Belated Summer News!

Where does time go?! It's hard to believe the summer is now behind us as we find ourselves settling into our "fall routine." The cooler temps in the morning & evening are a wonderful reminder that relief from the heat is finally here! We had a great summer. Drew turned 5 months on Friday & Brianna is officially 2 1/2 yrs. old! I'm not sure which one is more work right now! :) Drew definitely seems to be on the "fast track" with his development. He just cut his first TWO tooth at 4 mo. of age!! I was stunned. Actually, I have two kids teething right now. Brianna is working on her 2 yr. molars. I really didn't think I would have 2 kids teething at the same time...but here we are! :) Both kids sleep 10-11 hrs. at night when they aren't teething :) & we are so very grateful for that accomplishment! :)

Drew is rolling all over the place & has just about mastered the art of sitting up all by himself! Yay! I think he is trying to play "catch up" with his big sister. :) He LOVES Brianna & has a ready smile & giggle for her. He's a bit of lost soul when she's not around. She's my best form of entertainment for him. She loves him dearly too. It's so cute to watch them interact. We think they are going to be best buds. :)

Brianna is a VERY busy 2 yr. old. She keeps me on my toes almost constantly. She likes to be "in charge" of things. She will make a great leader some day as long as this quality is used properly. :) Her favorite things to do right now are "cook mommy"...interpreted cook WITH Mommy, play with "Baby Doo" (her name for Drew), play with play-do, play in the sink & "help" Mommy wash dishes, play with cousins & friends, go to church, go to Kindermusik, & watch her Curious George video. She is a huge social butterfly & loves to be with people of all ages. She is total riot & we are especially enjoying listening to her vocabulary explode right now.

August was a busy, fun-filled month for us. Machen's parents came from PA to visit all of their family in the Greenville area during the first 2 weeks of August. We had a wonderful time visiting with them & the extended family. We had just gotten a fondu pot, so we hosted several fondu "parties" for everyone. Quite fun, but not recommended for anyone trying not to gain weight!

We traveled up to MI for the last 2 weeks of August. My parents live up there on a lake. We thoroughly enjoyed the peaceful setting & the cooler weather! Brianna had a blast & actually enjoyed going on boat rides this year. The kids survived the 13 hour road trip much better than anticipated. It was a treat to be able to see my grandparents who traveled up from Texas while we were there. They enjoyed seeing their only great grandchildren. We are thankful the recent hurricane didn't affect their home or safety in southern TX. We also enjoyed a quick visit with my aunt & uncle who are living in China right now. Speaking of China, my sister & brother-in-law are doing fantastic in China. They are really enjoying teaching English in the University & are learning to to speak Chinese. We miss them, but look forward to a quick visit in January.

Above is a slide show of our trip to MI, plus other fun summer pics. Just click on the collage of pics in order to see them individually in a slide show. Enjoy!