We started the summer a little early with a trip in May to Missouri to see my Mom.  The girls are getting old enough to appreciate the Grandma that they don’t see as often as they do their other relatives.  I think the highlight was chasing ants and butterflies around Mom’s yard.

Rayna has been to, not one but, two vacation bible schools.  First, she spent a week at a Baptist church in Rochester at the invitation of Emily, her best friend from preschool.  And then, of course, bible school at our own church.  She returned the favor and invited Emily to come along.  Both girls had a great time.

As reported previously, both Rayna and Kaylee have been spending a lot of time in the pool at the Rochester Athletic Club.  Both took swimming lessons and are coming along nicely.  I personally had a great time in Kaylee’s parent/child lessons.

A few weeks ago, we all went to the Minnesota Zoo and had a good day.  I personally enjoyed the giant fish tanks the most.  Kaylee really seemed to get into that too, although she beat a hasty retreat when a shark suddenly swam close by.  Everyone had fun watching a brown bear who was quite a ham and put on a good show for the crowd.

So, it’s been a good summer so far.  Here’s looking forward to a great August!

This morning, we’re going out mattress shopping to get Kaylee a big girl bed.  We told her that we’d take this big step when she started using the potty so now it’s time to ante up.  We don’t need a headboard; her bed can be disassembled and (some of) the pieces reassembled in a different configuration to serve in that capacity.  All we need is mattress, frame, and bedding.  There are a lot of 4th of July sales at the furniture stores this weekend so the timing is good.

After that, we’re going out for lunch and ice cream in honor of Kaylee’s big achievement.  Should be a great day!

Kaylee was in rare form tonight.  The teacher put out some noodles for us to use and within a few minutes, Kaylee was swimming by herself.  I was a little nervous about my 2 1/2 year-old, but she insisted that I not hold on to her while she clung to the noodle and propelled herself around the pool by kicking her legs.  Over and over again, she kept saying “I don’t need you, Daddy!”  It wasn’t dismissive or mean.  It was a cry of triumph and I couldn’t have been more proud.  I knew she was really happy when she suddenly blurted out, “I love you, Daddy.”

Once we finished playing with the noodles, it was time to jump off the side of the pool into the water.  Kaylee really likes this.  But after a few jumps, she seemed to lose interest.  I couldn’t figure out what she was trying to do at first.  She laid down on her belly at the pool edge and then kicked her legs out and slid right into the water while holding onto the edge.  I started to grab her but it was clear that she was in control and didn’t want any help.  Next thing I knew, she pushed off with her legs and shot back through the water into my arms.  We did that five or six times, with me putting her out of the pool so she could slip back in and push off.  The teacher came over and complemented me on getting her to do this but I had to admit that it had all been her idea.

All in all, it was quite an evening.

In June, we went down to Missouri to visit my Mom for a few days.  It was a great visit, marred only by the 100 degree, 99% humidity weather.  The girls loved seeing “Grandma Lambright”, who was a bit of a mystery to them, in the flesh.  Rayna still is talking about wanting to go see Grandma Lambright again.  Other highlights of the visit included seeing my old friends Vince and Droid, along with their families, and a trip to see my Dad’s resting place in St. Joe.  The swans and fish were out in force at the cemetery’s pool and the girls had a wonderful time tossing bits of bread into the water to be devoured.

Shortly after we returned from Missouri, Nicole and I decided it was time for Rayna to make the transition to a full-sized bed.  She did really well in the hotel bed on the trip and there didn’t seem any reason to wait.  So, we went to the furniture store and got her a new bed.  We didn’t get a headboard; the side of her toddler bed was designed to function as a headboard when the child moves to a bigger bed.  We then went to Wal-Mart and let her pick her own bedding.  It was a close race and I thought for a minute that she was going to opt for Micky Mouse; in the end, however, it was the Princess gear that got the nod.  Rayna loves her big bed; even now she occasionally thanks me for putting it together.

Kaylee got a little grumpy at all this.  When it dawned on us that she was jealous, we went ahead and converted her crib to a toddler bed, which immediately brightened her mood.  She loves getting in and out of bed on her own. She can’t open the door yet but she’s trying and it’s just a matter of time.  It’s hard to believe how she’s grown.

Speaking of Kaylee, she continues to come into her own.  All her teeth seem to be in, save the four eyeteeth which still give her fits sometimes.  Her vocabulary has exploded this summer and it seems like she’s coming up with new words every day.  She really gets a kick out of saying Rayna’s name and uses it every chance she gets.  Some of her other favorites are “juice”, “Elmo”, and “naked”, which gets used a lot at bathtime.

This year marked Nicole and my fourth wedding anniversary, which doesn’t seem possible.  The time has really flown.  We treated ourselves to a day trip to the Twin Cities while the girls stayed home with a babysitter.  Nothing fancy, just a little shopping and lunch.  It’s just nice to get away by ourselves occasionally.

Speaking of Elmo, we all went to Sesame Street Live last weekend and had a great time.  Kaylee had never been to anything like this and she really likes Elmo so she spent the whole show entranced.  It was fun watching her try to figure out cotton candy.  First she tried chewing it, which didn’t really work.  Licking like a sucker was even less successful.  Finally, she figured out how to just let it dissolve in her mouth.  We got her an Elmo pendent which is up in her room.

We have a massive backlog of photos, which I need to organize, tag, and get loaded to our page on flickr.  I posted a bunch yesterday (including Christmas 2008) and will continue to work on that in the coming days.  Our photostream isn’t in strict chronological order anymore, which offends my sense of the linear, but it’s more important to get stuff up.  I’ll post here when the particularly choice bits go up.

Last weekend, we went out to Tweite’s Pumpkin Patch.  This is an annual tradition for us.  The girls have a good time and we end it all with a wagon ride to the pumpkin patch where we each pick out the perfect pumpkin.  And we buy kettle corn.  We forgot the camera this year so there aren’t many pictures.  We snapped a few with our cell phone cameras but haven’t got them posted yet.

Things are moving forward with the house, much as planned.  The financing is mostly in place; all that’s left is to sign the paper and lock the interest rate in place.  The inspection and appraisal both went well with no unexpected surprises.  We’re still on track to move on 11-26, the day before Thanksgiving.  We’re going over on Friday to take pictures of the interior and measure all the rooms so that we can do some more serious planning on where to put things and how to set it all up.  Right now, we’re working off of memory.  Thanks to all who have helped us out as we make this transition!

Born: October 11, 2007

Nicknames:  Kaylee Crockett, Boogernose, Daughter Number Two

Most enduring trait:  The way her face lights up as she grabs a stuffed animal to hug it.

Least enduring trait:  That gawdawful high-pitched wail she makes whenever she is unhappy.

Favorite food (for the moment):  Apple Jacks cereal

Favorite game:  The Sharing Game.  She hands you something and you hand it back.  Repeat a few hundred times.