23 Month Update

Two is knocking on our door and the terrible two's are in full swing. Owen is definitely a boy, tried and true. He has come to love to use the phrase, "NO mine, NOT yours" and "No Dad, NO eat" and "NOOOOO Mom, No car". Pretty much any sentence or word grouping that comes out of the boys mouth starts with the wonderful word of NO. So needless to say Darren and I are getting very good as well as very patient with explaining to the little guy that the word "No" is not a nice word to say. It hurts our feelings and makes us feel like you are not being a good boy and listening to your mom and dad. Pretty good eh? Makes you want to just be a good boy, doesn't it! We are hoping for the same reaction...though it has been a long road getting there!

Owen's independence is growing with each day. He needs to hold everything on his own, eat with his own "poon" (spoon) and "ork" (fork) and Darren being the wonderful father that he is has got Owen accustomed to taking of his own coat, hat and shoes as soon as he enters the house. Like a good Canadian should! He is actually very good at it now and can pretty much do it all by himself, of course with a lot of whining along the way. But in the end the shoes are off and the coat is hung on the back of his bedroom door. He gives a huge smile after he accomplishes this task and is always looking for a high five to signal that we think he is as cool as he thinks of himself!

The link below shows that Owen is officially Canadian and now honors both of his heritages. We applied for his citizenship and he recently got his papers back with his Canadian citizenship card. We are very proud of him and I know all of his family feels that same!

Well, we hope everyone is staying warm this winter and as always we send our love. The next posting will be when Owen turns TWO...wow how time flies!

I am a Canadian Citizen

HOT OFF THE PRESS...

Owen Daniel McCarthy is officially a Canadian citizen. Owen now enjoys dual citizenship through the United States and Canada.

22 Month Update

22 Month Update!

Wow - another Christmas has come and gone. Owen was practicing his Christmas time vocabulary before Christmas arrived. If you asked him what Santa said, he would tell you, "Ho Ho Ho" or sometimes, "Merry Ho Ho Ho". We went and saw Santa at the mall near our house and Owen was not too keen on jolly old Saint Nick right off the bat. So we had to do the stroller circle around the perimeter of the North Pole to get a feeling if the man in a red suit that has been seen around town was an OK guy or not. Owen witnessed two other boys, one older then him and one younger then him go and sit on Santa's lap. I think he figured, "Hey if they can do it, so can I." So with a little poking and prodding from his mom we successfully made it onto Santa's lap. Though I don't think Owen really ever looked at him once but only did the blank steer straight ahead pretending to not know that he was experiencing such Christmas torture. One scream, "No" and one tear down his cheek and Owen was good to go. After we told Santa what we wanted, or at least mom told Santa what Owen wanted he jumped out of his lap and ran straight back for his stroller. Once safely inside the confines of his stroller, Owen thought Santa was the coolest fat man ever, yelling, "Hi Santa" over and over.

We had a very busy Christmas this year. We were lucky enough to spend Christmas Eve with my family at our house in the morning. Of course the 202 Bonnie Brae Santa was MORE then generous and it took us over an hour to rip through all the loot! Owen was a champ at passing out all the gifts and took the role extremely serious. He did not break a smile, only a sweat. I would tell him who the gift was for, he would nod and then dart over to Dayne to give him his gift. He flew back to my side to get the next present. He is totally my kid, I like to keep the process moving. And he abided by the rules! We then went to my Uncle Jim and Carolyn's house to spend a few hours with the rest of my family. Owen again was spoiled with lots of great gifts, kisses and hugs.

The next morning we got up early and flew to Canada where Gramps and Gram-Mo picked us up and we drove to Trail to celebrate Christmas night at Aunt Sue and Uncle Rick's. Owen had a blast and of course again got spoiled with trains, books and an official Smoke Eaters sweatshirt. Not bad, eh? He took to Dave and Kirsty and made them draw pictures with him for a few hours! Boxing Day was celebrated at Aunt Deb and Uncle Gary's house. We had some good drinks, laughs and food and Owen became obsessed with Sarah. He has not stopped talking about her since. On the way to Gi-Gi's house this morning he saw a girl waiting for the bus outside and he yelled, "Sarah, Mom Find Sarah". Needless to say, the freezing girl waiting for the bus was not Sarah, and Owen seemed a little disappointed. Which only means that a trip from the Baine's to Chicago must occur in the near future.

Owen went sledding for the first time and experienced a REAL sled, a GT. We don't have those in the states. He absolutely loved the thrill and giggled the entire way down the hill. He got a few baths from Gram-Mo and really wore out the words, "Mine" and "No" while we were there. We had such a great time and miss everyone so much already!

We are keeping our fingers crossed that 2010 will bring a little more luck and prosperity into all of our lives. But the one thing that the year can't improve on is the great families that both Darren and I have. Love you all! Happy New Year!