Sadly, It Didn't Work

What do you do when the Dodgers are playing to get into the World Series at the same time the Giants are playing, um, an ordinary game?

Clearly, you haul the gym tv into the den and hook it up so that you can watch both at once. In case you're wondering, the baseball game was on the big screen since we got that channel in HD, but the football game was the one with sound over the stereo.

In case you're further wondering, I left, taking a kid with me. I think he enjoyed the games more that way. He would have enjoyed them a lot more if either team had won. But, alas, no.

For those of you who know what this means . . .

Kaitlyn. Target. Popcorn. Juice box. Napkin.

You do the math. We're very proud!

The Games We Play

Kaitlyn is going through a phase where she could play "I Spy" for hours at a time. And since it's quasi-educational, we like it. We've spied blue things, brown things, fluffy things, flat things, messy things, tall things, short things, old things, silly things...

What's best is when Kaitlyn gives the clues. Here's how it goes:

"I spy with my little eye something I spy.... this (running over and pointing at something)!"
"Is it that?" we 'guess'.
"YES!" she gleefully acknowledges.

Lately she's been getting better... "I spy this blue towel!" "I spy this green wall!" and today an actual clue "I spy something Auntie gave back to Mommy!" (In case you're wondering, that's my exercise bike that I loaned to Kris when I was too pregnant to use, since it's recumbent).

Kourey is a big fan of games, too. Her game of choice is Peek-a-Boo. She could be in the middle of a crying jag and you can briefly cover your eyes and say "peek-a-boo!" and she'll switch to laughter. She's gotten to the point where she tries to play, too. She'll take her pants while getting dressed and cover her face and then pull it off and giggle. This is an especially great game, because Kaitlyn can play with Kourey. Kaitlyn loves that she can make Kourey laugh, and I love that it doesn't involve physical contact between the two (since Kaitlyn sometimes reminds me of Elmyra from the vintage Animaniacs cartoons).

The Nerdy Acorn Doesn't Fall Far From The Tree

Kaitlyn had her second night at Cubbies last night.

When I picked her up I asked her if she had fun.

"YES!"

"What was your favorite part?" I asked her, expecting snack, or Cubbie the puppet, or coloring...

"When the lady helped me learn."

I gave her an extra big hug and was amazed once again at this little person I call my daughter.

Symphony at the Park

I wanted to go. I wrote it on the calendar waaaay back in the spring. Three dates - one spring symphony performance, one fall Ft. Lee Army Band performance, one fall symphony performance. All free. All near(ish) my house at Pocahontas State Park.

The spring concert was great! We (and since it was a night Keith was working "we" meant then 6-month-old Kourey, Kaitlyn, and Auntie Kris) took a picnic dinner and relaxed to a program of music including lively Sousa marches that got Kaitlyn marching around while enjoying a serendipitous reunion with some good friends from Grove Avenue Baptist Church.

The Ft. Lee Army Band performance - the only one Keith could have made - was rained out last week.

Which brought us to this week. The humidity was oppressive, my kids didn't go down for a nap until it was almost time to get up, and I really considered not going. But go we did and we really had a great time!

Four months older than her last concert, Kourey was very into the music! Kaitlyn danced around and even finagled a popsicle out of Auntie Kris (disclaimer: Auntie actually wanted a popsicle for herself, and got Kaitlyn one, too).

A Little Kourey Update

Those of you playing the home game already know that Kourey is now 10 months old. What you don't know are all of the little things that make Kourey the awesome tom-month-old she is.

You've got pictures, so you can see that she has gone from looking exactly like Kaitlyn to looking more like Keith. She's got dark hair, and in the back it curls up into damp little ringlets whenever she's hot (which is all the time). Her birthmark between her eyebrows has faded a lot, but whenever she really gets worked up it comes flaring back. She's got three teeth, and if you get too close she'll use them on you. She'll pretend she's going to kiss you, then bite your cheek. She thinks it's funny. I think Keith taught her.

She also takes after Keith in her sense of humor. It's not just the "fake you out" kiss. She takes way to much joy in creating a diaper that leaves me calling for backup (and it takes a lot for Mommy to call for backup).

