New Toys!

Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying their weekend! We had a dreary day today, cloudy, misty, and mid-70's. It was beautiful, a nice change in the heat that we've been having lately. It would have been a perfect day to nap on the couch, but we had things to get done. :)

We drove down to Grand Island, because Kohl's was having a great sale and I had some "Kohl's cash" and percent off coupons that needed to be used by this weekend. We got a BUNCH of fall clothes for Alex, because Wal-Mart and Target don't seem to make 2T clothes......they advertise that they do, but between the three stores we were at today, not a stitch of 2T was to be found. We also got him some new tennis shoes, because we are certain that he has outgrown the ones he wore last April. (Just a hunch....)

We had also been looking for a workbench for Alex - ever since Grandpa Dave and Great-Grandpa Frank were here, Alex has been fascinated with tools. We finally found a workbench - and it even has a "working" drill and flashlight!! Some of the pieces are still too small for Alex, so we have those stored in the drawer until he's a bit bigger. Here are a few cute pictures from him playing with his new toys tonight. There's also a video at the end. (Excuse the "no pants" on Alex - LONG story - if you want to hear it, just give us a call.) :)

We also got a couple more things......

A NEW POTTY CHAIR!!

Alex has shown a little interest in going to the bathroom, so we thought that we would get one, and see how interested he is in it. When we pulled it out of the box, "Cool" was the first thing that came out of his mouth. He instantly knew what to do with it, as he sat down in his diaper and all. We took his diaper off and asked him if he had to go potty, and he sat down on the chair again, this time with a very weird look on his face. He sat for about 5 seconds, and then he was off again. We put his diaper back on him, and not more than 2 minutes later we had a poopy diaper. He hasn't sat on it since. Hmmmm......

We did buy a couple of books about going potty on the toilet, and he has chose to read those a couple of times tonight. We know he'll be ready on his own time - we just wanted to be ready when he decides that he's ready.

And one last thing that we'd like a little input from you, our blog readers, on. We (Andy and I) have talked quite a bit about the "right way" to wean Alex off of his cork (pacifier). Right now he only has it for sleeping - naps and bedtime - and if he is really upset, like if he falls down. The past couple of days he has poked through his last two molars, so he has had it more often, but today he was fine without it. I've read quite a few recommendations - everything from cutting off the end of the cork and gradually cutting more and more off of the tip, therefore taking the suction away gradually, and then he decides he doesn't want it anymore. Another suggestion was to put some of the "nail biter" polish on the end of the cork, or else something else non-toxic that is bitter tasting. And of course, there's cold turkey. With school starting up, and baby on the way, I don't want to have too many changes for him all at once, which is why I think that something gradual is fine.....or we could wait until September or so, once we're in a routine for school and 2 months (or so) before Acta gets here. (Then I also wonder - if Alex sees Acta with a cork, is he going to want the baby's? So should we really wait until after the baby sometime to do all of this?) We just don't know - so we'd like the advice of our readers and your years of experience (or your knowledge of Alex, for those of you who don't have "parenting" experience). Feel free to leave a comment on here, or send us an e-mail directly - thebowins@gmail.com

Thanks so much for your help!! :) Andy and I will look forward to hearing from you!

Funny Guy!

Hey - it's been a crazy week already, and school hasn't started yet! I guess I don't know where the time has gone, it seems like last week was May, and here I go back to school next week already! While I am excited to get a lot of things done this school year, I am NOT looking forward to leaving my little man again! Oh, well, I need to be thankful that I get the summers off to spend time with him (Andy keeps reminding me that the rest of the world has to work all 12 months!)

Last night we worked in the yard - it was the first night this week that was actually cool enough to be outside. Andy mowed and took care of the weeds, and Alex and I supervised and followed a couple of snakes around. He's still a little shy of the mower, so he needs to be very close to someone while it's going. While Andy was mowing, here's the character who was sitting behind me on the stairs playing (pulling) my hair......


