sibs

Nate just wants to hang out with Abby, who just wants to make funny faces at herself in the mirror.

It's also fun to make funny faces at each other.  (Hmmm... you may notice a little green crayon artwork on our wall. That's a no-no Abigail....).

Sibling smush.

Sibling snuggle.

Sibling squeeze.

And the fun starts all over again.  (PS Nate, drooling much these days on our furniture??)

snip snip

Recall Nate's very shaggy mop that he's been sporting lately.  Time for another haircut!  Since Grandma wasn't visiting like she was for Nate's first haircut, it was mommy's turn to do the trimming.  Watch out!

Nate was a trooper, playing the iPad xylophone and being entertained by Papa and Abby.

After a quick post-haircut bath in the kitchen sink, Nate needed a nap to recover from all of the excitement.  Here he is after he woke up - looking chipper!

Who's this big boy?

tray update

So, remember trayless highchair experiment?  Not quite ready for that.  We're back to tray-land, and quite happy about that.

Nate keeps a close eye on big sis and other interesting things....

corn? sure!

Oh the Natester, always surprising us.  Little dude hates food with any texture, preferring to stick with purees. On a whim, we offer him some corn on the cob and he loves it.

Really, really loves it.  Must feel good on those teething gums.

PS - Watch out Nate...looks like it might be time for another haircut soon......!

sillies

Cousin time!  And a new batch of hand-me-downs ... thanks Emily & Natalie!  Hand-me-down highlight: purple princess dress.  WOW. 
Silly:

Sillier:

Silliest.  Doesn't seem like that long ago that these three looked like this!.

busy busy

We had a busy weekend -- lots of fun catching up with lots of friends and remembering fun times at G&G's last weekend..... 
And some q-time at home too.... dry erase board anyone?  Big hit here!

One highlight: brunch out with Georgia and her family.  We joked that there was a "table for two" (aka Georgia + Abigail and Sophie + Nate) on either side of us and that we were just out for a double date. 

Abby's not the only one who likes her new chair..... Nate gets to try it out while big sis takes a nap.

Also, major news: NATE HAS LEARNED HOW TO CRAWL!!! At approximately 10.5 months of age, Nate can (slowly, with his left leg tucked under his bottom) crawl short distances.  Farewell to the days of putting Nate down and finding him in the same spot when you return.  Nate's crawling speed is reduced due to the fact that he will complete 1/2 or 1/3 of a crawling motion and then sit up and clap for himself with a look of pure joy.  Repeat this over and over and it takes him a LONG time to get a SHORT distance. But, he seems genuinely pleased with his progress!  And his parents are genuinely thankful for so many months of jolly immobility!

mucho mn

Hopefully Grandma and Grandad will help us fill in the blanks with our visit as our camera didn't make it out for all of the fun - especially events with buddies!

Some glimpses of the busy times....:thanks for all of the adventures Grandma & Grandad!

Abigail riding a tricycle in G&G's driveway - fun!

Running in the grass....

Hanging out with Nate on the front steps.

"Growing a garden with Grandad!" (aka planting zucchini seeds)

Pat pat pat.

Watering the garden.

Nate was there too - glued to Mommy the whole time like a little velcro baby. He is so dramatic and mommy-oriented that he wouldn't let Grandma and Grandad hold him!  Nate!  We'll give him a hard time about this in years to come....

Running for the bath.... while screaming "Naked big sister alert!!!"

Squeaky clean.

Watering flowers with Grandma!

Shooting some hoops with Grandad.

Walking to nearby Lake Josephine, where Abby got to wade in the water and watch water-skiers whiz past!

Feeling relaxed after the stroll to get to the lake.

A picture is worth 1000 words. Our journey home by air begins.  Both trips went more smoothly than expected ... thanks Nate and Abby!

miss monkey

Many more MN pics to come, but this should give you a sense for the energy level of our visit... go go go!  These photos were taken at approximately 6:05am... We woke up very early that first morning!  Oh time zones.

Just hanging out.

minnesota

When we arrived in Minnesota on Friday it was hot hot hot.  We sat in the shade and played in the pool.

Icy cold water cools us down!

Nate takes it all in.

Later on the sky looked like this....kids were sleeping ... big winds blew... we had a lovely dinner with Grandma & Grandad ... the tornado sirens sounded ... a little rain fell .... and the next day temps and humidity were much more mild. 

grins

Look at Abigail in her big girl chair ... dry panties for several weeks earn a big girl such fancy stuff!

Abigail and Nate catch a ride with Papa!