Easter Round #1

Saturday night turned into a bit of a nightmare when Reed had an allergic reaction. We could tell something wasn't right after we put him to bed. After we each had gone in a couple of times to calm him down (he was tossing and turning and crying and then really started to scratch) we found his back covered in a rash, his eyes red and watery, and his nose running non-stop. A middle of the night bath, more allergy medicine, Mom sleeping in bed with him, Dad sleeping in bed with him, Reed sleeping in bed with us all followed. I use "sleep" loosely as none of us were getting much rest.

During all of this Kieran was up his normal two times and then woke up for good at 6:00 am. Although I was exhausted he was adorable and totally into digging through his Easter basket.

Reed managed to sleep in a bit and when he wandered into the kitchen he immediately spotted his Easter basket and asked to start working on his new puzzle. Tio and C arrived just a little later and Reed put them to work helping him assemble the thing while I made biscuits for the gang.

Once Nonna, Pepe, Gran, and Papa arrived we let the Monkey out to hunt eggs (K was taking his first nap of the day). He did a great job finding most of the eggs on his own, but did get a little help from Tio and Nonna. The highlight of the morning was probably Nonna trying to help Reed find an egg hidden in a tree by demonstrating how high a bunny could hop.

After egg hunting, I nursed and dressed Kieran while Reed opened a few gifts. After that we had time for a few quick family shots before we went our separate ways for the rest of the day.

Papa, Gran, Nonna, Reed, Pepe, Kieran, C, and Tio

Pre Easter Celebrations

While Easter isn't usually too hectic of a Holiday for us, this year it turned into a three day event. Friday was actually pretty mellow, G-Mama arrived to stay with us for the weekend and we had a quiet dinner at home with her. Reed was so excited that she was staying with us - he had her reading books, doing puzzles, and trying to follow along with his imagination all weekend. Her stay also meant lots of extra cuddle time with Kieran, who has changed a lot since she met him four months ago.

On Saturday my Mom, Aunt Penny, Auntie M, and I hosted a shower for our cousin Adam's fiancé, Emily. It was great getting to know her better and welcoming her into the family. Aunt Kari brought their daughter Haleigh (5 weeks) to the shower and it was the first time a lot of us had the pleasure of meeting her.

Adorable favor created by Auntie M

Aunt Jana, G-Mama, Grammy (M's Grandma), Aunt Laurie, and Blingy

Melinda, Mia, Aunt Kari, Grandma, and Great Grandma Didi
Somehow I didn't get a picture when Aunt Penny was at the table

Our "theme" was bright colors and lots of flowers

MOH Cameron, Emily, Amy, Me, Rachel, and Auntie M

Finally meeting Miss Haleigh

G-Mama and Haleigh

Emily and Cameron

After the shower we decided that since my parents were hosting Easter for 30 people the next day we would have their contingency over for pizza and spare their house the mess. Aunt Laurie, Uncle Peter, Uncle Kyle, Aunt Kari, Annaliese, and Haleigh made the trek with them and we had a nice evening.


Grandpa doing double duty

Aunt Laurie getting in some K time



New Cousins!!!

Brotherly Love

I touched on it a bit in Kieran's five month post, but I have to say a little more about my two boys. So far Reed has been such a great brother to Kieran. He genuinely likes him and is always concerned about him.  Reed is great about sharing his toys with K, getting him a pacifier or cuddly guy when he is fussy, and always includes him when talking about our family or an outing we are planning.

For his part Kieran adores Reed. His eyes are constantly trained on him and he will sit contently watching Reed do pretty much anything. Now K is reaching out for Reed often and you can see the pure joy on his face when he's actually able to make contact and give Reed his own special kind of hug.

The other night when I was taking pictures of Kieran for his five month post Reed plopped down on the blanket and Kieran was immediately enthralled. He couldn't keep his hands off of R and Reed was giggling and playing along so well. I really hope that their two year age gap starts to "disappear" a bit and that they became great friends and play mates in no time.

I've been okay about taking videos of the kids lately, but obviously not good about posting them on the blog. Videos are almost exclusively on our iPhones these days, so they aren't of the highest quality, but they capture the moment and it just isn't realistic to lug around a separate camera for our day to day escapades. A couple of weeks ago I was cleaning up the kitchen after breakfast and Reed took it upon himself to teach Kieran how to play patty cake. I love this video and have watched it over and over so I have to share.

April Shower Brings May . . . Baby!!!

This past Saturday Nonna and I had the honor of hosting a baby shower for Aunt C. Chelsea is the life of every party, so kind, generous, caring, and so so so much fun. We really wanted to make sure her shower was a reflection of all of those things. The decorations were all in bright colors, we played lots of games, ate nachos, had fun drinks, and a lot of her close family and friends were able to shower her and Meatball (Reed's nickname for the baby) with the love they so deserve.