Kourey loves her sister. She crawls along after her, climbs on top of her, and tries to stick her finger in her mouth. Kourey also loves when her sister is not around. She can play with her toys (and by "her" I mean both Kourey's toys and Kaitlyn's toys) without fear of theft or reprisal. She can feel confident no one will try to "ride her like a puppy". The forty-five minutes between when Kaitlyn goes down for a nap and Kourey does are her golden moments. The forty-five following minutes when they are both down are mine.

She's not talking. My brother is four years younger than me. Until he was two he could/would only say "Ma" "Da" "Ssss" (that's sister) "haystack" and "Tweetsy Railroad". That's right... "Ssss" was sister, but he could say Tweetsy Railroad and haystack. Anyone who has met David knows the two years didn't hurt his vocabulary one bit, and anyone who's met me isn't surprized that everyone in our family surmises he simply didn't talk because I did all the talking. It's a theory; I'm not sold on it. BUT it could be true for Kourey and Kaitlyn. Time will tell.

Despite the fact she still wears some 6-9 month clothes (at this point Kaitlyn was 12-18 mos) and is not really chubby, Kourey loves to eat. I joke she is a bottomless pit, or that maybe she has a hollow leg. My mom used to say that about my brother all of the time - "He must have a hollow leg!" I said the same about Kourey and Keith thought I was making a weird joke that he didn't get at the expense of those with prosthetic limbs. Has anyone else heard this expression or is my mom just a little crazy? She nurses three times a day, eats baby food twice a day, and eats lunch and dinner with us at the table. Her favorite foods might be spinach, spaghetti, grilled eggplant and yogurt. And baby puffs (as in puffs for babies, not to be confused with Soylant Green Puffs).

And that's the Kourey report.

Kaitlyn's First Day at Cubbies!

Ever since she started Little Treble Makers choir in January, Kaitlyn has wanted to go to Cubbies, but while she could start choir after she turned 3, Cubbies had the same birthday cutoffs as the school year and her December birthday made her ineligible.

How did she know she wanted Cubbies? The very first night of her choir Keith was supposed to pick her up at 6:30. He got there at 6:31. By that time she had already been whisked to Cubbies where the Cubbie Bear puppet was talking to a room full of excited 3- and 4- year-olds clad in bright blue vests with patches and clutching colorful books with stickers.

They had her at puppet.

After a long wait, Kaitlyn was so excited for her first night at Cubbies on September 10! We waved and hugged her friends from Sunday School, waited in line to try on vests, ordered a tote bag, filled out a flurry of forms, and collected a bevy of handouts.

How can you tell she loved Cubbies? Maybe by how the Cubbie's Hopper book was enough to enthrall her and keep her quiet and seated during my choir practice afterwards (if you have or have ever met a three-year-old, you get the miracle here). Maybe by the fact she wore the vest all night (not just at church... all the way to bedtime - she tried to convince me she could wear it with PJs). Maybe by the fact she's already learned both of her verses and is telling them to Kourey and Baby Becky.

Or you could just take my word for it.

I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello...

Kourey has a new "baby trick". And a first word? It's debatable.

When we are leaving somewhere, (for example, church nursery) and I say "Wave goodbye, Kourey!" she lifts her little hand and waves (well, it looks a lot like hitting the air) and says "buh buh! buh buh!"

I say this counts as waving and saying "goodbye".

Keith says it's interesting, but not talking and mostly coincidental.

What do you think? Does it go in the baby book?

Happy Independence Day!

Happy Fourth of July! We had planned an evening of picnic and fireworks (well, pizza in the Home Depot parking lot overlooking the Colonial Heights and Ft. Lee displays), but God had other plans and the deluge drove us indoors where we watched the Washington DC and NYC Macy's displays on tv. Clearly it's not the same, but Kaitlyn still got her popcorn so she was happy!

Inja Foyer

"Nooo, I can't want to take a nap! I need to be inja foyer!"

It's not uncommon for Kaitlyn to protest... well, anything, really. She's really very contrary. And very creative. You should hear some of her plans for swapping toys with Kourey, and Kourey getting Kaitlyn's detained toys back, and then swapping back. But today it was naptime being protested, and the reason was "inja foyer".

