Goofy grins and outside obessesions.

Lately Keegan has been making the silliest face. He "grins" really big and squints his eyes. It shows off his teeth pretty good, but it looks more like he's in pain than actually grinning. I am not sure where he learned this at; must've been daycare. It makes me wonder where his sweet sincere smile went. Suddenly it's been replaced with this monstrous looking, squinty eyed expression, that I am sure he thinks is absolutely winning. It should work well for him on sunny days though since he's got that squinty thing going on.

Of course we have been spending more time outside. The park is a block away from our house so we have been walking there a lot. Unfortunately this last Friday (and all weekend) it was snowing again and very cold (okay only mid-30's but that's too cold for the end of April). So, much to Keegan's dismay we haven't been playing outside. Let me tell you that kid loves being outside. Keegan spent Friday whining because he wanted outside. He can reach the door knobs now, just barely, so all I have to say is thank goodness for deadbolts.

When we left to go meet Erin and her brand new baby Aurora for lunch; the first thing Keegan did when I opened the garage door was to run past the car and out into the driveway. He wanted to walk to the park, not drive somewhere to eat lunch. Needless to say Keegan made our lunch meeting a bit of a misery. He wouldn't eat and was throwing stuff and in general driving me crazy. We survived but I felt bad for Erin having to put up with his antics.

I mean, in general, Keegan is a good boy; when you tell him to sit down he does (thanks to hard work by my mom), when you tell him to quiet down he sometimes does, he sometimes comes when you call his name, he lets go of something when you ask, and is getting better at putting his food down when you tell him not to throw it. This is a tough age because I don't think he understands discipline real well but he is starting to throw and hit. I think we have nabbed the hitting for the most part but the throwing food thing is still a favorite of his; especially when he is tired.

Then there have been some injuries. Keegan now likes to full-out run but sometimes his feet don't keep up with him. Thursday night he tripped and landed right on his nose on the hard wood floor. He got a bloody nose and was screaming an bleeding everywhere. I swear his nose looks crooked now; although Lyle says I am seeing things. Then yesterday we were walking out to the mailbox when he tripped on the asphalt. He didn't get his hands out to catch himself in time and I head this thud, scrap as his head hit the asphalt and then dragged across it. More screaming ensued and he has a big scrap on his forehead now. Sometimes I am amazed that kids make it past being toddlers...

Anyway it's something new every day with him. A couple days ago he learned how to flush the toilet, and turning the TV off and on is a new favorite. He also knows how to turn up the speakers (but not turn down). Lyle and I were blaming each other for the music being so loud until we saw Mr. Sneaky Pants over there adjusting the volume. Can't wait until he learns to drag that stool around to other places and gets onto the counter.

Hopefully it will stop with this super cold weather/snowing/raining business and be nice some time again. We go camping this weekend so that should be fun!

Spring has Sprung!

I think we can all finally agree that spring is finally here in Minnesota. I don't know about everyone else but I am hoping we don't get any more snow until October/November.

While we were out walking yesterday night I was thinking about how special and exciting spring is for those who live in colder climates. I don't think I would be nearly as happy with spring arriving if I hadn't struggled through 6 months of winter before hand. I mean, wow, the first time it goes above 50 degrees I think that the whole state of MN is in a great mood!

While we were walking last night, enjoying the spring breeze, the sun, and the fact that the lake is almost ice-free I was watching Keegan. Keegan finds every bird, piece of grass, tree, leaf and bush fascinating. Thinking about it I realized that Keegan probably doesn't remember last spring or even last summer. So all of this is new to him. It was a lot of fun to watch him enjoy walking on the springy grass and touching the bushes and pine trees. He thinks the lake is really cool but a little intimidating. Oh, and he really loves collecting rocks and sharing them with Lyle and me. It made me look forward to this summer even more. It will be like everything is brand new to him, and this time, he can really appreciate it! Last summer he couldn't do much.

Speaking of which we have our first camping trip of the year planned for the first weekend in May. I have a feeling taking Keegan camping is going to be lots of fun this year. He absolutely loves being outside and there will be *so* much for him to see!

A bunch of brunch

We have been trying to meet with a couple of our friends at least once a month for brunch. With Dungeons and Dragons two Saturdays a month and all of the other stuff we have going on, we realized that our Sunday mornings are the only things consistently open. So this time frame lent itself to Brunch.

So far we have had brunch at Chianti Grill in Falcon Heights, Lake Elmo Inn in Lake Elmo, and, most recently, Granite City in Roseville.

Lake Elmo Inn was a bust. The service was mediocre, the food okay, the cost really expensive, and everyone got sick afterwards. Chianti Grill is pretty good for service and has a huge variety of food for a reasonable price. Granite City has good food but a more limited menu, with good service, and a fairly reasonable price. But, all this is not why I am writing this entry. Since this blog is about Keegan; I am writing to tell about Keegan's Granite City brunch experience.

