Mallrats

Well, as you can see I'm still trying to get the hang of this blog program. I had meant to return to post the Children's Museum pictures but forgot. They are now on the previous blog. I'm getting there!

Last night was the church Youth Group Ridgedale Mall Scavenger Hunt. Jordan brought Jadine along for the fun and from the sounds of it they had a good time! I think we will adopt Jadine even though she didn't seem as impressed by the song "Space Olympics" as the rest of the McGowan clan was :-) The scavenger hunt consisted of a "shopping list" of items from around the mall. There were things on there as simple as bringing back a paperclip to finding seashells. But it was the other items like singing a song from a musical to at least 2 other people in an elevator and applying makeup on the group that really stuck out in their memory. Needless to say Jordan is still recovering from the BRIGHT RED lipstick he had to put on. In the below picture his lips are stained from said lipstick. Jadine really seemed to love that task!

While the scavenger hunt was going on we were banned from hanging out with Jordan and Jadine for obvious reasons so we "hung out at the mall" . I haven't done that since early high school. It wasn't all that it was cracked up to be anymore. At least not with a not interested in shopping husband and a baby that wanted to be held the whole time ;-) This is a picture of a TV they ponied up to at Gymboree while Mama shopped. Please note: I didn't buy a single thing!!!!

10 months today!

Well, to mark Harrison's 10 month birthday he learned to suck a milkshake from a straw! Needless to say Papa Mike is proud. Not only has he sucked down milkshakes he is now onto the kids menu wherever we go. Bryan had the day off Friday so we decided to visit our friend, Tim who works at the Children's Museum. We first met at the St. Paul Macy's for lunch. I had no idea the restaurant was such a St. Paul institution. Old school, indeed. It was wonderful and Harrison loved his Chicken Pot Pie, cookie and juice. In this case Nana would be proud.

The Children's Museum was not what I was expecting at all. Man, do they know what toddlers love! Harrison is still a bit small but still LOVED to crawl all over, look out the windows at the cars driving by, and watch all of the other kids. We could have stayed for hours! I know the video is on it's side but it's the very first video I've put up on the internet and don't know how to change it. I used our point and shoot to capture it which is why it's on it's side. Again, I'm getting there!

I think we may get the award for the most over-photographed kid ever! Below are some examples. He loves bath time and his new shark towel poncho is the best thing ever!

We also had a mini snow day where Daddy was out snow blowing and we watched. Harrison was very concerned that he could see Daddy at all times. We later joined him in the snow. This time the snow wasn't as traumatic for Harrison.

This past week has been pretty busy. On Sunday we had a few friends over to watch the Oscars. Bryan set up the big screen and we got to watch it larger than life. Harrison was especially excited to have baby Ingrid over for the first time and for Ally to play with him. He was up too late but had a blast. Jordan also joined in on the fun and invited his girlfriend, Jadine over. He and Brad shot some hoops while she watched and then came in to hang out with the Oscar watching crowd. Fun for all!

As I was saying it was a busy week. The day after the Oscars I hosted Moms Club. Everyone was able to attend which is rare as of late. Thank goodness nobody was sick! It can be a vicious cycle of sick babies! Anyway, we had a good time playing and I was truly tested on baby proofing which I still have quite a bit to do as I found out again. What Harrison doesn't get into before the other kids arrive he gets into after they leave. He is quite the learner but he STILL won't do "so big" or wave. ARGH! At one point during the afternoon I just had to sit back and laugh. All the kids went a little hog wild and were talking, crawling or in Jack's case walking in every which direction and in areas we had yet to discover. This next stage is going to bring us in over our heads if we weren't already :-) Below are some images from the day of Moms Club.

Old posts from our website.

Here are some posts from our website: http://www.mcgowanlegacy.com/ I'm trying to round it all up so it's in one place. Again, I'm not great with the organizing.

9th grade
Well, summer is almost over and we are preparing for new adventures. Jordan just got back into town after a wonderful summer in Bismarck, ND learning about technical theatre. He got back into town just in time to leave again for a week at Boy Scouts camp. When he gets back he will only have 2 weeks until he starts 9th grade!
Aug 10, 2008 10:26 PM

Almost 2 months old...
Well, time flies! It's already almost been 2 months. It's amazing how surviving day to day goes fast when you don't always know what you are doing. It's been a huge learning curve and a whole new world. Jordan is learning the joys of being a big brother by learning new things like changing diapers and yes, he has already been showered upon. He has also learned to feed the baby with a bottle and how to burp him. He is catching on nicely and sure is a loving brother. Mom and Dad are just trying to figure out a routine and still don't have that under control. Hopefully we will get one going and and then we can only pray that Harrison will sleep longer periods at night!
We are anxiously awaiting our 1 month old pictures taken at Target. BTW we do NOT recommend using Target for portraits. The photographer didn't seem to have a lot of ideas and the process to get the pictures is ridiculous for how advanced we are in technology of photography. The only reason we went there is to get family pictures and to free us up to get the baby to pose, stay happy and focus. We learned it's not as easy as we thought when we tried it at home. Oh, well. I'm sure we will figure it out eventually. Anyway, Target Studios had technical difficulties recently and our pictures are still not done! We've been waiting to send out thank you cards with our birth announcements and now it's getting later and later!
Well, we are off to bath Harrison and put him to bed after his final feeding of the evening hours. Hopefully we will all catch some shut eye soon.
Jun 16, 2008 9:54 PM

