Life

I probably am starting to sound like a broken record but Life has been getting the best of us lately. Finally this weekend we were able to fit in some fun and I even managed to document some of it!!!

We have a mason jar that we let Reed fill with "fuzzy balls" (aka poms) anytime we catch him being really good. The first time he filled it up he got a cool car track rug for his room. The second time I told him the two of us would go on a sorbet date when he filled it up. After the first time filling the jar he figured out that the bigger poms fill the jar faster so those are the ones he specifically picks out now - he amazes me sometimes! When it was close to being full this second time around he asked if the whole family could go and I of course said yes. Anyway, on Friday the sorbet of the day at the yogurt shop was Cherry Ice and Reed managed to stain not only his mouth, but his shirt, shorts, stomach, and his comforter when he got home. Was it worth it? Did he love every ounce of it? Did we have a great family date? Most definitely yes!!!

On Saturday we went to a barbecue to celebrate Auntie M's Birthday. It was a nice afternoon of hanging by the pool, catching up with family, and eating lots of yummy food. One of M's best friends, Kate and her husband came down  for the weekend and it was fun for her to finally meet the boys since she has heard so much about them. Highlights of the party also included Reed trying to play with the older boys and Kieran chasing Penny and Mark's tiny dog Gidget around and around in circles on the kitchen floor.

Kieran, Kate, and Auntie M

Grandma and Reed playing Ladder Ball

The Kieran-Gidget standoff

Finally on Sunday Reed and I took part in a walk in Fresno to raise awareness about food allergies. He did great even though the walk started 45 minutes late and one of the vendors mistakenly handed out chapstick made with nut extract (I know right!).  He walked for probably 3/4 of a mile total, taking a break to ride in the stroller part way through and again when he announced he had to go potty and I sprinted with him back to the bathrooms. I would classify the walk as moderately successful but a four hour trip including two 35 minute car rides, a 1.6 mile walk, and a trip to Costco without a bathroom accident is a MAJOR accomplishment!!!

Working on our team cheer before we left

Fueling up pre walk

Balloon ladybug

Camera Face #1

Camera Face #2

Fun Day IX

I know I talked about this last year, but the kid explosion that has happened at Fun Day over the last two years is insane. In 2012 Reed was the only kid, fast forward to this year and there were 23 kids invited, almost all of which fall into the two and under category. I decided to call in reinforcements and had some of the kids' Grandparents come help out for the day. Hopefully we didn't scare them off too badly because we already have four more babies expected between now and March, and will definitely be needing help again next year! Even with the extra hands I was super busy juggling my two kids and trying to participate in the games so I took very few pictures myself, most of these great shots are courtesy of Pepe who not only was our photographer but barbecued all day for us again this year.

I need to make a list of pictures to make sure I take next year. This year I failed to get a picture with everyone, a family picture of the four of us, pictures of all of the individual families, or a picture of all of our helpers. Fun Day has become a bit of a reunion for Jon and his college roommates. Mark and Stacey have been living in New York for years and just made the move back to the West Coast. They came for an overnight trip and we got to meet their daughter Ella who just turned one. Marli, Adam, and Cole have been coming to Fun Day for quite a few years now but this year they brought along Caden who was just shy of the one month mark. We were so excited to have them and get to meet their newest addition!

Kieran hanging with the big kids

Connor and Carver face-off



Closest thing to a family picture - "Team Unicorn" plus Grandma

Lyla did not disappoint with her outfit for her first Fun Day

Clara in her Mom's vintage outfit

The Rodriguez Family

Kevin's annual Fun Day Haircut

Reed helping Pepe with beer hiding

Marli and baby Caden



Ready, set, beer hunt!

 

Our team working on our communication

Alli and Chris

Michelle and Nick

Ryan



Jon explaining the obstacle course

 

Reed practicing his picture posing

Vince practicing his parenting skills

Ryan has no fear!

Reed's attempt off the diving board - he downgraded to the side

Pool party!

Winning team

Cole, Reed, and Dad in their PJs

Last game for the boys before saying goodbye

Nine Months

As Jon and I have been saying the last few weeks - things just got real! Oh my goodness do we have our hands full. Although Kieran isn't actually hands and knees crawling he can get almost anywhere with his scoot/pull crawl and the kid is a daredevil. He's already managed to get cupboards and drawers open, close doors, climb up onto the hearth, open the fireplace doors and he does it all in the bat of an eye. When he's not busy being mischievous, he is working on becoming a world champion diaper wrestler. By the end of most changes I've broken a sweat, am out of breath, or both!!!

He continues to be a pretty happy kid and Mom and Dad are continuing to figure out his likes and dislikes. He loves reading books, dancing, and being sung to and usually let's out a good chuckle or belly laugh when he does any of them. 

He seems to be very slow when cutting a tooth and even though he's been drooling like crazy, chewing on anything and everything, and having bouts of fussiness another chomper has yet to break through. 

Kieran is definitely a Mama's Boy so far. He usually does fine when I'm not around but the moment I walk back into the room he wants me to hold him or starts crying at the realization that I've been gone. I love that when he is tired he still likes to cuddle.

