first gymbo

It was fun celebrating Alexis' second birthday and KC's first visit to a Gymboree! He was all smiles and super excited squirmy guy with a few squeals mixed in there. (We're going to have to figure out a fun summer gym to visit close by. We were lucky with a Gymboree so close in MA.). Everyone had fun making an art project with Gymbo and playing on all the fun stuff. I kept thinking the equipment must have shrunk since I have such clear memories of a much smaller Aiden playing on them! Thanks to the B family for having us!

interview with ab

Happy half birthday to our popsicle loving, tall ball of energy!

One word to describe you would be: Little!
Why do you like being a kid? Because I'm named Aiden and I like the letter A.
If you could be any animal, which one would you be and why?  I would be an alligator because then I would have sharp teeth to eat horses.
Tell about a funny time in your life.  Doing a lot of headstands when you weren't even looking!
What is your favorite thing to do? Why? Playing legos because my birthday theme will be legos!
What do you love most about your sibling?  Playing with him especially peek a boo under the tent
What was the nicest thing you did for someone?  Helped my mom build a new toy that I got
What do you think you will be doing 10 years from now? Be a teacher of Mozart music on the piano
What is the grossest thing you can think of?  Picking your nose
What is your happiest memory? When daddy found my missing lego instructions or maybe when I got the lego set first!

giggle doc

KC had his well baby check up at 13 months today. He toddled around (still wanting to hold one finger) the room in circles with just a diapey pant which made him giggle as he tried to pull it off. He's over 95% for height at 2 feet 9 inches tall! No wonder they are offering us booster chairs instead of high chairs at restaurants.  (That's almost two inches taller than his tall brother at this age)  He was just over 22 1/2 pounds which dipped into the 35th - the doctor claims his lean and mean kicky legs are always getting a workout. He liked sitting in my lap for his exam and especially when she shone her red light through his fingertip. He says the requisite number of words plus (dada, mama, hi, bye, up, plus his signs)  The doctor claims that late walkers are typically more athletic than their counterparts and that basketball players in particular walk late (something about being tall I suppose) and she doesn't want us to worry about his cautiousness.  Our upbeat smiley guy was a bit skeptical when the nurse walked in with a tray full of shots...  I think he thought the tray had candy or cake or something fun.  No dice.  Four shots, two in each chubby leg.  The first one met with a flinch, the second made him angry, and the third and fourth just plain old sad.  Now if I even say the word ouchy he looks at me with puppy dog eyes.  Poor guy will hopefully not have too much trouble.  So far he took an extra nap to recover... good thinking rosy cheeks.

peewee paddler

This is what a newly dubbed PeeWee Paddler II looks like! Bummer there isn't a better name for the next class, like Pollywogs to Guppies... He had a testing day during the last class, so he can officially blow bubbles with face submerged, recite safety rules, roll over and float, and safely exit and enter water. He successfully learned front crawl, back stroke, glide and flutter kick front and back each for more than two body lengths. He is ready for more pool action on the cruise next month - woot!

13 months

Dear KC Cuddler,

I think you became extra cuddly this month.  Your gleeful hugs where you grab with your arms and your kicky legs at the same time are my favorite.  I could let go with my arms and you'd still be holding on giggling.  Mix those giggle hugs with a dose of your dog whistle scream (although just within human hearing range) and you can sum up this month of crazy fun with that noise.

We made sure to celebrate your birthday, and I'd like to think that you didn't end up with the second baby sham.  We went all out, just inviting less people to make it a little less hectic. You still had two parties just like your brother and I think that having him there to help you celebrate just enhances your fun.  Someone has to open your presents and play with them for you to be sure they are safe. right?  

Your dad helped me with your last monthly shirt sticker photo squirm, and ooh boy was it a squirmy one.  You gave me about one shot every time we flipped you over.  It seems like just yesterday that you just laid there and rolled your ankles and squiggled your toes. I now have a drawer full of toy distractions by the changing pad because you've decided to be such a squirmy worm.

Sometimes it seems like you grow in leaps and bounds, and I blink and you have suddenly grown out of the bouncer, the bumbo, and the bath seat all at once. You climb around in the tub and even stand up on your own against the edge to try to pop the bubbles.  You like us to use this play watering can to pretend to "water the baby" while you blink and your old man hair gets matted down.  

Sitting in the slippery tub on your own seems like a big step towards independence and the next big step will be safely getting on and off a chair or the couch. You are sorta understanding that it is safer to roll onto your tummy to get down.  You sure do enjoy sneaking onto your brother's chair or trying to climb up on the couch.  You even think that you can climb over me or your dad.

