Rolling Over, Part 2!

So many of you enjoyed Eli's rolling over video that I thought I would post an update! I'm happy to report that Eli is rolling over everytime I turn around now. It's always back to front, but you can tell that he is trying to figure out how to shift his weight to roll back over!

Happy Birthday Gram!

This week is also Gram's Birthday Week! Gram took Eli on his first political adventure to vote in Rockwood on Monday. She has probably already registered him as republican! :) We Wagners start out early! Our friend Mary Linda was able to help with Eli while mom voted. Thanks Gram for such a great adventure and we hope you had a fantastic birthday!

Happy Birthday Big Daddy Sam!

Happy Belated Birthday Big Daddy Sam! Sunday the Owings crew had a Mexican Fiesta followed by a short boat ride up the Emory! (Not always a good combination, but it worked.) Cole is not a big fan of the life jacket, but I don't know any kid that is. We had a great ride and wonderful time! Thanks NeNe and Sam!

Eli in his lovely life jacket!

Isn't Cole cute!

Cole AKA "Ice Man"

"El Capitan"

Fat Girls Ride Free!

Who woulda thought? Hollywood meets Rockwood! Last night Jay, Eli, and I went to eat dinner in downtown Rockwood at Ivans (FYI - avoid the chili at all costs). While we were there we noticed that the main street in Rockwood was closed and there were tons of people and camera equipment set up down the block. We thought it was probably one of those hometown commercials, or maybe a smalltown documentary. We were wrong! They were shooting a MOVIE! HA! One of the main characters is played by Hal Holbrook (married Dixie Carter). I didn't recognize the name, but definitely the face! It was really neat to watch them film a scene and holler "ACTION" and "CUT"! The main prop in the scene we watched was an old taxi and across the back window was the phrase "Jesus saves receipts, fat girls ride free". Thus the title of the post! Below are some pics that I took, and a brief synopsis from IMDB. Yall keep your eyes open for Rockwood on the big screen!






Abner Meecham flees the nursing facility in which his son has convinced him to live and returns to his Tennessee farm to live out his days in peace. Upon returning home, Abner discovers his son has leased his precious farm to an old foe and his redneck family. This sets up a ruthless grudge match between Abner and Lonzo Choat, the white-trash patriarch, each man rightly claiming the land as his own and each refusing to leave. Finding no help from his son and haunted by recurring visions of his dead wife, Abner resorts to his own methods of reclaiming his life.

Calling all moms!!

Okay, so I am finally at the place where I can look forward into motherhood and not just survive one day at a time! It seems as if the first 3 months are all about finding your foothold and discovering new things about yourself, your partner, and your child. You figure out your philosophy in parenting: whether your going to be more protective or more laid back, whether you can listen to your child cry himself to sleep, how to integrate others into your child's life, how to keep your marriage relationship a priority, how to deal when you need some "me" time, and most importantly how you are going to direct your child in a relationship with God. A few years ago I got to watch as a friend of ours announced that her child had accepted Jesus as her savior and wanted to be baptized! I get tears just thinking about it! If I could succeed in one thing as a parent, I want it be this! So.... looking ahead! Eli and I journeyed to the Lifeway Christian store last week and found some boardbooks and a set of sing-along dvd's. Eli loves the illustrations in the boardbooks, and he will sit and watch the kids sing on the TV for 30 minutes! So we have developed what I like to call "Praise and Worship Time" in the mornings. The songs even get stuck in my head! Try being mad or stressed out when "Father Abraham" pops into your mind! So my challenge to all you moms out there.... come up with your own "Praise and Worship Time" or something similar with your own kids! I look forward to this time with Eli and I know that I am making a difference in his life by showing him how to incorporate praise into his day!

Ribbit!

Isn't he the cutest little froggie you've ever seen! I love Eli's Pottery Barn frog towel!

Jumparoo lives on!

I can't believe it... the Jumparoo lives on to bring joy to another Owings child! This hand-me-down was one of Cole's favorite toys and he has enjoyed it until he can no longer fit in the seat! His loss, Eli's gain! I can tell that the jumparoo is going to be one of Eli's fav's too. He loves kicking his legs and he loves music, so this is the perfect combination. We will take good care of it until we can pass it on to the next Owings/Hinch child! Thanks Aunt Kellye for the loan!




Here's a video of Eli's first time in the Jumparoo! It's taken a few tries, but he's finally figured it out and now LOVES it! (Except when golf is on... I'll post that video later).

