Squeak's Shots

2012..... Here we come!

2012-01-17T23:24:00.000-08:00

I am not one that believes in New Year resolutions because as for many people they never seem to "stick"
I do know that I would like to make more of an effort to update our blog this year.
I seem to become so consumed with all my research and data taking of his sleeping, vitamin supplements, diet, etc I often forget to take a break and reflect on the progress that we are making and share it with our loved ones.

The last 4 months of 2011 are a bit of a blur...faced with many challenges, stress, long sleepless nights I am glad to move into a new year with new hopes

Keagan turned 3 in November which changed the type of therapy he is eligible to receive. Everything now must go thru the school district and if you cant get them to provide or pay for it, you either have to pay out of pocket or go thru the necessary channels to fight and prove why you should have it. Needless to say that is a long process and something new we are still learning about
His IEP was scheduled for end of October. IEP an annual meeting with the school board to review his needs, goals and progress. I was a nervous wreck worrying about this upcoming meeting & spent endless hours researching, reading, attending conferences/parent support groups,etc to get as much knowledge as possible as to what we should expect & ask for in the next phase of therapy

As you can imagine, many many opinions out there depending on who you speak to.
I think that alone increased my anxiety because I had to weigh thru all the information of people I trusted & respected but needed to decide what did or didnt apply for us

The meeting came & went and I did not feel satisfied with what was offered to us but decided to trust and give it a try for agreed amount time. I was convinced we would be demanding a change and in for a battle, something I was not looking forward to. So my search for an attorney and/or parent advocate began. Mark & I decided to take a break, try to enjoy the holidays and then begin our quest for finding the "perfect" school again in January.

Well, on December 1st, we received a phone call at 3am that would changes our lives. Mark's father Peter had a sudden heart attack and passed away unexpectedly.
Our focus quickly changed and we needed to get to England as soon as possible to be with the family.
Mark went ahead and then Kelsie, Keagan &I made the trip across the pond a few days later.

Thankfully, as many people prayed for us, this little boy was an ANGEL on the plane. He played with his cars, looked at his books, watched movies, slept when he needed to, not one meltdown to speak of.

We arrived in England on December 7th greeted by friends and family but most importantly Nanny.

I am so thankful that we were all (almost all of us) able to be together for a few weeks during this difficult time and able to spend Christmas together. Of course we wish it had been under different circumstances, but I think it was very therapeutic for everyone to have us all together

Ready to say goodbye to Grandad

It was a very cold, but clear day, the rain held out which was an answer to prayer.

It was a tough day to say goodbye, but was wonderful to see how many people turned up to show their

love & respect for Grandad

Doing some Christmas shopping in Hatfield. England still closes all their shops at 5pm on Sundays, that includes Grocery stores, even during the Christmas season. Something that would be unimaginable in the US, but would be a nice change of pace for all of us to actually have "family time"

The town of Chatteris at Christmas is beautiful lights down every main street

On Christmas Eve we took a nice drive down to the coast or shall I say it the English way "The Seaside" not far from where the Royal family was celebrating at Sandringham
We treated ourselves to Fish & Chips but a little too cold for the famous ice cream, so we settled for some sweets at the Candy Shoppe

Lucky for me a new Tesco had opened near by since last time we were there so I was able to take a quick peak inside...I could write a whole post on Tesco...love that place!!

Christmas morning we were lucky to spend with Julian, Kelly & the girls. I will have to post some videos of them opening their gifts, Jamie was a crack up, never heard her talk so much...can we say EXCITED!!! Father Christmas was good to them :)

We came back with Nanny in the late afternoon and enjoyed our Christmas Feast, followed by games, drinks and more food, isn't that what the holidays are all about!

Mark surprised Julian and his 2 older children Josh & Ella with tickets to the Man United game on Boxing day. It was nice to see the 4 of them do something special together, even though it was the "REDS"

The Girls...Mollie Mae & Jaime

So back to reality in the USA, we will miss all our Friends and family in the UK until our next visit.

Will it be State side? Only time will tell

Hello 2012

Looking forward to making many memories with friends & family

Continued prayers for progress with our son

Health & happiness to all!

