Gillen's Special Party

We had lots of friends and family celebrate with us for Gil's "special party" as we told Owen. We were so honored that our friend Rich, who presided over Owen's brit milah, made the trip from Seattle to Pittsburgh for our second son. Owen's ceremony was held in our home in Dayton but our apartment could not accommodate everyone so we had it at the Temple. It was a beautiful day and the small chapel in our Temple turned out to be a beautiful space for it.

A friend catered for us and the theme was "picnic style" I made all of the decorations while I was pregnant, cupcake toppers and a banner with his Hebrew name on it. I designed the centerpieces from something I saw on Pinterest. 

We promised Owen could have a cupcake at his brother's party... he had three.

By far my favorite quote of the day was during the first photo below when I found myself saying, 

"Owen you have to wear pants on your brother's special day!"

Our clever firstborn found a great way to get attention that morning... 

obviously you can see who won this battle.

Just him and his accesories

I love this guy so much it hurts.

A Day with Daddy

Jeremy had the weekend off so Sunday we made pancakes and the boys had some cuddle time with Daddy. Later in the day Jeremy and Owen tried out his brand new bike! Jeremy is so excited about his bike and the seat on the back for Owen. They rode to a local park and Owen talked the entire way there and back.

Such fun these two are going to have together on this new bike!

A very ducky birthday party

When Owen was a baby we took a land/river tour on a ducky-themed car/boat. He got a little whistle and while he was too young to remember the tour he found the whistle this summer and has been wearing it every day since.

Saturday was the 15th Birthday of the ducky tours in Pittsburgh and they celebrated with a duck and circus themed party. It was free and open to the public and while it was just a small affair, Owen thought it was great. He devoured his cupcake, got a ducky-shaped balloon animal, a duck "tatoo" on his arm and even had his picture take with a giant birthday duck.

Gil slept soundly in the stroller the entire time.

Ducky birthday party = success!

Brothers at the ZOO!

It was a beautiful fall day to enjoy the zoo - four weeks since we've been (last time was when I was 38.5 weeks pregnant). It was practically empty and we had such a nice visit.

Owen walked the entire zoo which is quite the feat for a 2 year old. We had a tiny bit to go and he started crying that he was so tired and couldn't walk anymore. So I put Gil in the wrap and let Owen ride in Gillen's car seat ... thankfully Owen is still small enough to (kind of) fit.

I think we might need break down and invest in a double stroller for these boys!

Two Weeks Old

Apples and Honey Festival

We're gearing up for Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year so this weekend we went to a festival at a local park to celebrate.

Sleepy Chubs

5 days old: Let's Ride on a Boat!

A busy Big Brother has no tolerance for laying around the house all day so we toured Pittsburgh via the Gateway Clipper Lollipop. Owen was thrilled with the big boat and the clown who made him a balloon animal. Gil enjoyed the sights from inside the wrap, slept and nursed most of the trip.

 This was a far cry from what we were doing 5 days post partum with Mr. Owen!

12 Hours Later: Gillen Meets His Big Brother

Seeing my firstborn looking so big, brought me to tears. 

Owen stayed overnight with our neighbors and they helped him make Gillen a card from his big brother. Owen also brought him a monkey (Gillen smiled ;))

Sweet red-headed boy is eating like a champ.
God couldn't have sent a more perfect match for our little family.