Summer Fun

We have been busy boys this month.  There have been lots of celebrations and parties including three parties over the 4th of July weekend.  The first was a birthday party for my aunt Mollie's dad where we got to watch a clown put on a show.  Then we went to our great grandma's house where I, Cameron, went swimming and used an inflatable boat in the pool while Nathan met Grandpa Jim's side of the family.  The next day Nathan met Grandma Barb's side of the family while I played with bubbles, bean bags, and balls.  The next weekend we went to a birthday party for dad's cousins and nearly got blown away by high winds and thunderstorms.  Given my fear of thunderstorms, I fared pretty well and wanted to watch the heavy rain.  Despite the weather, it was a lot of fun as I played on great grandma's tractor, ate lots of yummy food and Nathan impressed everybody with how content he was just sitting there watching everything.  That same weekend we went to a festival on the south side of Milwaukee, aptly named South Shore Frolics.  Here are some more highlights from early July.

CAMERON

I was not a huge fan of the fireworks that went off on the 4th of July, but overall had a fun holiday.  Mom's favorite moment of mine was after playing for a while with Hannah, one of my distant cousins, I went running across the yard towards her and tried to give her a big bear hug, but knocked both of us over.  Being the gentleman I am, I did try to help her up as seen here.

I am also quite the climber these days.  The sofa, chairs, my step stool, etc.  This means I get into even more stuff on the tables and counters and in my quest to get new places, I got stuck behind the sofa the other day.  I have also tried to climb into my high chair, but according to mom it's too high and she stopped me from trying much to my chagrin.

I also have more responsibilities now too.  When mom empties the dishwasher, I help by putting the lids away.  I also will sweep the floor with my new broom.  But the biggest change this month is I use the toilet instead of my diaper for most poops and sometimes for potty too.  I am very proud of this accomplishment and so are mom and dad.  Mom especially - she has only changed a handful of my dirty diapers in the past two weeks!  I also make sure Dolly gets her diaper changed (I do it myself with a little help as seen here).  I take good care of Dolly.  Yesterday I brought her upstairs with me so she could take a nap too because she was tired.  I even had mom put her in a sleep sack like me.  She has the same naptime/bedtime routine as I do.  In a sleep sack, fan on, read some books with Ella the Elephant being my favorite one right now, music on, drink some water, and then goodnight kisses.  If a step is missed, I will let you know!

Another highlight of my month was the phone call I made to Grandma Linda.  Mom was upstairs getting Nathan up from his nap and she could hear me jabbering to myself, or so she thought.  However, when she came downstairs, she saw me in my box fort talking on the phone to Grandma.  Fortunately I had used the speed dial to call Grandma Linda instead of calling the last number dialed (my doctor) as they would not have been as chatty with me as Grandma.

Another favorite highlight was going to the train show with dad and Grandpa Jim.  I really enjoyed seeing all of the huge model train displays.  Grandpa and dad held me so that I could see everything.  There was plenty to point at.  I didn't get to go into the child's play area because it was so crowded.  That's OK as I was plenty entertained by the moving trains.

And finally, I had my first kiss last weekend.  Yep, Abby planted a wet one smack on my lips last Sunday at her brother's baseball games and I did nothing to stop her.  In fact, I think I kissed her right back!  Although it was not captured on video, I do have a cute little clip of Abby and I the weekend before flirting with one another.  Ahh, love is in the air!


NATHAN

Although I'm not nearly as active as my big bro, I hold my own.  In fact, this month, I  have a few new accomplishments to share.  For starters, I am regularly grabbing or swatting the toys that hang from my playmat and car seat as seen here.  I also love looking at the mobile in my crib.  I can also sit up (with assistance) so sometimes I get to use my big bro's chair.

I am still a good sleeper, even when people other than mommy or daddy put me to bed.  I'm not particular as long as my tummy is full and I am swaddled.  Mommy and daddy tried to wean me off the swaddler, but I protested by waking up several times during the night so that experiment has been shelved until we get back from vacation.  Yep, my first plane ride is coming up tomorrow.  We are going to Atlanta for a long weekend to visit Grandma and Grandpa Heimbigner and then a few days later we are going to Seattle to see Aunt Kali and Uncle Tom and meet my other great grandparents as well as other family.

I also have become quite vocal.  Although I enjoy babbling and cooing, my favorite new noise to make is a squeal/squeak.  Sometimes I do it when something is funny or entertaining and sometimes I do it when I want attention.

