Saturdays Mornings and Tractors

For the last two Saturdays, Brent has taken O on a "boys" morning out. It's so cute, they go to the park and then to see "tractors". Owen leaves the house saying tractor over and over. (O has an obsession with lawnmowers and he thinks they're all tractors. He especially loves riding real tractors with his Papa.) On their most recent excursion, they went to the park in Oak Ridge and then to the Tractor Supply Store in Oak Ridge. O loved pretending to drive the lawnmowers and go-carts. They also had chicks in the store, so he got to pet them although he wasn't too sure about it at first. Brent said he just hopes he's still this interested in tractors in about 10 years when he could actually help out with the yard. Hopefully I'll get to join them soon so I can enjoy all the fun too!

What does the chick say...peep, peep!

I can't reach the pedals..

This is so much more fun than my toys at home.

I think I like this one too.

O at the park.

Daddy and O at the park.

18 Months and Driving?

This week, we decided it was time for O to experience life in the fast lane. Well, not really. We bought him a cozy coupe and Brent put it together for him Friday evening after work. Needless to say, he LOVED it! It was so funny, O would sit in the car as B was trying to assemble it. Even though it didn't have wheels on it at the time, he was perfectly content sitting in it. It's amazing what simple things entertain an 18 month old. Who knew our two-car garage would serve as a three-car garage one day. Ha Ha!

Sitting in the middle of it while Brent was trying to put it together!!! ha

Such a beauty....a wonderful addition!

Papa takes Owen for a spin

happy boy in his new cozy coupe

Check Out My New Ears

As I've mentioned earlier, O has had lots of ear infections since he turned one. We visited a ENT doctor several weeks ago and he recommended that O get tubes in both ears. His surgery was scheduled for July 29th at 8:45am. We had to be there at 7:45 and O couldn't have anything to eat or drink after midnight...hard for a fellow who loves to have his milk first thing in the morning...sigh. It went very well...we arrived and Brent entertained O outside while we were waiting to be called back. When we got back to the pre-op room, luckily they had a wagon that entertained him for the last 20 minutes before the procedure. From there we moved onto stickers and then they called him back. After some anesthesia and a little surgery, viola, a new set of ears. They gave us the impression we would be back there when the anesthesia wore off, but to our surprise he was definitely waiting on us when they called us back. Poor Angela (his nurse) got her workout for the day waiting for us to come back there. Ha ha! He was so happy to see us, or maybe he was more happy to see the big cup of milk we gave him! Unfortunately, the milk seemed to reappear on our ride home from the surgical center (yuck, talk about a mess). Overall, the surgery went very well and we're proud of how well O handled everything. Hopefully we'll be seeing a little less of doctors now and our little man will be happier and finally get some relief from the ear infections.

Upon arrival - poor fellow doesn't have a clue!

...still no clue

Mommy, why do we have matching bracelets?

Daddy pulling O in the wagon before going back.
Recovering after the surgery...finally something to drink

Back to the Beach

Since Owen was getting tubes on July 29th, we figured we would head back to the beach again before the big event. We left Wednesday and came back on Sunday...it was so nice and we had a fabulous time. Just like the first time, O loved the water and being on the beach each day. We couldn't get in the water fast enough. O met several friends while we were down there and enjoyed playing with them. While we were down there, Brent and I celebrated our 6th anniversary on the 24th!! Uncle Glenn and Aunt Mua joined us for the weekend and watched O while Brent and I went out to dinner on our special day. Thanks Mua! We had a great time and it was nice to get away.

Fam at the beach

Owen loved walking with his Uncle Glenn and Aunt Mua

Chillin with the lawn mower...ha


Loved playing with his new friend Lauren...they were only 4 days apart!!! WOW!

on the Pier

loved playing in the sand...most of the time he was in the water!!!

Eating icecream with Mommy

Happy 18 months Owen

WOW!! Owen, I cannot believe that you are 18 months...6 months shy of being 2!! My, where does the time go? What are you up to these days?????

He is VERY busy...into everything....prefers real appliances oppose to his toy vacuum, broom, etc....give him a vacuum and turn it on and he will seriously vacuum for 20 min!

He loves sweets....especially fruits and cookies...not a huge fan of veggies....oh well...we try to sneak them in when ever possible :-)

He loves to ride the tractor ( lawn mower) and he LOVES the pool.

He loves cats, dogs, and birds.

He loves to play outside...wants to be outside all the time.

