We've moved!

Well, we've started a new blog, to be more specific...
We'll be posting at www.adventuresinlisterland.blogspot.com from here on out. Owen's blog will stay active so we can look back on the last few years with our boy. Eventually I'm hoping to move all of these posts over to the new blog so they'll all be in the same spot. Until then, we hope you come check out our new site!

Put me in, coach!

The day we found out Owen was a boy, Richie and I laughed about the possibility of having a really athletic, sporty son. I think it is fair to say the we both appreciate sports, but neither one of us are particularly gifted in any type of physical way. Sure enough, Owen's primary obsession has turned out to be balls. Baseballs, soccer balls, golf balls, tennis balls, footballs, basketballs....any kind of ball at all. Luckily, our neighborhood community center, in conjunction with CMT and the Nashville Sounds baseball team, sponsors a t-ball league for children 4-6 years old. At the bargain price of $15 for the season, it was a deal too good to pass up. In March, I hightailed it to the community center, check in hand, to enroll Owen, although he is only 3 and a half. I was thrilled to find out they accepted him into the league! Practice started last week and boy was it a hoot. Each team has 4's, 5's and 6-year-olds, so the skill level and comprehension of the game is quite varied. Here is our boy at his first practice...

Learning to run the bases (check out our beautiful Nashville skyline!)

More base running

Not really getting the concept of being in the field, but he did have fun talking with his teammates!

First game, Saturday June 6th

Going after the ball!

So many of our friends came out to cheer Owen on...they filled up the whole bleacher! And this is only part of the group who came!

His last at-bat. Notice the hat turned around backwards. He meant business!

Owen did such a great job in his first game! His coach devotes a lot of personal attention to Owen since he is the youngest one on the team. Each time he practices, he seems to understand what is going on a little better. We're so proud of our little slugger!

New do!

We went ahead and gave Owen a big summer buzz cut...he seems to like it, huh?

New House Resolutions...Revisited!

About a year ago, Richie and I were anxiously waiting to move from our rental house into our OWN house. After a cramped, cluttered couple of years in a house we eventually hated, I made a list of resolutions for how I hoped life in our new house would be. Now that we've gotten settled, I thought it would be fun to see how I'm doing on my goals!

1) Learn how to wash clothes with bleach. I am pleased to report that I now wash 1 load of laundry per week in bleach. I'm sure I will end up getting some weird nose disease for sniffing all that Clorox, but there is just something about the smell of bleached sheets and towels that I just love.

2) Don't keep things I don't really need. I guess to be honest this item is still a work in progress. I did create a filing system that has worked out pretty well. Organization takes a heck of a lot of work! But I am very happy to say that so far we've managed to do light years better than we ever have before in this area!

3) Create a place for every thing. This ties back in to the previous item. I think we've done pretty well with keeping things organized and clutter-free. I've really been enjoying my label maker, and amazingly, a little $20 mom toy really does make a big difference!

4) Start fixing the house up from Day 1. I've got to say, we've blown this one out of the water! When we moved in, we came up with a pretty nice sized list of things we want to do. We still have lots of projects to tackle, but as of today (and with the recent help of Richie's dad) we have managed to accomplish quite a bit...painting, new lighting, knobs and pulls, landscaping. I'm excited to see what we'll do in the year ahead!

5) Decorate in a way that really reflects our taste. When we moved, we sold just about every significant piece of furniture we owned: couch, tv, entertainment center, tables, lamps, beds. I had fantasies about how much FUN we would have taking a (small) wad of cash out on the town to buy our dream (budget) furniture. Let's just say my high hopes were not met. The process of decorating has proven to be longer and more difficult than I imagined. But although we don't have all the furniture we need and want, what we do have, we really love.

6) Invite our friends and family to come enjoy our new home! Mission Accomplished! We celebrated my birthday and Owen's birthday at home, as well as hosted a big Thanksgiving Day get-together with our friends. We bought a new bed and moved our bed to the extra bedroom, so the futon has been temporarily retired. Whew!

7) Meet our neighbors. We've also done relatively well on this one. Being the Type A that I am, I drew out a map of the houses around ours and have managed to fill in the names of most of our neighbors. Really we only converse with our direct next-door neighbors....two Mississippians!

So, although this is yet another post that has nothing to do with Owen and is probably one of the most boring things you've ever read, I've had fun taking a look back over the last year, so thanks for indulging me.

