Tooth Sprout!

A little white, sharp tooth has finally decided to sprout! Yippy! We've been patiently awaiting this day....thinking Kai has been "teething" since March. I just noticed it while feeding him supper tonight. It's the bottom left one. He doesn't seem to notice it though.....maybe we'll skip the "fussy" mode during teething???? I won't hold my breath!

Chill Moments/10 months

This is our little "lounger." Doesn't he look comfy? Kai has such a personality in his high chair. He's not fond of being restrainted by the tray (although this quirk is improving because he likes to feed himself and not be fed by us) making it difficult to feed him at times. So we go without the tray frequently to prevent tantrums (talk about giving in). He just likes to play with his feet and toes and have a more relaxing lunch.

Last weekend we attended a funeral in Denver, hence the tie and shoes he tolerated. This little guy did soooo well. He made it through about 15 minutes of the ceremony quietly and then he and mom headed out to the church courtyard to play and eat for about another 2 hours. No nap for the morning and he made it until 1pm.....this was the look we were getting before we put him in his carseat. He zonked out about 2 minutes after this pic!

This was not necessarily a "chill" moment, but just a cute shot. Kai re-opened a gift from my aunt and was loving the box and tissue paper that came with it. It's funny how anything that is not a toy is so intriguing!

Kai is now 10 months old! About a week ago he was evaluated for developmental delay after some concerns at his 9 month doctors appointment. We had a speech therapist and physical therapist come to the house to watch/play with Kai for about 2 hours. I wasn't so concerned about his growth until the professionals were "grilling" me (or so it felt) on what Kai's "norms" are. Talk about making a first-time mom a little anxious! The report came back with flying colors! He's at a 10 month developmental age! What a relief. He's learning new things every day! He's crawling all over the place and pulling himself up on everything! He eats almost any table food, with a few exceptions. He just learned how to wave "hi" and we are working on clapping! He's also becoming quite the talker.....but no official words yet.

Maybe next time you see us you'll get a wave "hello."

Blow up pool!

To beat the heat, Derrick and I decided to buy a little blow up pool for Kai. We filled it with the hose several hours before we planned on using it knowing fully well it would be absolutely FREEZing. And boy was it! Kai didn't seem to mind too much....although he restrainted himself from sitting and just stood along the sides! I thought even that was brave!
Afterwards, we all opted to warm up in the sun on the porch and chow on some Cheerios! Altogether it was a refreshing day. Now our biggest challenge for the next pool session will be warming that baby up and keeping the bugs OUT!

Random Pics

Kai wakes up happy from naps (which is a true blessing). It is my favorite time with him. He is into standing in his crib and blowing/spitting on the rails! It's a VERY fun game! Notice the concentration that goes into this game from the 1st photo!!

These were just some snapshots from a week or more ago when Kai and I both were wearing brown. We make attempts at family photos occassionally by using our deck rail as a tripod....obviously Kai was not interested.

Open Skate

Sunday nights are OPen Skate at the Ponderosa Skate Park. Kai and I try to check it out every week (pending his pre-bedtime mood). We attempt mingling with the skaters &/or their parents! It had rained late in the afternoon yesterday and had cooled off quite a bit for a July evening, so there wasn't much "business" in the skate park. Hence, the pics we were able to take with just Kai and his board.

Check out Kai's cute outfit.....he literally fit in to the surroundings perfectly. As we were leaving the skate park there was a BEAR sitting next to the dumpster (where he FREQUENTLY finds a meal). Ah, the stories of a stubborn hungry bear and his sloppy-found treasures in our trash!

Kai and Derrick in the window of the Shred Shed!
Kai really was into turning the skateboard over and spinning the wheels!

July 4th

We started off our day of celebration at the Monument 4th of July Parade. It's a much bigger event than I intended. Kai loved the firetruck sirens, cannons, and muskets they were shooting at the beginning of the parade. I was surprised he wasn't startled!

Daddy and Kai at the parade.


Aunt Mimi (Emily) helped keep Kai entertained during the "boring" sections of the parade. Unless there were sirens, music, or horses, Kai really was just a people watcher!


Later in the day we were invited to a 1st birthday pool party for Kai's friend, Zane. They had not played together for quite a while and astonished us at how fast Kai is catching up to Zane's size.
We have a tall boy on our hands!

Here's the boys checkin' each other out....one walking and one CRAWLING!


The baby pool had little fountains that Kai absolutely loved!


He also loved standing alongside the edge of the pool. Just the right size!


We are planning to make a couple more trips to the pool this summer because Kai loved it so much! We sort-of caught the distant fireworks from Palmer Lake while sitting out on our porch (although they were blocked by a tree). We decided the day was too packed to keep Kai up well past his bedtime. This decision was mainly for our sanity today! Hope you all enjoyed your July 4th celebration!

Fuzz-hawk

Although as many of you know, Derrick has been a mohawk fan/participant in the past....he is now trying to rub off his "dangerous" tendencies on our son. Introducing....... the bath time "fuzzhawk." Styling of Kai's hair has lately become a new parental practice, especially during tub time. Although Kai's hair has been declared "not capable" of a mohawk, we are improvising!

South Dakota Adventures

This past week Kai and Mom took their 2nd plane ride to SD for a summer visit (leaving Dad to a bachelors status once again!). We had many adventures while there....seeing Grandparents, Uncles, Great aunts and uncles, 2nd and 3rd cousins, visiting Storybook Island twice, broadening our finger foods, sipping out of a cup, walking in Silver City, shopping with the girls, basically learning to crawl, and just bumming around in the summer sun!

Kai "helped" Grandpa Craig mow the grass!


He learned his own LOUD jingle on the piano.


Spent time reading about farm animals and just being his cute self.


And trialed a sippy cup (which he just chewed on)....however, decided he liked mom's cup better.