A Great Summer

So I apparently can't keep up on blogging when I don't have a regular schedule. Needless to say, we have had a very busy, fun filled summer. So here is the quick version (but not too quick):

• Callie got a wading pool that she loves. She enjoyed splashing and it helped to keep her cool on the hot days. Although the heat didn't seem to bother her during the day, but she woke up a lot when it was hot at night.
• Lindsay and Brian came to visit and we got to play tourist in Seattle for a day.
• Callie started making lots of sounds. They come and go. Some days are quiet, some are not. Her favorite is a rather loud squeal. We think it is cute, but the rest of the world may not, so we are trying to to respond to this noise so she won't do it is public as it is rather loud. She has one series of sounds that sounds just like "Hey Dad." The first time she "said" this, Mike was leaning over her getting ready to tickle her. Of course it has no meaning, but it made us laugh.
  
• We went to visit Lindsay and Brian. Lots of firsts for Callie...plan ride, staying in a hotel, aquarium, playing at a warm beach, and admiring cupcakes.
  
• Callie started swimming lessons. She LOVES the water! She squeals and splashes the whole class. I am as wet as she is at the end from all her splashing. She amazes me with how quickly she picks up on things. She knows that when we get to the side of the pool, we hold on and then climb out. She knows when she is about to go under water. Some of the time she knows what to do when I say "paddle, paddle, paddle" or "kick, kick, kick." All this from a 6 month old who doesn't always seems to have control of her limbs, yet she picks up on the routines so quickly.
  
• Callie started eating solids. She is not a big eater, and wants nothing to do with grains. Her favorites so far are sweet potatoes and carrots. Green beans are second. Peas and avocado are okay, but much better if mixed with an orange food. Rice (both homemade rice mush stuff and rice cereal) are definite nos. She won't even open her mouth for them. But I am glad she likes her veggies! She loves to grab the spoon and shove it into her mouth. It makes for one messy meal, but I am hoping this is a step to being able to feed herself.
• Callie quickly masted the army combat crawl. 6 weeks after starting this, we still keep thinking she will be crawling any day now. She has officially taken 3 crawling "steps," but then got frustrated and dropped to her tummy and get where she wanted to go. I figure she is waiting until I go back to work so she can give Grandma a run for her money.
  

And of course, as soon as I set out to do this, and upload pictures, the camera battery dies. And the spare was not charged. So I plan to be back tomorrow to add pictures of our summer. And then I plan to try and update every weekend. We'll see how that goes.