All these presents...

Christmas was a lot of fun, while Kasen still doesn't get the Christmas thing for sure she is getting better about presents.  Christmas eve she got some gifts from friends of ours John and Kat, she has a nice new shopping cart and blocks which she loves putting into the shopping cart.  On Christmas there wasn't much opening; we got her a little kitchen and because of size didn't wrap it.  That was basically all she wanted to play with all morning so the rest of the opening of presents was done by us.  Here is a little video of her playing with her new toys.

Later that day we went over to our friends James and Rebecca and their son Lucas's.  We had a great dinner and the kids played with the gifts "they" got each other.  Here are a couple photos

Playing with Lucas's "computer" 

Ready to head out in my new Jacket and hat

Helping and getting help with presents, thanks Rebecca

After dinner we had a little jam session before heading home

 Hope you all enjoy the pictures and videos, I am sure next year she will be much more into the opening of presents (possibly even by her birthday).

Here comes Santa Clause

It has been a while since we last blogged. The little one is keeping us busy, there was family in town for Thanksgiving, and Karl keeps a busy travel schedule for work. Kasen even had a little modeling job for a company called Zulily. We'll do a blog soon and put some pictures up. Hopefully some of you saw here on the site.

We have been getting ready for the holidays. The house is light up Griswold style. The Christmas tree is up and decorated. Kasen's favorite thing ia to point out ornaments as we ask for them.

 The other day Santa visited her Aunt Karen and Uncle Scott's house. It was fun for her cousin Phaedra but Kasen was not all that confortable with a guy dressed in red and a big white beard. Here is her trying to get away while Mom does the best she can to get a quality photo.

Hope everyone has a happy holiday and a good new year.

New Videos

Its been a bit since we put up anything new. Here is some new videos of Kasen. She is the condiment queen; ketchup, cream cheese, peanut butter, hummus, you name it. Anything you can put on something else she licks or sucks off leaving behind the vehicle for delivery. Here she is at breakfast getting the cream cheese off her bagel.

The other thing is we are much more into dancing and music. She has a little music player that you can pause and skip songs. She really like patty cake and wheels on the bus. Here she is clapping along.

Kasen Talks

Well, not really.  She is has a few words like Mama, Dada, no, oh no, and something that sounds like truck (I am sure there are more but nothing is coming to me right now).  She does however have her own language, which she often talks to people with.  Tonight she was on quite a roll with Debra and here is a little sample of her conversation.

It's Halloween

Our neighborhood does a business trick-or-treat with the businesses along the main road near us.  Lots of kids come out to get candy from the businesses (http://tinyurl.com/3sp9l54).  Kasen got dressed up and headed out for to get some candy (mainly for Mom).

 

Any guesses on what she was for Halloween?

Afterwards we headed to the zoo for some more trick-or-treating and watching the animals eat/play with pumpkins.  We wrapped up the day with the holiday party at Scott and Karens.  

Pear & Hello Kitty

A neighbor gave Kasen the most perfect pear from her tree.  Kasen doesn't even like pears, but she loves this.  She pushes my hand away when I try to get a bite.

She is also sporting her new Hello Kitty shoes.  Karl brought them home from Taiwan and she is the envy of all her friends.  They even light up.  Need I say more?

18 Month Stats

Kasen loves to mimic people.  Karl and I find it hilarious especially when she "busts a move" with music on.  However, it does seem she sees us Karl do something quite frequently....

Kasen at 18 months

Yea, she was talking with a key chain pressed to her ear.  This girl turns EVERYTHING into a phone. 

So without further ado:

Kasen at 18 months
24 lbs
33"

Me at 18 months 
27 lbs
35"
  -- apparently I was born gawky... I mean 35"?  Seriously.

Karl at 18 months
23.5 lbs
30.5"

So while Kasen looks like her dad, clearly some of my genes are in there.