Jon and Kate Plus 8

What an inspiration! For those of you who have not seen the show "Jon and Kate Plus 8" on TLC, you don't know what you are missing!! This young couple have 7 year old twins, and 3 year old sextuplets. Can you imagine?! Kate is a stay at home mom, and she survives thanks to friends and her faith. I encourage you to read their story by using the link below and watch them if you get a chance on TLC. It is incredible to watch Jon and Kate interact with each other and with each of their children! Whew! It is exhausting just to watch!

http://www.sixgosselins.com/Our_Story.html

Looking at the world from a new direction!

Eli is becoming such a big boy! Just this week his head control has gotten better and he doesn't mind tummy time so much. He used to pitch the biggest fit for me to roll him onto his back, but now he will actually lay on his stomach and look around. He especially tries to find the TV!! (I hate that, but what are you going to do?)

SHMILY

SHMILY.... Google the word and read the story! Too sweet! Pass along your own "shmily"!

Baby Buddah

Redneck Baby!

I just could not resist posing this picture! Our good friends Mark and Jessica Horne got Eli the bib and sunglasses. Mark is one of Jay's hunting buddies (he has actually killed a deer). Jay has yet to "bring home the bacon" but I love my caveman anyways. So it was fitting that they should get Eli his first camo. Thanks guys! I just love these pics!

Eli in the kitchen!

I now have a new kitchen helper! Jay put Eli's highchair together this weekend and it is a hit. Eli loves being so high up and being able to watch what's going on around him. Jay and I thought this would be a way that we might be able to actually sit down to a "hot" meal together. Eli always seems to wake-up or get fussy while we're eating! Maybe we can even start a tradition of sitting at the table together (instead of in front of the TV) while we eat dinner. I think that if we make it a priority, we just might succeed! I also want Eli to get used to the highchair since when he gets mobile this will be another way to keep him in one place! :)

Rolling Over!

One of Eli's new tricks is rolling over! He has been close for a while, but he couldn't quite get his little bum over and the arm out of the way! It surprises me that he will roll from back to front because he hates being on his tummy. After he rolls over he just whines to be picked up! :) Go figure! Anyways, this morning during Rachel Ray he was trying so hard and finally after probably 6 attempts he got all the way over. I won't bore you with the video's of the first 5 tries, but here is the "ROLL OVER"! I love the grunting and know you will too! Enjoy!

2 Babies,,, Oh MY!

On Tuesday Eli and I got the chance to spend some quality time with Cousin Cole! Kellye's babysitter has taken vacation this week, so we volunteered to help out one afternoon while Kel was at work. I thought this would be a great opportunity to experience what it would be like to have a second child! :) Kudo's to all you mom's out there with multiple children!!! Thank goodness that Eli is not mobile! HA! We did have lots of fun, but needless to say I didn't get any pics of them together. I was able to time it so that Eli napped and I played with Cole... then Cole napped and I played with Eli! We had some great fun outside on the porch together (Eli was in the Baby Bjorn) and Cole helped me push Eli in the travel swing. I don't know if Jay and I are ready quite yet for another baby... but it won't be too long! :) Here are some updated pics of Cole from our day of FUN!

Returning to RMC!

Today was my first day back to work! All you working mom's out there understand the nerves and emotion that goes along with making a commitment to returning to a career. I am so blessed to have a career that I can return to part-time and a mother who is willing and excited to stay with Eli while I'm gone. The build-up to the 1st day back was way worse than the actual day. There were no tears as I left, but I was so excited to see Eli when I got home that I couldn't help but tear up! Of course I called 3 times in 7 hours to check on him so I knew he was doing great! :) Tonite, Eli and I prayed for all you fulltime moms out there with fulltime careers! May God bless you with a clear vision of how to balance career, family, and faith!

4th of July!

4th of July! WOW! We were busy! Friday we went to the Kingston parade, then spent the evening with Kellye, Keith, and Cole at Eden campground. We rode in the pontoon and ate a fabulous meal at the camper. We also got to spend some QT with our friend Martha Wayne who was visiting from Florida! We pray for God to bring her closer every day. Florida is too far! Then we spent all Saturday preparing for the worlds best COOKOUT at the Owings! The cookout went better than we could have imagined. We had a kiddie pool... bubbles... Corn Hole... hamburgers, hotdogs, watermelon... grilled bologna... and lots of friends and fun! We partied hard and the kids were absolutely worn out by the end of the night! Sailor finally fell asleep while Nikki and Joe were holding her! Madeline actually fell asleep on the stairs! Check out the pics below of our fun-filled weekend!