Category Archives: Owen

Owen at 4 months

Owen

Owen just turned 4 months old a few days ago, and he just had his regular visit with the pediatrician. While he looks so much leaner than his old brother did at this age, he’s actually a little larger. Here are his stats:

  • Height: 28 and 1/8 inches (75th to 90th percentile)
  • Weight: 16 pounds, 3 ounces (75th percentile)
  • Head circumference: 44 centimeters (90th percentile)

In addition to being bigger than Oliver, Owen’s athleticism has a head start on his brother. He’s already rolling over and, despite our efforts, sleeping on his stomach at night. And also unlike his brother, he actually sleeps well at night at this age.

Owen’s generally a quiet baby, content with entertaining himself often (usually because Oliver is so darn needy and an attention hog). However, when he decides he needs some food or needs to go to bed, he lets out the loudest, shrilly sound you can imagine. Between the noise and the way he moves his head about, I call him our little velociraptor.

Overall, he’s a good kid and we love him – giant head, dinosaur noises and all.

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Owen at 3 months

Owen

I realize that I’ve rarely blogged lately. It’s become quite difficult to find the time, you know, with these two (very needy) boys taking up almost every minute of every day of my life not spent at work. My lack of attention to this site mainly serves as a slight to Owen, at least in terms of documenting his life.

Owen requires a lot of attention, but he’s generally a good little boy. And he’s getting big. How big? I’m not sure until his next visit to the pediatrician, but he’s already doing things like raising his head up during tummy time, laughing when we make goofy noises/faces and “talking” (noises, more or less) to and grabbing nearby toys. Time sure flies by, doesn’t it? Can’t believe he’s already over 3 months old.

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Owen learns to roll over

oliver, Owen

It’s been a while since I blogged, and I hate to keep missing big moments in Owen’s development. Today, for example, he learned to roll over … well, at least from his stomach to his back. He’s getting really good at “tummy time,” holding his head up high for long stretches while on his belly and grabbing onto objects with his hands while laying on his back.

Below’s a video from this evening of Owen rolling over. Of course, Oliver had to show of his mad rolling over skills, too. Enjoy:

Our 2-month-old baby smiles, interacts

Owen

I’m really excited to see my parents soon, though I know I’m no longer the star attraction in my family. Yes, my parents obviously will be even more excited to see their grandchildren.

I can’t wait for my mom’s reaction when she sees how big Owen has become. He’s a beast, clocking in at almost 14 pounds already. That’s about twice the size he was at when my mom last saw him. Plus, he’s really interactive now, smiling and cooing. Very cute. Below is a video that gives a taste of what my parents are in store for. Enjoy.

When worlds collide: The boys visit the office

Family, oliver, Owen, Work

Tomorrow will be my last official day working at the Standing Partnership , and I have a lot of great memories. Though most of my memories involve learning opportunities and client work, I’ve also had a lot of fun. This includes

  • Countless “Fridays at 4” happy hours that went a bit too long (though I never got “grounded” by my wife, despite joking about it);
  • Riding our receptionist’s scooter around the hallways; 
  • A surprise baby shower in which my wife showed up at the end of a loooong retreat as “one more guest” (hopefully nobody saw me roll my eyes before I realized the guest was Sarah!);
  • An awesome visit to our former Portland office;
  • Getting an Alyssa Milano autograph despite not getting to meet her in person (12-year-old Justin would have DIED to know that I almost had this opportunity);
  • Touring an underground mine;
  • Talking hockey with the boss;
  • Seeing the other boss’s husband’s band rock some ’80s hair metal;
  • Tuning in a Cardinals’ playoff game on the television and my co-worker’s resulting excitement; and
  • all the fun I’ve had with the great group of people I’ve had the pleasure of working alongside.

During my nearly four years at this company, I also welcomed my two boys into the Lopinot clan. Last week, my worlds collided when Sarah brought Oliver and Owen to the office to eat lunch and mingle with my co-workers. Below are a few pictures. Enjoy.

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A rare, rare thing … peace and quiet

oliver, Owen

Sarah took the boys to her parents’ house today, and they’re not home yet. The house is quiet. Yes, quiet. It’s such a rare, rare thing. I’m watching television and the dog is sleeping next to my feet. It’s wonderful. On a typical day, the only time the house is quiet is when both of the boys are sleeping (also a rarity). And now, back to my enjoyment …

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Happy belated Easter slideshow

Family, oliver, Owen

I’m at little slow on the blog updates lately, due to about a million things going on in my life right now and a huge dearth of free time. That’s my lame excuse for why this Easter post is six days late. Anyway, we had a great Easter. We spent the morning here at the house. Oliver and Owen got Easter baskets and posed for a few pictures before Oliver darted over to play with his new trains.

Then we headed over to Sarah’s parents house, where we let Oliver and our sister-in-law (it was her first time, since she’s Indian) hunt for eggs. Afterward, we had a great meal. Everybody was tired when we got home.

Below is a slideshow from our day. Enjoy.

Our visit with Jennifer and trip to the zoo

Family, oliver, Owen

My sister Jennifer flew down for a few days to meet Owen and hang out with our family. We had a blast, and we already miss her.

Oliver really took a liking to his aunt. They were buds every day, wrestling, playing trains, throwing sticks and going for walks. Jennifer seemed to bond with Owen, too. Well, as best a person can bond with a newborn. She did change at least one diaper, so that counts for something, right?

Anyway, it was fun. For her last day here, we all headed down to the St. Louis Zoo. It was about 80 degrees, and I read somewhere that 30,000 people were there. It was packed. Oliver really liked the carousel, train and elephants. Below are a few photos from our day. Enjoy.

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‘Oh no, baby Owen!!!’

oliver, Owen

A lot of people have asked me, “How does Oliver like his little brother?” Well, there’s really not a simple answer. If I had to choose one word, I’d say “indifferent.” For the most part, he doesn’t seem too interested in Owen. However, Oliver does get interested when Owen’s crying or, really, makes about any noise.

After hearing Owen, Oliver yells out one of two things:


  • “Oh no, baby Owen!” (sounds more like, “Oh no, bay-bowen!”)

  • “He’s crying!” (sounds like a scary “heee’s cry-eee!”)
It was funny and cute at first, but imagine hearing the same couple lines over and over again. Here’s a short clip – put in on repeat about 100 times and that’s our day! Enjoy:



Enjoying all the moments – big and small – of Owen’s first three weeks

Owen

Owen has acid reflux and is on medication, so it’s been a rough go of it for the ENTIRE family when it comes to sleeping. But he’s such a sweet kid so far. I hate that my paternity leave ends a week from today. I’ve really been blessed to have the opportunity to share in all the moments – big and small – over the past three weeks.

He’s such a cute kid, too, always looking around with his eyes darting from object to object. And he’s so small. I guess that I never realized how big Oliver had gotten – until holding Owen. Need proof? Here’s a photo of little Owen in my hand, taken earlier this week. Enjoy!

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