Keegan refused to take a nap Sunday morning. He always refuses to take a nap when we are meeting for brunch. Somehow he knows. So, like usual he fell asleep in the car on the way to brunch. We got there a little before 10am so we had to wait in the outside lobby with some other folks.

Now one plus to Granite City is the really cool stone walls in the outer lobby. Keegan thought these were awesome and spent a lot of time feeling them. Then there were the tinted glass doors into the restaurant; Keegan thought these were good for sucking on (can't imagine what that looked like from the inside).

Upon entering the restaurant, there were...BALLOONS! So Keegan got a balloon; which he always refuses to let me tie onto his wrist. It was a big balloon almost as tall as he was. The we got seated right next to the brunch line. This was awesome for Keegan, who loves watching all the people and waving at them to say "Hi".

The next best thing for Keegan were the fresh strawberries. He ate a ton of fresh strawberries. He *loves* strawberries. About 45 minutes into brunch he started getting antsy. As I mentioned he skipped his nap and was tired. So all of the sudden he let out a wail and threw his head down onto the table in despair. This was a hint that we needed a change of pace.

Since the restaurant was spacious I took him out of his highchair, and after trying to hold him, gave up and let him romp. I followed around after him. Apparently Keegan really dug the music they were playing. He ran into a clearing in the center of the restaurant and started shaking his booty and bopping his arms up and down. He was dancing like there was no tomorrow. It always strikes me as odd how Keegan has no concept of embarrassment. Anyway, his little dance was kind of cute. He got a little applause and a mom near me asked if I would mind if her little girl joined Keegan on the "dance floor". So for a couple seconds Keegan almost had a dance partner, but the little girl was scared to get down so that was the end of that.

Then it was time to walk down the aisle next to the booths and (in a bopping dance-like walk)wave and say "hi" to everyone. Thank goodness Keegan is super cute and people are super tolerant. Many of them waved back, making Keegan's day. A number of people asked how old he was and expressed surprise that he was only 14 months old. We are getting used to this; apparently he walks and talks too well for his age :-)

Then we had to go stand in the hallway by the bathroom and continue our dance-a-thon. Occasionally Keegan would try and make a break for the kitchen. Then we returned to the table and Keegan wanted his balloon. He wouldn't let me tie it on his arm so I tied it to the back of his pants. Keegan then ran up and down the hall by the bathroom trying to keep the balloon from getting him. At least it made him highly visible (for me) and it was funny to watch a giant red balloon bopping behind Keegan.

After that it was back up to the lobby. Where he pointed and tried to "talk" the hostess into giving him another balloon. I told him he had enough balloon for one day and we started back towards our table.

At this point I suppose I should mention that there were at least 11 babies in the dining room; all between the ages of 0 - 2 years. As such, the employees were very patient when I had to usher Keegan out of the way or when Keegan was "walking" up the stairs in his usual slow way. Keegan also liked to stop and watch the babies and try to get them to dance with him.

Lyle and I switched off walking around with Keegan for about 15 minutes before our check finally came. Keegan had a grand ol' time; but by the time we left he was super super tired.

Cate and Chris tolerated the constant ebb and flow of conversation well :-) I always feel bad when either Lyle or I have to leave to go watch Keegan. On the way out Keegan held Chris's and Lyle's hands and convinced them to swing him along on the way to the car. Cate teased that she was getting tired just watching the whole experience ;-)

Keegan always manages to turn something basic like brunch into the active social event of the season. I have met more "strangers" than ever before since I have had Keegan. Keegan does not get embarrassed or judge people. If a person says Hi to him they are awesome, if they don't they are boring. He thinks everyone is a great opportunity for excitement! Maybe we could all learn something from his care-free attitude toward humanity.

Dancing in the Shower

Keegan has another funny thing that he has been doing. He likes to go into the shower and stomp around. It makes a soft thump noise because, well, he's in the shower. Yesterday when I brought him home from daycare he ran right into the bathroom and went into the shower and starting stomping in circles in the shower and said "da, da, da, da" and laughing at himself. It's a good thing babies are naturally a bit strange because if I came home and found Lyle doing that I would be pretty worried about his sanity.

Oh and when I picked Keegan up from daycare his teacher had a story for me. Apparently it was only him and one other kid early in the morning. She was changing the diaper of the other kid and, when she looked up, Keegan was standing on top of the shelves with the toys on them. Granted the shelf is only a couple feet high, but she said it scared her and she wanted to let me know that he could do that. I laughed and told her about him climbing on top of the coffee table.

As for our first Friday at home together, we had a lot of fun. It was absolutely beautiful outside, 60 degrees and sunny. We got up and had breakfast, went grocery shopping, and did the wash. Keegan was very helpful; he helped me sort out the cloths and helped go grocery shopping by putting the kiwis and apples into the bag I held out for him. Then we went on the deck and brushed the kitties. Keegan helped brush them for a bit and then him and Seras (three-legs) ran around the deck chasing wisps of cat hair. Then we had to go out in the backyard and play with Ruby. I threw Ruby's toy for her and Keegan laughed and laughed as Ruby jumped around chasing it. Since Keegan's slide is outside now, we had to do a couple slides down that before going in too.

