The Owens in Maine

A typical morning

2011-09-26T06:06:00.000-07:00

late summer

2011-09-04T17:47:00.000-07:00

A few more late summer photos from Maine and from a weekend in New Hampshire.

Mish

2011-09-02T18:25:00.000-07:00

We're finally getting our mid- and late summer blog posts up. In late July, we went to Michigan (Mish to Ana), where Meg's parents recently finished building a cabin. We swam in Lake Superior, introduced Ana to motorboats (and running out of gas), Meg and I ran a half-marathon, and Ana got to play in a giant swing. Good times for all.

Summer

2011-07-14T10:33:00.000-07:00

In the midst of a busy summer, we thought we'd post a few pictures.

watching the sharks

2011-05-05T16:57:00.000-07:00

Tonight, for twenty-five minutes, Ana and Ethan walked in circles around the house, talking and laughing pretty much constantly. For those of you who haven't seen our house, it's small, and that's a lot of circles. Meg and I just sat on the couch and watched. It was kind of like watching the fish at the Boston Aquarium swim in circles, only more entertaining and much louder. Here's a snippet.

Big

2011-05-03T11:42:00.001-07:00

It is official - we have two walking kids in our house now. Enjoy the video of our proud little man.

April

2011-05-02T17:28:00.001-07:00

April was a dreary, bleak month in Maine, other than the last day, but we did have some bright spots along the way. The month started with a visit from Dave's parents, during which Ana got to make homemade playdough. This was a huge highlight. We also walked outside when the weather cooperated, and sometimes when it didn't, and Ana got to decorate her first Easter eggs.

Mike and Mary visit

2011-05-02T17:21:00.000-07:00

Ana and Ethan's grandparents came to visit in mid-March. They were thrilled with their new wagon, which Mike had lots of very useful help assembling.

photos

2011-03-26T17:40:00.000-07:00

It's been a long time since we posted photos, but here are some of the winter's highlights. They include Ana's snowglasses, Ethan's first wagon ride, and lots of fun around the house.

March

2011-03-11T16:05:00.000-08:00

We know we've let our fan base down with our 6 week lull between posts. No real good excuse besides life got busy. Ethan gets on the scoreboard next week, turning 1 on the 16th. We are looking forward to his party this weekend with friends (something fun in the midst of March dreariness). And we promise to post more pictures of the big event.

January

2011-01-30T08:55:00.000-08:00

We will be excited to mark the end of the year's longest month tomorrow. In the meantime, our children are developing their variety show talents.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

2011-01-23T16:57:00.000-08:00

January in Maine continues to be a snowy one, with another snow day this week and lots of skiing this weekend. Meg is starting to feel that she might ski as fast as she walks, and Dave is refining his expert technique (falling into a snowbank) for controlling himself going down hills.

Ana loves singing, Ethan loves listening and we get a chuckle (and thought you would too).

Our snowmen

2011-01-16T16:22:00.001-08:00

Our frequent viewers are apparently big fans of the video clip, so here is another shot of the kids in their matching pajamas (thanks to Jenni and Steve). We enjoyed our first real January snowstorm that brought the first snow day of the year. Both Dave and Meg have been able to use their new cross country skis and hope to become experts by the end of the winter.

2011

2011-01-09T16:39:00.000-08:00

Life has been busy, as you could have guessed by the lack of posts. We had a great holiday trip, although Ethan managed to get the stomach flu and take down 10 family members (Chicago and Boston). We are hoping to get a bit more snow to really embrace Maine in the winter and help Ana get over her snow phobia. Our camera's flash is broken, making picture taking a bit hard. We've started to really embrace the Flip video camera that we got from Pat and Emily last Christmas. Hopefully this upload works!

fall in maine

2010-10-17T17:53:00.000-07:00

A few days ago, we took Ana and Ethan to an Audubon Society preserve in Falmouth. It was a glorious fall day, and we took lots of pictures.

finally, another post

2010-10-02T16:59:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since we found time for a post, but here's the latest. They're growing. Ana adores her little brother, and he thinks she's pretty much the most entertaining thing in the world. Ethan now is starting solid food, and Ana has started a pre-school program two mornings a week.