Kasen at 18 months

Kasen had her 18th month checkup today and everything went great.  Afterwards we went to the Sounders game and watch the Sounder win their 3rd US Open Cup in a row (http://www.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter/2011-10-04-seattle-sounders-vs-chicago-fire/recap).  Here she is enjoying the game:

She has ween two of the finals (the first one she was not on the outside for).

We'll post he stats from the appointment soon, but she is a healthy little girl according to the doctor.

Better at walking

Kasen keeps getting better at walking.  At times she is almost running these days.  Here is the latest video we have of her getting around outside.  (You can also see the new garage doors at the end of video)

More to come we promise.  She keeps us really busy these days so its hard to post as much as we use to.  Later today we head to the doctors for her 18 month checkup, we'll post the latest stats for sure.  Then we head to the Sounders game tonight for the US Open Cup finals.

Kasen at Sounders Games

Kasen is a bit more aware these days which makes Sounders game a little more work for Debra and Me (OK mainly Debra).  We love it when she spends any part of the game like this:

Yes it was raining (it is Seattle) for the game that night but that is why she has her coat on.  Just a few games left (hopefully more with the playoffs).  She does seem to like the people and watching the Jumbotron.

She is blowing bubbles

Kasen and Debra have been taking swim classes. One of the things she has been working on is blowing bubbles.  The other night in the tub she was practicing and I didn't have my phone handy.  So the next time I was ready...she wasn't on the same page at first but played along in the end.  Here is a video

Besides blowing bubbles she also has master the art of blowing kisses, we'll see if we can get video of that soon.

House Painting (and other things)

We have decided to paint the house.  You'll see the colors soon.  Of course this has come with some other side projects as well.  We are having our porch redone, both the flooring that is rotting and the ceiling to get a natural wood look.  The garage doors are also being replaced as those have water damage.  We are haing some trim work and are getting a new front window in Kasen's room.

7/18 - Trim work repair was done a week ago and the back window upstairs is finally trimmed right! Today we found out that the electrical over the porch has some issues, so we have now added that to the list.  Below is a slideshow of the projects, hopefully it will update as time goes on and we'll keep you all updated on the progress.  Leaded glass windows were reglazed today, making them water and ant tight (yes the ants were getting into the house this way).

7/20 - Electrical finishing up today and we should have most of the porch has been demolished and replaced from the building stand point now it is just railing and painting.  Next up the window replacement in Kasen's room, garage doors and painting.  Those are a few days out at least.

7/26 - The porch is complete with the rebuild.  We still have to finish the ceiling, paint the columns and railing, and get a light fixture but that will wrap that up.  We also had the painters start today, they worked on the back and have some of the siding down to the wood.  A few of the pictures are in the slideshow below.  We are really starting to make progress now.

7/30 - Today we got the deck work complete.  After having the deck inspected (see this video for the details) we need to do a few things like add some joist hangers, bolt in the railings, add some cross bracing and bring in the warping front board.  A friend John and Karl got it done in a day while Debra and Kat (John's wife) entertained Kasen and made the standard run to Lowes mid project.

8/3 - The painters have been working a bunch this week.  They have most of the house sanded/grounded down to the wood.  They have started the initial primer coat in a few spots.  Things are starting to look better, added a few pics to the slideshow below.  I am sure we'll have more pictures later this week as things progress.

8/11 - The painters have been progressing.  We now have some main color and some trim color up.  The next few days should really show some changes.  Stay tuned...

8/13 - More of the house is blue and they are about a week out from finishing.  The pictures now have a few shots of what things will look like when it is all done.  Still waiting on the new window in Kasen's room and the new garage doors.  That should happen in the next few weeks too.

8/19 - The house is getting closer to finishing up.  Painters have most of the house painted with a first coat, some areas are totally complete.  They have been working on finishing the interior painting of the windows as well.  The garage doors have been delivered and sanded and are ready for staining (should happen this weekend).  The new upstairs window in Kasen's room went in yesterday.  Getting close to finishing up, should be next week.