We've been busy, time to catch you up! (part 1)

2011-08-22T00:58:00.000-07:00

The Nutter Family came to visit with us in Feburary for a few weeks, all 8 of them

We had a houseful, but TONS of fun!

Our adventure started off in Disneyland..

Ready....Set.....GO!

Bugs Life

Good 'Ole Uncle Ju

What a good looking group!

Princesses

Lots of Teasing :)

Spectacular Views from our Hotel

Day 2, Here we go!

Yummy Yummy Ice Cream

Daddy & Me

After Disneyland we took a trip up to Lake Tahoe, I have to say in all the years I cant remember there being so much snow! We actually got snowed in and delayed the troops an extra day from hitting the slopes
Thankfully the snow plow came thru, which was a good thing, we were all getting cabin fever, literally!

Games were played

Snow Angels

Lots of shoveling was needed

These 2 little ones couldnt stay away from each other, too cute!

Gorgeous Tahoe

I will continue my next post with the BIG 40, day trips & more!

February is Upon Us

2011-01-27T00:27:00.000-08:00

Kelsie had a busy January, she attended Castro Valley High's Winter Ball and then Homecoming Banquet at her school. She looked sooo Beautiful on both occaisions we just had to dedicate a post all to our Sissy... We Love Ya Kels!

We are looking forward to a busy and eventful February...Grandparents, Aunt,Uncle & all 4 cousins from England will be visting and we have some fun trips planned so lots to share with you all in the next coming weeks

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

2011-01-03T23:18:00.000-08:00

Excitement is in the air!

Trip to SF on Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve Tradition..Cousin Sleepover

Christmas Morning....

My Babes :)

The Cunha's

Getting into it

Here we are in 2011, unbelievable! I know it is such a cliche, but how time flies!

We just moved into our new home December 3rd, and was grateful to be able share it with our Family & Friends.

Keagan is doing well with all his therapy and seeing improvements every week

Kelsie is a senior in High School and will be graduating in June

Lots to look forward to in 2011

Happy Birthday Keagan ~part 2

2010-11-03T22:55:00.000-07:00

Party at Super Franks....Here in the Barnyard

In the safari room

singing His favorite song...Happy Birthday to you!!!

The cake

Opening gifts after a long day....but yes he scored on cars!

The day after admiring his loot!

Happy 2nd Birthday Little Man

2010-11-02T23:32:00.000-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KEAGAN!!!

He must have known his big day is coming because he has just now fallen asleep, yes at 11:30pm!!

He has just been so jolly all night long, it was fun to just "hang out".

Daddy couldn't keep his eyes open anymore and he retired about 11pm, so Keagan and I cuddled up on the couch and soon he too finally closed his eyes for the night

Should I sleep or should I catch up on one of the 100 projects I have to do???

Decisions decisions, so here I am..I have neglected our blog lately and this was a perfect opportunity to do a little catching up

I wanted to post a few pictures of Halloween & ouradventure to the pumpkin patch last Saturday evening.

He absolutely wore himself out that night and slept in till 10 am the next morning! Too bad that place isn't open every weekend

Our Cheesy Sheriff Woody

Birthday pictures to follow.....

Very Relaxing HairCut

2010-09-06T08:31:00.000-07:00

We decided to try a new place to get Keagan's haircut and wanted to see what he thought about it, but we will have to see next time around since he SLEPT thru the entire haircut

Daddy stood next to him and held his head up so the hairdresser could do her thing

Even the clippers and blow dryer didnt waken prince charming

Here is the aftershot....he is thinking "what just happened?"

Average Monday

2010-08-16T23:17:00.000-07:00

Today was just a normal Monday for us at home but we managed to catch squeaks on film while doing a few "new" things
He is getting better at feeding himself with utensils...even though he requires a bath directly after the meal!

He also has overcome his fear of his police car and actually got inside instead of just pushing it around...he still needs to practice getting both feet in but he is getting the hang of it!

Summertime 2010

2010-07-29T20:35:00.000-07:00

We are really starting to enjoy this warm summer weather.
Keagan continues to enjoy the water and we taking him swimming any chance we can get
Today we attended a birthday party for one of the girls on Mark's u12 team and Keagan was able to join them in the pool, fearless he is!

