"Wichita"

Chris was in a wedding in Wichita yesterday, and Natalie fell in love with the church's huge nursery filled with toys. We don't have any pictures of the actual wedding because this is where we spent most of our day. As we were leaving Natalie kept asking to go back to Wichita. I'm fairly certain that she now thinks Wichita is the name of the toy dreamland.

Swimming

Here it is August 26th, and Max and Natalie just went swimming for the first time this summer. Poor kids. We never made it to the city pool because I couldn't figure out how I'd keep close tabs on both of them at the same time. Luckily, we have good friends who happen to live right across the street from their neighborhood pool. They invited us over for supper and swimming this evening, and we all had a blast!

Tower Building Instructions

He's learning from the best.

"Nap Time"

This is how Natalie spent her "nap time" today. I couldn't help but smile... and take pictures.

Splashing and Art in the Park

We took Natalie to play on the splash pad at King Park this morning. She was a little hesitant at first but very quickly warmed up to the idea of running through the sprinklers.

Max watched from his perch in the shade and made plans to spray his sister when he can run around on the splash pad next summer.

As we were walking up to the park, we noticed a lot of cars and remembered that this was the morning for Art in the Park. We didn't know much about Art in the Park and hadn't originally planned to go, but since we were already there we checked it out after Natalie was done at the splash pad.

They had a lot of arts and crafts booths for older kids, but Natalie enjoyed the side walk painting and the snow cone stand. I was a little disappointed that we didn't make it to the cupcake decorating stand before it closed. (I was more disappointed about missing the cupcake than I was about missing the decorating.)

The festival was sponsored by a local church, so all of the activities were free. They had a great turn out, so hopefully they'll do it again next year when Natalie and Max will be able to do a little more.

Friday at the Park

Drum Roll Please

Max had his four-month appointment today, and, as expected, he is off the size charts! He weighs 22.9 pounds (>97th percentile), and he is 27 inches long (95th percentile).

I'm sure I've said this before, but I love going to the doctor with a big baby. All of the nurses and doctors lay on the praise which is a nice change of pace from the "He's huge!" comments. He is big and healthy and perfect.

Yesterday Natalie was picking up her dolls off of the floor while saying in her best pretending-to-strain voice, "Getting so big!" Maybe she's heard me say that a time or two.

Instagram Reruns

I'm new to Instagram, and I don't quite know how I want to do it yet. Do I post certain pictures only to Instagram since that's what Instagram is all about? Do I share them on Facebook as well? But then what about the blog? It's all much more confusing than it should be.

Since the blog serves as somewhat of a baby book, I've decided that of course the cute Instagram pictures of my babies belong here. I apologize now to the few of you who read the blog and also follow me on Instagram and Facebook.... Some of them are new though!

Post-nap ice cream. Good to the last drop.

Pretty in pink.

The swing is only one of many pink hand-me-downs that Max graciously puts up with. He asked to take a selfie while Natalie was napping.

The rolls. The faces. I can hardly stand the cuteness.

She is a country girl at heart. It's hard to keep her inside when we visit my parents.

Piggies

One of the many things I love about having a little girl is fixing hair in the big bathroom mirror just like I did with my mom while I was growing up. Natalie usually likes to have her hair done and even requests certain styles. "Piggies" are her favorite.

Four Months

Max is four months old! His babyhood is going so fast, but I really am loving every minute of it.

He is such a smiley baby. Everyone comments on his smiles. It usually only takes a look in his direction and a few words or a quick smile to produce a big open-mouthed grin. He's such a little ray of sunshine.

At four months old Max:

• is starting to play with toys. He just started reaching to grab things which is such an exciting development to watch.
• chews and chews and chews. Maybe he's working on some teeth?
• loves his Natalie. He loves to watch her play, and I even think he likes all of her hugs, kisses, and "Macky Boy!!!!" squeals. He also seems to forgive her pretty quickly after she hits him....
• is still growing like a weed. We haven't been to the doctor for his official numbers yet, but I would guess he only weighs a few pounds less than his 27-pound sister. 
• can sit for a little while before tipping over if his arms are out in front helping him balance.
• hates riding in his car seat. 
• has the best laugh and the sweetest disposition. He really is such a happy guy.

How did we get so lucky?

Tripod

Little Max learned how to do the tripod sit today!

Playing at the Library

The library is only a block away from our house which makes it a great place to go when we're looking for a quick outing. They have a great children's area, so we always play a while before checking out our books.

3 Month Photos

We had to work for Max's three month photos. Our first attempt last week was cut extremely short (basically didn't happen) because Max just cried and cried and cried when we got to the photographer's studio. Come to find out, he was coming down with a viral infection that made him a very cranky little boy for a few days.

Despite my hesitation, we tried again yesterday, and I'm so glad that we did! We got some great shots of both Max and Natalie. Susan, our photographer, is a miracle worker. She somehow caught both kids smiling in the same shot which I was almost certain didn't happen.

Nap Time

Nap time around here is a little crazy at times, but today everyone went down fairly easily. Even Natalie's dolls.