8/30 - Just some final touches left, the painters have some touchup, the doors go in tomorrow, and that will wrap things up.  Posted more pictures in the slide show.  We put up the new light for the porch and currently we have no garage doors which should be fixed tomorrow.

Walking changes everything...

As everyone who has had a kid knows, once they start moving everything changes.  And walking is just crazy.  We are a lot more tired these days and Kasen getting to decide where to go on a walk or at the park has been fun and challenging.  This is about a week old (see how one week you can have a jacket on the next be playing in the water here in Seattle).

Summer has arrived!

Seattle summer is beautiful, but short.  We will try to enjoy it while it lasts.  Today we headed to a local park that has a kid-friendly water feature.  She loved it.

Sharing is a virtue

He is helping her learn this lesson.

Days of Summer

As you have all read by now, Summer in Seattle need to be enjoyed to the fullest before the winter sets in.  This summer there have not been many warm, sunny days.  On Saturday we had one of the best weather days.  Here are a few shots of Kasen enjoying the weather with Karl's sunglasses and eating blueberries on the porch.

Seattle - such a fickle friend

It has been a cold start to summer.  Sadly, the start has bled into the middle and we are feeling pretty cheated.  So like any struggling relationship, the slacker needs to put in some WORK.  In other words, Seattle needs to do a little wooing.

I am hoping today was the start.  While it wasn't super warm (barely 70), it was sunny.  So, we enjoyed an afternoon at the local wading pool.  Seattle even through in some "flowers" - a bald eagle sighting on the walk to the pool.  This city does know what I like....

Note - Kasen wants to send a thank you out to auntie Karen, phae & uncle Scott - the birthday swimsuit & water shoes are perfect.

Playing at the park

With Kasen walking now we have developed a new evening routine.  After dinner we go for a little walk in the neighborhood to get some energy out and practice walking.  At the community center (2 blocks away) there is a little play structure that is open for use when the day care is not in session.  We have started to enjoy the slide and stairs a bunch, she can even do them on her own (most of the time).

Enjoy the video!!

We are walking

It too Karl heading to Taiwan for Kasen to really get walking. While she had done a little before he left, she really starting moving around the house on two feet the day after he left. When he got home, she had to show off her new skills.  While she looks like she has had a few too many to drink at the pub she has an amazing way of keeping her balance.

Soccer is the best!

Kasen has been watching a lot of soccer between Sounders games and the world cup.  Today we cheered on the women in the finals.  Although they lost, I think they did us proud - Kasen cheered through the end (see photo).   She even practiced throw ins with her mini soccer ball.

Who needs walking?

Kasen is so close to walking.  It now appears to be a game - her not walking.  She stands by herself, we cheer like mad to get her to take some steps, she drops to the floor and crawls over.  She laughs the WHOLE time.  In fact, she sometimes laughs so hard she can't crawl.
Today she played on an old tractor at the zoo.  I think she has decided she may never need to walk - she can just drive ;)

Roadtrip

Highway 101 has not impressed her.

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Laundry Day

Kasen's idea of helping with the laundry... emptying the clothes bin onto the floor. One piece of clothing at a time. No, she doesn't fold.

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New Games

Every day brings something different in the land of baby Picarbocker.  The latest fun is Kasen's obsession with the dropping game.  My niece got to experience this first hand when she found herself playing the game.  The best part of the video below is when Phae declares the game over with a "Bhah!".  If only it were that easy....  Notice even after the spoon stopped reappearing, Kasen started playing the game with her macaroni. 

We are so lucky to have some family in town and Kasen's adoration of her cousin is such a joy to watch.  Anything Phaedra does is hilarious to our girl.  While Kasen does enjoy this game, the belly laughing you hear is how much fun she is having playing with her cousin.

