Spending time with the Owens Side

As promised we flew back up north after just two weeks of being home.  Colin and Mommy aren't very fond of being alone.  The last few days we were at home, Colin came down with a fever.  It was just about 10 days from his MMR vaccine so we were sure this was to blame.  The morning of our flight Colin woke up at 2AM and never...went...back...to....sleep.  I let him cry on and off till about 4AM.  I know terrible mother.  Within that time I rubbed his back, rocked him, and let him get in bed with me.  All failed miserably at getting him back to sleep.  Finally at 4:00 I took him out of his crib, set him in front of the tv in his bouncer chair, and turned on Yo Gabba Gabba with cheerios in hand.  While Colin quietly watch three episodes in a row I cleaned the bathrooms (hey, at least I could be productive).  Around 5:30 we ate a real breakfast and continued with our morning routine however, by 7AM I was exhausted still needed to pack a little and really needed some sleep before we started our day so Colin went back in the crib.  He slept then cried on and off till about 9:30 when we packed up the car and headed to the airport.

He wasn't the most pleasant kid on the plane but we made till landing before any real outbursts.  I consider that a success!  Although Colin has never been the best sleeper we knew something must have been up.  We continued giving him pain meds on a regular basis when we got to Mimi and Pappy's.  The first night there was horrendous.  Again, the poor little thing just could not get comfortable.  I held him for most of the night.  The next morning when changing his diaper I noticed he had a rash all over his chest which then spread to his face and neck.  I was already prepared for this as this can also happen after the MMR vaccine although only to 5% of kids.  Our poor Colin had the measles!  No wonder he was SO uncomfortable.  We spent most of the day cuddled watching tv followed by another long night.

We took a break from in front of the tube to hang outside with Uncle Connor.

He helped Mommy get some shots of the rash...

Poor baby!

We stayed in PA for two weeks this time. On our second weekend in town, Aunt Jen came home from college to spend time with us.  We went to Brown's Orchard for peach sundaes.  Colin wasn't a fan.  He's not into the cold factor of ice cream and has become rejecting all fruits and veggies but that's a whole other story.

Brown's had a play-set that Colin was very eager to explore.  Mommy was even more eager for him to explore since Aunt Jen was the one following and I could sit back and relax!

Getting ready to go down the slide.

Its not a visit to the playground with SWINGS!  Colin absolutely loves to swing.

I could not get him to look at me to save my life.  I think he was starting to get a little tired...

...because as soon as he got in this swing he put his finger in his mouth ready to sleep.

This was a rare event since Colin never sucks on his finger and rarely shows signs of fatigue in public (how dare he?).  This swing put him in a total trance.  He was loving it, and again, so was Mommy since Mimi was the one pushing him and I was relaxing.

Whenever we are at Mimi and Pappy's house we always video chat with Uncle Hunter.  Love this shot of Colin and his uncles.

Over the summer, we came to discover that Colin LOVES Mimi's homemade potato salad.  It was no exception this trip, he gobbled it right up!

"Mmm, mmm good!"

We took a trip to the York Fair with Mimi where Colin got to get up close and personal with all of the farm animals.

Colin was not afraid to put his hands right in the chicks' cage.

 

He also got to have a taste of his first funnel cake.

Blow! Its hot!

mmmm

 

The Bambino

Another Bambino is on the way for the Goodwillie family!  Back in June, Daddy was away on a trip and Mommy got a terrible backache (way worse then usual).  I knew something must be up.  We knew there was a chance we could be pregnant and lo and behold, we were!  I really wanted to wait till Daddy got home to tell him in person but I blurted it out over the phone that same day.  I quickly got to thinking how we would share the news with our family.

I decided to make a shirt for Colin to wear which read, "Someday I'll fly an airplane but for now I'm going to be a Big Brother!"  We saw Daddy's family at Split Rock first and it was Aunt Jen D who noticed the shirt.  Lots of excitement ensued.

Don't mind the fact that the shirt says March 2012...

We told Mimi and Pappy next.  They didn't realize the shirt at all and I had to actually draw their attention to it.  We told Uncle Connor and Aunt Jen O at the beach.  It took no time for Aunt Jen to read Colin's shirt, get super excited, and start cheering and twirling Colin around to which he got just a little scared...What you don't want a little brother or sister?

