Summer Days

Although it isn't technically summer until next week, the weather sure has been nice and summery lately! We've been taking advantage of the nice weather by going for lots of walks. When I get home from work, one of the first things Max says to me is, "Mama, walk!" He'll also run over to the patio door and beg to go "outside, outside!" So, weather permitting, I try to take the babies for an evening walk (or ride, since Molly either takes a spin in the stroller or rides in the Babyhawk sling). I've discovered that Molly likes to swing as much as Max -- I put them both in the baby swings at the park and Molly shrieks with glee. Max enjoys exploring on his walks -- he likes to pick up sticks and pebbles and has discovered the joy of scuffing his feet through crinkly dead leaves. We actually flushed a deer out of our little neighborhood woods the other day and Max was totally amazed (although he thought it was a really big "munny" (bunny)).

To mark the start of the big kids' summer vaction, we all walked to the neighborhood ice cream shop for some celebratory ice cream. It has to be at least a mile, round trip -- Max walked virtually the whole way there (until I sparked a tantrum by putting him in the stroller, because we were near a busy street) and helped me push Molly in the stroller all the way back. The kid has some stamina! Max really enjoyed his ice cream -- when asked if he wanted chocolate or vanilla, he promptly replied, "banilla" (although I don't think he really knows the difference). I had to help him with his ice cream and he kept asking me for "more banilla ... peese!" Molly looked mournfully at us as we ate our ice cream -- I think she was hoping for a taste! Since we had just started introducing a little dairy in her diet (yogurt and cheese), I didn't think she was quite ready for ice cream yet.

Molly is loving her finger foods -- Cheerio-like cereal is her new favorite thing to eat. I thought she might have trouble eating some crunchy food for the first time, but she gobbled it up like an old pro and yelled for more. We also discovered something that she definitely does NOT like -- I pureed some white beans for her the other week, thinking she'd really enjoy them (Max always loved beans). When Mama persisted in feeding her beans, in spite of the "yuck" faces Molly was making, Molly demonstrated her displeasure by forcefully spitting them back out. I thought it might have just been a fluke, but every time I tried giving her beans, Molly sprayed them all over. So, we'll just put that batch of baby food near the back of the freezer and try again later!

Molly is still cruising all over the place and even standing unsupported from time to time. She isn't interested in taking steps (she just does a forward free fall until you catch her), but she's definitely building up strength. We're in trouble when she really does learn to walk, because she can already get into everything. One of her favorite things to do when she's crawling is to bounce up and down -- she pushes with her toes until her legs are straight and her bottom is way up in the air (Molly as a triangle). She also likes to do the king cobra move she's been making since she before she could crawl -- she gets up on her hands and knees and waggles the front half of her body back and forth like she's getting ready to strike (with a big grin on her face the entire time). She's been a big mimic lately and likes to copy any movements or sounds you make. I must tell her "shhhhh" a lot (since she likes to squawk extra loud when her brother is sleeping), because she's started saying "shhhhh" back to me.

Dad put up our giant, inflatable pool this week. Although the thing is a terrible eyesore, the kids have so much fun in it. I took Max out for his first dip tonight and he thought it was the greatest thing ever. He didn't want to come out of the pool ("more bath, more bath!") and was laughing the whole time. He seems to have overcome his dislike of showers, because the after-swimming rinse off went smoothly (he didn't want to come out of there either). It's supposed to be very warm here tomorrow, so hopefully Molly can put on her bathing suit and make her swimming debut. Heck, since I'm not stuck on bedrest this summer, I'm looking forward to spending some time in the pool too!