We took a trip down to San Diego earlier this month (for a soccer tournament of course), we treated the kids (Kelsie, Maddy, Ocean & Skylar) to a few days at Disneyland on the way back

I was pleasantly surprised that Keagan was not afraid of the characters, we got very lucky and saw a few of his favorites! The weather was perfect, a little hot at times, but the evenings were lovely. We saw the new World of Color show which was very impressive, way to go Disney!

The lines were a bit long but thanks to fast pass and the baby switch we were able to get all the rides in that we wanted...I have to admit I am getting a little old to last an entire 15 hours in the park! Mark and Keagan would take breaks and go back to the hotel for a swim & nap and then join us back in the park for the evening festivities...He LOVED the fireworks another thing that surprised me.Disney does it big and it is very loud but didnt faze him in the slightest!

As he grows, Keagan continues to amaze me with his gentle and sweet spirit. He loves to give big bear hugs and sit and cuddle which just melts your heart. He loves to laugh and his giggle is contagious!

It seems unbeleivable that he will soon be blowing out the candles on his 2nd Birthday cake very soon., but for now we will enjoy our summer having little day trips to the park, the zoo and next on the list is Chuckie Cheese! Since I have had a change in my work schedule for the time being, I plan to take a few hours during the week to have a "special day" out with him, so I will have some pictures to share of our Adventures in August!

See you soon!

Shame on Mommy

2010-05-31T12:19:00.001-07:00

I cant beleive we are so behind! Time to get everyone caught up....

Here we are on Memorial Day and finally seeing some Summer- like weather which is great news for Squeaks! He loves to be outside and all this rain has kept in indoors more than he likes

So where to begin...We purchased a water table for him about a month ago and he loves that thing..it can be 50 degrees outside and he doesnt mind getting wet or anyone else wet who dares to come close!

He loves putting rocks down any drain pipe he can find...probably not a great idea but it is fun!

On his 18month birthday we were on a plane headed to England to vist all his aunts, uncles, cousins & grandparents. He was so good on the plane we actually had to wake him up after we landing in London..the trip home was during the daytime & I was worried he wouldnt do as well, but to my surprise he took a nice long nap, watched a few movies, and had SEVERAL snacks..Not one melt down..way to go Squeaks we were so proud of you..such the seasoned traveler!3 hours into the flight and he went to sleep =)Still the middle of the night in the US~ I need my beauty rest!
Cousins!!!

Aunts & Uncles

Nanny & Grandad ( I dont want to go home!)

The Fish shop

Nanny & Grandads House

Kelly & Jamie ...........................Julian & Kids........................... Grandad & the drain

The infamous....Mollie Mae

TO BE CONTINUED....

16 months & counting....

2010-03-26T15:42:00.000-07:00

Keagan is up on his feeting and getting quicker everyday. We are afraid that he will soon walk as fast as he crawled. Being on 2 feet also comes with more curiousty he has discoverd every possible cabinet, drawer etc., giving us more things to child proof everyday.

We have arelady had to do some rearranging of furniture, getting rid of anything a climbing little moneky could pull on top of himself!

This month we treated ourselves to a day at Disney on Ice...featuring non other than Lighting McQueen & Mater unfourtnatley their part of the show was too short, but we did enjoy the Little Mermaid & Lion King. However if Keagn could talk I think he would say his favorite part was the Chicken Tenders!!! Yes, he still loves to eat =)

We also had our second haircut last week, we just didnt cut off enough last time and was already looking shaggy...this cut is the best!!! He looks like a big boy now

Here is the before shot

And after..sooooo handsome!

We still are going to gymboree every Friday, he really enjoys playing with all the chidlren and loves the music, bubbles and of course parachute time. He gets so excited and squeals in delight when his favorite song comes on.

Here are a couple precious moments I caught with him & Big Sis

1st Haircut

2010-02-14T11:35:00.001-08:00

So i finally broke down and allowed myself to take him in for a haircut.
He was starting to looking a little "scruffy", I knew it was time.
I hated to cut off all his baby hair and adorable curls, so we compromised and trimmed around the edges for now.