You've become King of Raspberries which I think make your teething pains feel better.  You play a mean game of peek a boo sometimes with yourself in the mirror.  You love hiding under your brothers tent and then picking up the whole tent to peek at us with a big grin and a squeal.  You patter as fast as you can on those chubby knees chasing the red ball. The speed crawling is something that we didn't really experience with Aiden, and I never knew that you could biff it while crawling... but sometimes you'll slip forward if you get going too fast. Poor bub. I think we all feel that way sometimes.  You're just crawling along when  all of a sudden wham, it just means it's time to slow down.  This has been a super busy month, but we've made sure to make time to slow down too.

You will occasionally hold up one pointer finger when we ask you how old you are... and even if you are just imitating us it's still cute and fun.  Another trick you learned which isn't nearly as fun is how to open the closet doors.  You got a new Snack Trap for your birthday and I was excited to give you a way to feed yourself without cheerios flying everywhere.  Well, you figured out a way to shake it with your fist inside which floods your car seat with cheerios rendering it nearly useless... Tricky trickster.

You loved your farm animals and the soft barn this month.  You are just starting to make the noises, although sometimes the pig says BaaBaa, the truck almost always says Vroom.  You love hiding things under and doing your oh face, then revealing it with a big smile!  You enjoy handing things back and forth and smiling when we say thank you as you hand it over. 

One of your favorite playtime activities is taking things out of nearly any container or shelf.  You will actually help your brother pick things up and put them in a box with a squeal when each piece plops inside.  Good clean up buddy. Sometimes you and your brother like to put yourself in the toy box, which means that Aiden has helped you empty everything onto the floor.  Plenty of clean up practice then...

You ended the month with one of those mysterious phantom fevers.  No other symptoms besides the occasional irritable screamy visit from your Archie personality. The advice nurse declared it a virus and told us just to keep you comfy.  You carried around your favorite toy thermometer from the doctor set just in case.  Good planning.  I made sure you nursed as much as possible and tried to get you to take as much fluid as possible.  Although you have this habit of dribbling water when you get good sips.  This habit has led us to sorta half heartedly try to get you to drink regular milk.  You don't seem too thrilled by the taste or the temperature of the milk so far, but I bet you'll like it eventually since you are a yogurt lover.  

Your dad dubbed you baby carnivore since you will eat any meat or fish offered to you.  You ate a whole bunch of pulled pork like there was some sort of champion eating contest going on.  You now know exactly what cake is and you go for it when you see it.  Your approach to the cake changed from the first to the second time we offered it, and the second time you decided to just face plant right into it.  Your enthusiasm for cheese is shown through your excited squeals for Cheeeezzzz with raspberry lips at the end.  You've been known to grab it and try to eat it through the packaging if I'm not quick enough.

I had to bundle you up for your brothers first blustery soccer practice in your cuddle suit which is shrinking by the minute.  You wanted to get in the game with your kicky legs moving nearly the whole time.  I took one of your walker toys outside to follow your brother around with the soccer ball and you pushed it over the bumpy grass as fast as you could.  You've taken to flipping over whatever you can find and using it as a walker toy (your brother's red chair and the round ottoman are favorites).

You like to find the on and off switches on your toys and try to flip them over and over again, although sometimes they are tricky and you get mad.  When you are mad you make sure it is known, no build up with whining or whimpering, you're a zero to sixty kinda angry... Your brother reminds you that "gingerbread archy boy is not invited in car" when you try to refuse to sit in your car seat.  The car rumble is still not your favorite and I think is particularly annoying to you when the out of sorts teething mode is on.

Your little bird feather hair hasn't filled in much yet, so you look like you have crazy old man hair most of the time.  It will occasionally lay with just the right curl up, but most of the time you look like what your uncle calls a baby Hogan mullet.  You have some wrestling moves that you can pair with your hairstyle, so we're just going with it for now.  

I will always remember you talking on the phone like a big boy taking birthday phone calls.  You assume the it is always daddy on the phone and your face lights up when you hear his voice.  The tough part is when it's time to say good bye you still want dada.  You had a case of the daddy clings this month.  It's so fun to see you get excited to see him when he comes home and you immediately want him to pick you up.  The best part of the day.  It's been a big month with many ups and downs... I am so happy you can help us concentrate on the ups.  

Love you, Mamaaa

video tidbits

Here are some video tidbits from the last couple months that I've just cleared off my camera...  There are some fun moments to preserve on here... including some of KC's first steps in the video at the top!  That little guy has been walking more and more often lately... and I'm glad I caught some of the first wobbly steps ;)

lake earth day

The lake events are always a hit, and they went big on the earth day fun around here. The highlight was the boat tour around the lake (which both the boys did not seem as excited about but tolerated). Everyone has these party barges and one even had a huge pergola and wisteria vines. This was our first jaunt out on the open water where we spotted turtles, fish, and a very rare sighting of a great horned owl during the day. After the boat cruise, we caught most of the raptor show, where we saw three more owls and hawks up close and personal. The tiny screech owl was adorable. Then Aiden enjoyed seeing the dead fish on display, me not as much... Aiden assured me he didn't touch the slimiest ones. I preferred the tables talking about energy and the NASA giveaways.

