So a lot has happened since he last post in June...
It was a long, HOT summer. We had 65 days over 100 degrees, and broke a lot of records in Austin, including some all-time lows for rainfall. It was pretty dry and crusty around here. Lake Travis is as low as I've ever seen it - about 40' below "full". Most of the boat ramps are closed, leaving little access to that lake. Luckily, Lake Austin continues to flow downstream, and we have been able to enjoy its cool, 70 degree waters on our new (to us) boat throughout the summer heat.
John and Christi came down for a weekend visit with Will and Brock. Unfortunately, Jake had other plans that weekend, so we didn't get to see him. We had a great time with J&C&W&B though! I'm not sure what happened to our pictures from that weekend. I will keep looking and post them when I find them.
Paul and I also went down to New Braunfels in July for the Annual All-Girls Float at the Toob-Shack (a friend's summer house in NB, dedicated to weekend toobing of the cold spring-fed rivers). Guys are invited to the Shack to watch the kids, cook the food, and cater to the girls' needs throughout the day. They are also invited to join on the float on the Guadalupe under the stipulation that they are along to assist the girls in any way to make the girl-trip most enjoyable (such as applying sunscreen, serving beverages, holding palm fans, etc). Paul stayed at the shack to watch the kids while Christy floated with the rest of the girls. It was a hot, sweaty day, but we had a lot of fun regardless. Here's a pic of Paul performing his duties:
Christy returned to work at the beginning of the school year. She is working at two elementary schools this year in Leander ISD. Returning to work, of course, also meant that the girls started "school" also. Both Kaylee and Chloe attend the Children's Center of Austin. It was hard to leave Chloe in someone else's care, but a little easier than the first time I had to leave Kaylee. I think a little knowledge goes a long way... knowing that Kaylee really enjoys "school", even when she was a baby, really made it easier to leave Chloe. As expected, Chloe seems to really love interacting with the other babies in her classroom. She particularly enjoys the interactions of a little boy named Ian, who is only a few weeks older than her. Chloe and Ian make lots of googly-eyes at each other, and have had to have their cribs separated at naptime.
Kaylee has wonderful teachers this year, Mrs. Amanda and Mrs. Lanette. Her teachers report that she is one of their favorite little kids, and it shows in their actions! They always are so excited to see her, and hug and love on her. They say that she is always a good kid, often helps the teachers with cleaning up in the classroom or other "chores", and always pays close attention during different activities. She is still the only kiddo in her classroom that has not ever had to go for a time-out at school.
Another BIG step for Kaylee is that she is such a big girl now that she no longer needs diapers during the day! We are so proud of her - and it is such a nice change not to have to be changing her all day long. One down, one to go...
One night in August, we somehow ended up with both girls in our bed in the middle of the night. Needless to say, a 2 year old and a 6 month old are not too much fun to sleep with. So, this is how it ended up -- Kaylee and Chloe took over our bed, and we ended up in Kaylee's bed... too much kicking and wiggling to stay there!! We had to take a pic the next morning:
Christy's parents came to visit, and were there to witness Chloe's first cereal feeding at 6 months. Chloe was fairly eager to try it out, and didn't make too many grimaces! Kaylee, of course, wanted to be right in the middle of it, and help in any way possible. She loves to teach her little sister new things, and is always helpful with sticking a bottle in her mouth, or wiping off baby food dribble. This was Chloe's first try at food!
Kaylee and my dad had a great time playing together.
Christy's parents with the girls:
It's hard to get good pictures of Kaylee and Chloe together -- Here is an attempt of capturing 2 wiggle-worms:
The psychologist in me (and the mama in me) love to see Kaylee's pretend play emerging. One day, I opened up the bathroom door, and found the lights off with this scene on the floor. Kaylee had put her favorite stuffed animal (a horse named "Big Brown") on this yellow stool, with a pillow, and a "blanket" (her shorts) for Night-Night. She was very upset with me that I opened the door and turned on the light. After I took the picture, we turned the lights back off and let him finish his Night-Night nap. She also loves to put all her baby-dolls down for "night night". Sometimes I will go upstairs and find them all laying (face down) on the couch, each with a little blanket. Soooo cute.
Chloe is such a happy baby these days. Unlike her first 3 months of life, she now really seems to love this world! She is always smiling and laughing. One of her favorite things these days is a bath and playing in the water. She will sit in the sink forever and play with the faucet...
Now, Chloe and Kaylee take baths together... this was one of their first times in the water together... Kaylee is singing "Twinkle-Twinkle Little Star" to Chloe!
OK - that's all for now... more to come soon. Stay tuned -- in our next post, there will be crawling, standing, teeth, ABCs, Boomer Sooner, and more!
