Trying to Beat the Heat

There isn't much of an update with the girls.  Ava is doing great with walking and we are working on standing up in the middle of the room....she still has to pull up on things and then she's off walking all about.  Reese is still her onry self.  She likes to be the leader and then Ava follows.  Lately Reese has been crawling up on the hearth in front of our fireplace and then Ava quickly scurries up before we tell them to get down and gently pull them off.  Reese has also taught Ava how to open the top of our trash can and if the trash is high enough, pull the contents out to play inspect.  Little stinkers! 

Other than that, we have been spending time outdoors when we can but have plenty of fun indoors too.  The 100+ degree days make it tough to enjoy the outdoors!  The pictures below give a snapshot into our days lately!  Oh, and the first one shows the girls in a shopping cart for the very first time.  Yep, they had never been to a grocery store before since we were trying to keep them away from any infections but they got to experience SAM'S for the first time.  As seen in the picture, there was way too much to look at rather than looking at momma for a silly picture!
(P.S.  Sorry I can't rotate a couple of the pictures!)

The First Roadtrip...

We had an amazing "first" in the life of the McNeils!  We traveled for the first time with the girls.  Yes, longer than the 30 minute car ride downtown to Children's Mercy Hospital. (6 hours!!!)  The best part was that it was to see Grammy, Nana, and Pappy...and all the people in Galesburg, Illinois who have been praying for Ava and Reese since day one at a measly 1 lb. 14 oz.

Daddy likes to say "Reese has room for improvement" as far as the car ride.  I'm sure there will be plenty of opportunities for practice in the future.  The last hour and a half of the trip Ava and Reese were ready to get out of their seats and Reese wanted to make sure we understood that.  However, the time we had in Galesburg made it all worth it.  We got to do so many fun things like go see our cousin Brandon ("Bubba") play baseball, play in the Little Tike's red car that Nana and Pappy bought us, play in the water table Grammy bought us, go the park to swing and slide, have meals with family and friends, and on and on.  There are plenty of pictures to remember our first trip and to anyone who knows Nana, she took a couple too!  (Okay, more than a couple!) 

And just an update on other "firsts" around here...Ava is officially off the ventilator 24/7 as of May 21st and she is also walking.  She's still wobbly but getting better every day! 

Included are a few other pictures/videos from playing at home, having dinner with friends, and going to our night nurse's wedding!  Fun, fun!

Ava at Bubba's baseball game.

Ava and Reese playing with Bubba in their new ride.

Ava discovering her love for ice.

Playing in the water table in Grammy's backyard.

Ava walking like a big girl!

Ava and Reese riding in the wagon with our neighbor friends Colton and Nolan.

All dressed up at Nurse Megan's wedding reception.




Videos of the girls playing together at home!!!  Love the laughter!