Happy Easter!

The usual program I use to scan with isn't working right now, so these pictures aren't as great looking on screen as they really are, but I still think they are so sweet. I hope everyone has a Happy Easter weekend!

Our Little Egg Decorator

We went to Amy and Jeff's house last night for an egg decorating party. Of course all of the kids loved it, mostly because I think they LOVE messy things.

Solomon became a very determined stirrer of the egg in the dye. It made me a little nervous to be honest. Amy had the room set-up in a way so nothing would be permanently dyed/damaged. However, there's that part of my brain that is wired to be a little freaked out when things get too messy! (Thanks Mom!) Anyway, Solomon tried to dump the dye over a few times and all of the kids were dropping the eggs in the cups from about a foot above. Plus, they were knocking eggs together and basically dying their own fingers. It was pretty funny. Solomon loved it so much that when it was time to quit, he had a small meltdown! It was also dinner time so he was hungry and mad that we stopped.. deadly combo.

Natalie obviously enjoyed herself as well!
Amy also made us some yummy pork tacos and brownies. The kids all had fun running around and playing with Natalie's toys. My fingernails are just now looking normal again. I had to dig the eggs out of the dye containers a few times so I had witch nails for a while. I was also able to get the egg dye out of my T-shirt! Bonus.

The rest of the weekend was fun as well. We went to Brett and Abby's house on Saturday for a BBQ and watched some basketball. We also tried to take Solomon to an Easter Egg hunt at the Y, but it was over in two minutes so it didn't work out so well!

Kandi and Jimmy are buying a new house so I helped her clean outside at their current house on Saturday. I can't wait to see the new house.

Halftime post

It's halftime of the KU vs. Michigan State game, so I thought I would make a quick post.

The weather is sooo crappy here today. It's been sleeting/freezing rain since before noon. We've also had some heavy snow, but I think it's just freezing rain again. Here's a photo outside of my house.

Solomon is up in bed coughing. He has a little cold I think, poor guy. He's been in a pretty good mood though and he's still eating well, so I don't think it's too serious. I'm also scared because he's figuring out how to use doorknobs... not good. Our basement is fairly childproof, but the storage closet, the laundry room and Alex's office are not childproof... I was hoping he would be a little older when he figured out how to open them, so he would have a little more restraint.

Here's a video of Solomon learning to use a fork. I know that it's probably only fascinating to me, but I really think it is cool. Now if we can just get him to improve his ability to get food on the fork.

Here's another video of Solomon playing around. He's been babbling a lot and saying new words. I think the babbling is so funny. He's always babbling on his toy cell phone.

18-Month Check-up

As indicated, yesterday was Solomon's 18-month check-up appointment. He's healthy. The NP said she would like him to be saying a few more words, but that it is apparently quite normal for boys to develop language skills a bit more slowly than girls. She said they often develop gross motor skills more quickly than girls. That seems to be the case with Solomon. She said those skills are advanced for Solomon. So, that's just a little something I learned yesterday. I know Alex's family always says he barely spoke a word until he was three and then started speaking in sentences. The NP said that some kids like to figure out more about the language, exactly how to use it, before they are comfortable using it themselves. Then they will do just what Alex did, speak in short sentences. Kind of interesting I think.

18-month stats:
Weight - 25 lbs., 37%
Height - 32 3/4", 64%
Head Circumference - 48 1/4 cm. 65%

So, I guess he's getting to be a skinny guy. He still eats pretty well, but not as well as he once did. I had just gotten finished telling the NP that the only veggie he would eat much of was avocado. Then, for dinner, he ate a ton of carrots and green beans. So strange how kids do that kind of thing.

He had two shots yesterday which of course he did not enjoy, but he seemed to be in a good mood later so there were no after effects.

My favorite new picture + some creepy pictures

I love this photo.. I just think it's the cutest.

Last night, we had a belated Christmas party for the Kirby's staff. I had a lot of fun. I think I was successfully able to get the two female bartenders a bit drunk by feeding them a lot of white wine. Somehow our dear Ellis (pictured below) ended up on the giraffe tent.

Everyone is always creeped out by Ellis, or at the very least, intrigued by his weirdness. He's been a good source of entertainment for me for about 15 years. If you've never met him, say hello to our little friend. He rarely waves back, mostly because he has no hands or forearms.

Alex's b-day/Solomon video

I have posted a few pictures below of Alex's birthday party. I surprised him by inviting a few of his out-of-town friends to Wichita. Jason and Sol came in and hung out with us along with the other Wichita folks. We had dinner at Sumo, drinks and a lovely cake (made by Abby) for dessert, and then went to The Alibi Room for drinks. It was very fun.

The Birthday Boy, not being very nice.

Sol, Alex & Jason (snuggling on the couch) Sara, Chris & Abby (The cake Abby made is pictured as well)

Alex was out of town Wed.-Fri. as his mom had her knee replaced last week. He went to KC to help her out, so Solomon and I just hung out together. We had a good time. Solomon really likes our dog Coco. I've posted a cute video below of the two of them snuggling.

One big curl and one big fall

I love the picture above b/c I just love that giant curl on his forehead. It's so cute.

We had a good weekend. Solomon received lots and lots of attention as Alex's mom, brother, sister, spouses and kids all came down Saturday and Sunday for a visit. We ate tons of food and made a visit to our bar. The only bad thing that happened was Solomon fell down the stairs. The baby gate didn't get latched properly one time and he just went up to it and knocked it down and fell with it. It was horrible and Alex completely freaked out. Fortunately, Solomon is fine and the steps are carpeted so he is okay. I think it just scared him pretty bad.. along with scaring the s&%t out of us. Solomon has decided that his Uncle Zach/Ray is his favorite (pictured below). He kept getting jealous when Zach's son, Sam, sat on Zach's lap. It was pretty cute.

Solomon has really been enjoying standing on things or getting up high or climbing (see above) as well as plastic things with lids of some sort that he can take off and put back on.

KU had a couple of lovely victories this past Monday versus Oklahoma and then they killed Mizzou yesterday. It made a lovely end to the weekend.

I enjoyed the above picture of Alex. He was headed to softball practice on a very cold day and he looks just a bit odd.

Work has been crazy for me lately, but will hopefully slow down a bit for the next week or so.

I hope everyone had a great weekend.