The Lyon Family

Christmas Picture Overload!

2009-12-27T20:50:00.012-05:00

So, we are terrible bloggers! We started this as a way to share photos with our family and friends across the country, but in order to do that we need to actually post them! So sorry!

Makenna had an amazing first Christmas. It was so much fun to watch her eyes light up when she saw all her loved ones around and all of her new toys. She was especially excited about her Fisher Price barn! We spent Christmas morning at our home opening gifts from Santa, spent a few hours with Nicki's family and the afternoon and evening with the Lyon family. The following is just a glimpse into our Christmas festivities. We are so blessed to have so many friends and family members around! Merry (late) Christmas and Happy New Year!

For those of you who didn't get a Christmas card:

Our tree and stockings:

Makenna says, "Thank you for my bib aunt Mandy!":

Christmas Morning:

Christmas with the Seabold and Lyon families:

Seattle

2009-08-25T20:59:00.009-04:00

Just a quick post to share some of our favorite pictures from our vacation to Seattle. Enjoy!

Beautiful view of Seattle

Makenna was so good traveling!

At Ocean Shores...Makenna's 1st time at the beach!

Pete and Nathanael tried to trick her into being a Mariner's Fan

Family picture from the top of the Space Needle!

Makenna is 6 Months Old!!

2009-07-15T20:55:00.010-04:00

It's hard to believe that Makenna is already 6 months old. She is growing up so fast! We tried to have a photo shoot in the front yard to get some good 6 month pictures but she refused to smile.

We enjoyed a crazy, and rainy, 4th of July with the Seabold family. Makenna was so patriotic! Check out the American flag dress (and Dad's sweet hat)...

Makenna is also eating baby food now, like a big girl. She is still kinda messy, but it is alot of fun!

Next week we go out to Seattle for family vacation/reunion...we will post pictures of the trip when we return. Please pray Makenna is a good traveler for us! :)

Little Miss Hollywood

2009-06-14T11:45:00.003-04:00

5 Months

2009-06-09T20:47:00.011-04:00

Pete is really bad at updating this blog so I thought I would add some recent pictures of Makenna. She is now 5 months old--it is amazing how fast she is growing up!!! At her last doctor's appointment (4 mo, 2 wks) she weighed in at a hefty 15 pounds and 25 1/2 inches long!

Last weekend I had the honor to be in my beautiful cousin Ashley's wedding. Of course, Makenna just had to show up mom and look ADORABLE!! We got lots of compliments on the flower :)

Makenna and Aunt Kiki...

Makenna with the beautiful bride...

BUMBO

2009-05-11T20:58:00.004-04:00

To begin this update I would like to say that I am a giant blog-writing failure. I am working on my lack of blog posts and hope that in the future I will update more than once every two months. Now then, on to Makenna!

Since our last update, Makenna recieved her bumbo in the mail...

As you can see, between the bumbo and her "keys", she is pretty content with life, even though the devil is looking over her shoulder (oh, thats my cat? same thing). She has been sitting for longer periods of time each week and she seems to enjoy it. I think they look pretty comfortable myself, which leads me to believe there may be a market for adult bumbos. Ok, probably not, but anyways...

I recently purchased the MLB Extra Innings package so that I could watch all the Mariners games. This allows for great father daughter time. As you can see below, Makenna loves watching the games with me! This is probably my favorite picture ever taken of any living thing in the history of mankind...

Finally, there is a little video taken about a month ago when Makenna first began to smile. Of course, once the camera came out, she stopped smiling immediately. I think there might be one smile in there somewhere...

Easter Fun!

2009-04-12T20:00:00.004-04:00

From St. Patricks Day to Easter...we apologize for the lack of updates, but it seems as though we are more busy now that we have a child. Imagine that! Easter arrived, a few days after Makenna was officially 3 months old, and she received her first gifts from the Easter Bunny. Surprisingly, she didn't pay attention to any of it. But at least her parents enjoyed giving it to her!

The night before Easter we went to Grandma and Grandpa Seabolds house to dye eggs (and eat 3 pounds of sugar cookies). As you can see in the picure, Nicki and Makenna are pretty good at designing their eggs and dad...well...uses stickers. After dying all those eggs it was time for bed to dream about the arrival of the easter bunny and the fantastic easter dress that awaited...

