Kiki Sue, where are you?

Decorations

2011-11-12T13:06:00.000-08:00

Kiki was feeling possessive of a kickball as Steve, Rowan and I kicked it around the kitchen.
"Don't kick my ball!!!"
"Why not?"
"It's decoration. You can't kick decoration!"

Halloween Day

2011-11-12T12:59:00.000-08:00

Although the Yoda hat didn't make a Halloween appearance, it will definitely make an appearance as a 2011-2012 winter hat for Kiki and/or Row!

Halloween try-outs

2011-10-23T07:54:00.001-07:00

Goblin 2.0

Rowa-gator

Goblin Eats Gator

Row-gator moves to retaliate.

Kiki of the long blonde hair.

Kiki as an 80's club-goer.

Scott's guitar goes to 11.

Korean Venus?

Goblin 1.0

More Kiki

2011-09-08T20:28:00.000-07:00

"Mama, when you go to work, I lose you."
"You mean you miss me?"
"Yeah, I miss you."

Kiki Does Impressions

2011-09-02T21:01:00.000-07:00

Uncle Steve said:
"Kiki, we need to put a diaper on you."

Kiki happily replies:
"I gotta put a diaper on.
So Halbi (grandfather) doesn't say:
'Shit. You no have diaper!' "

Rowan's Chut-tol (first birthday)

2011-08-30T21:38:00.000-07:00

You are a Blue Germ

2011-08-29T18:56:00.000-07:00

Kiki walked up to me while I was working and said, "We ate chook (Korean rice gruel)."
I said, "That's good. Did you eat it all?"
"No, it's in the fridge."
"Oh, OK. That's a good place to put it. Do you know why?"
"No."
"If you leave it out, germs will think it's dinner time and start to eat it. But, if you put it in the fridge, they won't."
"I don't like germs."
"I know. That's why we put the food in the fridge. We don't want the germs to eat it. We want to eat it."
"You're a germ!"
"No, you are. You're a Kiki germ."
"You're a daddy germ."
"What color germ am I?"
"You're a blue germ."
"What about Rowan?"
"He's a purple germ."
"How about you?"
"I'm a blue germ. Mama's a black germ. Uncle Steve is a white germ. Halbi (grandpa) is a black germ."
"Are you a hard germ or a squishy germ?"
"I dunno."
"Here, lemme check and find out." I picked her up and started tickling her. She squealed and squirmed loose, then ran off to the kitchen yelling, "Maaama, you're a germ!"

Germany & They Call Me Lucy

2011-08-04T18:37:00.000-07:00

These last few weeks have been a whirlwind of getting bad news, mobilizing the pep squad and then visiting Germany. My dear friend/mentor from my childhood, whom I recently reunited with via Facebook, found out she has advanced, aggressive stomach cancer. The news hit me hard. I can't even imagine what Karen's going through, but she seemed to be taking it as well as could be expected. Mentally, she seemed healthy, and her attitude was positive and constructive. She gathered her forces, her "Team Karen" of online friends who'd become her support team through the magic of email and skype.

Oh my God. Skype. It's so awesome. Talking to her on Skype has made a world of difference for both of us. Plus, I've gotten some good family photos that way.

But nothing replaces seeing someone face-to-face. So with the amazing support of Scott, who offered to watch the kids, I was able to go to Germany for a few days. It was an incredible experience. Memorable in its absolute comfortability, the natural-ness of it all, to spend time with Karen, hang out, chat, do some creative projects together, watch movies. As if I was visiting a dear friend who happened to live next door. Like old times, 27 years later.

She loved the drawing I made for her, and both she and her husband, Peter, wore them all weekend.
But I left out a very important member of the team -- her husband, Peter. So we spent the weekend figuring out how to add him into the drawing, through the magic of the computer and a kick-ass printer (go Epson, who knew the possibilities!). I added Peter in the middle with Fuzzy the cat on his shoulders. And it made the drawing complete!

Here's another Team Karen project -- all of us team members (6 of us) wore shirt that Kati created. Then she made a collage with all of our pictures for Karen

Next project: "They Call Me Lucy" will be recording a very special song of encouragement and love for a very special person.

