Videos

I turned  on the camera and this is what he had to say... 

Brendon is the king of YouTube videos. He's always finding cute, funny, crazy videos and this one really got Owen's attention.  It's called Doing Cat Stuff.  Owen laughed and danced as the cats sang the song.  Brendon was obviously enjoying it too! 

Owen's friends came to visit this week and played our Wii while they were here.  Owen laughed every time the ball bounced on the screen. 

He was so excited and couldn't stop squealing!!!! {You may want to lower your speaker volume} 

A sweet one about our sweet one

He's growing fast and learning quickly, so I'm soaking it all in before these days are gone. I decided that I'd spend the week creating a blog post about Owen. {Sorry... no craft projects, no recipes, just my precious little one and all of his cuteness.} 

Spending an entire week trying to capture his personality in pictures, videos and those quiet moments together was so fulfilling. For both our weekly planned activities and daily routines, I took the camera along for the ride. {That's when I remembered that our small Sony camera was upgraded for a reason---that's my blurry picture warning} In addition to focusing on Owen, I made a conscious effort to NOT focus on other things. The cell phone, TV, computer and all those other distractions were set aside. Don't get me wrong, I still watched the morning news (and by that I mean Good Morning America). I just watched it while he took his nap.  I lost my iphone for a while, then found it, and forgot to charge it....  so the cell phone really wasn't a distraction at all. 

It's been a wonderful week! 

 Hello, bed head! That must have been a great nap :O) 

We made a trip to Toys R Us for some great sunglasses.  He loves to play with my sunglasses, so I figured he enjoy a pair of his own.  And, he does actually wear them! 

He's really really good at self-feeding.  He actually gets frustrated when he's not given a fork or spoon to eat with.  I've also been working with him on drinking from a sippy cup.  He loves cups with straws, but hasn't quiet figured out that he needs to tilt the sippy cup in order to get something out of it. 

We spent lots of time playing at home.  The door and his car are definitely his favorite things to play with right now. 

He's also become a very tidy kid.  I guess he's watched me wipe the table and vacuum after breakfast, snack, lunch, and dinner so many times that now he wants in on the action.  One day he'll beg me not to make him vacuum, but for now I'll take the extra help! 

He's never really watched TV and I'm certain he's never watched Star Trek, but somehow he does know the Dr. Spock hand gesture. :O)

We went to Gymboree for PlayGyms and our usual class time.  He's become a lot more independent and loves the busy box full of toys. The balls are another favorite.  He can say BALL and it actually sounds like the word, not just baby babble. 

He worked up a big appetite with all that playing. I love the look on his face while he eats.... such focus and concentration!  He has mastered the sign language for the words more, eat, and all done. The trouble with sign language is that if I don't see him sign the word, he'll start tossing his food over the tray and onto the floor. 

He also went to his 1 year old check up this week.  He's growing at a steady pace, still hovering around the 30th percentile.  He weighs 22 pounds! But, he always feels heavier when I'm carrying him up to our 3rd floor apartment.  

I have several videos to share, but I need to learn how to post those on to the blog. So that will need to wait for another day. 

Canisters {Try #2}

The canisters that I made for the OSC auction were a great hit.  It felt great to hear all the compliments and know that my little craft project was helping to raise money for a great cause. 

I've got plans to make a set for our kitchen, but still haven't made them.  For the original set, I purchased the canisters for around $5 each from IKEA. But, I didn't buy a set for myself--- so I need to make a quick (3 hour) trip to IKEA to get the supplies.   

I wanted to make a set for Brendon's Mom, but knew that we wouldn't be going to Dallas before Mother's Day.  I found these twist top canisters at Target.  They are great!  I like their shape and the stainless lids.  

Brendon introduced his mom to tea a few months ago when we were visiting and she's been hooked ever since.  So, we came up with tea themed canister labels.  One for tea, another for rock sugar, coffee because that's always in their house, and pasta because it looks pretty and nothing else would fit into the tall canister. 

My guys were very interested in the project.... well, sort of! 

