First Day of School 2015

Braden and Logan started school on August 3, 2015.  They are attending Messiah Lutheran Preschool, which is just down the street from our neighborhood, so it's really conveninent.  Braden is in Pre-K and Logan is in preschool.  They both attend Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 9am until noon.  Braden's teacher is Mrs. Whitfield and Logan's teacher is Mrs. Amato.  So far, they both love it!  They were excited to go and didn't cry when we left them on the first day.  Here are some photos:

They didn't want to pose for a picture outside of the school...

Logan placing his name on the class tree

Braden with his teacher Mrs. Whitfield

Happy 3rd Birthday Logan!

Logan turned three years old on July 30!  Logan is our energetic, silly, cuddly, stubborn, determined, and charismatic second born!

We spent the day with Logan and did what he wanted to do on his special day.  He asked to go to Monkey Joe's (bounce house place), to the indoor church park at Traders Point, and then to dinner at Rick's Boatyard.  We also took him to Build-a-Bear to use his birthday money.  

Stats

• Height: 35.5 inches (8th percentile)
• Weight: 29 pounds 3 ounces (22nd percentile)

Showing off the scooter he got from Daddy & Mommy

Likes/Dislikes

• Mickey's Pirate Adventure is his favorite show at the moment.  He begs to watch it every day.
• Favorite Movie is Frozen, and it's been his favorite for a loooooong time...
• Favorite foods are macaroni, bananas, and ice cream
• Favorite superhero is Spiderman, but really likes them all
• Favorite song is Let It Go (from Frozen)
• Going to the library every week to pick out new books
• Puzzles
• Riding his bicycle
• Coloring and painting.  Sometimes he makes it on the paper, but he really enjoys coloring/painting his arms and legs
• Temporary tattoos
• Playing outside, going to parks, going swimming, playing football, baseball and basketball

A Buckeye choo-choo!

Developmental Highlights

• Started preschool August 3.  He attends Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9am until noon
• Gets dressed by himself
• Is fully potty trained.  Even stays dry overnight!
• Has an excellent, well developed vocabulary
• Can count to 20
• Knows his ABC's, and can recognize a few letters by sight and sound
• Knows his shapes and colors and is really good at drawing circles
• Can recite the Pledge of Allegiance
• Is engaging in more imaginative play
• Working on cutting with scissors
• Does not nap most days, so he goes to bed by 7:30pm

He was so excited at Build-A-Bear!  He picked out Olaf (from Frozen), added a sound card that plays his favorite song Let It Go, and then picked out Superhero PJ's for Olaf to wear.  Logan calls him Olafie and he sleeps with him and insists that Olafie has his own covers at night.

Birthday dinner at Rick's Boatyard

This was not on his birthday, but I like this picture of him at the SplashPad at the Zoo

And here is a video all about Logan's birthday!  We love you buddy!

Ten Months Old!

Kellen turned 10 months old this past Saturday!  

10 months down and only 2 to go before he is one year old.... 

This past month has been a big one as far as development goes.

• Size 12 month clothes
• Sleeps through the night the majority of the nights!  He goes to bed around 8pm and is up around 6:30am.
• Still takes a morning nap and an afternoon nap
• Nurses or has a bottle four times a day
• Continues to eat two jars of baby food at each meal
• Has just started finger feeding.  So far, he likes puffs, bananas, peaches and sweet potatoes.
• Wants nothing to do with a sippy cup yet
• Just got his first tooth yesterday!
• Pulls self up to standing position and pushes his walker and other objects around.
• Starting to attempt standing independently.
• Has gotten really good at climbing up the stairs - of course, we are right behind him!
• Says dada, baba, nana, and I am pretty sure I heard him say poop yesterday.  Still no mama!
• Tries to mimic what we do and it is hysterical! 
• Starting to 'dance' to music
• Is interested in EVERYTHING his brothers are doing and wants to be part of the action!
• Is extremely attached to Mommy and is very clingy, but I think it's getting better the past few days.

Discovered a mirror at the Children's Museum and he thought he was just so awesome!

Being goofy at my big brothers birthday party!

Swimming in the pool.  I love the water!

Having fun hanging out with my Daddy!

My brothers were teaching me how to slide

I REALLY like balloons

I also really like to ride my horsey

I got to play like a big kid in the water at the Children's Museum

Enjoyed my first Fourth of July parade

And I really like to swing

I have also included a few videos from this past month:

Super Hero Birthday Party

We celebrated Braden and Logan's birthdays with a Super Hero birthday party last weekend!  It was a lot of fun to plan, and they were thrilled to be able to dress like super heroes! I don't think Braden has taken his cape off since the party... He even wore it out to the restaurant for dinner the next night.  We had such a great time celebrating with family and friends!

The cake was amazing!  Brenda's Cakes in Avon did an amazing job!

I love our super hero family!  Even Kellen had a Batman cape!

I have to say that the Spider web spray (aka Silly String) was a HUGE success!

Baby K Is Nine Months Old!

On June 11 Kellen turned nine months old!  He is SO close to being a whole year old and it makes this Mommy sad... But, we will just keep putting that off for as long as possible!  He continues to be the happiest most easy going baby ever!

Stats

• Weighs 17 pounds 15 ounces (19th percentile)
• Is 28.3 inches tall (43rd percentile)
• Head circumference is 45.25 cm (55th percentile)
• Wears 12 month size clothes

Development

• Takes two naps a day, one around 9:45 or 10am and another at some point in the afternoon, usually around 2:30 or 3pm
• Goes to bed by 8pm and is up for the day sometime between 6:30 and 7:30am.  
• He sleeps through the night some nights and other nights he wakes up once to eat - it's really unpredictable still, so hopefully that becomes more consistent over the next month or so.
• He loves to eat!  He eats two large jars of baby food at each meal.  So far, there really isn't anything that he doesn't like.  Just this week we introduced yogurt and he LOVES it.  
• Have tried finger foods but he gags himself, so we try about once a week.
• He nurses or has a bottle before each nap, around 5pm and then before bed time.  And of course in the middle of the night if he wakes up.
• Sits up independently.  He has been doing this for about a month now and doesn't fall over anymore!
• Crawls extremely well up on all fours and is getting really fast!
• Pulls himself up to standing position and will walk around things while holding on.  We have an ottoman in the living room and he loves to hold on to that and walk around it.
• Is fascinated with stairs.  He is pretty good at climbing them and of course we are always right with him when he does.  
• Waves bye-bye
• Says dada and baba.  Kevin tells me that he has said mama, but I have yet to hear it.
• Still no teeth and still not much hair!

Likes/Dislikes

• Loves taking walks, swinging, and going to the pool
• Loves the vacuum and unplugging things from outlets
• Really loves anything that can go in his mouth
• Enjoys that he can keep up with his big brothers
• Loves his blankie - I let him nap with it now, but still keep it out of his bed at night
• Loves his Mommy.  He has been SUPER attached and clingy to me for the past 6 weeks or so. It's cute and sweet, but at the same time it's not because if he can see me he wants me to hold me.  Nobody else will do.
• Loves going to restaurants.  That's a good thing because his brother do too and Mommy doesn't really like to cook on the weekends.  
• His only dislike is really the car seat still.  He is usually OK for about 10 minutes and then if he doesn't fall asleep he is screaming.