New Hampshire Vacation

2011-07-09T16:28:00.000-07:00

One of Scott's friends offered his parents condo timeshare in NH, so off we went for 5 days in the White Mountains. It was a great vacation -- just enough to do with the kids that we weren't bored, but not so much that we didn't allow for some resting time. We hiked, biked, swam in the pool and all piled into a luxurious king size bed for hanging out and sleeping. Kiki even shucked her first corn cob. She had great fun draping Rowan with the "hair."

July things

2011-07-06T16:59:00.000-07:00

Scott said to me, "Kiki's so smart. She said something very insightful right now...what was it.....?"

As he sits thinking, Kiki jumps into the silence and says: "I AM A BANANA!" (More existential than insightful, if you ask me.)

"No, no, no. That's not what she said. She said, 'I can't do it by myself. We need to cooperate.' "

"Cradle, cradle, cradle. I made it out of clay" (sung to Dreidle, dreidle, dreidle -- sp?)

Family bike trip in New Hampshire: the Before

The After...

Kiki expands her vocabulary

2011-07-02T06:12:00.000-07:00

"No, he's not gay. He's Ro-Ro."
-Kiki, in response to Scott's comments about the "gay" Bond (Roger Moore).

Kiki has a new boyfriend

2011-06-04T00:40:00.000-07:00

Kiki, Rowan and I spent the afternoon with my friend, Caroline, and her son, Liam. Last time we all got together, I tried to create a photo-op by saying, "why don't you guys hold hands?" They've been holding hands ever since. It's the cutest thing! Today's playdate had hugging and kissing. And hitting and pushing and kicking, but that's all part of the fun.

A goodbye kiss. Oh my.

Hanging around Brooklyn

2011-04-24T13:19:00.000-07:00

In the Brooklyn Botanical Garden, an artist made a fantastical (is that a word?) structure out of branches. Darting in and out of each pod makes you feel like a bird entering and leaving the nest.

A morning at the Brooklyn Children's Museum-- I noticed they added a few new toys to the padded infant room. Now, Kiki and Rowan can ride together like Hop-along Cassidy and his sidekick. Of course, once they're older, I'm sure they'll fight about who's the hero and who's the sidekick. For now, they concentrated on not falling off the horse.

And at the end of the day, we gather at Halbi's house (grandfather) to NOT bathe, but instead, play bathtime while eating bagels in the middle of the kitchen.

Random pics

2011-04-14T20:53:00.000-07:00

Hanging out in halabogi's (grandfather) bed, eating pretzels, watching cartoon on Sunday morning. Does it get any better?

At the mall, singing "Yes, we can!"

Kiki wanted to see what this "hat" would look like on Rowan. And Rowan seemed to like it.

This is what happens when a very kind, but not very skilled in photography security guard offers to take a picture with your phone...yes, that's his thumb.

I swear. She wanted to get in there. Cooper the dog, the original resident, wanted his bedroom back.

Her sentences are getting longer.

2011-03-17T19:24:00.000-07:00

"That ladybug is red. It's NOT blue. It's NOT orange."
"Daddy, you stink. You should think about taking a shower."

Kiki's leaping into language!

2011-03-12T19:02:00.000-08:00

"Where's daddy, anywheres?"
"I'm scared of the dark. Turn on light?"
"I don't like that playground. It's boring."
"I want friends. Uncle's my friend."
"Rowan's a tunky (chunky) monkey. This is tunky monkey's toy."
"Good singing, mommy."
"I good time with MJ"
"Kiki shirt has big dog on it" (her shirt did have a big dog on it)

My Thing 1 and Thing 2

2011-03-09T20:09:00.000-08:00

I don't know why I get such a kick out of dressing them alike -- they're as different as night and day -- maybe because of it. Anyway, I happened to find PJ's in roughly the same color for each of them in the drawers, so: Good Times!!!

These days, I've been putting Rowan and Kiki to bed next to each other. I'm hoping each other's presence will wean them off of having to have either Scott or me next to them while they sleep. And they're so cute to boot.

Of course, it doesn't take long for one of them to pee, poo or spill food on the PJ's, so one night of matching was all I got.

I couldn't resist the naked baby shot. Rowan just LOVES taking a bath. He splashes and laughs in water in a way that he never does in mere air. There's a video of him here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMQ4vInLisc

In a rare moment of side-by-side peace, even Rowan was aware of the precious moment. (Kiki, not so much.)

