20 Months

Today our girl is 20 months old! We continue to enjoy her as much as we have since day one. One of my favorite things about life is the unexpected surprises (and gifts) we are given. Kennedy has absolutely been the greatest surprise and gift we could have ever received. I think back to my life before her and it makes me laugh to think that I had absolutely no idea that this little girl, this special little soul would someday be mine. Yes, I knew I would have children but I didn't know I would have her. I am thankful everyday that I get to be the mother to this happy, healthy, precious baby.

On a less sentimental-note, here are a few updates about Miss Kennedy Renee:

Growth: She hasn't been to the doctor since her 18 month appointment but I will guess and say she is about 21 lbs now. Her feet are still tiny but are slowly catching up. She is wearing mostly size 5 shoes now. She wears mostly 18 month clothing but is still in 12 month jeans because her little waist is so small. She is our little peanut! Her hair is growing rapidly- I can't believe how long it has gotten in just the past month or two. It is almost past her shoulders with quite a bit of curl and everyone comments on what a beautiful color it is. :)

Eating Habits: With four molars working their way in, her eating habits have not been as great this past month. Her favorites are still fruits and vegetables... she will choose them over a french fry anytime (which I LOVE!). Veggie dogs, pasta, beans, rice, grapes, strawberries, scrambled eggs and pancakes are major "favs" right now.

Sleeping Habits: Kennedy consistently sleeps from 8 pm until 7-7:30 am. She is officially down to one nap a day (which lasts anywhere from 1.5-3 hours).

Personality: Kennedy continues to be a little sweetheart! Having said that, she's got a pretty strong streak of "spunk." She is not shy about her "opinions" and has no problem expressing them! She is a snuggle bug though and my favorite part of the day continues to be reading stories and snuggling in the glider chair before bedtime.

Friends: She gets along really well with other kids and she loves spending time with her friends Will and Madelynne on the days I work. Cousin Roderick is her best little buddy and of course, Auntie Rachael is her hero. She tries to copy everything Rachael does :)

Language: Kennedy continues to be very vocal with constant babbling. We have not seen a huge increase in actual language and vocabulary over the past two months. We continue to spend a lot of time reading and she is able to point out things in books (example: Where is the kitty? Where is the baby?). She understands virtually everything we say or ask her to do- she seems to be just on the verge of all-out talking but isn't quite there yet. Words she does say include: mommy, dada, kitty, baby, ba-ba, shoe, all done, no, yeah, nigh-nigh, hi, and bye-bye. She is blowing kisses and can sign the words "more," "please" and "milk."

Little Gym

We have been thinking about enrolling Kennedy in little gym classes. I have heard from so many people how fun they are. Tonight, we we went to the free trial class and we loved it! Kennedy had so much fun! She learned three new motor development skills, sang songs, played on the mats, bars and balance beams, chased balls and bubbles and played in a parachute. Needless to say, we are signed up for the next 20 weeks! Here are a few photos of our fun evening.

Ready to give the mats a try... 

Kennedy waiting patiently with the other kids for her stamp at the end of class

"Pop the bubbles with your feet..." (guess she listens well!)

Playing with balls ...

Practicing bar movements with Miss Claree

She LOVED the balance beam...

Parachute time- such fun!!!

She was actually really happy the whole class although this picture does not reflect that- LOL

 

 

Twins?

 Kennedy and Roderick are the best of friends and they actually look a lot like twins! Between their hair color and matching height, most people would probably think so! One thing is for sure... they are cute, cute, cute!

Friday Photo (on a Sunday)

I find these everywhere now. Time is moving at a rapid pace.

My Girl

Soccer Star

Kennedy and I had  great time watching Rachael's soccer game this morning... she scored 5 goals! I was so proud of her. She is a wonderful little soccer player- I think there will be many years ahead of watching her on the soccer field!

Saturday in Seattle

Sean's friend, Chris, was in town this weekend.

It gave us a great excuse to spend the afternoon in Seattle.

What a beautiful day Saturday was!