We found a childrens salon in Fremont. I read the reviews and it sounded like a fun place to visit
All the chairs were cars, jeeps or motorcycles. They had video games & movies running in the background
I wasnt so sure when we walked in they seem busy and frazzled.
Although cutting a screaming chlids hair and having to put earplugs in to do it would make me frazzled too (no it wasnt Keagan the poor boy ahead of him)

(Before..The Scruffy Little Boy)

When it was his turn we plopped him in his car and right away he started playing with the steering wheel having a good ole time. He was very coopertive the entire time never made a sound. She kept giving him little hugs think she was thankful to have such a calm one this time around!
She had a envelope to keep the hair and even made him a "1st Haricut Certificate" with a lock of his hair tapped to it!
(The after shot...soooo cute)

We (Mark, Skylar, Keagan & myslef) rewarded ourselves with a stop at Baskin Robbins for some frozen yogurt, another first for Keagan.. It was a lovely day =)

15 Months Already!

2010-02-04T08:46:00.000-08:00

Yesterday marked 15 months for Mr. Keagan...where does the time go?

He just started a play group at Gymboree, and he loves it..he has already been promoted to the older group..Teacher thinks he is so active the younger class is too easy for him
We are not sure if that is a compliment or not?

Active...really? We always thought he was a mellow easy going little guy unitl the past few weeks. He wants to explore EVERYTHING!
He just loves to climb in/on anything & everything, into baskets up & down stairs, chairs, sofa, beds you name he is on it! Reminds me alot of his sister at this age!

Can anyone guess what we had for dinner? He loves his food and I think Lasagna is now one of his favorites

Merry After Christmas!

2010-01-19T18:56:00.000-08:00

Family Shot Christmas 2009

This was Squeaks 2nd Christmas and he was definetly more interested than he was last year

Christmas morning was full of Cars!

We had Christmas dinner at Grammies. We were excited for Keagan to have a chance to play with his little cousin who live in Redding and dont get to see them often

Aunt Terry, Donovan, Sarah & Bryce joined us for dessert. It was great to watch the little ones together. This is something I have fond memories of. Holidays & all the cousins...good times!

Keagan loved all the lights and decorations that everyone had in & outside their homes

We really enjoyed our evening out at the Oakland Zoo for Zoo Lights.

It was nice to spend some time with cousins Claire, Josh, Jen & Skylar

The train ride & Carousel were the highlight of the evening

The Loves of my life!
Merry Christmas

Birthday Party & Grandparents

2009-11-29T18:33:00.000-08:00

So November has come & gone....it has been another busy month

We started off with Keagan's first birthday on November 3rd and then we had his Party on November 8th...boy did we have a house full!

Nanny & Grandad Nutter have been visitng with us from England and just had to fly back yesterday, but here are some pictures of our time together.

Aquarium @ Mandaly Bay ~Vegas

Pier 39 & Aquarium of the Bay

San Leandro Marina
Grandad & Cars

Going for a walk
Oakland Zoo on Birthday

They went to Las Vegas with us in October, and then we did several day trips to the Oakland zoo (on Keagan's Birthday) San Francisco Pier 39 & Aquarium, California Academy of Science & lots of shopping, Nanny's favorite!

Disneyland, Las Vegas, Halloween & MORE....

2009-11-09T16:19:00.000-08:00

So I have been lagging on updating my blog again, so here we go....

We have had a busy couple months and Keagan has become quite the traveler
Cousin Skibbie won tickets to disneyland on a radio station so we took a little trip to visit Mickey

On his favorite ride, Small World

in line to see Crush & Nemo!
~

group shot in front of the castle

Inside the Haunted MansionEnd of Day 1 of Disneyland!

So we got back form Disneyland just in time to wash clothes and get on a plane to Las VEGAS!!! THis was Keagan's second ride on a big airplane and he did great, fell asleep soon after take off and didn't wake up until we landed! We had grat weather and lots of soccer with cousin Skibbie!

M& M World

On the Strip

This is why mommy didn't get much sleep!

Inside the Shark Reef Experience

Me & Skibbie on the plane

Happy Birthday Keagan!!!!

2009-11-03T21:55:00.000-08:00

I would like to say Happy Birthday to my son, Keagan Alexander.
It is hard to believe an entire year has gone by.
We feel so blessed that God brought you into our family and we look forward to watching you grow over the years. So much joy has been brought into all of our lives because of you!
Happy Birthday Keagan, we love you very much!