"You need to be in the foyer?" I asked, continuing as she nodded her head solemnly, "No, you need to be in bed sleeping."

"I need to be seeing inja foyer like Daddy does!"

Seeing "inja foyer"? Daddy?

Lightbulb moment: she was talking about Ninja Warrior, a Japanese competition show that apparently she and Keith watch much more than I realized.

She wants to be "a inja foyer".

Sigh.

Guess who's got a tooth?

Well, it's really just a little razor that you feel when you rub your finger on her gums, but she works it out on the biter biscuit!

Metro Richmond Zoo

Click the x on the song box to minimize it; cut the music by clicking the volume button. Click on the picture to scroll through manually.

Yesterday Kaitlyn, Kourey and Katherine met up with Kaitlyn's best friend from church, her mom and baby brother, and jaunted up to the Metro Richmond Zoo.

As much as I love the zoo, I've never been to this one, as I am a zoo snob. I have high standards because I grew up with the NC Zoo so close - it may not a big name, national level zoo, but I think in many ways it's better than others I've been to.

So a private zoo a block off of Hull Street - behind an elementary school at that - and named Metro Richmond Zoo, well... let's say my expectations were low. But I really enjoyed it! The smallness of the zoo made it feel really accessible for the kids, and I think I enjoyed hand-feeding the giraffes even more than they did (especially since they didn't hand feed the giraffe, they just held out cups for the giraffes to eat out of with their purple, prehensile tongues).

Kaitlyn stayed true to her peculiar predilections by being most entranced by the two sloths that hung alongside of scarily big bats in the nocturnal house. She refers to them as "two monkeys in a tunnel." It took me a while to figure out that's what she meant. She loved all of the primates (and all of them, from gibbon to chimpanzee to spider monkey, were just plain "MOWN-keys!"), in no small part because "monkeys are daddy's favorite."

We'll definitely be going back - anyone want to come with us?

Mommy, why...?

"Mommy, why are the gentlemen naked?"

I thought it would be years before such a question came up. And, if I had thought about it, I would expect it to be in a situation like when men wear too small bathing suits at King's Dominion (and really, would expect her to ask it about "ladies", strong on the quotation marks) or... actually, I can't even think of anything else. It's just that far off the radar.

Which is why I was fully unprepared for it as we were leaving the house to go to the grocery store. We weren't even out of the door yet! And she asked it in typical three-year-old fashion, loudly and repetitively.

"Why, Mommy? Where are there clothes? Why can't they wear any clothes? Why are the gentlemen naked?"

Before you worry about streakers run rampant in the neighborhood, let me explain. Our next door neighbors are getting their house resided. The construction crew all decided to work shirtless. Shirtless isn't a word Kaitlyn uses. Lack of clothes = naked. No questions. She doesn't go barefoot; she has naked feet. Sleeveless shirts mean naked arms. She's very single minded about it.

And her mind wasn't going to be changed by my whispered "shhh! They're not naked! They're just not wearing shirts!"

"Yes they are naked!," she exclaimed in her "Auntie voice", "And why aren't they wearing shirts? Ohhh, do they need shirts? Goodbye, gentlemen! Goodbye!"

Our Anniversary

In honor of our anniversary, here is the story of how we met:

April 20, 2003 started out like a regular Sunday. The weather was beautiful as spring really started to take hold in Richmond. Keith made the decision to go to a new church, Grove Avenue Baptist Church, where Katherine had been attending for about six months, and beyond that to go to Dennis and Cheryl's Sunday School class/small group (where, coincidently, but quite guessable at this point, Katherine was an active member).

Most of the group went out for lunch after church, and on this particular Sunday they decided to make it a park day. Another member of the class, Bill, knew Keith from the church he had previously attended and convinced him to come.

After sitting around and eating and talking and enjoying being outside on such a lovely day (lunch time conversation topics: Katherine's fear of squirrels and Keith's (clearly incorrect) theory that the maximum pairs of shoes needed by anyone is six), Keith, Bill, Katherine, and another girl from the class were headed towards our parking lot. The conversation was still on shoes; Katherine was defending the need for multiple pairs of black shoes at this point:

"Like this pair," she said, indicating the strappy platform black open-toed sandals gracing her feet, "are the best for kicking off easily when driving so I can put my feet out the window."

