Week 9 - Getting 'cultured'

Deep down, Aubrey really does like this!






Friday morning selfie!



This week we started Henry in a 2-week swimming lesson program, so Aubrey was able to soak up a lot of rays by the pool for 30 minutes each night this week (kidding-she was shaded the whole time!). As expected, she was an angel each day. This kid just loves being outside! What she does not love (along with her parents) is her brother messing his swim diaper and then coming up and giving kisses!



Over the weekend, the whole family hit up the Prairie Village art fair and for lunch. Much like with Henry, we want to ensure that Aubrey grows up able to appreciate the finer things in life :) One cool thing we were able to do at the fair is make a painted tile of Aubrey's foot. And best of all, it was free!!!




Developmentally, Aubrey is starting to really take to the mobile in her crib, and ceiling fans in general. If it calms that little girl for 20 minutes so we can get stuff done, I am all for it! We have her two month checkup next week, so updated stats to follow. She seems to be growing at a very good pace. How else can you explain her 'trucker belches'?

Baby Balboa

Week 8 - Memorial Day weekend

This week ushered in the ceremonial beginning to summer, with Memorial Day over the weekend. It has become an annual tradition that we all pack up and head up to St. Joseph to Scott and Ashley Albers' house for their annual pool party. The water was much too cold for anyone who was either 1) older than 3, or 2) sober. :) Aubs was relegated to sitting in a bouncy seat in the shade, but didn't seem to mind one bit. The conditions were perfect for a long infant nap!

Pool party!

On Monday, Laura and Reggie went to the Cards-Royals game with the grandpas and a number of friends. Due to weather, our house became the impromptu spot for our tailgate, which allowed some of our friends who hadn't met Aubrey yet to hold her. For the game itself, Mimi and Grandma Rosie were kind enough to stay back and take 'baby bullets' for the remainder of the afternoon from Henry and Aubrey.

Tailgating!

The Andersons



Mimi and Papa forced that Cards shirt on Henry. It has since been burned....





Seeing who has the bigger roar!



We (along with Aunt Jen) also took the kids to the Deanna Rose Farm during the week so that Henry could see all the animals. Aubrey, obviously, could care less about where we were. She just loved being outdoors!



Our little family



 



How can I get some of that milk that Henry is feeding to those goats? I'm hungry!





All clean!!!



Developmentally, Aubrey continues to smile a lot now, or at least when she isn't hungry, tired, or about to dirty a diaper. :) She really takes to bathtime now, just like her brother!

  

Week 7 First Smile & Mother's Day

The week kicked off with Mother's Day. Since Mom and Dad didn't really plan out the month of the birth real well, there was no birthstone gift as with Henry (I mean, just poor planning to have a baby in the 'diamond month!') :) Laura did, however, wake up to a new Keurig and gift Henry had made at school that week. We all hit up brunch with Mimi and Papa on the Plaza, before heading home to go on a long family walk. Aubrey (and Henry) is so lucky to have who she has as her mom!

Mimi, Laura, and our little lady

The weather has finally started to turn to being more spring-like. No one could be happier about this than Laura and Aubrey. The girls are finally getting to go on extended walks through the neighborhood or around Franklin park with friends. As an added bonus, we have found that the outdoors really will calm Aubs down. As such, her an Laura are starting spend extended time out on the deck. Aubrey hangs in her bouncy seat while Laura shops online.

Out for a walk with Mom!

Over the weekend, Grandma Janith came and visited the kids. It was her first time seeing Aubrey since her birth, so needless to say she was excited! On Friday, her and Aunt Allison watched Henry while we took Aubrey to a graduation/going-away party for our friend and ex-neighbor Corey. On Saturday, we were all off to the park, primarily to run some energy out of HBo!

Grandma Janith and Aubs

Saturday afternoon we all went to a birthday party for our friends' son, Reece Lorei. The party was a blast, complete with a pinata. And you know, it isn't a party unless you have a bunch of 2-4yr. olds swinging a metal bat at something! :) Aubrey looked cute, as always, and luckily was very well behaved. Of course, the party was outside so that probably really helped!

Two big brothers out on patrol to keep baby sisters safe!

Laura continues to work with Aubrey on 'tummy time' at home. She is getting better about being on the mat for longer periods of time, and this week started to actually grab for some of the items hanging off the activity mat. Also, she is now sleeping in her swing for up to 40 minutes at a time. This is indirectly making our house a much cleaner place to live :)

Week 6 - More Sippin' and Seein'

This week was a pretty quiet one. The big event was Laura's Kansas City 'Sip and See' on Saturday. Aunt Jen and a few of Laura's close friends jointly hosted the event for Miss Aubrey at Brio. Everyone had a great time!



The Anderson brood



Our old next-door neighbors, Corey and Jill, came by with dinner during the week and to meet Aubrey. Due to Corey's past history with starting home fires, Reggie was on his toes at all times during the visit!

Aubrey is finally starting to outgrow her newborn clothes. And it is due to her length rather than weight. Not sure how Aubrey can eat as much as she does, and still be so skinny. Ol' Mama must just produce skim milk!

First Road Trip

Urban cowboy and his sister

Our little girl! What a quick 30 days!

