Random August

 Corn on the cob is a favorite around here.  So much that we had to quit eating it because someone's diapers were getting really nasty.

Evelyn eats so much food that she needs to have a daily dose of prunes to keep her from getting constipated.   Amelia also loves prunes and gets upset that she doesn't get to eat them everyday like Evelyn.

Evelyn finally graduated to the highchair!  Mostly because Amelia kept trying to climb up on the table to "help her eat" and hand her foods.  Amelia is such a sweet sister and always trying to share her food with Evelyn.  We have to talk about how somethings will give Evelyn tummy aches so we can't share all of our foods.

Since we love piggys so much I got us some piggy paint, which is all natural nail polish.  My favorite part about it is the lack of smell.

 In my attempts to get Amelia potty trained I bought her a watch as a prize for peeing on the potty.  It became a source for the battle of the wills with her throwing major tantrums and needing the watch but not wanting to sit on the potty.  Mommy finally caved a little bit and let her wear the watch only when she sat on the potty.

Well she kept trying to go but eventually we both gave up when there wasn't any action.

Evelyn 6 Months

Evelyn's personality is really starting to come out.

She smiles so much her nickname has become smiles.  I wouldn't have guessed that a few months ago.  She's  smiling with her tongue out quite a bit right now.

She's also discovered her toes are a lot of fun to play with.  

She is a very observant baby.  Constantly watching what we are doing and taking in everything around her.

She has been giving me this goofy look when she isn't sure about the things going on around her.

Her doctor is complaining about her being too small, but then saying she is meeting all of her developmental milestones.  I'm choosing to trust my instincts that she is a small but very healthy baby.  She also says mama but it is more of a whine for me to come get her.  When she wants something she will wave both of her hands around almost like signing all done.  She has decided that she really really really does not like tummy time.  When she sees other kids and babies she tries to talk to them.

Blue Earth County Fair

We went to the Blue Earth County Fair this year.  I think Amelia and Daddy could have spent all day there!

Amelia had to say hi to all of the animals and of course the pigs were a favorite.  She wasn't too sure about the cows since they are so big and were louder than the horses.  She was excited about the horses and kept saying, "it's Cooner!"

Then we went to look at the baby chicks.  First she was fine just observing but some kids came up and started holding them, so of course she wanted to hold one too.

She tried grabbing one herself but wasn't too sure, so Daddy helped her.

Then there were the tractors.  

 "Look at the BIG tractor!"

And being the monkey she is, she would climb up by herself to check them out.

Even Evelyn thought the tractors were fun.

Fun Days

Fun Days was hot this year.  It was so hot they shortened the kiddie parade route and we actually had to walk over to Monroe to view it.  Amelia's girlfriends and cousin Elise came with us to watch the parade.

It took Amelia a few tries to get the fact that yes, she could run into the street to go pick up the candy.  She would go get some and then come back to sit on the blanket and I would have to tell her to go get some more.

When we came back each girl got to eat one of their suckers.  They decided to eat them on the steps while dancing.

On Sunday we had Lucas' family over for a cookout.  Then we went over to fun days to look at the petting zoo and car show.

Amelia wasn't sure about petting the animals but it helped to have her bigger cousin Athena petting them.

Then we tried to get a picture of all of the kids.  This attempt turned out way better than Christmas since Amelia and Elise have come to adore each other.

Elise and Evelyn also like to play with each other.  Especially when Evelyn has fun sandals on her toes!

4th of July

We went to Sissy's house for the day on the 4th.  It was a hot day so Amelia and Evelyn really enjoyed cooling off in the pool.

Amelia finally decided to be brave enough to swim on her tummy this summer!  She has also tried blowing bubbles in the water but is annoyed with how much water goes up her nose.

It is so much fun to watch their interactions change as they get older.  Amelia can usually get Evelyn to laugh and smile, or Evelyn cries to tell me that she doesn't appreciate what Amelia is doing to her.  Fortunately the crying doesn't happen too often.

