A visit from the Girls

Auntie Sarah and Brini came to town a while back to shower our boy with affection. Kai was thrilled, and could not get enough of them!

Ahh...he's so cute

Story Time

Kai loves his books!! He is particularly fond of the "Lift the Flap" books or as we refer to them "Tear the Flap" books.

Floors

It seems Kai has inherited from his Pops (Grandpa Campe) his need for clean floors. Kai loves putting on his scarf, grabbing the swiffer and making those floors shine! Today, while I was vacuuming, he also started to giggle and climbed on top of the vacuum and was smiling from ear to ear!

Aunt Kiki

Ok, so you know that Aunt Kiki (Kt) will whip out this photo sometime when the appropriate moment comes, years from now, when she really wants to embarrass him. Maybe his first date? Or at his high school graduation party?

Kai's Neighbor Party

We had a neighbor birthday party for Kai even though it was about one month after the real birthday. We just can't stop celebrating. Joe made yummy homemade red velvet cupcakes with peppermint cream cheese frosting-- yum.


You can see that finally Kai understands he is one!! (notice finger)

Kai also says "hot" now-- mainly while running around, grabbing the radiator or putting food in his mouth. He still is too busy moving to talk much more than that, but I just smile when he looks at me and says "hot." What a good boy. He knows when to give his mom a compliment :)

Then and Now

THENAND NOW!

Mondays

On Mondays, I take care of a neighbor boy named Reid. He is a few months older than Kai and it's great to see them playing together. Here is a photo of the boys (including a big one) at their special table. We do snacks at this table. Kai loves the table and chair. He often brings toys over to play with and leans back in the chair, crosses his legs, and looks like he wants to say..."Now, this is the life!"

Rock the Cradle

Kai checking out his favorite instrument-- the tuba



We had a blast on Sunday going to "Rock the Cradle" which was an event put on by our public radio alternative music station at the Children's Theater/Minnesota Institute of Arts. As we walked in (with hundreds of other parents and tots), we both agreed that we truly are parents doing family things. Do you know what I mean? We actually do activities that are listed under "family excursions" in the newspaper. Crazy. And so fun.

We listened to stories, visited a musical instrument "petting zoo," and most importantly, DANCED!!! We joined our friends Andrea, Randy, and Soren. It was Soren and Kai's first dance together. I think they particularly liked the punk music. Joe had a little head banging/jumping going on and we had to stop Randy from starting a mosh pit. I think the boys have to be potty trained before they are mature enough for that type of fun.

But, funky town was my favorite. And, if you ever meet Andrea, you better ask her to show you her baby disco moves. Yeah, the girl can move.

Swimming at the YWCA

Yes, of course, our little guy likes water! Here we are at the YWCA. The same YWCA that Joe worked at-- it's like a full circle. Instead of getting calls about "fecal incidents," Joe and I are worried about Kai and the possibility of us creating a lil' incident. In a way, I think it might be payback time...but, shh, don't tell them I said that.

1st Museum Visit

Ahh...culture, arts, high society. Yes, you know it. This is what Joe and I are all about :)

We went to the Walker Art Museum in Minneapolis on Sat. night for Kai's first art walk. Our friend, Neal, joined us. The plan was to see the Frida Kahlo exhibit, but the line for the exhibit was too long. Such is the life of a new mom and dad. We are learning when it's bed time, it's really bed time. Even if it means missing an art exhibit that I've been dying to see. Ah well..

I can't say that Kai enjoyed walking around and looking at the art in the other galleries. I can say, however, that he LOVED climbing the stairs. That's what he did for the whole visit-- up and down the stairs.

Plus, everyone loves watching him walk. He has the cute waddle of a newly walking little person. He toddles around. Who knew that is why they are called TODDLERS!!??? (ok, maybe everyone else figured this out...)

P.S. We got in trouble for taking the photos. Rebels in high society.

Cold

So, they say that the average one-year old gets 8-10 colds a year. I don't doubt it! Kai is right on tract with this statistic. Here is evidence of his current cold...

I know, GROSS!!!!

Curls!

Kai's hair is starting to get curly. Maybe it has something to do with him now walking (yes, he is just walking now, hardly any crawling)...but, I doubt it.

By the way, I had curly hair (so curly you couldn't brush it) until I was around 3 or 4 years. And, Joe, well, his hair is curly when it grows out. Well, maybe not curly, but more like an afro. Still, there could be possible volume in Kai's hair future!

1st Birthday!

Yes, can you believe it???!!!! Kai is one!

We had a birthday party on the 12th for the big guy. He had a blast. He particularly enjoyed his first dose of sugar-- he LOVED the cake!

Sarah

I just found this photo of Sarah and I while we were pregnant.




THEN.....













and NOW!!

Soren's Big Day

Kai's closest friend, Soren (yes, another Soren who lives just a couple of blocks away from us & who I was lucky enough to watch two days a week during the fall), turned one on Sat.

We had so much fun at the party. I think it helped Kai prepare for his big day!! By the way, it's today!!!

We celebrated today, with just the three of us, by going to Maria's Cafe and ordering Kai our favorite food-- a raspberry/blueberry pancake. It came out with some whipped cream, a candle, and the restaurant singing happy birthday. It was so much fun.

We will have his real birthday party with small friends this Sat. and then more family birthday parties this month. The fun will just keep happening....

Joe and I watched his birth video last night (Thanks Ally for taping it-- we especially liked hearing you say as Kai was about to come out..."Oh my god, how is it going to fit?) and are just amazed that it has been a year since he was born.

It has been our best year yet! We both can't even begin to describe how madly in love we are with Kai and how happy and proud we are of him and who he is growing to become. Now that he is walking, I keep smiling and wondering how he is growing up too fast. Joe and I were talking bout the fact that this year has flown by, but yet the small tasks of each day seem at times to linger on forever. I guess this is the truth of parenthood!Here is Kai in the sled going to Soren's party with his present...
As you can tell, we have a lot of dirty Minnesota snow!
Here is Soren right before he tasted that sweet sugary frosting...
Soren, Kai, and Helen (another one of Kai's good buddies)

New Year's in Duluth!

Soren Hanhan and Kai
We headed up to Duluth to visit our dear friends-- Sarah, Tolga, Ella, and Soren and to ring in the new year with them. Sarah (Paar) Hanhan and I have been friends since birth. She has the sweetest husband and kids. If you can believe it, until this trip,we had not met her newest little guy, Soren. We've been trying to see each other, but we had to cancel a couple of different trips because of crazy schedules and kids being sick. So, finally, we got to be together!
We spent New Year's Eve day skiing-- it was Kai and Soren's first time on skis (well, in backpacks). Kai absolutely loved it. He was giggling (especially going downhill, when he would grab on to Joe's shoulders and squeal).
You may notice from our rosy cheeks that it was wee bit cold. About 1/2 way into our loop, I did start wondering what frostbite looks like on a child. Joe calmly reminded me that Kai would tell us if he was getting too cold....

Here are the boys together-- Sarah and I have hopes of canoe trips to the Boundary Waters with them. Just like our dads took us canoeing every summer...so, the tradition must continue.

Christmas 2007

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. Here are some photo highlights....

Typical Day.....

As you know, Joe and I are both home most days. We find that we do ridiculous things to keep Kai (and ourselves) amused. Joe and Kai were pretending to be in a rock band in this photo-- and then their "drums" turned into hats!
Here Kai is showing off as he tries to win the "most messy eater" contest.