Kayden 11 months!!!!

How is it possible that she is almost a year old? She is more trouble than ever now that she is nearly running. She climbs all over everything including tables, up slides, onto the couch, on top of the toilet, into the bathroom sink. She can even almost get out of our garden tub. You name it, she's there! Nothing is too scary for her and no bumps and bruises deter her (you'll notice one in the middle of her head in the picture!). There might be a few tears spilled but she is quickly right back at it.

She also talks a lot right now. She can say "dada", "keeley", and "there". Notice that "mama" is missing again. I think that is totally not fair. "Dada" is the most clearly intelligible to other people but she definitely has a word for the other two.

She can sign "more" and "milk" and we are working on her signing "turkey" because that is, by far, her favorite food right now. If she is pointing at the refrigerator and you ask if she wants turkey, she gets a huge grin on her face and giggles. Signing is going to be even more important with Kayden than Keeley because she has absolutely no patience. I'd like to say she gets that from her dad but he has the patience of a saint....

Life is so exciting as babies turn into toddlers. Kayden is intent on copying Keeley. You can often find Kayden trying to put on a hat or sunglasses - and she wants no help from you! The other day Kayden start throwing a huge fit when I gave Keeley her plate of food for lunch. I had already put Kayden's food on her tray so I was confused. Kelly asked her if she wanted a plate. She quit fussing and was totally happy when Kelly moved all the food from her tray to the plate.

When she wants to read, she'll bring you a book, hold it out and grunt impatiently until you read it with her. However, she doesn't actually want you to read it but just flip the pages really quickly. She loves to dance and be sung to. She waves good bye and hello. She also likes to put objects in/on other things. For instance, if there are pieces of toast on her tray, she'll stick them in her cup. Dog food is still a huge attraction to her although now she really knows she's not supposed to be in there and looks startled when you catch her.

Even though she is not sleeping well at night, she is still so sweet when she wakes up. Kayden is definitely still a cuddler and would prefer it if you rocked with her all night. She is eating really, really well so it will be interesting to see what she weighs at her one year check up. I fear she may surpass Keeley who still only weighs 23 pounds!

Updates on Keeley

The world of a toddler is amazing. I love to see how their little minds' work. Categorizing the world is a big challenge - there are words, objects, appropriate reactions...that they have to work out. Keeley just cracks me up as she does this. Two of her most common phrases right now are:

* maybe after nap - I tell her we can do things after her nap frequently. Now, anytime we "say not right now", she pauses thoughtfully and, with a head nod, says "maybe after nap". It is too cute.

* little bit more - She says this at appropriate times (like when she wants more chocolate pudding or milk) it just cracks me up. Sometimes she'll add "maybe" at the end.

Also, she can now climb into her crib. She's been able to climb into Kayden's for a long time but Kayden's mattress was higher so it was easier. Getting into her crib requires considerably more effort - but getting to her stash of pacifiers is worth it!

Amazing children

I don't know when your children quit being babies and start being kids with their own thoughts and plans. I suppose they always have them, it is just odd when they start letting you in on the way the think. Both my kiddos amazed me today.

Kayden was laying on the floor trying to get a ball out from under the couch. She wasn't being successful getting her hand on top of it so she started to bat it out in front of the couch. I was super impressed at her problem solving!

Because Keeley's vocabulary is expanding so rapidly, I'm constantly in awe of what she says. We were reading a Seasme Street book today and it had the alphabet around the outside. After singing the ABCs and pointing to each letter, she paused before turning the page and said "two q's" and pointed to the "O" and the "Q". We talked about why they were different but I was amazed that she could even identify a "Q".

Later we were assembling a clock puzzle where all the numbers are on different colored shapes. There were 4 blank spots and only three pieces left. I said "uh-oh, we are missing a piece" She looked at the pieces we had left and the blank spots and said "triangle bye-bye" And, sure enough, that was the piece we were missing!

These observations just make me realize how much we underestimate the kiddos! They are capable of much more than we know!!

Not big sister's fault

Everyone keeps asking if Keeley is the reason Kayden is such a monkey. That is absolutely not the case. This happened after Kayden climbed on the chair to get to the table. Kayden then proceeded to climb on to the end table, across the couch, and on to the next end table. Keeley has NEVER done this. Until, that is, Kayden did!

Fundraiser Fun

We had a painting fundraiser this weekend for our half-marathon. We had tons of fun and it was a big success. The best part was, again, the bounce house that Stephanie let us borrow. Kayden LOVED it and got in and out all by herself. Both kids were totally fine hanging out alone. They really crack me up.

I think we are fine

Yesterday Kayden spent the day in the hospital. This is her today. ON TOP of the table!!!

