this n' that

Sigh...summer is over. The temps are dropping and our days of lounging by the pool are a thing of the past. School is in full swing for Olivia and Cecilia is working very hard at morphing from a sweet little baby into a full grown toddler. We have been squeezing in a bunch of last minute summer activities including a few trips to the zoo, a night at the TinCaps game and the amazing Fort Wayne air show. The official end to our summer begins now. We are getting ready to pack up the fam and head to Disney! We are all excited, but no one as much as Olivia. She has been counting down the number of sleeps until we hop on the plane to begin our week of fun. 

Throughout the summer we haven't been able to visit the zoo as much as we would like. It has just been too flippin' hot! Once it finally started to cool down a bit we immediately took the kids. Cecilia has gone from a quite observer of the animals to a very active participant. She took notice of just about everything, pointing and squealing when seeing something she liked.

The girls and I took a ride on the carousel...Cecilia's first time! She loved it! My favorite part of taking the girls to the zoo is watching them enjoy it together. We will try to squeeze in a few more visits before it closes for the season.

My sweet Olivia reached a milestone over the summer. She finally was able to overcome her fear of mascots! Yes, I have a (almost) 6 year old that is afraid of mascots...or big-headed mascots, as she refers to them. She received a free ticket to a TinCaps baseball game as a reward for completing the summer reading program at the library. We decided to leave Cece home and just enjoy the game with Olivia, as it was her accomplishment.

After years and years of being terrified of Johnny...the TinCaps mascot, she shocked me by rushing up to him and giving him a hug. I quickly snapped a photo to make sure my eyes were not deceiving me. I extremely proud of my girl for beating this fear of hers. I know it was not easy and it look a LONG time, but she did it and just in time for our trip to Disney!

That same night at the TinCaps game Olivia checked off a second accomplishment...scaling the rock wall. She tried this last year and chickened out about half way up. She decided it was worth giving it another shot this year. She scaled that wall in no time flat. I was incredibly impressed with her bravery and willingness to accomplish something she put her mind to. 

A few weeks later we attended another TinCaps game, this time in one of the suites. I've got to say, that is the best way to take in a game. Great view, good food and drink and a personal visit from Johnny. In the past this would have been a nightmare for Olivia, but now she actually looks forward to running into him at the games. It was a fun night for the whole family!

Last month there was a unique event taking place in Fort Wayne...an airshow. This was something we thought would be a cool experience for Olivia, but also thought it was one that Cecilia should sit out. Todd was totally in his element with all of the military aircraft on display. The various planes flying through the sky doing tricks was quite a sight to see, but also one that was a little too loud for Olivia. 

Even with earplugs the noise was a bit much for her. She was begging to leave until she came across one of the kid's activities. My brave girl could not wait for her turn to jump and flip on this contraption. It took her mind off of the noise and capped off our fun airshow experience. 

Aside from our end of the summer activities we have just been spending lots of time at home, enjoying our girls. Cecilia is about to turn 15 months old. She is becoming more vocal and making her feelings known pretty regularly. In the past it would be easy to distract her when she was unhappy about something, but that is getting much harder to do. She is a feisty little thing and also quite stubborn. Olivia has always been able to dictate what Cece does and when she does it, but she is quickly realizing that her sister won't stand for that much longer.

She is growing up very fast and trying to do things that I do not recall Olivia trying to do at this age. She climbs up on a little step stool we keep by our kitchen counter. This allows her to get to things and be at our level, making her feel like a "big girl", I'm sure. She knows that I don't really like her being on that stool as I fear her falling off, but she usually just looks at me with her sly grin. I get this look from Cecilia on a pretty regular basis.

Just a few weeks ago I stopped nursing Cecilia, much to my disappointment. For the past several months I was only nursing her twice a day...first thing in the morning and right before bed. Well as she found her independence she decided that she no longer had much use for me. I was devastated, knowing this would be the last time I would nurse one of my babies, but realized there was no use forcing her to do something she clearly no longer was interested in doing. So, my baby no longer relies on me for her nutrition. Just one more step towards her independence. I mean she is already trying to put on her own shoes.

It was a fun summer. The girls spent countless days at the pool, which was the only way to stay cool during those scorching, hot days! I am now looking forward to enjoying Fall with the girls. We have lots planned. But first...it's off to Disney!