After getting back to Charleston in August I had my first doctor's appointment at just about 12 weeks.  Aunt Jen came along and both she and Colin got to see the ultrasound.  I was sad that the ultrasound was really quick.  I think Colin was making the tech nervous since he was trying to crawl on the floor.  The baby didn't even move while we were watching.  I was fortunate to have a lot of long ultrasounds with Colin since I was participating in a study and every single one of them, even in the first trimester, he was squirming around like crazy.  Maybe this is a sign that this baby will be a little calmer...maybe even like sleeping?

I get giddy and excited every time I look at this picture.  After having Colin we've both realized what a true miracle it is to have a baby and can't wait to hold this little one!

Once we got the go ahead that everything was progressing fine it was time to make this baby "Facebook official."  Since it was nearly impossible to get a good shot of Colin and also be able to read the shirt I decided to make a sign instead.  Colin loves other children and having lots of people around.  Despite his unhappy faces above, I know this baby will bring him so much joy.

March 6, 2013, here we come...we can't wait to meet you baby girl or boy!

Drive down south with Aunt Jen

I originally planned to drive back down to Charleston by myself however, given Colin's dislike of the car I knew I'd never survive the 10 plus hour drive by myself.  Luckily, Aunt Jen is the most awesome person in the world and offered to make the drive with us without even having to ask!  We had already made plans to visit some friends in Northern Virginia on the way so we did that first before meeting up with Aunt Jen.  Unfortunately, this trip began my downfall of documenting our life....you'll notice a major decline of photos.  Not only have I not been taking enough photos lately but I've always resigned to using only my iphone most of the time.

For example, I only got this one shot of Colin and Jack while visiting my friend Lindsay from college for the night.  Lindsay and I had a great time catching up while Jack and Colin enjoyed playing together.

The next day we swung over to my friend Kaela's house for the afternoon.  We were so sad when she moved from Charleston earlier this year and took her sweet boys with her.

Colin and Henry getting reacquainted.

It was difficult to get them all smiling at the same time so I was looking at them instead of the camera hence cropping out part of Henry's face.  Better luck next time!

We spent the rest of the day at the Emerick's house.  Pappy brought Aunt Jen and we all stayed the night before heading out the next morning.  Big surprise, it seems I didn't capture any photos of our fun evening together.

And I also didn't capture any shots of our adventures in the car.  Thankfully, our trip was pretty uneventful!  Colin took his two naps in the car and stayed entertained while awake by either Mommy or Aunt Jen.  I admit that sometimes meant one of us holding the iphone while Colin watched Yo Gabba Gabba but we didn't have to resort to this until the last hour of the trip.  We could not have asked for it to go any better.  I'm eternally grateful to Aunt Jen for coming with us!

The theme continues...I didn't get a single photo of Colin and Aunt Jen the entire time she visited us in Charleston unless you count her legs in the picture below...

We went to the Farmer's Market in downtown Charleston where Colin had his first sip of lemonade.  He loved it and kept saying "mmmm."

Rocking out with Aunt Jen's shades.

We got a babysitter one evening and went kayaking together. Aunt Jen was a natural and Mommy could no keep up!

As always, we had a wonderful time with Aunt Jen and were sad to see her go.  Luckily we'll be back up north in less than two weeks!

Sesame Place

The week after Colin's birthday party we met Daddy and the Derry boys at Sesame Place for the day.  That place is decked out in absolutely everything Sesame...especially ELMO!

I mean who can resist him??

Colin back in Daddy's arms and pointing to Elmo:

Then the whole gang came out.....

 and Colin wasn't sure what to think.

After, a little breakdown and cuddles with mommy, he was back to enjoying the show with Daddy.

Cousin Liam checking out the show.

We spent a lot of our day in the waterpark section without our cameras.  Unfortunately, we missed a lot of good shots because we were worried about leaving our camera and phones out while we were in the water.  Next time, I might just risk it!

Colin and Joergen enjoyed lots of cousin bonding time.  Its hard to tell but Colin is standing on the edge of Joergen's stroller.  He stayed this way the whole time Daddy, Uncle Anthony, and Liam went on the rollercoaster.

Before heading home Liam wanted to go on one more ride...his choice...the teacups.

Joergen watched the "big boys"

While Colin caught a glimpse of Elmo and Big Bird.  That's about as close as he wanted to go....

 

 These boys had a great day!

Looking forward to going back to Sesame Place again next summer!