it is supposed to reach 95 degrees today in bozeman and i might be complaining if peter had not installed our air conditioner on saturday. (even though only 2 weeks ago i was complaining about snow.) last year he geri-rigged a plexi-glass mounting so that we could have some light in on top of the a/c and not just cardboard. it took much less time this year to set up and we are enjoying the coolness.

my mom and dad came down to visit us this weekend and we had a great time. kale couldn't look at his grandpa without smiling and babbling. it was the same when grandpa looked at kale.
while i got ready for church on sunday, peter decided it was time that kale try to feed himself with a spoon. now kale wants the spoon all the time but i'm not ready for this mess yet.
"why is that camera always in my face?"
singing while eating

we had a picnic in the park on sunday afternoon and kale wore his new sun hat
kale and daddy
kale and grandpa
sam and sara

here comes the sun little darlin'

let me tell you, being a stay at home mom during the summer is WAY more fun than in the winter. maybe i will change my mind when it is 100 degrees outside but even then, i can still go to the pool! taking a break after swimming to play with some toys
he didn't like this floaty (borrowed from a friend) too much. he was pretty far down and couldn't see all the other kids! also, he couldn't reach the water to splash. that is what he did when i held him. splash and then tried to swim away. next time i think i will just throw him in and see what happens.*
getting a baby to look at the camera in a pool is hard work
close enough
jack soaking up the sun (since this visit to the pool i have bought kale a similar float toy)
jack and kale sharing some toys

*for those of you who don't get my humor, i was kidding about throwing my son in the pool. i would definitely make sure he had a life jacket on first.

thank you Jesus for...

...kale's heart is okay! we saw the doctor on wednesday and everything looked normal. kale was the perfect patient and let the technician look at his heart for almost 5 minutes! kale does have a murmur but the doctor said everyone does, they just sound different. our doctor just wanted to get kale's checked and everything is super!

...kale now weighs 15 pounds 14 ounces! he gained almost a pound in 2 weeks!

...my favorite two people in the entire world

...my allergies started acting up on sunday so i started taking the only allergy medicine i have found to stop me from sneezing non-stop, allegra d. unfortunately, not only does it dry up my nose, it dries up my milk supply. i could still pump a little but not much. i didn't take the medicine yesterday and i was just fine!!! completely amazing for me if you have ever been around me with allergies. my milk is coming back and kale even nursed this morning! if it had not come back i would be okay, maybe a little relieved to not stress about supply and definitely relieved to not have to try to wrestle kale to my breast sometimes. however, since it came back, we'll just see what happens.

...views like this

...green everywhere!

...peter not letting me quit hiking the "m" even though i am lazy and wanted to just "enjoy the view" halfway up

...kale pooping at the bottom of the hike and not the top

...a little buddy that wears a cute hat and sunglasses

...a little friend who will play by himself, at someone else's house, within no one within 30 feet of him. peter and i got to enjoy some delicious bbq and friends while kale happily played and talked to himself in their living room, all by himself.

...kale not being mobile. i know we try to get him to crawl but i think i will just enjoy that if i put him down somewhere, he will be there when i get back!

sunny day, sweepin' the clouds away

we try to put kale down to bed at other people's houses sometimes so we can stay and hang out longer. usually he will fall asleep for a bit then wake up and we have to go home early anyway or he gets to stay up way too late and i stress out. well, this past weekend, kale was a champ and fell asleep at friends' houses 3 nights in a row while mom and dad enjoyed the beautiful weather late into the evening. father's day was one of those nights as we watched basketball at the schuyler's and had a delicious bbq. earlier in the day, peter, matt, and sam went to shoot their bows and us girls and the kids enjoyed the sun in the backyard. it was glorious. i am sure i will be complaining that it is too hot in about a week but right now i am loving the sun and warmth. especially the fact that kale and i are home to get out in the sun and warmth!clapping because he is so excited to be in the froggy pool!
kale and mason
smith tolerated these shades for awhile...
...then decided he could see better with them on his head.
this is the apron i made for peter for father's day. now he can cook in style!

sorry this is dark or blurry, it is from the camera, not the camcorder

and they're back!

i thought that maybe his ears had settled down a bit but apparently it was just the hair helping them not stick out as far.

It Went Something Like This

Naomi - I'm going to give Kale a haircut, do you want to help?

Peter - You are? Why?

Naomi - Because! (silence)

Peter - Do you want to elaborate on that for me?

Naomi - Because! ...It's so uneven, and long, and well...he just needs one.

Peter - And you want me to help?

Naomi - Yes please.

Peter - "Help" as in videotape...or "help" as in pin him down for you?

Naomi - Pin him down (smiling)...no no...videotape.

Peter - Deal.

our little munchkin

The doctor on Tuesday went quite well. I overshot on my guess and Kale barely tipped the scale at 15 pounds and measured 26 inches long. The doctor suggested we start some formula with Kale because she was a little worried about my milk supply. She also advised to put butter and gravy on all kinds of stuff to fatten him up. What a lucky boy! I have started to try to give him some formula after I nurse him and he seems to like it so we'll see how it goes. I asked the doctor about him being a little person and she said he didn't show any signs of dwarfism so our guy is just small and Peter's fears are quieted.

The doctor also heard a heart murmur when she listend to his chest. She hadn't heard one before and said that 1 in 8 kids has one and it is no big deal, just the way they are made. However, she said she doesn't like to pass off babies and hearts so we are getting an ultrasound on Kale's heart on June 18th to make sure it is formed correctly. If it is, no big deal and we go on with our lives. If not, we'll go from there. Surprisingly, I am not worried. I know that heart murmurs are common and if there is something not "normal" I will worry about it then. Can you tell the Lord has been helping me in this area?

So, all in all, Kale is one healthy boy. Not crawling yet but rolling some on the floor. He started clapping last week and he's working on his pincer grasp. He eats with his hands more as you can see from the video below. I think he says mama but others may just hear ma, ma, ma, ma. I hear, "You are the best mom in the world and I love you so much!" not too interested in the picture this time, just wanted to flap his arms
hmm, found something else to be interested in i guess...
blowing rasberries for hours
and spit all over
having some cheese and puffs
spinach residue
he loves eating
i tried to help him stand up and he's not too sure what to think
he looks so funny standing there because he is so little!

a good old update

june is here and the snow is gone! (at least for today) now we have quite a bit of rain but when the sun does come out, it is so green! reese, addie, sara, and i picked a great day for our garage sale on saturday. (will try to get pics from reese soon) the weather could not have been better and i honestly had a great time. probably because addie did most of the work and i just got to enjoy the sun. i don't feel bad though because i know she likes it! (that's what i tell myself anyway) we then took some of our earnings and went to the sex and the city movie that night. it was a great day!

kale turned 9 months old yesterday and i will write more about him later. we go to the doctor today and we'll see how much weight he has gained. i emailed peter at work to see if he had any questions for the doctor and this is what he wrote back:

Is Kale a midget?

Ear Infection (bleeding ear in the morning)? (sometimes kale scratches his ears and they bleed)

Is Kale a midget?

hopefully we will find out the answers to those quetions soon! i am guessing that he has gained 3 pounds since his last visit 3 months ago, putting him at 16 pounds. any other guesses? eating a pickle all by himself
takes after his mama
sorry, not too many other pictures at the moment kale and mama's feet