Something Smells

Koen has a new facial expression. He scrunches it up and breathes in and out heavily as though saying `Something is smelly!'. You can see it in the first picture.

This is day 2 of using cloth diapers during the day. Going totally fine. Wish all our diapers were all-in-ones. We only have two like that and they are my favourite. Went for a jog this morning before it was over 25C...awesome! We def. need to lower the crib as he is all over the place. Yesterday he stood up holding onto my leg and then he let go. His favourite thing to do is to stand at the toy box.
I think all I do is blog about my kids but really, Gary and I don't really have much else going on. Tomorrow we will be in Osoyoos for O So Nerdy 2009. There is generally a Nerdfest every year and I've been to three; Galiano/Tofino, Nerdfiesta in Mexico and now O So Nerdy. We missed Nerdfest in Thailand because we were working. It's a group of Gary's guy friends from university with their wives and kids and we all get along really well. Should be fun!!! Time to pack.

Blackberries and Fondant

Today Kai and I went to pick blackberries down the road. I can't believe they are ready already! Yay for free berries although I will admit they were a little tart. This afternoon I took Kai to the local public outdoor pool and we will def. go back as a family tomorrow. Kai is not a big fan of the water but he was okay with it as long as I was holding him the whole time. He loves to be spun around so I'll get Gary to be a little wilder with him tomorrow.

Due to the fact that our house is 29 C downstairs WITH the AC I decided that it wouldn't make a difference to use the stove so I made Kai's birthday cake. It's a car cake. I've always wanted to make a fondant cake but it didn't turn out how I wanted. I think that with my skills, aka lack of skills, fondant might be good for a pretty cake (you know, circular with a ribbon and dots on it or something). The other thing was that I let Kai choose the colours and somehow a car cake doesn't look as cool when its white with teal tires and windows and pink racing stripe. I would say that the fondant was very easy to make and roll out and I will attempt a nicer cake at a later date. This was actually the practice cake as his real party is in a few weeks:) I have learned from my mistakes and will def. switch things up a lot. Ahhh..so embarrased to post this picture but...

Can you even tell it's a car? Kai said it was sooo beautiful so I guess that's all that matters. In a couple weeks you will hopefully see a super awesome car cake!

I also went to the berry farm to get a bunch of raspberries and blueberries and realized half way home they totally overcharged me but I couldn't find the reciept. Baked some muffins and packed the kids suitcases for our trip this weekend. Should be good times.

Sleeping in the basement was wonderful. I think I might get Gary to have his own bed down there tonight but other than that, it was cool (temp wise) and the kids were great. Well, Kai did get up around 5:45am but ya, still not bad.

All righty, time to think about dinner.

Sweatfest

Last night was probably the worst night sleep I've had...ever? I managed to get both kids asleep downstairs by 10pm. Gary came home at 1am (from the Mariners game) and we moved everyone upstairs. I then fell asleep at 3am and was up at 6 am with the kids. I think it was due to insomnia and not the heat. Tonight we are all set up to sleep in the basement. Gary and I on a double futon? Oh boy...we're used to our king size bed. At least it's nice and chilly down there. I'll try not to think of the spiders...

(Look at his pudgy thighs..I'll miss them when he grows taller)
Koen is really moving. It amazes me what he does every day. His favourite thing to do is to have you lie down and he will just crawl all over you or use your leg to stand up. He does not like being alone at all. I have to say that when Gary was gone yesterday, I had no choice but to be a `good mom'. You know, like hang out with the kids all day. I find that when Gary is around, I use my time to get stuff done or relax on the computer.

Kai has been extra grumpy due to lack of sleep. He loves it when Gary spins him around. He also loves to cover Gary in a ton of blankets proclaiming that he is a baked potato. In this heat, I'm sure Gary loves it too. Then, we have to remove all the blankets and pretend to eat him. Hoping that one gets old soon:) Kai and I have mommy and son time every night when we eat our freezies on the front porch and check out all the cars going by.