9cm...
Almost fully dialated! New baby will be here soon! For the moment, you can email us at bryanandmelissa@hotmail.com or IM mcgowberg@yahoo or inetgood@AIM to get a current update.
Apr 24, 2008 11:29 AM

And then....
I believe the rock song sums it best: "Up all night, sleep all day (morning at least)". Melissa went into the beginning stages of labor around 2am. The doctor provided an epidural around 4am which caused her contractions to slow down. At about 7am, the doctor administered the first pitocin. Since then, we've been in a holding pattern. I've been trying to catch some Z's as I think today might be another long day. Out our window its raining, but inside we're waiting for sunshine.
Apr 24, 2008 10:28 AM

To the Hospital
After 9 months of waiting, it is time for Baby McGowan to make its appearance. The doctor said that we cant wait any longer, so we packed up and headed to the hospital. Melissa is scheduled for induction at 7am on the 24th and we hope to have a new baby soon after. So far, Mom and baby are doing great. I am taking the little bit of downtime to get the web site setup. And hopefully, we will both find some time to get some sleep tonight.
Apr 24, 2008 12:50 AM

admitted
Apr 23, 2008 6:03 AM

First Post
Yep, it's our first blog post. I'm not gonna lie to you, we will rarely post things here. Also, the things we post will be boring to 99% of the people who might stumble upon this blog. Oh, and some it will be ignorant, incomplete of just plain wrong. But hey, at least we're honest!
Apr 9, 2008 11:25 PM

Valentine's Day

Ah, how could I have not posted something about Harrison's first Valentine's Day? Actually it's not so much about him as it is about the rest of us. As I awoke I walked out the bedroom door straight into a table with roses and a lovely note from my husband. Then I was greeted by Jordan wishing me a "Happy Valentine's Day". It's so crazy to see both kids growing so quickly but on different levels in their lives. Jordan was up and at 'em ready to go deliver his first Valentine. He had got a dozen red roses for his girlfriend, Jadine. He was primped and ready to go so Bryan dropped him off then watched it all go down from around the corner in the car. Shortly after he got home Jordan called and asked to be picked back up. I guess their morning together wasn't all that planned out after all. Kids! It's hard to get a date with them no matter who you are!

After Jordan got home I gave the boys their Valentines. Heart boxers for Jordan, a book: "All About Us" for Bryan and a red stuffed animal for Harrison.

Valentine's Day was the day we were to go spend the night at Bryan's parent's house. We stopped at Ikea for lunch, picked up a pink heart cake and were off to Hastings. We spent a leisure evening filled with burgers, cake and Wii. Then next day featured brunch and a trip down memory lane via cleaning out Bryan's childhood closet. Below is a picture in the very coat and pants Bryan wore in his senior picture. All in all it was nice to relax, away from home and for the boys to get to spend some time with some of the Grandparents.

HR on the Lam

Well, I have been inspired by other Moms from my "Moms Club" who have been faithfully blogging about how their child has been developing. Today I start this blog in a effort to not forget to write about the new wonders Harrison develops on a ongoing basis. I know, I know it's only about his 10 month mark but better late than never! We'll see how this goes...

As I type Harrison is playing on his own in his play area. I finished the play room which is basically a closet under the stairs. However, when we were adding on to the house I specifically had a window added in this "closet" with the intention that it could be a great play area for a child. And sure enough it is! He loves it. We have the hallway gated off so he can roam freely from his bedroom through the hall and into his playroom. Of course all areas are littered with toys. Luckily the play room door closes and nobody would be any the wiser!

We are currently working on Harrison's hand coordination. He is able to feed himself his bottle and in turn is able to use a sippy cup with no handles. He really enjoys his sippy cup. I honestly think he feels more independent. His eating is also on the incline. Bryan and Jordan took him to Buffalo Wild Wings last week where it was .99 kids meals night. So Bryan tested out the waters with nutritious mac and cheese, french fry combo. Needless to say he destroyed it! He eats, and eats and eats! His top 2 teeth are making their way out so he finally has a little chewing power. He is getting the hang of it and having fun. Here is a picture of Nana taking her turn at feeing him.

I had to go through his closet this week and pull all the 9 month clothing and then some! He has a long torso and I think long legs. Just like his Mama ;-) He is growing very fast but remaining lean. At his 9 month appointment he didn't gain any weight and stayed steady at 19 pounds. Although he certainly seems MUCH heavier than that! Anyway, the Dr. said not to be concerned and that he is just being more active. I have to agree. The scaling of furniture and crawling with great determination shows how much exercise he has on a daily basis. You'd think some of that need to exercise would rub off on the rest of us!

Well, that's all for day 1 of blogging. Catch you next time on the adventures of Missser Plug!