The Littlest Member of the Family

An update on Kelan:


Kelan & co. are doing well. Unfortunately for the Murray family, they all caught that nasty virus that has been making the rounds. Kelan emerged with just a small eye infection, but the whole episode was not the most fun way to welcome a new baby to the household! Now, things are getting back to normal. Kelan now weighs 7 lbs, 11 oz. and is 20.25" long. He sleeps and eats really well. He is a peaceful little guy, although when he is hungry, he has a not so subtle way of communicating :)

BusyBody

My friend Lydia has been reading the Horse, I mean, the Baby Whisperer in the hopes of soothing her son. She said the author describes five different temperaments "types" of babies. Evidently, she immediately thought of Sydney while reading the "Spirited" type of child.
Admittedly, Sydney is an active baby. Not high strung per se, but definitely a busybody. She is always on the go, loves to have people chase her, gets into anything she can get her hands on, and pretty much puts everything in her mouth. A particular favorite is paper.

Yesterday, Syd went for a nap in the pack and play @ Jude & Lane's house. I pushed the playpen against a desk, as it was darker in that particular corner of the room. After putting Sydney down, and a few minutes of squealing and the like, she went to sleep. When she woke up, I walked in the room, only to find about 15 pieces of paper strewn all over the playpen, and Sydney sitting in the middle of them, sucking her thumb. Somehow she scraped all the papers off the desk, and proceeded to make a small nest out of them. Most surprising was how little of the paper she ate.


So, for your viewing pleasure I've attached a video of Sydney doing some of her usual, stuff, with a smattering of her usual noises. I apologize, the quality of the video isn't the greatest...

Catching Up...

Wow, I can't believe I haven't posted any photos or messages since early February! Where has the time gone! Perhaps I can account for some of it...

Between the three of us, we were sick nearly the entire month of February, with a sinus virus that is still hanging on to Steve's nose. Sydney had her 6 month shots in the middle of the month, which took her a few days to recover from. Then, Syd's two bottom teeth poked out, after a week of fussy behavior! I was quite relieved to know there was an explanation behind Sydney's strike against all things nap related. In addition to the teeth, Syd has developed into a busy little crawler. She moves quite fast, and we've put some gates up to keep her in various parts of the house. She also is quite proud of her ability to pull her self up on nearly anything. She is quite the little explorer! The picture above is Sydney in her kind of geeky 'explorer' hat, lounging on at the pool in Maui.

At the end of the month we went to Maui with Lane & Jude for a week. We all enjoyed ourselves, and had a very relaxing vacation. Steve & I even got out for date night! And then, a few days after we returned, Kelan Jesse Murray officially entered this world on Tuesday, March 11 (see photo above). Erin had a record 45 minute labor (5 mins. of pushing), and since I'm still mentioning it a week later, it's clear that I'm jealous! Ryan, Syd and I were unloading from the car in the hospital parking lot when Jude called me on my cell phone to me that the delivery was over & successful! He is a good baby, likes to eat and really likes to sleep.

Otherwise, Steve has been busy with TVFR work and consulting work that arrives from CA. Sydney and I have joined a neighborhood mom's/kids playgroup, which is fun and we are meeting lots of nice people. We've enjoyed the warmer weather and started to get back into our walking routine. We are looking forward to celebrating Easter at church, and with the rest of the family this weekend.

Queen of the Velvet Throne

I just thought this picture was cute...Sydney's all time favorite place in the world: Mom & Dad's bed. She acts like she's arrived at the pearly gates of heaven when she finds herself here!

BFF's

Sydney entertained her BFF Lauren Koudelka last night, while Steve & I enjoyed the company of her parents, Kurt & Caroline. As couples, we shared the joys of pregnancy and now support each other through first time parenthood. The girls were born just three weeks apart, and before their birth, we deemed them best friends. The picture above demonstrates Syd's latest trick...sneaking away toys, binkys, etc. from other babies. As you can see, the binky is actually Lauren's, but Sydney found it desirable. Seriously, if she sees another baby playing with something, then that toy is instantly a MUST HAVE! And she will just reach over and snatch it from the poor, unsuspecting baby. Is it too early to teach a baby to share?! I mean, I've read that the realization of cause/effect kicks in during the 6+ months...Perhaps Sydney is enacting the"I want it, so I will do what it takes to get it" effect. And Steve thought teaching Sydney to crawl was tough! Now comes the behavior, values and ethics training. Oh, we are SO in for it.

Robe

This robe, a gift courtesy of Grandparents Walter & Faye, has got to be the most amusing article of baby clothing I have ever seen. Who makes a robe for an infant!? I like to think of it as a smoking robe. Add a cigar, an armchair, a roaring fire and Sydney would be an ideal candidate to host the likes of Masterpiece Theater.

Home Sweet Home

We have returned safely from CA and are back home in Portland. We had a great time visiting with family, and especially enjoyed Bob and Cathy's beautiful wedding. It was a touching ceremony, and both Bob & Cathy appear very happy to be finally wed!
In all, traveling with Sydney was about what I expected. Not easy, but not overly difficult. Just kind of tiring. No more whooping it up at the wedding reception until the wee hours of the morning for Steve & Ana...Sydney was pretty much spent by 7 p.m. every night. But, annoyingly for the rest of us, she'd hang in there and keep her eyelids pried open until we would leave. So, for her little world, Syd partied like a rock star...getting to bed at 10 every night. And then short catnaps during the day. What a fantastic combo! But, in all, she held it together and managed to charm most of those around her. Much to Sydney's dismay, the only one who just would not warm up to her was Little Dog (Cathy's American Eskimo small white fluffy dog).
But, in all, we had a great trip and enjoyed ourselves. It was fun to reconnect with family, see how the little ones are getting so big and play a few rounds of Wii!

Of note, the picture above was taken at the wedding reception. Notice how Sydney is lying horizontal, yet strangely, not sleeping. As you can imagine, we left the party shortly after this.