Jersey Shore watch out!

Brian decided to take off on his birthday this year (it only took me about 10 yrs of asking for this and Kayla asks ONCE... whatever! LOL)... Since it was going to be an ideal beach day (for April in NJ) we decided to take Kayla to the beach for the day... Daddy dipped her toes in the cold Atlantic Ocean and then read books to her on the blanket. She was interested in the sand but when we put her on it, she ran her hands thru it gave a yucky look and turned to crawl back onto the blanket! She enjoyed laying in the sun and watching the waves. She loved the bumpy stroller ride of the boardwalk... and of course everyone oohhing and ahhing giving her the attentionshe SO loves! We are really looking forward to taking her there this summer for our 1st Family Vacation!

The End of the Swing Era....

Our little turkey is now too big and strong for our coveted swing.   This was one of the top 5 gifts we received at the Baby Shower and its proved to be probably the most useful (next to the bottle warmer!).   Kayla LOVES her swing and has gotten so used to falling asleep in it that she rarely napped in the crib - especially the past two months with all her congestion.  In the past few weeks, we realized that we REALLY needed to transition her out of the swing and while our "drop dead" date was to be May 1st... the other day I walked in to find her "hanging" from the mobile... all the while being strapped in!  She looked at me and laughed... This photo below was taken shortly after that laugh... After the picture, Kayla played on the floor of her bedroom while I disassembled and packed up the swing!  So far, napping in the crib has not been a very big success ... Thank GOD we always put her in the crib for nighttime bedtime!  This is truly the end of an era!

Lucky Number SEVEN!

Seven is a pretty big number these days... 

* One of Daddy's favorite's, Mickey Mantle's number

* The number of digits it takes to use the phone and call DADADADA (I love the phone!)

*There are seven wonders of the ancient world.

* There are seven continents in the world

*There are seven colors of the rainbow

* There are seven days in a week

*A ladybug commonly has seven spots!

* Seven is also the number of stars in the constellation, Big Dipper

* Most important... I am seven months now!

Even though we did not do many exciting things this month because me & Mommy were very sick, I still have lots of news!  This month I really started getting around. As you can see by mommy's recent post, I can get up on all fours now... Actually I think I do the "downward dog" quite well.  I am crawling backwards - I keep trying to go forwards but I guess my arms & legs are not working together the way that they should.  I am sitting up completely on my own and love sitting in my Toy Story chair.  Although I can't quite understand why when I try to stand up and fall forward... another work in progress I assume. I can get from the sitting position to laying on my back, then I roll over and crawl backwards. I can pivot my body too so I guess in the end IF I really wanted to get somewhere, I could!  I love walking around in my walkers - we have one in the kitchen and one in the garage for outside. My friend Maddie let me borrow her yellow sports car... I love it!  I think Mommy got a little nervous about me moving around one day and now all the sudden there is this BIG gate at the top of my stairs... I hope she does not plan on putting those all over the house... I am working on the crawling and sitting up from laying down but otherwise I think I am developing quite nicely!

I am still eating all my foods - 3 meals a day consisting of cereals, grains & rices, fruits, veggies and chicken!  I take 5 bottles a day and either 2-3 naps each day. Mommy has this schedule down pretty good... when it works, it works and sometimes when we have busy days, I get pooped!  The good thing is that I am learning how to sleep thru the night (with the exception of my one baba).  I started eating these things called "puffs", mommy & daddy say that these will help me learn how to chew foods that they eat so I can join in on their fun!  I still only have these two front bottom teeth but boy are they sharp and strong!  I am also starting to pick up small pieces of fruit and eating them and I got to try a "cookie" for the first time - I think my parents almost had a heart attack though when they realized half the cookie was GONE!

Next stop... Chicken Parm!  (just kidding)

I wake up to start my day at about 6am ( I think mommy & daddy wish this was later but sometimes I can play in my crib for a little while so they can sleep in ... or they bring me to bed and let me watch cartoons!)... My day ends between 6-7pm depending on how the day went.  I am a very happy baby and LOVE to interact with people wherever I go. 

We have alot on the calendar for May - Communion's, Birthdays, Garage Sales, Trips to the Zoo... Stay tuned during the month for more updates!

OK mommy, my turn to take a picture of you!

She loves her cartoons in jammies!

Obsession with the remote does not even explain this!  She will soon be crawling over him!

Sitting patiently in her stroller waiting for her friend to go to the park!

Although she is not pulling herself up, she stands very well for about 2 minutes til she tips over :)

Kayla's rental sports car - Thanks Maddie!

Kayla's 1st "cookie"

Planning her 1st jail break!

Allergies, Ear Infections, Asthma.... UGH!

April was just full of excitement in our house. Kayla got her first ear infection and we hope its not the start of many to come. Mommy had some serious ear infection issues when she was little - leading up to tubes 3 times and then removal of the tonsils and adenoids.  Daddy had a few ear infections but never surgery.  We did not even know that it was an ear infection - not like the pulling on her ears and hard core fever... just lots of congestion and tons of loose poop (sorry).  So we took her in and it was diagnosed - her 1st antibiotic.  The Dr. told us to keep her sleeping in an elevated position so we decided that we wanted to watch her closely (being on the med's)... instead of letting her sleep in her swing or crib with the end propped up, she slept in bed with Mommy like a big girl... using a pillow and all!  Unfortunately this meant Daddy was on the couch or in the twin bed in Kayla's room - afterall, he brings home the bacon and needs his beauty sleep!  LOL  She did well the first few nights so we decided to do half nights in the swing and when we went to bed moved her to the crib. The end is propped up with a beach towel under the mattress but she moves so much that her feet end up elevated!  Sort of counter productive but she still wakes up for a bottle around 3am so she'll get repositioned anyway.  The antibiotic is all done but the severe congestion remains... we brought her back to the Dr. for a cough but they said it was all part of this "game"....  

