Disneyland!

We took Rowan to Disneyland last month. We weren't sure if he would be too small to like it, but he LOVED it and cried when it was time to go. Most of all he loved the driving ride where Mike let him drive the car. If you look really closely you can see Rowan's tiny little head behind the wheel. It was his dream come true - getting to drive a "vroom vroom".

Oh, and again we see the "serious face". Maybe he's already a moody teenager...on the inside.

San Juan Capistrano

In March we all headed down to California to visit Mike's Dad. While there we went to San Juan Capistrano and saw the mission and ate at a restaurant with lots of trains. I'm not sure why Rowan looks concerned in so many of these photos.

More Swinging!

We do quite a bit of swinging these days. Here's some proof.

Random fall/winter 2009

Christmas 2009

Rowan got a super fancy train table as his main Christmas present. He also got a (replacement) baby, a dumptruck, Mr.Potato Head, and a bunch of other stuff. The first thing he did when we gave him the baby was hug it. The second thing? Gouge out the baby's eyes. Ah.

Fall! a bit late...

How is it possible that I haven't updated Rowan's blog since September??? I am a bad mom.

Now I'd like to take you all back to the fall of 2009. These are some photos from our trip to "The Farm" which is a pumpkin patch/apple orchard/petting zoo/kid freakout zone. There was even a giant pit of dried corn kernels that you could splash around in, but we didn't really get any good photos of that one. We went with our friends Sara, Zoe, and Pete. The kids still kind of ignore each other, but they had a good time anyhow. And Mike and I appreciate having other parents around who understand "toddler life".

Rowan's words

Every day Rowan picks up a new word - or so it seems. Here's a list of what he's saying these days:

Mama, Daddy, Puppa (this one's new), Pie!, Nenu (Nana), Hi, Bye-bye!, Up!, Bub (aka. Boob), Baby, Cup, More, Balloon, Please, Woof, Moo, Rawr, Quack, WowWow (for wow wow wubzy his favorite cartoon), Babble (apple), and I'm sure there's a few more too.

My favorite thing right now is the way I trick him into saying words. I pretend to have a microphone in my hand and first I saw the word into the mic and then I hold the mic up to Rowan's mouth and he talks into it. This is how I got him to say "please" for the first time. It turns out he knows how to say a lot more than we thought, he just chooses not to talk much. Let's hope he still feels this way when he's 13.

New Trike

We got Rowan this fancy tricycle after we got back from Minnesota because he loved the ride-around toys at Aunt Kathy's so much. This photo is from the second day he had the bike. We were pushing him around the house and he was so excited that he just started crying and freaking out. At least that's what we think the problem was. One minute he was super happy - the next complete melt-down. Moody baby.

Oh, and yes, Rowan often runs around the house in a Star Wars shirt, cowboy hat, and no pants. Doesn't everyone?

...and in non-baby news...

The house is done! Well, painted any way. We also have new windows and a new deck on the back.

Here's the house before:


And after:

And here's one of the new windows that isn't painted shut and actually opens!

And here's a shot of the new deck that replaced our rotting back steps:


And here's another shot of the deck and our comfy chairs:


Our next project is the kitchen. New counter tops and some additional cabinets are going in next week! Yay!

Hiking

These are also from Duluth. There is a park and a lake across the street from Mike's Aunt Kathy's place. We spent a ton of time at the play ground and one day we took a stroll through the woods and down to the water. Rowan could walk ALL day and not get tired.

Swings!

Duluth Zoo

We took Rowan to the zoo for the first time while we were visit Mike's family in Duluth. Rowan "RAWR"ed at the tiger and polar bears, was really excited to pet the goats, and generally ignored everything else. Oh, except the playground which he heartily enjoyed.

Mmmm...potatoes....

This is how much Rowan loves hashbrowns. He has to close his eyes to savor the moment.

The Cat Crate

We had to take Pie to the vet the other day. Afterwards we left the cat carrier open on the couch for a few minutes. Mike and I were in the dining room and heard grunts from the living room. This is what we found.

Dork Out.

Rowan is already being schooled in the art of gaming.

Cowboy small...

Rowan used to HATE hats. It was an ongoing struggle in the winter to keep any hat on his head. Now he is suddenly in love with his cowboy hat.