The Entertainment Center

The entertainment cabinet used to be my decorating downfall. 

 Here's a picture of it in our California home. As you can see, it holds our gigantic TV (and dust).

 Then, once we moved to Louisiana, my dad and Brendon were able to put the TV on the wall.  I love having the television on the wall, but I had no idea how to decorate the cabinet. 

I knew it needed decorations that were tall to sort of bridge the gap between the cabinet and the television.  So, we bought glass vases at a few antique shops and Pier 1--- but then it just looked like a shelf in a retail shop. 

I narrowed the vases down to 3 and added in picture frames. It still wasn't right. 

But, then--- I found Subway Art! 

And the cabinet that once annoyed me is now my favorite thing to decorate. 

I bought a 14x18 frame at The Lobby.  For $2, I bought a mat from the framing department that could fit into my frame but narrow the picture area down to an 11x14.  Now, each month I print off a new Subway Art to use as my centerpiece.  

I like to add little decorations to the jar that fit the holiday.  {The heart for Valentines Day, Green twine ball for St. Patty's, the egg and grass for Easter, and balloons for Owen's birthday}

The other accessories are just ideas that I find on the blogs I follow.  Eighteen25 definitely has the biggest influence.  Those women are so creative!  They designed the Filler Print for this months display. 

I noticed the pineapple in a china hutch at Ashley Furniture a few months ago. I knew it would look perfect with our plumeria picture from Hawaii.  I like this set up so much it might just stay up until July! 

Owen's Day at the Zoo

You can't have a zoo themed birthday party for a one year old that's never been to the zoo. So, on Owen's actual birthday, we loaded up a minivan with overnight bags, and drove to Dallas, TX.  My parents had been visiting us in Shreveport for the week and Jessica and David flew into Dallas for the special event.  The seven of us took a tour of the town--- which sounds like a sightseers dream. 

But, the sights we saw where far from a dream. Maybe even closer to a nightmare that went like this... find the van in the parking garage, load luggage, drive to the aquarium, errt--- break for crazy traffic, go, refresh iphone map,  exit closed for repainting, refresh map, exit closed, errt-- stop again, last try, exit here, nope- closed again, cancel trip to aquarium. Next stop lunch. Where to eat? Subway --- Aw, (Jessica brought me subway at the hospital the day Owen was born, tear) Have a great laugh at the Subway clerks expense. Drive to hotel. What?! No rooms?! We booked weeks ago! ERRR--- {insert Momma Bears angry eyes} Rooms founds, time for presents! Best gifts ever. Dinner with friends and a great night together.  

Tomorrow, we go TO THE ZOO!!!!!!

These elephants were a photo op waiting to happen. :O)

Owen loved every minute of the zoo.  And, we {basically} photographed every minute of it! 

He stood by himself for a looooong time, but refused to stand again once the camera lens was pointed his way. 

Owen was very curious about the birds.  And, I was attacked.  Yes, I ran screaming from the bird feeding area. It's funny now, but while the bird was pecking at my ankle it was not fun. 

Brendon and David took some awesome pictures of the animals. 

He got to feed the giraffes. 

Our day at the zoo was absolutely perfect! Owen loved seeing all the animals, riding in his safari stroller, and petting the animals in the children's zoo.  

Owen's Birthday Party

Owen's 1st Birthday Party was so much fun! 

  

My friend (and future cake shop partner), Jessica baked all the cakes.  I made all the royal icing and fondant figures to match the zoo theme.  Then, I used Pirouettes to make a fence around the outside of the cake. 

Owen was a very lucky little guy-- he got lots of toys, clothes, and a little Kawasaki.  We had been at Toys R Us a few days earlier and were shocked when Owen not only sat on the bike, but knew to press the little red button that makes it move.  He drove around the back of the store and never took his finger off the button. So, of course, we had to get him one! 

He wasn't quite sure what to do during the present opening time.  He pretty much watched Brendon open all the gifts. After the party, he had so much fun playing with his new tools.  