Actually, I think Kiki felt a lack of something. A certain je ne sais quoi. Would that think be her favorite toy...Rowan's ear?!?!?

Kiki finally opened her last birthday present. It was on her birthday Feb 24th. Rowan helped open it. Two very pretty summer dresses from gram.

I'm sure they'll look a lot more summer-y once I take her t-shirt off from underneath.

Welcome to the world of toddler arts and crafts. Where I do all the arts and crafts, and Kiki toddles.

Fashionable lady!

2011-02-26T04:37:00.000-08:00

Kiki's turning two tomorrow!

2011-02-23T21:08:00.000-08:00

Kiki's still too young to understand what it means that it's her birthday, so we'll probably just do something low-key. But we've been meeting up with family & getting presents in the mail all week.

Here's Kiki opening a present from "Halmi", her Korean grandmother. Two beautiful party dresses.

And our day celebrating with cousins!

Kiki's trying on one of many adorable outfits that "Uncle Lizzie", her beloved former babysitter, sent from Vancouver.

We have one more present to go, from Grandma. That one's going to be opened tomorrow.

Dec 2009 - Jan 2010: Rowan (3-4 months) and Kiki (21-22 months)

2011-02-18T03:51:00.000-08:00

So, so sad. Liz says goodbye and heads for Canada. Kiki doesn't understand, but she misses "Uncle Lizzie".

Scott, super-dad a la Park Slope. Part-exercise, part-practicality due to the snow, this is how we get around in Prospect Park.

We get to the playground and find 18 inches of snow blanketing everything!

So Daddy makes Kiki a snowman with personality, with parts from discarded christmas trees and random gloves found lying around.

Rowan caught red-handed with "babydoll".

MJ initiates Rowan into the wonderful world of African drumming.

Shane's giving Kiki some pointers on the drums. Kiki is a natural as a drummer, with her sense of rhythm and love of noise. God help me.

Dec 26th snowstorm: who needs a backyard when you can play in the middle of the street? They were perfectly protected from traffic by the two snowplows "stuck" down the street, blocking off the street to cars.

Our little Honda up to its neck in snow. And there it would sit for 2 weeks.

Christmas day: Dad shows Kiki how to apply lotion. Now, Kiki will smear anything lotion-like (yogurt, chapstick, lotion, soap) on her face and says "Kiki pretty."

Halmoni and Halbi gave Kiki a fun Kai-Lan treehouse.

Kiki and Rowan showing off their presents from Liz's mom:

Rowan happily hanging out in his new down jacket.

Early December: I'd been trying to get some good pictures of Kiki & Rowan together. It's a bit like herding cats, but it helps to put Rowan in a basket for support.

From very early on (~2-3 months or so), Rowan has been amazingly responsive to smiles. I think it took Kiki much longer to smile and laugh, but Rowan seems to really like to interact with others.

Random arms-length picture of the three of us spending an afternoon together.

This is Kiki's "Biiiiiig Smiiiiiile."

Awww, my sweet Row-Row.

Rowan Clause.

Maybe not so jolly...

Kiki seems to have a full-blown ear fetish. And Rowan strangely has a full-blown ear-being-touched aversion.

The "tunky monkey"

It's 3am and I hear babies babbling

2011-01-08T00:26:00.000-08:00

It's 3 am. I can't sleep, and I'm listening to Kiki talking to herself in her sleep. And it occurs to me that I should document some of her alien language. It's fascinating how her brain works. Her brain knows the words...sort of...but her words are still mushy and malleable, like she's tailoring them as she goes.

"THIS THING"
"This thing!" has become her new empowerment phrase, thankfully replacing the "MINE!!!", which had been HER word since she could first talk. (Mine actually meant "more"--we know this because she'd do the sign language gesture for "more" at the same time--but morphed into a definite "MINE!!!" over time. It was her word for: get me this, pick me up, take me there, what's this curious thing?

"DASHA"
For the longest time, I didn't understand what she meant by this. She kept pointing to something and said "Dasha?". Eventually, I realized it meant "What's this thing?" Tonight, after 6 months of hearing her say this word, at 3am on January something-or-other, as I hear her mumbling in her sleep, I finally what it really means. It's "That's a..." In other words, she's pointing to something and saying "that's a......_________". She's been playing a fill in the blank game with us.