10 Months and counting....

2009-09-14T17:08:00.001-07:00

Let me introduce you to Sponge Bob... He has 7 teeth now and knows how to use them

Daddy is a little concerned about the gap in between the front 2 teeth but we reassured him that will change besides we think it is cute :)

We have spent lots of time out on the soccer fields the past few weeks

Kelsie is back to playing again - YEAH!!!

Here he is sporting sissy's #12~ so cute, her own cheering section

He is really into music right now, so we keep the radio on for him as he plays and every so often we catch him busting a move. He also loves to read and he will sit and read to himself, very sweet to hear him "talking". speaking of talking our vocabulary is growing he says mama, dada and now dog, daddy isn't pleased about that one, so now he is determined the next word will be ball, we shall see

More Pics of the Big Boy

9 Months Old

2009-08-03T21:20:00.000-07:00

We have had a fun weekend together Squeaks & I, Kelsie had a soccer tournament and Mark had SEVERAL tournaments to attend, So the boy & I spent some quality mommy & me time together

He caught a cold when we got back from San Diego, so been a little under the weather and not as "jolly" as he normally is, however we have discovered that the "cold" may not be a cold after all

He has 4 new teeth coming in, all at once, so I can understand why he might be feeling a little crabby!

This first picture says it all..

I decided to have some professional pictures done with just the 2 of us, something I always wish I had done with Kelsie. Unfortunately he fell asleep in the car on the way and had to wake him up, so he wasn't in the mood, but we caught some good smiles between a tear or two.

Here are a couple shots of us...

Warming up to the camera

Finally getting into it :)

We decided to take a ride out to see one of the girls games, even though Kelsie is on the bench for a few more weeks, thats a whole other story.....

It was a nice ride over the bridge watching the planes come into the SF airport. The fields were in a great location and we were able to take a little stroll as well. It was nice to get out in the fresh air and he enjoyed al the sights & sounds

He always gets plenty of attention when we go out and I knew he needed some extra distractions that day. He does enjoying watching the girls play, the constant movement captures his attention, it won't be long before it will be him I am out there watching!

We also had a weekend of firsts... he has officailly started crawling and boy he is getting the hang of it FAST!! He is into anything & everything, so the baby proofing has begun

Typical boy, jsut has to see how everything works

He is able to get himself up in a sitting position from his stomach, that took him awhile to figure out how ot get his legs to cooperate! And then the bathtub, he has graduated to a big boy tub in our big tub and loves to SPLASH!!!

Time to Catch up again!

2009-07-23T23:45:00.000-07:00

Ready to board the plane

Ready for take off!

Inside the "Shark Experience"

I Love my new hat!

This is a BIG fish

July has flown by, Squeaks is already 8 months and will celebrate his 9 month Birthday on August 3rd!

We just got back from a great vacation in San Diego. Kelsie had a soccer tournament so we went down a few days early to visit Sea World & San Diego Zoo.

Aside from the extreme temperatures & humidity we all had a great time

Here are some pictures from our week.....

Not sure about being up high in the skyride, holding on tight to Daddy!

Waiting for Shamu

Swimming in big pool with Sis & Daddy

Koala

Sisterly Love

2009-07-01T23:52:00.000-07:00

Peek - a -boo
I see you!

Going for a ride

Sister style...Poor Keagan, he doesn't stand a chance. We all knew the day would come when he would become the target. Kelsie has "tortured" every pet, friend, family member so why should her baby brother be any different.? Once he starts talking and can tell on her things will be a little different, but for now he smiles, laughs and loves her to death!!!

Our future business man...

Father's Day 2009

2009-06-30T12:56:00.001-07:00

We made a Father's day book for Mark here are just a few pictures ~ more to follow

I have a few of them together in their suits~too cute

7 Months Old

2009-06-09T10:36:00.001-07:00

Mr. Happy!

Yummy Yummy Sweet Potato

sitting up like a big boy!

Can you see my teeth?

June 3rd marked Keagan's 7 month b-day.

He is now able to sit up on his own and has 2 teeth

He has been working on these teeth for about a month but you can really see them now

If he gets a hold of your finger he will show you how sharp they are too!

Catching up

2009-06-08T09:20:00.000-07:00

Sweet Sixteen!