He knew just what to do with the Gymboree bubbles!

Cake Time

We Skyped with Brendon's mom so she could be a part of the action. (You can even see the phone in top corner of the picture) Technology is so cool!

It's a good thing she was watching because she never would have believed that instead of blowing out the candles---- he snuffed it out with his hands!!!! Yup, he reached right up to the cake and squished out the flame. {I was about to panic. Then, I realized he was perfectly fine. He didn't even cry}

My birthday boy

He's a very neat little guy and wasn't really excited about stuffing his face with cake. 

So, we gave him a spoon and he dug right in!

Yum! 

It didn't take long for him to warm up to eating cake!!! 

However, it did take a while to get the green buttercream frosting off this head, hands, clothes, carpet and every other surface that he touched. :o)  But, it was all worth it! 

Happy 1st Birthday Owen! 

Now... What to do for birthday #2 ?!?!?

Making it feel like home

Q:     What's more fun than having house guests? 

A:     Having 2 sets of house guests!!!! 

I've been so excited to share this quick project --- but waited until our guests were gone, so I didn't ruin the surprise. 

Anytime we have guests, I set out a little bag of travel sized toiletries.  It's a small way to show them that we are looking forward to their visit and want them to feel completely comfortable. 

The travel sized items are my favorite to buy and Target has the best selection.  I'm not sure how it happens, but I always end up leaving with way more little bottles of soap than I need.  They're just so cute!  And, after I put my Silhouette to work, the little toiletry goodie bag just got cuter, too.  

Check it out..... 

Doesn't that just look welcoming?  

Let's Get Ready to PaRtY!!!!!!

Let's Get Ready to PaRtY

Owen's 1st birthday celebration was exhausting perfect! In the weeks leading up to his big day, I spent hours and hours researching decorations for the house, cake designs, and finding birthday themed decorations that I'll use for years to come.  It was so much fun, but hard to keep a secret from my blog.  I know I let a few ideas out of the bag, but for the most part, I kept my ideas on the down low until his big day. 

So, without further ado..... Here are the pictures of Owen's birthday celebration {Part 1} 

 Expect daily posts of the festivities because there are simply too many things to blog about for one post. 

The girls at Eighteen25 created the Subway Art specifically for Owen. Just kidding--They did create the art, but it was just released at a very convenient time for the party. 

The Pickle Jar Project was there idea too.  Isn't Eighteen25 the best?!?  I filled the jars with M&Ms and refilled the jars after we ate them all. 

Add in a wreath full of WAY too many balloons and I have decorations that will be used for all the birthdays in the Herbeck house :O)

I updated my Frame For All Seasons with "ONE" for our big 1 year old.  

While I was collecting decorations, they took over the dining room table. 

And, Owen enjoyed digging around in the boxes. 

That's one cute little Zoo Keeper! 

I found the idea for making PomPoms from yarn.  The idea was great.  The cost was under $10 (after combining several coupons and in-store sales).  And, it wasn't hard to make at all.  Especially considering the fact that Brendon made 98% of the PomPoms.  Yes, he did!  I was running out of hours in the day, so he took over the PomPom assembly line in exchange for uninterrupted Lightning Hockey game watching time.  His friends docked him "50 man points" once they saw what he was doing.  hahaha I completely appreciated it! 

Here is a picture of my part of the PomPom decorations. I braided 20 feet of yarn, which is not as easy as it sounds.  My braid was turning into a huge knot. So, I divided the sections of yarn and put them into Ziplocks.  Then, braided--- the baggies keep the yard from tangling. Genius! 

Once the house, was full of decorations.  I spend a day cleaning before our house guests arrived.  It took an entire day to clear the dining room table of all my projects. Doesn't it look nice when it's clean?  I'm sure the table is wondering when I'll be filling it with papers, glue, my Silhouette, and all my other crafting supplies again. 

Very soon, dining room table, very soon!  It will be full of scrapbook supplies for the next few weeks, as I finish Owen's 1st year scrapbook.