Happy Halloween!

Pooped out before we even started

Batman, the kitty cat, and a shark

"I bite you!"

"Pow!  Bam!  Batman!"

"Meow!"

2 months

Kai had his two month check up last week.  He weighed 11 pounds 8 ounces; his birth weight was 7 pounds 14 ounces and he was down to 7 pounds 3 ounces at discharge.  His eyes are terrific-ly blue.  Wish my photography skills were better to showcase that.  (Well, that and he would have to actually cooperate and not be a fuss bucket.)  His hair color is still up in the air.  The front is filling in and is darkening up but there's still quite a bit of red in it.  For the first time, this week, I've seen the red show up inside; usually it is most apparently in the sunlight outside.  So I'm cautiously optimistic that the red will stick.   I mean, why not add a redhead to our eclectic mix?

Pineapple er Pinecone er Pioneers Park

No school today and D was home sick so I took all 4 kids and headed to Pioneers Park in hopes of giving D a chance to rest and helping to keep me sane with everyone home.  In general, I was crabby and the kids were wild but we did manage to eat at Red Robin without having the folks eating at the adjoining booths calling the management.  Zeke was sure we were going to Pineapple Park.  Conleigh was sure it was Pinecone Park.  I think by the end, at least 2 out of the 3 kids know where we went.

At the entrance of the nature center

The swaths of mowed prairie grass left behind giant grass stems to play with

Kenson dancing like a fool

Literally dancing like a fool

What a 3 old does when he can't find grass that is as big as his siblings

Puppet show complete with a roaring deer

It also featured Justin Beaver.  (My kids apparently think Justin Bieber's name is Justin Beaver.)

1 Year Ago...

We arrived back on U.S. soil after spending two weeks in China.  Can it be a year already?  In some ways, a year feels like eons ago.  In other ways, it's flown by in the blink of an eye.

Our midnight airport arrival after a cuh ray zee airplane adventure-so thankful to see my mom, grandma, cousin, and not one but two sets of friends who braved the late hour to welcome us home

Loved arriving home to a houseful of family-my aunt and cousins had stayed with the big kids the week prior and were still there plus my mom, grandma, and cousin came up

Just hanging out

Zeke arrived with much shorter hair than he has now and a heart that tolerated us but didn't love us.

Tonight, I can't help but smile as he lays down for bed and insists that I kiss him, as he throws his arms out flat against the sheet and demands that he gets not just a kiss but a hug too.

I can't help but smile as I think about his love of sharks and all things ocean, wondering how many times a day he asks a question or shares a story connected to those things.

I can't help but smile as I replay his little voice saying "I sowee" or "I no like that.  Gusting!"  What a prolific talker he is for someone who is 3 and has learned a new language in the last year.

I can't help but smile as he notices "z's" and "e's" and proudly proclaims those to be his letters, as he jumps off of the playground equipment and is thrilled because it is so high, as he counts from 1 to 11 and then skips 12 in favor of another round of 7-8-9.  Oh how he wants to be just like the big kids!

And I can't help but smile as I watch him cut with regular scissors (not his spring loaded purple ones), open the door knobs on our doors, ride his tricycle, practice snapping his pants, put his shoes on by himself, bounce a ball, and pump on a swing with no assistance.  He is such a smart, intuitive kid who simply figures it out, regardless of how many fingers he has.

6 Weeks

Kai is 6 weeks old today.  I think we are starting to emerge from the haze that is having a newborn.  In the last few days, he has started consistently eating 4 ounces at a time and has consistently gone more than 2 hours between feedings.  Still likes to be up every 2 hours during the day but his nighttime sleeping habits seem to involve stretching the feedings out.

I have my 6 week check up today but in general, things with me have gone really well.  I have felt really good pretty much the whole time aside from a head cold last week and one or two days of some tummy issues that seem to maybe be surgery related.

In the "this might be oversharing but oh well" department, yesterday I was discussing with D my 6 week doctor's appointment and said I assumed I would have a pelvic exam but wasn't sure if I would have to have a full PAP smear done.  Conleigh overheard and immediately wanted to know why I got to have a popsicle.  Ah, if only!  As I explained that this was not what I said, that a PAP smear is a kind of test you have done at the hospital, Kenson then chimed in that he was pretty sure he had had one of those too.

Conleigh and Kai

Photo Dump

Well sort of a photo dump...I don't take a ton of pictures so 4 is as close to a photo dump as I will get.

Ignore the grainy quality; my camera is terrible at capturing motion especially from a distance.  Yes, Conleigh was making that face while she was swinging.  Yes, they were outside in crazy clothes because they thought it was cold.  No it wasn't that cold, like maybe 55.

Shameless baby photo #1

Shameless baby photo #2

The bonus of having a baby?  Having your mom come 3 out of the past 5 weekends.  We didn't tell the kids she was coming this weekend so when she showed up Friday night and rang the doorbell, D had Conleigh answer the door.  Conleigh opened it, said "Grandma, why are you here?" and then shut the door in her face.