"SHUB-BOPPLE"
Scott is convinced Kiki is remembering a past life as a Persian princess or something, because he thinks this is a Persian (or Arabic?) word. Plus, it just sprang out of nowhere from her lips with such conviction and certainty that it was hard to believe it wasn't really a word. In her world, shubbopple means something like "now would you would at that, isn't that just amazing?".

I'm torn between eagerly anticipating her language development, so I can really start talking to her about what's in her head. At the same time, this period of time when language is a mysterious puzzle from outer space is so much fun. And I have to say, I get a secret thrill from being the person that can decipher her squishy words the best.

Four Months of Rowan

2010-12-11T20:43:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow, Rowan will be 4 months old. So in honor of this occasion, here's his life so far:

His delivery was complicated by an umbilical cord wrapped around his neck, which caused his heart rate to drop periodically during labor. But after hours of oxygen, shifting and monitoring, he popped out nicely at 1:30pm (ish) August 12th, 2010.

My beautiful baby boy, Rowan "Ro-ro" Charles Powell.

Kiki came in with Aunt Mary (babysitter extraordinaire on labor day!) and greeted her new brother with instant kisses, many many kisses. (The suffocating bearhugs, she'd save for later.)
He was a big baby (8.2 oz) but still sooo small.
Auntie MJ, his official photographer came by for a visit.
Along with Auntie Songhee, his champion against second-child neglect syndrome.
For a small baby, he has freakishly long toes. Not sure who he got them from. ???
A few days later, after we all went home, Kiki started initiating Rowan to her management style. The submit-to-my-will-and-we'll-get-along-just-fine style.
But as ever, she was generous with the kisses.
Grandma flew all the way from Montana to see Rowan and Kiki. She and Kiki's daddy took her to the new Pier 6 playground to give mom a chance to rest with Ro-ro. Kiki wore the new bathing suit Grandma brought and jumped right into the fray.

By the end of August, Kiki had to say bye-bye to her beloved babysitter, Chanika. She even learned how to say her name just for the occasion. (And she hasn't forgotten it since.)
Fun with helpless newborns...

One month old, and we were sometimes able to get a beauty shot. But mostly, he kind of looked...
sort of funny...or scared...
or confused...

Finally, around two months old, and he's starting to find his cuteness.

Come Halloween, while Kiki conquered Park Slope as a magical flying unicorn...

Ro-ro was content to sit snug in his blanketed stroller and watch the show.

STAY TUNED FOR MONTH FOUR...

A chronology of play

2010-07-15T08:15:00.000-07:00

Oh, to be a kid. Your day's work is all about play.

On our way back from visiting Long Island, we stopped by the new Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 6. Three playgrounds -- one is an extravaganza of sprinklers, one's a mega-sandbox, and one (for older kids) is a climbing wonderland.

We mostly hung out in the sprinkler section, since it was such a hot morning.

Those blue floors are actually made of spongy pellets. Perfect for spazzy toddlers.

And this cool climbing area is something for Kiki to look forward to in her old age (5+ yrs)

We spent last weekend at a co-worker's house near the Hamptons. He has a fantastic pool that this pregnant woman found to be very relaxing.

Kiki did a lot of running around, but took a moment to plant her dirt-covered shorts onto these pristine white lounge chairs.

Biggest. Volleyball. Ever.

On July 4th, we escaped the 100-degree heat by ducking into the NY Aquarium, along with 10,000 other New Yorkers who shared the same brilliant idea.

June was "let's find air-conditioned playgrounds for Kiki" month, so we joined the Brooklyn Children's Museum. The toddler section is great. Totally enclosed with activities geared for the 5 and under crowd.

Sandpit...

Puppet theater...

Make-believe...

Toddler section (18 months & under)...

Clang, bang, boom wall...

What a lucky kid. Little does she know what's coming around the corner in a few weeks...

Hot Times in the City

2010-07-06T08:00:00.000-07:00

Kiki at our local playground.

She's grown so much (though not her hair). Here's a picture from last July.

A week at the beach in the D.R.