"You can't drive with your feet out the window! It's against the law! Right, Keith?" said Bill (the guy who already knew Keith).

"Yeah, you can't do that. It's reckless driving," said Keith.

"Pffft. It's not reckless driving! I only put one foot out the window, I adjust my mirrors, I have complete control of my vehicle," Katherine countered.

"No, no... it's definitely against the law! Right, Keith?"

"Right."

"Whatever," Katherine said, dismissively, "If it's against some law, it's a stupid law. Any law that stupid is OK to break."

"No! No, you can't do that, right, Keith?" Bill said, anxiously.

"Yeah, you can't do that."

"Yeah, what are you, a cop or something?"

This is the part where Keith, without breaking stride, pulls out a wallet and flips open his badge, leaving Katherine to stop, gaping and speechless. This, as everyone realizes, is somewhat of an accomplishment, one Keith jokes he has never managed to replicate.

And that's how we met. And how Katherine found out Keith was a cop.

Keith Raymond Dohl & Katherine Elizabeth Hudgins Dohl
Married April 24, 2004

May we forever continue through life's journey beside each other,
our hearts still filled with love, respect, and admiration, as it was so many years ago.
May our caring for each other grow deeper; may our love for each other grow stronger.
May our home be filled with hope, peace, and love as it has been for
all these years we have shared together.
May we share just as many more.

Whole lotta' posting going on...

Yes, there are a lot of posts today. In case the blog cut some of them off, here are all of the new posts for today:

Kaitlyn Starts PT
Keith's Chair Fund
Chicken Saltimbocca
Kaitlyn's Blessing
Kaitlyn's Dance

Kaitlyn's Dance

In our house the backside is referred to as the "tushie". At least usually. A few days ago I used the word "derrier", and Kaitlyn latched onto it immediately. Just hours later she was doing her usual Kaitlyn dance of hands in the air and shaking her little hips while bouncing a little. "Mommy!" she said, "I'm doing a dairy-air dance!"

It is impossible to not laugh at that, though God knows I tried!

And she proved she knows to what a "dairy air" is referring.

Kaitlyn's Blessing

In case you didn't hear her, she said:
"God is great,
God is good.
Let us thank Him for our food.
By His hands
We all are fed.
Give us, Lord, our daily bread.
A-MEN!



Cheese."

Because a camera requires a cheese.

Chicken Saltimbocca

Possibly as long as I've known of Maggiano's Little Italy's existence one of my favorite dishes has been Chicken Saltimbocca. Heck, it was one of the dishes we served at our wedding! Plus, I like the name. Saltimbocca, translated from Italian, means "jump mouth".

With my new home business (which I can't explicitly say what is; darn rules and darn my ethics for following them! shoot me an email if you are curious) I have even more of an excuse to try some new dishes, and Chicken Saltimbocca was Tuesday's adventure. I looked at a few recipes, took a bit here and a bit there and ended up with this:

Chicken Saltimbocca

Ingredients

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
all-purpose flour (about 1/4 - 1/3 cup)
2 T. butter (NOT margarine)
1 T. extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 small onion, wedged
1 tsp. dried marjoram or sage (or about 2 teaspoons fresh sage, chopped - I just didn't have any on hand!)
2 large slices prosciutto, cut in half
4 slices provolone or mozzarella
3/4 C. dry white wine

Directions

1. Pound the chicken breasts to an even thickness with meat mallet. Season with salt and pepper to taste (fresh ground of both if possible) and dredge in flour spread on a plate.
   Tip: Pounding the chicken flat means it will cook evenly, especially important when pan cooking.


2. Melt 1 T. of butter (save other tablespoon for later) with olive oil in a large stainless steel fry or sauté pan until very hot. Add the chicken and onion wedges and cook about 5-6 minutes (until the undersides are golden brown). Turn chicken and onion wedges and cook an additional 4-6 minutes (until the chicken is firm when pressed in the center).
   Tip 1: You need to use stainless steel to create the "fond", the brown bits stuck to the pan used in making the sauce. You won't get them in non-stick cookware.
   Tip 2: The easiest way to cut up the onion is with an apple wedger/corer. Use as many wedges as you like, save the rest in freezer for another use.


