, tries to put it in his mouth. Here's a little clip. Warning -- This video contains scenes of a violent nature. Poor little bee...

Working Hard at the Gym - 2 Months Old!

2010-08-12T09:07:00.000-07:00

Rowan went to the pediatrician yesterday for his 2-month check up. Not surprisingly, he weighed in at 14 pounds, 9 ounces and measured 24 inches tall! 4 pounds in 2 months, not bad little dude! Yesterday was also immunization day and probably the first time that he has felt any real pain. He did cry a little bit, but was very quickly soothed by a hug from Dad. I think Bonney cried longer than Rowan did. Dr. Lancaster was very impressed with his growth and development and told us to just keep it up.

Rowan continues to be a smiley, happy kid, very curious about the world around him. Grammie takes care of him each morning while Bonney works in the basement. After breakfast, he usually heads to the gym for about 30 minutes of intense cardio (see below). Grammie gave him the gym as a present and he sure does love it. Here he is trying to figure out how to make the giraffe sing.

From Working Out at the Gym

Sunday at Mt. Rainier

2010-08-08T20:40:00.000-07:00

Bonney's Mom is in town again helping us to care for Rowan during the week when Bonney is at work in the basement. We piled in the car this morning to head up to Mt. Rainier. It was a beautiful day and it was very nice to escape the Yakima heat (90 degrees+) and spend a cool day on the mountain where it was around 55 degrees at 5600 feet. We visited the new visitor center at Paradise and had a nice brunch at the Park Service inn. The sky was overcast at the visitor center, but we were still able to go on a nice hike through a wildflower meadow up the mountain to a waterfall. Rowan slept in the car all the way to and from the mountain and through most of the hike. The rest of the time he was either eating or looking around curiously. We are so lucky he is such a trooper. As we drove home, Mt. Rainier finally peaked out from the clouds, so we got a nice parting view to end our Sunday excursion. View photos from the day here.

From Mt. Rainier

Super Nanny!

2010-08-04T20:49:00.000-07:00

Here's cousin Jo taking care of little Ro. She has been an amazing help over the past few days as I have gotten back to work. It has been a lot easier on us knowing that Rowan is in such good hands. Here she is balancing a happy baby with diaper duty. Just awesome! And yes, Rowan has gotten very big over the past few weeks. The big weigh-in will come at his 2-month checkup next week.

First Train Ride

2010-08-02T15:53:00.001-07:00

We spent the final day of Bonney's maternity leave in a mountain town called Snoqualmie. We poked around the town, enjoyed the mountain view and rode an antique train. Rowan seemed to enjoy himself, but I think he will like the train part when he gets a bit older. Cousin Johanna is arriving tonight to help take care of Rowan for a few days in anticipation of Grammie's arrival.

From Snoqualmie Falls

ELO Fan - First Giggles

2010-08-01T19:22:00.000-07:00

We try to expose Rowan to all types of music, not just kid songs. This is perhaps more for our sanity than for his, we find ourselves humming Skip to My Lou and Old McDonald quite a bit. Here he is enjoying one of Patrick's albums from back in the day. Rowan seems to like it too!

Peach Fuzz

2010-07-30T10:00:00.000-07:00

Rowan is growing back the hair he lost just after birth. His cute head now looks like a fuzzy peach! Here are some shots from over the past few days. Note the green preppy look. Bonney just couldn't resist this $2.00 TJMaxx clearance item.

From Peach Fuzz

Skip to My Lou

2010-07-29T12:51:00.000-07:00

Rowan is cooing and gurgling quite a bit these days. We have been trying to catch him on camera, but each time he sees the camera he goes into a baby trance. We kinda need to sneak it up on him. My sister, Molly, suggested that we embed the camera in a stuffed animal - not a badi idea. Rowan also enjoys when we sing to him and we are quickly adding more kid songs to our catalog. It's amazing how many songs we have forgotten! He is also more interested in toys and stuffed animals and any day now we are going to catch him on camera reaching for something. It's amazing to watch someone come to the realization that they can actually do things like move a rattle. Seems so minor, but to watch him puzzle it all out is truly amazing.