As you can see, Makenna is pretty happy in the pictures. That may be because she cried through the whole church service (we were sitting a little close to the percussion section) and she was happy to be out of there. But it is more likely because of the amazing easter outfit that mom spent countless hours putting together :) Overall, Makenna's first easter was great!

Doctor, St. Patty's Day, and March Madness!

2009-03-19T19:43:00.003-04:00

Makenna recently had her two month check up and everything looked great! She recieved a few shots (she got a mini-cinderella sticker, so she was ok) and was measured and weighed. She weighed 10 lbs. 8 oz. (which is normal) and was 22 1/2 in. long (a little above average). (Side note, they measured her head and it was in the 70th percentile. Unfortunately, I guess she inherited her dads huge dome!)

Next up, St. Patricks Day! As you can see in the picture above, Makenna was representing her Irish heritage. She hit the bottle pretty hard all day long, but didn't seem to feel any ill-effects the next day...

Bath time! She loves to take baths. I'm not sure if it is the warm water or the amazing rain-forest bath tub she has....

March Madness has arrived! The above pictures were taken while Makenna and I watched the Washington Huskies blow out some southern team. Or, I should say, that was us WISHING we were watching the Washington Huskies game, because it wasn't on TV! We did get some valuable bonding time in during the Michigan game. I can already tell that she loves watching sports. Then again, she doesn't really have a choice right now...

Sleep?

2009-03-08T13:59:00.003-04:00

I can't really remember what it is like to sleep through the night. To be honest, sleeping for 4 hours straight was an amazing feat. So on Friday, we decided that it was time for Makenna to sleep in her crib. Why? Well, because it would be good for everyone involved if she started sleeping in her own room (and, for me, because I spent a couple hundred bucks on her crib and she needs to use it!). So we put her down around 9:30 and went into our room. Being in my room, I obviously couldn't see her, but I imagine she had this face and was thinking the same thing...

It took about 2 1/2 hours before she fell asleep, but magically she slept until 8 the next morning. Is this a sign of things to come? We can only hope.

I figured out how to post!

2009-03-01T14:28:00.008-05:00

For all of those checking in hoping for a blog full of sarcasm and funny pictures, you will be sorely disappointed. I usually don't get to post on "Pete's blog" and it took me awhile to even figure out how to post, but I thought I would take full advantage of him being asleep :)

I went back to work last week, which has been quite an adjustment. Pete now has to share the nighttime responsibilities with me (which is why he needs a nap now!) so that has been a big help. I'm not exactly happy to be back at work, but now that I am only working a 4-day week I get to spend Fridays at home with Makenna. She seems to be growing SO FAST. She eats more, sleeps less and is getting kinda chubby :) Right now she has decided that she doesn't like her crib and will only sleep in her carseat (picture below). We need to break that fast...any suggestions?

Pete and I have been out a few times without her now. Pete goes to play basketball a few times a week and I have classes on Monday nights, but for the most part I like to be home with her. My parents watched her for Valentine's day so that we were able to go have a nice date night. Of course, I dressed her up in a new Valentine's outfit and was back to pick her up by 9:00pm!

I will leave you with some new pictures of growing Makenna. I promise, Pete will be back soon with his twisted humor and funny parenting stories!

--nicki

Sleeping! (or not)...

2009-02-18T13:17:00.002-05:00

I must apologize for the lack of blog updates recently. I think it may be due to the fact that I don't function as well on a reduced sleep schedule, so any time I am at home I am being extremely lazy or sleeping. Makenna is close to being the perfect child, except for the fact that she sheds enough tears at night to fill an olympic size swimming pool. We aren't sure why she gets up every one to two hours. Maybe she is afraid clowns will eat her if she sleeps! Who knows. She is great at sleeping from approximately 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. But then, it is as if she has an amazing sixth sense that tells her when to turn on the retinal faucets. Hopefully, as time goes on, she'll start sleeping through the night!

