We are Raising Money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society!!

Brian and I are going to run the Philadelphia Distance Run (1/2 Marathon) on September 20th. We are partnering with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team In Training to raise money for cancer research and to give money to families going through cancer treatment. Many people have already donated on our behalf but we still have over $2,000 to raise. If you would like to donate please go to http://pages.teamintraining.org/cpa/phildist09/bmchughowc. We are so grateful to all who have given to this cause and are excited to run this race. Thank you for your help and financial support!! We will keep you updated on how things go.

Long Overdue!

Sorry we have been so delinquent on doing any blog posts this summer! We had some issues with our computer and traveled quite a bit, all which did not help us get things posted. We have had a busy but awesome summer. Brian has enjoyed having the summer off from teaching and we are trying not to think about the fact that he will head back to school in a few short weeks.

At the beginning of July we traveled to Pittsburgh to spend time with my (Brynne's) family. Though Brian was supposedly training with my dad to join him in the mortgage broker business, they managed to get in two rounds of golf. Meanwhile, Owen and I got to spend fun time with Brittany and Grammy Deb. Owen was very spoiled and loved all of the attention. Brian and I went to an amusement park, Kennywood, to celebrate our 5th anniversary. We left Owen with Pap-pap and Grammy for the day while we ran around like kids all day and ate more junk food than we probably should have. It was so much fun!





The next few weeks were spent back in Lancaster. Brian did some painting and put some finishing touches on drywall and trim in our house. I am so thankful to have such a handy husband! After three years our house projects are finally coming to an end......at least for now. Owen turned 6 months old and along with that milestone he started eating solid foods. He did well with it right from the start. Sweet potatoes and prunes are his favorites.



At the end of July we packed up the car and headed south for a two week trip to Kure Beach, NC. We spent the first week with Brian's Mom, Dad and sister Kathryn. My family came at the end of the first week and stayed through the second week with us. It was such an awesome time! The weather was perfect and we just loved getting to spend so much time with our families. Owen was loved on constantly and Brian and I were able to relax a lot. We are still amazed and continually blessed by the love our families pour out on us.






We left Kure beach and headed up to New Jersey for the McHugh Invitational Tournament. This is a three-on-three basketball tournament that the McHugh's organize every year to raise money for the V Foundation. It is always so fun when the whole McHugh family is together. Owen got to spend some time with his cousin K. The boys were so cute together! They are going to have so much fun together when they get older..........and will probably get into lots of trouble together. :)

Happy Father's Day

Technically this past Sunday was my second Father’s Day as an actual father (Owen was a microscopic 6 weeks in existence last year at this time), but really my first since Owen was born. He thanked me for helping give him life with a really cool beer stein that Mommy painted and glazed, and a half-gallon growler of Iron Hill Brewery’s Honey Double Witbier, a delicious Belgian Ale, my favorite. I decided to wait until after church to have a drink, so I settled for some OJ to go with the pancakes that Brynne made for me. Since it was such a beautiful day here, after church and after lunch we packed up and headed to Susquehannock State Park to do a little hiking.

Portions of the trail overlook the Susquehanna River near Mt. Johnson Island, the first bald eagle sanctuary in the world. Owen helped keep us on trail..........but then petered out about half-way through the hike.

We had to cut it short when he started wailing uncontrollably due to being hot and tired, without having spotted any bald eagles. After returning home, the celebration continued as I was "allowed" to have hot dogs for dinner and what goes better with hot dogs than a nice cold glass of Honey Double Witbier? We capped off my first real Father's Day with a photo shoot in the backyard.

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there, I hope your day was just as enjoyable.

Memorial Day Trip to Chicago

This past weekend we traveled to Chicago to see Brian's extended family. I have to confess that I was really stressing over flying with an infant. What if he cried for the entire flight? What if everyone on the plane hated us because we had the crying kid? We waited until the last moment possible to board the plane. The only person behind us was a father traveling with his little girl who looked to be just over 1 year old. He must have had the same idea as us....keep our kids off the plane as long as possible. As we walked down the aisle to find our seat you could just see the look of terror on people's faces, wondering if they would get stuck sitting next to a crying baby. I suddenly felt guilty for all the times I, too, sat on a plane and grumbled under my breath about the crying child behind me or the little kid kicking my seat.

All of my fears were unfounded because Owen did AWESOME!!! He ate and then slept for a little bit and then was cheerful for the rest of the flight. He was passed around to many people throughout the weekend and handled it like a champ. Brian has a wonderful and large family. :) It was so good to see them and introduce them to Owen. It was a highlight to introduce Owen to his great-grandparents and to see cousin Kelly for the second time. The boys were so cute together! Grandma McHugh keeps buying them matching outfits that make them look even cuter. We took over a hundred pictures of these little guys together! What a blessing to be a part of such an amazing family.

We love Owen....and Penn State!

Aunt Megan came to visit last weekend and loves taking pictures of Owie. She just emailed these to me last night. Could he be any cuter?? I don't think so!

Hmm.....

This morning I went out for a run with Owen. We passed a man wearing a tight blue sweatsuit. He was walking two dogs, listening to his ipod AND smoking a pipe! I thought I was juggling a lot by holding my ipod in one hand and pushing the stroller with the other. Now if only I could walk dogs, while pushing the stroller while wearing a tight blue sweatsuit......skills.....that would definitely take major skills.......

Dear Owen,
Yesterday was my first Mothers Day as your Mom. I got pampered and celebrated all day. As I reflected on the day I recognized that without you there would be no celebration and pampering for me. You have filled my life with more joy than you know. I love being your mom and getting to spend every day with you. In the morning you always wake up with a pleasant spirit and just lay in your crib making adorable noises. When I come in to your room to pick you up you get the biggest smile on your face. What an awesome way to start my day! Your smile melts my heart. All it takes is one look from us and you get a huge grin across your face. You have had some issues with allergies and reflux and yet you have still managed to have a peaceful and happy demeanor. I know when I don't feel good I am not half as cheerful as you have been! I enjoy watching you discover new things like your hands and feet. You are not one to really suck on a pacifier but you seem to love sucking on your hands. Daddy seems to think you will be right handed because you seem to suck on that hand more than your left hand. We will have to wait and see if he is right. No real words come out of your mouth yet but you seem to have plenty to say to us. You babble and coo more and more each day. You and I have daily conversations where no audible words are spoken but they are some of the best conversations I have ever had.

Being your mom has already shown me how often I fall short and how imperfect I am. I have been praying that God helps me to walk in todays grace instead of living in yesterdays mistakes. You are a forgiving little guy and never seem to notice when I am in a bad mood or when I don't do things right. In spite of my many shortcomings I pray that you would grow up to know that you are loved by a God who formed every part of your being in perfect fashion. He loves you more than I ever could and I hope that through my love you are able to catch more of a glimpse of God's great love. I am so excited to walk through life with you. I dream of all the things you will get to do with daddy and I. We will surely take trips to the park, sing silly songs and dance around the house. You are a joy to me and you will always be a sign to me that God is faithful and he answers our prayers. I love you Owen. Thank you for making my first mothers day and my life such a wonderful experience.

Love,
Your Mom