Busy Matti

We had a wonderful 4th of July in the mountains. We arrived on Friday evening just in time to see some fireworks. Matti actually got to see them for the first time. It was beautiful. She acted so interested in them.
On Saturday we had planned on going to Grandfather Mountain, but it ended up raining and storming all day so we stayed indoors and caught up on some rest and relaxation. Matt's Dad, sister, her fiancé, and his boys met us on Saturday evening. We grilled out steaks, which were great and just hung out. Matti showed off her scooting/crawling skills for us. We were amazed. We did not realize she had gotten so good at it over the course of the week. She is also sitting much better and longer unassisted, and mumbling Mama all the time. I feel like we miss so much because we do not see her during the day. On Sunday, it rained and stormed all day so we napped and watched the Tennis tournament. It is almost a ritual for Matthew who has watched the tennis tournament in the Mountains over the 4th for several years now. It was hard for us, especially Matthew to leave on Sunday night. It was an end to an era for him and his sister. They spent many great memorable times there and I know it was hard on them. I know Matthew was happy he got to take Matti and show her around.
Matti has really started doing a lot over the past few weeks including sitting well, crawling/scooting, mumbling a lot of different sounds-such as Mama, ba, and sometimes she will throw a da in there. Dada is ready for that. She is squealing more and seems to get really excited when Matthew or I pick her up. She gets so excited that she almost flips right out of our arms. She is just a little mess and is already getting into everything. Matthew and I have said “No, that is not for Matti to play with” over and over a million times and she goes right back to getting into sticky situations. I guess it is time to baby proof the house.
I have been so emotional about the whole thing. I got an email from the Baby Gap with the cutest little girl in pj’s smiling in an ad, which made me realize that my baby is not such a baby anymore. She is growing up so fast. I ended up shedding a tear or two.
Also I am posting a picture of a portrait that Matthew's Mother did of Mattison. It is gorgeous. It is so special to Matthew and I and I know Mattison will treasure it always.
Here are a few clips and a pic of the portrait.