Ellie and Kevin Playing Together

We setup Ellie's princess tent on the patio, and she and Kevin had a tea party. Ellie loves Kevin so much. A few days ago, I asked her to watch Kevin while I went around to the front door. When I came back, she was holding his hand and in a very soft voice, she was saying, "I just love you Kevin. I won't ever let anything bad happen to you because I think you're the best little brother in the whole world. I will protect you. I just love you so, so much." Very sweet!

Kevin's Latest Doctor Visit and Checkup

I think this picture looks very much like one I have seen of Chris as a little boy - maybe 4 years old or so.

I brought Kevin in to the doctor to check out a knot that we found under his nipple. It's a normal occurrence for many babies, but they wanted me to bring him into the office anyway since he's older than the typical age it first appears. Anyway, there is still nothing to worry about - just a blocked duct. Warm compresses for a few days should do the trick!

The doctor, however, informed me that I missed his last checkup. I guess this shows that Kevin is truly my second child. I didn't even realize that he needed a 9 month checkup! Oops!! So, at almost 10 months, they treated this visit as a checkup also!

It seems that I have been wrong on Kevin's size. I've been telling everyone he is average size, but he's actually been around 80th percentile for height since he was born! Oops again! His weight jumped up in percentile this time to around 68th percentile.

Weight: 22 lbs, 7 oz
Height: 29.5 inches

He learned to wave bye this weekend and has also given up his pacifier. I feel really fortunate that he has begun rejecting his pacifier on his own! This means that when he gets older, we won't have the pacifier struggle that so many people have told me about!

Show 'Em You're a Tiger...

We had a carnival today on campus. Ellie rode a pony, devoured a snow cone, visited the petting zoo, and obviously got her face painted. She was so excited about her face and wore it all day long! The paint even left a ring around the tub! But it was worth it to see how happy she was being a tiger all day!

Escaping the Heatwave

With the heatwave in full effect, we spent a few days playing with the water table and the kiddie pools!

Sprinklers at the Park!

This looks like a lot of fun for Kevin, but if you zoom in...

He was hungry, so I guess that's a good enough excuse!

We tried to go to the community pool on Wednesday, but it was closed. So, we found a sprinkler in the park! It was probably more fun than the pool would have been!

101 Degrees and No Air Conditioning!

Don't you feel sad for us?? Thank God for fans and kiddie pools!

Kevin and the Walker

This is fun! I can do it!

I'd better take a break to smile for the camera!

Oops. Good thing dad is here to catch me!

Kevin - 9 months

So loved by big sister!


Begging for food!






A very funny shot that looks nothing like him!




In the past month, Kevin has perfected his cruising skills! He also loves the bath! Anytime he hears the water running, he comes crawling in to the bathroom right away. Even when it's not bath time, he is always trying to climb into the tub.

Ellie taught him to climb the stairs just after he turned 8 months old. She was so proud of his accomplishment and of her teaching skills. I wasn't as excited about this new development!

He still calls me Dadda. I just started trying to teach him Momma. I'm getting a little tired of being Dadda!

When I bring him into his room at naptime or bedtime, he will start to fuss if the light is off. If it's on, he doesn't seem to notice, but when the light is off, he knows sleep is coming! He usually falls asleep on his own or with a little help. He takes two naps - each about 1.5 hours. He sleeps about 9 to 10 hours at night before wanting to eat between 4 and 5 am. He plays with his hair (or mine) as he drinking his milk and drifing off to sleep.

He gets so excited when Chris comes home. Kevin kicks and squeals and puts on a big smile!

He started getting his second tooth - his bottom right front tooth.

He eats three meals a day plus a snack. He still has not turned away a single food I have offered - including a batch of burnt food I made for him. I didnt realize how awful it tasted until he was almost done, and I tried it myself. Disgusting. I can't believe he ate it so willingly! I didn't realize that adding a small bit of slightly burnt carrots could overpower a big batch of food. I felt bad for serving it to him, but Chris rationalized it this way, "He's just a baby. He doesn't know. He liked it, and it's not going to hurt him." Poor Kevin!

Random Stuff from Today

We like to wear our "folding hats" when we do the laundry!



Kevin finally gets to play with his spoon when it has food on it.


A silly craft we made today. Tomorrow, we'll make puppets of any of her friends that I have full body pictures of!!

Kevin Loves Strawberries

my friend Michele asked if Kevin has ever had strawberries. "No, not yet. I'm not sure when we'll try them," I said.
30 minutes later...

So, I thought Ellie must have put them in her chair and Kevin must have pulled them down. I put them on the table, "out of his reach".
30 seconds later...

Courtyard UNbirthday Party

Our courtyard had a "very merry UNbirthday" celebration on Monday. We played some birthday games, had some water fun, and fajitas and cake! Ellie really enjoyed the festivities - especially getting to wear the birthday hat!

Girl's Weekend Away

A few friends and I spent the weekend at a beach near Monterey. We had so much fun and barely left the condo! We stayed up late talking, relaxed, and slept in! On one of our walks along the beach, we found lots of sand dollars! The weather wasn't beautiful, but it was nice enough to enjoy! We spent Sunday shopping at the outlet malls before we returned home.

Chris took the kids for the weekend and had a great time with them. I thoroughly enjoyed the break! The night I came home, I went to look at Ellie in bed and realized how big she looks. She is really growing up. Kevin still looks like a baby, though!! :-)