Happy 4th of July!

We had a very fun 4th of July weekend! We went to South Bend to visit with Ahmad's family and everyone up there. On Saturday, we ventured to the Indiana Dunes and realized we were quite the rookies. Next time we know we need all that stuff we saw everyone else carrying, including our own shade! We still had a great time and Miles got in the lake with me and had fun splashing around. Sunday we spent visiting with friends and family, doing some small fireworks, and then attending the Azar's annual bash. Miles wasn't too sure about the fireworks that made noise, but after he discovered he could cover his ears, it wasn't too bad. He was also a bit timid about sparklers, but did do a few. He loved the snappers and is still playing with some we got at an after the 4th sale.



Miles has had a bit of a rough week coming back from such a good weekend, but did great today. We're trying to be consistent with rewards (candy at school at the end of the day if he's good, visiting the fruit stand after school if he's good, and a sticker when he gets home) and it seems to be working somewhat. I've noticed though that the beginning of the week is usually harder for him than later on. By Wednesday, we've usually worked through everything, only to have to start over after the weekend again!

Last night, we were outside and he just busted out on the monkey bars! He's been hanging and dropping from them since this spring, but never made any forward progress. I guess they have some at school and he's been working on them there. His teacher told me that while it makes her so nervous when they learn to do them, it is a playground rite of passage.



Miles has also been working on his baseball skills and is doing quite well with his natural talents! As he says at the end "I do all of them!". lol!



Hailey is doing awesome! I can't believe she's getting as big as she is already. She's loving her baby food and has gone through sweet potatoes, squash, and is now on carrots. This weekend, we'll probably move on to green veggies. She's growing like a weed and I've washed up her 6-9 month old clothes! They may be a tad big on her yet, but she's about there. She's trying so hard to crawl and can get up on all fours sometimes. Otherwise, she just kicks off with her legs and ends up nose-diving into the carpet. However, she will get where she wants to go and can spot her basket of toys and make her way there to find something to play with. She's too funny!

Miles had fun putting his beads on Hailey!

This was Miles' outfit one day for school, complete with a fake quarter and recorder