~ Fun week of visitors ~

This past week we enjoyed lots of visitors to our home. First was a special childhood friend of Mommy's, Kristi who got to meet Clara for the first time. Hopefully we'll see her again soon and introduce Clara to her kids, Justin and Ashley. Then Great Grandma and Grandpa Swanson came for an overnight visit. Clara eats up all of their attention!

Looking pretty darn cute in her new cherry dress! On Friday, Cousin Daniel came up for a visit and we all went and had a fun BBQ dinner.

She is developing a sense of humor and giggles at faces and sounds quite a bit.

Too big for her bassinet! She hasn't slept in it much the past few months, but it is still a benchmark in her development - one that is somewhat sad for Mommy!

Clara LOVES spending time with her cousins who also came to visit on Sunday. Hailey and Taylor had her laughing and smiley much of their visit. They helped Daddy baby sit while Mommy enjoyed a day at the spa with Auntie Amy and Grandma Carol!

Clara likes borrowing your hat, Hailey!

Our Baby is 24 weeks old!!

Happy after a bath in her bunny towel!

Clara loves her cereal and we are always surprised at how quickly a mess is created when she eats.

Talking up a storm... LA, LA, DA, AHH...

Just a swingin'

From her tummy she is working on getting her legs up underneather her.

Clara is such a little cheeseball for the camera. She seems to love having her picture taken.

Sacked out!!

Having fun with Daddy! She gets so happy to see him when he comes home from work!

An eventful week for Scout!

This past week ended up being a pretty eventful one for our little family. After months of looking, we finally purchased a new vehicle - one that gets Clara's approval as she fell right asleep in our first test drive plus it has lots of room for her things (stroller, car seat, toys, etc.). We also have been enjoying all of our beautiful summer weather spending time outside on walk and meeting up with friends. On Sunday, Clara and Mommy traveled to Chehalis for the Johnson family reunion at Great Grandma and Grandpa Swanson's house. It was a lot of fun for Clara to meet many family members for the first time.

Happy Girl! Scout's babbles have taken off this past week. She is "talking" to us more frequently and her sounds are starting to resemble real words - most excitingly "da da da!"

She still LOVES this baby gym toy!

This week Scout also had her first tastes of rice cereal. She has been very interested in watching Mommy & Daddy eat. While she liked to open her mouth for Daddy, most of the cereal comes right back out. What a fun experience for us!

Clara's legs are getting stronger all of the time and she is getting so good at turning herself in the exersaucer. She also likes trying to sit up and has really improved in the past week though not quite doing so independently. Her development is amazing for us to observe!

Clara's First Independence Day!!

We can't believe how quickly she is learning to sit up. She still needs assistance, but is getting stronger every day!

Sweetie Pie

Celebrating the 4th of July in style!

On the 4th of July, Grandma & Grandpa Stevens came up along with Great Grandma Elaine to enjoy a yummy BBQ feast and attend the neighborhood gathering. We had a fun day together as a family and then Mommy & Daddy got to meet up with friends later in the evening and Clara had a fun time with Grandma, Grandpa and Grandma Elaine!