Summertime

2010-07-10T17:02:00.000-07:00

We’ve been living the Maine dream the past few months … hot sunny days spent on the beach, warm nights on the porch, lots of walks to our local ice cream shop, visits from family and friends, a 4^th of July parade ending with watermelon, a trip to the New Hampshire lake house with blueberry picking, swimming, and lots of boats. Life is pretty good right now … who needs sleep.

Ana is two!

2010-05-19T17:48:00.000-07:00

Five days later, she's still saying "Happy birthday to you" at random times and reciting the names of all the kids who came to her party. We think she had fun.

Little Big Man

2010-05-19T17:30:00.000-07:00

Mr. Ethan from weeks five to nine. He continues to be calm, and is actually getting even more mellow. According to the doctor's statistics, he's enormous--off the charts for weight and around 97th percentile for height. We may soon be setting up a 529 to pay for feeding him when he's a teenager.

Jenni's visit

2010-05-08T17:34:00.000-07:00

In hopes of seeing whether Ethan at six weeks was as fussy as Ana at the same age (he wasn't), Jenni came to visit. We spent lots of time outside enjoying the early spring. Ethan mostly slept in his various carriers, which is why there aren't many photos of him. The other toddler in some of the photos is Ana's friend Claire.

Shannon's visit

2010-04-17T10:19:00.000-07:00

Shannon (Meg's sister) came to visit, reprising her brave efforts just four weeks after Ana was born. Ethan was a little easier of a baby than his sister had been, and Ana was thrilled to have someone else to play with.

Easter eggs

2010-04-17T10:08:00.000-07:00

Ana had her first Easter egg hunt with neighbors Rowan and Kai. She enjoyed it immensely. Ethan slept.

Ethan comes home

2010-03-28T12:30:00.000-07:00

Ethan 's now been with us for ten days, and they've been busy. Dave's parents were here for several days, and then Meg's parents for a few more days, which meant lots of fun grandparent time for Ana. She also really, really likes holding her little brother.

Ethan arrives

2010-03-17T17:20:00.000-07:00

Ethan was born at 2:36 in the morning on March 16. Here he is a few hours later, and here's Ana meeting her little brother for the first time. She was interested, momentarily, and then decided that running around hospital hallways was much more fun.

getting ready to be a big sister

2010-03-17T17:13:00.000-07:00

February

2010-02-27T17:22:00.001-08:00

A few highlights from a mostly uneventful month - the calm before the storm.

St. Thomas

2010-01-16T16:34:00.000-08:00

We spent last week in St. Thomas (U.S. Virgin Islands), where January isn't quite like it is in Maine. Ana rediscovered shorts. We spent lots of lazy time sitting on the beach (Ana loves sand) but also took a trip to nearby St. John, where several of these photographs were taken. A pretty lazy trip, but perfect for a year-and-a-half-old girl.

The photo with the pond in the foreground and ocean in the background shows the view from our condo. Importantly, the pond had ducks. Ana spent hours looking at, and talking about, the ducks. The previous photo shows the view from our beach, with Virgin Islands National Park (on St. John) across the water.

The Christmas Post

2009-12-29T18:37:00.000-08:00

Christmas 2009 took us to Chicago and then to Boston. The photos, which never seem to appear in the right order, show Ana with various relatives at both places. Christmas highlights included seeing relatives young and old, opening lots of presents, and, perhaps most importantly, discovering bubble wrap.

Halloween

2009-10-31T16:57:00.000-07:00

This was the first Halloween that Ana really got to celebrate. She did it in style. The photos show her with baby friends Ava and Bowden and with neighbor Kai. As you can see, he went for the stretch move and got away with it.

Mike and Mary visit, and Ana goes to chef school

2009-10-29T18:38:00.000-07:00

Ana has taken up cooking, though not yet with real ingredients. She was very pleased to show off these skills, as well as her stylish new boots, to her grandparents.

