The Big Sand Box

Hi; Laina has been enjoying her summer. This year she is more interested in the sand than the water and calls the beach the "big sandbox". Here's a couple of pictures of her playing and watching the sunset with us, one of her with her friend Colin, and also one of her in her sandbox at home. We built it within our fenced garden area which works out great! I can enjoy working in the garden and still be close, while I know she is nearby and safe. In a couple of weeks, on August 9, we are going to have a reunion with the extended China group of 28 families. It will be so much fun to see them all together, all but Laina will be 2 or older and she'll turn 2 herself on the 12th of August. They are very fast at this age but hopefully we'll get some good photos, especially with the "Guangxi Girls", our four girls from the same province. Can't wait to see them all! Some recent milestones for Laina include; jumping (and actually getting her feet off the ground), walking heel-to-toe across a beam without holding anyone's hand, climbing everything, saying "please" and "thank you" and "excuse me" and even "I'm sorry". She has too many words to count now and speaks in full sentences quite often. She can handle the stairs without holding hands and is getting better around people she doesn't know, although she still waits to get to know people before she really speaks to them. Enjoy the new pictures!