Her first horsey ride

In my home town, there was one of these horses at the main grocery store (Meijers). A ride was our treat after a successful shopping venture (ie didn't embarrass my mom too bad). Kasen got her first ride today.

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Kasen is getting more confident being on 2 feet, so she has started to walk while holding on to things.  I didn't walk until 15 months, so I was hoping she would take after me (Karl walked much earlier at 12 months).  Sadly, recent developments make it seem like Kasen will be more daring - like her dad. 

Kasen has a small rocking chair that was mine as a child.  She loves it and uses it to stand up. 

This looks totally harmless

I was reading a book, when Kasen did this the first time:

"Oh My Goodness, I actually got my knee up!"

It all happened so fast.  She was on the chair and standing before I realized what was happening.  Luckily, I was able to get over to her before she decided to get down.

"Why not stand on a rocking chair?"

Once she got standing, she tried to open the closet door which caused the chair to rock (it is a rocking chair after all).  If I hoped that would startle her enough to make her more cautious, I was to be disappointed.  She thought it was fun and began to rock the chair - while STANDING and facing BACKWARD in the chair.

Turns out Kasen likes danger

It's official, she has now discovered climbing.  We go up the stairs at least once a day and yesterday at a coffee shop I had to pull her off a child-sized table she had climbed.  I mean if you can mange to climb into the chair, who wouldn't climb onto the table?  I think we may have to limit our time with the monkeys at the zoo...

Kasen vs. Dad

My mom brought my baby book when she came for Kasen's birth.  This is why I have been able to compare our growth over this last year.  Karl's mom just recently sent us his baby book, so I thought it would be fun to compare the two of them. 

While I seem to be raising the female Karl, looks like she grows more like me.  Karl was bigger at birth, but she caught up quick and never looked back.

Birth
Height:  Kasen - 20.5in
              Karl - 20.5oz
Weight:  Kasen - 8lbs 1.5oz
              Karl - 8lbs 14oz

2 Months
Height:  Kasen - 23 3/4in
              Karl - 22.5in

Weight:  Kasen - 13lbs 13.5oz
               Karl - 12lbs 4oz

6 Months
Height:    Kasen - 28in
                Karl - 25.5in
Weight:   Kasen - 19lbs 10oz
                Karl - 16lbs 4oz

9 Months
Height:   Kasen - 29in
               Karl - 27.5in
Weight:  Kasen - 21lbs 11.5oz
               Karl - 19lbs 2oz

12 Months
Height:  Kasen - 30 1/2in
              Karl - 28.5in
Weight:  Kasen - 22lbs 9.5oz
              Karl - 20lbs 4oz

12 Months Old

Kasen went to the doctor last week for her 1 year check up. She got to "talk" to the doctor and endured 4 shots. Here are her stats:

Height - 30 1/2in - 90%
Weight - 22lbs 9.5oz - 75%

Turns out Kasen is starting to get leaner (but not any shorter).  I think I was right to NOT sign her up for gymnastics.  Just don't think her genes will allow for an Olympic gymnastics medal.  This will give her more time to practice her swimming and soccer anyway.  After all... the swimmers and soccer players are encouraged to eat :)

Kasen enjoying frozen blueberries for the 1st time

For comparison my stats from when I was 12 months:
Height - 30 1/2in
Weight - 24lbs

Kasen's Birthday Wishlist

I mean what else could a little girl want?

Note: No babies were harmed in the documenting of this moment. Kasen was stopped before ingesting the bill. However, she may have licked it slightly... I mean how could I prevent that AND take a picture?

Birthday week

Kasen turns 1 this weekend and I should be doing more birthday prep.  I had a terrific birthday role model.  My mom ROCKED birthdays.  I had the party where kids always wanted to get invited (and I was still positive no one would show up).  She had games, prizes and awesome cakes way before any of that stuff was standard issue.  I once had a purple boom box cake.  [Yes it was the eighties and yes you are jealous]  In fact, that was one of the best parts of having your birthday.  Telling mom what kind of cake you wanted.  My younger brother once had a cake that was the EXACT replica of his favorite He-Man character - Buzz-Off. Now, my mother didn't make these cakes herself... she had games to plan after all.  However, she did find a cake artist in Kalamazoo, MI.  Impressive to say the least.