2010-06-15T23:24:00.000-07:00

It was hot. Really, really hot. The sun was blazing and the humidity was near 100%. Good thing the frozen coconut drinks and sodas were all part of the package.

This was Kiki's first experience with beaches. She was hesitant at first, but she soon dug right in.

The water was beautiful. Not an oil slick anywhere....yet.

Unfortunately, we couldn't say the same about Europeans and their Speedo's.

The pool was a nice alternative to the beach. Minimal sand, perfect for wading in with Kiki. And closer to those frozen drinks...

I was pleasantly surprised with the resort. Clean, pretty and comfortable.

They even put in a few nice touches.

My biggest complaint was that nearly all the restaurants on-site were not air-conditioned. Nothing like having soup...or sushi...in 90-degree heat. Mmmmm.

There were a few A/C'ed restaurants, but they were considered "upscale" and it felt weird to bring the cranky Kiki.

On the bright side, the open-air eateries were nice and casual, and random servers would often go out of their way to smile and say hi to Kiki, sometimes dancing for her, which she LOVED. (She'd wiggle along in her highchair.) The Dominicans really love kids.

Thanks for a great vacation, DR!

Kiki meets her Halmoni

2010-06-05T19:29:00.000-07:00

Kiki spent a quiet morning playing near her halmoni. I think they both enjoyed it!

First walking, now talking

2010-04-26T06:36:00.001-07:00

These days, Kiki wakes me up every morning by pointing to her nose and saying, "noooooooo" which means nose. Then she points to her eye and says "aye", her ear and says "eeeeee". Every morning. So weird that that's the first thing she thinks of every day.

Scott said she went up to him this morning, handed him her shoe and said "here is a sock". I'm convinced he was hearing things, because I don't think she really has sentences down yet.

She is still very attached to her pink hoodie. On the day she went to the playground without it on (it was in the wash), she kept grabbing for all the other babies' pink things. I guess she felt something was missing...

Kiki's walking!

2010-04-21T17:19:00.000-07:00

Kiki started walking last week!

And right around that time, she started INSISTING on wearing her favorite jacket that Lisa Eemo gave her and carrying her little Easter basket all over the apartment. Sometimes, she wants to wear her hat and shoes, too, like she's always ready to head out the door and do a little shopping.

Oh, we're doomed.

(Sorry for the bad images -- camera phone is the best I can do these days.)

Here's a pic of Kiki wearing a cute tank sent by our babysitter's mom in Canada, her very own fashion fairy godmother. As you can see, Kiki still doesn't have a lot of hair, but what she has is getting longer. At least she's finally getting a couple of new teeth!

After getting her 12-month immunization shots (at 13.5 months--oops), we decided to hang out on the front stoop with the other babies in our building. (Of the 8 apts in the bldg, 3 of us had babies in one year...and now 2 of us are pregnant again!) Cecilia (the girl next to Keeks) is 6 months older, and Jacob (in front) was born within minutes of Kiki. Amazing!

Time to pick up the laundry.

2010-03-16T20:14:00.001-07:00

Spring brings romance!

2010-03-07T19:45:00.000-08:00

The snow and cold finally let up for a weekend, so we took Kiki to the park on Saturday and Sunday for a long overdue romp in the playground. This was Kiki's first real social encounter with other little ones, and it didn't take long for the kisses to come out!

Still, she's only a baby and she got bored pretty quickly.

Christmas in Montana

2010-01-11T11:52:00.000-08:00

Note: I've been having some technical difficulties with blogger and a few pics were lost. I'll try to reload the pics later.

The flights to Montana were a mixed bag...
We often got an empty middle seat for Kiki to play and nap in, but because the flights were longer and later, she was much more restless.

After flying through snow, we arrived in Montana to see Grandma and the rest of Scott's family.

We went sledding, which Kiki didn't "get"...

But the rest of us had fun.

Actually, Kiki had a lot more fun on the swing in the playground in front of Scott's mother's house.

Back at the house, Kiki had fun playing with (i.e. pulling the tails of) the pets...

...and running around without clothes. Until she peed on Scott's mom's nice rug. Then the naked-time was over.

Snow day!