Then tonight we went down to the fairgrounds, because the Valley County Fair is going on. While there are no rides or anything like that, they do have a lot of livestock out, and this was Alex's chance to get "up close and personal" with some of the things that we don't have easy access to. They did have a chainsaw artist, it was pretty cool to watch him turn a 5-foot piece of tree trunk into a frog, and Alex sat and watched for a good 30 minutes. I think that it was the noise that kept him entertained. Next it was on to the cows. We all walked over to the area where they were, and Alex stopped DEAD in his tracks about 15 feet away from the first cow. He was NOT to be moved. I talked to him a little about it, and then he was okay - if he was being held. We went over and watched the cow eat and drink, and he (she?) even gave us a little "moo". I'll admit - if it hadn't been tied up, I would not have gone that close, either. Those things are HUGE!! They did have some younger cows there, too, and Alex was a little less clingy around them. We also walked around and looked at the sheep, goats, pigs, ducks, roosters, bunnies, and even the pigeons. Alex really seemed to love the roosters, a few of them were calling as we walked by. Of course, Alex had to mimic all of the sounds that they made, and if he heard a new sound, we tried to make that one too. Luckily, I was the only one who stepped in poo, so we didn't have to worry about messing up the house once we got home.

It was good to get out of the house, because I think that Alex is finally getting ready to push two more teeth through. He woke up literally screaming this morning, and his demeanor didn't improve much throughout the day. I broke down and gave him some Tylenol around 3 (he didn't feel hot - he was just very cranky), and he was better for a while. He showed quite the burst of energy when Daddy got home, and they had fun playing for about 2o minutes, then it was back to the better half of the day's disposition. He seemed to be feeling okay at the fair, but once we got home - cranky!! Both Andy and I felt his gums, and we think that we have the tip of one of them - - and it's a ways back, so it might be a molar. Poor guy - I just wish that all the pain would go away. Hopefully he'll get a good night's sleep tonight and have a better day tomorrow. (He fell asleep on my lap tonight around 8:30 - he had been snugly all day, and I looked down, and he was OUT!)

On another note - I went in to see the Dr. yesterday because I have had terrible indigestion for the past week or so. And on Monday I began itching ALL OVER - legs, back, stomach, face, arms......so I called to see if there was anything that I could take, and the nurse asked me to come in and see Dr. Julie. SO, they put me on cimetidine (generic for Tagamet), because that will help with the indigestion and the itching. I was taking around 10 Tums a day - spaced out throughout the day, and chewing on ice chips for pretty much the entire day. It was the only thing that seemed to help...but then bedtime was miserable. Eating bland foods didn't help either, which is why I decided to call. Luckily, I don't have a rash or anything, so that makes me feel better. 2 days into the pills and I haven't taken a Tums yet!! :) The itching is getting better, which is why Dr. Julie went with this pill - I guess it's supposed to help treat both symptoms...who knew!?!?!!

Well, I guess that's it - I have rambled long enough for one post. :) Have a HAPPY FRIDAY everyone! :)

Happy Anniversary!

To Us!

Just think that most of you blog readers were dancing the night away 7 years ago right now - - it's hard to believe that it's been that long already, and how much has changed since that day.

To celebrate, Andy and I did what any other couple that has been married 7 years does......we hardly saw each other. :) I had a meeting ALL DAY today in Kearney (this was a "scripted" training, which means that the presenter read from a script to ensure that we received the same training as others across the country......it was THRILLING, let me tell you!!), and Andy worked. We managed to connect long enough to eat supper out at the Sandstone Grill (no taco salads tonight, Grandma Le), and now Andy's at a Board of Education meeting up at church.

The rest of my summer vacation is quickly coming to an end, but hopefully I am able to enjoy these next few days. It was so hard leaving Alex this morning.....he was still sleeping when I left, but it was still SOOOOO hard!!! Tomorrow I have to leave him (just for a little while, though) while I have my dentist appt. Then we dreadfully wait until the 13th, when I have to go back to the hot, non-air-conditioned, hardly any air movement, let-my-ankles-swell-to-the-size-of-baseballs school. (I'm not dreading going back that much, I am just dreading leaving my little man - we have had such an awesome summer together!!!!!)

That's it for tonight - Alex just figured out how to open the front door!! Outstanding!!!!!

Vacation 2008!

Sorry we haven't posted in a while - and thank you to those of you who didn't know we were on vacation and sent an email checking in on us. We are well - exhausted - but doing well. Here is the rundown and pictures of our family vacation of 2008.

Friday night after Andy got off of work, we headed out of town towards Colorado. We had smooth sailing until Julesburg (which is in the NE corner of the state) where we hit a monster of a storm. We had to slow down to about 40 mph because of the heavy rain and winds. That lasted for the next 60 miles or so, until we got off at the exit at Sterling. Andy's hometown is only 30 minutes south of Sterling, so we were glad the rain decided to let up then. The car was very clean by the time we got there!! :)

We spent Saturday through Tuesday in Akron, had a nice family lunch on Sunday afternoon with all of the great-grandparents. Alex had a blast playing outside in his pool - as you can see!! We had the pool out almost every day that we were out there - - which began the saga with Daddy and the wasps (LONG story - but basically, Andy became the wasp-killer of the house because there were a TON of nests all over the yard!).