We had a fun day of playing and some snuggling which made Papa's day.  Of course Amelia was bribed for this moment with a little Curious George on the TV, but he didn't care at all it that's what it took.

Amelia has also gotten very patriotic much to Lucas' excitement.  Her taught her to say, "stars and stripes forever," "old glory," and "happy birthday America!"

She also realized one day that her Barbie horse didn't have a tail, so she gave him one.  Seriously this has become his permanent tail.  Proud moment for Daddy!

July

Has it really been that long since I've updated?  Oh boy.  We had a very busy rest of the summer with gardening.  Now that the garden is finished and cleaned up for the year, back to updates of our lives.

One Sunday in July we took Daddy to the Children's Museum to check it out.

Evelyn spent most of her time with Daddy while I followed Amelia around.

 One of her favorite things to do there is to pretend to be a cashier.

I think it's because she gets to handle the money.  She is kind of obsessed with money.  She's gone from hating her mean piggy bank because he would steal her money to loving to put money in it and shake it to hear "lots and lots of MONEY!"

Then we pretended to serve Daddy a pizza, complete with taking his order.  Evelyn thought that was fun and wanted to get in on the action.

 Then Amelia switched to doctor mode and listened to Daddy's heart.  This is another thing that she has switched her thinking on.  Whenever my midwife would visit she would be so sad and scared of the stethoscope and blood pressure cuff.  Now she thinks they are lots of fun.  Such a reminder of her growing up.

Evelyn began sitting up by herself.

She also got her first tastes of solid foods.  She got to suck on watermelon which she loved!  I couldn't have watermelon anywhere near her without her begging for a taste.  

Oh boy does Evelyn have Lucas' appetite!  Three months later she frequently will eat more at each meal than Amelia.  And just like Daddy you would never know that she eats that much, she's still my petite sweetie.

She also started getting really chatty.   

We had a pool party with Amelia's friends which Amelia thought was awesome!  She was so excited to splash and play in the water and didn't want to come out when she was obviously freezing.

The babies weren't impressed with the water but content to hang out on a towel.

We went to Songs on the Lawn again this year.  Amelia calls it Songs on the Lawnmower.  She loved to dance with her friends and liked doing the craft activities put on by the YMCA.

Another favorite was getting the "chicken hat" from the BW3's chicken.  She would wear the hat for days afterwards.

And being the good sister, she didn't mind sharing with Evelyn.

We tried to go to a Barnes and Noble storytime but since there wasn't anyone else there it was canceled that day.  Amelia decided to make good use of the stage by finding a book that played music and dancing around.

We participated in the library summer reading program.  Our prize for completing half of the items was star sunglasses.  Both girls thought these were lots of fun.

We went with Sissy, Kallie, and Kirsten to have a picnic lunch for Blues on Belgrade, which is a blues concert that takes place just a few blocks away from our house.  Amelia was so excited to bring everyone to a "songs on the lawnmower."

Before I knew it she had kicked off her flipflops and was dancing in the street.  That became a habit in the summer to take off her shoes to run around.  She has actually gotten very good at putting them back on too.

The Children's Museum was there with some activities as well, so of course we had to check those out.

Evelyn got to try more and more new foods with bananas becoming a clear favorite.  Sine she is so small she got to sit in the Bumbo for mealtimes, which she thought was great to be at the center of the table.

Cinemark movie theater does older kids movies for $1 during the summer.  When I saw they were playing Winnie the Pooh, one of Amelia's favorites, I knew we had to try it out.  She wasn't so sure about it and kept asking if we could be done, but she stuck it out until the end.  It was definitely too loud for Evelyn.  All she wanted to do was nurse and sleep but couldn't because of the loudness.  When we went to Clifford a couple of weeks later, Evelyn stayed home with Sissy and Amelia had a lot more fun.  

Amelia also decided that if she gets to help mommy in the kitchen there must be something she could do at Sissy's house.  She now loves to wash the dishes for Sissy.