Seattle

Last week Kendall, Grandma Gorman, and I jetted off to sunny Seattle. Yes SUNNY. It was sunny and in the 70's all week, as it rained cats and dogs here in the 'Heights. Nate stayed behind and redid our balcony - now you can walk on it without getting a nail through your foot!

Kendall did great on the flight out. No screaming. Slept like a champ. Other passangers even comment on what a great job she did with the flight. They were probably just really happy they did not have a screaming baby on the 4 hour red-eye flight. All part of my plan.

We had a lovely time visiting the family. Kendall was introduced around, and met her Seattle cousins - Madeleine, Margo, Cameron, & Evan. At first she was a little leary, but she warmed up and was all about playing with everyone.

Kendall really enjoyed herself, and played a lot. There were a lot of new toys to chew on or to look at, and the girls definitely kept her entertained. We aren't all that active around here, and having active, fun cousins kept Kendall constantly entertained. By the end of each day she was exahusted, but always happy

Madeleine even got up and read to Kendall - which she definitely enjoyed, even as she tried to eat the book.

We even spent some time enjoying the beautiful weather in the yard. Kendall checked out grass for the first time, she spent a lot of time checking it out.

And of course, we saw the mountain. With such beautiful weather Mt Rainier was out in full force most of our trip. On some future trip we may take Kendall up the mountain to check it out. You don't see this kind of landscape when you look out the window at home. I took this picture up the street from the Wallace house. AWESOME!

Although Kendall enjoyed playing with everyone, she wasn't too fond of being picked up by anyone but mommy. The rest of the time she was constantly on the move. It's the age. But, David was able to get her to sit with her for a time - he was the only one.

And of course, what is a trip to Seattle without Starbucks? Thanks Kathy for introducing Kendall to her new addiction to Starbucks cups. All those toys, and a cup is the coolest thing. Sheesh.

As much fun as we had, there is no place like home. Kendall was so happy to see her daddy again when we got home. A big smile for him at the airport, and a big cuddle the next day after she had rested up.

All in all a great trip. We hope to get back out there again soon!

That is one sneaky kid

Kendall is sneaky.

Seriously, this is one sneaky 7 month old. One minute she is sitting there in the middle of the living room floor, singing, banging her toys loudly. The next minute there is silence, Kendall is on the other side of the room climbing up the end table.

Kendall is still not fully crawling. Most of her attempts end up with her moving backwards, but there has been some forward motion, and a whole lot of push ups - standing is more appealing than crawling. That said, I'm not sure how she can move 3 feet in 10 seconds. If you can't walk, can't crawl, and refuse to roll, how do you get from point A to point B?

*Um, I put you down on the mat, how did you get over there?*

You scoot on your butt, silly! But ONLY when no one is looking. To test this theory, I put Kendall down on the floor, and then went about my business - or so she thought (I can be sneaky too). I peeked around the corner from the kitchen, watching Kendall. I saw her playing, then realizing no one was in the room to stop her, she looked around. Checking things out, like a burglar casing the joint. When she was sure there was no one there, she started scooting around, then got down on all fours and kind of wormed her way across the room (hard to crawl with your belly on the floor). She got to her destination, and then tried to pull herself up to stand. No idea what the kid was after, but she was sure stealthy about the maneuver.

Baby proofing has been in the back of my mind for a while, but now it is front and center. Bookshelves and china cabinets need to be secured to walls. Low laying nick-naks and picture frames need to go. And sharp corners need to be covered or removed. This upward mobility is kind of taking me by surprise. Who knew Kendall would be a mobile and curious 7 month old - without even crawling.

Pretty sure I need to put bars on the windows when she is a teenager.

7 Months

Another month has flown by. Where does the time go?

This month's installment is the non-scientific measurement and assessment of Kendall. No doctor's appointment at 7 months to prove the weight and height. We have to go off of what the Wii fit tells us. Mostly it tells Kendall not to chew on it - seriously. Wii Fit is weird like that.

As Kendall gets more mobile, we are starting to see her personality. It is exciting to see the changes in her from week-to-week, and even day-to-day. She is getting stronger, and louder, and is definitely a girl who knows what she wants, with no qualms about telling you what that is. Wonder where she gets that?

Kendall at 6 Months

Weight - 18 lbs 5 oz (90th percentile)

Height - 27 inches (90th percentile)

Sounds Like - Kendall is quite the talker. She is constantly "talking" and "singing". She giggles a lot. Making Kendall laugh is one of our favorite activities.

Likes - Squash. Acorn & Butternut squash. Kendall can't get enough of the stuff. Still with the jumping - loves that jumperoo, jumping on Daddy, and kicking her legs while lying down, sitting, standing, or being carried around. Kendall also loves to be a part of everything. Sitting at the table while we eat, facing out in the stroller so she can see the world. She likes to interact - but is very serious about it, no smiling at strangers.
Dislikes - Not very fond of apples. Being still - she likes to be doing something at all times. Not being swaddled - she likes to be snug as a bug when she sleeps.
Things she can do - Sit up on her own. Roll to her side. Stand up assisted. Get up on her hands and knees. Eat solids (acorn squash, butternut squash, peas, apples, sweet potatoes, oatmeal - and the list grows every week).

