18 month check up

Karmann had her 18 month check up Monday and she is just under 21 lbs, and her height has gotten up to 31 3/4" already! So she's tall and skinny! She also received her MMR and Hep A vaccinations - poor baby! But she's doing just fine, with a little bit of clingy-ness and cranky-ness that isn't anything we can't handle.

Kris has also been working like mad getting the interior framing done on the house in preparation for the plumber. Hopefully they will be starting next week. I've taken on deciding on the kitchen design and trying to figure out the lighting for at least that space. Hopefully, now, we can afford it!

We are looking forward to the holiday weekend and here's a few photos from the last week or so...

Downstairs wall dividing living and bathroom

Dividing wall for office and bathroom

Karmann helping to keep her room swept up!

Dividing wall between bedrooms and kitchen/dining areas upstairs

From top of stair looking toward kitchen area

Karmann's window on the stair landing

Hungry Karmann eating an apple

She loves apples!!!

Happy Father's Day and Happy 18 month Birthday!

Happy Father's Day Kris and Happy 18 month birthday Karmann! We aren't doing much today - we visited Grandpa in Deltona last night and this morning, and now we are back in O-town. Kris is working on the house and Karmann just happens to be taking a nap! Time for a quick blog entry...

Yesterday we picked up our new fridge that will be in our new kitchen at the house. I am so excited I can't stand it! A big Thank you goes out to Alberto for helping us get it to the condo! "Mr. Liebherr" will be our special guest at the condo till it is ready to be installed at the house! I am happy to have it around!

Also, last week we had a USGBC local chapter event at the house. This was a tour of the construction and question/answer session regarding the "green" elements and technology we are using. There were 30 people that showed up!!! (That's a great turn out for a chapter event!) It lightly rained that evening which kept it cooler, and probably kept a few people away, too. We met quite a few new people and made some interesting contacts, too.

As you can see in the photos, Karmann is starting to get the hang of using a spoon to eat. Though she can't decide which hand is more efficient, she at least is coordinated enough to try with both! We still have no clue if she is going to be right or left handed. Anyway, its been a quick fun weekend so far! Hope all the dads had a great weekend too!

There it is!

Kris and Karmann busy on their lap-tops!!

Visiting the Herzog & de Meuron parking garage, Lincoln St. Miami Beach

http://www.1111lincolnroad.com/flash.html

Wes, Kris, and Rebecca hanging out at the condo

Thursday night sponsor party - 40th fl. of the Setai Hotel

Cousins Karmann and Amara reading books

Karmann coloring a picture for Grammy

Last week, Karmann was lucky to have Grammy come down to Orlando and stay with her while Kris and I attended the AIA National Convention in Miami Beach for 4 days. This was our first trip away from Karmann - for more than 1 night! Needless to say, we all survived and each had a great time! A huge THANK YOU goes out to Deb for taking care of Karmann while we were on the trip!!!

Miami Beach was a lot of fun and was very much needed as a professional rejuvenation - for me at least! We stayed in a NICE condo with our good friends Wes and Rebecca right in the heart of Miami Beach, just a few blocks from the convention center and Lincoln Street. It was great to park the car on Wednesday when we got there, and not have to move it until Sunday when we left. We could get everywhere we needed to by walking - imagine that!! Miami Beach is definitely a place of its own. Though I felt a little out of place, it didn't stop us from having a great time! And, I don't know who thought it would be a good idea to have a convention in June in Miami, because the heat and humidity was a little rough to deal with, but then again, we live in Florida, so what are we complaining about!?! Anyway, Kris enjoyed his first visit there, too, so I'm sure we will be back sometime soon.

In the mean time, Karmann and Grammy had a great time together! They too had to deal with the heat, but played in the little inflatable pool on the back patio and played inside, too. They also took walks in the evening to get out of the house! Karmann started to say "there it is!" with perfect intonation and meaning. It is so cute! She also learned how to "jump" or at least try to jump when you ask her to - she bends her knees and lifts her arms up and slightly gets air off of the floor! She loves doing it too!