2009-12-20T07:57:00.000-08:00

On the first big blizzard of the season, we all went out to Prospect Park to introduce Keeks to snow. (Actually, there was a blizzard during her first week of life, but I don't think she remembers.)

Kiki didn't "get" the snow for a long time. She just sat there, looking at turns bored or miserable.

Here's the miserable look.

Finally, after her mother threw herself into the snow and rolled around like a dog making barking noises, she livened up.

Here comes the (former) Chief!

2009-12-08T20:34:00.000-08:00

Bill was doing photo-ops with Clinton Fdn employees' families, so I schlepped a sleep-deprived Kiki up to Harlem on the subway in rush hour. She wasn't being terribly cooperative, but at least she wasn't crying.

Hopefully, Keeks will get a thrill out of this picture when she's grown up and reads about Bill in history books. And about the blue dress and beret. Sort of like what Keeks is wearing...

Thanksgiving in New Orleans

2009-12-07T17:25:00.000-08:00

Kiki's first plane ride was surprisingly easy. She slept at the take-offs and happily played (mostly) during the ride.

It definitely helped that there were three of us to keep her happy, well fed, and rested.

We settled into Theresa's 1-bdm hotel timeshare. The uncles had the couch while the Paik-Powells had the bedroom.

Kiki had a blast playing with her uncles. And I think they had fun, too.

Kiki and I headed south to Harvey to visit her great-great grandparents, or as Scott calls them, her hal-halmoni and her hal-halabogi.

They were all smitten with each other. They even helped babysit, feed and play with her. Kiki particularly loved standing while holding her great-grandmother's walker.

On probably the best morning in New Orleans history, we drove out to Oak Alley Plantation to tour one of the most beautiful sites in the South.

It was a really fun place to take pictures.

Thanksgiving was filled with lots of food (Korean and American) and lots of family (Korean and American).

Because there were so many of us, we all just ate wherever we could find a flat surface. This made for a really casual and relaxed evening.

Kiki loved being surrounded by so many people who love her. And she didn't seem to mind when her halmoni and hal-halmoni fought over her.

Our last meal together as a group was a wonderful jazz brunch at the Court of Two sisters, courtesy of Andy. It was absolutely decadent, with enough dishes for everyone to make a pig of themselves.

Jason tried to sample all the desserts, but could only manage a few favorites. Pineapple upside cake, coconut cake, oreo cake, chocolate mousse cake, pecan pie, cheesecake, ice cream.

(clapping for the jazz, maybe also the food)

Kiki was a good sport and let everyone have a turn holding her.

After brunch, we took a stroll around the French Quarter to walk off the food. It was strangely cold, as cold as it ever gets in New Orleans. And colder than we were prepared for. We made do.

Kiki really grew and blossomed during this trip. She learned a lot of new games, made lots of new friends, and became much more outgoing.

Now, if only I can get her back on a regular sleep schedule!

Visiting Knollwood

2009-11-16T18:15:00.000-08:00

Kiki does NOT like the new kitchen gate.

2009-11-06T18:05:00.000-08:00

She's curious at first...

...and then it gets ugly!

Kiki from Oct 12-Nov 3

2009-11-06T17:15:00.000-08:00

At the Sheep & Wool Festival in Duchess County

Hanging with dad at the alpaca pen while mom browses yarn

In a Flashdance mood (aka wearing mom's old socks)

Trying on Halloween Outfits

She hated the silly hat

She hated the penguin

We settled for Halloween colors.

Eating Pea Puree Popsicle
Stripped down to diapers for the self-feeding lesson

See the beginnings of two bottom teeth?

Trying out the Christmas dress

Surrounded by her favorite toy -- catalogs.

Kiki in her 7th-8th month

2009-10-26T17:47:00.000-07:00

Standing tall!

Fun on the swing with Auntie MJ.

Hanging out at Doris Duke...
...but not without a makeshift leash to keep her from the edge of the conference table (handbag strap)
Getting ready for Halloween, wearing the socks and headband that Auntie Annie sent!

New Video of Keeks

2009-09-23T18:54:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BssIphE1dCc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkxEJI9Bkps

Giddy Up Horsey

2009-09-06T21:00:00.000-07:00

Pictures from my phone...

2009-09-04T21:23:00.000-07:00

Last week, Kiki discovered the side of the crib and realized how much fun it was to hold. "Uh-oh, it's time to lower the crib mattress."

