The Eagles, Mother's Day, Cereal and the Zoo

The Ulmer's have been very busy the last few weeks since our last post. Jen is back at work and Krysten is spending lots of time with family members during the week who we are forntunate enough to have helping us out. Krysten has become more frequent "baby talk" with quite a few conversations being had per day. She also had her first sleepover at Grandma & Grandpa's house last night so Mommy & Daddy could have a night out. Here are a few other things we have been up to:



Krysten became the worlds newest Philadelphia Eagles fan a few weeks ago when she sported her Philadelphia pride for the first time (don't worry, the Bears outfit will be out in full force come the fall).





Krysten has also shown some progress with being able to hold some of her toys. We are most sucessful with her keys and make sure to give it a try every day. She doesn't really reach for them yet, but will grasp them if put in her hand. Here is a video of one of the first times she did it.

Our first Mother's Day was great. Krysten slept in until 8:00 a.m. (which was her first gift to Mom) and we had to wake her up to get to church on time. Here is Mother and Daughter on their first Mother's Day.



Krysten also spend time with Grandma and Nana on this day, and we were able to take a picture of four generations of Szymaniak women together.

Last weekend we decided it was time to start Krysten on some rice cereal, as she just wasn't seeming very satisfied with just formula anymore. Here is a video of her first meal of cereal.

Since then, she has become a champ with the spoon and eats every last bite.

Daddy likes to play a game with Krysten in which he gets her to stick out her tounge. She has become very adept at this and will now do it frequently without any prompting. Some days if I didn't know better, I would think she is related to Gene Simmons. This picture is a bit blury, but you get the idea.


While Daddy is happy when Krysten wears outfits to support his favorite sports team, Mommy also gets her turn (thank you Aunt Mary!).

Yesterday Krysten had her first trip to the Brookfield Zoo. She was so excited that she slept for most of the time that we were there. She did wake up long enough to eat, have a poopy blowout, and see the monkeys and gorillas in Tropic World. Here she is with Daddy, Auntie Karyn & Sami.

Krysten's Baptism - May 4, 2008

Krysten's Baptism day was Sunday, May 4, 2008. The weather was beautiful and the baby was as cute as could be ...

Here Krysten gets ready for the big event. Krysten wore the same dress that Mommy wore at her Baptism, which was bought for her by Great Grandma Lily Engfer, who we are sure was with us in spirit.

Once at the church, Mommy showed off the pretty baby for all to see

Krysten received the sign of the cross on her forehead from Deacon Chuck

Surrounded by her 4 godparents and Mommy & Daddy, Krysten is Baptized. Although she had been fussy earlier in the ceremony, she did not cry when the water was poured on her head.

With help from cousin Taylor, the Deacon blessed Krysten with oil (she smelled pretty for a week!)

Krysten is presented as the first time to the congregation (along with the 3 other babies baptized that day)

Krysten with Mommy and Daddy after the service ... she was so worn out she couldn't stay awake for the whole thing.

Krysten with proud godparents cousin Kate, Uncle Brian, Uncle Brian, and Aunt Mary

Krysten with Grandma & Grandpa Engfer and Grandmom Ulmer

Krysten with Nana & Papa

The Engfer clan

The Ulmer clan

Krysten Meets Uncle Brian, Uncle John & Aunt Sarah

The Ulmer clan arrived in Naperville this past weekend for Krysten's Baptism. This was the first time Krysten had met Daddy's brothers and future sister-in-law. Needless to say she was a hit and Uncle John wanted to pack her up and take her home with him. Aunt Sarah asked Krysten to be a flower girl in their upcoming wedding next May, to which Krysten excitedly said "yes"!

Uncle John and Aunt Sarah became pros at feeding a baby.

Uncle Brian proved to be a natural.

And Daddy and Krysten showed their Flyers pride as the team won the series on Saturday night. Daddy was very happy his brothers were here to watch the game with him as Mommy doesn't care for hockey too much. Football season will be another story all together.

April Wrap-Up

It's hard to beleive that April has flown by and Krysten is already 2 1/2 months old. We had quite a few adventures these last few weeks. On the 22nd, Krysten had her 2-month check-up at the doctor and weighed in at a whopping 12 pounds 4 ounces, and is now 22 inches long. She is 50th percentile in length and 80th in weight. Needless to say, this girl is solid Engfer-Ulmer. She also received 4 vaccine shots that, which she was not pleased with. Although she did not have a severe reaction, she was just not herself for about 2 days or so. Mommy took the camera with to the doctor, but did not realize that the batter was dead, so sadly there are no picutes from this outing, but here is a random cute one.

The next day was Administrative Professionals day and we went out to lunch with Mommy's favorite administrative staff from to work to thank them for all of their hard work. Krysten was a bit cranky still from her shots, but that didn't deter Kathi Polz from getting in some quality baby time.

Later that week, Mommy introduced Krysten to the Mickey Mouse song and we played with our Mickey rattle. Sadly, Harley and Jovi enjoy playing with Mickey too and he now only has one ear. Krysten still loves him just the same.

The weekend brought a visit to our friends the Holstead's and Krysten spent some quality time with cousins Taylor and Sami.

Sunday was church day and Krysten must not have liked the scriptures for that day because she was so fussy that Daddy had to take her outside for a while. Things were better after church when we went to breakfast with Nanna and Papa and Krysten go her meal too.

One of Krysten's newest developments is the discovery of her right arm and hand. She frequently will make a fist with her right hand and make very controlled movements with her right arm to bring the fist to her face and eventually gets it into her mouth. It is fun to watch the amazement on her face each time she does it, as if it is the first time she realizes that it is there. This short video shows what I am talking about.