Since Kayla got sick, I also ended up getting a little something...  mine turns out to be reactive airway disease brought on by allergies and asthma!  Fun stuff!  The allergist says that this is by far the worst allergy season in over 30 yrs. So I am bringing Kayla to see him at the end of this month so he can help her out too!  During the whole ordeal with my coughing fits - Brian was SOOOOO amazing!  Even working everyday, he let me sleep (with the wonderful aide of nyquil) and got up with Kayla every night for 10 days straight!  With no complaints (ok may one or two) but seriously he is our angel!  Kayla & I are very lucky to have someone to love us both so unconditionally!  He proved that he is a wonderful daddy and hubby.... now if I can only get those pantry shelves put up!  (just kidding babe!)

Here Daddy snapped a shot of Mommy & Kayla taking a snooze!

We had to change her diet to non-lactose formula, apples/bananas/rice & do steams baths twice a day... along with the medicine and tons of saline nose junk!

Up on all four's!

A new development this weekend and Brian was there to actually see it for the 1st time with me... Kayla found a way to go up on all 4's... hands and feet.  We wonder if crawling is the next logical step for her?

Playdate with Sofia

After many reschedule's we were finally able to get together with the Klock's. Kayla was so excited to play with Sofia that she really did not want any part of sleeping that night.  We had a bunch of fun though!

Summer Days in April

Just like any other day, Tracy & I thought we'd take the girls to the park and get in a nice little walk. Little did we know that in doing so we'd get SOAKED from sweating. GROSS!  We made it there and lasted about 40 minutes before Maddie had the great idea to go in her little baby pool!  All this is APRIL!  We hope this is not a forecast of a hot hot hot summer to come!

Waiting at the corner for Maddie

A few pushed on the swing, but it was just too hot!

Maddie inviting us to come swimming!

Kayla's 1st dip in the baby pool... a little aprehensive

"This water is a littl cold mommy!"

"So the grass stays outside the pool?"

Never fails...

She was so fascinated by the reflecting lights in the pool from the sun!

Bathing beauty...

All dry, cooled off and ready for more playtime!

Everyday Playtime... Up to no good!

Over the past 2 wks Kayla has become quite the little explorer. While she is not officially crawling, she is already on the move!  She twists and rolls, she pulls her self up on you (not quite other things yet except the crib), she sits up VERY well (sometimes when she leans over to grab a toy it just looks SO painful but she gets the toy and has the biggest grin because she knows she accomplished something. Its amazing to see how far she has come in the past 3 months alone.  She was a very strong and stable little baby - holding her head up from day one and always wanting to stand on those feet - but to see her move and figure things out is just truly one of the most amazing parts of being a parent. I am very lucky to be home with her right now and experiencing many of these things with her. She is my little explorer right now and soon will be getting into everything!  I just put the first official safety measure up in our home... A gate at the top of the loft stairs... so Miss Kayla does not take a tumble down... Check out some great photos of Kayla playing.

She loves the box and top more than the shapes some days!

The best is hearing the sound effects she makes when she sees something she thinks is brand new -

when in fact she plays with it three times a day!

Rolling and getting stuck... but she is getting better at working it out!

An oldie but goodie!

Is she a Wilson or what... loves BALLS!

Up to no good - again, loves the container more so once she empties it!

A little girl at heart!  Her 1st purse!

I picked this activity table up at a Mother's Market for $10 - great buy!

She loves sitting in this chair . She is so patient and does it so well too!

This is at a friends house but she is LOVING jumping up and down.  A definite must for Baby #2.

Big girl LOVES standing by herself now... it only last for about 30 seconds

but she will master this soon enough!

Easter Weekend

Easter weekend was filled with fun times... see our weekend in pictures below. We colored eggs, then went to dinner at the Cloverleaf, then the Easter Bunny came to our house and left a bunch of stuff, we went to church and then had family dinner at Uncle Kevin's house!  Oh & it was the Yanks 1st game of the season!

Coloring Easter Eggs

This was the setup...

Someone was quite excited!

Can I help Daddy?

Kayla got her own eggs to play with... much safer!

And edible for her!

Daddy & his girl... enjoying some dinner and a few beers!

Easter Morning

Calling Grandma & Grandpa to say Happy Easter...

The eggs Mommy & Daddy colored for the Easter Bunny...

I love my Pooh card!

I love all this stuff but the Wiggles are on too!

Can I play with this one too?  Although this new chair is my favorite!

Church @ St. Aloysius

Our family

Kayla & Brian

Kayla & Schelli

Family Gathering at Uncle Kevin & Aunt Angie's

The Easter Bunny came here TOO?

Checking out her new stuff!

So many people talking about this damn bow on my head - I think its quite cute :)

Hanging out getting ready for the YANKEES!

My mommy is so much fun!

Say Cheese Mommy!

Are you ready for some baseball?