Andy was really proud of this shot, so I had to include it on here - both of the basketballs are mid-air, going opposite directions. Alex had a blast throwing the ball as someone else threw it, and would even yell, "GO!"

We also found something else that Alex loved - the hammock! We were really surprised that he liked it as much as he did. Here is a shot of Alex and I in the hammock.

Alex even settled down to take a nap with Uncle Dallas.

Then Tuesday after supper we began our trek across Kansas to see my half of the family. Last year we tried to make the trip in one day, and it did not turn out well. This year we decided to leave after supper, make it as far as we could that night, and then go the rest of the way in the morning. Alex crashed in the car at 9 pm, which is his usual bedtime, but Andy and I decided that we could keep going a while longer. We made it to Salina, Kansas, which is more than halfway. We pulled into the hotel at 12:30 - and this is what we saw!!

(Carl also won the race today, and I am CONVINCED that he will be my sister's new boyfriend.....coincidence? I think not!) :) This HAD to be the most exciting thing about Kansas!

Then it was back on the road - Alex amused himself with his shoes, it was pretty funny! :)

Alex also tried singing in the car - you may need to turn the sound way up to hear this one, because he was singing softly......and a little shy of the camera!!

We spent Wednesday afternoon through Sunday in Missouri with my family. They say that it's pronounced "Misery" and I would have to wholeheartedly agree. The heat and humidity were just disgusting. Plus, being the pregnant heat register that I am, it was hard to cool off. We did spend some time shopping because they had their "tax free" days, so we were all able to get some new outfits. :)


We were able to sneak over to Aunt Sarah's (Rah-Rah to Alex) new home and see it - it's beautiful! I can't imagine what it looked like before, because I think that she has painted every square inch of the home! It was nice to see her finally settled into "her place" and to meet her roommate, Laura. Alex took quite a liking to Laura, especially when she had the Sour Patch Kids candy. :)


Saturday we all went to Sedalia, Missouri to meet up with my sister Elly, her hubby Neil, and Alex's cousin Noah. (Neil's parents also came along - Elly's family was visiting them for the weekend.) We all went out to supper and then found a park to play in.




They had a TON of slides, all of which Alex had to try out. Here they are - enjoy! :)


Slide 1




Slide 2



Slide 3





Slide 4 - This one sparked a debate - who will go down the slide first? Alex or Noah? Let us know who you think the winner is! :)





You couldn't guess it by the size of them, but Alex (on the right) and Noah (on the left) are 5 months apart. You can see Elly and Neil holding the boys, so you can see that genetics are on Noah's side, NOT on Alex's. :) They had a great time playing, and Alex's now refers to his cousin as "NoNo." :) How funny!!!



Both boys LOVED the swing, but there was only one! They both did a great job taking turns on it. Here was Alex's "photo opportunity" on the swing.




And Noah's turn.....


Then Alex decided to try his hand at the big boy swing...he did very well, he didn't fall off at all! Granted, he didn't get very high, but that's not bad for his first try at it!!

Alex also "tried" the rock-wall....but was not a fan. Good thing Daddy was close by to save the bail out!

Here is a shot of the SWEATY little man once we made it back to the car!! (We drove back to Grandma and Grandpa's and took a bath!!!)

This video was taken in the car on the way home - Alex was trying to shoot his cork out of his mouth using his hands (like he has seen his Daddy do lots of times) - it didn't work quite as well, which makes it all the more funny!!

Then we returned home tonight....it was sad to be leaving family at both places, but it was also very nice to return home. We are all exhausted, and tomorrow I have a training in Kearney, so Alex will go to Julie's. I hope that he sleeps well tonight, because he will need LOTS of energy tomorrow with all of the other kids! Tuesday is a Dentist appt for me, and because I don't feel like entertaining Alex while I sit with my mouth wide open, he will go to Julie's for the morning. Then we spend the last of our summer days together - I have to go back August 13. Where, oh where, has my summer gone???!!?!?!

It's late - off to bed :) Home bed. :) (Isn't that the best thing about coming home?!) :)

Go!!

