A Graet(ers) Night

Last Friday, we took Owen to one of our favorite places in Cincinnati...Graeters. He's had ice cream a handful of times before, but this was our first eat-in experience. He was pretty tentative at first, but he eventually dove right in! I think we have another Graeters lover in the family!

Let's give this a try...

Warming up a bit...

Forget the spoon...let's dig in!!

Like mother, like son!

Owen, what is all over your face?!?!

It's chocolate!!!! YUMMY!

It looks like Owen has at least a little bit of my genes. We definitely share a love for chocolate. Although, I must admit, I usually don't get it all over my face when I eat it...at least most of the time :)

Faux-hawk Madness

Owen has some crazy hair. A lot of times when we are out, people comment to me that despite his size (he's a tiny dude - 20 pounds, 8 ounces at 15 months), he looks a lot older than he really is. I think we've all come to the conclusion it's because of his hair. It's just really long and grows really fast!

Last week, after Owen's bath, we decided to style his hair a little bit instead of his usual do. I think he looks pretty cute :)

Owen's new do

Dang, I look good

Easter

Our 2nd Easter with Owen was like any holiday normally is - busy, but great! We started out the weekend by spending time with Justin's family at the lake on Saturday morning. It was crazy...good crazy, but still crazy! Right now there are 11 kids - 5 of them are under 2!

Saturday afternoon, we headed to Columbus to spend some time with my family. We went to church with my parents on Sunday. Owen looked so handsome! I think I may be a little partial, but he was by far the cutest kid at church :) We didn't get any pictures with our good camera (I know, I know...we are terrible parents!), so you'll just have to take my word for it.

After Owen's nap, we went to Great-Grandma and Great-Grandpa Misner's house for dinner and an Easter egg hunt. Owen caught on really quickly and had a great time picking up the eggs from the backyard!

There's an Easter egg!!

Putting it in the basket

Hey! Here's another one!

Checking out the loot

Meet Miss Elsie Faye!!

Two weekends ago (I know, I know...I'm REALLY behind), I did something I wasn't sure if I would ever be ready to do... I left Owen for the entire weekend! Three whole nights and four whole days. He was in great hands with his daddy, so of course I didn't worry about him, but I missed him like crazy!

The reason for my absence was really exciting, though, and totally worth it! I left Friday morning and drove down to South Carolina to meet the newest member of the Newton family - Elisabeth (Elsie) Faye. When most people hear I drove 10+ hours (due to a giant detour - thanks rock slide) while being 32 weeks pregnant, they look at me like I am insane. But, honestly - I was looking forward to it. Sure, I had to stop more frequently than I would have liked to go to the bathroom, but I can't remember the last time I have had that much alone time! And I really can't see anytime in the near future when I will be able to enjoy 10 hours by myself again :)

I stayed all day Saturday and Sunday, and then headed home Monday morning. Aside from missing Owen, it was a great weekend. I got lots of cuddle time with my new niece, spent some playing time with my adorable nephew, and even was able to get in some good sisterly bonding. I also wanted to get a small glimpse of what my future would be like - a newborn and a toddler. I have to say, I am shocked at how well Katie, Ben, and Jonah are adjusting. It's not like I thought they would suck at it or anything :) It just boggles my mind that they can seem so

"normal" after only three weeks. I think it took us way longer than that with just Owen...and we didn't have an 18-month old running around! (I am getting nervous...can you tell?!?!) :)

As per usual, I didn't have my camera, but I got a few cute pictures with my phone, and Katie took some for me to share. So, what you've really been waiting for...

Elsie Faye Newton

born 3/8/2010

Because I am a total nerd and like "comparison pictures", here are some pictures of Jonah and Elsie with their in-utero cousins.

Jonah (1 week) and Owen (24 weeks)

Elsie (3 weeks) and Baby Myers #2 (32 weeks)

*Don't Elsie and Jonah look alike?!?!