Oh, and that swing that the front porch was just begging for?

Done and done!

Mother's Day

I'm a little behind posting about Mother's Day, but I wanted to show off Richie and Owen's handywork...

We spent Mother's Day afternoon at a baby shower for some friends. That evening, I was invited to a Mother's Day Mothers Night Out with a great group of mommy friends! We all wore our aprons out to our neighborhood bar for a few hours of chatting and enjoying each other's company.

But by far, the best part of Mother's Day is just being a mother to this little guy...

Mudbugs

Saturday, we were excited be invited to a birthday crawfish boil for our friends Erin and Rebecca. When I RSVP'd, I let Erin know that Owen and I don't eat crawfish, but that Richie is a big fan. What I didn't take into consideration, however, is that Owen will pretty much eat anything. ANYTHING. Please take a moment to check out my friend Maggie's blog post about our afternoon:

Just say NO to Mommy Brain!: Boys are from Mars.

A&P with Owen

Quick funny...
Owen had an accident in his pants this morning....lots and lots of tee-tee. I commented, "Wow, where did all this tee-tee come from?!"

His matter-of-fact response: "My penis!"

Goodnight already!

Most nights, Owen goes to bed without too much of a fuss. After using the potty and brushing his teeth, he will jump (literally) into his bed, mandate a couple of books to read, and settle in with his numerous bed buddies (monster, 2 Curious Georges, lamb, 'spider monkey', parrot, and little horse, to name a few). We will read, chat, say our goodnights and i love you's, turn on his baby Beatles cd, and turn off the light. Some nights, Owen will request "wabes." Oh, you've never heard of wabes before? Well, that would be Owen's way of saying he wants one of us to lay in bed with him and try to make ocean sounds. As you can imagine, that is no problem for Richie. My ocean sounds, on the other hand, generally come across sounding more like a tv that can't find a functioning channel more than relaxing waves gently lullabying our sweet son to sleep.

Tonight, it's been quite a challenge to get Owen to bed. I have tucked him in now FOUR times. Just as I get settled, I hear his little feet charging down the hallways. Here's how the conversation goes once he barges into our bedroom:

Owen: "I've got to tell you something."
Me: "Okay, buddy, what is it?"
Owen: "Spiderman."
Me: "What about Spiderman?"
Owen: "Spiderman."
sigh
tuck in
kiss
settle in
aaaah
darn...door
Owen: "I've got to tell you something."
Me: "Owen, I asked you to stay in your bed. What do you need to tell me?"
Owen: "Spiderman."
tuck in
kiss
settle in
door again
Owen: "I've got to tell you something."
Me: "Owen, what is it you need to tell me?"
Owen: "Lamb."
Me: "What about lamb?"
Owen: "Lamb."
tuck in
kiss
(uh, maybe a threat about popping his behind if he gets up again)
settle in
yup, you guessed it...
the dadgum door

Sounds like all is quiet on the other end of the monitor.
Oops, think again....

Happy Earth Day!

Spring has finally arrived in Nashville! Most of April, we've had chilly, damp, dreary weather...until the past week or so. We're finally seeing mid-60 and 70 degree weather and lots of beautiful sunshine. Owen has always loved being outside, so he's been spending most of the daylight hours running around the back yard, playing with the dogs, finding sticks, and just generally being his awesome little self. Tonight, for example, Owen fixed me a lovely dinner of gum and squash casserole (more commonly recognized as a pebble and a clump of grass) while I worked on sanding our front porch swing. :) Here are some fun pictures of Owen enjoying spring...

"It's easy being green! Hug a tree"

Comfy new sandals from Gran and Pop

Picnic lunch with Uncle Tom at the Earth Day celebration last Saturday at Centennial Park...

followed by a little yard work...

and dinner outside by our veggie garden.

Aah...springtime and the livin' is easy!

Hope you haven't been holding your breath!

Well, I am just barely getting in under the wire--it's almost been a month since my last post...but not quite! So, without further adieu, I present to you a little post about our Easter Weekend!


We started off by visiting (and joining, thanks to Gran and Pop!) the amazing Adventure Science Center...Owen and Miriam could barely contain their excitement waiting for the crew to arrive...
One of the highlights of our day was spotting this T-Rex....just like the T-Rex on Owen's shirt!

We also had a lot of fun watching the big kids figure out the pressure-launched two liter cola bottles...