Kendall at 7 Months

Weight - 19 lbs (give or take)
Height - 27 1/2 inches (again, give or take)
Sounds Like - Usually loud. "Singing", "Talking" YELLING. Banging everything she can get her hands on. This kid likes it loud and ruckus. I'm thinking there is a lot of rock music in our future.
Likes - The jumperoo (Nate and I have the songs memorized. "One Little Horsey plays peek-a-boo..."). Eating - loves just about any food you give to her. She is currently digging puffs, which are cereal like finger foods that dissolve in baby's mouth. Fun to watch her pick them up. Sleeping on her belly, and she will flip from any position you have her in to sleep on the belly.
Dislikes - Naps - these are for sucks. Too much going on to nap. Staying asleep. Kendall wants you to hang with her while she sleeps - we are not as fond of that program.Clearly we are currently working on sleep.
Things she can do - Roll front-to-back as well as back-to-front. Sit up from a lying position (even though she protests). Scoot around (more to come on that), which is almost crawling. Pull herself up to stand, and even stand on her own for a couple of seconds.

*This is Kendall's rapper look*

Swimming

A few weeks back, Kendall and I made the trip over to our local YMCA to sign up for swim lessons. Kendall loves bath time, and we would love for her to be comfortable in the water, so what better way to do that than swim lessons? We went over, signed up, and I took Kendall to look at the pool. My hope was that this would somehow make her familiar with the lay of the land, and therefore freak her out less when we went for lessons. I took her over to the viewing area and her face lit up like Christmas. The kid was enthralled by the pool. A good sign.

So today was our first swim lesson. Kendall was totally into it. She was very serious, but really enjoyed playing in the water and watching the other kids. She only got a tiny bit upset when water got in her ears, but she came back really quick. No tears, and lots of smiles for mommy that did not make it onto camera.

Kendall was also EXHAUSTED after swim lessons - which is a win-win for mommy & daddy.

If you are wondering what a swimming class looks like for a 6-month-old, here is short highlight video. I'm warning you, I am very pale and in a mom suit, so I recommend focusing on the baby.

We are signed up every Saturday until mid June, and Nate, Kendall, and I are all really looking forward to the classes. Hopefully Kendall will have as much fun as she did this week.

Serious

Kendall was very serious about getting the blog updated today.

Fear of the Auto-flush

Before it got warm and we could walk outside, Nate and I would take Kendall to the mall to walk around. The mall is an interesting place for a kid, lots of colors, movement, and people to stare at until you pass out from exhaustion. And mom gets to shop. A win win for all involved (except maybe daddy who has to go to the mall).

When I am at the mall, I always like to use the restrooms at Nordstrom. If you were not aware, Nordstom keeps an excellent restroom. Spacious, bright, nicely decorated, and almost always clean (or at least cleaner than the other mall restrooms). Nordstrom at least makes it a less scary experience, or so I thought.

* Not me, but this is a Nordstrom bathroom lounge. You can find anything on the Internet*

When you take the baby to the mall, inevitably you will need to change a diaper. As I have been using the Norstrom facilities for years (very frequently while pregnant), I knew there was a great changing station. So off we went to use the restroom.

Things were going well, dirty diaper was getting changed, no crying, and then, the toilet. Dum, Dum Dum...

* Again, you can find anything on the Internet. *

Guess what? Norstrom has auto-flush toilets, and they are loud. And sometimes they flush at random when no one else is in the room. Kendall does not like this at all, not one bit. Uncontrollable screaming ensues. You would think someone just tased the kid for all the screaming due to a toilet flushing. It took a lot of rounds of the ABC song while in the bathroom lounge to calm her enough that I was not embarassed to take her back into the store. (I hate screaming kids in stores.)

I was hoping this was an isolated incident. I was wrong. Champs also has auto-flush toilets. And they are also loud. I'm pretty sure most public bathrooms have them these days. And apparently Kendall's fear is not an isolated problem either. Other children are experiencing this same fear - For Children, a Scary World Out There (in There, Too). My child is not alone.

I'm hoping to break her of this. Maybe sounds of toilet's flushing on the iPod? Either way, for now, we are changing diapers in the car.

Swinging Sunday

With the weather so nice, we have been getting outside more. Taking walks around the block, enjoying the warmer weather and the chance to get outside. With all this outdoor action, we have been meaning to go check out the new playlot in the complex. Last summer the playlot was redone, taking out the equipment that had been there since the 1970's. The play set was vintage.

This past Sunday, we finally got around to getting Kendall out there - and onto the swings. Kendall is a dare devil. Loves to bounce and be up in the air at home, as well as dive off your lap at a moment's notice, so we figured the next logical step was the swing set.

And we were right. Kendall really did dig the swings, we finally had to take her out to continue on our walk. As she swung, she talked to us, smiled and giggled.

We also tried out the slide, but I don't think that was as interesting. Probably not as much excitement silding with Mommy. Kendall likes to move faster, and that was a small slide.

Overall, a succesful Sunday playing. I think we will be spending a lot more time in the play lot going forward.