Our Crawler and Our Talker in WI

The girls and I flew back to Wisconsin for a week a few weeks ago.  I had a seminar to go to Chicago for work and since Kinsey had vacation that week, I decided it made more sense to take the girls with me and stay with my parents.  This way they'd get to spend extra time with their Nana and Grandpa for a week, plus they could watch the girls while I worked on the days I wasn't at the seminar.  Even though I was pretty nervous traveling alone with both girls, they did great on the flight there and back.  Claire slept for part of it and Natalie played with her Disney Princess sticker books I bought her before we left.  And the whole trip, Natalie stayed dry in her big girl underpants -- no accidents during the day or night!  She's such a big girl! 

Claire has wonderful news also.  She started crawling while in WI (August 13).  Her way of doing it is so adorable too -- She keeps one leg straight while crawling on one knee.  She also had her first tooth come through and is working on a second.  And about a week before she started crawling, she figured out how to go from a laying position to sitting up.  She's on a roll!  Claire doesn't sit still at all now.  Her favorite place to be is right next to her big sister and all Natalie's toys!  She tries pulling up on everything she's can get her hands on.  I'm expecting her to pull up to standing very soon.

Natalie has had a language explosion.  She's now talking in compound sentences -- even 2 or 3 sentences at a time.  We're always amazed at what she can say and even more so, what she remembers.  She knows exactly where she put something a few days before, who was with us when we went somewhere, etc.  It's a lot of fun listening to her.  Her favorite things to say now are "What time is it Mommy?" and "Not right now".

Natalie and Claire had a blast playing with their cousin Hayden, Auntie Kendra, Nana, and Grandpa.  Both were so exhausted by nap time and bedtime that they fell asleep very quickly.  They did a lot of activities -- Racine Zoo, beach, Kids Cove, Playground/fountain, and lots of time playing at home and in the pool.  We also went to Uncle Paul's and Sharron's house for dinner to celebrate my, Uncle Paul's and Auntie Kendra's birthdays.  Here are some photos from our adventures.

Happy Birthday to Mommy!

Claire's 3 mo. and Natalie's 2 yr. Professional Photos

Emilee Beth Photography took Claire's 6 month photos in our backyard back in June.  Because it coincided with Natalie's 2nd birthday, she snapped a few photos of Natalie too.  Natalie wasn't in the best mood for photos but Emilee managed to get a few cute ones of her.  Claire was her smiley self like normal!

Claire is 8 months old!

It's hard to believe that Claire is already 8 months old!  She's been tackling so much lately.  She's had a very busy month.  In addition to rolling back to tummy, she started pushing back on her belly.  Then more recently, she's started crawling backwards on all fours.  She's tries really hard to reach for things in front of her but hasn't yet figured out how to move crawl forward.  But I think she's going to master that very soon.  She also now sleeps on her belly.  It's so cute seeing her butt sticking up in the crib.  She started saying "da da da" -- her first sounds!  Once she discovered she could say it, she kept repeating it over and over!  We also moved her from the duck tub to the big girl tub -- she pretty much was trying to climb out of the duck tub!  And just this week, she learned to sit herself up from a laying position.  Claire has been one busy little girl!

I took her to see an ENT for her constant congestion.  Thankfully, there is nothing seriously wrong but he said it's pretty much just something she'll need to outgrow with time.  She also went in for another appointment with the pediatrician for an ear infection this week.  She's up to 19 lbs. 14 oz.!

I recently took the girls to a playdate in which all the kids played in some kid pools and with a water table.  It was so hot; the water felt great.

Natalie loves to play in her Princess dress up clothes she got from Oma and Nana.  Her latest adventure is to invite the Disney Princesses over for tea -- and she invites "Baby Care".

And the girls of course spend lots of time playing together doing different things.