2-Month Appt.

Lariska took this photo!

Declan had his 2-month well baby check today. Our Declanator is doing very good - He now weighs 13 lbs. 3 oz. and is 24.5 inches long. That puts him in the 90th percentile for both his length and weight. His head is 40 cm - 50th percentile - which is a new record for our family (Lariska's head size was in the 10th percentile and Kyrie's in the 25th, I think). Dr. Grunske was impressed with his neck strength, how he pushed up while on his tummy, and his ability to sit straight up. He cried through most of the appt. and definitely demonstrated his lung strength. Sadly, he had to have three injections (which equaled five vaccinations) and was pretty much beside himself at the end of the appt. Luckily, we were the last one for the morning, so we got the room to ourselves afterward and I nursed him back to happiness (a.k.a. sleep) and we enjoyed a peaceful ride home. Poor guy.

Funny E-mail

Kyrie and Lariska spent last Friday morning at their Gma and Gpa's house. I received this e-mail afterward from Linda and keep forgetting to post it:



Here are 2 photos from yesterday.
Thanks for letting the girls come over to play.
I wanted to tell you not in front of the girls:
I asked Lariska what her problem was that she was not sleeping.
She said, "Well, my problem is monsters."
So we talked about how she could go back to sleep if she wakes up.
Then Kyrie said, "I'm sorry Lariska, but I told the monsters in my room to go into your room."
So there you have it.
Too many monsters in Lariska's room. :)
Love,
Linda

Ahhhhhh, Kyrie. Always bringing a smile to our faces...and nightmares to your sister.

New Friends

It is always fun to make new friends and we have discovered a lot of fun with Allie, Jarrett (5.5), Calvin (4), and Desmond (14 weeks). We met Allie when she took the fabulous photos of our Sunny D and we just had so much fun chatting with each other that we decided we should try getting the kids together to play. Today we played outside and the boys tried rollerskating for the first time. They were pretty good! I think Kyrie and Lariska definitely enjoy being around these "older" boys and they all wore themselves out chasing one another. Too fun.

Happy Birthday!

Tonight we celebrated Linda and Carrie's birthdays. On the 27th Carrie will turn the big 3-0, whereas Linda has proclaimed she is turning 29 on the 31st. Hmmmm...funny how she and I have become the same age!

Felicity

Matt was away tonight, so I had bedtime with the three kids by myself. As I was putting in the final touches on Lariska, Kyrie came running into her room so excited, "Come quick!" Here is what we saw:



Felicty is reading a book! I guess Kyrie saw a picture of Felicity reading in a magazine and decided to see if she could replicate it. She was thrilled to discover that indeed she could. Ahhh...Kyrie. So cute.

2 Months Old

Declan turned two months old today. Need I say it? Sigh.

Well...we don't know exactly how much he weighs, but I am betting somewhere close to 13 lbs - we'll find out next Friday. Declan has the most gorgeous smile, is sucking his fingers or thumb, talks so cutely, and coos beautifully. My favorite thing is when I sing to him and he "sings" back to me. It is unbelieveably adorable. While the date on this post is his 2-month birthday, I am actually blogging it two days later. And, in those 2 lousy days Declan has not only giggled (oh my gosh, I almost fell over it was so cute), but also slept through the night - 9.5 hours. I hope he will continue this trend, but even if he doesn't he is incredibly loved. In the last month I have realized how far Declan is from being a grumpy old man. He is sweet and adorable and a really happy baby. It just took me that magic six weeks to figure his personality out and realize what each of his cries means. I think we have the hang of each other now and I am so in love with my little baby boy.

8+ Weeks

I haven't had a chance to post a photo of the babe since he turned 8 weeks...and now he is almost two months old. Here is tonight after a diaper change.

He just loves to sing. Declan's coos are so beautiful. I get so distracted from everything going on around me by the sound of his songs.

Happy boy with a clean diaper.

Over-loved?

Baysittin' the Boys

Last Saturday, Matt and I watched the boys while J.J., Dan, and Teagan had dinner with some friends. It was an interesting evening. The kids got a bit slap-happy during dinner but had a grand ole time with one another. We tried to get the girls to bed at their usual time (7pm), but the boys were not being picked up till 7:30pm, so it made the whole thing a bit more challenging. It was nice to spend some time with our nephews, though!

In an effort to get a bit of quietude out of these rambuctious raffians, we put on a Saddle Club (Kyrie's newest obsession - PBS at 5:30pm; 3 girls and their horses).


Matt found Tyler attempting to get into Lariska's baby's crib. Maybe he was tired?

I read a book to the entire bunch. Even Declan got in on the action. Where was Matt? A very timely call of nature took him away from me. Hmph.

Puzzled

The girls, with a tad bit of help from Mommy, put together this puzzle on a rainy afternoon last week. We haven't done puzzles for quite some time. I think Kyrie forgot how much fun they are and after awhile really enjoyed putting this one together.

Photos Forgotten

I just stumbled upon these photos that I never posted. They are too cute not to share.

Sunday, June 28th

The girls enjoyed their first dip into Nana's pool.

Miss Leslie was over for dinner as well and got to meet Declan, eBeth, and Teagan.

The kids enjoyed a watermelon eating contest with the leftover melon from our party.

Lariska got really, and quite literally, into it.



Saturday, June 27th

We hosted a party at Lannon Quarry to celebrate life in general, but more specifically Declan's birth and Lariska's birthday.

Jackson looking quite old.

Tyler likes the playground more than the beach.

Declan slept through the entire thing...the entire thing!

Cathy & eBeth and J.J. & Teagan

Casey and Amelia

Grandma and Harry enjoying the fun.

David and Wesley McDonald

Dave and Dena McDowell

Bryan and Brooklyn Becker

Ed, Sarah, and Marin Murray

Siblings

I can't say "sisters" anymore, so I guess I will have to say "siblings".

Summer Science Experiment

For Easter, the Kons Easter bunny (a.k.a. "Grandma") gave Kyrie and Lariska a butterfly kit, whereby you order caterpillars that are delivered in the mail and proceed to turn into a chrysalis and then voila - you have butterflies. Kyrie grew quite attached to the butterflies. Her favorite one was named Penny. I tried to convince her everyday that the butterflies would be happier outside, but she wouldn't have any of it. Finally, on Monday when she heard we were going to have a playdate at Will's house she agreed that if I would let her bring the butterflies to their house that she would let them go. Yea! Buh-bye butterflies.

Brewer's Game

On Sunday, Matt took the girls to the Brewer's Game through a church family event. They had fun tail-gating before the game, but less than one inning into the game the girls were already ready to go home. Kyrie informed Matt that she wasn't big into watching people play baseball unless it was one of those softball games where there is a playground (and then she still isn't big into watching, since she spends the whole time playing!)

Starr Family Reunion

On Saturday, we attended the Starr Family Reunion. The kids had a lot of fun swimming in the lake, jumping on the playground, and playing games that the organizers led. It was neat to meet some of Matt's extended family, but I don't think we did a very good job of it - we probably didn't get a chance to talk to half the people there and find out how we were all related.

Grandma kept Declan happy for quite some time!


Lariska throwing the ball for a ball toss game.

Kyrie playing the ball toss game.

Will was excellent at the ball toss.

Bike Wash

Kyrie and Lariska had a bicycle wash in the driveway. They had a lot of fun, but also got into a bit of trouble spraying water everywhere!