Katherine at 9 Months

Eating:  Katherine is doing better and better with eating.  We have recently started giving her puffs which she loves!  She now almost always eats a full container of Stage 1 foods.  She has had some Stage 2 combination foods in the last 2 weeks and has enjoyed all of those.  Yogurt is something else she likes that we have been giving her lately.  She likes the vanilla or strawberry.  At Easter I gave her some bites of a dinner roll which she liked.  More ended up on the floor than in her mouth though.  She nurses or has a bottle 4-5 times per day.  She goes 4-5 hours between feedings now with a "meal" in between.  

Sleeping: I feel like Katherine has improved with her sleeping a lot.  Our trip might change that since we are so out of our routine.  We had reserved a baby bed for the condo, but it never came.  Paul called and emailed without ever hearing back from the company.  So, Katherine has slept with us the past 5 nights.  Prior to this she was doing fairly well sleeping through the night.  She would sometimes wake up.  Hopefully we will get right back on track now that we are home. Katherine is definitely a tummy sleeper now.  As soon as I lay her down she rolls on to her tummy and that is usually where she is when she wakes up.  

Personality: I know I say it all the time but K is just the happiest little girl!  It does not take much to get her to flash that melt-your-heart smile!  She loves to giggle and babble.  She still loves her big brother and grins from ear to ear any time he plays with her.

Milestones: I must say that Florida agrees with Miss Katherine.  Since we have been here she has hit some milestones.  She has been teething for months now but we have not seen any evidence of a tooth yet, but that all changed.  Mom said she thought she saw something white in her mouth.  I did not believe her until I put my finger in there to see.  Sure enough she has a sharp little tooth on the bottom!  The next big thing she has started is babbling in somewhat recognizable words.  She clearly says da-da and ba-ba now.  Sometimes it sound like she is saying hi-da!  We still can not say that she is definitely crawling but she is so close.  She continues to roll, flip or inch her way around.  She would much rather be on the floor playing than to be held.  Most of time when I hold her she is bouncing and lunging for the floor.  When I sit her up she eases forward until she is down on the ground.  Her legs are getting so strong.  She loves for us to stand her up and "walk" her around.  She tries so hard to pull herself up but is not there yet.  She can stand up holding on to a piece of furniture unassisted for a little bit now.

We really know that the next few major milestones - crawling, walking and talking are going to come so quickly.  Sometimes I wish we could just freeze time and enjoy this stage!

Another Day at the Beach

Paul's version of Thomas the Train

Luke called the hose a "weedeater"??

We tried to make the most of our last day of vacation.  We made pancakes and the trimmings for breakfast then headed to the beach.  Andrew and Mandi went to do some things for the house.  This afternoon Paul, Luke and I went to the new house again so Paul could see it.  We got back and realized pretty quickly that we needed to get ready for pictures on the beach. Andrew and Mandi recently purchased a really nice camera so we took all the real pictures with it.  I will post those once I can get them put on my computer.  They were great and I am super impressed with their camera!

Tonight we (Paul) grilled steaks and had baked potatoes and salad.  Mandi's mom joined us which was nice.  We just enjoyed hanging out.  We did start trying to pack up so we will not have so much to do before we leave.

Fabulous Friday in Florida!

They made Luke a Mickey Mouse pancake!

Beach Baby...

Luke has been talking about building sand castles for months!

Katherine loved the beach!

The best shot I could get of Andrew in the Survivor Lap of Relay.

Paul and Katherine looked on

We have had another fun, busy day today.  We started the day by watching coverage of the Royal Wedding!  Her dress was gorgeous and we talked quite a bit about the British Monarchy today.  We headed over to the Neighborhood Cafe for breakfast.  It was so good.  We came back and went to the beach while Mom and Andrew went and did some shopping for the new house.  The kids loved the beach! The temperature was perfect.  The water was a little cool but we mainly played in the sand.  Luke loved building sandcastles and messing them up!  Katherine was fine as long as I did not put her in the water!  Andrew took Luke to a cool model train exhibit that he loved.

Tonight we were able to go to Relay for Life.  It was neat to see all the support down here.  There were all types of vendors selling food as part of the fundraiser.  We ate there and let Luke play a little bit.  We came home and put both kids to bed.  Luke did not have a nap today so he is quite cranky.  Katherine is 9 months today!  I will do our normal monthly update post later.

Tomorrow is our last day here and we are going to try to make the most of it..more beach time, grilling out, pictures on the beach and maybe a little more shopping...

