Gone Country!

One of our favorite country sayins around here is "I tell you what..." It's a common coloquialism at the McGowan household used for everyday things like describing the weather and talking about the price of gas. (i.e. "I tell you what, it's hot out der." or "I tell you what dem gas prices are chewin up my life savins.") The proper way to read/say it is to pause slightly after the phrase before you continue... for a dramaticized effect! Go ahead and try it... you know you want to.

Well, today... I tell you what, that kid of ours is growin like a weed! He's got more appetite than a bunny's got hops. I tell you what, that kid is talkin like he's got somethin to say to the world. I mean he ain't messin around. We been rollin around, squealin, squirmin, kickin, cooin, conversationalizin, sneezin a little, snottin a lot, smilin, and everythin else! Oh... and let's not forget (drumroll pleeezz) SLEEPIN!! I tell you what, that little boy of mine can snooze like a hibernatin grizzly bear in the dark of winter! Yeeehooo!

Ok... enough of the country talk. All that I'm sayin is that our little man is growin and changin every day. He tells us stories and listens attentively to us as we read him the Bible every night. (more about this to come in "Favorite things Baby" post #2) Oh yeah... big points for mommy and daddy.

And finally after much Tom-foolery, here are some pictures and yes, in leiu of the much awaited, debated, and ultimately terminated Bush 700 Billion dollar bail-out plan, here are some new videos for your viewing pleasure! Enjoy and hors d'oeuvres... I mean au revoir... wait.... see y'all later!!! I tell you what!

PICTURES

The man in black!

Shady McShadykins

I told Jen that she was drinking too many Diet Cokes while she was pregnant, but she wouldn't listen! It's not his fault!

VIDEOS

Look Who's Talkin' - another language! from AUBREY MCGOWAN on Vimeo.

~A

Our little steam-roller & Nashville part 2...

We got back safe & sound from Nashvegas last Thursday night & hit the ground running! We had a jam packed weekend at church, so Grady & I have spent this week resting & getting back into our routine. Grady also learned a new skill this week, which he would much rather practice than sleep! He figured out how to roll over during one of his naps on Monday! It's so cute b/c he has the most startled look on his face every time! The only problem is that he doesn't know how to roll back over, so naps have been a bit challenging this week! We're so proud of our little steam roller!:-)

Our trip home was wonderful w/ LOTS of spoiling involved!(including me b/c when Aubrey's around, he doesn't let me change a diaper!) Grady was dedicated at our home church on Sunday with both of our families in attendance...it was such a special day! We also took a trip to the ol' college town of Murfreesboro to visit my Aunt Barbara and stopped in to let Grady meet his great grandparents, Grandmother & Pop! He met his friends Emery & Liam for the first time & got to be there to congratulate his Aunt Sasha at her engagement party!!! I could go on & on...it was so neat to introduce our son to folks that have been such a huge part of our lives!

Click on the picture below to see more pictures from our trip home...

The McGowan Boys...

We have a ton of video to upload that we'll post soon!!!

~jen

A Few Of My Favorite Things - Baby Edition

Before Grady-Man came to this world, I took the opportunity to share with you a few of my favorite things in regard to pregnancy and all things baby. You can view those posts here, here, and here. Having been parents now for going on three months, (I know that's pretty crazy huh?) we have seen some really cool stuff and some really lame stuff mass produced and specifically marketed to sleep deprived gift card toting delirious fresh from the throes of late night feeding parents. It's seriously a racket and every product tells you that it guarantees that, if used according to guidelines, it will have your kid sleeping through the night, talking, eating well, and 100% colic-proofed at 3 weeks of age. This is specifically why babies, baby-making, baby-caring, and baby-spoiling make up a billion $ industry. (don't quote me on the stats)



Ok enough of my rant about the extortion of nuevo parentos and on to a few of the things that have reached "favorite" status in my book because they really deliver.





A Few Of My Favorite Things - Baby Edition

#1 - The Happiest Baby on the Block - DVD





I have to say that I have been a less than avid baby book reader. Ok, so I haven't read a thing since chapter five of "What To Expect When You're Expecting". At least I tried to keep up. But then one day our good friend Ronnie told us about this book that was ingeniously turned into a DVD about methods of soothing your baby. This was around week 3 or 4 when Grady's scream was just getting to that "I think my ears are bleeding" level. We were up like every other normal parent about every three hours feeding and then trying to soothe him and coax him back into a deep sleep. About once every couple of nights though, he decided that sleep, sleeping alone, or sleeping at all did not work into his nightly agenda. Seriously, he would do so good for a few nights and then during one feeding in the middle of the night he would decide to sing out and wake the neighbors with an unconsoleable cry. After calming him down and getting him to sleep, it was about time to feed him again. Haha.
Then, at just the right time, Ronnie drops this DVD in our laps. It's covers "The Five S's", which are techniques for soothing your baby. There are two things that I love about "Happiest Baby": #1 Whattaya know? It delivered! As cheesy and awkward as the author, Dr. Karp, is on the video, we were mesmerized and couldn't wait to experiment on Grady! My favorite is the "shoosh" Oh Yeah! #2 The marketing cronies at the publishing company had a stroke of genius... They put the main content of the book on a DVD! They must've known that the last thing new parents want to, need to, or have time to do is read some crummy old book! No offense to you baby bookworms.

Here's to happy babies and happier parents everywhere!

~A

2 month appt. and Grady's Nashville Debut!

From Grady Wk 10 and Nashville Part 1

Grady had his 2 month appt. last Friday. He weighed in at 13 lbs. 9 oz. which puts him in the 90-95th percentile for weight & at 23 inches long, he's in the 70th percentile for his height! I'm so proud of how he's growing! He also received a few vaccinations (a.k.a. shots!!!) which was so pitiful it had me & Aubrey in tears (big shocker, I know)! It's just so heartbreaking b/c he's totally defenseless...just laying there looking up at us like "how could you let her do this to me!?" He had a pretty rough day Friday. He kept doing this horrible screamy whine as if to say "Don't forget what that mean lady did to me this morning!" He ran a fever through Saturday afternoon, which they assured us is totally normal. My sister said it doesn't get any easier when they do understand and you have to strap them down to get a shot!:-)

We arrived safe and sound in Nashville yesterday afternoon and got to introduce Grady to his Uncles Jon and Michael, his Aunt Jaime, and his cousins Trystin and Jace.
He will make his TN debut tonight at a Sip-n-see at Gigi's house! We are so excited for him to meet some of our favorite people! I was super nervous about the plane ride, but he was the perfect little angel all the way through. People treat you so nicely when you travel with a little one. They couldn't keep their eyes off of him and we couldn't blame them.

Here are some more pictures for you guys. Aubrey is still working on a couple videos to post.

~jen