For my first birthday, we went to the High Wheeler.  This is a was a ice cream place in Kalamazoo that was a true ice cream PARLOR.  They had the red stools and everything.  Do I remember this event?  No, I was ONE.  However, I have seen the scratchy seventies photos and it was a party.  There was a huge sundae and some guy with a big horn.  My entire family was there and a bunch of friends.  Everyone looks like they are having a ball... at a one year old's birthday party.  Big shoes.

Sadly, I believe I may be falling down on the job a bit.  I do not have anything spectacular planned for her birthday.  I guess she will need something to talk about with her therapist in her thirties...

We celebrated while in Texas and we had a party with all her PEPS buddies last week (photo above), so we are laying low for the actual birthday, dinner and pints at our favorite local pub (pints for us... milk for Kasen).

Here is Kasen after FULLY enjoying her first cupcake at the PEPS birthday bash.



Kasen would like you to know frosting doubles as hair gel AND is edible.  My kid is a freakin' genius!

 

The Baby Swedish Chef

Since I have been working from home, I am now able to cook more.  It is not that we went out to eat a ton before we had the stinker, it is just "cooking" was a loosely applied term.  I mean boiling water is cooking right?  Anyway, since I have been trying to cook meals with multiple ingredients, I have had to keep Kasen occupied in the kitchen.  Sometimes that is by giving her an ingredient to snack on:



Turns out she is a big fan of red bell peppers... I mean OF COURSE - they are red which means everything they touch turns this lovely shade of pink.



Sometimes, the meal does not lend itself to ingredient tasting.  For these times, I give her some cooking stuff on the floor and hope she doesn't get bored.  Honestly, I don't know if she was pretending to cook or doing a FANTASTIC impersonation of the Swedish Chef. You be the judge.

I can't wait till she and Sterling can actually make us food down there.  Don't know how I'll feel about the dog hair though....

Spring Break PARTY - Part 2

Beach vacations are not usual for us.  Now, we definitely go to warm locations for vacation.  Keeping sane in Seattle long-term requires seeing the sun on vacation in the winter.  But an all beach vacation?  Karl gets bored and trust me - no one wants to see a bored Karl.  It's like a German Shepard with nothing to herd - annoying and even a little sad. [Yes, I just compared him to a dog, but if you know me and my love for German Shepards - totally a compliment] 

Anyway, we took this specific beach vacation to be with family.  It was wonderful how many family members were able to get together in one location.  We had not seen some of these people since our wedding over 5 years ago - far too long.  Kasen is such a social baby - she was in heaven.  She got to touch the ocean for the first time.  Here she is enjoying dipping her toe into the water:



We were actually glad the water was cold.  Dealing with a sand covered baby was not on our list of "fun things to do on vacation".  She enjoyed it any way.  Don't you love the plain white onsie?  She did have an outfit on, but as it got warmer we started pulling clothes off of her.  Trust me, we were just helping her fit in with the locals.

Spring Break PARTY - Part 1

The Picarbockers recently returned from a trip to Padre Island.  It was everything a good spring break trip should be - too much sun, fun and not nearly enough sleep.  The big difference is not ALL the fun revolved around drinking and the lack of sleep was due to an early rising baby - not staying up too late.  In all honesty - I don't think I ever had a crazy spring break trip, but Karl frequently tells a story of his Florida spring break trip in college.  It revolves around a night at Treasure Island, a $100 cab ride and waiting in the cab while the cab driver ate breakfast at his mothers.