I made fondant today. Nothing like standing by the stove in 30+C weather! The website said you should make it days in advance but after I had made it, I was told that it was best to do it the day of the cake making. Oh well, we'll see how it does when I make the cake tomorrow.

Koen had his second visceral massage today. He actually really likes it which surprises me being that he's on his back for a good 10 minutes AND having compressions on his belly. Koen LOVES avocados and I'm in the stage of balancing his milk and food intake. His tummy can't hold as much as Kai's could so I think that's why he's eating every 3 hours still...he's just hungry. In regards to the diapers, we have cut down our diaper usage in half at least. I am very thankful for that. I hated using so many diapers per day. I'm trying to work up the energy to get into the cloth ones again. I took these pictures because he's moving to a big car seat this week...so sad, another sign that my baby is getting to be so big! Look at his eyes in the first one. Kai's eyes have turned hazel like Gary's, I wonder if Koen's will stay blue.

We may have gone to McDonald's for dinner primarily to use their AC and have Kai play in the play area. We only go there once every 3 months and I hate feeling like I just ingested 50 grams of fat so I will stop thinking about it. Exercise is seriously impossible these days as its just way too hot. Gary may be driving the boys around in the air conditioned van right now because Koen fell asleep in it and it will guarantee a good nap out of him.

We are headed up to Osoyoos with friends on the weekend. I have to admit that the idea of spending 5 days in 35+C weather does not excite me. The rest of it excites me but the heat does not. Without kids, no problem. With them...oh man.

Talking about `without kids', I realized that Gary and I have not been on a date in over 7 months. We do get out the two of us when we are doing a photo shoot but that's it and I don't think that counts as we are working. We are scheduled for a date on August 12th for our birthday dinners. I can't believe I'm almost 31, that sounds so old! I love being in my 30's though, it feels right.

Okay, kids are with Gary. I'm going to relax or something. Probably clean up.

Mover

I left Koen for a minute while I brushed Kai's teeth and he went from sitting to crawling to kneeling to standing holding on to Kai's bed. Kai was nothing like this so he just seems like such a mover to me!

Lovin' the AC

Kai turns 3 in less than a week!! I checked out the blog from a year ago and boy, has he grown up in that time! Physically he is so much taller and leaner (okay, just a little leaner), his vocab and conversation skills have vastly improved. He is such a good little helper. I'll blog a special one for him next week. I'm going to be making a fondant car cake for him, well, that's the plan!
(isn't he sweet?)


I'm officially melting. The weather is so gross and I'm so thankful for two things:


1. AC downstairs (our upstairs is pretty toasty though)
2. I'm not 9 months pregnant in this weather



We did a photo shoot in this crazy heat last night and Gary and I were sweating buckets before we began! Def. our hottest shoot ever. The poor 9 month old girl was a sweaty, hot lil bundle by the end but she did fantastically. Thanks to Melissa for watching our two boys...and she's got 3 of her own already! I think I'll be editing in the basement today:)

We are going to Osoyoos next week and I really hope it's not too hot. I can't believe our summer holidays are half over! July just flew by.


Gary's headed to the Mariner's game this afternoon and we are having Kai's buddy Noah over for a playdate. Other than that, I will be hiding out in the house. Okay, Koen's napping..better use my free time (aka just one kid!) wisely.

Birth

No pictures folks, just thoughts. I need to get it out so here it is. We watched Kai's first year video the other day and in the beginning of it, is me, enduring a contraction at about the 9cm dilation mark. I'm so glad we have it on video and this got me thinking a lot about him coming into the world (my baby is going to be 3 in a week!!!).