A Full Day of Fun

Going out to eat

Luke had to be torn away from the Thomas trains

Watching the draft and enjoying a great dinner!

The mornings are a little cool in Florida right now.  We decided it was too cool to go to the beach so we decided to go shopping.  A trip to the Outlet Mall always makes me happy, especially when Gymboree had Winter clearance for $3.99!  The kids did great while we were out.  Luke has been asking to go to a "toy shop that has trains" since we got here.  We found a cool toy store at Destin Commons.  Paul and Luke played and played.  I ran in a few stores while Mom sat in the car with Katherine.  Luke also rode on a little train that went through the mall.  He really liked it.

Tonight we went to a great little seafood place for supper - Fish Lipz.  The food was great and the atmosphere was very relaxed.  We were able to watch the draft to see Cam Newton go as the #1 pick!  We came back the condo and baked cookies.  Luke was not ready to go to bed so he, Andrew and Nonna went for a walk on the beach.  We are having a wonderful time -- the kids are doing well for the most part and the weather has been great!

We Made It....Ahead of Schedule

So happy to be at the beach!

So excited about their new house!

Uncle Andrew and Katherine on Katherine Street

Our plan had been to leave about 3 this morning.  Once we realized how bad the weather was going to be we started debating leaving last night. While I was feeding Katherine at bedtime Mom and Paul decided to go ahead and leave and hopefully beat the storms.  Paul reserved a couple of hotel rooms in Montgomery.  So, we left Nashville about 9:30 and got to Montgomery around 2 am.  We did not have any rain at all the whole way there.  We stayed ahead of the storms.  Luke and Katherine slept most of the way to Montgomery.  Luke was going to stay in the room with Nonna and Katherine was going to sleep with Paul and I.  Luke started with Mom, then ended up in bed with us and then back with Mom.  According to Mom he did not sleep much - probably 2 hours.  He only napped the last hour of the trip this morning.  He is one tired little guy.  Katherine did much better and slept the majority of the way here.  If she was not sleeping she was just babbling and smiling.

Once we got settled in to the condo we tried to get Luke to take a nap.  He finally fell asleep before we were leaving to go see Andrew and Mandi's new house. We decided that Paul would stay with him while Mom, Katherine and I went to check out their new place.

Their house is beautiful!  We are so excited for them.  They should close the end of May!  Tonight we just cooked dinner at the condo and tried to recover from our trip. For dessert we went to Baskin Robbins because they were having 31 cent scoop night.  We went through the drive-through and took our treat to a cool park where Luke could play.  Katherine fell asleep so I stayed with her.

The South has been hit by horrible tornadoes - the worst in decades.  It appears many lives have been lost in Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia.  It is tragic, but again we were so thankful we were safely in Florida.

Packing Up

We are super excited around here....we are packing up and heading to Florida to visit Andrew and Mandi!  The plan is to leave around 3 in the morning.  The weather is supposed to be really bad with threats of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes.  We are trying to decide what to do about leaving.  In the mean time Paul is trying to fit everything he can into our vehicle.  Luckily, we borrowed a topper from the Louws so that is giving us some more space.  Mom is going with us so we are hoping to not be too crowded.  We can't wait to get to Florida for a relaxing vacation!

Easter in Gallatin

We had more storms Sunday afternoon so we were not sure if we were going to be able to hunt eggs or not.  It turned out there was a break in the rain so we could do it.  Luke and Lauren were on a team while Paul hunted for Katherine.  Jon, Kristen and Jim got in on the action, too.  It is always fun to watch the "big kids" get just as excited!

After the egg hunt we enjoyed our Easter supper.  Each of us made a few dishes so Paula would not have a lot on her.  Everything turned out really nice!  We always enjoy being together and it had been too long since we were all together.  We capped off the night by watching the Predators win the first round of the NHL playoffs.  It was so exciting!  It is the first time the Preds have made it past the first round so we were all pumped for the victory!  It was after 8 before we left so both kids were ready to go to bed as soon as we got home.

Up From the Grave He Arose!

We had a wonderful Easter!  It started with the kids getting up to look at everything the Bunny brought them. Luke has been asking for Hiro ( a Thomas train) and a Thomas book he had seen a couple of months ago.  He was so excited when he saw both things in his basket!  He was also excited to see that Katherine had her very own pink swing so she would not have to borrow his anymore.

