Rolling!

Well, Josephine apparently enjoys a challenge. Days after both Michael and I wrote that she was not near rolling, she did it. So far, she rolls from her back to front mostly to get to toys that she wants. Her primary obstacles are that one arm seems to get stuck under her little body and that her sister desperately wants to help her. Madeleine takes such care of Josephine that it's really hard for Madeleine not to just give her the toy or help her roll over. We're trying to explain to Madeleine that she has to learn to do it for herself, but it's hard for Madeleine to watch Josephine struggle.

We tried a new pool yesterday where Madeleine really enjoyed riding an innertube on the 'lazy river.' The rest of the pool was pretty chaotic - lots of kids, water slides, toys to climb on, etc. I'd like for Madeleine to get a couple of good sessions in a the pool before the season is over - she's so close to swimming on her own. Josephine was so tired out by the pool and interrupted naps that she went to sleep at 6 and then mostly slept until morning. She did wake up at 3 a.m. looking awfully playful (playing with her feet and laughing and talking in her crib), but fell back to sleep after something to eat.

Madeleine spent much of yesterday preparing for a ballet 'formance. She hung signs on our front door and her bedroom window and didn't understand why all the neighbors weren't at our house in the afternoon. We're trying to get her to do the performance at my birthday bbq, but she'll likely be overcome by shyness in the face of actual spectators.

Big Little Girl

Josephine had her 4 month doctor's visit today and is off the charts at 17 pounds 10 ounces. Dr. Kaplan said that she looked great, and concurs that sitting is nearer in her future than rolling. She received two shots to each chubby thigh and cried only briefly.

Madeleine was upset to miss the doctor's appointment, but playing happily when I stopped in at preschool later. She wanted to show Miss Rosemary her new notebook that she's started writing in. So far, she's written one word: happy. She's going on a big field trip to the National Gallery of Art tomorrow and is excited to ride the Circulator bus. The Circulator bus is a huge hit with the preschoolers, and cost effective as the ride is free if you're under 6. It's quite a sight to see 3-4 adults get on with 15 kids; they only pay the adult fares but take up 1/2 the bus!

Our Summer Vacation ...

It's been a very busy, fun-filled summer for big girl and little girl. Madeleine completed her first set of swimming lessons and has graduated to the next level, which we hope to start in the Fall. She's mastered sticking her head under water, retrieving objects in shallow water, blowing bubbles and floating on her front without support.

Josephine has also been learning new skills. She is VERY close to being able to sit up and, according to her teachers at day care, she is concentrating very hard on mastering it soon. She also has stepped up her "talking" and has mastered tracking her mother across a crowded room.



As mentioned above, Josie has started day care, which means everyone is now back to work or at school. It has been a tough transition for some -- though Josie has adapted amazingly fast to hanging out with the other babies. Her friend Gabe, one of Madeleine's friends' little brother, is in the same class and likely shown her the ropes. All in all, I think we are all getting used to the new routine.




Meanwhile, we had some nice visits from friends and family over the last couple of months. As mentioned in a previous post, Aunt Amy and family returned for several weeks from Australia before heading on to Jamaica. We got to spend some qualilty time with them, which was great. A lot of swimming and eating. We did manage to take Spencer and Shelby to a Nationals game against the San Francisco Giants -- a game the Nats won in the bottom of the ninth. Spencer seemed to really get into it and was even given a batting practice ball from a generous fan before the start of the game! By the end of it all, he knew all of the players on the team and probbaly could tell you each player's on-base percentage and what song they like to hear through the PA each time they come to bat.

Another great visit was from Oma and Golfing Papa, who came for a long weekend. They should write a book on how to be perfect houseguests as they brought us a bunch of food, didn't ask us for anything and then even took us out for dinner -- twice! (Actually, we are very lucky in that both sets of out-of-town grandfolks are such easy-going people -- thanks!) I know Madeleine and Josephine had a great time hanging out with their grandparents. Madeleine even got to golf a little with Golfing Papa, while Josie enjoyed "Animal Planet" with Oma back at home.

That's it for now. We'll try and update this blog more often now that we are back into the swing of things.