Pony Ride

We made a quick trip to the Puyallup fair today... we were hesitant to go because the weather was so icky but we managed to catch a mostly-dry patch. Kennedy can't do much at the fair yet but she did have fun at the petting zoo and riding a pony! She was a bit unsure about the pony but she didn't cry. She just looked a bit perturbed for most of the ride. That's my girl!

10-Year Class Reunion

So I think it is pretty funny that I went to my 10 year high school class reunion and took pictures of the people I see all the time! I really did a horrible job of photographing the night but here are the few I did take. The reunion was just "ok,"... I mean, can you ever really go back? :) But, as always, we had a great time with Heidi and Brian, Danny and Margaret, Kjell and Vanessa, Brian, Cassidy and a few other fun folks as well. We missed you Sarah and Kevin!!!

Nineteen Months

Friends

Kennedy with a few of her friends (these are the daughters of my teaching friends)...

Kennedy and Abby playing in the sand...

Friday Photo

I was tempted to do the dishes, fold the laundry and grade math tests.

Instead, I sat on the couch and read books with my girl.

Afterall, there will come a day when reading books with me is not going to be so cool. 

Thank goodness that isn't today.

Rachael + Bob

That's right, another wedding! This will be my third wedding post in four weeks- whew!

We spent a fantastic Labor Day weekend in Montana celebrating my cousin Rachael's wedding! Rachael and Bob were married at the cathedral in Helena and had a beautiful reception at the Civic Center. It officially goes down as the largest wedding I have ever attended with a final guest count of about 680 people! They did a wonderful job planning though because it did not feel like there were that many people there.

As I have said before, Rachael is not just my cousin but such a dear friend as well. I was honored to be a bridesmaid and it was so special to spend her wedding day with her. She was truly a beautiful bride! Sean was "on duty" with Kennedy most of the weekend as I was busy with Rachael and the other bridesmaids. He was a trooper - he didn't complain once. :) Fortunately, he did get to play a round of golf Friday morning which was a nice reprieve for him- thanks, Mom,  for babysitting!

I'd like to say I just snapped a "few" photos but you know me! :) As usual I tried to downsize although you can't tell given the slew of photos that are to follow.... enjoy!

We kicked off the weekend with a bridesmaid brunch hosted by my Aunt Judy. It was so sweet and special!

Each bridesmaid had a framed photo at her spot... such a nice touch!

bridesmaids Casey and Jeannie

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bridesmaids Jenn and Scout

Next came the church rehearsal and dinner!

I actually didn't take too many photos of the rehearsal-

Kennedy was in rare form and kept Sean and I on our toes most of the evening! :)

Elise (the flower girl) and Rachael at the church

Kennedy "striking a pose"- I LOVE her little arms in this photo!

Believe it or not- this is 3 generations!

And, finally the wedding day was here! We spent the morning at the salon getting hair and make-up done. Then we had lunch and got dressed at the bed and breakfast across the street from the cathedral.

Is she beautiful or what???

All the bridesmaids and flower girl

my cousin Reed and his wife, Lisi

my cousin Rob and his girlfriend, Krista

This is my Uncle Bill's boutonniere...

my Aunt Judy personalized it with a picture of his parents (my grandparents).

So special!!

Just Married!

We rode a trolley from the church to the reception- very fun!

Jenny (the matron of honor) and her husband Brent. Such a fun couple!

cousins Sarah and Paige with Rachael

cousins Harry and Bryan- they are a kick!

more cousins... Pat and Shelley (with baby Ava) and Seth and Erin

father-daughter dance ...there was no awkward swaying here... these two can DANCE!

my mom with 5 of her 7 siblings (8 total)

Here we are, the four musketeers!

Heidi, Marilee, Rachael and I were buddies growing up together.

We got this same picture at my wedding and now at Rachael's.

We hope to eventually have one from each of

our four weddings!

Above: Aunt Sharon and Aunt Jeanie (sisters- 11 years apart!)

Below: Mom and Aunt Sharon (sisters- 22 years apart!)

Overall, we had a really  fantastic time at Rachael and Bob's wedding.

I love, love, love seeing so much of my family in one place.

It doesn't happen often enough.