Happy Birthday Grammie!

2010-07-25T11:46:00.000-07:00

Here's Rowan sending Grammie Joan birthday wishes. We can't wait until Grammie comes to visit again soon!

Rowan's First Beer Fest

2010-07-23T21:22:00.001-07:00

It was a beautiful day in Portland, a great day for a beer fest! Here is Patrick, our niece Alex, our cousin Johanna and Rowan ready to hit the event.

Rowan's First Book

2010-07-21T08:26:00.000-07:00

Bonney is determined to make Rowan a super reader so we have started early! His favorite book to date is Kitten's First Full Moon. It's a great story with big black and white drawings. Rowan really pays attention when we read this to him. We have a whole shelf full of great books waiting for him.

Where's Rowan's Nose?

2010-07-20T16:52:00.000-07:00

Rowan is starting to enjoy little games and smiles more and more each day.

Walking with Dad

2010-07-20T12:29:00.001-07:00

We have been taking long walks early each day to get bagels and coffee with Rowan, trying to get Bonney back in shape. Rowan likes to be on the move, but gets tired of the stroller after a while. Here he is hitching a ride with Dad in our neighborhood.

Portland City Chic

2010-07-19T10:17:00.001-07:00

We arrived in Portland on Saturday for a week-long stay. It's a bit colder here so we have had to upgrade Rowan's outfits from the standard issue onesie. Here he is looking very sporty in his puppy tracksuit. And we finally found a pair of baby socks that will stay on his feet for more than 30 seconds!

The Fantastic Dr. Rowles

2010-07-16T14:15:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture of Rowan with our fantastic obstetrician, Dr. Roger Rowles. He has been delivering babies and taking care of moms in Yakima for over 30 years! We feel very fortunate to have him as our caregiver, he was very supportive every step of the way. I think he was more disappointed than we were when we had to veer from our natural childbirth plan. He also took a quick break during the early stages of our labor to dust a 10k race in about 40 minutes. Very impressive! Thanks again for everything Dr. Rowles!

From Dr. Rowles

Patrick & Rowan Anime

2010-07-15T19:33:00.000-07:00

Here's a cool drawing our great niece Ava drew for us. Patrick and Rowan in anime style.

Blue Baron

2010-07-15T07:52:00.000-07:00

A few our of very talented friends and family members have sent us handmade baby gifts. This has to be one of the cutest. It was knit by our friend Kurt (who is also an amazing Guitar Hero player). Thank you Uncle Kurt and Aunt Marion!

From Blue Baron

Couch Potato

2010-07-14T15:54:00.000-07:00

A few cute shots of Rowan from yesterday...

From Couch Potato

Sunny Days in Yakima

2010-07-12T21:15:00.000-07:00

The summer days in Yakima are long and very sunny. Thankfully, Rowan has sunglasses he can wear on walks with his Mom. He typically falls asleep about a half a block from the house. His eyes are shut beneath his monkey lenses.

From Sunglasses

Naptime

2010-07-11T21:49:00.000-07:00

One of Rowan's favorite activities...

From Naptime

Little Cowboy

2010-07-11T21:34:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy weekend here at the ranch. Patrick was on call so we didn't have to much time to take or post photos. Rowan is now 5 weeks old! He is still smiling a lot and seems to be more aware of his surroundings each day. He has been very good at taking naps so that Dad and Mom can watch the World Cup games. Here he is in one of the many cute outfits our generous friends and family members have sent to us over these past month. The little jeans are a bit long right now so we rolled them up so all could see the matching cowboy boots. Check those out! Thanks to Ron and Elaine down in Austin for this one! I am sure Rowan will just love this photo when he is older.