drizzle

We don't let a little spotty drizzle stop us... But after our mild morning of soccer and a stop at our favorite bakery deli for lunch, we didn't have to go far to find more fun. There was a little festival at the park where there are a bunch of geocaches. The bouncy house for little athletes brought out the smiles. The swings and slides brought on many more that seemed to chase the rain away... There is a huge train climbing structure and a little booth next to it with 'kompan' written on it, which Aiden read as coupon... He was making me laugh by calling out "Get your coupons here! One coupon per ride!" (but I guess Kompan is the playground equipment company - thanks Google)

geo 5 and 16

We found our 16th geocache today. It was one that eluded us when we found the Pipe Down cache with my folks last month. We took daddy back and he found the cool pipe and then was determined to find the next one.
Number five may have been the coolest geocache I've found. I was so surprised when I found it hidden in a sign. As for number 16, the round, very well camouflaged container wasn't far from the path and no poison ivy! Phew! I keep joking it is all fun and games until someone gets itchy ;). It had a frisbee to join the disc golf course if you wanted... Maybe next time after Aiden has mastered throwing a frisbee ;)

sampler sweater

My car pool, late night knit sampler sweater is complete! I started the sweater officially on February 15, and two months later it's complete. In stolen moments these knits and purls were eeked out while KC snoozed in the car while we waited to get his brother or nights when I stayed up too late or during long car rides on the weekend or while my folks were here keeping the boys happy or during my hour and a half six classes up the street or even while nursing the big boy with my hands free! The pattern was developed by this women up the street and it gives a great overview of some nice looking stitches. I snuck in some extra tips from her by bringing in some of the little knit toys too. It will hopefully be the perfect fit for KC once the fall sweater weather rolls around.

hockey

It was a full on scrimmage in sports class today - these guys understand how to play hockey without whacking each other now. Woot!

meadow muck

It was a decent day for a field trip to H.untley Meadows Park... Temperatures rose quickly in the morning and it felt nice in the sun.  KC fell asleep almost immediately in the ergo as we began what turned out to be a nearly two mile walk.  The turtles and frogs were sunning themselves at a distance.  The muskrats came out to munch in front of us.  The geese were not happy to see the group of 25 preschoolers tromping down the board walk. They promptly pooed throughout the area, which some kids tramped through... Then just when I started thinking - oh I guess this no railing thing is going to be ok because these kids are staying pretty calm - one poor little guy stepped back and landed in the muck.  Yep, waist deep in the muck and another mom fished him out quickly.  I missed the hubbaloo, as did his dad, who luckily was there to make sure he was ok.  I was determined that the kids in "my group" were not going to fall in on my watch after seeing that poor gucky gooed guy.  You will see a turtle enjoying the muck in the far bottom right.

blue

math alive

The Ripley Center is hosting a Raytheon sponsored exhibit called MathAlive.  Aiden translated his image into binary, rode at different angles on the snowboard, played 1/2 and 1/4 notes on the instruments, created some tessellations, learned about circumference in the 360 degree photo booth (where he picked his first username: Kooker), directed a robotic rover, and attempted to climb a rock wall. I think J would tell you the highlight was winning the snowboard video race with the baby sleeping on him in the ergo - and then the security guard making fun of me for losing!

obstacles

One of our favorite things this time of year in MA/RI were the spring carnivals at schools. We managed to find one here that was similar although not as popular ... The big kids set up an obstacle course and Aiden wanted in on the action. He was so careful and a bit serious about following the big kids. A+ for effort kiddo!
 

sensory

The Hirshhorn is hosting what they call a sensory experience, not just an exhibit.  The different ways they use warped light and color are interesting. There was an area where you had to put on booties so that the floor would stay pristine white to reflect the light...and Aiden and J thought it was fun to slide on the slippery bootie. The area with hanging blue plastic cord really had you seeing that color and the breaks in color in a unique way.

miss earth

Little Miss H celebrated her second birthday, and since she was born on Earth Day Aiden dubbed her Miss Earth. She had a craft for everyone to paint their own pot and plant a flower. So fun and somehow none of the kids made a mess?! (Aiden just decorated another earth day pot earlier this week at doodle craft time, so pretty soon I'm going to have a full garden on my window sill.). KC was being such a big boy at the sand table (only two somewhat accidental sandy mouths and some poured on his hair by a sneaky neighbor girl). Aiden also had a field day with all their ride on toys and play house. Thanks to the C family for having us! Happy Birthday Miss Earth!

brothers

These crazy brothers are interacting more and more... and what I mean by interacting is wacking, kicking, wrestling, splashing, and squealing at each other... Do all that in the least gentle way possible and you have true brotherly love, right?!