Friday night, Owen spent the night at the guest suite with Gran, Pop, and Uncle Minor. Miriam and I joined them for lunch and some play time on Saturday...

Saturday night, we all headed over to the Grand Ole Opry House for a fantastic night of country and bluegrass music. Owen really seemed to enjoy himself...he clapped and pretended to drum his popcorn bucket along to the music. We did have to take him out to the foyer for some "run off some steam" time, but overall he did great!

Sunday morning, our awesome friends the Cassells and Uncle Tom came over for an Easter egg hunt! Owen and Dylan did a great job finding all of the eggs that Aunt Mimi hid.

We capped off our morning with a delicious brunch at the Nashville Biscuit House. Once we made it home, Tom convinced me that we just had to plant a garden right then! After Gran, Pop, and Uncle Minor headed back to Mississippi, we got started. Miriam and Owen were busy finding worms...

and climbing our very favorite magnolia tree...

What a wonderful visit! Somehow, regretfully, I didn't get any pictures of Owen with Gran and Pop! I have no idea how that happened, but I'm hoping that, out of the FOUR other cameras that were carefully documenting the weekend, someone got at least a few cute ones of Owen with Gran and Pop. That's right....FOUR other cameras. :)

Happy Easter to all of our friends and family!

the ides of March

Well, it's been a couple of weeks since my last post...I've been a bad blogger once again. I haven't been very good about taking pictures the last couple of weeks, either, so I only have a couple to share....

Owen is still loving his big boy bed! Richie and I have been enjoying having more room to read bedtime stories each night, and Owen is doing a good job of staying in his bed, for the most part. Here he is all decked out a few nights ago...

Uncle Jeremy has left to go on tour until early April. A few night before he left, he did the honors of helping Owen use the potty, brush his teeth, and read stories before bed. It was too sweet to not take a picture!

A couple of nights ago, Owen started rubbing his elbow with his arm flexed and said, "Mommy, my muscles are growing!" Funny boy!

there goes my blogging streak!

Well, I was on a roll...but life has been a little crazy the last few weeks and it's thrown me off my game. I had to go to Memphis for my company's annual leadership conference, and it took me a week to even unpack! Here are a few highlights of the last few weeks....

Oops...Owen found the Fun Dip I had been hiding from him!

Owen and Uncle Jeremy playing a game on Jeremy's iphone....

....until a call came in!

Owen thought it was funny that we were all wearing gray shirts

One exciting change around our house is the addition of Owen's very own BIG BOY BED! We have been talking to him lately about if he wanted to get a bigger bed, and he kept saying that he did. So we did some research online and spent all day Saturday shopping for mattresses. Owen had a blast jumping on all of the display beds. Thankfully, the stores were very accomodating, and I'm sure they have kids come through day in and day out. Finally, after lots of testing out mattresses and a little wheeling and dealing, we came home with a nice, comfy full size bed for our sweet boy. We put it all together and put the bedding on, and Owen just hopped right in....

I'm telling you, this is one of the few times I can remember

Owen actually being excited to go to bed! :)

He slept great through the night and napped for over 2 hours today! And although it was sad to take his crib and changing table apart to put in the attic, it is awfully exciting to celebrate this milestone with our son. The crib I might miss...the changing table, not so much!

A special day, a special Pop

Check out this sweet shout-out to our favorite birthday boy, POP!
*recorded at our home by super-Dad!*

Happy Birthday, Pop! by Lister Family Band

Fandalism Free MP3 Hosting

Happy V-Day!

Hope you have a LOVEly day!

Party time!

Today, Owen's preschool had a potluck Valentine's party for the kids. I went to Target last weekend and purchased a box of Pixar-themed Valentine's cards for him to give to his classmates. I have to admit...I had one of those 'whoa--I'm a MOM!' moments in the aisle. Sometimes those 'firsts' as a parent just catch me off guard, even something simple like buying a little box of Valentine's cards. Fast forward to last night (i.e. the night before the party)...I realized at, oh, about 11 p.m. that I still had to decorate a box for Owen to bring his Valentine's home in AND I had to put together the little candy bags I got for his teachers. Oh geez. So I turned on some reality tv and pulled out all the construction paper, scissors, tape, and stickers I could find. Although I was completely exhausted, I must say, I was so excited by the finished product...

The cover of Owen's Valentine box...

...and the little happies I made for his teachers!