Also, since being at Caden's birth, a lot of feelings have resurfaced for me regarding Kai's birth. I never, ever imagined having a C-section. I packed enough for 1 day in the hospital. I am a very determined/stubborn person and felt that I could handle any challenge (and kind of welcome it in a way). If I set my mind to do something, I do it. I'm strong physically and have done a lot of challenging things (adventure races, mountain climbing, half marathons...). I'm strong mentally in that if I say I'm going to do something, I make myself do it. I like to have control over everything in my life. I know I'm not really the one in control but sometimes I like to think so:)

I made it to 10cm dilated just sucking back on gas and moaning and groaning. I `got' to push for 1.5 hours. I remember saying to the nurse that there was no way I could get that baby out and she said I had to visualize. So I visualized and pushed like never before and I swear they were about to say `There's the head!', but they never did. I endured an internal manual rotation. I got an epidural. I pushed with an epidural for another half an hour. In the end, Kai's 95%ile head and his bad positioning (posterior and coming out ear first I believe) meant that it was unlikely that I could deliver him naturally. At that point, I was thinking that they could do whatever they wanted to me to get that baby out. I had no idea what a C-section was about. I thought they would cut my entire belly from top to bottom and I didn't care. I was done. Done. Done. Little did I know that it's actually a very small incision but boy, it's deep and there is a lot of recovery to be done.

The recovery from labour, pushing and a C-section is insanely exhausting. There was no way I could imagine trying again. Maybe I should've, I don't know. How was I to know how big Koen would be? He was a few ounces smaller and his head was also not in the 95 percentile, so maybe I would've gotten him out. I had to recover from a C-section with a very bad cold/flu, maybe even bronchitis. Our entire family was sick. Again, tough recovery. Anyone who has had a C-section knows that coughing is not an easy feat. I also know though, that the recovery from a natural birth can be just as long and difficult.


I just need to feel content with my decision to have a planned C-section. I need to feel content with Kai's birth and not feel like a failure. I know in my head that I am so blessed to have 2 healthy baby boys and why should I complain that I had a C-section? I guess sometimes I just feel like everyone (I know its really not everyone) has had a natural birth and somehow I sucked and couldn't do it. I know this isn't the case, it's just how I feel sometimes.


I actually feel really fortunate that I experienced as much of labour as I could. I do understand when people talk about contractions, dilating, pushing etc. I hope to just feel content about it and satisfied with my decision to have a planned C-section. I know this feeling of uneasiness and uncertainty will arise if we have a third because now you can have a VBA2C. I'm pretty sure I would have a C-section again, but, is that just because I'm afraid of failure? It's so crazy how this is something I think about so much but it comes up so often! Talking to mom's at the park it always comes up and I feel like a wimp when I say I had a C-section. No offense to those that have had a C-section, there's nothing wimpy about it.

Anyway, just needed to vent. You never know what's going to get thrown your way in life. I need to be easier on myself and pray for contenment. I am really happy in my life, I just feel like I failed a part of it. I think it really has to do with how I always strive to do so well at things...maybe it's classic oldest child syndrome:) Okay, I'm done.

PS Koen went to be by 9pm the last two nights. This is sooooo awesome.
PPS It was way too muggy today.

Kai's First Date

This video was taken a few weeks ago at Green Lake. Kai was such a little man taking the neighbour girl on a lawnmower ride. Don't worry folks, they were closely supervised (by their grandpa's) and the blade obviously wasn't on:)

Funny things Kai has said this week:

Upon seeing Gary come down the stairs in his nice clothes for wedding photography, Kai said, ` Daddy, you look handsome like Bob!'. You know, like Bob the Builder.

***

Kai learning that flattery may work...`Mommy, you have pretty eyes. Can I have a freezie?'

***

Kai: Daddy, what kind of flower is that?

Gary: A marigold

Kai: YOu're right Daddy, you are so smart!

***

Me: Kai, you've got so many bumps and scrapes, you're falling apart!

Kai (looking so concerned and worried): I'll break like glass?