As has been said before, your personal time reduces exponentially with multiple kids. Thus, it was really nice on Wednesday when Papa Rick and Aunt Ally came over to watch the kids so that we could attend a concert for the night. It was really nice to get away for a date night knowing they were in good hands.

Thursday brought the "once in a lifetime" May snow, where KC got a couple of inches. Sorry Aubrey that you won't remember it. Luckily, we were already set to leave KC to head to St. Louis for the weekend for Aubrey's newborn pictures and a 'Sip and See' at Mimi's house. So, in the middle of the snow, we loaded up, packed Aubrey some roadies, and headed off!

April showers bring May shoveling! This is before we left.



Having fun, but missing our kiddos (sort of)



Friday morning was the photo shoot with Steven Seebeck. Henry was hamming it up for the camera, performing "Blue Ribbon Bunny" and growling for Steve the whole time he was trying to take pictures. Aubrey did great for the most part, though near the end it became a process of pulling the pacifier right before Steve was ready to shoot, then re-insert it 5 seconds later. In the middle of all this, Reggie had to chase Henry around to ensure that Steve didn't have to add any damaged equipment to our bill! Friday night Mimi and Papa watched the kids so that the parents could go out on the town with our friends.

Saturday morning was the Sip and See brunch. If you don't know what that is, it is where a bunch of hens get together at a house and take turns holding/meeting the baby. Essentially, a shower. Aubrey made out like a bandit, receiving tons of cute outfits and other items. Henry even got gifts from the aunts!

Aunt Colleen getting her 'fix'



Papa and Aubs



'Favorite' Michelle with Colton

Don't worry Aubs, cousin Amie is bringing you a playpal shortly!





'Ho' and 'Lo', with one big bow!

Developmentally, Aubrey is starting to smile a bit, which is heartwarming to say the least. Laura works on "tummy time" with her a lot, even though Aubrey hates it. However, her neck is getting pretty strong, and we anticipate she'll be holding her head on her own in no time!

Week 4 - Birthday gifts for Laura

As part of Reggie's birthday, he went to the Royals game with Adam on Saturday, setting up Laura having to watch both kids during the night. Since Henry is potty training, this set up a complete disaster for Laura. By the end of the night, Henry had left two 'gifts' for Laura on the floor, and peed on the couch! Luckily, Aubrey was very well-behaved, and sat quietly in her swing while Laura cleaned up everything. Reggie and Adam couldn't help but chuckle a bit as the texts Laura was sending off rolled through his phone!



Watching the Royals - they play better when she naps



On a related note, we have figured out that for some reason, when we raise our voices to get onto Henry for a myriad of things he does that it actually puts Aubrey to sleep. Lucky for her, Henry will afford her one of these 'sleep opportunities' at least daily :)

Aubrey continues to eat about every 2-3hrs., which is great. Of course, it means Larua is never able to get ahead so that we will have bottles for her when we go out on the town. This may become an issue as we move forward into summer and have various events/outings. She also is getting more comfortable with her swing, allowing Laura about an hour per day to do things other than hold her and feed her.

On Tuesday, some of Laura's Hallmark friends came over, bringing pizza and beer in tow. One woman, Emily, is also Henry's girlfriend (at least until she gets married later this summer :) ). While Reggie and Henry mowed the lawn, they each took turns holding Aubrey and giving Laura a break.


Katie getting practice for her own to-be infant!



Jessica and Aubs



Week 3 - Making Aubrey happy

Henry loves his little sister without a doubt. Now, in addition to racing to give Aubrey the first kiss when he and Reggie get home, he has also started to try and "make Aubrey happy" when she cries. This generally entails him going over to her chair/swing and giving her a kiss or holding her hand. This quickly transitions to him singing and dancing in front of her. It is both utterly hilarious and heartwarming to say the least.

"What are you about to do, Henry?"

This week we also started potty training Henry. He is about 95% successful with "#1," and about 1% successful with the rest. After constipating himself for four days, it all came to a head on Thursday when the Cowie's were over to meet Aubrey. While playing with their two girls, Henry came running up to Laura exclaiming, "Mommy, the poopy is coming out, the poopy is coming out!" In addition to the Cowie's, Aubrey had visits from our friends Elizabeth and Ashley.



Ashley Albers and Aubrey



Elizabeth Mills and Aubrey

On Sunday, the family went to the baptism of Laura's friend's daughter, Lucy. We continue to struggle to get out of the house at the appropriate time, so we were late and happened to miss the ceremony itself.  Immediately upon arriving at the church, Aubrey was hungry, and Henry was onery. So, for the rest of the service, Laura fed Aubrey in a side room, and Reggie took Henry outside to run around. Praise the Lord!

In 6 months, you'll be at Lucy's size, Aubs!

The end of this week was Reggie's birthday. As you may have guessed, a birthday with two kids under the age of 3 is going to be celebrated at home! Laura made Hawaiian pizza, a favorite, and got a cookie cake to celebrate.

The kids enjoyed the celebration (or at least the cookie cake!)

Aubrey has hit her birth weight, and can now start taking bottles. She is in the 50th percentile for height , and the 25th percentile for weight. For as much as she eats Laura must be making skim milk!