Washing dad's car

After lunch, we decided dad's car needed to be washed. Drew immediately jumped on the idea & got very excited. Ava took a little more convincing, but got ready & headed out.

Drew had a good time at 1st...
But got bored with the car after a while & decided to water the trees...

Pres hung out in the exersaucer for a while, but was NOT a fan of the heat. So, I took her back in to play in her pen.

Ava took her job very seriously & we finally had to distract her away....she kept re-washing every time Jeremy would rinse. I talked her into washing her car(little ride on toy) & that kept her busy for a while.

Just so cute...

Pres just loved watching Ava play in the cottage yesterday. And I think Ava got a kick out of her audience!
I think I posted a pic of Ava working on this puzzle a while ago. Now it's Drew's turn to show off:

We had to move the puzzle to the table in the entry, because Pres really likes to turn the pieces over just as they get a picture made. Upsets Ava & Drew a little. ;)

Presley: Then & Now

Now that Pres is pulling up on everything, she's getting a better look at the world. She really enjoyed looking at this old picture of her the other day. I'm sure she doesn't understand that it's her, but it was too cute to pass up. I think the picture was from about 4 weeks.

After nap snack....

Ava & Drew are still loving popcorn for their afternoon snack. Jeremy's mom gave them these neat little 'tv' trays & they've enjoyed eating on them while watching their post-nap Dora & Diego.
Thanks, Granny, for the trays!

Love playing in Pres' pen....

Well, Drew does anyway! And the gate MUST be locked....

He talked Ava into joining him. She didn't last long....didn't like that 'locked up' feeling, I guess.

Pres enjoyed them being locked up. 'Yes, I will play with your favorite puzzle & you can't do anything about it!' :)

Sisters

I don't get a lot of pictures of Ava & Presley together, because Ava's still not Pres' biggest fan. She tolerates her, but is so not into sharing toys with her. Which is why I had to run & grab the camera a couple days ago.

1st, Ava shoots me a longsuffering look.....

But, then she allowed Pres to play with her for a few minutes. How adorable is this! :)
I didn't push my luck....as soon as I got my pictures, I moved Pres away!

Bubbles

It's so much fun to watch Ava & Drew run after bubbles. Drew especially loves it...though he only wants BIG bubbles. But, he'll chase them as long as Jeremy will blow them. Ava plays for a bit, but she'd really rather swing!

Barricaded, 'horsey' rides & helpful big brother

Poor Pres.... she is really driving Ava & Drew crazy now that she can crawl & get into all their stuff. And she REALLY REALLY hates her 'pen'. So, I got creative the other day & used their chairs & couch pillows to keep her out, but not locked away. She still didn't like it & is actually pretty good & climbing over the barricade, but it was better than nothing!













Ava & Drew love when Jeremy gives horsey rides. A few days ago, he was taking a break & they decided to try it themselves. Needless to say, it didn't go well....and Drew never volunteered to be the 'horsey'. Ava didn't seem to mind though! They're so cute together. :)














That same evening, Drew decided to help Pres with her puzzle. He can be pretty patient with her sometimes. Though it does frustrate him that she just wants to eat the pieces! ;)

Playing nice

Sometimes it actually happens....Ava & Drew play together WITHOUT fighting! No....it's not really that bad. But, I do LOVE to see them playing well & working together on a project..in this case a VERY hard puzzle that is for 'ages 3+'. I have to brag on them a bit here...they can put it together with no help from an adult! So smart! :)

Real food, cruising & a new chair

Pres is just getting so big. I was kind of slow on doing solids with her. So, she's only just started progressing from baby food to 'real people' food. She seems to love everything I've given her so far.
Here she's trying her first waffle:

Bread, cheese, turkey, strawberries & grapes for lunch:
She's gotten a lot better at getting it in her mouth in just the last week. Much less on the floor & in her chair! :)

She's pulling up & cruising all over the place. Sitting *in* the exersaucer is no longer any fun for her...but, standing on the outside & moving around is much better!