I think she is fine :-)

Surgery Day

Kayden did awesome today! Here is a run down of our day:

* Because I was told we have to be at the hospital at 5:40, I wake up at 4:30 and we are gone by 5:10.

* Park in ER parking (as instructed) and proceed to check in.

* Arrive at info desk at 5:35 only to be told that admitting doesn't open until 6 (slightly annoying since I am only there so early because I was told I needed to be)

* Am instructed to check in on the kiosks. After FOUR attempts, give up and tell the security guard. He says he will tell the admitting people I was first when they open. (a little more annoyed at this point)

* Wait with Kayden and notice 3 families enter through the main entrance even though I was told I couldn't enter that way.

* Begin admitting process promptly at 6 (even though I saw her at 5:45 getting ready) and explain that I couldn't check in on the kiosk because, even though it asked if I needed to change info, it wouldn't let me. Her response? "Those machines won't let you change anything" WHY IN THE WORLD DID IT ASK ME THAT THEN!?!??!?!?!

Needless to say, I was more than a little ticked by the time we got back to surgery. However, everything was wondeful after that. Kayden got her "goofy juice" and we talked to her surgeon. At this point, Kayden's eyes were all crusty and nose was really runny. He said that it was kinda gross, even for him. You know that is a bad sign! Her surgery went well, he came back after the 15 minutes to tell me that her adenoids were 100% blocking her air passage and that he couldn't even see the back of her nose when he first got in there. POOR KAYDEN! They removed them and then flushed a liter of fluid through to clear out all the mucus.

She was pretty calm and sleepy in recovery and the first little bit once we moved to the room upstairs. Once she woke up from the anesthesia, it was a different story. She was mad at the IV and monitor on her toe and in pain. This led to about an hour and a half of fairly inconsolable crying. After a little tyelnol, she calmed down and was super excited to visit with Keeley and Daddy.

She chowed down on turkey, pancake, banana, and apple juice and then took a good nap. All her numbers looked good during the nap. We spend the afternoon visiting everyone in the hospital in the wagon. She was such a trooper. She also hung out in her crib and played a little when she was tired but not sleeping.

We were discharged because the doctor said his main concerns are that the kids eat and drink well (she was doing both while he was talking to us) and that she not be acting like she was sick (she was trying to crawl of the bed at this point). Because none of that was an issue, we were released! Hooray. I'm supposed to sleep in her room tonight but he doesn't expect any problems. Thanks to everyone for your prayers!!!!

Who am I kidding?

Keeley is never going to let me dress her. I know it is good that she can dress herself and that she is opinionated. I suppose I should just accept the fact that she will be extremely independent. It is just hard when I see other little girls that allowed their moms to do something with their hair and clothes. I can't even select the clothes she wears, much less make her wear them.

This morning she woke up with crazy hair and refused to let me do anything to it. After a while of watching her brush her hair out of her eyes, I asked her if she'd like for me to use some hairspray on it. Once sitting still to let me do that, she even let me put pig tails in!
Of course, she immediately took one of them out.


And left for little gym with her shirt and pants backwards and one pig tail.
At least we talked her out of footie pjs.

Easter

This is the first year we actually did the whole Easter egg hunt thing. Keeley actually did it three times - once at MDO, once at our friends house, and once Easter morning. By Easter morning, she was really getting the hang of things! Kayden still doesn't have it figured out so much but she's got some time! Cutest thing ever though, Keeley shared eggs all three times we did the hunting.





Even though Kayden doesn't understand the searching for egg parts, she definitely understands the eating part! She managed to eat an entire chocolate football with her six little teeth. How cute is her little bow? Keeley insisted that she wear it. Unlike Keeley, Kayden doesn't seem to mind having bows in her hair. Maybe this will continue and I'll actually get to style her hair like most moms do. I promise Keeley is not a ragamuffin because I want her to be!!!

Loves to eat

Kayden loves to eat! She's a bit messy so she is usually topless or ends up having to be changed immediately after eating. Monday when Keeley was at MDO, we had fun eating some blueberries for a snack. She decided she was done and then, while I was trying to clean up, she pulled the entire carton off the table and proceeded to eat them. She ended up eating the whole carton before we picked Keeley up....and she has the tummy to show for it!

Later we were eating some chocolate pudding. Obviously she's too independent to allow me to help her eat. Here is what happens as she practices using her spoon. She is awfully cute!!

More from the Daredevil

Here are some more moments of Daredevil Kayden in action.

This is the most tame of the shots I've captured this time. She is trying to ride Keeley's little bike backward.


In her room, she decided that she needed to pull the drawer out and climb inside. Then she tried to reach the top of the changing table.

