Conquering the Stairs

I still don't feel comfortable letting Kai climb the stairs. He knows how to climb up really well, but doesn't quit get how to come back down without going head first. I talked with my friend Kristan today about stairs so I decided to practice with Kai. I think we made some pretty good progress.


I totally thought Kai was going to fall in this last video. Watch how fast my hand shoots out to catch him. I am a bit paranoid...

Such a Helper!

Kai loves to help. I think he just really likes the praise he gets from doing something good. I am constantly looking for things that Kai can do to help me. Everytime we change his diaper, I give it to him and he holds it while we walk to the trash can and then he throws it away.

From the look of this shot, he will be left handed. Check out that follow-through! He is already a balla!!!

lOOk whAt I cAn dO...

It is amazing to watch Kai learn new things. His latest discovery is how to turn the lights and fan on and off. We have a remote that we use to turn the ceiling fan lights and fan on. We have never tried to teach Kai how to use this.
One afternoon I left the remote on the couch and Kai climbed up on the couch and grabbed it. I was going to take it away but decided to watch instead. He immediately looked up at the ceiling fan and started pushing buttons. I was shocked that he had paid that much attention to how we turned the lights on. He managed to hit the right button, the lights came on and he started squealing. Now, everytime he gets ahold of a remote pushes buttons and looks up.
Such a smart kid...

Tornado Watch...

It was getting cloudy out this afternoon so I thought the lighting would be great to take some pictures of Kai. We drove out by Daniels Park and all of a sudden noticed the clouds getting really dark. When we actually started paying attention, we noticed the start of a funnel cloud pretty close by. Ben turned the radio on and sure enough there was a tornado watch for the area we were in.
The clouds were too good to pass up, so we pulled over quick and got some pics. I wish we had gotten a picture of the funnel cloud.

Middle School ReuNioN

I don't really keep in constant contact with any of my high school friends, except Blake Guyton. Blake and I went to middle school and high school together. He has always been someone that I can count on. I can call and talk to him about anything that is going on in my life. We played sports together all growing up and always had a unique connection. Blake was the stud point guard all growing up and later on went to play on scholarship to University of Dallas.
He and some buddies came into town this weekend for a golfing trip and he took some time out to visit me and Ben. He even golfed with Ben while he was here and apparently Blake is quite the golfer.
It was such a blast to catch up. Poor Ben, I just couldn't stop reminiscing over high school and middle school the whole time. We probably went down memory lane for over 2 hours.
It was so refressing to have Blake around. I loved hanging out with him this weekend. We have been through so much together.
(Disclaimer~this picture was taken at 6:15am...enough said)

I heard that Carrie Underwood broke up with Chace Crawford over text message. Well, sad to say it but I once did something similar.
Blake Guyton was my boyfriend in middle school. We were "going out." I liked his friend Chris Crowder...to this day, I still don't know why.
Well, Blake and Chris were having a sleep over and called me late at night.
I had my own phone line growing up but my folks put a curfew on my phone talking. I think I had to be off the phone by 9pm or they took the phone away. Since the guys knew this we found ways to work around my curfew...
Blake and Chris called and simply talked to my answering machine, and I would listen to thier message. They knew that I was sitting right there and couldn't pick up. So, they got creative and started asking me questions. I would hang up the phone, (turning off the answering machine to answer these questions).
So Chris asked, "If you would rather go out with me instead of Blake, hang up the phone".
Yes, I hung up the phone and that is how Blake and I broke up. So sad.


Some of the memories I have with Blake~
~My 8th grade cheerleading adventure (yes, I was a cheerleader in middle school)
~Basketball games in my backyard. We had a full court basketball court growing up and Blake and I used to play each other ALL the time.
~Horseback riding. (I had 2 horses growing up)
~Jetskiing at the lake house.
~Riding in his car (He was one of the first people to turn 16 in our grade, so he was that much cooler than everyone else).
~Middle School Dance (I will never forget how rediculous I looked, I wore a gray dress that had sparkles on it. I thought it was so beautiful)
~We both ran hurdles in middle school so we trained together.
~Blakes pager (This was when pagers were the coolest things ever...I was so pathetic. We were both on the basketball teams and when the boys played at home the girls played away and vice versa. So, I would page Blake after our games and if we won I would type in my basketball number (12). I know, pathetic. I did have some pretty funny codes that I would page him with.
~Tina Kipp...Blake got a really serious girlfriend in High School who wouldn't let us be friends. So, we couldn't talk to each other if she was around. We were still friends, but pretty much silently...
~Summers. Every summer after high school I would come home and hang out with Blake. He always had some super easy job, like being a lifeguard at the campus pool when no one was there b/c school was out. (Oh the joys of being on scholarship).
~Sophmore Prom. I went with one of my brothers friends who I didn't know. Blake dropped me off at the guys house b/c my date said he couldn't come and pick me up. I should have never gone with him.

My favorite memory with Blake...
I was considering quitting basketball after Dixie State College. I was almost in tears talking about it with Blake. He was the most encouraging voice at the time, and told me what a great player I was. He knew my game more than anyone else did. He knew my strengths and my weakensses for the sport. To this day, he still talks about my defense. He is one of my best friends and I am so blessed to have him in my life.

...Yet Another High-Chair Video...

...So you're probably wondering why there is yet another video of Kai in his high-chair. You're asking yourself, "Why does Ashley keep taking videos of Kai while he is eating?" I am asking myself the same question... But I seriously can't help it. He does the funniest things in his high-chair. Everytime I wipe his mouth off, this is what he does...

HiGH-FiVe

We have been trying to teach Kai how to give a high-five. This is the progress we made tonight. He thinks it is so funny. It is awesome to watch him learn new things.

KiSSeS!!!

Kai is starting to learn how to give kisses! It is the sweetest thing I have ever seen. He still hasn't mastered waving or clapping, but he loves to give kisses. Even though they are open mouth kisses, we still love them.

Head-banging or saying "no"...?

Lately this is what Kai does during meal time when I offer him food and he is still working on the food in his mouth. I can't wait till he can just talk to us.

Laughin'

I love the stage that Kai is currently at. I love every stage, but he just gets better and better. He is so playful right now! He currently loves to play fetch...not with the dogs, with us. He loves to throw things b/c he knows that we will pick it up for him. He also likes to watch Ben and I throw things. Well, the other night we were dropping his sippy cup on his stomach and he thought it was hiliarious. When I watched the video on my computer, I realized that the sippy cup liquid looks so gross. Let me reassure you it is not urine in the cup, it is deluted apple juice. Just wanted to clear that up. I know that Julie would say something about it...

I Don't Like Spaghetti!!!

We are still working on getting Kai to eat more solids. Lately, this is what happens when I feed him spaghetti. It is so funny, and I try not to laugh...but I can't help it sometimes.