A milestone summer...

Sam and Amelia have had quite a summer. It seems like they have gone through a burst of milestones, language development and just development in general. In particular, though, I want to remember how much Amelia loved achieving two things this summer; pumping her legs and swinging herself, and riding a bike! I have never seen her so happy or proud or excited and it has been SO much fun to see.

Pumping her legs was the first. On July 4th, on her friend Vera's swing set, she figured it out and there was no turning back. She was beyond thrilled and just giggled and giggled uncontrollably every time she did it for the next couple of weeks:) Here is some video of her in action the morning after she learned, singing all the while of course! The song is first cheering Sam on to learn how to pump, and then mama, until Sam corrects her that "Mom is too big to fit on the swing!" Thanks Sammy!

The next biggie was riding a bike! She's been ready for a while. They got balance bikes not long after they turned three and she really took to it. Then came 6 months of winter and so bike riding was put on hold. Then came mama being "frugal" and not finding an acceptable bike at the kids consignment shop(no characters plastered all over it, not expensive, etc.). Then she and I were out together one day shopping for some baby things, and there it was! We bought it as her "I'm going to be a big sister!" gift, took it home (gave Sam his big brother gift that I had stored away), and waited for Daddy to get home! They practiced a bit that evening with him holding onto the seat. The next morning he showed her how to use it like her balance bike to get started and then start pedaling and that did it, she was off! Once again, I had never seen her so proud. It topped even the swinging. When she would see someone ride by on their bike she would yell, "Hey! I have a bike too!!" She had to show the mailman how she could ride, and anyone else who will watch:) Her proudest moment of all is riding next to her daddy though. All around the block he says she tries to not smile the whole time, but she just can't help it. They ride in the bike lane together, which I'm sure makes it seem even more special. Here is a video of her learning process:

Still no wrecks, though I'm just waiting! She zoomed around the park with a 6 year old little girl the other day and almost gave me a heart attack!

Sam is doing well with his sister's bike riding. He is pretty content with his scooter and big wheel for now, which is great because I know he'd be super frustrated trying the bike right now. So, yay Sam!
Okay, that's all for now!
Jen