Then it was time for lunch and then a walk. We walked to the park and Keegan loved playing on the toddler climbing structure. He had a run in with a two year old there who tried to kick him off of the play structure. The little kid would run up and say "No baby here!" and block Keegan's way. Keegan could have cared less but the kid's mother was embarrassed and she took him to a different area of the playground. After that Keegan signed "all done" and then ran over to the swing set and signed "more". So I put him up in the swing and we did that for a while. Poor Ruby got dragged around behind me the whole time. She didn't mind too much though because she was the star of the playground and everyone wanted to pet her. Then we were "all done" with the swing and I put him back in the stroller.

We didn't get to walk very far though because both Keegan and Ruby were really tired. So we went home. I asked Keegan if he wanted to make some brownies; he went and laid down on the living room floor and laid his head on Jubei. I guess he was tired. So he went down for a nap and I made brownies, finished the wash, and played some video games. I guess I wore the little guy out! Good to know I can at least keep up with him all day.

It was a busy day but it was lots of fun! I hope that we have fun this Friday too!

Well there's your update. Back to work.

Birdie birdie in the sky, why did you drop that in my eye

Keegan has learned another word. Yesterday when he came home from daycare he started saying "bird"... well it doesn't exactly sound like bird, but pretty close. They mentioned at daycare that he had started to say bird, and we were really excited that he learned another word. You can tell that he actually understands bird as well. When we would say bird, he would look out the window and point to the bird if one was in sight and then say bird. Sooooo that is kind of a cool development for him.

Keegan can also now say "mooo" and does a pretty good job with that. He is learning that cow's say moo, and hopefully he will understand that he probably won't see a cow anytime soon :). I was mentioning last night that we might as well have brought Keegan up on a farm considering that he really only says animals names for the most part. I mean he says the hi, bye etc, but has learned squirell, bird, duck, and what cows say. So maybe that means he will be a farmer.... wait by the time he grows up farming might be fully automated... makes you wonder doesn't it :).

Other than that Keegan has been happy at daycare lately, and hasn't even complained when I have been leaving, which is a nice change. We also have made a few trips to the park this spring, and he has been enjoying the slides, and running around on the play equipment. Luckily we are really close to a park, so we have been stopping by on our way out on a walk. I guess that is really all for now!

Happy days are here again!

You might think I am talking about springtime, and it's true that that's just around the corner, but I am really talking about having my happy-to-be-at-daycare baby back. Last week we were still going through Keegan throwing fits when we left him at daycare. Then when we picked him up there would be comments about how he was grouchy and "just not himself." Well finally this week that has stopped.

When I dropped Keegan off at daycare yesterday he immediately busied himself with digging through the toy basket. He pulled out a ball and brought it too me. We played with the ball for a couple minutes. Then his teacher came in and asked Keegan if he wanted to come help with the laundry. Keegan smiled and let teacher pick him up and off they went. I was like "Umm...okay, bye then." When I went to pick him up from daycare I was greeted by numerous people stopping me on the way to Keegan's classroom to tell me what a happy boy he was all day. I went in to get him and he was studiously organizing the toys in the toy basket. When I said "Hi Keegan" he looked up and smiled and then went right back to "work". Ends up his work was to find his favorite ball and then run over and give it to me. He was so proud of himself. No tears, no screaming. As we left he smiled and waved bye to everyone. It was very refreshing.

This morning when Lyle dropped Keegan off; Keegan's teacher came over and tickled him and he was giggling up a storm when Lyle left. It is such a relief to have the "wonderful and happy" child at daycare. I didn't really like my stint as "that mom with the crabby kid". It wasn't fun to come in and have the lady at the front desk sigh and say "Oh, it's Keegan. I hope he's happier today."

On another note; Keegan and I have our first day off together this Friday. It is supposed to be in the upper 50's and sunny. We will have to find something really fun to do outside. I am determined to spend the day doing more than just grocery shopping and the wash!

Speaking of fun....Keegan has a new activity that he just loves. He accidentally dropped a ball from his ball pit over the railing to the basement. Well...the cats all got up and chased the ball down the stairs. So now this is a new game for Keegan. He throws a ball downstairs and the cats chase it. It is something that occupies him for 30 minutes or so. I guess it is good exercise for him and for the cats. Unfortunately though someone needs to go down and pick up the balls afterwards. I convinced Keegan to spend some time putting the balls into a bag I had so that we could put them back into the ball pit. Unfortunately, that didn't last very long and I ended up crawling around the basement collecting balls.

The other thing Keegan has figured out is how to drag his step stool around places. The other night I turned around and he was standing on the coffee table. It was so funny, he was so proud of himself. Thank goodness he has learned how to get down from places. He no longer walks off of the edge but bends down and swings his feet over. It's fun to see him learn new things; even if they aren't always good things!