Ana at the Cumberland County fair

2009-10-29T18:33:00.001-07:00

Horses were overwhelming. Bunnies terrifying. Cows, however, were a source of comfort. We do not pretend to understand.

None of this is recorded on film, but you can see her inspect the parking lot.

ana goes apple picking

2009-10-29T18:20:00.000-07:00

You'd think we were there for hours, with all the pictures we took. Actually, it was a pretty short trip. But Ana enjoyed it immensely, and successfully picked her first apple.

out of sequence

2009-10-05T16:57:00.000-07:00

We're now hopelessly out of sequence, but I discovered a file of photos that I had missed in earlier posts, so here's another set of early summer shots. Making guest appearances (and keeping us sane in the month of rain) were Pat and Emily (Meg's brother and his fiancee), Hudson and Libby (friends from California who now live in the other Portland), and Jenni and Steve (Dave's sister and her boyfriend). Hopefully (hint, nudge) Hudson and Steve, who we left most of the photo-shooting to in this stretch, will have some shots of their own out soon.

Pinelands

2009-09-23T18:10:00.001-07:00

A few more recent shots, all from a walk near Portland.

2009-09-23T17:21:00.000-07:00

We've been slackers about taking and posting pictures this summer. But here's a sampling, with some shots from Minnesota (with Meg's family), Acadia National Park, and New Hampshire. As you can see, Ana has been growing hair (she now has a spectacular mullet) and learning how to walk. And she's now moved on to attempts, sometimes successful, at running.

Mary, Shannon, Mike, and Chew visit

2009-07-02T17:17:00.001-07:00

Shortly before the 2009 monsoon began, Mary and Shannon (Meg's mom and sister), Mike (Shannon's husband), and Chewie (Shannon and Mike's dog) came to visit. The dogs played non-stop and the rest of us mostly just tried to stay out of the way. Ana was amused.

Memorial Day

2009-06-12T18:17:00.000-07:00

We spent Memorial Day in New Hampshire with Dave's parents and grandfather. As usual, Ana enjoyed it, and Steve loved spending half of her days fetching tennis balls from the lake. Meg and I also managed to escape for a few hours for our first baby-less hike.

One!

2009-05-31T18:00:00.000-07:00

On May 13, Ana had her first birthday. A few days before, we gathered a few of her baby friends (and their parents, and one poor non-parent who wondered what he'd walked into). The photos show the party, and Ana's later introduction (on her actual birthday) to cupcakes. She wasn't sure what to do, but Steve made short work of the leftovers.

spring planting

2009-05-04T17:56:00.000-07:00

Maine spring has finally arrived again, and we've rediscovered our yard. Barbara (Dave's mom) came to visit, and she and Meg did lots of gardening while Ana went for wheelbarrow rides.

March grandparents visit

2009-04-05T18:00:00.001-07:00

Mike and Mary (Meg's parents) spent five days with us in late March. We, of course, put them to work painting, installing light fixtures, and, of course, watching Miss Ana.

California

2009-03-17T16:50:00.000-07:00

We spent the second week of March in California. We stayed in the apartment next to Jenni's (Dave's sister), and caught up with lots of family and friends. Hopefully in this order, the photos show Ana with Meg and friend Sarah Thornton; Ana's first encounter with grass (she was fascinated) and swings in Dolores Park; us with friends Joe (who Dave trekked with in Nepal), Abbie, and Henry; rock star Quinn Gomes (son of friends Shannon and Alan; Ana was very entertained); Ana on a hike in Marin with Meg Quinlan; Mina (who Meg used to nanny) holding Ana; Isaac (Mina's brother, who Meg began nannying when he was a month younger than Ana is now); Ana with Meg, Jenni, and Dave's cousin Val; Ana with her great-aunt Linda and great-uncle Ken; Ana with Jenni in Redwood Park; Ana fending off the paparazzi; Ana tackling Teo (son of friends Carter and Karen); Meg, Carter, Ana, and Teo on Stinson Beach; Ana and Teo in the bath/kitchen sink; and our somewhat messy eater.

