Welcome to our World

Kaelah is a crack up.  In the past week she has pulled off beginning all sorts of new things!  Kaelah can WALK!!!  I keep trying to catch it on video but as soon as she sees the camera she drops to her knees and crawls.  Of course, at this point in time, it's still faster to crawl & therefore much more efficient.  (: Kaelah can say "yes" & "no," "please" & "thank you."  Her listening vocabulary is exploding and she is getting better & better at mimicking the children around her.  She can turn the pages of her board books & skip the pages she doesn't like as much.  Her favorite book is simply called "Dog."  Not only is it a touchy feely book which is all the rage with her these days, but it also has some moving parts like a pug's tail wagging... and some of the words crack me up which can sometimes start a giggle fest.  Kaelah is definitely a dog person -- just ask anyone that sees her at the dog park! Kae...

Okay, so this one is not for the weak.  I just wanted to post a picture of how gross my husband's finger is -- now that it's "healing."  Danny showed it to one of his co-workers today & said it looked like the guy was going to throw up.  (:  It's starting to scab up & pull away, bringing with it the sliver of nail that was cut.  Dan is very grateful the weekend is here so he doesn't have to type on the computer for a while.  Danny staying away from a computer... this is serious!!!

Here are the stats from Kaelah's dr. visit on Monday (for all you stat lovers out there).  (: Height: 30.75" -- 90% Weight: 21.5 lbs -- 50% Head Circ.: 19" -- off the charts as usual.  Brains I tell you.  Brains. I'm adding a picture from a week or two ago Danny really liked.  I call it, "Chillaxing Kaelah Style."

I   cut my finger Sunday night making dinner.  Sarah took me to the ER in case I needed stiches.  I didn't but they glued me back together with DermaBond.  That section of my finger & fingernail is supposed to fall off in the next couple days.  This picture just doesn't do it justice.

We had a wonderful time having Dan's sister Stacie & her family come out to Colorado for a visit.  Our brother-in-law, Trent's entire family planned a camping trip at Rocky Mountain National Park & they were nice enough to let us tag along!  We had a WONDERFUL time and I think Kaelah is a natural camper.  She didn't complain a bit & instead smiled and giggled and had a blast, even when it rained.  Kaelah seemed to say, "What's the problem?  We're all wearing rain coats!"  I already miss the Downs family... but really enjoyed taking a shower & sleeping in my own bed last night too....

As Kaelah experiences and learns more, I can't help but wonder what she is thinking.  On Monday night for FHE we went to the Boulder County Fair.  Since we wouldn't let her pet the poultry & she was half asleep by the time we got to the cattle, Kaelah's favorite part was the goats.  Immediately she smiled and laughed and petted them.  As I looked at how similar in size the goats were to Meigou, I couldn't help but wonder: does she think we're at a dog show???  One thing is for sure, she's definitely an animal person.  Kind of a given considering who her "older sister" is.

For a while now I've decided that if I got to choose (which of course I don't) how many children & what gender to have, I would love taking care of two girls & two boys.  Well, last week & this week I've been trying it out!  And yes, it's perfect!!! Kaelah & Meigou I just love having Valerie's children (ages 6, 4, & 2)  come over to play in the mornings.  (:  Today was morning #7 and we played in the pool again.  On other days we go to the park, but there is always time to play with toys.  You'll notice the children are never looking at me in these pictures -- they're too busy.  (:  In some ways I find it easier to take care of 4 verses 1 because I don't feel like Kaelah's slave... and I get help in deciding what activities to do.  Everyone's favorite so far is the Matchbox cars I had as a kid.  Hooray for my parents dragging all that stuff from Iowa to Kansas to Colorado!