Here is how it’s done, Kivrin style. The head turns, the shoulder goes back, and over she goes!
Kivrin started in her new class at school this Monday, and had a pretty good first day. I admit that I was more anxious about her first day than she was. Kivrin is very curious, so she likes watching all of the action with her 7 new friends, most of whom can crawl already!
Today she is staying home sick with Daddy (I will spare you the photo of baby projectile vomiting on mom and dad’s bed this morning…) but once she’s feeling better,she’ll be back to having fun again!
Psychologically, dressing the baby in an “I love daddy” sleeper offers constant reassurance while you spend the day trying not to get puked on…and Dan did was successful – when I came home from work Kivrin was still that same sleeper!
Why do babies love animatronic toys so much? The fusion of technology and personality? Or the fact that the robots show no fear?
Dan’s roboraptor and Kivrin’s TMX Cookie Monster elicit grins, giggles and squeals of delight!
In her new needy, crabby, teething mood, Kivrin likes to play independently, as long as at least one other person is devoting their attention to appreciating her cuteness. (Not talking to her, or playing with her, just not doing anything else either, and especially not leaving the room.) If I put her on the bed, I can update this blog from a few feet away, as long as she thinks I am mostly watching her….
Dan worked hard to set up this cool photo of Kivrin and Ella (the cat), which unfortunately turned out sort of creepy…
Kivrin discovered the car seat strap. And by discovered, I mean tasted. At least it’s winter, so the strap is tucked inside the BundleMe and not dragging on the ground as often…
A combination of favorites here — standing tall above mom’s head, and looking at herself in the mirror.
Dan is practicing putting Kivrin up on his shoulders, that classic “daddy” maneuver. This time, she mostly played with his hair, and then kept turning to look at the camera!
I know this is the most anti-climactic photo ever, but those childhood firsts make better stories than photographs anyway. This afternoon, Dan and I were both in the living room watching Kivrin play on her belly. All of the sudden, she looked over her shoulder and sort of reached with her arms for a toy, and she ended up on her back! As far as we know, this is her first solo front-to-back roll! We clapped and cheered for her and laid her on her belly to try again, but it was a one-time performance today (hence the photo of Kivrin laying face-down on the floor, not rolling over.)
Kivrin survived her second round of immunizations today at Dr.Iliff’s office, with a few minutes of cries and a few more minutes of comfort nursing right after the three shots and three tiny band-aids. She loved playing on the examination table while we waited — the paper makes a very satisfying noise when you kick it, apparently.
At 4 1/2 months, she weighs 15 pounds (she was 8 pounds 5 ounces at birth) and measures 24 1/4 inches long (she was 20 3/4 at birth). She is around the 50th percentile for height and above the 75th percentile for weight–a nice normal sized baby! Dr. Iliff put her through the paces and pronounced her healthy.
Kivrin loves being up high lately, whether it is playing “airplane” or just being slightly above whoever she is watching. It’s the most reliable way to get a laugh out of her (this week anyway). The picture can’t do it justice, so Dan shot a short video.
Kivrin’s desire to sit up is much stronger than her current ability, but she is always grateful for assistance from a helping hand or nearby pillow. Life is so much better when you aren’t laying down all the time!
After a long day of playing, Kivrin falls asleep in Dan’s arms. How cute!
Kivrin doesn’t sit in the Bumbo chair for very long, unless she is really interested in something. I got out the camera after 10 minutes because she had been concentrating on the same thing for so long.
After the big cat left, Kivrin found her socks, and then the textures of the couch cover!
Kivrin’s favorite holiday decoration was probably the animatronic and completely annoying talking Homer Simpson.
On New Year’s Eve, Kivrin and Dan both wore their glow-in-the-dark party jewelry!
Kivrin wore her best New Year’s Eve outfit — it says “Party Animal” and she obviously was one!
Our good friends Alex and Carrie came over to spend the evening with us. Kivrin entertained all of us.
