The name game

Choosing Keegan's name took a long time but the scan below shows a little of how the process went. The column on the lower right included Tara's ideas and the bottom left most column housed Orlando's. The middle was for the middle name options. Some of those names shifted to first name then back and forth. It was only a few days before Keegan was born that we narrowed the names down to the top columns. In the video compilation below, you will see who ultimately decided on Keegan for the first name and the varied opinions for the middle.

2011, Week Seven - The week of Keegan's birth

Dallin the super hero saves the day from the nefarious machinations of imaginary bad guys. Tara right before Keegan's birth.
Dad was excited to finally see Keegan face to face. Let the waterworks commence.

Mommy and newborn son.

Hello there!

A sunny yet chilly day, perfect for a stroll around the block.

What a super Grandma! She is able to entertain both grandsons at the same time.

Dallin loves his baby brother.

Hi again!

Dallin is an awesome helper.

Such a cute boy!

Adorable.

Aunt Marlene, Uncle Tom, Callie, and Brandon joined us for a wonderful time at the Kellys home. Everyone was so excited to meet Keegan.

War Machine Vincent and Iron Man Dallin hamming it up.

We interrupt our regularly scheduled program to bring you this special announcement

Say Hello to Keegan Eric Montoya!!!Tara went in to see her doctor in the afternoon on Valentine's day to see why Keegan hadn't come out yet. With Tara's water looking low, they decided it best to admit her and induce labor. Orlando dropped Dallin and Vincent off at Missy's house, tidied up a few things, and rushed to the hospital. Grandma Sheila immediately got into her car and drove over. To speed things along, the doctor broke Tara's water and the real contractions soon followed. Tara fought well but an epidural was requested and smiles returned to everyone in the room. The doctors offered Tara the option of pitocin at 10 pm but Tara wisely choose to wait a few hours longer to see if she would still need it. At around 11:30 PM, one of the nurses was checking Tara but then shot up and scrambled to get everything ready. It seemed that Keegan was ready to come out, much to the surprise and delight of everyone. Orlando was warned not to make Tara laugh anymore until after the doctors had everything set up. At 11:40 PM Tara started to push and 30 seconds later, Keegan was delivered! He was 19.75 inches long (50.2 cm) and weighed 7 pounds, 8 ounces (3.4 kg).

Dallin wasn't told that his baby brother had been born yet when he came to the hospital. What a wonderful surprise!

The happy family.

Grandma Sheila was a great help and support. She was with Tara during the entire hospital stay, letting Orlando go home to be with Dallin (and get some sleep!).

Uncle Ryan and the Kellys couldn't wait to meet Keegan.

Cute times two!

Happy Valentine's day indeed!!

Year Three Week Forty-Two

Uncle Ryan was in town so we got to play with him! My pre-school program was 20 minutes of super cuteness! All of the parents were quite impressed with our songs, letter and number recognition, and especially our enthusiasm.
Greetings. I am Dallin Montoya and I highly thoroughly enjoy reading books. Lots and lots of books.
A silly kid in a silly sculpture!

A beautiful day for War Machine and Iron Man to explore the pier.

Scuba divers, seagulls, sea stars, and shells were some of the things that we found and learned about.

Alright, Dad, class is over. Time to splash some rocks!

Who needs roller coasters when you have Dad powered shopping carts.

Matching shirts deserve a chest bump.

Uncle Ryan and my Dad took us kids to the zoo!

Cool sea stars and marine life that we can actually touch.

And one of our ever favorite exhibits, the sharks.

Shayla gave the bashful goat a hug for Valentine's day. Too cute!

While the parents had fun playing Dominion, Jessalyn entertained with her feet, and us kids danced to Spider-Man!

My baby brother must have lost the memo about his due date on Saturday so we'll just have to wait and see when he decides to come out. Wouldn't be something if it happened on Valentine's day!

Year Three Week Forty-One

Me, Shayla, and Kylee starting off this week with a smile. Hey Vincent, let's roll out!
Always hold hands when crossing the street and sometimes hold hands if you're playing funny walking games.
Mom and Dad took us to their dentist appointments where we attempted to outrun the Pacman ghost but we inevitably died.
Grandma Sheila came to visit because we had a baby...

Shower for Mommy! The ladies had a blast together.

While my Dad flew down to California!

The family charted a boat to take my Great Grandmother's ashes out to sea. Kind words, fond memories, and a lot of laughs guided her on her journey.

The coast guard escorted them with a regal send off.

Aunt Celeste and Aunt Bonnie played beautifully.

It was wonderful to celebrate the life of a phenomenal individual with family and close friends.

The party moved to the funeral home for more funny stories, Trevor's amazing voice, and Grandma Denise's eulogy for the ages. They reconvened for lunch at a restaurant reserved just for them.

Back home, the Ditzler grandkids were ready for the Super Bowl.

Worried that he might miss the delivery of my baby brother, Dad flew back home that evening with a smile on his face.

Me and my cousins had fun entertaining Grandma Sheila.

Baby brother's due date is next Saturday!

Year Three Week Forty

The Week started off slow but exploded with activity by the weekend. Thwip-thwip means I love you!Doesn't Vincent look happy to be cheered up on his birthday?
Those jellyfish. Always good for a laugh.

Wowie-zowie those tiger cubs are getting big. But they're still so adorable!

Always hold hands when crossing the street.

Shayla found a very special friend. This was too cute to see them talk to each other.

We rode the carousel three times because Vincent turned three. We also switched rides each time too. Here I am on my Captain America horse.

The weekend started with some bad news. First Vincent and Aunt Missy had the flu and then my Great Grandmother Eda passed away peacefully in her sleep. She hadn't been doing well for a while so it wasn't completely unexpected but it was still a shock. Thankfully Saturday was so packed to distract my Dad who was very close to his Grandma. We miss her very much but are looking forward to seeing her again.

If you like trampolines then you definitely need to check out Sky High Sports, the trampoline place. We all had a blast and jumped for joy. Even Jessalyn got in on the fun!

On the way home, Mom and Dad met up with Dane for a quick jam session and to pick up tickets to his show that evening. Mom and Dad also had a delicious lunch date while I played with the Kellys.

Then it was time to set up and decorate Vincent's War Machine birthday party! The festivities went off without a hitch and we had a wonderful time with all of our friends. Happy birthday Vincent!

Uncle Shawn and my Dad were blown away during Rain Light Fade's CD release concert later that night. Dad helped record the amazing show which will be posted on youtube some time soon.

The Kellys came over to watch the Australian Open finals on Sunday and of course, us kids had to show the adults how real tennis is played.

What a weekend!