This is what happens....

when Bruba is sleeping and Mommy is trying to clean!

As I was trying to pick up a little, Hannah got out her markers and coloring books and went to town. Then proceeded to give herself some "tattoos." I turn around and she yells, "Mommy....Wook!" Oh, boy! I love our artistic little girl!

Back to Reality

After an extended summer break (I've been home since Cameron's court date), it's time to head back to school. We have had such a wonderful summer and I couldn't have asked it to be any better. For the last few weeks, I've been going up to school a couple of days to get my classroom ready and prepare myself for the year. The kids went to Ms. Sarah's so I could work without distraction. It was good for me and especially to start easing them back into the school routine. I always get excited to start a new year. Here our my own kids posing with mom as we start another year.

Mascoutah Homecoming

Every year, Mascoutah has a Homecoming celebration which includes rides, foods, parades and so much more. Last year, we just stuck to the parades, but we decided to also try the rides this year. Since doing rides is much more fun with friends, we asked if my good friend, Melissa, and her son Jackson (Hannah and Jackson are the same age and go to the sitter together) to go with us. Here are the kids on a "date" to the Homecoming. It was extremely hot that afternoon and we didn't last too long, but the kids did get go on a few rides. Here are Hannah and Jackson driving some cars. Jackson wasn't super fond of the rides, but he did start to like this one a little.

That night we went up town to watch the parade. There were a lot of people, tractors, and candy! it didn't take Hannah too long to figure out how to get candy when people threw it. It was a fun evening and the Casey family enjoyed another Mascoutah Homecoming!

Our Fabulous Four Month Old!

That's right, Cameron is already four months old! We can't believe it either! Cam continues to be our big boy! He is wearing 6-9 month clothes and some of those onesies are even getting a little snug. Cam is eating 4 times a day with each bottle being between 7-8 ounces. He has also started eating rice cereal and we are beginning to introduce fruits and vegetables. So far, he is loving his solid food! He also continues to be one strong little guy! He rolls from front to back and almost has himself going from back to front. He loves to be on his belly! He pulls himself right up to his forearms and wants to check everything out! Cameron continues to be a happy baby! His personality shines through more and more everyday. One thing that we hear the most from people is how attentive he is, especially with his facial expressions. We love watching his eyes! I know there are many more months ahead of watching that personality come alive! We have had an awesome four months with our man and continue to thank God every day for bringing Cameron to our family!

Update: I wrote this before I had Cam's 4 month stats. At the doctor, he weighed in at 19 lbs. 2.5 oz (96th percentile) and measured 26 1/2 inches (88th percentile). The doctor says he looks great and is doing really well! :-)

Our Little Gymnast

Since our first round of gymnastics over the winter, we knew that Hannah loves it! After a break this spring, we decided to sign up again for the summer. We switched to a morning class which gave both of us something to look forward to each week. We were also able to go with some friends I teach with and their daughters. Hannah enjoyed seeing her friends each week at class. It was definitely one of our favorite days of the week! Hannah would wake up every Wednesday and start yelling "Na-Ni!" (her word for gymnastics). I have really enjoyed watching her get better every week. Not only are her skills improving, but she is also learning to listen to her teacher and follow directions. By this winter, she will be in the "big girl" class by herself. She wasn't being extremely photogenic on this day, but these were still good shots of our little gymnast.

One of her favorite things to do each week was climb and jump. Hannah loves going as high as possible and jumping off. She isn't scared one bit! This is one of the balance beams for the little ones. Hannah got pretty confident on them throughout the summer. She even started letting go the last little bit and walking by herself.

This was another big accomplishment that Hannah made this summer. Over the winter, she would only go up a couple of the rungs of this fireman's ladder. By the end of the summer, she made it to the top, over it (with some help from me) and down the other side. What a big girl!

We are already signed up for the next session. I can't wait to see the growth Hannah make over the next 10 weeks!