Yeah, so it's been like forever since we've posted last, and I am so sorry - - we had baseball tournaments, and then this week has been preparing for vacation, so I just put this on the back burner. But tonight's video will be worth the wait. :)

Alex always wants to be outside - and he is quite a bit, whether playing with his sand/water table, running around the house looking for frogs/toads and snakes, or just playing with the rocks and dirt - but when Daddy went outside this afternoon to start the grill - Alex really wanted to be outside!

Andy then began this game, and I don't know exactly how Alex caught on (it just must be that special father-son bond), but it was too funny for me not to record and pass along.

Andy begins by the back door, yells "Go!" and then he and Alex race to the front of the house - Andy on the outside, Alex indoors. Alex scales the couch, waits for Andy, and then they begin the second stage of their race. Again "Go!" is called, and this time it's back to the rear of the house. Alex almost always beats Andy - granted, he has a shorter distance, but he also has shorter legs. It's just too funny!!

I wonder what the neighbors think when they see Andy running around the house......

Acta Update!

Well, after all of this excitement with the remodel the past few weeks, I completely spaced my monthly Dr. visit! (oops!) I finally went in on Tuesday, and the Dr. wanted me to do the glucose test. So, it was scheduled for this morning.

For those of you who didn't know with the Alex glucose test - things were fine at the beginning (pre-test), and then I drank the orange fizzy pop stuff. Thinking back, I am 99% sure the nurse told me to go home and eat something so I could take my vitamins. When I went back an hour later, my sugar was at 132. Dr. Julie, who always tends to be overly cautious, wanted me to limit my sugars because she wants the number to be under 130. So, this time, I was nervous - I didn't sleep too well last night......

Last night was the beginning of the baseball tourney, and Andy's team WON 9-3 vs. Ravenna. They played an outstanding game - but it didn't get over untli 7:45ish, so I didn't get supper until after then (beginning my worry #1 about the test this morning). Concession stand food - low sugar - right?!!?! :) I had a hot dog and a few nachos - and NO popcorn!! When we got home around 10:30 I had terrible indigestion (another baby with TONS of hair??), so I had to eat something. Grrrr....begin worry #2.

I tried falling asleep, but it wasn't coming. The indigestion was still bugging me, so I took some Tums (didn't look at the clock when I did this) it was 12:30. The nurse told me NOTHING to eat or drink after midnight. Worry #3.

After tossing and turning all night, and saying about a million prayers, I finally passed out around 2:30. When Andy's alarm went off at 6:30 this morning, it was way too soon. We all had a fairly late night last night, so I felt bad waking Alex up so I could take him with me to the Dr. office to have the pre-test done. (My appt. was for 8:30).

Apparently my Dr. has found some research or something where she doesn't like the orange fizzy pop stuff, (remember that she's overly cautious - which I am grateful for) so they asked me to bring in 24 ounces of Coke or Gatorade. So, fruit punch it was. My pre-test number was 79. After drinking the Gatorade, they told me to go home or run errands - still not to eat or drink anything - and come back in an hour. **This is where it donned on me that I am SURE that I ate something the last time they did this with Alex.

I tried to pass the hour doing anything I could think of - - laundry, go to the bank, run a couple things around town for Andy, organize the t-shirts we are selling - -and finally the hour was over. My stomach was cramping as Alex and I walked back into the office. I held my breath as she pricked my finger and held it up to the reader. The result was a whopping 99!!! :) YAYAY!!!!! That's when I told her about when I was pregnant with Alex, and she shared that a nurse that no longer works there had told a couple of other ladies to go home and eat during the test - so at least I wasn't alone!! :)

Anyway, I am thrilled. Bring on the popcorn! :)

Baseball games again tonight, Andy's team plays the #1 seed - Shelton-Gibbon. If they play like they did last night, they have a great shot at winning this one! If you are curious how the tourney is going, click on the link off to the right. We are trying to keep it updated nightly.

YAY FOR LOW SUGARS!!! :)

Bath Time!

Well, tonight's our last night at home for a while. Andy's baseball tournament starts tomorrow night, and will run through at least Sunday night. Rain and storms are predicted for the next four nights - so it may end up running longer......we'll see.

So, tonight was bath night! :) Alex loves his baths, as long as water doesn't come anywhere near his head. (Unless it's him that is dumping the water on his own head....) Once I began to drain the water, he wanted to stay in the tub. I figured he'd get pretty cold, and then decide that he wanted to come out - nope. :) This is what he decided to do once all of the water was out of the tub........