3. Reduce the heat to very low. Sprinkle the chicken with marjoram or sage. Top each piece with a piece of prosciutto and cheese. Cover pan and cook about a minute to a minute and a half (until the cheese melts). Remove chicken to a serving plate and cover loosely (without touching cheese) with foil.


4. Bring pan to high heat until it sizzles. Add the wine to deglaze the pan, scraping up any brown bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Bring to a boil for 2-3 minutes, until reduced to about 1/4 cup, then remove from heat and whisk in the remaining 1 T. butter.
   Tip: deglazing the pan not only creates a great sauce, but makes the pan really easy to clean!


5. Spoon sauce and onions over and around the chicken and serve immediately. Be prepared for accolades.

Keith's Chair Fund

Many of the people reading this blog have been to our house (I'm assuming - who else would waste time on these banalities?). And you know we don't have any room in our den for a Lazy Boy (or really anything larger than a pillow). And yet that's what Keith has been saving up money for for a few years now. He'd get a "donation" for birthday or part of Christmas or whatever.

And he finally got enough for a chair. A big, reclining "Daddy Chair". Ready to see it?

What? That doesn't look like a chair to you? Good eyes. Somehow the chair magically turned into 47" 1080p Digital LCD HDTV (I had to look at the box; I tend to just say "big screen"), plus a new stand, as the cabinet holding our old (and, might I add, perfectly adequate) 32" TV did not remotely fit the new TV.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the TV, too. But you never hear ME saying things like: "You know, I never really liked Sesame Street before, but now it's exciting!" (with only just the very slightest touch of facetiousness)

Kaitlyn Starts PT

Today was Kaitlyn's first day of Physical Therapy with Ms. Margaret.

To refresh your memory:
January - Kaitlyn breaks her leg by falling down the stairs with Keith
mid-February - Kaitlyn gets her cast off
last Wednesday - Kaitlyn has a 6 week post-cast appointment, where the doctor thought her gait wasn't quite up to par yet

Which brings us to today and the first of at least 8 appointments (assuming Southern Health does right by us, which could be a rather large assumption).

We talked about the appointment ahead of time, so Kaitlyn was really excited about going to "do some fun exercises!" with Ms. Margaret. She was even more excited (in her timid "I'm around new people" way) when we got there and she could see the mini-tramp and a slide and some other "gym" equipment.

She did basic PT evaluation stuff - standing on one leg, kneeling, going up and down steps, doing relevés ... all that jazz. She really didn't want to leave when the hour was up! The therapist has recommended some shoe inserts for her, so we'll get her measured for those at her next appointment.

The biggest excitement of the day came when we saw what was in the strip mall facing the office building... the new Don José! If we keep having 1 o'clock appointments, surely one of these days we can indulge in some delicious Mexican food at highly reasonable prices, no?

It doesn't have to be warm and sunny to enjoy King's Dominion

Lesson 1: Even if Weather.com calls for no precipitation past 1 pm, it could still be misty, drizzly, and cold all afternoon.

Lesson2: The pizza place may be warm, but it will make you want a pizza, and they cost $25.

Lesson 3: No matter what the cashier told you last time, the $4 wristband actually is good for truly unlimited refills all day long. Good buy!

Lesson 4: Don't let Kaitlyn hold the bubbles herself.

We were only at King's Dominion for about 2-1/2 hours today, but we did a lot! First off, of course, Kourey (KE) had to eat. While Mommy (M) and KE were thusly occupied at the first aid station, Daddy (D), Auntie Kris (AK), and Kaitlyn (KR) hit a few of KR's favorite rides. The "elevator" (which is, well, an elevator to an observation deck on the 1/3 scale replica of the Eiffel Tower) and the "Auntie Cars" (which is how she believes "Antique Cars" is pronounced) were both walk-ons. Fancy that.

