Ten Months

Happy 10-month birthday to Kira! It's been a busy week, capped off with a long weekend and a celebration of Kira turning 10 months old.

Going all the way back to last Sunday afternoon, we got together with our "neighborhood gang" for our monthly family gathering. Lots of fun catching up and watching the kids run around with each other.

On Monday, we had a playdate at Sammy and Izzy's house with several of our twin friends. Alex talked about seeing their doggy Billy all the way to their house but once we got there he wasn't quite sure if he liked Billy or if he was very scared of him. That's weird for Alex because he loves all dogs- we think it's because Billy barks quite a bit when we first get there, because once Billy (and Alex) calmed down, he was happy to pet and play with Billy...just as long as Billy wasn't trying to steal his food!

Tuesday we took a trip to the library to get some more books. Alex and Ari are very good at finding books that suit them perfectly- Ari checked out some alphabet and number books, and Alex managed (again) to find the tractor and truck books.

Wednesday Ari and Alex were so excited to have a reunion with last year's classmate Adam. And as an added bonus, Adam's mommy invited a friend of hers who has a daughter, Savannah, who will be in Alex and and Ari's NEW preschool class. Kira met lots of friends her size who will be in our new Wednesday morning playgroup while Ari and Alex are in school. And she enjoyed extra special attention from Adam, who has always seemed to have a little crush on Kira, even when she was just a few weeks old:

Thursday Alex and Ari met even more of their new classmates at a playdate at our house. They met Chase (or re-met, as they actually met him when they were just around a year old at a mutual friend's house for a playdate), Laylie (who they also had seen this summer at the outdoor concerts), and Jessica. They did very well sharing all of their toys with their new classmates and are excited to see them when they start school this coming week.

Friday was rainy so Riley and her mommy came over to play inside, and Alex and Ari celebrated their 29-month birthday.

Saturday we joined Aunt Lori, Uncle Sam and Ozzie at Poppy's boat for an early celebration of Poppy's birthday. Alex and Ari asked to go up to the playroom in the clubhouse and met new friend Jessi. The kids are getting very used to the boat and feel free making themselves at home while visiting:

Sunday we had an exciting outing to buy mattresses for Mommy and Daddy's new bed and for Alex's new bunk beds. After dinner, we took a family walk around the neighborhood and stopped at a "new" playground (new to Ari, Alex and Kira, at least). Once the kids were in bed, Mommy tackled her project of refinishing Alex's bunk beds so that they will match the furniture in his bedroom.

Today we're enjoying the extra weekend day and celebrating Kira's 10-month birthday. What is Kira up to at 10 months?

Kira is talking up a storm this month, mastering "mama," "dada," and "ball" (her favorite toy). She is down to two naps a day, as she dropped her third late afternoon nap while Daddy was out of town for Maccabi. She is still sleeping really well, usually waking up around 7:00 in the morning right before her big brother and sister. She's such an easy baby, always smiling and laughing and she will entertain herself while Mommy is busy with her "higher maintenance" big brother and sister. She also goes down for her naps and bed time without much of a fuss at all.

Kira still isn't mobile yet, and does not roll or crawl. She does scoot a tiny bit on her tushy if she wants a toy out of reach, but she's not showing much progress on this front so she will be evaluated next week by our local Infants and Toddlers program to see if she needs a little physical therapy. We're not too worried- she has great tone and is otherwise very strong, but better safe than sorry. It's actually easier for Mommy when she doesn't crawl but we all know it's coming soon!

This month Kira learned how to give kisses- she opens her mouth wide, says "ahhhh" and leans in for a big wet kiss. Daddy also taught her how to give a "high five." She loves the swings- when her big brother and sister will let her take a turn- and she loves being entertained by Ari and Alex. She also started eating yogurt, which she seems to love. She still won't chew/swallow finger foods like Cheerios and puffs- she'll eagerly pick them up (with excellent fine motor skills) and put them in her mouth, but then she spits them right back out. Mommy is hoping she'll learn to eat something other than mushy baby foods soon!

Mommy had been complaining that Kira would not hold her own bottle yet- surely out of stubbornness, as she holds and drinks water from her sippy cup (and knows Mommy will hold her bottle for her). This point was proven when, last weekend, Daddy put Kira's bottle on her high chair tray while he turned away for a second and when he turned back, look what little Miss Princess was doing:

She still won't hold it when Mommy is feeding her, but apparently this Daddy's girl is happy to hold it for him.

So we all enjoyed the last "official" week of summer- we're sad that the pool is closing and summer is over, but we're all looking forward to the start of school and other exciting times to come!