And the winner is....

.....a lion--by a landslide! I'm glad you all agreed with the way we were leaning. We've even been practicing teaching Kai to roar. Here's a picture of his costume (without him). Once we get him in it and ready to go, you can be sure there'll be more pictures!

Busy Busy Week (and a Half!)

What a week (and a half)! With Papa in town we have been quite busy enjoying the sites and activities of the area. Here's a little recap:

Saturday-Sept 20-WalMart for shopping and Subway lunch

Sunday-Sept 21-Church and a nice slow afternoon

Monday-Sept 22-Reid and Papa went to Costco in the morning, and we all hit the park in the afternoon. Normally Kai loves the swings, but on this trip he learned that slides could be fun, too.


Tuesday-Sept 23-It was back to work for Reid. Kai, Papa, and I went to Michaels for some new flowers for my mailbox flower bed (yes, I used fake flowers. Sooooo much easier.) Then we went to Fazoli's for some yummy lunch. In the afternoon I went visiting teaching and Kai stayed with Papa. They had a good time.

Wednesday-Sept 24-We drove up to the outlets to make some returns and purchase some pants for our growing boy. What trip is complete without lunch! And so we had McDonalds, where Kai had his first Happy Meal, which he happily did NOT eat.

Thursday-Sept 25-After a morning trip to Walmart for a few items, I also hit the grocery store while Kai was down for his nap. After the nap we returned to the park. After a short while there we were literally "run out" by a middle school cross country team and so we went to Coldstone for some ice cream. Finally we ended the day with a trip to PetSmart to see the animals. At PetSmart we learned that the sales associates actually recognize me and Kai--hmmmm.....maybe I use that as a field trip too often!

Reading with Papa

Getting tired

All tuckered out

Friday-Sept 26-Reid had the day off again and so the family headed out to the Pumpkin Patch. Kai had a great time! His two favorite parts were petting the goats and playing in the corn box. I actually think I might take him back just to see the goats and the corn again. For a free activity, it can't be beat!

Of course, what day would be complete without lunch at Arbys. Kai had a very exciting morning--maybe that would explain why he had a hard time winding down! And the week wasn't over yet.........To Be Continued........

Growth Spurt

Maybe Kai's getting bigger?? Is it possible?? On our outlet shopping spree last week I decided to purchase both 12 month and 18 month clothes in the hopes that we would make it through the 6 month winter without having to do any major shopping again. After we got home, we tried on a few of pieces and would you believe that some of the 12 month clothing is too small!! Add to that the fact that 3 days in a row last week Kai weighed in at 20.0 pounds, 20.2 pounds, and 20.0 pounds and I'm starting to think that the little guy just might be growing. While I know our scale is not what the doctor goes by, we do....and so we finally turned his car seat around this weekend. And tomorrow Papa, Kai and I are going back to the outlets to return a few pieces and buy some bigger ones. Should be fun!

Papa's Here

Papa (Reid's dad) arrived last Friday evening, and Kai is in heaven! He just loves his Papa! We were surprised to see that he recognized Papa instantly (thanks to all of our webcam chats). The minute he saw him he said "Papa" and reached out to give him a hug. Over the last few days Kai has enjoyed reading books with Papa, wrestling with Papa, blowing kisses with Papa, cheering with Papa, and singing and dancing with Papa. We're so happy to have Papa here visiting!

Kai and Papa playing the piano

From Grandma

For the last couple of months, Kai has really enjoyed playing with my broom. I had looked for a broom for him, but hadn't really put a lot of effort into it. Then, along comes grandma. She found a broom just for Kai at Toys 'R Us. The package arrived yesterday. Here's what happened.

Opening the box.....Mom HELP!

Almost there!

Look Mom--My very own broom!First things first, time to clean the kitchen.

Closet Day

I've been telling Kai all weekend that Monday would be closet day. See, we plan on hitting the outlets tomorrow to shop for Kai's fall and winter wardrobe and I need to see what he has and what he needs. So this morning I started bright and early running a load of laundry to get all of his clothes clean. Then after lunch I pulled all of the clothes out of his drawers and closet (and every other corner of the house) and piled it in my living room. For the last hour I have been sorting through everything that Kai has.

I didn't intend to sort through everything, but I noticed that one of the boxes of clothes from last winter was disorganized and so I wanted to make sure that things were in the right place. I opened his box of Newborn to 3 month clothing and sorted through. I then went on to the 3 to 6 month clothing and I finally worked on his 6 to 12 month clothing. Sorting his clothes certainly brought back so many memories and made me sad that my baby has grown up so fast. Each outfit brought back a story and I could feel, just for a second, that I had my little cuddle bug in my arms again.

Daddy's BIG helper

As hard as sorting through the clothes was, it made me hope that maybe one day another little baby would be able to wear them (cross our fingers). For now, though, Kai is a blast, a blessing too hard to describe. I love his independence, his stubbornness, and mostly his silliness. And, thank goodness, he's still my little cuddlebug who'd rather have mom carry him just about anywhere.

What a sweet, sweet boy we have!

Brrrrrrring, Brrrrrrrring

Kai has become quite insistent lately that, when the phone rings, it's Dada. In fact, he gets so upset when I don't answer (because it's a telemarketer) that he'll lunge for the phone and try to talk. He's really figured out the phone thing and enjoys his daily calls to Dada at work. Here are some shots of Kai on the phone--with Dada, of course.

Bring on the Cold

We tested out a new jacket of Kai's today. It's nice that it's a zip-out lining part of a heavier winter coat. I thought he was super-adorable. But then again, I always think that AND I know I'm biased. Thanks for the jacket Grammy!

Rainbow

We don't get much rain in Colorado, and yesterday we got very little so I was surprised when we went out to get the mail to see the rainbow over our neighbor's house. Maybe it's the procrastinator in me, but seeing the rainbow gives me a sense of peace. Joseph Smith prophesied that a rainbow meant the second coming would not occur that year (in addition to the promise of not flooding the earth that was given to Noah) and so when I see a rainbow I think "Shew....one more year. Or maybe 3 more months." But at least I have a little time to work on my spiritual progression.

For those who are curious, the Joseph Smith prophecy was referenced in The Work and the Glory volume 6 I believe. Gerald Lund had the source for it, I just can't remember off hand.

Bird Watching

We have a deck that runs the entire length of the back of the house and looks out over an open field. It's the perfect landing area for birds as they try to stalk their prey. They'll sit on the railing, dive down into the field, and then a few minutes later come back. Kai LOVES to watch them and when he sees a bird land on the rails he'll run to the window, jab his little finger into the glass, and say "Bah Bah" or "Bir". He hasn't quite gotten bird out yet, but he's trying. Yesterday he had a great time watching the birds. He wouldn't let me pull him away. It was so cute.

I think today I'll take him to PetSmart to see the caged birds. Much easier and they're there when you need them. When the birds would fly away Kai would get sad and say "Bah Bah" again. At one point I said Kai there are no more birds and he looked out with the pouty lip and said "No". Good grief, he's getting too smart!

Blowing Kisses

Kai talks to his Papa a couple times a week on the webcam, and Papa has finally succeeded in teaching Kai how to blow him kisses. It's sooooo adorable!

New Bibs

As a measure of desperation, I ordered some new bibs off of the internet. Here's Kai eating his breakfast this morning--and his clothes are still clean!! The bib has elastic wrists and goes all the way to his waist. He can't stand it!

Kai's New Jammies

In a previous post, I mentioned that Kai had gotten new fall jammies. Here's a picture of Kai modeling his cute new jammies! When it gets colder, I'll try to remember to post a picture of his new winter jammies, too.