I wish I had more pictures of our trip.  I brought my camera, but the first day I took it to the beach and realized it was getting sand & sea covered.  I instantly decided it was too delicate for the beach and didn't get it out much afterward.  My new goal is to work with my camera more, so that I don't feel like it is this fragile piece of equipment.  I'm working on it.

Kasen took to spring break like a duck to water.  One of the nights, we went out to eat freshly caught fish at one of the local restaurants.  My mom has some friends who fish every day - this leads to a WHOLE LOT OF FISH for eating.  They nicely invited us to help them eat it all.  Little did we know this was more a Man vs. Food challenge than a dinner invitation.  I have literally never seen that much fish in my life.  Kasen ate some and then promptly fell asleep.  This was pretty impressive considering the volume of this restaurant.



She didn't wake up until we left.  Turns out this is the baby version of "boot and rally", she stayed up at least 2 more hours back at the condo playing with her cousins.  Spring break is NOT for the weak of heart.

Sometimes the music moves you!

Kasen bobs her head to music. Karl says it is her head banging. However she does this dance to any kind of music. As you can see in the video, she has carried the head bobbing to the rest of her body. When you gotta dance, you gotta dance!

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Chapeau

My niece was at our house last week when I heard her singing a song from the Cat in the Hat movie (you know the good one from the 70's).  It's the song where he says "Cat in the Hat" in a few languages, like French and Spanish.  My niece was repeating the french part of the chorus.  I tried to look up the lyrics, but clearly Dr. Seuss has his copyright stuff together because it wasn't readily available.  Anyway, I was putting away the 9 month clothing and pulling out the next size of hand-me downs when I found this gem:

My wonderful friend Sara gave Kasen this hat.  She has 3 girls, so I don't know who wore it - but I love it.  If Kasen could walk, I would take her golfing just so she could wear it.  Sadly it has been too cold for any hats other than woolly winter ones, but when spring hits.... Kasen will be sporting a chapeau!
  

House of Sick

Kasen is sick.  This is not terribly surprising considering everything within grasp ends up in her mouth - dog toys, shoes, remotes, furniture, etc.  I suppose I don't help matters much... I am just not one of the moms taking 15 minutes to sanitize the shopping cart I use or removing from circulation every toy that hits the ground in a public place.  More power to women that have the energy to do these things, but I generally have bigger fish to fry... Besides since Kasen stays home with me, I figure the exposure is good for her.  Puts "hair on her chest" if you will.  Shocked I used that expression?  I mean she's a girl!  Yeah, tell that to my mom.  I think I heard it 5 times a day when I was young (in her defense I have 2 brothers).  It's funny the things that you repeat in the next generation.

But now, after being puked on, I can see why people go to such great lengths to keep their kids from getting sick.  It is lame.  Really lame.  According to other stories I have heard, we managed to escape pretty unscathed (she only puked 3 times and I never got it).  However, it was hard to feel that way changing a (very recently freshly bathed) puke covered baby.  Mommy indignity #3,654?  Since I was also covered, I got to do this in my underwear.  Good times.

The girl is definitely on the mend now.  But, the Picarbockers have been feeling a little stir crazy these past few days.

FYI - I made that dress.  I used this tutorial from Prudent Baby.  Since their instructions were for 2T, I had to shrink it a bit.  I basically took Kasen's measurements and extrapolated with their pattern.  It is a flannel and I am in love with the fabric pattern.  It was actually pretty easy to sew, but next time I think I would go with a knit fabric (although I am still a little intimidated by knits).  I think it would be more forgiving in terms of fit.

Daddy Time

Karl is a great dad.  He is totally hands on and Kasen adores him.  She has started to show some separation anxiety (generally happens at this age), but only with Karl.  When he comes home, it is like her world suddenly filled with sunshine and if he leaves the room - CLOUDS... all she sees are CLOUDS.  This means big pouty lips and crying, with tears.    It would be pretty adorable if it weren't so loud.  Oh and when I leave the room?  She waves.  Good riddance lady!  Anyway, this is all just to reiterate that even Kasen knows she got a good dad.  One of the truly great ones.

