8 months!!

Time is flying and Laurel is growing.  She and Maya are becoming great buddies and will often simply look at each other and start giggling. I love listening to them and watching them get excited when they see one another.

- She is sticking with the army crawl, although she occassionally gets up on hands and knees.  She is fast though and I often find myself wandering down the hallway to figure out where she has gone.  All this army crawling is giving her great upper body strength!

- She is starting to pull herself up and gets to about her knees.  She is just so curious that she pulls herself into all sorts of baskets and toy buckets and closets because she wants to see what is inside.

- She has started dancing along with music.  Which is so fun since one of Maya's favorite activities right now is to put on a dress to dance and spin around the room.  She loves that Laurel joins in on the fun.

Hugs

Story time

Sharing her love of books with her sister.  It is pretty cute to listen to Maya "read" to Laurel.  This book is about ducks and colors.  Each page Maya would say, "Ducky likes red", "Ducky likes blue" and so on.  She does get a bit frustrated that Laurel would prefer to eat the books!

Friends

Last night we were driving home after a great afternoon and evening with family.  It was dark out, we thought Maya was falling asleep because she was very quiet.  Out of nowhere she asks, "Mommy, are you my friend?" 

Yes, Maya, I am most certainly your friend.  I am also your Mommy and I love you with all my heart, more than I ever knew possible. 

And the seemingly random questions like this, really make me wonder about the thoughts that go through her head.  I'm certain she is much more insightful than we give her credit for.

Seven Months!!

 

One of the many differences between the two girls became very obvious to me when I took this picture.  Literally 30 seconds before I took this, Laurel was fussing and cranky because it was dinner time and she was hungry.  I pull out the camera and she immediately turns the fussing into a giant grin.   It is the exact opposite for Maya.  She can be giggling and grinning away and as soon as I pull out the camera her face becomes completely serious.  You have to catch her off guard to actually get a good smile.  I love that already they each have a distinct personality.

- Laurel is ALL OVER THE PLACE.  She has become so fast with her army crawl and if you put her on the floor she will not stay in one place for long.  She has been getting up on all fours, but hasn't figured out how to get anywhere that way so quickly gets back on her tummy.  If I need her to stay put, I sit her down, she hasn't yet figured out how to get down from that position.

- She is such an explorer and observer.  She is quite content to scoot around the room simply observing and touching each and every little thing.  She watches her big sister constantly and just likes to take everything in.  

- She is a great eater and has yet to refuse a new food.  She even likes peas!  So different for me, but it is nice to know that it wasn't me that made Maya a picky eater (I haven't done anything different this time around).

- She has become quite the babbler.  Mama mama and aba aba aba are her newest sounds.  Maya likes to talk back to Laurel by repeating every sound she makes.

- Someday she will sleep - right?!?!?!

Halloween Fun

We had such a fun Halloween this year.  One of the best thing about having kids is rediscovering fun traditions and celebrations as you see it through their eyes.  Maya had a great time picking out a "punkin", she chose her own costume and was so excited that people gave out chocolate when she said Trick or Treat.

We started things out with a trip to the pumpkin patch on a beautiful fall day -

Heading out to the pumpkin patch.

Searching for the perfect pumpkin.

Pictures of the two of them together is near impossible!

 Hanging out at the fire pit with the family.

Then we carved pumpkins with Grandma and Grandpa Sarion and Uncle Roy -

A rare picture of the four of us.

Laurel was not impressed.

Once again, Maya wanted nothing to do with scooping out the guts, but here she is helping Daddy design the perfect "scary punkin".

Next came the Halloween parties and trick or treating - 

Our little rocket ship.  In the weeks before Halloween, Maya declared that she wanted to be a rocket ship (we have no idea where she came up with the idea).  No amount of convincing on my part would change her mind (I was not too keen on piecing together a rocket ship costume).  Luckily for her, Target had one all made and ready to go.  She LOVED it and I sure couldn't have made anything better.  She received a whole lot of compliments, although most people thought she was a boy!

Our little lion.

 The little cousins.  Clara had strong feelings about being a peapod and Callie needs to work on her hunting skills - the lion confiscated her bow in no time and started chomping on it.  Cute none-the-less.