***

Not really a funny story but Kai is so upset that his broken toy jeep is currently buried in the dump somewhere. Last night he really wanted us to take him to the dump to go get it back:)

***

Kai was recently given the job of taking the compost out to the bin. He is so interested in the process of worms eating the scraps and pooping out good soil which in turn makes our garden grow. Ask him about it, he loves to talk about it!

Koen `Chases' Kai Video

Be prepared for giggles...starts about 7 seconds in. Unfortunately as this was the 10th time we did it, Kai was no longer into it:)

A Beautiful Day

Today we started the day with homemade waffles and then went on a 5 km family jog in the cool weather. This is honestly a dream start to the day for me:) Then, homemade smoothies, yum, yum! Everyone should have frozen berries in their freezer. This week I made blueberry pancakes, blueberry waffles, triple berry crumble, raspberry muffins, and berry smoothies (frozen blueberries, frozen raspberries, milk, vanilla and honey). Love it!




I've been struggling this last week with some insomnia so I think I need to start running a little more. We've been so busy that I took about 5 days off. I think that must be contributing to it. That and the inability to stop thinking about Caden's birth:)


Koen can now go from crawling to sitting. I can't believe how much this guy is moving!!!


He visited a massage therapist on Wednesday to get a visceral massage. She compressed and massaged his digestive system, particularly his esophagus. Koen did pretty well lying on his back for 10 minutes and just kept pulling on her hair:) We're going again next week so we'll see how it goes. He has vomitted up several ounces twice in the last week and although he is getting a lot of solids, he is still spitting up frequently. He still stays up til 10pm each night, has maybe one feed in the night, and then sleeps til about 7am.

Koen is Mr. Personality. He LOVES people and exploring and giggling and MOVING. I'll post a video later of him `chasing' Kai and laughing hysterically. I love it. I love this age!

After seeing Ali seconds after the birth of Caden, I've been so emotional. A baby is such an incredible miracle and we are so blessed. I went and held Caden today and he curled up on my chest, with his arms under his head and man, that is too cute. There's something about another 9lb+ baby boy, brings me back:)

Little hands, don't get too big too fast.

Brotherly Love

Today was fabulous as Kai and Koen started doing things together. It makes my heart so happy.

Baby Kooger

I had one of the most amazing nights ever. It's currently on facebook so I think I can talk about it now:) Ali and Joel are good friends of mine who had their first baby last night. I was allowed to take pictures immediately after the baby was born and it was soooo emotional. I couldn't sleep afterwards. Ali did the best job ever. She pushed out a 9lb 7oz baby boy with a HUGE head. I don't know where she was hiding all that baby in that belly of hers.

Caden Theodore Kooger (I love his name!!) was born at 11:57pm and was immediately sucking his thumb and hand. Most of Ali and Joel's family were ready, waiting, and eager to celebrate in the good news. So cute. So precious. Congratulations!!

There are a ton more pictures but I should probably let them see them first:)

Just seconds old, mom and dad get their first glance at their big beautiful baby boy.

Koen will now have a little buddy to play with! Congratulations Joel and Ali!!!

Good Eats

We're starting to get some good food from our garden which is always fun. You don't realize how good home grown strawberries are until you have one. These guys taste way better than they look.

Wedding shoot went well on Saturday and I should have some (okay, a lot of) pictures posted tomorrow. We are heading out in a few hours for an engagement shoot. I just realized this week that this is our job, not just a hobby. We just enjoy it so much, we forget its work. It is also a great option for me in the future to be a stay at home mom. The only problem is that I will be a mom-in-front-of-the-computer-for-hours-editing kind of mom, but I guess I can do all that when the kids are in bed. Thank goodness we have summers off to do this as there's no way we could do what we do if we were working full time in the summer! I guess I sort of have experienced working while having 2 kids which I always thought would be very overwhelming. Teaching will be an entirely different story I'm sure, so exhuasting!

