Picture Day, 4-month Weigh-In, and Girlfriends

I am such a big boy. Got to pose for my first school pictures a couple weeks ago, when I was 3.5 months old. And yeah, I am darn handsome with my toothless smile. Eat your heart out, ladies!

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But now I'm 4 months old. My mom took me to the doctor on Wednesday, and I now weigh 15 pounds, which puts me right in the middle of all other baby boys my age. I got 4 more shots, too. I cried like a baby during the shots (I'm allowed), and took all of 10 seconds to recover once they were done. What a man, I am!
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One of my many girlfriends came to visit me last weekend, but this one is a little bit more mature and one of my favorites! Check out me and my older girlfriend, Josey Vitale (1.5 yrs), chilling together in the comfy chair in our jammies. She introduced me to Elmo, and I must admit, he's rather addictive. My mom and Josey's mom Jen are already plotting our engagement about 25 years from now.

My Daddy is a Master!

Congratulations, Daddy! We're so proud of you!

This past Sunday, Ben graduated with a Masters in Management of IT from UVA. Our little family of three made the trip, and Lori's good friend Lisa came along for the fun and to help handle lil' Keen, should he have misbehaved. Luckily for all parties involved, the little guy was pretty darn perfect while watching/sleeping/eating through the first two-hour ceremony, and then the second hour and a half one!

A Week of Milestones!

Peacefully asleep on my first road trip

What a busy and momentous week our little man had! He checked many "firsts" off his list. . .

• first day at daycare
• first road trip
• first overnight in the pack n' play
• first time truly sleeping through the night (11 hours!And he's now slept through the night for 5 nights straight. . .pure bliss for mom!)

Keenan enjoyed his first few days at daycare. . .mom had a much harder time with it, and shed a few tears when dropping him off the first day. But, he's in very good hands and seems pretty happy there with Miss Sima, his main caretaker. Mom even got to enjoy a small party honoring new moms at the daycare center on Friday. . .very sweet! He'll go to daycare for 3 days a week until early June when he'll go the full 5 days.

We're also proud of our baby boy for sleeping his way to Jamestown, North Carolina and making the 5 hour trip a breeze for mom and dad--it helped a lot that we left at 8 pm--Keenan's bed time! We all enjoyed our visit with aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, friends, and truly enjoyed celebrating the first communion of Keenan's cousin Sarah. . .she looked gorgeous in her communion gown. We especially loved gobbling the super delish chocolate cake we ate afterwards! Thanks Uncle Brian and Aunt Jen! Keenan made it home with only one serious meltdown in the car, so all in all, our first travel experience with the new lil' man was a good one.

Next predicted milestone: ROLLING OVER! The little guy seems intent on mastering this skill soon. . .he's mastered the leg swing to prop himself on his side, but he hasn't figured out how to conquer the arm obstacle preventing him from going further.

This one's for the ladies . . . a wee British lass, in particular!

The latest news on the international grapevine is that a certain little lady in the UK is smitten with our little baby boy. Three-year-old Keira, daughter of our friends Kim and Paul in the UK, has become smitten with our little man based on his handsome photos and antics displayed on this blog. When we told Keenan about this little British lass' feelings for him, he blushed and insisted on sending her a little message.

We hope to schedule a formal introduction of the three wee ones in late June (Keira has a little brother, too)--photos of their meeting will surely make a future post!

Greetings to Kim, Paul, Keira and Dylan! (P.S. I apologize if I'm spelling your daughter's name wrong. . .I can never remember the "i before e" thing!)

Sleepyheads

This photo shows a typical evening ritual in the Ulrich household. . .my two favorite lazy dudes suffering from food coma on the couch. And yes, they both snore.


Keenan just had his 3-month birthday and he's becoming more and more aware of himself. . .especially his hands. He loves to snap his lips loudly again his fists as a signal to mom that he wants to be fed pronto, or else a meltdown is impending. He can also whip his head around, darting his eyes here and there, and follows whatever piques his interest around him. His smiles get bigger by the day, and his coos are beginning to sound like he's actually trying to say something. He's a great nighttime sleeper and seems to really like his crib--especially the bunny rabbit that circles above him in his mobile. And, he has recently decided that he does not approve of dirty diapers and screams until he gets changed. At least he rewards the diaper changer with smiles and coos as soon as his butt is clean!

Miles O' Smiles

I couldn't resist posting this mini-movie. . .when he smiles, Keenan is irresistibly adorable, at least to his momma. I think his smiles will make you smile, too!

Keenan Goes Wine-Tasting

In the magnolias at the National Arboretum in DC

Keenan had a very busy, fun, and exhausting week with his Grammy and Pop, and the newly-engaged Uncle Mark and Aunt Allison--who were all in town for an extended visit to spend time with the little man. He took in the Bonsai exhibit and flowering cherry and magnolia trees at the National Arboretum in DC, went wine-tasting and shopping in Middleburg, VA, and played a round of mini-golf and disc golf--both while riding in the Baby Bjorn on dad and mom's chest. He also made THREE trips to get ice cream. . .

Chrysalis Winery in Middleburg--Keenan liked Sarah's Patio White wine the best

Keenan made every effort to impress the family with long bouts of unjustified wailing, interspersed with very short breaks for smiles and coos. Sunday night, after everyone headed home to NC and CA, Keenan made history by breaking his current record for consecutive hours of sleep with a whopping 8! He fell asleep at 9 p.m. Sunday night and woke up at 5 a.m. and went to back to sleep until 8 a.m., much to his sleepy mom's delight!

All play and no work makes Keenan a happy guy!

Our little boy has found his smile and loves to share it with us every morning. In the evenings, he opts instead to show off his blood-curdling screams. . .but in this blog, we focus on the positive, so here are some pics of a smiling, playful guy and a more serious pose after just returning from a nature walk with mom.

Keenan had his two-month doctor's appointment, and he is growing like a weed. He now weighs 12 pounds and is 23.5 inches long, putting him in the 60th and 75th percentile ranges for other baby boys his age (up from 20% at 2 weeks!). Needless to say, we've never worried about our little piggy's appetite.

Easter Bunnies at the Eggstravaganza

Happy Easter!
(Or in Lori's mind, Happy Day-to-eat-chocolate-without-feeling-guilty!)

Aunt Kristin and Uncle David hosted their annual superfun Eggstravaganza, and this is the first year we were able to bring our own little tot to enjoy the egghunt and chocolate fondue. Keenan enjoyed riding around on Daddy Ben's chest while Ben searched, and searched, and continued to search for his candy bag. Maybe next year, Keenan will toddle around the yard and join the other kids in their hunt for treasure-filled eggs. Keenan met the Easter bunny, Daddy Ben discovered that some eggs were filled with Rolos, and Mommy Lori devoured more than her fair share of fondue-dipped cream puffs and strawberries. Happiness for everyone!


It was also Grandma Susan's last day in the states before leaving for Turkey to continue her round-the-world sailing adventure. She gave goodbye hugs to our mini-bunny--we'll miss her and look forward to her return in the Fall!

GO BIG RED!

March Madness begins today, and a certain little man wanted to express his support for the Cornell Men's and Women's basketball teams!

Or, perhaps a certain new mom wanted to take the opportunity to play "dress up" with her son.

GO BIG RED!