Reconstructive Surgery, Finishing Touches, and A Day at the Lanes

You remember him, right? I can only name you a surrogate Auntie or Uncle of Owen if you know the bear's name. Otherwise, you're just a poser.


This sale-bin bear was not our original plan for Owen's cuddly item. Oh no. Our Pasadena neighbor Alison gave Owen a darling little lamb that he loved for the first 6 months of his life. So much so that I thought ahead to order several more...since a white lovie is a dirty lovie...and as a first time mom, I didn't want him to have to wait while he was in the washer. Well, Owen's love for Louis the Lamb (and Louis the II, III, and IV) was tested while the grandmothers were in town visiting. They took Owen for a walk and forgot the lamb. Walking down Lake Avenue, south of Colorado, their docile grandson turned more vocal, shall we say. Finding themselves without a comfort item, quick thinking Sushi bought a Halloween bear (discounted dramatically since it was November). You know how she loves a sale. And since most of you have never seen a lamb at our house, you can guess how quickly Owen embraced his new love...and dropped Louis like a bad habit. 3.5 years later, this orange bear with pumpkins on his paws looks like this:



Floppy neck, 3 torn paws, and one that finally busted to release its bag of silicone beads. Thank you to the manufacturers for sewing them up in a little nylon bag in anticipation of this day. Since she was the one who started this mess, Sushi came to the rescue while we were in Texas to restore Spooky Bear to his previous glory. Restuffed and repawed, we felt like the old man in Toy Story 2 (except we didn't tell Owen "for display only!" when we returned it to him). Results:

Yep, she even monogrammed his name. Owen loves how his bear "grew" because he's made reference several times to the fact that Spooky is not growing at the rate Owen is and that he will not relinquish the bear to the baby. He has volunteered to find another bear for the baby when "she" (says Owen) arrives.

So, here's to Spooky Bear...may you survive to stowaway in Owen's suitcase to college!

Moving on...here's a travel pillow/nap pillow I made for one of Owen's classmates for his birthday. O-man picked out the fabric.
Also, we finally got bedding for his bed. Grandmom got the denim comforter, Mom made the pillow, and eBay helped someone recycle the bedskirt and window valance. And, yes, I know they're vertical blinds; another issue for another day.





These posts are mostly for family who needed updating, so for you...I made pillows to match the back of the t-shirt quilt Mom made for Christmas. Here they are on our bed.

And for the grandparents and surrogate aunties and uncles...here the boys are bowling. Owen has put this on his calendar (literally a post it placed there Tuesday for Saturday) all week. He and Michael bowled one game. We weren't sure how the "experts" feel about me bowling, so I sat out...but, honestly, that was more to save my money for snacks instead of shoe rental...it's pricey :)


He was very serious. You know, those "expressive eyebrows" as Rhea Sid. calls them.
Ha! Can you believe this guy? Distract him with the thought of a 3 year old running up behind him and he bowls a 102!!!! With bumpers!!! HA!
These sweatpants are a tribute to Owen's Uncle Rodney. Giggle if you know what my mom calls them.

Two posts in one month? May two Mondays off in February bring you more pictures, more interesting posts than mine, and less use of ellipsis. I'm too tired to think of transitional phrases between thoughts so...

I wanted to title this post "Now I know Why Some Animals Eat Their Young", but lucky for us all, posting about some sweeter Owen milestones has made me forget (almost) what a horrible evening we had.

Oh, and for those keeping track at home...I'm 22 weeks along...ultrasound tech wanted to change the due date to May 31st, but let's stick with the original June 9th. Makes me feel like I'm honoring more of my teaching contract to the 12th that way. Baby's movin' and groovin'. Owen's response to the kicking was "Mom, she's playing hi-ya in your tummy. She's going to box your belly open and it will crack like an egg!" I'll leave you with that mental image. He had sound effects too, but that just might be too much.