(Kai's hair is crazy...we are growing it out. He has very awkward, very straight hair. He says he wants to grow it as long as mine. We'll see about that).
Koen has really started moving. It's kind of a random crawl with some leg extensions, belly flops and big wiggles but he gets to where he wants to go! Pretty soon it will be time to put the baby gate back up. Talking about baby gates, I think Gary and I are pretty confident that we would like a 3rd child, just not right now:) Who am I? As I predicted (as did my sister Maria), you just can't make that decision while 8 months pregnant, or recovering from a C-section, or getting up 4 times in the night. I guess things get easier when the baby is 6 months because it was at this magical time that I thought that I really, really want one more baby. We will see if that is what God has planned for us or not, but in the meantime, we're going to enjoy our wonderful family of four.

And as for moving, we are going to stay put until our mortgage is up for renewal (1.5 years). Then we will see what the rates are at and whether or not it would be wise to take on a larger mortgage. For now, we will try to maximize our space (any tips?) and do a little painting to spice things up. And, I will stop looking at MLS:)
See ya!

Picture This

Hey team, just a quick update as we haven't taken any pictures in two days (GASP) and we will be busy taking pictures at a wedding and engagement shoot over the next two days so I will def. be pictured out! I went for a run in the crazy hot heat yesterday and have felt sick ever since. I find I get dehydrated so easily while breastfeeding and it gives me the worst headaches. No more running in the heat, I'll just work out in front of the AC (yay for AC!!!).

Just wanted to let you know that I have another blog called `Picture This' which is linked on the side. It just shows some general photography tips right now and I'm not sure where its going but take a peak, let me know what you think. I'm not claiming to be an expert, just someone sharing some stuff she has learned over the years. I know I'm a little blog crazy but I find that its a quick escape and its easier to do than reading a book with 2 kids around. Leave a comment:)

I'm eagerly awaiting the day that Koen goes to bed before 10pm. It's just mentally exhausting to not have down time. I LOVE that Kai goes to bed at 7:30pm each night. Maybe I was just spoiled with Kai who napped 4 hours a day and slept 7pm-7am every night at this age. Oh well, he can't be like this forever..right?!!! Tips people?? Any tips??

Gary and I realized that we get along best when we are out of our house and on holidays. We had some good talks, without distractions (other than the kids), on the way to and from Green Lake. We discussed trying to have a third child and buying a new house. Two big things in my book. I'll let you know what we decided when Gary confirms our decision:)

***

And in closing, a couple comments from Kai:

Kai: Mommy, can I have some of your drink?

Me: No Kai, its not good for kids (a frappaccino, which I could truly become addicted to but don't for fear that it would keep Koen up even later)

Kai: Oh mommy, I'll just try it, it's no big deal.

***

Me and Gary were discussing something about houses and Kai pipes up excitedly from the backseat...`Did you say dessert? I LOVE dessert! What a great idea!' We were not talking about dessert. He has done this several times, always with different things that he loves and thinks are a great idea.

***

Today Kai put on his underwear by himself. Apparently daddy taught him how to do it. Not sure what I've been doing the past month. Apparently with a VERY firm tone, he suddenly knows how to do what he has been `unable' to do. Good thing daddy taught him. What do mommy's know?

***

Okay, hoping its not too hot tomorrow and that there's a little cloud cover for our wedding shoot. Oh well, better than rain. Have a great weekend all!

Thank You Officer

Dear Officer B, thank you for the warning. Who knew the speed limit was 90 km/hour between Yale and Hope? I know now. Louise
PS Gary was impressed I didn't swear, I just kept saying, `I'm going to vomit, I'm going to vomit.'.

Mr. Adventure

For those of you who don't know Gary, he is very even keel. He doesn't show much excitement for things except when coaching basketball. However, we have found that he really enjoys the mystery and adventure of geocaching. I think it fulfills his secret inner desire to be a spy or detective.