We all got ready and went to church.  For the first time since we have had kids we forgot the diaper bag!  Katherine was due to eat during church and we normally send her a bottle but since we did not have one we took her in the worship with us. Mom joined us for church which was nice.  Katherine really enjoyed the singing in worship - she would kick her foot and "sing".  Katherine was ready to eat right before the sermon so she and I went to the nursing room.  We finished up right as Mom, Paul and Luke were done with church.

We enjoyed our traditional Subway lunch, went home for naps and then headed to Gallatin for another Easter celebration!

Easter at Nonna's

I had to work this morning but the hospital census was way down due to the Easter holiday weekend.  I was only there a couple of hours which has not happened in years.  It was nice because I was able to get home to help finish getting things ready to go to Mom's for a late Easter lunch with the Tullahoma crew.  We decided to just grill burgers instead of the usual Easter fare.

We had an egg hunt after lunch.  Luke liked hunting eggs.  He wanted to hide them when he was finished so Cynthia could find them.  Katherine did great.  No one could believe what a big girl she is getting to be!  We stayed most of the afternoon then went home to take naps. It was a great way to start the Easter weekend.

Easter Egg Hunt at School

I was so glad when I found out that the egg hunt at school was on a Wednesday.  I was able to go which was so fun.  I was the only parent that came which was neat.  Luke was so excited when I showed up.  He was so sweet.  He would grab me by the hand and lead me to his different friends and teachers and introduce me.  He said "Connor..Connor..this is my mom, Kelly".  It was the cutest thing!

Since it was rainy today the egg hunt was in each classroom.  The kids had made a egg basket from a gallon milk jug.  I got to help Luke find a lot of eggs.  It was not that hard...they were everywhere!  When Luke's hunt was over I slipped out so he would not get upset. I stopped by Katherine's room to see what she was doing.  She started jumping up and down when I went in to see her!  Her class was going to do their hunt when all the kids were awake.

When I left the school I went to meet Amanda for lunch. It was the first time we have gotten together without kids since before her son was born over 4 years ago!  It was so nice to catch up.  We sat in the restaurant for 2 hours and then talked in her car for another hour!  We really hope it is not another 4 years before we do it.

Hello? Is Anyone There?

Talking on the phone is hit or miss with Luke.  Sometimes he won't come near the phone when someone wants to talk to him.  Tonight, he got upset when we would not let him watch a Thomas movie on the computer.  He teared up and said he wanted to call Nonna.  He talked to her for a little bit. When he was finished talking with Nonna he wanted to call Nene and Pop.  I think they got a kick out of it.  He really can carry on an "adult" conversation.

Where is the Vinegar?

I ran to Publix last night after I got my hair cut.  We had talked about dying eggs so I picked up a kit.  When we started working on them after supper we realized we did not have any vinegar.  The pack said you could also use water for "pastel - colored" eggs.  The water did not work too well.  The eggs were very light.  Paul started looking around and did find some vinegar so we did a few more.  It is hard to dye eggs with a 3 1/2 year old.  He wanted to do everything which is fine, but he dropped a couple of them trying to get them out of the dye.  He still had a blast decorating them with stickers when they dried.

Katherine just hung out and played while we were busy with the Easter eggs.  She plays really well by herself.  We usually give her a pile of toys and that lasts her a few minutes.

Looking for New Shoes

Today was rainy, cold and dreary.  We took our time getting up this morning and did not really want to do anything.  Luke needs some new shoes so we went on a family outing to find some.  We also needed to exchange and return some things at the mall.  I am still trying to piece some type of Easter outfit together for him.  We were really looking for navy and white saddle oxfords for Luke.  They would be great for Easter and he will wear them in the wedding in June.  Those shoes are hard to come by, at least in Rivergate.  No one had them, but at least we got his foot measured so we know what size he needs.  If I can not find some before Easter I will not worry about it.  The main thing is to have them before the Jon and Kristen get married.

Luke found some Sperry flip-flops that he loved.  He took them off the display and put them on.  It was hard for us to get him to take them off. He has never had flip-flops before so it was a little hard for him to walk in them.  Luckily, they did not have his size so we did not have to worry about it.  We promised him he could do the train if he was good during all the shopping. He was so excited to finally show Paul the model trains he and I have played with a couple of times.  It never seems that I have any quarters when we need them.  It took us 15 minutes to figure out how to get change before he and Paul could even do it.

After the mall we went to Chick-fil-A for lunch and then came home for naps.  A pretty good way to spend a dreary Saturday.