Once M and KE finally found the D/AK/KR trio (after first finding the first cup fill of the day) it was time for The Crypt (formerly Tomb Raider; a gravitron) for M&D, then Avalanche (the bobsled coaster) for AK, M&D.


AK tested out her Dramamine by riding the scrambler with M. They are both dorks.

You know what? This blow by blow is boring. Keith didn't double up on any coasters because his broken ribs were hurting a bit (that's a post for another time). Kaitlyn loves the carousel, too, and she rode it at least twice.

Kourey likes sitting up in the stroller without the car carrier, and also likes laying down to sleep. It was kind of cold, kind of wet, and the cookies Auntie got were kind of good. We were home by 6:30 where we made and ate meatloaf, then all watched Alvin and the Chipmunks. Daddy finished putting together the accessory he got for his *big toy* (for security reasons that's all we can say right now)(it is not a WMD)(or a WSD)(but did require WD-40).

And that's about it.

New Camera! Yay!

Have you noticed we haven't blogged much recently? Do you miss the pictures? Yeah, so do we! Our main digital camera realized it's warranty had long since expired and decided to go wonky on us sometime in December. All of the pictures had this weird blue blurry haze. Not good.

But we just (well, a week and a half ago) got our new (well, refurbished) camera! And we love it! And since it means more pictures for you (yes, that means you, Mom), we know you'll love it, too.

PS - no, that's not a picture of our actual camera. You can tell because (1) how would we take a picture of our new camera without it getting all blue blurry looking? and (2) we go to very few polo matches, especially here recently. But that's exactly the kind of picture we would take. Only ours would be even better.

Happy Easter!

Click either picture for larger size!

Princess Pink Cast

I'm so slack at posting. But in my defense, I have a three-year-old in a cast and a three-month-old with colic.

Yeah, I hear you thinking, this we know. You posted that A MONTH AGO. Then no more. Slacker.

OK, well, you want some pictures? Will that make things a little better?

Check out that model! She likes showing off her cast, actually. She quickly figured out that it got her a little extra attention, and a little extra leeway.

And we can't make a trip to the photographer without a shot of the rapidly-changing Kourey. She looks soooo much like Kaitlyn did at this age.

And here they are together. Kaitlyn just adores Kourey - the two hardest bits of getting pictures made were catching Kourey looking pleasant and not slumping (clearly not always accomplished), and getting Kaitlyn to look at the camera and not at Kourey!!!

Life with the immobile

Do you remember word problems in school? There was this one about a man with a boat that could only hold two things at a time - him and one other item. He had a fox, a chicken, and a basket of grain. He had to get everything to the other side, but he couldn't leave the fox with the chicken or the chicken with the grain (in either case because the former would eat the latter). So you had to figure out that he took the chicken, went back, took the fox, brought the chicken back, took the grain (leaving the chicken on the first shore, again), went back, and finally brought the chicken, again.

I feel like I'm doing that puzzle all day long! I can only carry one armload at a time - Kourey, Kaitlyn, or stuff. What order do you take them to the car, so that each child is left alone for the least amount of time (and in the cold for the least amount of time)? How about bringing them in? Going up and down stairs (which, obviously, has an added element of anxiety for Kaitlyn)? Well, Kourey's carrier can sit right on the floor inside the door, but Kaitlyn has to be carried all the way to the couch (or similar location wherever you're going). Can I unlock and open the doors while holding whoever I'm carrying first? Is it time to wake Keith up, yet?

And when did Kaitlyn get so big?!

And how am I going to do this for 4 - 6 more weeks?

Actually, Kaitlyn has an appointment Wednesday morning to get her permanent cast, and then she should be able to get around a lot more. And Kourey has a follow up that afternoon regarding her colic (which: a white noise machine in the crib has helped, but last night was still a 2 hours of sleep before Keith came home night; bleh).

News Break

This just in... no, wait, it's not that kind of news break. I mean, this is the latest in Dohlchester news - when's the last time I updated within 8-hours of something happening?

But the "break" is the news. While getting ready for church this morning, Keith and Kaitlyn tumbled down the stairs. Keith was fine, except for some bruising on his hip, but Kaitlyn was quite upset. And understandably so - falling is always scary!