P.S. I will be posting more pictures very soon.
P.S.S. My wife stays up with her at night. She should be studied by scientists for her ability to function on small amounts of sleep. The woman is amazing!

Makenna hates the steelers...

2009-02-04T19:21:00.004-05:00

First, lets give the people what they want. New pictures of Makenna!

Now that we got that out of the way (just kidding, she is really cute and that is the only reason I would ever look at this blog), on to Makenna's commentary on the Super Bowl.

Makenna's thoughts (as written by her dad):

- How was James Harrison not tackled running the length of the field? I guess blocking in the back was made legal for a few seconds...

- How was the final play of the game not reviewed on the field? I can't see more than 14 inches in front of my face due to developmental limitations, but I can see the need for a review...

- Larry Fitzgerald. Enough said.

- Big Ben is a giant goober...

- The Steelers are only a step behind the Patriots on many lists, including worst fans, worst franchises, worst players starring in a remake of a Mean Joe Green commercial, etc...

Why can't a Manning brother win every year?

Parenting Tips...

2009-01-27T14:16:00.005-05:00

Due to the fact that I had never held a child prior to Makenna (yes, that is true), I thought it would be good to brush up on my parenting skills. So, here we go...

Now, I'm not saying that I've ever used an airhorn to wake Makenna up, but the idea isn't that bad. Next time she doesn't want to wake up and eat, maybe a little air-horn-to-the-ear will do the trick. Next...

We have yet to leave Makenna at home with a sitter, so I'm not sure how I will feel about it when it does happen. My problem with this rule is, what's wrong with a hobo? It's not like the guy is going to steal my child. Think about it. He's in my house, which is heated to 70 degrees and has a fridge and pantry full of food. He's not going anywhere. Also, baby's love to play with beards, so it's a win-win. Next...

Ah yes. Pets. Makenna has done great with both Franklin (our Yorkie) and Arlo (our black cat from the streets; no racial sterotypes implied). If we were to have fish, I would have to agree with this picture, because the baby is not wearing any scuba gear, which is required for a prolonged play-date under water. And we all know they don't make scuba gear for infants. Next...

Makenna isn't quite old enough to play games (or even acknowledge that I exist), but once she can sit up, we will probably be playing chess. Checkers is obviously for old men who hang out in New York public parks. But chess is a game of brains and strategy, the perfect fit for her developing mind. Forget Baby Einstein, how about Baby Bobby Fisher? Actually, on second thought, I guess he didn't turn out so well, maybe I should rethink that one....

First night out!

2009-01-24T20:13:00.005-05:00

Makenna was dressed to impress for her first night out on the town! We had to run a few errands in Noblesville, so we brought Makenna along to Barnes and Nobles, Target, and dinner at Qdoba. It was so exciting for her that she...well...slept the whole time, which was fantastic for us!

Makenna and I hung out in the "Current Affairs" section of Barnes and Noble. While I was reading, Makenna just stared at her new kicks...

...they aren't quite Air Jordans, but they are the only shoes that will fit at this point. By the time we got home, she was a little bit upset at the fact that she sat in her car seat for 3 hours while we shopped. Here she is right after we got home, hanging out with the more beautiful, responsible parent...

Because she had an eventful night, we are hopeful that she will sleep through the night (and beyond!) tonight...

Another bath, The Office, and more Sportscenter...

2009-01-16T13:19:00.006-05:00

Under normal circumstances, Makenna would not recieve two baths within a few days. But, when a child moves her bowels with the force of a category 5 hurricane, another bath is justified due to collateral damage. So, once again, mom had to put Makenna back in her "Howard the Duck suit" (luckily, i was at work for this one.)

On a lighter note, Makenna watched her first episode of the office with mom and dad and her uncles (+ gretchen). She is already a fan! Actually, she cried through the whole episode and made everyone rethink all the gifts they gave her (just kidding). Other than a few bouts with crying, she has been wonderful!

Bonding Time....