I do have to admit that when we found this one, I was pretty pumped. It was a hard one to find. By the way, if you are ever on your way to 100 Mile House, hike up Mt. Begbie. It's just a bunch of switchbacks but it only takes 5 minutes (without Kai) to climb up and you get a great view.

Green Lake Trip #2

We are up at Green Lake with my dad and having a good time. I do have to say that the kids do much better in their own beds. Gary and I did not get much sleep last night. Oh well, Kai is having the time of his life so it's worth it?!

Admittedly, I'm obsessed with making these picture packages in Photoshop, I just think it summarizes everything nicely. Shows the max amount of pictures in an optimal space. It seriously just takes 5 minutes to do.



Gary and I are hoping on taking Koen for a hike later and leaving Kai behind with Opi. We will see if that works out. Kai on a real hike with us would not be much fun, especially with the incline.

Not sure if it's a good or bad thing that there is an internet connection up here right now...this is usually where we get a ton of reading done. I did read a bunch of my chemistry workbook yesterday and had teaching nightmares last night (I'm teaching chemistry for the first time in the fall).

Right now both kids are napping, for probably just 30 minutes, so we are enjoying the peace and quiet. I'm on the computer and Gary is out on the Jetski. Aw man, Koen is crying. His 30 min. nap is up. Seriously.

This was before we left, but seriously, Kai is showing some brotherly love. Love it.

Our herb garden.

Time to feed a kiddo and head on back outside.

Yo

1. I wrote `yo' because that is my subject line to my sisters every day. I think I group email them once a day.

2. I feel like I am a good mom. I'm not bragging, I'm going to compare it to another area of my life in a second. I've only doubted my `great mothering' once. It was when Kai fell out of the stroller and landed on his face at 6 months of age. In comparison, I feel like I'm just an average wife these days. I know how to be a great wife but I choose not to because of exhaustion and irritation. I'm working on this. I think we went through this when Kai was little too. I'm just so tired of Kai getting up at 5:30am and then Koen being up until 10pm. WHERE IS THE DOWN TIME?? Today when all 3 (yes, Gary too) were napping I ran out and did errands. I guess that is considered down time?

3. I may have sang `I need a vacation from my kids!' today.

4. Kai and I went raspberry and blueberry picking today. Could've been the best `date' that we have been on. I didn't need to help him at all, he knew exactly what to do and only ate a few after I told him he could. I just made some fantastic blueberry muffins for our road trip tomorrow. Berries are way too yummy.

(Kai helping Gary crank out some lasagna noodles...Kai is gonna be quite the chef someday. Seriously, this kid knows way too much about food and the kitchen. He will try anything and what other 3 year old kid asks to go to the garden to get some thyme or basil to add to a dish?)

5. I think Gary may have purposely put all the laundry away in the wrong spots so that I never ask him to do it again.

6. I think Koen tripled his cuteness overnight. Conversely, he has been really irritable these past few days and I'm assuming its from his shots on Wednesday. He even threw up on me while I was feeding him this morning and he has never done that. He has also been eating anything we give him. Today he had fish and bread for the first time. But ya, too cute. Again today, I was just so thankful that we were able to have him.

(This picture was taken 3 days ago, before he tripled in cuteness:))

7. I went to a show home today. Several days ago, Gary and I walked by a house we really liked and can't stop thinking about it. I thought we would be in this house until we retired because I don't like moving and I really like our house. Not sure if we want to take on a larger mortgage but the lure of a bigger kitchen, ensuite, and yard is soooooo enticing! This raises so many questions about how we want to live our lives and whether we want another kid etc. Oh life. Love it.

8. We had this Saturday off as a shoot was cancelled so I went to a few garage sales. Wow, I have never seen Kai so happy. I bought him a lawnmower for $1 and he has probably played with it for 3 hours already. I also got him the coolest mini motorcyle for 25 cents that drives all around our house and turns on its own when it hits something. Toys these days, I tell ya. I do have pictures of him playing with the lawnmower but the thought of uploading and posting is too much right now so I'll put them on later.