She kept holding her right knee and wouldn't put weight on it. While there didn't appear to be any bruising, we raised it and iced it and checked with the doctor - it was ER time.

The doctor talked to Kaitlyn and asked her if her ankle hurt, if her knee felt fine, if it hurt when he did this and if it felt fine when he did that. She nodded to everything. I wanted to point this out to him when he decided to x-ray her ankle. It's her knee she's grabbing and won't let us touch!

But there is a reason he's the doctor and I am not - after a less-than-happy x-ray, the results showed a fracture of the tibia right above the ankle. Kaitlyn got a splint and we're taking her to a pediatric orthapedist this week (amazingly, the office wasn't open this morning) for a hard cast for about 4-6 weeks.

She can't play and walk around on the splint (and has shown no interest in doing so, so far) but once she gets the cast she probably will be able to. Like our Sunday School teacher pointed out, at least she just broke the tibia, so she still has the fibula to give some stability (the bone hadn't shifted at all, but was broken all the way through).

Kaitly also seems to have broken her appetite - even tempting PBJs and Sister Schubert's rolls haven't gotten her to eat more than a few cheerios and two bites of a popsicle all day. But I'm sure that will mend without a cast in far less than 4-6 weeks!

Baby Kourey and Mini-Hyde

I have two babies.

One is the sweetest thing you can imagine. She laughs and smiles and gurgles and coos. She grasps your fingers or your shirt like she just wants to hang out with you forever. She likes looking at herself in the mirror, clutching stuffed animals, and shaking rattles. She eats well and sleeps through the night. She seems to already have a sense of humor, laughing and bobbing her head yes or no very coincidentally to indicate she shares our family brand of humor.

The other is a little ball of anger. She screams and yells until red in the face. She can't even eat for yelling. She doesn't want you to stop walking her around, but that doesn't mean she's happy being walked, either. She won't take a pacifier, but your finger might do to suck on until it is raw, but only if it would be incredibly uncomfortable for you and don't even think of trying to stop once it's in place. She wakes up from the shortest of naps with a scream that keeps going through the night.

And they're both Kourey.

And you wonder why I haven't updated much? Up until Monday, since before Christmas we'd been giving Kourey Maalox before each meal, and she had just tried and rejected Zantac. The doctor's thought it was just Acid Reflux. But when everything lost effectiveness and I was at my absolute wits end (I even threatened to give up nursing her; she had one bottle of formula), the doctor said: "Colic"

So what's wrong with Kourey? Basically, nothing. Colic basically means "nothing's wrong, she's just going to cry. so get used to it."

Amazingly, that helps. She's gaining weight like crazy - 13 lb 11.6 oz on Monday, with a weight gain of nearly an ounce a day. She's developmentally good (although she's not getting as much mat time as I would like and rolling is a far distant event). She's just crying.

Knowing that she's ok, and that there's actually not all that much I can do to stop the crying (ie, changing my diet or feeding more/less often or I don't even know what) takes a huge weight off of my shoulders.

So when the doctor said "colic" it didn't make her cry less, but it has made me cry less.

Congratulations, Sgt. Daddy!

Keith begins tonight as a Sergeant! (Note the gold badge and three stripes)

We found out about the promotion about two weeks ago, but the finer details weren't ironed out until this weekend. It means a new schedule (for all of us, really), and that we'll have to eat at "normal people" times - crazy!

We're so proud of him (not that we weren't before)!

Happy 2 Month Birthday, Kourey!

Yesterday Kourey turned two months old - can you believe it?!

According to the doctor, she is 13 lbs 5 oz (nearly a stone!) and 24 inches long. Since she's been on Maalox (and now Zantac), she's a pretty even tempered baby that loves looking around and hugging her snugglies. She seems to smile the most when she's pulled something over on us (can babies this young have a sarcastic sense of humor?).

In honor of her 2 month birthday, we broke out the Hop N Pop. It's hard to say who likes it more - Kourey, so she can sit up and see the world, or Kaitlyn, who wants to show Kourey how to press all of the buttons and such (note to self: take out batteries).

Christmas Cuties