I also have to mark June 9th as the last time I nursed Karmann. We had hoped to be weened by this trip, but wasn't quite. So, knowing she'd be away from me for 4 days, we'd see how she's do. And, she did fine! She went to bed fine and slept all night for Grammy the whole time! Grammy did have to hide the boppy pillow, because if she saw that she'd grab it and want to nurse, but after the first time, she didn't do that again. I had taken my pump with me to Miami in case I was uncomfortable, however, when I barely extracted anything the first night, I realized there wasn't much there in the first place, so I'd just not pump again and see what happens. I was fine! When I got home, I continued the bedtime process that she and Grammy had been doing, and we've been fine ever since!! Now I just have to find a way to keep my weight off and stay healthy!! I'm working on that plan!

Memorial Day weekend

Swimming at our pool - Sunday's ladybug swimsuit

local "Me-Me" joined us

K & Me Me walking the pool deck

Monday's swimsuit - also got a new pool floaty-thing and loved it!!

Oskar Rocket visiting the house

and his little brother Ben visited too!

Karmann's new word - Apple - and she likes to eat them too!

Grandpa came to hang out Saturday and Sunday.

Friday night at the neighborhood Hurricane Party (hurricane season started June 1st) - also cheering on the Magic, who ended up loosing the game.

As you can see, we had a busy fun Memorial Day weekend. Kris also got a lot of work done on the house, and we also purchased our refrigerator (will save the story for another blog entry.) The weather is hot, humid, and afternoon showers...summer has begun!! Hope everyone had a great break and welcome Summer!!

Journey to Sanibel Island

Karmann meeting the puppies at Beth & Al Pontecore's house - Venice, FL

Beth & Karmann after dinner

Karmann's first time in a pool!

Karmann reading Oren the kid's menu in Sanibel, FL

Sara with her hands full!!

Kris & Karmann at the beach - Sanibel

Playing together

Two weeks ago, we drove down to Sanibel Island to visit our good friends Todd & Sara, who were on vacation, and to finally meet their son Oren. Sara was expecting the last time we saw them, so it was really great to finally meet Oren and have the two little ones get acquainted!

The drive is about 4 hours, but we also have good friends, Beth & Al, who live in Venice, FL, which is about at the half-way mark from Orlando, so we decided to pop in on them while on the way! We always enjoy hanging out with Beth & Al, who are basically an aunt and uncle to me (and now to Karmann too!) Karmann had a great time chasing the puppies around, and Kris even captured a few geckos out on the porch for Beth, too! (They were released from the vacuum alive and unharmed.) Though our visit was short, we look forward to seeing them again soon! I think Al got a group shot, so if I get a copy, I'll post it here.

By the time we got to the hotel (just on the edge of Ft. Myers), Karmann was ready for bed. You never know what she's going to be like in the pack-n-play in a hotel room - she doesn't have a good track record (refer to last year's marathon in Cocoa Beach). The first night wasn't too bad. The next day, we headed over to T+S's condo to go to the beach and hang out at the pool. Both Karmann and Oren had a great time! They even both took naps and were fairly behaved at dinner, too. Karmann started to get a little cranky by the end of dinner, but she'd had a fun full day, so we headed back to the hotel shortly after.

However, that night, she would not go to sleep. Kris and I were exhausted too, so we first brought her into the bed to see if she'd calm down. She did not. In fact, it seemed to have the opposite effect! So much that it reminded me of how she was on the airplane ride home (5-hour leg) just a week before! And, as a slight relief, Kris finally got to experience that side of Missy K in real life! It actually made me laugh as he was seeing this first hand. Finally, we turned off all the lights, put her in her pack-n-play, and we both laid still on the bed. Next thing I remember was waking up the next morning!! Sometimes you just have to let her cry it out, and before you know it - everyone gets a good night's sleep!

The next morning we had another quick visit with T+S+O, and then got in the car so Karmann could take her nap for the majority of the drive back. It worked out really well and she behaved when she was awake the last hour or so. It was a great trip and we look forward to doing it again soon! My only wish is that we had better pictures (and a picture of all 6 of us!!) But we'll try again next year!!