February

2009-02-16T12:04:00.000-08:00

Ana's now crawling, flopping, pulling to standing (and then relying on us to take care of that pesky gravity thing), picking and choosing the few foods she's willing to eat, and happily cruising, with help, in her little car. A few pictures here; hopefully more to come soon.

Holidays, part II

2009-01-04T10:21:00.000-08:00

From Chicago we went to Boston, where Ana again got to spend lots of time reveling in attention. She also learned to bang on piano keys, which brought much happiness.

Holidays, part I

2009-01-04T09:47:00.000-08:00

Ana just enjoyed her first Christmas, which involved sleeping through most of the gift-opening. She doesn't quite understand the concept yet, but does realize that wrapping paper is lots of fun to eat. We split the holiday between Chicago and Boston; these are some of the Chicago photos.

In no particular order, we have Ana wearing reindeer antlers while working in her office; Ana with her Aunt Shannon; Ana with Meg's friend Meghan Quinlan; Ana's Uncle Mike showing off his fashion sensibilities; Ana with her second cousins Cal and Ryan; Ana with Meg's cousins Erin and Brenna; and Ana's Grandpa try to talk some sense into his second granddog.

More fall fun.

2008-11-08T07:16:00.000-08:00

In the past few weeks, Ana has discovered fallen leaves, semi-solid food, Halloween, and backpacks.

chicago

2008-11-08T07:09:00.000-08:00

While Bob worked away on the third floor and Steve worked on pulling things off the counter and chewing them to little tiny bits, Meg and Ana spent a few days in Chicago, where she entertained her grandparents, her great-grandparents, Shannon and Pat, and Chewie (Shannon's new pup).

Enter the frog suit

2008-10-28T17:26:00.000-07:00

Here's Ana, Meg, and Kai (our neighbor) at Monday morning play time. Actually, Kai mostly just plays with the dog.

Ana has a new frog suit. As you can see, this is very exciting.

The colors are still here, but leaves are falling fast, and it feels like winter's coming soon.

Slobbering lessons

2008-10-18T12:00:00.000-07:00

You may think we got carried away with the camera. But it's our two favorite photo subjects, and we couldn't choose just one picture.

Grammy and Grandad visit

2008-10-18T11:42:00.000-07:00

Dave's parents spent Columbus Day weekend with us, and enjoyed two days of glorious Maine fall weather. We went apple picking (and picked far more apples than any four people really could possibly need) and walked around Peaks Island, an island a few miles from our house.

Fall in Maine

2008-10-18T11:37:00.000-07:00

A few shots of Ana enjoying the season, and showing her regional loyalty.

2008-09-28T16:52:00.000-07:00

A few September shots - Ana and Steve playing on the floor, Steve enjoying what she hopes is just the first of many Ana-related spilled food moments, Dave being compelled to try on Ana's new hat, and demonstrating that he has a very, very small head, Mike/Meg's dad painting the kitchen, Ana laughing at a silly person, and Ana and various friends, who she almost notices.

A few more Ana shots

2008-09-05T17:41:00.000-07:00

No story to go with these photos; we spent most of the last weeks of our summer being lazy and enjoying Ana's increasingly happy and engaged personality. She now smiles often, is much more alert, stays awake for longer stretches, and enjoys our walks even when she's not sleeping. And she seems to be utterly fascinated by leaves. Fall could be a very exciting time for her.

Carter, Karen, and Teo's visit

2008-09-05T17:32:00.000-07:00

Our California friends Carter and Karen and their son Teo came to visit (twice, actually, with a trip to Bar Harbor in between). Teo is about a month younger than Ana, so, naturally, they hit it off. We did a whole lot of nothing, which was great.

Minnesota

2008-08-12T18:05:00.001-07:00

We spent five days in northern Minnesota, where Meg's family has gathered every summer for the past twenty-eight years. For us, it was the most relaxing week of the summer; for Ana, it was a week of constant attention and high-quality naps.