 

 

I tried to say something when I welcomed everyone to the shower, but got teary eyed just looking at C. Since Reed's birth I have had the privilege of watching Drew and Chelsea interact with our children. The time that they spend with them, their excitement over the kids' milestones and funny moments, and the love that they show them is nothing short of amazing. Reed and Kieran are so lucky to have them as a big part of their lives and this little baby they are about to bring into the world has hit the parent jackpot for sure!!! I also am, over the moon, excited that we are going to have cousins that live nearby and are so close in age. I grew up with my cousins (Auntie M and Hunky Greg) living on the neighboring ranch and we have so many great memories and are all much more like siblings. I really hope the McClarty and Ketelsen babes can have a similar experience!!!

Andrea, Baby Cambria, Sally, and Alli

Michelle, Shannon, and Clara

The Family - Kim, Jessica, C, Auntie P, Margie, Lynette, and Tammi

Auntie M, Beth, Denae, Lindsay, Emily, and Kathi

Kim and Nonna (college roommates)

Eden and Laura

Auntie M and Ashley

Shannon and Tricia playing the guess the dirty diaper game

Grandma, Lisa, and Sally

Kieran has been on the shower circuit lately, this is his fourth baby shower we've attended together and I plan on taking him to one next weekend as well. He is so mellow and is usually happy sitting in my lap or being rocked to sleep if it's nap time. He got extra dressed up for C's shower and looked adorable in his bow tie. I do have to say he lost his cool a couple of times, but I think I just asked way too much of him since it was such a long day with the setup, take down, and all of the extras that come with hosting a party.

Kieran, Aunt Di Di, and Gran

Five Months

I'm not quite sure where the last month has gone, but low and behold our baby is five months old. This Little Man is developing quite the personality. He is still "Mr. Goes with the Flow" but if you catch him at the right time he can be quite the giggle box or screecher. Kieran definitely has grown attached to his family. If I'm holding him in a large group he sometimes will suddenly start crying, usually if I just flip him towards me for a minute he calms down - kind of like "where did Mom go? Oh there she is!" He also adores his Big Brother. He is constantly trying to reach out for him and especially likes trying to touch Reed's face and will usually end up in uncontrolled laughter when Reed plays peek-a-boo with him.

In the last month he has learned to roll over and is an expert going from his back to his tummy. He now loves tummy time and will play by himself for twenty minute stretches if the right toy is put in front of him. Kieran is also a bit of a cuddler and loves nuzzles, kisses, and hugs.

 

Monthly Statistics

Weight: 14 lbs 12 oz

Height: 27 inches

Clothing Size: Clothes and pajamas are now size 3-6 month or 6 month. A lot of these are getting too short, but have a ton of room on the sides. I think I'll be moving him to 9 month outfits soon, but they'll have to be one pieces because otherwise pants would probably just fall off of him.

Kieran likes: His play mat, his car seat, tummy time, sensory books, teething rings, taking baths, Mam pacifiers, bouncing/jumping, being tossed in the air, playing patty cake, watching Reed do anything, bedtime books, being held by Mom, and his lovey (Max).

Kieran dislikes: Having his clothes changed/taken off, losing his pacifier in bed, being distracted while nursing, and being overtired.

 

Nicknames: Kier, K, K Dawg, K-Pup, K-Man, Kierito, Baby Bear, Smalls, Lovebug, and Sneezy.

How Kieran is sleeping:  He's been going to bed around 7:30pm and sleeps until around 12:00/1:00am, has a diaper change and feeding and goes straight back to sleep. He is back up between 4:00 and 5:30 am for another diaper change and feeding. Unfortunately for the last few days I haven't had much luck getting him back to sleep after this, especially if it's closer to 5:30am. If we are lucky he will doze/toss and turn until 6:30am when he's up for good. He's been going about 2 hours between naps landing at about 3 total for the day ranging anywhere from 30 minutes to 2+ hours with at least one usually being over 1.5 hours. He sleeps best on his left side, but often ends up on his tummy, or occasionally will just stay on his back. Kieran sleeps with a pacifier and a lovey, he's zipped into a sleep sack and we have a sound machine playing in his room.

Favorite Moment: Kieran has started to reach out and try to grab different parts of our faces and will even hold onto you on both sides and pull you towards him. I'm just waiting for him to try to plant a kiss! By just the look in his eyes you can see how much he loves each of us and how excited he is to be able to bring you closer to him. It is just so adorable!

Milestones:

03/10/14 Rolls over for the first time (back to front)
03/14/14 First time in the stroller
03/14/14 Kieran's first trip to the zoo
03/16/14 K takes notice of his feet and finds a new favorite thing to play with
03/17/14 Rolls over from front to back for the first time (only to be repeated one other time so far)
03/28/14 Kieran starts reaching out for Loved One's faces

 

Favorite Photo Shoot Outtake: