Aaaaah, Summer...

Dada got out the hammock so that he and Max could climb up and 'swing, Dada!' (as Max would say). As soon as the major house projects are done they should be able to do this more often (Yeah, in about 6 years or so).

Look What I Can Do!

Last week on a sunny afternoon all four of us were playing in the back yard. I had Charlie in her excersaucer to keep her from putting grass, sticks, rocks, and whatever else she can find in her mouth. Dada decides he wanted her to crawl around and enjoy the weather. She noticed pretty quickly the back steps were quite close, and in about 5 seconds flat made it over there and crawled all the way up - she is only 10 months old!!! Dada got her and put her back on the grass but after she made it up the stairs two more times, he put her back in the excersaucer. ;)

Can I Help?

If I'm going to help you, Dada, I'm going to need a toolbelt that fits me!!

Little Dear/Deer

Last week Dada found an old pair of holiday antlers in Max's toy bin and put them on Charlie's head.

Of course, they didn't stay there long and quite soon were in her mouth...

Well, at least her immune system is boosted by putting all of this stuff in her mouth, right? Right?!?

More on the Home Reno...

Here are a couple of pictures from a couple of weeks ago after Dada put up the insulation and done the prep work for the drywall.

And here are a couple of pictures from this morning of the drywall and first coat of mud. It is coming along!

I Like School!

I have been emotionally preparing myself for Max starting preschool in September and found a great one near our house. This summer they also offer summer school in 3 week sessions to help keep kids busy. With us being tied to the house in the mornings for Charlie's nap, poor Max has been very bored so we decided to try out the summer school for him. He loves it! When we first walked in yesterday morning he went straight for the playdough.

Then, as soon as the painting easel was free, he started on his first masterpiece. He wouldn't even say goodbye to me!

When Charlie and I returned at 11:30 to pick him up, he was very busy playing in the sandbox.

He didn't want to go home, and ran all over the playground like crazy before I could catch him with the promise of lunch when we got home. He kept saying all the way home, "I go to school tomorrow! I go to school tomorrow!"

Can I Play With You?

This past weekend the kids and I went down to my parents house so that Dada and the guys could work upstairs installing drywall without nap interruptions. Max immediately pulled out the toy bin, and Charlie figured out pretty quickly to hang out with Max next to the toys.

So this is grass...

We had some weather warm enough to put Charlie down in the grass to see what she would do. She immediately started looking at the tall blades of grass sticking up in front of her (we have been working inside the house and the yard is badly in need of mowing!)

Just after this one was taken, she took off across the yard. Go speed racer, go!

Sunny Days

Last week we had a few really nice sunny days (of course, this week is the Rose Festival, so we are back to rain) which meant that Max got to go outside and play on the dirt pile. Dada got him doped up with sunscreen... and likes to mess with Max's hair during the application. Max is playing the king of the hill and looked so cute I had to capture the image!

I, for once, got to be in a picture with one of my kids!! That doesn't happen very often when you are the one usually taking the pictures. Charlie and I were matching last weekend (with clothing color, not hairdo's) so Dada got our picture.

Fence

A few weeks ago Dada began putting up a new fence along the far end of our back yard along with the help of our neighbor (it's his new fence too). Here are some 'in process' pictures. Above, the new posts are in.

Max and the two neighbor boys are enjoying the dirt pile created by the planting of the new trees. Boys like dirt!

Above, the cross braces are in and the fence boards are being installed.

Our neighbor had never used a saw before. Dada made sure he got to try out a couple different kinds and now he is a pro!

Cheesy Max

I decided a while back that I didn't want to buy mac-n-cheese in the box anymore because I didn't know what chemicals and preservatives were in it plus they didn't taste enough like real cheese. My version of 'easy mac' is cooked & drained macaroni noodles put back into the still hot pot, a little bit of sour cream mixed in, and then a hand full of shredded cheese mixed in until melted. The one side effect of this is the cheese strings! Max just loves it and practically licks the plate every time I make it. You'll notice he holds his left hand up there to help shovel the noodles into his mouth off of the fork!