2009-01-13T16:16:00.002-05:00

Is there a better way to bond with your baby than to play XBOX while she sleeps on your lap? I think not. Not only do we get to be with each other, but for the 37 seconds that she opened her eyes in the hours that I played, she learned about the proper way to run a street gang (Saints Row 2). Although the ins-and-outs of gang warfare are somewhat important, prior to smashing buttons on the XBOX we had the opportunity to watch Sportscenter, which is quite important. Since she is my daughter, you know she has been blessed with a keen sense and intelligence when it comes to sports and made these great observations:

1) Makeena thinks she could probably make the Hall of Fame also if she played for 87 years like Ricky Henderson.
2) Tony Dungy is a great guy and should have a golden statue erected outside of the "Luke."
3) Makenna wonders how Paul Pierce scores so many points when he is one of the slowest players on the court? Unlike most NBA players, Makenna realizes that he just pump fakes on every shot.
4) Joey Cora has a better shot at the Hall of Fame than Mark Mcguire.

All of these statements made for some great conversation between Makenna and myself. Maybe tommorow her mom will write an entry so that people aren't afraid of the way she is being raised...

A day of firsts....

2009-01-12T19:06:00.004-05:00

Today was a day filled many firsts for Makenna. She had her first doctors appointment to make sure she was gaining weight. Although she gained weight, I attempted to explain to her that she would probably grow a lot more quickly with a firm diet of steak and cocoa pebbles (it sure worked for me). It was a convincing argument, but she's going to stick to milk for now.

Another first was Makenna's bath. I think she cried enough to fill the baby tub with tears, but after it was all over, she was happy enough to wear her duck towel (see picture above). While Nicki loves the duck towel, it reminds me a bit much of Howard the Duck,

which is unfortunate because nothing good can come from an association with that movie. At least Makenna is the best looking Howard the Duck I have ever seen.

All in all, everything has been going very well and Makenna has been a joy. We'll keep you updated...

Last night at the hospital...

2009-01-09T20:46:00.002-05:00

We will soon be home from the hospital! Makenna will finally get to meet our dog Franklin (aka B. Frank, Benjamin Franklin, Frank Tanklin, Bud). I'm sure there will be some interesting interactions between the two.

I'm not sure how to raise a girl. I have a feeling she's not going to be interested in storming Skeletor's castle with He-Man and She-ra. How about watching Mankind and Undertaker wrestle in a cage match? Probably not. Maybe should can be my partner in Contra and steal all the weapon upgrades and leave me to fend for myself and use all my continues while she blasts through the levels with lightning and spray guns (Jacob always stole my weapons!).

I suppose, in the end, I better start learning about Dora the Explorer (why does she ask such stupid questions?), Barbie (maybe a She-ra doll would work!), and ponies, unicorns, rainbows, and every other girly thing I can think of.

Sounds like I have my work cut out for me!

Day 2...

2009-01-08T22:05:00.006-05:00

Makenna is now a full day old! She was 7 lbs. and three ounces and was 21 inches long (tall drink of water like her father). Nicki is recovering very well from the surgery and I'm, well, overwhelmed! I have been amazed, anxious, nervous, worried, joyful and every other adjective in between. I can say two things for sure; I love my little girl and I'm extremely glad that I am a man!

We had a great number of visitors come by the room today (I know I didn't reply to everyone who wanted to come, I apologize!). Two of the most important people in my life, my Grandparents, came by to see little Makenna.

It absolutley made my day to know how pround they were of Nicki and I and to see the joy in their face. Although, I thought Armageddon may be arriving because my Grandpa held Makenna and even let me take a picture.

Her middle name, Alayne, is my Grandma O'Connor's name. When we moved to Anderson it meant that I wasn't able to see her as often as I would like, but now she will always be in my family, forever. I can't wait to fly to Seattle this summer and show her Makenna.

P.S. In case anyone was wondering, Makenna already told me that she despises the Patriots, Bill Bellicheat, Tom Brady, Phillip Rivers, The Boston Celtics, and Pac Man Jones (although she is a little afraid to admit it due to retribution). So, although she is a girl and girls are a mystery to me, I have her on the right track!

The beginning.....

2009-01-07T22:25:00.004-05:00

Makenna Alayne Lyon has been born! Here are a few pictures. The posts in the future will be longer, but I wanted to get these up so a few family members could see them. This site is meant mainly for family members, so don't go posting it on facebook or anything else like that!