Really *#$% Cool New Chair

Grandma and Grandpa Mosksowitz bought us this new chair a few weeks ago and it arrived yesterday. It may look like a simple glider chair but just like cars the features matter. This chair glides, reclines and....swivels; combine that all with the sleigh frame and you have the chair of our dreams. Here are some pictures of Kale claiming ownership of his new chair. We claimed ownership of it last night when I rocked him to sleep (so asleep that I could have dropped him from waist height onto the bed and he wouldn't have even stirred). Thanks so much for the wonderful gift, I am confident we will use it every day.

42 weeks and 2 days

Kale has been living on the outside for longer than he lived inside me. This feels like a momentous milestone, his life is more his than mine, even if he still likes to be carried and cuddled much of the time.

Kale Bug,

Over the past 42 weeks and 2 days you have become the most amazing little boy. Every day I love watching what new things you discover and pay attention to even if they aren’t always what I would like you to be paying attention to. You are absolutely fascinated with the world around you even if you only want to look at it from the safety of my arms and legs.

This past week you have been going diaper free a lot because there is a heat wave going on here in Vancouver. Sometimes while you are cruising* around you pee. When the pee hits your feet you look down so surprised and then sit down to splash in the puddle that appeared at your feet. Every once in a while you realize the pee is coming out of your penis and wiggle it around so the pee sprays everywhere and not just on your feet.

You also have been pointing with your right index finger at anything and everything. We aren’t quite sure if you are asking us to bring the world to your fingertips or if you are just excitedly showing us everything you see. Today, however, you were nursing with your eyes closed and still pointing excitedly all around you so maybe you are pointing for the shear joy of pointing.

This weekend you started feeding us even though you still don’t like us to feed you. We were hanging out by the pool this weekend and you would take a bite of your rice cracker and then put it in my mouth for me to take a bite. Today you grabbed a snack out of my hands and took a bite and then put the rest of it right in my mouth. At dinner tonight your Daddy asked your for a bite and you put a pea right in his mouth.

You aren’t using words yet (other than the occasional mama or dada) but you talk constantly. Daddy and I forget that you understand what we are saying a lot of the time. Which you obviously do since you knew what we were saying at dinner tonight. We are working on it, please be patient with us. Eventually we won’t talk about you in the third person when you are right there in our arms.

Love,
Mumma

*Cruising - taking steps while holding on to the couch, coffee table, or other pieces of furniture for balance

Mixing Bowl Madness

Kale loves swimming at the pool. He giggles, splashes and had a grand old time. A few weeks ago I cleaned out the sandbox we inherited with our house and filled it with hose water, presto baby pool. The first time I set him in it he screamed and screamed. The second time I added boiling water so it was nice warm water, he screamed and screamed. The third time we sat near it and he crawled over and happily played with it from the outside. This week instead of filling the baby pool and trying to keep the water clean I just fill a mixing bowl with water, all the splashing spilling fun in a low effort no screaming package. Alex wasn't quite sure about this bowl full of toys and water so she grabbed a toy and scooted her self out of the splash zone to chew on it.

Popsicle Video

Well here it is, I have figured out how to put a video up on the web all by myself. Lets see if it works....

First Popsicle

I made some coconut milk apricot banana popsicles and gave Kale one today. He actually held onto the handle and licked it just like I would do with a popsicle. Stay tuned for the video....(if I ever figure out how to edit them).

Busy day at home

I turned my back for half a second and suddenly all of the cookbooks were on the floor. On top of the dirty laundry which had been spread out extensively.



The effort obviously exhausted him however as he went down shortly thereafter and has been asleep for 3 1/2 hours. He normally naps for 1 1/2 hours in the afternoon so this is a little unusual. 45 minutes ago he cried and I went in to get him but he wanted to nurse and then fell right back asleep. In the world of napping how long is too long? I never thought I would have to ponder this question. I am currently following the universal addage, never wake a sleeping baby.

Swimming

Here we are hanging out in the pool. Kale had a great time spashing and kicking in the pool and even withstood getting spashed by older kids jumping into the water.

Doggy Time

Kale has a special squeal reserved for when he sees dogs. He is enthusiastic about them until they get close enough to touch and then he is a little hesitant and usually buries his head in my chest. This weekend he conquered his shyness and played with Grandma and Grandpa Moskowitz's dog Ginger. He climbed all over her. I am sorry I didn't get a more interactive picture of them together but I know that Grandpa Steve took a great video.


He looks like a little boy in this picture, my little baby is so big.

Naked Picnic

Only Kale was naked actually. He was so damm cute I couldn't choose between the photos.

Oh look, Dad has the camera, better smile.

But I will keep eating this plum, yum.

still eating...

In this one you can see the mass of mashed blueberries. They don't survive being crawled on very well.

Right before this picnic Kale was playing in his kiddy pool (well outside it actually since he won't get into the kiddy pool and just reaches his arms in). Keva tells me he was standing up unassisted while they were playing. Not sure I believe it since I never saw it but I thought I would report that it could be.

Grandpa Larry's Chair

In the hallway at my parents house is a picture of my father sitting in this chair when he was a wee little one. I couldn't get Kale to sit in it long enough for a picture but here are some shots of him climbing around on it. He grins everytime we sit him in it and then proceeds to stand up and rock it back and forth. I try not to tense up everytime I think he is going to crush his feet.

Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge

We went hiking! Go us! And we remembered our camera! Go us! We didn't charge the batteries...Whooops.

The Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge is a popular destination for short hikes here in the Vancouver area. The bridge and the first 15 minutes of trails were quite crowded but once we got further out it was a little quieter and quite lovely in the shade along the river.

Before you cross the bridge there are graphic warning signs about the currents in the water, the risk of jumping into the pools, the dangers of undertow and the like. There were also numerous memorials to people who died jumping off the bridge and rocks into the river. Despite that there were people jumping off the rocks into the water and I couldn't even watch. There were crowds of people watching and clapping but it just turned my stomach. I guess I don't have the daredevil gene.

Chilling in the Park..

Keva was in the mood for the All American Breakfast (Denver Omlet, Hashbrowns and maybe even a side of bacon) so we headed out to Sophie's Cosmic Cafe in Kits. After a tasty breakfast, Kale particularly liked the potatoes, we headed to the park to play for a while. Kale fell asleep on the way there so we had to keep moving for a while but when he woke up there was much fun to be had. I liked this crawling sequence, especially his serious expression in the last shot.

Happy Canada Day!

To celebrate Canada's most patriotic holiday we had a wonderful picnic complete with a BBQ at Trout Lake. We were joined by two other families (both of whom we met in prenatal classes last summer). There was way too much food (we all brought enough to feed everyone) and lots of mostly happy babies.

Here are a few photos from the event...Sadie in her Mama's arms.

Amy play with Ayla while Kale steadfastly ingnores them.

Kale was more in the mood to stare at me.