Ready for Takeoff!

Daddy left for NYC this morning. We miss him already, but we hope he will have a great time. Kiran and I are working to be super creative this week with activities! Both kids are sick. As I type, I hear coughing and whimpers, then a settling back into sleep. They are getting better, but we stayed in today. Here are a few pictures of today and the past week.

We decided that since Daddy was going on an airplane today we should, too! Did you know that the Captain can double as the flight attendant! Luckily, Monkey and I were both co-pilots, so there was a very safe flight crew on board.
We had incredible passengers, though some of them were pretty picky about snacks, if you ask me.

The Cockpit! Can't you just hear those big engines (check out Kiran's lips)?!

We had such a blast! We even used Kiran's little radio w/ microphone as our radio for communicating with the control tower and to inform our passengers of weather conditions, safety features of the plane, beverages and snacks being served, and to remind them to turn off electronic devices!

You should know that a hammer is a must for the cockpit and a captain, apparently. Kiran was adorable serving everyone! I think that was his favorite part.

I think our plane will be back tomorrow! It felt like I was a kid again there for a few minutes. I really got into this (Of course, I have always loved planes and wanted to be a pilot - maybe in another lifetime. Today's adventure was plenty for me for now.)!


Bathtime - Ellery is crazy in the bathtub! She starts splashing as soon as she hits the water!


Kiran has really been into skateboarding lately. He usually just slides around on the floor in his socks, but yesterday, I decided he needed a "real" skateboard. A piece of cardboard can become anything, and a skateboard can double as a control panel in a cockpit!

And, sorry to disappoint you Gramps, but sometimes the only PJs clean are an unmatched top and bottom - guess my laundry secret is out! It's crazy keeping up! Trying to find matching socks is Jeff's favorite!
Some awesome jumps on the skateboard - I'm sure there is skateboard language to describe this, but I don't know what it is.
Of course, Ellery wanted Kiran's skateboard right away, so she got one, too!
Kiran loves to feed Ellery! He always gives her one or two bites, but yesterday morning, he practically served all of her breakfast!
Cleaning up oatmeal all by himself!
I just had to include this photo of Ellery. I think it captures one part of her personality well. She is curious about everything and I think I've said it before, but it is as though she is studying every object in great detail!

Our Weekend

I got a fun Valentine's Weekend surprise! Jeff found out he had Monday as a holiday, so he took Friday off too and spent the weekend painting the bathroom. We've had lots of fun together as a family with Daddy home a couple of extra days. We are all doing well. Kiran is singing to CDs in the car, and he is making up songs, too. He loves helping with the garden preparation. He is really having a blast playing ball, climbing, and doing anything outside. Ellery's first tooth finally came in yesterday! She is crawling forward!!! She is saying Mm-ma for Mama which is super cool, and Bu-ba "Bubba" and various other great sounds. Kiran and Ellery love playing together!


Kiran with his Martin Luther King Day projects.
Priming with Mom!

Daddy has worked very hard on our bathroom. We are so proud of him and thankful for his time, planning, and labor.
Ellery still crawls backwards occasionally, and this is where I found her the other day!


Getting messy with a cracker!Entertaining Ellery!

A Fun Ride!

Lots of Entries Today!

We caught up with our blog tonight, so be sure to check out all of the new entries!

Our Little Firefighters

Playtime!

Oh, where to begin? We've had so much fun playing with all of the great Imagination Box items and other Christmas toys! We have played a ton with each and every toy!
Kiran has one great imagination! It is super fun to play with him!

Football Time with Daddy!
What a Tall Tower!
A Fire station!
Cooking soup with Mommy!

Dinner Time!
Building a House - Ellery loves blocks, too!
" Ellery and me are going for a ride in the truck!"
Check out Ellery's face! She's ready for this!
It is so sweet - Kiran loves to include Ellery in just about everything!

As it goes, the best toys are not purchased! Kiran's "truck" (a.k.a. smoker box) hung around for several days. You can see that many of the imagination toys did make it inside, though!

