I am upright

I am walking and I have beaten the Keller record by 2 months. Hayley held the top spot for 16 years by walking at 12 months. I blew it away by walking at 10 months. I have been testing it out for a couple weeks but now I'm getting pretty good at it. This is a video from a few days ago. Hopefully it works.

Aunt Angie and Jay came to visit last week. We saw Hayley perform in the Cinderella ballet on Friday and then headed to Telluride for the weekend. I hear Hayley and her friends were amazing in the show. I wouldn't know first hand because they didn't trust me to stay quiet so they made me stay home with Michael.  It was snowing like crazy in Telluride so I will have to wait a bit longer to try out my skis and my Paul Frank helmet. I'm sure I will kill it in the 2 feet of powder they have gotten this week. I missed this years X-games but perhaps Kate Rapiejko and I will be ready by next year.  

This picture of Angie and I was taken on Monday. The funny part is that she should have been teaching class in San Jose at this time. Every time she comes to visit, United Airlines decides she needs to spend more time with me and cancels her flight home. Its now happened 3 times. They obviously know (better than she does) how long she would like to stay. Jay got to spend his birthday with me. Here I am convincing him it was the best place to be.

Not sure if I mentioned it in my last post but we made some adjustments to my reflux meds and it is now completely controlled and guess what...I finally sleep! Since birth I have gotten up every 1-3 hours either to get comfortable or to eat. As of this week, I am consistently sleeping 3-4 hours straight. And would you like to know how I was rewarded...

I was booted from mom and dad's room! Not cool. Mom said she was too old to get out of bed every 1-2 hours with me. But she has no problem with every 4 so here I am on the other side of the house. 

Food continues to go great. I no longer need blended food. Just cut me up a pear or a waffle and I'm good to go. I have a hard time remembering to pace myself and try to stuff it all in like a squirrel but after a few more choking scares, I will figure it out. 

I have gotten 2.5 more teeth so I now have 4 on the bottom and 1.5 fangs. And the tooth grinding was short lived. Mom is happy because she said it was a pretty gross sound. 

No words yet but I "talk" up a storm in the car using my own language that slightly resemble Chinese. Now that the snow here is melting, hopefully mom can get better pictures using something other than her phone camera.

Since mom is typing for me right now and not at the pre game festivities in New Orleans with Mindy, it must not be a Broncos/Seahawks superbowl. Hope everyone enjoys the big game this week anyway. 

Cheers!

alexa

10 Months

Wow. 10 months already. Mom says I'm growing up too fast. Here are my current stats

17 pounds
25.5 inches
3 teeth- 2 bottom and 1 fang- my new trick is to grind my teeth (or tooth)!
no words yet but I now shake my head "no"

My record is 4 steps by myself but I still prefer my very awkward crawl. I'm fast and stealth-like. Here is a video mom took. Hopefully it will work on the blog. She likes how my left leg almost hits my left elbow. But notice how fast I got to my snacks!

I love to put everything I can find in my mouth and my favorite place to crawl is on the stairs so I am now being trailed by someone wherever I go. That can definitely get annoying when all I want is a little privacy to tear up a magazine and eat it in peace. Speaking of eating and food, I LOVE it all. I will eat anything and everything thrown my way. I can eat whole bananas, waffles, roasted pears, apples, squash, broccoli and mangos just to name a few. It is a little concerning that I have an insatiable appetite and my fat rolls clearly show it.  Besides all the food I eat, I also drink bottles every 2-4 hours day and night (much to mom's dismay). We aren't sure why I am so hungry but we are hoping its a growth spurt that will lead to added height, not just weight. We will see. 

my waffle

I have a great time with my two pets, Cooper the dog and Linus the ferret. Cooper is a bit like a grumpy old man who just wants to be left alone when he sleeps but Linus and I share toys. Here we are looking in the toybox

Here is Linus taking Sophie the giraffe back to his house

It has been crazy cold in Grand Junction this month. On a warm day we will hit a high in double digits. One morning last week it was -12 when H and M left for school. And that didn't even include the windchill. So I pretty much stay indoors. We are in Telluride this weekend where it is 40 degrees. We are in an inversion weather pattern so the valley is cold and the mountains are warm. Weird if you ask me. 

Health wise I am doing great. We checked carnitine levels last month and they are in the low normal range with my medicine so I will be on it at least until summer. There is still some hope I may come off when I'm older but it will not happen anytime soon.  My vomiting has been well controlled with the help of modern medicine too. I got my very first cold a couple weeks ago and did great. Nothing more than kleenex needed. No ear infection and no wheezing. Mom says that is a Keller first! There are lots of viruses going around right now so we are  laying low and being careful who I am around. Everyone would agree that sick babies are no fun. 

Aunt Angie and Jay come this Thursday. We will be back in Telluride next weekend and I may try out my new skis if it's still warm. I will sign off with a demo of my mad music skills...

Cheers!

alexa

Where did December go?

