Spring Chicken

Oh what a JOY Owen is. He has been changing so much these days, it is amazing. He talks to all of the animals around our property. The horses, goats, lambs, hens, roosters, llamas, dogs, donkeys, cow, and pig provide Owen with entertainment on our daily (or twice daily) walks. We are so lucky to have our own zoo in our backyard! Our little spring chicken is getting ready for another heart surgery on friday. We have been preparing so much to get to this point again. Owen doesn't even know it is coming, but I think he does sense something is up around here. He has been such a great companion, helping me with the laundry, gardening, and taking care of the chickens. Chris has been very busy getting the property ready with burning, mowing, weed-killing, roto-tilling, amending, weed-preventing, and garage cleaning. This is a busy time of year around here, regardless of what is going on with Owen. Grandma, Na-Na, Wynter, Courtney, and Aunt Jac came over recently to wish Owen a bon-voyage. Chris, Owen, and I had a wonderful family walk just us tonight. That is a tradition that my parents did growing up, and Chris and I started when we moved out to the country. A nice walk after dinner- the fresh air calms the mind and relaxes the soul.
His dexterity has really come a long way recently. Even though he doesn't eat much- still just breastfeeding sessions at night-his pincer grasp is fantastic, and has graduated to the point of finding every little thing on the ground. He also has been a fan of tags on anything for some time now. He pulled up on me last week from sitting to standing, and today went from sitting to a crawl. He pivots around, crawls backwards, and can get around pretty well. He stops and takes breaks where he just lays flat on the ground. He is calm when he does this, so I'm not sure if he is short of breath or just doesn't want to work to move around.
These sweet little explorer's hands just melt my heart. We haven't left yet but are already pining to return home.