Visit from Casey and Yuri!

Casey, one of Mommy's friends from college, and her litte boy, Yuri (who is 3 weeks and one day younger than Kara), came to visit us this past weekend from Portland.

On Saturday, we got up early and headed straight into Boulder to have breakfast at Lucile's. Casey and Lee Ann used to eat at the one in Fort Collins frequently during their college days. As always, the food was delicious! After a short nap back at the townhouse, we were back out on the town, this time visiting the Children's Museum in Lafayette. For the afternoon, we just played around the townhouse and the kids took turns riding around in Kara's sled (who needs snow?).

We took things much easier on Sunday. Yuri came down with a cold and didn't sleep very well Saturday night. We went into Boulder for lunch at Big City Burrito. While we were in Boulder, we stopped at a great toy store, which was a lot of fun for the kids. Other than that, we just stayed around the townhouse.

All in all, Kara had a great time playing with Yuri and Mommy was happy to spend some time with her friend. Sorry there are so many pictures. We just had so much fun!

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Playing in the Snow

We just got in from our second playtime in the snow this week. Kara seems to enjoy being dragged around in the sled, and she actually went down a hill for the first time this week. She also enjoys eating the fresh powder and is getting good at walking in her snow suit and boots!

On Monday, Mommy and Kara went to stock up on groceries before the second snowstorm. When we got back, it was already past Kara's lunch time. She watched a show while I brought in groceries. To move faster, I put the bags on the floor. I got a surprise when I came in with the last load. Kara had retrieved a box of crackers, opened them up, and was eating them while watching her show (hand in box and all). Guess I shouldn't underestimate Kara!

Kara has started to practice walking backwards. It's pretty funny.

During one of her bib "organizing" sessions, the Phil Collins song "That's All" came on the radio. She stopped what she was doing and started bopping up and down in time to the music. It was hilarious. She'd continue on, bee-bop, get another bib, bee-bop, etc. Then Mommy started clapping, and Kara clapped! Mommy jumped to the music. Kara thought that was great, but as she doesn't know how to jump yet, she decided to do a headstand instead. She put her head on the floor and shook her rump in the air to the music. This made Mommy's day.

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Colorado Weather

Colorado has some crazy weather.  On Friday and Saturday, the weather was beautiful.  It was close to 70 degrees and sunny.  By Monday, it was cold and snowy.  The high on Tuesday was somewhere around 2 below zero, and the high today was a balmy 7 degrees.  Let me tell you, it was cold. Kara and Mommy are starting to go a little stir crazy in our little townhouse.

Kara had her first "official" playdate yesterday. There are a couple of kids that live in the neighboring townhouses that are about the same age as Kara. Kara and Mommy had a great time, and it was good to get out of the townhouse for a little while since it was too cold to go anywhere else.

Kara enjoys reorganizing the townhouse (see the videos). She likes putting her puzzle pieces on the shelf (one by one) and then putting them all down on the floor (one by one). She also takes all of her bibs out of the drawer and puts them on the floor. If we're lucky, she'll sometimes put them back (*sometimes*).

Kara's latest things:
- Kara's newest favorite food is blueberries. Mommy swears that Kara could eat an entire pint of blueberries in one sitting, if we let her!
- Kara's getting more affectionate these days. Sometimes, if she feels like it, she'll give Mommy and Daddy hugs and kisses. She gave Daddy a really big hug when he was putting her down for bedtime tonight.
- Kara enjoys reading books. She'll grab a book and then plop down in Mommy or Daddy's lap while they read the books to her.
- Kara's talking a bit more these days. She says things that sound like "doggie", "ball", "balloon", and "all done". She's also getting really good at following simple requests (like bring Daddy the book); however, only when she feels like it. :)

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War Eagle!

We got our second good-sized winter storm of the season on Sunday.  We ended up getting about 6 inches of snow, which isn't bad except it was followed by an arctic front.  The high today was somewhere around 15 deg, and it's not supposed to get much warmer tomorrow.  No playing in the snow for the next couple of days!

Kara wore her Auburn outfit (a Christmas gift from Grandma and Grandpa H.) all day today in support of the Auburn Tigers.  Lucky for Kara, this time worked out better than the last time she wore a team's jersey!  Congratulations to Auburn on winning the National Championship!  War Eagle!

Kara's latest things:
- Kara's starting to get pretty demanding these days.  She'll bring a book or toy over to Mommy or Daddy and then stomp her feet until we read the book to her or play with the toy.
- Kara's beginning to talk a little bit more.  She says something like "Ru ru ru du" when she hears Ernie sing Rubber Duckie (which Mommy and Daddy sing to her during bathtime).
- Mommy and Daddy think Kara will be a very neat little girl.  She enjoys putting things away.  She likes to put books in drawers, dirty clothes in the hamper (along with clean clothes and her toys), and hides her puzzle pieces under our rug.
- Kara seems to understand a lot of what we're saying these days.  She'll follow simple requests.  She also seems to be starting to understand what "No" means.  Whenever we tell her no, she shakes her head and usually stops what she's doing.  Check out the videos below.

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Snow Day!

This past Thursday, we got our first real snow of winter (too bad it was a week after Christmas). We got about 3 inches during the day and another 3 inches during Thursday night. Following the snow was an arctic front, so the high yesterday was about 10 deg F (it was cold!). We spent the day looking at the snow from the warmth of inside. It warmed up a bit today, so we took Kara out to check out the snow and try out her new sled. Kara enjoyed riding around in her sled, but she hasn't quite figured out how to move while in her snowsuit.

Bathtime is becoming much more fun these days. Kara really enjoys splashing around in the tub and playing with all her bath toys. We got some good pictures of Kara having a particularly fun bathtime this past week. Mommy and Daddy can't say they miss the days of the screaming newborn that HATED baths. Ah, memories...

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