I would love to tell you the reason for the lack of posts this month has been holidays, family and friends visiting, football playoffs and multiple trips to Telluride. But the real explanation for the silence can be summed up in two words...Homeland addiction. That's right, my ghostwriter was introduced to the series and didn't stop watching until all 24 episodes were viewed. Thankfully the next episode doesn't come out until fall 2013 so there should be no further interruptions. Unless of course the Broncos make it to the super bowl. 

My ninth month has been very exciting. We had visitors staying at our house for almost 2 weeks and it was great. Cousins are the best. I got to meet Jordan and Mara for the first time and spend Christmas with them. The Hendersons came on the 26th. You may remember that Pier and I are only 2 weeks apart so that was a ton of fun. Here are some pictures of our visit

uncle Mike, Jordan, Mara, and Pier

I'm not sure how I caught the cold that Pier had. Gross, I know. Can't help it

Drew celebrated his 13th birthday over the break. As usual, no one was brave enough to share their cake with me. I guess I make everyone nervous about trying new foods. 

He got the new game of Life. Can't wait to try it out

My first Christmas was as good as people made it out to be. Dad had to leave for work early so we had to wake up at 6am to open presents. Luckily we could go back to sleep after he left. Santa had already been here when I woke up and left me a piano and other fun, noisy toys. 

Just in case...

At one point dad moved me about 3 inches so mom could get a better picture. I thought he was stealing my present so I reacted appropriately

I recovered quickly

My new piano

The weather has been frigid here and we have lots of snow on the ground. I got to try out my new snow suit while dad pushed me on the sled.

staying warm with aunt Kelly and little D

And that was how we ended 2012. We had a few friends over on New Year's Eve and I stayed up to watch the ball drop

Now that the holidays are over, its time to get serious about snow sports. So mom found me the smallest outdoor snowboots which just happen to be the same ones she had when she was little... the original "moon boot"! They rock.

And they fit in my first pair of snow skis. All I need now is a helmet and I am ready for the slopes, or at least the magic carpet run. Drew can't wait to teach me.

And what post would be complete without the bedhead photo of the day. This one has a bonus of me eating all by myself

That about sums up the past 3 weeks. Now let's get ready to cheer on the Broncos next Saturday. Mom and Dr. Hendrickson made a deal that if Seattle (Mindy's team) and the Bronco's make it to the super bowl, the three of us are headed to New Orleans. We can dream, right??

Have a great week.

Cheers!

alexa

9 Months

The Holiday Season

The Christmas decorations are going up and I am eager to help. Whether its rearranging the low lying ornaments on the tree after tasting each one, or making sure there is enough water in the tree stand by sticking my hand in it, I'm ready to assist wherever needed. 

Gotta love Pottery Barn mass production so my stocking matches the old ones

We shopped for a tree Sun. and didn't even have to get out of the car. There was only one extra tall tree left in GJ so it made the decision easy

Not sure when mom is going to be brave enough to start putting gifts under the tree. She is lucky this year because she won't need to put name tags on them. I can tear the paper off each one for her. 

Dad put lights on the trees in front of our house so I will try to get pictures of that for the next post. There are a few "Griswald" houses in our neighborhood I will get to see. One had to use a crane to put the giant star up. Its quite impressive.

Today I am 9 months old. I'm sure my height and weight have not changed much in 2 weeks so we will stick with 16# and 24.5". I'm saving dad money because with a 30#,32" limit on my infant seat, I may be able to use it till kindergarten. I'm walking very well with my block cart but not quite ready to go it alone yet.

In my 0-3 month size pants everyone says I look like a computerized special effect of the walking baby

Mom's idea of buying 6-12 mo. dresses that will last all winter (and next)

I got to meet my 4 month old friend, Kate Rapiejko, for the first time this weekend at the Hogeston baby shower. Kerri and Cody are having twin girls soon so we will be quite the foursome. Can't wait.

I was trying to figure out why they were stealing my carseat and in the confusion I may have attacked her. Sorry Kate. She will get me back I'm sure because she will likely be bigger and taller than me by next month. At least I will be faster for a bit longer so I can run.

Food is going well. I will eat anything and everything they give me, even brussel sprouts. And my two teeth are helping me eat the yummy spinach snacks shaped like cherrios. We have finally found a combination of reflux meds that are working really well. I am sleeping for 3-4 hours straight and laying down instead of sitting up doubled over. Mom is looking more well rested too which is definitely a good thing. 

I am making funny hand gestures and so far no one knows what they mean. Any ideas?

I currently have a 2 word vocabulary. Bah, and Rah. Impressive, I know.

And finally, my bedhead photo of the week. Thanks Hayley

Cheers,

alexa

On the move

Here is what I have been up to.

Here I am Tuesday...