One week later (today), and the mattress is still dangerously high because she has a bad mother. She had the BEST time using the crib to pull to standing!!!

We're in trouble now.

2009-08-14T07:17:00.000-07:00

Chris, Annie & Kate are in town. This means lunch at Soo Shin's apt, an afternoon in the park, and hanging out in Jersey towns.

Then it's just us girls at the museum...

It's time for everyone to eat, including Kiki...

And at the end of a long day, Kiki needed to nap on Auntie MJ...

Adventures in Eating - Kiki @ 5-5 1/2 months

2009-08-14T06:56:00.000-07:00

Strawberries are sour!

Melba toast is no match for my drool...

Paper is the best!!!

And other random pictures from the last few weeks:

Fashionable lady with Kiki-sized purse...

And her very, very happy face...

Friday in the park with Keeks

2009-08-07T22:02:00.001-07:00

We decided to play hookie from "working from home" and go to the park to enjoy the beautiful (non-rainy) day with a few guilty pleasures (mystery novel, potato chips, cupcake).

The wind did a number on Keek's comb-over.

Today, she finally got the hang of getting up onto her knees in the crawling position. She's been rocking back and forth like she's about to jet forward. I think she might be ready to go soon!

Back at home, I decided to introduce a new toy. I'd like to say she sounded like Mozart, but...

In the park with Chanika

2009-08-05T06:01:00.000-07:00

Uncle Kurtis & Auntie K.C. come to visit

2009-08-01T05:48:00.000-07:00

Hanging out at Rodney's pool

2009-07-25T05:42:00.000-07:00

Sitting Up!

2009-07-22T19:43:00.001-07:00

No nipple needed (sort of)

2009-07-21T17:40:00.000-07:00

Kiki with Rachel's twins, Violet & Grey

2009-07-10T18:30:00.000-07:00

What goes in...

2009-07-09T18:00:00.000-07:00

The next day, her system went into overdrive from the 1/4 tsp of rice cereal she managed to eat and she pooped ALL DAY!

A measure of independence for us both

2009-07-09T08:11:00.001-07:00

I still can't get over how early it is for her to be standing!

Kiki, the feral hamster

2009-07-08T18:04:00.000-07:00

After she finishes this bar...

...you're next on the menu.

2009-07-04T20:26:00.000-07:00

She found her toes.

2009-07-02T18:27:00.000-07:00

Crazy Keeks

2009-06-24T20:59:00.000-07:00

Doing her Bono impression about town:

Then tangling with a killer snake:

Keeks goes uptown.

2009-06-23T20:40:00.001-07:00

Kiki headed up to Harlem to visit her dad at work.

One of her daddy's colleagues even made this webpage to welcome her into the Clinton Fdn family.

http://rebackup.wjcpf.org/cgi/beta/commitments/commitments_feature_kiki.asp

Sunday in the park with Kiki

2009-06-15T20:37:00.000-07:00

Kiki channels Kim Jung-il

2009-06-14T21:27:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfPu6jTVU3k

.

Kiki goes Hollywood

2009-06-13T07:06:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I re-discovered a pair of sunglasses in the many boxes of hand-me-down baby clothes. When I first pulled them out of the box four months ago, it seemed sort of silly.

Today, it seemed like pure genius!

(She looks a little like Chris Farley in drag, doesn't she?)

Kiki Stands!!! Sort of.

2009-06-13T06:19:00.000-07:00

For weeks, Kiki's been working on standing. Today, I decided to see if she could stand without me.

It was a success!

Until she fell and hit her head on the side of the crib.

.

The Hot Dog

2009-06-12T15:06:00.000-07:00

Keeks has become a 3-month old giant with the torso of a 6-month old but the head and arms of a normal 3-month old baby.

The tissue box is for scale:

In the beginning...

2009-06-11T13:58:00.000-07:00

Counting backwards from today:

Week 15 (today-ish)

Day 102

Still not 100

Day 100 (sort of)

Week 12

Week 10

Week 9: first real bath

Week 8

Week 7

Week 6

Week 5

Week 4

Week 2

Day 7

(Mommy's been in pajama's since Kiki's been born)

Day 5

Day 1