Learning to crawl

Kayden is SO determined to crawl. The other day I let her have a go at it straight from the bath. I was hoping that her unrestricted state would help; it didn't but I got some really cute pictures!


You'll notice she is quite happy with the tiny amount of progress she made.

Sisterly Love

Keeley attack!

Kayden is still all smiles.

Such adoring eyes for her big sister.

Sweetest picture ever.

Visit from Unga

My brother came into town on Wednesday to help drive a friend across the country. He spent a lot of time at our house with the girls. Keeley really enjoyed spending time with her Unga. Kendall got to experience first hand how toddlers can be a little bit on the bossy side. He played with Keeley at the park, taught her how to put her stuffed animals down the slide, and did lots of reading with her. He also got to enjoy some cuddle time with Kayden. We really enjoyed Uncle Kendall's visit and he certainly made quite an impression on Keeley as she is still asking for her Unga today.

Here are some pictures of Keeley and her Unga enjoying the park and reading time together.

Still moving

Kayden is determined to keep up with her big sister! Tuesday evening we left her on the floor to play while we ate dinner. Usually we bring her to the table with us but she had been in arms most of the day and seemed to enjoy her time on the floor. After about 10 minutes she started fussing and Kelly went back to the living room to get her. She had moved all the way across the living room and had gotten stuck by Keeley's ball bucket. While not coordinated or methodical in her movement, she is able to move great distances by rolling and launching herself forward. Watch out Keeley! As soon as Kayden figures out to move her arms she's going to be after you!!

All Saints Day

Today Daddy was recognized at All Saints Day at my home church. This is another one of the things that is just surreal to me as I process through the grief. While I know that he is gone, it is still hard to really wrap my mind around it. The service also ushered in the beginning of the first holiday season without Daddy. Fortunately, we have two adorable little girls that are the perfect age to begin new family traditions. Hopefully this will aide us in surviving this tough season.

It was important to me that we be at the service with Mom. Kelly, the girls, and I all met Mom at the first service. The recognition was at the beginning of the service which I thought was great. Keeley barely made it through the first 10 minutes. As soon as we had stood to remember Daddy, Kelly took her out. Unfortunately, Keeley is just too busy to sit still during a church service. Kayden, on the other hand, made it almost the end of the service. She was in awe of all the people, the stained glass, the music...it was so cute to watch her look all around with wide eyes. Babies have such a sense of wonder about the world.

After the service, we were sitting at the back waiting for Mom come out. Several people told me that I couldn't bring her back because they didn't pay any attention to the service. How could they when this cute face was staring at them?

Ketchup

Keeley has gotten very into ketchup recently. This is an improvement since she was previously angered by its presence on her plate. Ketchup will be a useful tool in disguising other food and enticing her to eat a wider variety.

Kelly and I were eating hamburgers the other night and Keeley requested some ketchup. (I know you were going to be amazed if she wanted hamburger since she is a vegetarian!). I squirted some on her plate and this is how she ate it.

Swirl both hands around to get it on her fingers....

...then put both hands in her mouth at the same time.

After a few fingerfuls, she asked for more. I pointed out to her that she still had some on her plate. She gave me a very serious look and smeared the remaining ketchup all around the plate. She then looked at me as if to say "See, I don't have any" and asked for more again. I had to admire her creativity so I gave her a little more. The same thing happened except I didn't give her anymore. Today she once again tried to tell me she needed more when she didn't. AGAIN she smeared it all over her plate to prove that she needed more. Isn't she too little to be this tricky?!?

Memurs

About a week ago I made a mistake and asked Keeley if she wanted to look at monkeys with me on the computer. That may sound a bit random. Keeley really likes monkeys and I wanted to research the Dallas World Aquarium to see about taking her. I figured they would have pictures of monkeys and she would let me get my research done.

They did have pictures and I was able to complete my short bit of research. The problem was then that Keeley was addicted to seeing the "monk". She kept asking for more. Every time she saw me at the computer she would ask to see "monk". I eventually got tired of the few pictures posted on the Dallas World Aquarium site and began scouring the web for a bigger selection. I stumbled across the National Geographic site for kids and we enjoyed the chimps, howler monkeys, and orangutans.

Although Keeley was thoroughly entertained, I became bored once again...

This prompted me to make an even bigger mistake. I asked Keeley if she would like to look at the ring tailed lemurs. She has liked lemurs ever since our trip to Sharkarosa Ranch. She was fascinated there and also when we saw them at the Heard Museum. This fascination pales in comparison to her new fascination with them on the computer. We have watched this video at least a hundred times this week. We watch it over and over again. Every time she wakes up or gets bored, she says "memurs, memurs" and heads to the computer room.