I'm very fast

Here I am helping mom with dishes on Weds

And here I am today (Thursday)

why crawl when you can walk up

I use the wires to help me. Just my height. Great design mom! And I can now fit my first pair of 3-6 month pants! Woo Hoo

So that is what I have been up to. I can now push my blocks in the cart but I haven't taken the unassisted first step. Its coming any day. And in exactly half the time it took Brandon. This house is so un-baby-proofed, who could resist the temptation to walk a little early and take advantage. Word on the street is that mom is researching baby gates right now. Big bummer. Good thing I can still have fun throwing her big decorative rocks from the planter onto the slate tiles. Wait till I'm tall enough to hit the window. 

Last weekend was our first of many trips to Telluride. Our condo is right in town so we got to enjoy the warm weather and take lots of walks. Here I am at the base of the ski slope seeing Drew off

Don't let the pic fool you. There is not much snow here yet

Very toasty in my stroller sleeping bag

So needless to say, blog updates will be very sporatic.  The easy life of babies who can't move or throw temper tantrums is over. Now, while mom is cleaning the floor because I still have reflux, I can run away and find new things to play with. Football season is in the final stretch of the regular season. With any luck I will get to watch Peyton all the way to Feb. 

Cheers!

alexa

Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving 2012

Anyone with a facebook account knows about the recent posts of people listing things they are thankful for over a 30 day period. That seems long and drawn out and, well, who has that kind of time? So I am going to dedicate this post to that mission because I do think it is important to reflect a lot more than we all do. I will first share a funny thing I heard on the radio before our trip. Black Friday, the day people go out and risk being trampled to death to save a few dollars on much needed electronics, comes just 24 hours after we spend the day giving thanks for everything we have. Interesting timing. But hey, I'm all for a little materialism sometimes. Especially after a week of realizing that my parents are very stingy in the toy department. Good thing Emily, Walker and Jude introduced me to some fantastic toys that are out there. I can't wait for this Santa guy to visit the house (through the front door because mom gave our fireplace away). So here it goes.

I am thankful for...

1. My Family 

I am one of the lucky babies who have 3 parents. I am most thankful to my birthmom, Angelina, who made the most selfless decision anyone could make. She wanted me to have more than she could provide at that time so she chose a family with cool parents that I would fit into perfectly. While I didn't get a chance to review the other candidates, I think she made a great choice. However, I may retract that statement when I'm 16. I hear parents go downhill and get unreasonable when they have teenagers. I also have amazing siblings who are happy to see me every morning. They actually fight over who gets to take me out of my crib when I wake up from naps. So far, being the youngest by 11 years is the best thing ever. 

This is a dry ice bubble I made with Drew and Brandon

The 7am (5am MST)  Turkey Trot w/cousin Lindsey

Over Thanksgiving I got to meet more of my extended family. We drove the RV to Indiana and Chicago and had a blast. I still need to meet my cousins in KS and I think I have them talked into coming for Christmas. Here are some of my extended family pics from last week.

All the Keller grandkids

Hanging out w/ uncle Phil

Hayley's 16th bday on Thanksgiving

Wait till next time when we can do a 3-way braid

Visiting the Gees in Chicago

My "other brother" Connor Braeger

2. Modern medicine

We knew that I fit into this family perfectly when my routine metabolic screen unexpectedly came back abnormal and my heart had some problems all by the age of 2 weeks.  We live in a great community for medicine and also have our resources from Indianapolis so finding good health care will never be a problem. I saw Dr. Schaefer and Dr. Escobar while I was in Indianapolis. We made some changes to try to get my reflux under better control. I no longer vomit like I used to but I am up most of the night trying to find a position to sleep in. Here is my current fav. My stomach feels best when I'm doubled over. And as soon as I tip over, about once an hour, I make sure to wake up mom so she can prop me back up. And that is why we spent the night away from dad last night!

Dr. Escobar is keeping me on my carnitine for at least 6 more months to see if it helps with my height which is officially 24.5". They have this contraption that measures length more accurately so that is why I lost .2" this month. Hopefully I will start to catch up with the other kids on the 1st percentile soon so that we don't have to add endocrinology to our list of specialists. Developmentally I continue to look great so no concerns there. My new skills are crawling very fast and standing for long periods of time whenever I find something I can pull up on. Its not too surprising that I'm the family's youngest stander since I've got physics on my side. Gotta love a low center of gravity. I'm like a paperweight!

How often do you see the binky leach attached at the chest and touching the ground!

3. Our Friends

Mom did an absolutely pathetic job of getting pictures of all the friends I saw on our trip. We spent our first night in Indy at the Kersey's house which happens be the house we lived in before Colorado. How cool is that? Thanks to the Krogers for dinner and the Kersey's for hosting at the last minute. We also spent time with the Bullock's, the Ashley's, the Pierle's, Teresa, and the Schaefers (another missed photo op with Jude). We parked the RV at the Schulte's for 3 nights and mom actually got a picture there.

stealing Tom's pretzel

stealing Gina's clementine

4. For everything that didn't get its own paragraph and picture

To live in a free country, in a beautiful state, where my dad enjoys stable employment, surrounded by great friends and neighbors, as we put the RV away for winter and get ready for Christmas and ski season in Telluride...I am thankful.

alexa