Dan showed off his new toy, the Roboraptor. We weren’t sure what Kivrin would think of it, but if I could read her mind, I think she was saying “look, a big green kitty. I want to pet it.” The roboraptor has different personality settings, like “playful” and “guard” and “agressive.” Kivrin seems to like it when the dinosaur pursued her, trying to bite her hand and growl at her. Unlike the kitty cats, who always run away from her, the “agressive” dinosaur just kept trying to get closer to her, no matter how much she grabbed at it’s face!
By 9:30 pm on New Year’s Eve, Kivrin was winding down and in pajamas. A quick good night visit with the big cat (followed by a thorough hand-washing) and she was off to bed!
Kivrin and Mommy didn’t make it to midnight, but Dan woke me up at 11:59 pm to wish me a happy new year (so he says…) For some reason, this is the only photo we took on January 1, 2009. It has a definite “morning after” feel to it, even though really we were trying to show that she can lift her burp cloth over her head and sometimes forgets to bring it back down…
Kivrin meets a tiger (a gift from cousins Mindy, Kevin and Becka) and they get to know each other better. She has a lot to learn about how to play nicely with cats – whether big or small, toys or real….
I don’t know if these are official developmental milestones, but Kivrin is quite impressed with herself and her new skills…
…holding a toy (or burp cloth) with both hands and raising it above her head.
…grabbing little things, like the tags on her toys, and using them as handles.
…raising her head up really high while on her belly, and sometimes reaching out for toys while on her belly.
…reaching for things with both hands, whether she is sitting up, laying down, or in a standing position. If she can, she’ll throw her weight around to try to maneuver closer to something you want.
…using her stomach muscles to lift her feet up in the air. She grabs her pants or her socks or her toes. Sometimes she even flops over to the side in an “L” shape, but she hasn’t rolled over yet.
…and she’s an expert grabber, of her toys, blankets, her own shirt or pants, her bib, her burp cloth, mommy’s watter bottle or drinking glass, her parents’ hair, mommy or daddy’s glasses, etc.
Kivrin in various stages of catching, throwing and holding her new balls from Nana and Lee.
Kivrin is sitting with support wonderfully these days – she likes it because she can play with her new toys more easily while sitting up, including her new phone (Thanks Kate – you are right, thankfully this toy does NOT have annoying ringer!).
Colin let Kivrin look at his cool new Legos.
Attack of the giant baby! Since Kivrin is too little to play with Legos, Aunt Leigh Anne let her walk on them instead.
Kivrin enjoyed touching the textures on the Lego and reading the instructions for building a house. She was very impressed by how quickly Leigh Anne can create things, especially while Colin is napping. She can get her own Legos in a few more years!
We enjoyed a Christmas lunch at Jim and Gwen’s house with all of the Staley family.
Colin and Kivrin hanging out together.
Kivrin was eyeing Colin’s new toy as he made the train go around the track.
Uncle Gary and Aunt Carol have lots of grandaughters so they are experts at appreciating little baby girls!
Kivrin had a blast hanging out with Aunt Gwen.
Sitting with Dan, Kivrin watches Grandpa and Colin playing with a helicopter.
The Staley tradition continues – dominoes around the dining room table after dinner.
Kivrin thought her cousin Allan was very amusing!
Colin holding on to Uncle Lee.
Kivrin sitting with Uncle Jim and talking to Grandpa.
It’s a flying baby santa Kivrin!
Kivrin wanted to be clean and good-smelling for Santa on Christmas Eve so she took a bath in this makeshift bathtub on Grandpa’s kitchen counter!
A family picture under the Christmas tree (with the treats for Santa).
Winding down on Christmas Eve, we snuggled up in Grandpa’s basement to watch WALL-E together (well, not Kivrin… when she kept turning her head, she got her view blocked by a combination of boxes so that she couldn’t watch the TV).
Kivrin Anne 
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