Time to catch up...May is a busy month for our family, from Mother's Day to Birthdays

Kelsie celebrated her Sweet Sixteen on May 26th, here are some photos of her sharing her birthday crown with her little bro.

Mother's Day '09

2009-05-19T18:27:00.001-07:00

Sunday May 10th, Mothers' Day
We all enjoyed brunch together at the Hilton.
This used to be a tradition for Easter, but decided to try something new this year
It was delicious as always...love those belgin waffles!

A Mothers Day family portrait...we are all full and happy :)

Grammie & baby Keagan at Brunch, he was frustrated he couldn't eat everything he saw so he decided to fall asleep instead!

Me & my beautiful kids! :)

After brunch we took a drive over to the Marin Headlines and spent some time on the beach!

Sarah soaking up the rays....

Grammie and Keagan snuggling up to keep warm1st family pictures on the beach. Keagan really enjoyed watching the waves, something we will do more of this summer!

Happy 6 months B-DAY Squeaks!

2009-05-03T21:12:00.001-07:00

Today is Squeaks 6 months birthday ~ I can't beleive it already!

We have started eating solids and enjoying carrots at the minute

He got his high chair this weekend, because we found it a little difficult to hit a moving target and he ends up wearing more food than he eats!

Here are a few pic from our "party" this evening

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Squeaks, We love you!

1st Trip to the Zoo

2009-04-27T22:55:00.001-07:00

We had our first trip to the zoo last week, however we couldn't have picked a worse day to go. When it took us nearly 15 minutes to exit the freeway we should of had a clue! It was toddlers day, the biggest zoo day of the year and we happened to witness it for ourselves. Every toddler in Oakland must have been there, so needless to say it was a bit crazy and we decided to cut our visit short and try another day when there is less traffic

I haven't been to the Oakland Zoo in a long time, but from what I saw they have done a very nice job remodeling the place, I look forward to going again soon!

Just some more pics of little man, I love to watch him as he sleeps and find I take alot of photos of him in his peaceful state.

He really has been enjoying his tummy time more, he wiggles all over the place and ends up in the opposite direction I left him! Oh dear the days of keeping him corralled are numbered!

Heat Wave

2009-04-24T22:20:00.001-07:00

Hard to believe we started the week at 90 degrees, but here are some shots of Squeaks during his 1st heat wave!

Happy Easter!

2009-04-13T21:42:00.001-07:00

We had a busy little weekend and really feeling it today. I feel so tired I have had a terrible timing getting anything done, I keep forgeting what I was trying to do...

We did some much needed spring cleaning on Saturday and even wore poor Squeaks out!He got so tired from watching us work, he feel asleep in his bumbo

Yesterday we got together at my parents house, ate till we wanted to pop and of course had the Anuual easter egg hunt! These kids are getting too good, although Sarah & I still got it and made them work for every last egg!

Here are some pictures from the weekend..

Growing Up Fast

2009-03-30T22:25:00.000-07:00

Its hard to believe our dear little squeaks is 5 months old this week.
He is so much fun and has alot of little "tricks" now he can entertain us with. Rolling over and wiggling all over the place while on his activity mat, crawling is not far off I can see it now!
He is always smiling & laughing, such a happy little guy.

He loves the sound of his own voice and will chat away to anyone who will listen.His latest interest are his feet. The socks come off and toes in the mouth every chance he can get!

This weekend Kelsie & I were able to get some time together while the boys hung out~guess where, a soccer game! Here is a picture of Squeaks in his jeans, looking like a big boy on his day out with daddy.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2009-03-17T23:04:00.000-07:00

Little Man was not his cheery self today, we weren't able to even squeeze out a few grins for the camera.Maybe it was the fact that mom made him wear this ridiculous outfit today.

Happy St. Patrick's Day Squeaks :)

Bumbo, Simple but great invention

2009-03-11T23:35:00.000-07:00

Our house is full of baby 'gadgets" but the bumbo is the hot ticket this week He loves this thing! He has every other invention that flashes lights and sings to him.. and he prefers to sit in his chair and just take in all that goes on around him, go figure!

New to Blogging

2009-03-11T23:19:00.000-07:00

We are new to this blogging stuff, but thought it was a great way to share our son with friends & family
Enjoy some pictures of the first 4 months of his life