2 temporary tattoos that he got from some classmates

Not to brag or anything, but Richie did say that Owen by far had the coolest take-home box. Whether it is true or not, just hearing that he thought so made me pretty darn proud. :)

Wishing all of our loved ones a very happy Valentine's Day!

Sweet nothings...

Owen and I had a heartwarming exchange on our drive home from our friends' house this evening. His preschool is being assessed for their annual rating tomorrow, so we were discussing the importance of listening to his teachers. I reached into the backseat to hold his hand and said, "Owen, I love holding your hand." He replied, "Oh, that is so sweet, Mommy!" We continued our conversation, and I told him how proud I was of how well he is doing at his new school and what a big boy he is, to which he responded, "Thank you, Mommy. You are a very sweet girl." Oh, my boy...my precious little boy!

Mary Poppins would be proud

A few days ago, we celebrated our friend Liam's 3rd birthday. One of his birthday happies was a Thomas the Tank Engine kite. Owen was so intruiged by the kite, and we made a deal: if he was a good boy at preschool and listened to his teachers, he could get a kite too. The next day he came home with a smiley face on his daily sheet, so Richie and Owen took a trip to Target to pick out a kite. It came as no surprise that he passed up Elmo, Thomas, and Dora for a Spiderman kite! When we woke up this morning to another day of blue skies, crisp wind, and mid-60 degree temperatures, I knew this was the perfect day for testing out our new toy...

Holly and Dylan met us at Litton Park for a really fun morning of kite flying, running, playing in the sand, and climbing all over the jungle gym. It took a little practice, but both of the boys did a great job with the kite. We did have one close call with some power lines and a tree, but in the end, everything worked out just fine. In a couple of days, the temperatures will drop back down to where they should be in February, but I think we all appreciated a little break from the cold! And I think it is safe to assume that these 2 little boys will be napping gooood this afternoon!

Whatever works

Owen decided to practice counting today...great!

He also decided that the best way to do so would be to put ALL of his Wall E stickers on the silverware drawer...not so great!

Oh well, on the bright side, he did a fantastic job counting all of his stickers. And I did an equally fantastic job of scraping them all off the drawer after he went to bed. :)

February fun

February has started off with a bang...Superbowl Sunday, February 1st, was a gorgeous day. I met up with my friend Maggie for a delicious brunch. That afternoon, Richie went golfing with some guy friends, leaving Owen and I to have some mommy-son time. The weather was perfect for some outdoor exercise, so we spent a while before naptime in the backyard playing chase.

One of Owen's teachers at his new preschool decided to attempt to give him a mohawk on Tuesday! You can imagine my surprise when Richie and Owen walked in with this hairdo...

He was really getting a kick out of our reaction to his hair. He told me, "Mommy, I want to see my silly hair!"

Today was National Wear Red day for heart disease awareness. This is the red outfit that Richie pulled together for Owen...

I found these vintage pants for $2.99 at a local thrift shop. Aren't they awesome?! You'll notice the big Sonic cup Owen is holding. Let me explain: This week, we have been sending Owen to preschool wearing big boy underpants with NO pullups over them, and every day he has come home dry! Of course, as soon as he gets here, he has an accident. But Richie wanted to reward him for being such a big boy at school with a vanilla milkshake. Sweet treat for a sweet boy!

On another note, yesterday was our good buddy Liam's 3rd birthday. Here's his blog. Happy Birthday, Liam! We love you!

Oops...not the best picture in the world, but it is the most recent of the two boys that I've got. Check out those coordinating rain boots. It must be a 3 year old thing!

What's in a name?

Reading 'All by Myself' (by Mercer Mayer) before bed tonight:

Me: "Do you know this little boy's name?"
O: "No..."
Me: "It's Little Critter. Can you say that? Say Critter..."
O: "Quittler...?"
Me: "Little Crit-ter"
O: "Little Quitter"
Me: "Good job! Do you know your name?"
O: "Owen!"
Me: "That's right...Owen Lister"
O: "Owen Lister!"
Me: "Owen Edward Lister"
O: "No, I'm Owen Lister."
Me: "Ok! Do you know Daddy's name?"
O: "Richie!"
Me: "Richie Lister"
O: "No, Daddy's name is Richie Daddy"
Me: "And my name is Anna Lister"
O: "No, you are Mommy. Anna Mommy."
Me: "And Uncle Jeremy's name is Jeremy Lister"
O: "No, I'm the Lister. I'm Owen Lister!"

Well, it's a start! :)