Owen's Wild Weekend

Owen had a huge weekend, and I think he's still recovering. He kicked off the weekend on Friday with lunch with Aunt Roberta. They did a little window shopping in Bethesda while she held him.

Then after a nap it was off to dinner with Aunt Mary Ellen at a Vietnamese restaurant in Arlington, where Owen surprised us all by picking up chopsticks and eating his pork and vermicelli.


Then Saturday was the big day at my parents' house, meeting a lot of his extended family and some family friends.

He went full-throttle from noon to 9 p.m. -- no nap, no even sitting down for a few moments. He got on the trampoline, sat on a bike while people took turns pushing him around, got in the sandbox, got a haircut from Aunt Gail while the camera flashbulbs popped, and chowed down on all the food his relatives kept stuffing in his mouth -- basically the contents of an entire fruit basket throughout the day and a whole chicken, topping it off with a bowl of ice cream. He even got on Renee's mini John Deere Gator and took off by putting his foot on the pedal without knowing what was going to happen. Renee rode him around after that, and he loved it.

So his introduction to the Smith Family was a roaring success. He was utterly charming and social on Saturday. There were about 30 people at my parents' house, and he did great with so many new faces. He even let a few people hold him. He's doing great in crowds, although he did bite Mommy once -- biting is still an issue.

He got some Ravens gear from Aunt Melinda and an Air Force shirt from Aunt Gail, so he's very decked out now.

On Sunday, it was back to my parents' house for a more low-key day with Aunt Gail before she headed back to NC. He played in his new sandbox (although we filled it with water), ate a lot of rock fish for lunch, picked apples and pears with his grandparents, and added a new skill -- throwing a ball for a dog to retrieve at friends of my parents' house.

He's really doing great with new people, although he's quick to turn on the waterworks and show us all of his teeth (screaming) when he doesn't get his way. It's hard to tell if this is typical 2-year-old behavior or if it's part of the transition -- he's had so little control over his environment in the last month, so he gets frustrated easily. And he still carries around comfort items -- usually a plastic fork and spoon.

But it's all going well. We're having a blast. He's mostly a very happy kid who wakes up with big smiles for his parents, and then goes full-throttle for the rest of the day.