6 Months Old!

I can hardly belive it, but Abby (above) and Claire (below) are six months old today! Before you think they're too advanced, Abby's not really waving yet. I just happened to catch her hand mid-hat grab. So cute!We were in Green Bay, Wisconsin this past weekend and I was talking to Teri, mom of Emma (below) and sister to my good friend Amanda. Teri told me that Emma turned one year old recently, and I thought to myself, "I cannot imagine what life will be like when the girls are 1. That's so far away!" Then I realized that it is, in fact, not so far away. They're halfway there already! Holy cow!
We were in Green Bay for Atticus's dedication. That's Atticus below. (He's the adorable son of the aforementioned Amanda and her husband Ben.)
It was great to see Amanda and her family, especially since it was only the second time I'd met cute little Atticus!
It was also nice to have people around who didn't mind holding a baby, like Ben's sister Lanae (below, holding Claire), and her husband Shawn. Their two boys, Theo and Blake, were also really interested in all the babies and were great helpers. We all ate at Curly's Pub in Lambeau Field on Saturday (first time I'd been there). It was great, except for the huge protest outside (aka one guy with a sign reading, "Trade Thompson, Not Favre"). Go Packers! Ryan's dad Wayne and his wife Sharon live about 20 minutes away from Green Bay in Little Chute, so we stayed at their house for the weekend. They loved spending some time with their grandbabies (espcially during those crabby nap times, right guys??).

Sharon and I brought the babies into her work so she could show them off (above) while the boys kept themselves busy doing what they like to do best: playing games (below).
And as if that wasn't enough excitement for one weekend, we stopped in Marshfield on the way home to visit Ryan's grandparents, Del and Alma. They hadn't met the girls yet, so they were very excited to have us stop by. 3 Days + 3 groups of people to visit = just your typical Wisconsin Weekend! Amanda also let us borrow her Bumbo chair, since my girls have apparently decided to be the last to learn to sit on their own. It's awesome! I put this mini-piano in front of them and they just go to town. Had I know how useful these were, I would have just bit the bullet and spent the $40 on one. Oh well, now I get to borrow one for free! Even better!!

In addition to our exciting new Bumbo, the girls also have an exciting new sleeping arrangement. Now that they're six months old, they're in separate cribs. The hardest part was figuring out how to fit Crib #2 in their teeny, tiny nursery, but we managed! And not a moment too soon: last night, Abby was facing a different direction every time I went in to check on them.

I think they're adjusting nicely, but today we did have a 90-minute scream fest instead of nap time, so you never know! Right now, I'm enjoying a big ol' glass of wine to reward myself for surviving. You haven't truly experienced a 90-minute scream fest until you've experienced one in stereo. Hopefully, the girls get better soon or I may turn in to a raving alcoholic. Here's hoping AA provides free childcare at their meetings!

Claire is sucking on the side of her exersaucer, so I think it's time for a bottle. Happy almost August, everyone!

Our First Fourth

Abby is still in awe from her fabulous first Fourth of July! We spent an entire week with the Campbell Family at Lisa's Aunt Pat's cabin near Birchwood, Wisconsin. We headed up on the 3rd. {We won't talk about the all-new experience of packing and fitting into the car enough stuff for 2 adults, 2 kids and a dog for 7 days. Let's just say after that, we really needed a vacation!} It also happened to be my parents' anniversary, so we went to the Pizza Den to celebrate. {Okay, so it wasn't very fancy, but it was the best Birchwood had to offer. } After 32 years, they actually still like each other most of the time. How romantic!
Jill, Jason and Lily joined us on the 4th. We couldn't wait to get the girls in the pool at the Loch Lomand Beach Club right by the cabin. Us Campbell kids have been swimming in that pool for years and years, since we were babies ourselves. So it was pretty fun to see my own daughters enjoying the water there now, too. We pulled them around in these inflatable boats that Grandma Maggie had gotten each of the grandgirls and they loved it!
We also held them in the water so they could kick their legs around. Abby was somewhat indifferent but Clarie loved it! Her and her cousin Lily (below) were kicking-machines.
We worked up a huge appetite with all that swimming, so that night we tried our very first vegetable - sweet potatoes! Can you guess what Claire thought about them???
That's right: Delicious! (Not to mention messy). Abby whole-heartedly agrees.
On and off during the week, the girls got a little crabby from teething. If you feel Abby's gums you can even feel one poking through - it's surprisingly sharp! Luckily, Aunt Jill had brought mesh feeders with her so we put watermelon chunks in them and gave them to the girls. Chewing on some delicious watermelon must have felt pretty good because both babies calmed right down. Or, maybe it was just something in the air, because Ryan didn't have any watermelon and he sure looks happy, too. It's a miracle! {tee hee - just kidding, babe!}
Actually, Ryan was pretty bummed that he had to leave on Monday to go back to work. We girls were pretty bummed, too, but we tried to carry on the fun without him. Uncle Greg helped out by swimming with us. . .
. . .reading us bedtime stories. . .
. . .and taking us for boat rides! {the girls stayed home for that one, but Lisa and Grandpa Mike had lots of fun seeing the Red Cedar Lake.}
After all that fun, we are pooped! Hope all your Fourths were as fun as ours!