Pied Piper

They call him the Pied Piper...Okay, well one of the moms at the playground did this afternoon. It was very a lovely Spring day today and the playground was busy with kids burning off their winter energy. We weren't there 5 min. before Kai stumbled upon a large group of kids sitting collectively in one of the climbing towers. They were instantly smitten with him and were tickled pink that he was reciprocating their "high fives". Kai made himself quite at home in their presence for the next 30+ minutes. At no point did he have fewer than 6 children in his entourage, but for much of the time there were easily 10 or more. The oldest kids were probably 4th or 5th graders, and the youngest were about 6 or 7 years old. They offered him snacks, babied him, oooo'd and awed over anything he did that was perceived as cute, and rode down toddler slides with him firmly planted in his lap. They took turns carrying him around and openly gave him space to "lead the group" to his next chosen activity. Kai missed out on countless opportunities to be coddled as an infant and so, was pleased as punch to go along with the group's vigilance for his safety and need for companionship. I was smiling so hard my cheeks hurt by the end of it. It was the most darling scene...a brood of mother hens all caring for the happiness of one little boy. I'm sooooo glad we made it to the playground today; it made for a very sweet experience for all involved.

Top O' the Morn'n To You!

We've had a busy week with playdates and activities. Kai attended his first movie this week and loved it. The theater offered free admittance to see Disney's Cars and we joined our friend's from the Mom's Club for a fun, rainy afternoon. This morning we attended our first "toddler time" at the local library. Kai and about two dozen 2 and 3 year olds gathered round for a St. Patty's Day themed story time. We topped it off with a little leprechaun craft. We met a mom and her son who are also Chinese and as it turns out, the little boy's mother was born in Kai's hometown of Nanjing. Hopefully we will continue to run into each other around town; it was quite enjoyable sharing stories and watching the boys play together. After a brunch at our favorite diner, we headed over to a friend's for a busy playdate with the Mom's Club. The weather was GORGEOUS...the kids spent hours playing outside and stomping in the melted snow.
We finished off the evening with some more outdoor play at home. Kai wasn't a fan of trying to walk through the deep snow this winter, so today's combination of 65 degrees, and small patches of leftover snow worked for him just fine! About half the yard has thawed and is dry enough to roll around in the grass. The highlight of Kai's day was being reunited with his beloved sandbox. He lost no time covering himself from head to toe with granular goodies.

Is he on to something??? I think not...

Each morning I pop the fridge open and let Kai pick out what he wants to eat for breakfast. Many days it's some elaborate combination of fruit, yogurt, pancakes, eggs, or cereal. He likes variety (like his Momma) and loads up the counter with a number of goodies. Well today Kai was feeling very Zen. Sometimes simplicity is best. Kai chose one and only one item for his breakfast. Fungus. No, I'm not kidding...wish that I was. Kai sat down (in the hallway...that's a mystery too) with a carton of raw mushrooms and went to town. Ugh. Bleck. Gag. I wouldn't eat a mushroom if you bribed me with a big, fat check. Kai apparently thinks it ranks up there with strawberries. Go figure.


Care for a nibble?

Monkey Baby

Kai randomly remembered that his Halloween costume was up on his closet shelf. He was happy as could be parading around the house making monkey sounds and scratching under his arms. In the first picture, Kai was playing in his indoor tent. He always invites me to join him and I decline as often as I can...boy is it crowded in there.

Recipe Suggestion

Kai made an interesting conconction at dinner tonight. I figured I'd share it with you in the event that you were feeling adventurous...Into his bowl, Kai mixed the following ingredients together, held it to his mouth and drank it down with loud, pronounced Mmmmmmmm's...
~ marinated steak tips
~peach yogurt
~potato salad
~italian dressing
~balsamic dressing
~strawberry milk

Again, this receipe isn't for everyone, but surely someone reading this must feel inclined to give it a try...Come on, any takers????

Kai has been an active little boy dispite a meddlesome little cold that he has been fighting. Some of his favorite activities lately include trying to count and identify different letters in the alphabet. Kai is a little smartie and has a genuine thirst for learning. Kai's speech continues to improve; we see new gains each week and he truly looks forward to our weekly speech sessions with his speech pathologist. Here a some photos from this past week.


Kai latched onto his Daddy's leg the moment he sat on the floor to play with him after work.


Kai woke up from his nap the other day and wrapped his little blanket around his shoulders. He let me tie it up and give him a cape. The little one tore around the house trying to fly until he wore himself out and needed a little break on the couch.


This lovely image was taken after Kai just up and decided that he didn't want yogurt with Cheerios with breakfast after all. As usual, without warning, he heaved the bowl and sent it across the kitchen. Unfortunatly, Rob had left his suitcase there after a snowmobiling trip and I had let it become a coat hook. I figured the damage was done so I took a second to snap a picture before cleaning up the mess. Oiy!


Kai and I visit a local animal rescue shelter every few weeks to play with the cats and check out the bunnies and other critters. I hover over him when he is petting the cats because he is VERY enthusiatic sometimes and I don't want him to give them more love than they can handle. Unfortunately, when I tried to bend down and monitor Kai's level of affection, I kicked aside a chair that scared the devil out of the poor kitty. It scurried away for safety, but not before giving Kai a couple of good scratches on the face. Oops. He didn't care one little bit; Kai desperately wanted to seek out the now hiding cat, but it was a good time for a change of scene and we moved on to check out the horse barn.



Kai jumped on the chance to wear Rob's sun glasses today. He's one cool dude.