"I Have A Cold"

One day this past week, Max insisted he have one of his extra blankets. He spread it out over his lap, making sure his feet were well covered. Then he told me, "I have a cold, Mama." I asked him, "Do you mean you feel cold?" "Yes, Mama, I feel cold." But then a few minutes later he would tell me the same thing. "I have a cold, Mama." We'll work on that grasp of the English language. He sure was good for a while, though, sitting there quietly reading a book!

Busy Girl

My 2nd little mischievous blue-eyed monkey is such a busy little girl! Not only does she show me all of the little specs and fluffs on the floor, she showed us the paper tags on the undersides of all of our dining room chairs (by ripping them off and sticking them in her mouth), she shows me all of the outlets that don't currently have protectors, all of Max's toys she shouldn't have that end up on the floor...

But how could I be mad when she smiles at me like that?

Trying out Max's sunglasses

It is amazing how many new things she is doing just in the past couple of days! Suddenly she is getting up on her knees and will even let go of whatever she pulled up on and will balance on her knees and wave her arms around. She has begun sitting up without a hand tripod on the floor for balance. Yesterday I caught her in a downward dog yoga pose - the getting up on the feet has begun!

What a monkey!

Max vs. the hose

Dada turned the water off after watering in the new plants, but there was just enough water left in the hose for Max to empty into his cart and play for a while. Once again, it is a good thing Max likes baths. During the spring/summer months, he gets lots of them!

Max is looking a little tired after a nice afternoon playing outside.

Landscaping

The landscaping project outside the fence continues...
Here are Dada and Max with the newly planted trees and soon to be planted bamboo.

Max was very helpful, taking his little shovel with him all over the place. (Must be ready to dig at a moments notice, you know)

Office Mate

Max got to go to the office with Dada yesterday morning while Charlie and I were at the pediatricians office. I packed toys and crayons for him, but those were so old news since he gets to use them every day at home! Dada got him fixed up with a cartoon and some headphones so he could chill while Dada was on a conference call. Thank goodness for technology!

He-Who-Digs-Holes Jr.

When Dada and I moved into our first house (some 8 years ago) we joked that if Dada were a Native American, his name would be He-Who-Digs-Holes because of all of the planting and putting up of new fences and such that he did around the yard. Well, now we have Junior who loves being out in the yard with Dada. Over the weekend the two of them planted 2 trees, 3 bunches of bamboo, and 3 wisteria. These large holes were for the trees. Max did actually get some dirt out of the hole and into his little cart!

Charlie's 9mo Checkup

Charlie went in for her 9 month checkup this morning, and she checked out just beautifully!
Her stats:
Weight: 18lbs 11oz - 50th percentile
Height: 29" - 75th percentile
Head Circumference: 44.8cm - 75th percentile

Her length and head size have somewhat normalized and she is very proportionate.
The pediatrician was impressed by how mobile she is, and when I talked about how she doesn't sit up much, he put her in a sitting position and she did just fine. His response was that she probably doesn't sit up much because she is always on the move! (so true.)

Bare Legs & All

I found this cute dress for Charlie a while back and have been waiting for weather warm enough to dress her in it. Note the matching little bloomers covering the diaper! I just love seeing her little bare legs as she crawls around

She's getting better about pulling herself up to get a look at Cliffy. Not that Cliffy appreciates it. Right after this picture was taken he left the scene!

A Determined Little Girl

Since Charlie has begun crawling, she has become very determined when she wants something. In this case, she saw that a couple of O's cereal pieces had fallen to the bottom of her exersaucer. She really loves those O's, so she did what she had to do to get to them. What this picture doesn't show very well is that for most of the time that she was in there her legs were sticking right up into the air. Didn't matter to her - she got the O's!

This one is just because it's my guys.