9. Gary and I are comfortably running 5 km together and run about 3-4 times a week. Gary did a 7km on his own yesterday and I'm sure I'm ready I just don't want to use up too much of my day's energy allotment yet.

10. Talking about energy, I went back on my prenatal vitamins (thanks for the reminder Melissa...I knew I should but to hear it from someone else was the little push I needed). I def. feel a lot better.

11. My friend Ali is due this week with her first child and I'm so excited about it. Something so special about that transition to motherhood!!!

12. Gary and I (and the munchkins) are heading up to Green Lake to meet up with my dad tomorrow. All Kai wants to do is ride the green lawnmower with Opi. We're going to try to get Kai to swim in the lake if its warm enough.

Have a great week all!

Family Pictures!

Today was so awesome. You may have heard me complaining in the past that we can never get a good family photo for a variety of reasons, one of which we need someone to take it! Koen and Kai are not at the best age for it either but...our friends Andrew and Dana are up from Mexico and we did a photo swap. Andrew is very talented, check out the link! We took some photos of their family and they took some of ours! So perfect. Their family photos aren't on here because we used their compact flash card for theirs so we'll have to see if they turned out okay later on:)

So...here are some pictures. Photos with all 4 of us were taken by Andrew and if its just Gary or I in the picture, we took it. Thank you Willms'!

The kids just ran, and ran, and ran.

The lovely Willms family..

I am not touching a single photo tomorrow. I need a mental break from the computer and cameras!

Applesauce

Yesterday Koen got to eat some canned applesauce that my mom had made. I felt so emotional in the sense that he was eating something that my mom had made. A connection between my mom and my son who she never met. Something that she made for him, unknowingly. Sisters, keep some for your babies to be!

Thanks oma!

I saw my sister Jantina's record of immunizations the other day and in it, my mom had written when she started solids, how long she was breastfed for, when she stood etc. I wish I had some of that information. I would encourage moms to document it because one day your kid may want to know. Either you might not remember or maybe you won't even be around. That's life.

Koen had his 6 month shot yesterday, yup, just one shot as they combine them now. The nurse took one look at his thigh and was like, `I'll be back, I need a bigger gauged needle.'! He is a lot shorter (2 inches!) and smaller than Kai was but still in the 75-90th percentile. He has actually lost some weight and is just 19lbs 2oz. I remember Kai losing weight around this time, they are just so active!

The doctor asked if he was always that happy and I said yes. He is one very content and happy boy even when he misses a nap. He doesn't sleep very much. Two hours in the day, 8.5 at night. Less than 12 hours for a 6 month old? So ridiculous. I can't wait until he falls alseep before 10pm. I shouldn't complain as he is happy and giggling from 8-10pm but Gary and I need some time without kids around!

He is a HUGE mover. If you have him on the couch with you, he just crawls all over you and dives here and there with no fear.

Kai has changed over this past week. He has thrown out some new phrases or ideas like `You just have to give it a little try daddy', `we should get a fax machine', `we should have a mini golf course!'. He runs around our house wildly with a stroller playing shopping or delivery truck. I think he goes grocery shopping with a stroller because that's what we do. He's a good little/big boy and is really looking forward to having cake for his birthday in a month.

Yesterday Kai ran the two blocks back from the mail box saying `Mommy, I'm exercising!'. I asked him why he was running and he said, `So I can be fast at football, soccer and hockey!'. Okay, sounds good to me.

Love my two little monkeys. I have to say they are pretty good kids and life is quite easy with the two of them. I really look forward to the day that Kai sees Koen as a playmate option or someone that he truly loves. Any tips for getting the older sibling to show a little love to his younger brother? Or does it just come with time? He is protective of Koen if someone wants to take him but has probably only hugged Koen 3 times in his life. It's so strange because we show so love in our family with words and hugs all the time. Kai does it to us but not to Koen.