Ode to Owen

So, as most of you know, Owen is our nephew (son of Stephanie and Collin; brother of Aubrey). You may remember that Owen was born about three weeks early and was a pretty sickly little newborn. He had to wear a heart monitor at all times; had some reflux and apnea problems; and for awhile we were all silently very worried about the little guy. Well, that was before he started eating solid food.

Here's a shot of Owen when he was a newbie:

And this is the kiddo now:

And this is why he look so healthy:

This child is huge now (I mean that in a good way, of course). He's about 9 months younger than Allen, and he weighs 3 pound more than him (and is quite a bit shorter too). He's adorable though. So happy all the time, and such a good eater. Now that he's walking, I'm sure he'll slim down some more too.

But I digress. Back to his cuteness. I was so pleasantly surprised to find that Owen loved his Aunt Leggy (that's me, for those of you who don't know my nickname). Every time I came into the room, he ran towards me and body-slammed me until I picked him up. Or he'd climb over people to reach me on the sofa. His whole face lit up. You have to understand that until I had Allen, I really wasn't a kid person. Kids didn't like me ... they sensed my fear and just cried when I held them. So, Owen is the first kid besides my own who actually liked me! I was so excited.

But then we started to notice a pattern. Every single time I held him, Owen managed to ... um ... well, he copped a feel. He grabbed my boobs. Don't scoff ... if it had been once or twice out of all the times I held him over the week we were there, I would have said, "Coincidence!" But every time he caught sight of me, he wanted me to hold him. And every time I held him, his hands managed to find my boobies. No joke! Oh well, at least he was happy to see me, right?

Anywho ... being that Owen is only about 16 months old, he doesn't really talk a whole lot yet (he says a few words that Mom and Dad understand, but not those of us who only see him every few months). In general, he tends to communicate in a series of grunts and screams (like even when he calls his dad, it comes out "DAAA"). And in sign language that his Mommy taught him. I wish wish wish that I could have caught it on video, but at least I have some stills I can share with you. And let me tell you that if this kid wanted a car and signed the word "please" to me, I'd probably give it to him. It literally makes your heart melt!

"Please"

"Thank you"

Telling us where Jehovah lives (technically not sign language as in ASL, but still adorable)

And, if you say to him, "Owen, do you need a spanking?" He puts his hand to his chest and gasps. It's hilarious.

Owen, baby, Aunt Leggy and Uncle Brian miss you and send you tons of kisses. And we miss and love you too, Collin, Steph, Aubrey, Missy, Tim, Annie, and Pam.

xoxo,