Mom and baby, Hipstamatic take 1

2010-07-09T20:23:00.000-07:00

70s flashback! But no, it's Bonney and Rowan, taken with the iPhone using an app called Hipstamatic. More photos will follow, we promise, the pictures are piling up!

- Patrick

1 Month Old Today!

2010-07-03T16:38:00.001-07:00

Although it is very hard for us to believe, Rowan is already 1 month old today. It feels like we just got home from the hospital a few days ago. He is growing and learning so fast. In addition to developing a textbook case of baby acne (tiny little pimples all over his face!), Rowan is now smiling on a regular basis at his Mom and Dad. We managed to catch a few of these smiles on camera today.

Like Father, Like Son

2010-06-28T21:16:00.000-07:00

We heard word from the O'Brien side of the family that Rowan took after the O'Brien boys. Patrick's brother Bruce tracked down some family photos and mailed them to us (along with some lovely gifts) so we could do a comparison. Sure enough, Rowan looks just like his Dad. Rowan's only attribute that seems to originate from his Mom are his rather large feet.

Here is a picture of Patrick taken when he was 7 weeks old. Looks like a little certain someone that we know...

Grammie & Grampie Visit

2010-06-28T12:54:00.001-07:00

Bonney's mother arrived in town last Friday to help us take care of Rowan. Joan retired in late May so Rowan's timing was perfect. She knows a lot about babies so her help has been much appreciated! Rowan's cousin Alex was also staying with us so we all took turns holding Rowan and napping with him on the couch. Since Bonney still has limited physical mobility (her left foot doesn't quite work at the moment), they have also been helping with all the chores and lifting around the house. I couldn't have gotten through these first weeks without their help, I am so grateful.

This past Friday, Bonney's dad arrived in Yakima to join us. We had a feeling that he and Rowan would get along very well and we were right. Rowan slept most of yesterday wrapped up with Lauriston in the Moby wrap. We actually had to wake Rowan up so that we could feed him and go to bed. Here are some snaps of that cuddle fest:

From Grampie and Rowan

A Growing Boy

2010-06-27T10:53:00.000-07:00

Rowan weighed in at 10 pounds, 4 ounces this week at his first doctor appointment. Which means he has gained nearly 2 pounds in just a little over 2 weeks. He has also grown 2 inches! We are not very surprised at this astonishing growth rate given the amount of milk he has been consuming. Rowan is a very good eater. He is in the 88th percentile for both heigh and weight. It is also amazing that you can actually see the physical changes in his little body every day. He already has outfits that are getting a bit snug. We are not too worried, he has plenty of other outfits...

Bonney's parents are in town helping out with caring for Rowan and household chores which is much appreciated. We are still learning how to juggle baby with the daily chores and routines. Their help has also given us time to start transferring all the photos that we have been taking to our computer so we can post them online. Here is a flashback album from the day that we got to take Rowan home from the hospital (click the photo below to view the album). A truly awesome day.

From Coming Home from Hospital

First Bath

2010-06-25T12:24:00.000-07:00

Since Rowan was scheduled for his first doctor appointment, we decided it might be a good time to give him his first bath. He seemed to take to the water pretty well in Patrick's capable hands. Here is a link to pictures of the big event:

From First Bath

New Faces

2010-06-24T20:46:00.000-07:00

Rowan is more alert every day and is very curious about the people and the world around him. He still spends most of his day either sleeping or eating, but his awake times are very entertaining for us. His favorite face seems to be a worried expression that he has inherited from Patrick. Here is a little video of some of his new moves:

We Apologize for Technical Difficulties

2010-06-24T20:44:00.000-07:00

Many of you may have noticed that our blog was offline for a day or so. We finally figured out that Bonney's Google account had been deactivated due to "suspicious activity". It turns out that someone in both India and in Canada had somehow manged to log into her account. All fixed now and the blog is back online. We will be posting momentarily!

2010-06-21T19:21:00.000-07:00