He loves to see his family, friends, and other kids....tries to give most kids hugs and holds his hand out and says "WALK"...too cute!!!

He is still not a big fan of unfamiliar strangers ( it is just certain people...mostly males with beards)..he will warm up to them it just takes a while.


He dislikes the swing....prefers to push his friends Elmo and Henry in there instead

He is VERY sweet and loving....but very strong spirited as well.

He loves to feed his "friends" Henry and Elmo....and give us bites of what ever he is eating....such a sharer!

He is a fairly good sleeper....sleeps from 8pm-8am(wakes up some during the night) and naps from 1-4....(naps vary from 2- 3hrs)

He is not a big snuggler....Mommy and daddy really wish that he were :-(....he prefers to be down....but will give you a kiss and a hug in a heart beat!

Lately, he has become quite the talker....walk, mommy, daddy, papa, hey, bye bye, thank you, shampoo, brush, teeth, water, park, pool, tractor, chair, table, cup....are just a few of his favorites!!! We are having to be very careful of what we say....for example yesterday, we were talking about teeth (random topic)....immediately he goes to bathroom and gets his toothbrush....for some reason he has a very difficult time parting with this once he has it....usually results in a meltdown ha!

He can point to all his body parts (nose, hair, teeth, eye, knee, foot....etc)

Owen, we just love you soooo much!! It is hard to believe that you are 1 1/2 today! You continue to amaze us......we are so lucky that God choose us to be your parents!!!

Owen enjoying a cupcake on his special day!

Owen at the beach!!! He LOVES the beach...especially the water!!!

Beach Trip and Happy 4th!

Every Fourth of July, Brent's aunt and uncle invite us down to their beach house. We love Topsail Island, and are very thankful for them inviting us down every year! This year was much different than last year....last year Owen did not enjoy the beach..sand...or the water....this year...he would have stayed out there ALL day!!! He LOVED the water especially...seriously, this kid has no fear of water...he goes right out to it!!! I think swim lessons are in his near future...sooner than later!!! He also got to touch a fish and a baby shark that someone had caught....of course I did not have my camera when he was holding the baby shark :-(....YIKES! He loved touching it and thought it was funny when it started to move and flop around. We had originally planned to stay the whole week, but had to leave a bit earlier.....Owen has had a series of ear infections (he is getting tubes at the end of the month) and we thought he had another ear infection, which lucky just turned out to be his molars coming in....poor guy has got all his teeth coming in at once!!! Fortunately, we are going to be able to go back to the beach several times in August...can't wait!! Overall, this beach trip was a BLAST!!! Can't wait to go back! We heart the beach!!!

Enjoying the water with Daddy.

Catching the waves with Daddy.

Blowing bubbles with Aunt Mua

Taking a family stroll down the beach.

Getting ready to go sailing with Uncle Glenn (Brent, not Owen of course!)

Man, I love the beach!

Quick pose with the sail boat.

Looking for fish.

Build me a sand castle Mommy.

Looking for shells with Papa.

I love to find shells and take them to Mommy.

Mimi, this one is for you! Don't know how we did not get a pic of you and Owen this beach trip!! Here is one from last year! :-)

You had me from hello!!!

January 18, 2009....Owen Thomas Carroll came into this world and ever since then you have had daddy wrapped around your little finger. Happy Father's Day to the best daddy and husband!! We love you!!!

Father's day 1 year ago....Brent's 1st
Happy Father's Day to all the wonderful fathers out there!!! Father's Day is an awesome day...Brent is a wonderful husband, father, and best friend....I could not ask for him to be any better of a father. Sorry, I know this may be a bit sickening, but I truly adore the person that my husband is. He and Owen have this special bond....when he hears the garage door open he immediately jumps up from whatever he is doing and starts saying "daddy...daddy", after breakfast, he always goes over to daddy's picture and tries to give him a sip of his milk (no idea why he does this), and if he hears someone else say daddy his face lights up because he thinks he gets to see his daddy.....too cute!!! Owen loves his Daddy so much...Brent gives him his bath every night....and let me tell you...mommy doesn't do it right....they have a BALL in the bath....every night I hear them up there playing with toys and Owen squealing and laughing to the top of his lungs....he loves it when his daddy give him baths!!! Not only does Daddy give him the best baths but he also reads to him, puts him to bed, and plays trucks and blocks with him as soon as he gets home from work. He is the best dad ever!!We love you!

Father's day 2010

I love my family of 3!

riding his truck with a balloon tied to the back of course :-)


my 2 special men!