After pulling her out of Ava & Drew's chairs over & over (& over & over & over....), I decided it was time to get her one. She seems to like it...though it hasn't stopped her from climbing in theirs!

When the cats are away....

...the mouse will play....

...or in this case....

...when Ava & Drew are away....

.....Pres will play....

.....with all of their toys! :)

Austin Children's Museum

On Mondays, the Austin Children's Museum is open only for ages 3 & under. I had been wanting to try it out for a while, but wasn't sure I could handle it by myself(and after going, NO, I couldn't do it alone!). So, since Jeremy was off this past Monday, we decided to check it out.

The kids had a blast exploring

Ava found this slide right away & I wasn't sure we'd be able to pull her away from it. She LOVED it!

Not really sure what that is that they are playing with here, but they had fun. This is while we were waiting for the music time to begin. I didn't get any pictures of that, but they had a blast singing & dancing & running under the parachute at the end!

There was also a designated area for the 'littles'. It would usually be for babies & toddlers, but it seemed to be mostly for babies this morning. Of course, Ava & Drew had to come check out what Pres was doing.

Just before Ava's meltdown that led to us leaving, we found the 'Mi Familia' room. They both loved the drums.

Apparently, Ava thought the drums belonged to her & tried to tackle the little boy who played after she left them.....which led to screaming & the decision to leave--quickly!

But, other than that, we all had a really good time.

Better late than never...

Pres turned 9 months old on Tuesday. I totally took pictures that day & had every intention of posting that night.....and now, I honestly can't remember why it didn't happen. But, it was probably kid-related!

Here she is at 9 mos.

She is crawling all over the place & trying to pull up--she succeeds occasionally. She is very happy as long as she's right in the middle of things(which Ava & Drew just love...ok, maybe not) & gets fed whenever she wants. She's a good napper, but not a good sleeper at night. 2 is the minimum number of times she's up at night....sometimes it's hourly. (I just keep reminding myself that it won't last forever & try to enjoy the alone time with her!). She has 4 teeth with 2, possibly 4, more on the way in!

Her 9 mo well-check is Tuesday, so I'll probably post her stats then....we're guessing she'll weigh in around 24 lbs (:0!!)

Pres turned 9 months old on Tuesday. I totally took pictures that day & had every intention of posting that night.... and honestly I can't remember why it didn't happen, but I'm sure it was kid-related! ;)

Daddy's little helpers

Now that Pres is crawling & QUICKLY getting anywhere she wants to be...and mostly where Ava & Drew DON'T want her to be, we decided it was time to put the big gate back up to create a 'safe' area for her. We've dubbed it "Pres' Pen".

Since the playroom is right below the kid's rooms, it couldn't be done while they were sleeping, so Jeremy had a couple little helpers.

1st, we have to remove the old gate hardware:
Then, find a stud:

Then, measure carefully!

Ava & Drew had a lot of fun helping daddy out. And I don't think it drove Jeremy crazy! ;)

Pres in her new pen.... so far she doesn't seem to hate it!

Rainy day toys

Last Thursday it rained...a lot. And, as always, rain makes for a LLLLOOONNNGGGG day at our house. So, I pulled out a storage container of my old stuffed animals. I had brought them down from the attic a while back with the intention of giving them away, but figured the kids might get a kick out of them 1st.

They quickly picked their favorites(a large tiger for Drew & my pink dolphin for Ava). The poor Cabbage Patch kids were relegated back to the container. Apparently old, spotty, weird looking dolls are no fun.
Then we had to make homes for them....

Which quickly became more fun to play with...

When Pres woke up, she was 'allowed' one toy...one of the unwanted Cabbage Patch kids. But, she didn't seem to care.

She's really on the move now!

Pres has been 'practicing' for a while--rocking & scooting--but on Tuesday she really got going. Now she is EVERYWHERE. Making Ava & Drew crazy....so far, she's only tripped one of them once! Think it may be time to put a gate back up.