In an attempt to give me a "day off", we have declared Saturdays - "Daddy Day".  This means that Karl is Kasen's "point man".  Kasen needs a diaper?  Dad is on it.  Kasen needs feeding?  Again, Dad's all over it.  My role?  I let go and help when asked.  Things happen a little differently on this day.  Karl wants to walk down to the local bar with Kasen AND not take diapers or formula?  It's Daddy Day... anything goes.  In fact, Karl's common response to any questions I have on Saturday - "that is how we ROLL on Daddy Day".  

I recently started doing some tutoring one evening a week thus making this night - "Daddy Night".  Like on "Daddy Day", things are just different than when Mom runs things.  I would like to present this video to illustrate my point.  Karl shot this week when I was off tutoring.  Recently, Kasen has started to pull up to standing, but isn't cruising and had never attempted climbing up anything....

If you are a mom, you probably know what I thought when I first saw it and I am not even a hovering mom.  I am more from the "brush yourself off" school of parenting.  My thought when I saw this video?  "Really??  Shooting from the TOP of the stairs?  Even the dog knows this is a bad idea."

A Valentine's Reading

OK, so the story has nothing to do with Valentine's Day. Honestly, it is the magazine we get from the zoo. Originally it seemed to be a pretty big waste of paper (sorry hardworking zoo writers), but Kasen's interest in it has raised the value. Here is a video of her reading from it.

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10 months old

Can you tell I love this hat?

Kasen turned 10 months this week and she and I headed to the aquarium to celebrate. I love being in downtown, but haven't had alot of opportunity lately. The aquarium gives me an excuse. The limitation of my equipment (my camera phone) - plus my concern Kasen might fall off this ledge - made it hard to get a good shot of the mountains. I promise they were beautiful... AND Kasen didn't fall.

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Seattle winter

While Armageddon (weather-wise) happens everywhere else, the sun shined in Seattle. Kasen and I celebrated with a zoo trip. Gorillas eating their own vomit and stinky flamingos (pictured). Gotta love the zoo....

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Kasen rocking out

Kasen's grandma gave her a CD for Christmas this year. Generally I am not a big fan of kids music, but this CD is personalized - it actually says "Kasen" in some of the songs. Really pretty cute.

I must say my daughter is not known for having discriminating music tastes - she has been known to bop along to commercials. Still, I think chewing on the CD adds a certain something ... don't you?

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Girls should know how to fix things

I bought a toy/book shelf in hopes of keeping Kasen's toys up off the floor. She helped Karl assemble it. Although he did swear less, it seemed to take a little longer....

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Picarbockers love TV

It's practically in her DNA. At least the remote is good for fine motor skills right?

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Priceless

Swimsuit: gift from Grandma
Entry fee to pool: $5
Plastic pants: $2

Extra long afternoon nap taken AFTER swimming?

Priceless

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9 Months old... time to grow up ;)

Kasen is now 9 months old.  She has been for a week now, but since her 9 month check-up was only yesterday I am pretending this post is not belated.  Just like my child is pretending to be interested in the book in the picture.  In reality her thought is.... "how am I going to get this into my mouth with this guy hovering?"  Already we are cramping her style.



Here are the important stats:
Height/Length:  29in
Weight:  21 lbs 11.5 oz

In case you are curious...  Kasen is smaller than I was at her age.  HA well meaning strangers who comment on her size!  Turns out we Picarbockers have big babies - WHAT OF IT?  She is not much smaller in length, but I killed her in weight.  I blame the stomach bug that worked its evil way through our house.  Don't worry nosy bitties.. she'll be back to fighting weight in no time.

My stats at 9 months:
Height/Length:  29 1/4 in
Weight: 22 lbs 1 oz