Too many photos to label, but the faces below include Meg's cousins Erin, Jack, and Brenna; Meg's Aunt Deb; Grandma Kurtz; Captain Patrick Kurtz; and fishing pro Mike Kurtz.

Adventures at home

2008-08-12T17:45:00.000-07:00

The new Olympic sport: competitive tummy time. Ana lost; Claire, with a month advantage, blew her away on both endurance and form.

Below, Ana expresses her disapproval of mom's cooking, models a new hat, and meets our friend Scott, who traveled all the way from San Francisco, and Bob shows off his latest addition to the masterpiece.

New Hampshire, Part II

2008-08-12T17:28:00.001-07:00

These photos are from before Shannon's wedding; we just hadn't posted them yet. At left is Ana playing with her Grammy.

Steve loves New Hampshire - a lake, and lots of attention.

Ana liked being down by the water - she sound of waves seems to relax her.

Ana being held by her great-aunt Linda.

Shan-o-Ban's Wedding

2008-07-20T15:34:00.000-07:00

Ana endured her first flight, heading to Chicago for her Aunt Shannon's wedding. She met her Uncle Pat, Great Grandma, Great Grandpa, and multiple other family members, unleashing her charms on all of them. Ana was a champ for the entire weekend (almost; you'll see one exception below) and spent the entire time on the dance floor snuggled in the sling with Dad. Do we have a party girl on our hands?

Jenni's visit to South Portland

2008-07-09T18:57:00.000-07:00

Jenni (Dave's sister) was our next visitor, and she got to see us for the first hot stretch of the summer. Which meant lots of time near the ocean, and also Ana's first bath in our newly-purchased wading pool. Thanks to Jenni for lending us several of the photos in this post, and in the previous one.

Meeting Great-Grampa, and other adventures

2008-07-09T18:38:00.000-07:00

We spent last weekend at Dave's grandfather's house in New Hampshire, and Ana met one of her great-grandfathers for the first time. She decided that she rather enjoyed listening to (and watching; black and white keys are thrilling) him play the keyboard. She also met her Aunt Jenni for the first time, witnessed her grandfather's birthday, spent lots of time with her grandmother, and listened to lots of fireworks (it's New Hampshire, so setting off your own fireworks is almost a legal obligation, both on and after the fourth of July). She is utterly indifferent to explosions.

Steve the dog, meanwhile, discovered that she could simultaneously swim in and drink. This made her very happy.

The whole crew also stopped by South Portland on Monday, where Grampa/Great-Grampa/Hal saw our house and renewed his acquaintance with Steve, who took an immediate liking to him.

Rubes and Lisa visit

2008-07-09T18:25:00.000-07:00

Our friends Matt (aka Rubes) and Lisa came to visit for a few days last week, and got to spend lots of time holding the baby, walking with the baby, and playing ukelele to soothe the baby (which works brilliantly).

Grandpa meets Ana

2008-06-22T14:51:00.000-07:00

Meg's parents (Mike and Mary) came to visit this week.

We walked our standard neighborhood walk

and explored a new island.

We're trying to teach Ana how to smile and laugh, but Grandpa had other ideas.

And, of course, Ana spent lots of time happily being held. It's her primary activity.

The Most Beautiful Sight in the Entire World

2008-06-22T14:45:00.000-07:00

This is it.

And this is our baby looking at it. Yes, this is her favorite thing in the entire world (mom is a close second, but she's working hard at it; for the mobile, it's effortless). Thanks to Keri and Arne for giving this to us; and giving Ana an early chance to reveal her inner math geek.

The Ana Whisperer

2008-06-22T14:29:00.000-07:00

Meg's sister Shannon, aka the Ana Whisperer, came to visit, which led to a few calm days for our little Fussimasaurus. We sampled Maine's finest cuisine and had dance parties to keep Miss Ana calm, and she spent lots of (happy) time being held by Shannon.

The many flavors of stinkeye

2008-06-10T18:31:00.000-07:00

Curious stinkeye.

Happy stinkeye.

Haughty stinkeye.

Insolent stinkeye.

Stinkeye chef?

