Busy Week

It's been a very busy the last two weeks for us. Ken found out a good friend of his, Rocco M. Barnes, died while serving overseas in Afghanistan. It's never easy to lose someone you care about. I think Ken was in shock for a few days over it. He was very quiet and a little withdrawn. Death tends to put things in perspective. I know he was taking a good look at his life and realizing all that he has to be grateful for. Since you never know when the big guy upstairs is gonna say your time is up, you need to treat every day for the precious gift it is and make the most of it. I know Ken plans on reconnecting with some old friends he's lost touch with over the years. I think that's a great idea.

Here is an article about his friend Rocco from the L.A. Times.


http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-rocco-barnes15-2009jun15,0,5715542.story




I took Carter to get his haircut Tuesday. When his usual stylist asked me if I wanted to take it a bit shorter this time, I said yes (reluctantly). I was afraid Ken would be upset for getting it cut shorter without his permission. I honestly didn't think it was going to be that big of a difference. She wasn't even halfway through and I realized what his hair was going to look like afterwards - a buzz cut! When she said a little shorter, I thought that meant a little shorter - not the kind of haircut they give men before they head off to join the military! However, he still did look adorable afterwards. Ken didn't like it at all. He misses the old hairstyle and thinks he looked cuter with it longer. SO, we are going to let it grow out. Here is a picture of him with his new do.

Danielle rolled over for the first time yesterday, from back to belly. She's going to mobile before I can blink an eye! She loves playing with her big brother and I have so much fun watching the two of them together. He's the ever adoring big brother and likes to shower he with kisses and give her hugs. He has even tried to pick her up on a few occasions! Of course I discourage this because he is just too little to know how to hold her properly. Sometimes he sees her on the floor trying to roll over and she's ALMOST there. He'll come up to her and just gently push her over to get where she wanted to go. So cute. It'll be interesting to see how he acts once she starts crawling and then walking. Watch out! ;-)

Here is a video of Carter giving Danielle some big brother lovin'.

Today we took the kids to their well baby checkups with their pediatrician Dr. Lim. Carter has never really put up a fight when he has to be examined by the doctor, until now that is. As soon as we stepped into Dr. Lim's office, he was clinging to Ken. When she was looking into his ears and listening to his heart, he was having a fit! I couldn't believe it. The nurse said that the 18 month checkup and the 2 year checkup are usually the worst. By then, they know all about what the good doctor does - give shots! He was very scared and stayed in his Daddy's arms almost the entire time. When his doctor asked us to put him on the floor so she could watch him walk, he just stood there motionless! He wouldn't move! It was hilarious because this is so unlike Carter. He's always moving. He got his shots and only cried for maybe a minute, then he was place back into my arms. I took him to the lobby play area while Ken held Danielle as she got her shots. I just couldn't watch that. Danielle's little cry would just bring me to tears. She sticks that lower lip out so far that it just breaks my heart. When Ken brought her out of the room, she had tear stained eyes and looked like a doe in headlights. Poor pumpkin. I hate that part of the checkups. At least it's over. Here are their stats for height, weight and head circumference.

Carter 18 months

34 inches tall (90 percentile)

28.6 lbs. (85 percentile)

49.5 cm head (80 percentile)

Danielle 5 months 4 weeks

26 1/2 inches tall (80 percentile)

16.5 lbs. (60 percentile)

43 cm head (75 percentile)

All in all, I'm so glad this week is almost over. I'm exhausted. The weather has been crummy all week. It has been rainy and humid. The kids and I have been spending the week inside where it is cool and dry. It's weeks like these where I feel like a caged animal. Being stuck indoors is not fun. I can only stand so many episodes of Sid the Science Kid or Curious George. One good thing about this week was a super fun playdate Carter had with his good friend Marissa. My friend Stephanie and her daughter Marissa came over on Wednesday afternoon for a few hours. It was really nice catching up with her and watching our kids together. They really do seem to enjoy each others company. Carter even gave her a kiss! She reciprocated with one of her own shortly after. It was hilarious! I tried to get a good picture, but I wasn't sitting at a good angle. Here's a few pics from our afternoon together.