And once I checked my camera for the pictures that Andy got- here is what I found.......

If this next one is as ornery as the two I already have, I'm gonna quit.

Have a great Wednesday, everyone!! :)

Pictures Galore!!

This post is all about the pictures that I should have been posting over the past few weeks, but didn't have all of the "equipment" that I needed (i.e. the correct USB 'thingy' for the camera phones). SO, you are getting them all in this one shot. Enjoy!!! :)

Alex and Daddy running the bases after the games in Loup City.

Alex after enjoying about 4 breadsticks at the Pizza Hut lunch buffet...... MESSY!!!!

Even though Alex seems to show right-hand dominance, he insists on putting his glove on as though he were a lefty......this was one of the rare times he had it on the correct hand.

Alex has developed this new "habit" of putting his foot up on the table as he eats.....I'm thrilled...

Alex trying to lick the last little bit of sauce off of his chin. (It didn't work.....) ;)

When we were in Lincoln for the 4th, we stopped and had lunch at Famous Dave's. Alex NEEDED a clothing change after his lunch, so we used the back of the car. Look at his pose - future model?!!?!?! :)

Alex playing in the new bathtub - notice the "Dennis the Menace" hair in the back - - and how the winkie is carefully concealed!! :)

And now to more recent pictures. Andy's company had their annual family picnic on Friday night. They rented out the local bowling alley, had food catered in, and we had a great time. Here's a shot of Alex contemplating running down the lane (Yes, he did make it down at least twice - Andy chased him once, I did the other time......very awkward!!) He also managed to pull a 12-pound ball off of the rack, narrowly missing those bare toes - we both gasped!!

We went for a walk with Kyle, Amy and Micah on Saturday night. The bugs weren't too bad, so we headed over to the Little Park. I think that Kyle and Amy had more fun than Alex did....Micah was asleep in the stroller the entire time.

Alex tries out the teeter-totter.

Kyle (painfully) shows Alex how to ride the animals.

Daddy gets in on the fun, while Alex carefully watches.

Finally a toy Alex loves - the slide!! :)

A group photo before they had to leave (I'm amazed both boys sat through the self-timer thing on the camera!!) :)

Long story that I am trying to make short - I bought some Golden Grahams for breakfasts, and saw the recipe for the Smore bars on the back. My mom used to make these all the time, and I haven't had them in forever - so I have spent the past few days craving them. Today I broke down and finally made them - and you can see that I did have to taste them!! :)

That's it!! Phew! :) Hope you enjoyed all of the pictures, and I hope that I explained all of them well enough so you know what's going on. :) Baseball tourney starts this week, so life remains hectic. School is creeping ever so closely - where is my summer??!!!?!?

It's DONE!!

...Well, for the most part. Andy and I still have to paint the ceiling and trim, but IT'S DONE!!!!

**Disclaimer to "someone" - the shots of Alex are at the end - so you can just scroll down to the end now. :)

My Mom and Dad came up Sunday night (with Ruby the dog) and left this morning. They completed so many projects, and it was nice to have them here again. I never get tired of having family around - I just wish that everyone weren't so far away.

Here are some pictures of the finished work in the bathroom. We applied two coats of paint, hung the towel ring, toilet paper holder, robe hook, scrubbed the grout and tried to get all of the "extra" stuff off, finished the quarter-round in the kitchen, and Dad even had time to drill a hole in the downstairs shower (Long story - basically, the guy who owned this place before us took the floor drain and closed it off to make a shower. A few months ago when we had the water softener problems and the basement flooded - that may have been prevented if the drain had been able to do it's job.) Dad drilled a hole into the shower - and we have a plug that goes into the hole when someone wants to shower, and then is pulled out when the shower is not in use. Anyway, here are the shots:

Here are a couple of shots of Alex napping yesterday - we all had time to take a nap! (Except Daddy, he had to work...) That's my arm on him - I didn't want him falling off of the couch.

Alex also has a fascination with the box that holds our garbage bags. He has placed them in the dryer before, lugged them all over the house, and this morning he was using them as his own car. He had the sound effects and all! Silly boy!

We're on our own for a couple more days, anyway. Kyle and Amy Royuk, and their 4-month old Micah will be visiting us this weekend. We have a company picnic for Andy's work we have to go to Friday night, and then we will have our guests. Then next week is tournament - - where has my summer gone?!!??!?! Hopefully after tournament we will have a little vacation....we'll see. :)