Tidbits.....

Just a quick list of some things I've been meaning to jot down

1.  Maddox's new favorite thing to watch on TV..... the Cinderella movie. Thank you Aunt Brooke :)

2.  Kennon is saying tons of words....thank you, milk, cookie, yogurt,  Maddox, please, teeth, ball, socks, shoes, boots, coat, scarf, hello ( even with the L sound!!) chair, bench, Grammy, Papa Dick, Jim, Jean, candy and ELMO....yes there might be another ELMO birthday cake in the works for the Kies house.

3. Kennon weighs 24 pounds 3 ounces and is 32 1/2 inches tall from his last appointment at the Dr, his 18 month well-check. He checked out well and Dr. Anderson was happy to hear that he is no longer lactose intolerant.

4.  Number of Lexus, Cadillac,  and Mercedes SUVs lined up to pick up their kids at Maddox's church school.....too many to count....!!  Mom and Dad are gonna work very hard over the next 18 years to keep you both grounded.

5.  Registration for OSLP ( Our Savior Lutheran Preschool or 'church school' Maddox so comically deemed it ) for the 2013-2014 is THIS WEEKEND. I will be signing BOTH Maddox and Kennon up for the Monday Wednesday AM program.  What does that mean....a free morning for Mom.  Yahoo!

6. Maddox visited the pediatric orthopedic physician, Dr Pyevich last Friday.  I am still concerned about her frequent tripping ( the over concerned physical therapist). She checked out fine, just slightly uncoordinated for her age.  IE she is kinda clumsy.  Nothing to be concerned about and he recommended signing her up for Tae Kwan Doe....hmmmmmm how about dance class instead??  :)

7.  Kennon chipped his front tooth sometime yesterday. We will go visit Dr. Matt ( our pediatric dentist) in a couple of weeks to have him check it out.  My little baby's smile is now tainted.

8. Kennon goes tomorrow for his 1 year check up on his tubes.  We will see what Dr. Dvorak sees. They were still intact a couple of weeks ago at his baby well check appointment. They should be falling out any day now.

9.  Maddox is sleeping in her twin bed on the floor WITHOUT any rails now. She is doing well, no falls and is even using her new Lady Bug twin quilt that I bought when she was practically still in her crib. She sleeps under the sheet and quilt just like a big girl. Way to go Maddox.

10. Maddox is finally STARTING to understand the need to stay in her room until her new clock turns GREEN in the AM rather than coming down to our room at the crack of dawn.  YIPPY!!

11. Our new cleaning lady starts tomorrow. The old one had to quit us because she was too busy. Just one time per month, but I'll take it.

12. Eric and I have started our new healthy eating diet.  Lots of veggies, little to no carbs, red wine ( which I am actually learning to love or well like), 70 to 80% cocoa chocolate bars and lean meat. Not a diet to lose weight but a diet to boost both of our GOOD cholesterol levels and to just be healthier.  Both of our bad cholesterol levels are great but our GOOD cholesterol levels are too low which Dr. Petre ( Eric's really fabulous family physician) says is really just as bad. If you would like a medical explanation feel free to chat with Eric. He is an expert at this stuff right now. Way to go Eric!

13.  Kennon's favorite toy right now....anything that he can throw....and HARD.

14. Kennon finally has more than 2 teeth on the bottom in the front.  Number 3, of 4, is finally poking it's way up.  You gain some and ya loose some ( reference to number 7 :)

15. I don't have any examples, I'm always meaning to jot them down, but Maddox's critical thinking skills are really emerging.  She comes up with stuff that I"m like 'whoa....she is totally getting this concept...that I had no idea she really understood'.  I"ll try to think of an example for the next post. She is a smart little cookie. And so is her brother...but then again I"m their proud mom and slightly biased.

16.  Number of times we've used Kennon and potty training in the same sentence in the last 2 weeks....at least a hand full!! He told us he had poop yesterday and pointed to his diaper.

17. I got up enough nerve a couple of weeks ago to chat with my boss about an alternative position for me at VNA in the future. More to come on that. But, happy with myself for being a bit aggressive with him. Life is too short to do something you really don't like to do....

18.  How excited are we to see Aunt Brooke, Uncle Tyler, and cousin Carter's new home in Waunakee WI?.....too excited for words!! So happy to have you back in the midwest.

19. Kennon is no longer taking morning naps.  If we run errands he just snoozes in the car and or if we are at home we just play through the morning. Then he usually takes like a 2 to 3 sometimes 4 hour afternoon nap.

20. I finished the first book that I've read since PT school this weekend....Proof of Heaven by Eben Alexander MD.  Recommend it. 

21. We are so happy to have so many wonderful friends and family.  Our kids are surrounded by love. We really are a blessed family.

I find I"m using the vacuum after almost every meal.  Lots of food on the kids and lots of food on the floor. But, he sure looks happy doesn't he.  Hummus burgers and couscous.  He devoured it. 

Christmas day....I love KTK in he background. 

'Peek'...check it out on the next picture. He has yogurt in the same spot on his nose on two different occasions. Too cute.

Kennon is getting an M&M in this picture. You can see the excitement on his face. He has now figured out that Maddox gets M&Ms when she goes potty and is quick to throw a fit if he doesn't get on and KNOWS to run with Maddox to the drawer after her potty time. Hmmmmm we are gonna have to figure out something different for him  when he starts training.  I broke the seal, gave in and gave him one last week and now he is hooked. He just gets a half at at time but you'd have thought he was getting the whole bag. He gets so excited. But, then again who wouldn't :) 

YES...Maddox is in the high chair. They made a switch for some reason a while back.  I'm ready to just get rid of the highchair. Kennon does fine in the pink portable chair and Maddox can sit on the bench. 

There's the M&M....

Kennon is really good at just sitting and playing with his cars and trucks, and even puzzles if he has his paci and his belly is full.  No entertainment needed.

Yesterday Maddox came downstairs from her nap wearing her Cinderella dress up costume and her Hello Kitty PJs from Aunt Brooke.  I"m not sure how long she was up there playing but hey she came down happy ( which is a rarity) so we were diggin' it. She even had the glass slippers on  IE silver ballet shoes.

Kennon's morning nap...waiting in the car line at church school to pick up Maddox.  Just before we left the house he very quietly crawled up the steps and got, not just his BLUE BEAR but Maddox's PURPLE BEAR.  I had no idea he had gone up there. Probably trying to tell me he needed a snooze.  He was asleep before we practically got off Judge Road. Maddox was happy to see her PURPLE BEAR when she hopped up in the van, especially since she had tripped while running at school ( reference to number 6) and bruised her cheek.  Poor thing.