From her room, she moved to the bathroom and climbed the steps. I suppose that wasn't close enough...

Why is my 10.5 month old IN the sink?!?!?!? She did that all by herself.


And probably the most impressive. She can climb all the way to the top of the slide! She's not even 1 yet. I'm certainly on my toes most the time trying to keep up with her!!

Best Elmo book

Grandma came to visit on Sunday and brought the girls an Elmo book. The book is a book and puppet in one! It is an expanded version of "If you're happy and you know it" The girls loved it!Here Grandma is reading to both the girls.

And here Keeley is making Elmo clap while they read to Kayden.

Thanks Grandma!

More Keeley Fashion

Wearing my robe. She now refers to it as her "other jacket". And, look how cute little sister is!

Mismatched pjs and mom's glasses upside down. Classic.

Why the dog food?

Kayden will NOT leave the dog food alone! She sneaks in there any time she gets a chance. The first place we look for her is the utility room. This particular morning, she climbed into the dog's water bowl and sat in it. She was wearing her pjs so I stripped those off, put her in the hall, and went to put her clothes in the hamper. In the amount of time it took me to walk to her room, she climbed BACK in the dog water bowl and spread food all over. Of course Keeley had to get in on the action.

Back to the OR for my babies

Okay, so if you keep up with the blog, you know that we were scheduled to take Kayden to the ENT on Monday. Yesterday, I called the pediatrician because I didn't think that Kayden was improving enough. They said it takes 2-3 days sometimes. Today her eye was still gross. Because I hate living at the doctor's office, I called to move the ENT appointment to this afternoon. I saw no reason to go to the pedi today and then to the ENT Monday.

The only big problem with this plan is that Keeley had to come with us (Monday she would have been at MDO). A smaller complication was that we had to see a different doctor than the doctor that did Keeley's surgery and I wasn't sure how I felt about that. Neither of those turned out to be too big of a deal, and I was thankful.

When going over the history of my girls, I mentioned that Dr. Mehendale took out Keeley's adenoids but didn't put tubes in. Dr. Ehmer looked at me a little odd and said that was very unusual. He then proceeded to examine Kayden and confirmed that she, too, only needed adenoids removed. After he said that, he paused and said that he couldn't remember ever performing just an adenoidectomy without tubes in this age group. Of course my girls would be different.

Basically, this is where we are. He confirmed that she still has a yucky sinus infection and that it should definitely be getting better soon. We are taking a very strong antibiotic. He did not like the fact that 4 days in she still had an oozy eye. If it is not better by Monday, we are supposed to schedule surgery since she keeps getting infection. He'll remove her adenoids. The only other treatment is 3 months of antibiotics. I said absolutely not and he didn't like that idea either. We've essentially done that and then some since we've been on 5 rounds of antibiotics since November.

He is really conservative though and does not want to do surgery now. That was discussed before he even examined her. He is hoping that the antibiotics she started on Monday will take care of it and we can postpone surgery. Surgery is definitely in her future (no surprise as all of us have had sinus surgery), we are just hoping to keep it away for a little bit. If she has surgery before she is a year, they will keep her overnight at the hospital to monitor her breathing (since her nasal passages are small even before the swelling from surgery).

I'm really not ready for my baby to spend a night in the hospital. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers. Best case scenario will be that the weather and antibiotics clear her out. I'm not terribly hopeful at this point though because she doesn't appear to be any better at all so far.

Brilliance

Well, maybe not brilliant, but I'm impressed never the less. The girls and I were in Keeley's room this morning and Kayden was reaching for a blanket that Grandma had given Keeley for Christmas. We were talking about it and I asked Keeley who gave it to her. She replied, "Grandma". I said, "That's right. Grandma made that for you for Christmas." Her face lit up and she said "Pink hat. Kayden's room." Then she ran in there and said "maybe in closet". Grandma had also made a pink hat for Kayden and that is what Keeley was in search of. How cute is that? And how do they remember things like that?

Now, I suppose her outfits could also be a part of her genius.
Her pajama top, pants that she found looking for the pink hat (they are 12 month pants from last February), one black sock, and two shoes.

Meat loving dare devil

Kayden never ceases to amaze me. While I was cooking dinner the other night, I glanced outside to see this. It is a little blurry but I could only snap one before I had to make sure my baby got down safely!


Big sister soon thought it was a good idea too. You'll notice I said that Kayden encouraged Keeley, not the other way around.

Later, she tried to get on Keeley's bike. This one's already got a bit of a temper and was none too pleased that she couldn't get on it.
And this last photo is just an image of how much she loves meat. A friend of mine thought I meant that she liked baby food meat. Absolutely not. Baby food is in no way acceptable.