And, below (I can't figure out this formatting), we have sleepy stinkeye, oversleepy stinkeye, and a gratuitous scenery shot.

Owen Camp

2008-06-10T18:21:00.000-07:00

So the grandparents Owen came to visit this weekend, and they did what grandparents Owen do: they went straight to work. Bob worked on wiring; we planted vegetable gardens; we installed outlet covers; Bob mowed the lawn; and Ana kept a close eye on all of the proceedings.

walking, walking

2008-06-01T16:42:00.000-07:00

So Miss Ana, we've discovered, does not like to sit still. To be bounced in place sometimes suffices, and a drive sometimes will do, but she seems happiest when walked. So, we're doing lots and lots of walking.
So we've spent lots of time at the beach, and at the nearby park...

And this is pretty much what Ana does the whole time.

It does wear us out.

Ana week 2

2008-05-26T15:45:00.000-07:00

Ana begins practicing strategies, which no doubt will become increasingly useful, for tuning out her father.

She's much more willing to converse with the ladies.

But not quite sure about the sibling rivalry.

She always seem to be happy (meaning asleep) in her sling.

Ana comes home

2008-05-20T17:06:00.000-07:00

It took a long time, but she's finally here (and is loudly protesting a diaper change
as I write).

The order of the photos is a little bit jumbled.

more ana photos

2008-05-16T05:21:00.001-07:00

Ana arrives

2008-05-15T13:46:00.001-07:00

just a few photos so far:

still waiting....

2008-05-06T06:30:00.001-07:00

Spring has arrived, the warm weather has arrived, the flowers have arrived, and the leaves have arrived, but the baby, alas, has not yet arrived. Here she is, still perfectly content in her warm nest.

For those of you who haven't seen it yet, here's a shot of our house. In the family tradition, it's tall and skinny.

And, finally, another beach shot, with our family swimmer.

counting down...

2008-04-13T17:30:00.000-07:00

Pat (Meg's brother) came to visit. Steve said hello, with great enthusiasm.

And eventually calmed down for a Kurtz family photo.

Spring also came to visit. We rediscovered our porch.

And, to round things out, a few shots of the baby's room. Yes, we're nesting.

And while we were nesting, Steve found a new toy to play with. Fortunately, this was after, not before, she tried to lick Pat's face. As for us...

the 80s live on

2008-03-08T12:28:00.000-08:00

In honor of the Celtics' recent success, it's time for the Larry Bird mustache.

construction project

2008-03-03T18:36:00.000-08:00

The weekend's excitement here:
Bob built a corner cabinet

And Steve did her best to help.

our uneventful but photogenic life

2008-02-24T13:59:00.000-08:00

This is a baby blog, but there isn't actually a baby yet, so in the meantime, we're probably going to post lots of photos of the dog, our neighborhood beach, and the dog on the neighborhood beach. We'd post photos of our other big adventures, if we had other big adventures, but we don't, so: dog, beach, dog on beach. Get ready; it's going to be lots of fun.

Here's the beach.

And here's the dog on the beach.

And, in a minor variation, we did a dayhike yesterday in Camden, which is a bit of a drive up the coast. So, here's the dog in the woods.

But don't lose hope, blog viewers! Exciting events are coming up this week. Most importantly, Meg, in addition to her pre-natal yoga class, will be attending her first water aerobics class. I think it's kind of like synchronized swimming, but maybe with lifejackets. Picture this, but with pregnant bellies:

We'll keep you posted.

The first post: 11 weeks left

2008-02-19T17:54:00.000-08:00

And so it begins. Meg has just returned from her first pre-natal yoga class ("talk to your baby! Say ommm to your baby!); the dog just ate a ballpoint pen, or at least half of it, and seems not at all displeased with having a bellyful of ink; and Dave is fresh from a meeting at which he learned that if everyone just read the Lorax, the world's problems would disappear. It is, in other words, a typical night in Maine, and as good a time as any to enter the blogosphere. Thanks for coming to visit us. On the left is our favorite olive on a toothpick, and below is the rest of the family.