Monthly Statistics

Weight: 17 lbs 12 oz

Height: I promise to have an update next month

Clothing Size: Almost everything is 9 month or 6-12 month.

Teeth: Still just 2 bottom front teeth, but he seems to really be working on more.

Kieran likes: Eating, taking walks, Dodger (and all other dogs/cats), bath time, balls, watching Reed do anything, pool time, being tossed in the air, story time, tickles, crawling/getting around on his own, playing drums, the puppy guitar and dog piano, his toy table, and Perrito his stuffed animal pacifier.

Kieran dislikes: Diaper changes, having something taken out of his hands, being told "no" and waiting for food.

Food: He is still loving eating anything and everything. New additions this month have included: watermelon, salmon, plums, blueberries, rice, ground beef, quinoa, chicken, and oatmeal.

 

Nicknames: Kier, K, K Dawg, K-Man, Kierito, Buddy, Pillbug, and Baby Bear.

How Kieran is sleeping:  This still seems to fluctuate each week. He actually slept through the night a few times this past month but for the last week or so he's been waking once or twice a night. As of right now he goes to bed at 7:30 pm and then usually wakes between 1:00 and 3:00 for a feeding. He then 1) sleeps until around 5:00, nurses again, and goes back to sleep until around 6:30/6:45 or 2) makes it to 6:00/6:15 and is up for good. His first nap has been falling around 9:00 am his second around 1:00/1:30. Both naps last about 1.5-2 hours.

Favorite Moment: Kieran loves "standing" and if I ask for a hug he will walk (supported) toward me until he gets close enough to dive bomb me with a bear hug. I love feeling his embrace and having our own special thing just melts my heart!

Milestones:
07/06/14 Kieran's first trip to the Circus
07/10/14 K pulls himself up to standing for the first time
07/12/14 The Pillbug gets a kitchen drawer open all by himself
07/12/14 Kier pulls himself a few feet in his first attempt to "crawl"
07/15/14 K sleeps through the night for the first time (7:30 pm to 5:15 am)
07/25/14 Kieran has mastered the "army crawl" - getting up on his elbows but still not up on his knees
08/02/14 First Fun Day

Favorite Photo Shoot Outtake:

Reed Says . . . July 2014 Edition

A few quick notes about Reed this month. First he has completely given up his booster chair to his baby brother. Kieran now eats three meals a day and Reed voluntarily has allowed him to take over the booster and he happily chooses a different chair at the table for each meal. As far as vocablulary goes the Monkey has been really into the sounds letters make and what letter different words start with. He usually will say "Mmm, mmm, mmmom, starts with M."

On Sunday Reed did a poop in the toilet, something that hasn't happened in months! As a reward we let him take Dodger to Nonna and Pepe's and play down in the hole with him. I figure since Dodger usually gets neglected on this blog I would post pictures of him in his element, especially because one of Reed's favorite things to do is look at pictures of Dodger. Oh, and to say funny things ...

 

I was putting sheets on Reed's bed and as I was putting the pillow into a pillow case he said to me "no not that suitcase for my pillow!"

One morning Reed was hanging out in the bathroom while I was getting ready for work. I put on a blue denim dress and he immediately said "I think you are a Mom, but you look like a kid."

When Reed was misbehaving one day I told him I was getting frustrated with him and he replied "what's wrong? Mom, you're breaking my heart."

I grabbed and old Simspons beach towel one day to dry off the floor after swim lessons. Reed pointed to Homer Simpson and asked "is it people or animal?"

One night at dinner Reed complained that his stomach was bothering him. After a bad allergic reaction to Almonds a few weeks ago, I went into high alert and started asking where it hurt and what it felt like. He quickly informed me that his "belly hurts because there's babies in there and they are starting to pop." FYI - "popping" is how we've described babies being born to him.

I was squatting down to pick something up off of the floor the other day when the Kiddo ran up, knocked on my head, and said "that's a good melon."

Kieran has been putting anything and everything in his mouth lately. One morning he picked up one of Reed's drumsticks and started putting it towards his mouth. Reed watched him do this and said "Kieran thinks that's a flute!"

I was already dressed for work last week when some applesauce was spilled on my pants. Reed started crying and I asked what was wrong. He responded "I just want to get the sauce off of your pants because they are soooooooo cute!"

We've been making smoothies a lot lately and I happily obliged Reed when he asked for extra ice in his. When it was done he took one sip and proceeded to tell me that "it is too cold, I think I need my bear gloves to drink it."

I thought I heard Nonna's car pull up the other morning and I asked Reed to go look out the front window and let me know if she was here. He ran back and said that she wasn't. I was sure I had heard her car door so I asked if he was sure, to which he replied, "no I think it's someone different." I went to the front door and found Nonna standing there and pointed out to Reed that she was most definitely Nonna, to which he told me that it's "not Nonna, someone different, see her hair different." Note: Her hair was in a ponytail instead of down as she normally wears it.

On Sunday I had a bridal shower to attend so before I left I had Reed try to go to the bathroom again, since we had a success that morning. He was straining really hard and I didn't want him to hurt himself so I explained that people sometimes only poop once a day. Jon sent me a text while I was gone saying Reed had pooped himself and when Jon had asked why he didn't try to use the toilet he had replied "people only poop once a day."