Our Baby Boy is Not a Baby Anymore

We seem to be witnessing lots of growing up around our house these days. For a while, as any parent knows, you can see small steps of a child getting older. But then, there are those huge leaps that happen occasionally. That's where we are with Kiran. About two weeks ago, I was helping wash Kiran's hands in the bathroom and accidentally rubbed a boo boo on his hand. I said, "Oh no, let Mommy kiss it." His response was, "That won't work!" I asked, "What will work?" in a sort of desperate voice. Then, he broke my heart. "Medicine, I guess." He didn't really break my heart; just left me with mixed emotions of wow, how cool and oh man, this is going way too quickly.

Kiran is getting very independent with words and decisions! He is amazing with new reasoning skills everyday! He asks lots of questions. He has asked a lot about Lois lately - where she is, how she got there. We are learning and growing with him.

He still loves Mommy and Daddy, but sometimes he's not so into hugging anymore. However, the exchange for this one is too sweet. When we're not even expecting it, Kiran will come over and ask for a hug and kiss and say, "I love you." He still likes sucking his thumb and holding Mommy's hair just for a moment at night.

We decided last night to end napping unless we've had an unusually tiring few days or if Kiran is sick. If Kiran takes a nap these days, he is up 2 hours past bedtime, asking for drinks, asking to go potty, asking for one more tuck, or telling us he sees cars going by. After a month or so of this, it's time to let go of that nap even if it seems he's tired in the day. Instead, we started a rest time. Here he is today during rest time. I put 2 of Ma's pillows side by side, added a Cookie Monster blue sheet from Amanda and Kurt, let him pick blankets, and added a puppy, some books and soft music. He really seemed to like it and followed the rules of staying on his mat well, at least for day one!

We had a fun day today! Kiran was supposed to go to school (Parent's Day Out), but the county school system was closed due to illness. So, we came back home. Kiran was disappointed. He really looks forward to school now - another big sign of growing up! So, we did a couple of extra fun activities. We "raced" all of his cars through the kitchen to see which was the fastest! It was fun and interesting. We were a little surprised by the winner. This activity kept Ellery entertained, too! Kiran thought it was a blast!

Then later, we went to the park down the street and called some friends to meet us. It was super fun! We took Kiran's football from Uncle Keri, and there was a basketball already there. He is really into playing ball now and using gross motor skills! He is all over the playground equipment. He and his friends went up and down one of the slides probably 20 times! The best part was when we got home. Jeff was already home, and Kiran exclaimed as he took off his coat, "Daddy, we went to the park. We had a lot of fun! I went on the slides, . . . " He gave a whole narrative with no prompting. We loved it!

Ellery at 7 Months

Ellery loves playing with Kiran!
She is good at attacking him already!
First Cracker!
Caught getting brother's trucks during his nap!

Our little Chunky Monkey!


Ellery is growing and doing so well! Last Friday, I took her to the doctor for what turned out to be just a cold, but we got some stats on her. She weighed 15 lbs. 12 oz. and is 25 3/4 inches long.

As far as activity these days, her newest and biggest 3 things are crawling backwards, waving (which is absolutely adorable), and some clapping! Crawling backwards is not adequate to describe all of her movements, though. She has been crawling in circles for about a month, but now it is at lightning speed! She can almost crawl forwards - it's like she knows what to do but just can't quite get her left knee up. So, after she tries for a while she stops and goes back to kicking like she's swimming. Oh yeah, she can flip over like a crocodile! We have to be really quick at diaper changing and clothes changing time. The waving is definitely my favorite! It is so obvious what she is doing, and the best part is how she smiles when she realizes her accomplishment! She loves that she is able to communicate with us! Sometimes, we really think she is saying, "hi" or "hey!" She always makes a sound like this when someone is entering the room, and she is usually waving. Is it possible? Anyway, we are having a blast with her!

She can grab anything so quickly - it keeps us on our toes! Ellery has incredible fine motor skills! I love to watch her moving objects with her fingers!

Ellery's hair just keeps changing. It has gone from a little puff at the back of her head to almost a fauxhawk. As her hair grows, the spot keeps getting taller! Today, her hair was taller than Kramer's!