Lunchtime Concert In The Marina

Such a happy, smiley girl!!

We love our little girl so much!

Checking out the crowd at the Marina

Having fun during the concert!

"Where's your bottom lip?" Kyra's famous pursed-lip grin

More smiling!

Even more smiling!

Checking out the Motown band

Kyra had a great view!

More pursed-lip grins, just like her Mommy used to do when she was a baby!

Chewing on her wet washcloth after lunch

Kyra is "My Girl," and Daddy's girl too!

All Kyra wants to do is "Ride Around Sally"

Kyra took us out for another picnic lunch in Marina del Rey today, and there turned out to be a free Motown concert. We got there at the perfect time, got our picnic table while there were just a few people milling around, then the concert started up and a crowd of people arrived. Kyra was in such a good mood and really seemed to enjoy the music. She was excitedly bopping around in her booster seat, and was all full of smiles, as you can see from the pictures above. She was a little distracted by everything, but still managed to eat her peas, which she quite likes! She made fast friends with a sweet couple nearby, who were admiring her booster seat and said they want to get one for their grandchild. We've used the seat a few times, and I think it has already more than paid for itself as far as convenience and comfort go! Kyra loves sitting it, it creates a table/highchair for her wherever we go, and we can carry it on the stroller. It has 2 trays and a cover that snaps on over the trays to keep everything clean! Fabulous, as far as I'm concerned!

Kyra's newest trick is that she's figured out how to hold herself up on her hands and knees, and then sway her body forward and back. She did it 5 or 6 times this morning, and it was absolutely adorable! I'm hoping to get some pictures and/or video of it. As cute as it is, it's frightening in that crawling can't be too far off now! Kyra is definitely not our teeny tiny 7 pound newborn anymore!

Solid Foods & Hiking!!

Uh oh! Will she be a thumb sucker?
Or is she just goofing around?

What tastes better: her bib or her baby food?

Open wide for some yummy food!

Playing with Daddy!

Such a little smiler!

Daddy's little snuggle bug!

Kyra officially started solid foods about a week and a half ago, and so far she's doing great! She's currently having squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, and she started green beans today. We'll add more greens, then move on to fruits, then eventually meats. Kyra seems to be enjoying the foods, particularly the sweet potatoes! She's already got me thinking ahead and looking forward to feasting on all the yumminess of Thanksgiving! She hasn't had any allergic reactions to the food, although we did deal with a diaper rash over the weekend. Before solid foods, a typical day might've included one, maybe two poops for Miss Kiki. Well, solid foods has changed that quite a bit! Things seem to be settling down somewhat, but last week there were multiple days averaging 5 poops a day! Her poor little bottom couldn't keep up with the extra load(s)! But the rash is gone and she's doing much better, thanks to frequent applications of "Boudreaux's Butt Paste." It worked like a charm!

In our effort to make her a mobile baby, we got her a portable booster seat so that she can have meals while we're out and about. The photos above are from a spontaneous picnic in Marina del Rey last week. Kyra really enjoys being outside and looking around at all the interesting goings on! She's also been getting some practice with sitting in restaurant high chairs.

When she eats at home in her high chair, she loves to play "peek a boo" with Mommy and Daddy. We hide under her high chair, she leans forward to look for us, then we pop up and surprise her, followed by a stream of her adorable giggles and smiles! I don't know who enjoys this game more - her or her parents! We'll have to get a video of this entertaining exchange!

Hiking up to the top of the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook

Phew! We made it to the top! Now, let's quench that thirst with a bottle!

Great views - nearly a 360 degree view of LA!

Heading back down the hill

Kyra was definitely the youngest person on the trail!

We also recently discovered a new park (Culver City Park) and hiking area (Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook) near our house. We tried out the hike to the top of the park and neighboring scenic overlook, and Kyra did great in her Ergo baby carrier. I have a feeling that Kyra and I will be walking up to that park on a regular basis, since Mommy is getting pretty tired of walking around our neighborhood everyday. I'll have to take some pictures of the trail to the park next time we go, but the above shots are from our hike up to the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook. The roundtrip walk/hike is around 2.5 miles, so it's definitely great exercise, especially when you're carrying a 17 pound baby on your chest!

We hope you're all enjoying your summer! We're definitely making the most of ours!

6-Month Check Up

Kyra got a new starfish baseball hat from her Grandma & Grandpa.

Although she looks a little boyish, it's pretty darn cute :)

Kyra had her 6-month check up this morning, and she's doing great. She was such a good girl at her appointment, and only cried when she was supposed to (right after her shots - poor thing!).

Her new stats are:

Weight: 17 pounds - between the 50th & 75th percentile (up from 14 lbs. 12 oz. at 4 months)

Height: 27 inches - between the 75th & 90th percentile (up from 25 inches at 4 months)

Head Circumference: 42 cm - 25th percentile (up from 40.5 cm at 4 months)

The doctor gave us the go-ahead to start solid foods. So I think we'll head over to Target today to evaluate their yellow and green vegetables (baby foods), then eventually we'll try fruits, and then meats. We'll probably start with some pureed baby food, but also let Kyra "play" with some real foods and get a feel for this whole food thing. We'd like to get her eating mostly real healthy foods, rather than store-bought baby foods, but we'll take it one day at a time.

It should be interesting!

6 Months? Really?

Kyra's been keeping us pretty busy these days! So busy, in fact, that it's been difficult to keep the blog up to date. So you'll have to forgive our recent absence.

Somehow, our little girl is turning 6 months old tomorrow (August 11th)! She goes for her 6-month check up on Thursday, and we're looking forward to getting the go-ahead to start giving Kyra some real food. She's been eating rice cereal since she was 4 months old, and she's beginning to get a little tired of it (can you blame her for getting bored with the flavorless gruel!?). She really seems like she's ready for actual food, so we're looking forward to letting her learn all about eating! You can bet that Mommy is going to introduce some spicy foods while she's young (no, not too early, but this kid is going to love all kinds of food!).

We also have a feeling that she's grown quite a bit since her 4-month check up. We've got her big girl car seats ready and waiting (1 for each car), since it looks like she's going to grow out of her infant seat very soon. We can't believe how much she's grown and changed in these 6 months (not to mention how fast 6 months have gone by!!). Kyra loves to sit up, and she's getting better at it everyday. Last weekend, she sat in a restaurant high chair for the first time, and she loved it! She looked like such a grown up little baby!

She's also gotten really good at rolling from her tummy to her back, so much so that it's nearly impossible to keep her on her tummy! She also rolls from her back to her tummy, but much less frequently. We've found her on her tummy in her crib a few times. She doesn't love it, but eventually she either rolls over on to her back or just gives up and falls asleep on her tummy. She's also officially in "sleep sacks" now (no more swaddle blankets for our baby doll).

Kyra loves looking at her kitty cats, Zoe and Bella, and is even learning how to pet them (with Mommy's help, of course!). Once she starts crawling (which probably isn't too far off), those kitties should probably take cover and hide their tails, because Kyra will almost definitely be chasing after them and trying her best to grab their fur with her sticky, strong little fingers. She's had a lot of practice at yanking on Mommy's hair and ripping it out with her iron grip - trust me, the kitties will "enjoy" it even less than Mommy!

I'll leave you with some recent pictures of some of Kyra's activities: A trip to the Orange County Fair with Mommy and Daddy, an outing to the Grove and Farmer's Market with Grandma Linda, some playtime and sitting practice on the couch, and a playdate with Jake Balice.

Orange County Fair

The Grove & Farmer's Market

Playing on the couch

Playdate with Jake Balice