My favorite highlight of the month was last Saturday when mommy and I got to spend the whole morning together just the two of us while daddy and Cameron where at a train show with Grandpa Jim.  First mommy and I went to a farmer's market and got some pattypan squash and green peppers.  Later that morning we went to downtown Waukesha and walked around before stopping for lunch and gelato for mommy.  We ate outside and there were lots of motorcycles that drove by so every time I heard one, I would turn my head to see.  After lunch we went and helped mommy's friend Lauren pick out flowers for her wedding.  It was exhausting making all those tough decisions so I fell asleep in mommy's arms after giving my opinion.

Love,
Cameron & Nathan

B-17 Bombers & Brotherly Love (aka War & Peace)

We have been busy enjoying the beautiful summer weather.  A few highlights of our month include cheering on our friends Ben and Abby as they raced their bikes in the Kiddie Classic bike race in downtown Waukesha, attending Wings Over Waukesha (a display of aircraft at the Waukesha airport) and having lunch in downtown Milwaukee a couple times (once with Aunt Kali and then with mom's coworkers).  We also took daddy to brunch and the golf range for Father's Day.  We are very blessed to have such a great daddy.  Here are some more updates from each of us:

CAMERON

Wings Over Waukesha was one of my favorite things this month.  The coolest plane was the B-17 Bomber.  I love airplanes so seeing them up close and personal was very neat.  To top it off, on our way home from the grocery store later that day, the B-17 was preparing to take off so we parked near the airport and watched it take off.

I now have 12 teeth, including 3 molars, with at least 2 more teeth on their way in. I also have a new bed.  It's really just my mattress with the box spring added.  No bed frame yet, but I imagine soon enough.  However, I'm not a huge fan of the new bed because it's harder to get out of to get my toys and books.  As a result, I have voiced my displeasure a few nights this week.  Though mom did enjoy that I called out "mama" the other night instead of just screaming.

I am still quite the daddy's boy and like to emulate him.  Here is a video of me helping him sweep the garage.  I also love figuring out how things work and my latest thing is buckles.  I will latch the buckles in Nathan's car seat when he is not in it.  I also will buckle myself in to the shopping cart if mommy doesn't do it fast enough.


Finally, I am a proud big brother, though I can't wait until I can actually play with Nathan.  Overall, Nathan is pretty cool, but I'm still very curious about him and don't realize he is much smaller than me. I try to pick him up once in a while much to mom and dad's chagrin. And when I give him his pacifier back, mom says I'm too rough (I hear that a lot too when I'm playing with the dog).  I did come close to stepping on him one day too.  Mom did not like that at all and now doesn't let me walk anywhere near him when he is on the floor getting changed.  But most of the time I am good around him and do my best to entertain him.  Here is a video of me dancing to mom's favorite band, REM.  I'm pretty sure this got a smile out of Nate!

NATHAN

I have discovered my hands!  I love sucking on them and now use my pacifier less as a result.  I also am starting to grab and swat at things as seen in this video.  I am also growing nicely and have outgrown a lot of my clothes already.  Mom has me mostly in 3 month and 3-6 month outfits now.  I also enjoy baths much more now.  In fact, the other night I didn't cry at all during my bath.

I still sleep well.  Most days I will catnap in the morning, usually in my car seat as we take a walk and/or run errands.  Some days though I will sleep in my crib if we don't have other plans.  Then I take a longer (about 3 hours) afternoon nap in my crib.  It usually coincides with Cameron's nap so mommy and daddy get a little down time during the day.  My bedtime is typically around 7:45, which also coincides with Cameron, but lately I have wanted to stay up until 9:30 on some nights.  At least I am quiet when I am up late.

I had my first fever two weeks ago and then had another one last week.  Fortunately it didn't last long and I wasn't bothered by it.  In fact, mommy only took my temperature based on a gut feeling (I spit up a bit more than usual that day) otherwise we probably would have never known I had a fever.

Finally, my highlight of the month is watching my big brother who I absolutely adore.  I am constantly watching him when he is near.  In fact, there are times where I am a bit fussy and then Cameron comes around and it calms me down.  When he is upset, I often will cry too. As he walks by or stops to say hi, I smile back at him.  Here is a video of me smiling at my big brother as he "plays" with me.  I am very fortunate to have such a cute, entertaining, sweet brother.

Love,
Cameron & Nathan