Dr. Suess' birthday

 Dr. Suess' birthday was Wednesday.  Lauren is all about birthdays...so we decided to celebrate! :)

Here are a few pictures from the past 3 years of Dr. Suess' birthday!

2009

2010 (Katelyn's head is SO bald!!) :)

2011

We started off the day by eating some Green Eggs and Ham!  Lauren likes eggs and ham anyway, but I wasn't sure if the color would throw her off.  I told her what we were going to eat.  She watched me make it.  And then....

She liked it! :)  She told me, "mommy, i yike geen eggs and ham, sam i am!"  

(guess which book I have to read to her daily?!)

Here is her breakfast....the ham looked gross to me! I soaked it in green water and the color is just odd.  Lauren gobbled it up!

Her eggs have tomatoes and cheese in them....that's the only way I can get her to eat eggs!

And then she has some cantaloupe, because that's the fruit she asked for.

I'm trying to give her a little more "say" in what she eats...so I let her choose her fruit for each meal and also what she wants for snack. 

 (of course, I give her limited options to choose from, but it gives her some control...which I feel like she is wanting these days!!)

And then we both win.

We also read a bunch of Dr. Suess books that Lauren's grandparents gave her for her first Christmas.  I remember thinking, "she's 7 months old, this gift is kind of impractical right now..." but I have been really thankful for them!

Lauren's favorites are Green Eggs and Ham and Dr. Suess's ABC.

We also read One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish and I let her sort some goldfish for snack.  We used the colored gold fish and little bowls for each color.  Too bad I forgot to take a picture!

Lauren also made a "Cat in the Hat" hat out of construction paper.  But she didn't want it to be red and white like the cat in the hat.  

She was expressing her creative freedom.

  So she had a rainbow-colored hat that she wore all day.

  Until it ripped.  :( 

 I need a material strong enough to hold up to a toddler!

And on that note, is Lauren a toddler still?  I mean, what is an almost-3-year old classified as? Are they toddlers until they are 3?  What are they called when they're 3?  A kid?  Hmmm...

I digress.

Our Dr. Suess day was fun overall.  Kate couldn't be with us most of the day, because they had a death in their family, and there were services and other things that their family had to do.  Lauren missed her!

And we ended the day by watching a Dr. Suess movie that I checked out from the library.  It has about 3 Dr. Suess books made into short films and Lauren LOVES it!  She's asked to watch it everyday since we got it from the library last week.  I think I can sing all the songs in my head and they are super-annoying!  

But that's the "perks" of having a toddler.  

Or an almost-kid.  

Or whatever Lauren is.

our busy week

This week has been a fun and busy one! On Monday, Lauren and Kate were so glad to see each other after being apart for a long weekend, they played happily all morning and then took nice, long naps in the afternoon.  Gotta love days like that!

It did snow most of the day Monday, but only covered the grass a little bit.  Nothing stuck to the roads or sidewalks (yay!)

Tuesday was MOPS and they had organized a little Valentine exchange for the kids after our meeting.  Lauren was so excited! She kept talking about her "Vawentine Pawtee with all her Fwiends"- it was funny.  

Here she is in her Valentine's Day shirt. 

Wednesday, I took Lauren and Kate to Hobby Lobby and Walmart for a few things that we needed. 

 (well, we probably didn't actually NEED anything from Hobby Lobby...) 

But I AM glad that we ended up swinging by Walmart.  

Jason told me that they were calling for snow around lunchtime on Wed, but I had forgotten.  Sure enough, when we walked out of Walmart, it was pouring down snow!  This time, it was sticking to the streets and sidewalks (not a good sign)

Thank goodness I had bought bread and milk...you know, for milk sandwhiches when it snows. Ha!

Sure enough, Owensboro ended up getting 3+" of snow, and they closed schools on Thursday.  

When schools are closed, we don't babysit Katelyn, because her dad is a teacher and gets to stay home with her!

Sooo...Lauren woke up around her normal time of 7am, but I was a bad mom and turned on the Disney channel in the living room so I could get another half hour of sleep or so.  (in my defense, the living room is right outside my bedroom, and the door was open the whole time...so she was about 8 feet away from me the whole time). :)

Lauren was happy watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, but I kept hearing her moving stuff around (you know when you're asleep, but can still hear noises and stuff?  That's what I mean).

A little bit later, Lauren said, "mommy, come see, I made a train for you!"  

A train?

 Apparently, the noises I heard were Lauren moving a bunch of the DVDs and VHSs and making her own little "train" across the living room floor. 

She was seriously proud of her accomplishment! :)

Since I was out of bed at this point, I pulled some clothes out to change Lauren, but she made a big fuss and told me not to take off her "jamas".  Sure enough, we stayed in "jamas" for the rest of the day while I cleaned our apartment for our playgroup the next day.

And it was kind of fun being snowed in, just me and Lauren, wearing pajamas all day long.

Friday morning, we had 3 other parents and their kids over to our apartment for play group.  

This picture is about 1/10 of the mess when everyone left!

I am pretty sure that the 5 kids that were here managed to drag out every toy and book that we own.  Then they threw them all on the floor! :)

Surprisingly, all the kids got along really well.  Lauren was the oldest one, all the other kids were 2 or under.  

After 2 hours of playing and snacking, Lauren started to "lose it." 

 She was whining, and crying, and getting frustrated with the other kids.  

I think she had just shared and shared all her toys, and wanted to be able to play with something without another child taking it from her or wanting to come play, too!  Since it was almost lunchtime, anyway, the other parents and kids got ready to go.

I plunked Lauren and Kate in their chairs at the table for lunch and proceeded to SPEED CLEAN all the toys. I had everything put away in 15 minutes, flat!

Friday was Lauren's last day to sleep in her crib.  Jason and I have known for a while that she is WAY too tall for the crib (which we had converted to a toddler bed), but are wanting to wait to buy new furniture (including a big girl bed) until we find out if we are going to be moving later this year. 

I had to take a picture of her napping in the crib for the last time.  

I will post a pic soon of our "temporary" solution for Lauren's bed.  She loves it so far!!

I will admit that I had a "moment" when I saw Jason carrying the crib out to the garage.  I just started crying, knowing that my baby didn't need her crib anymore, and I don't have another baby to pass it down to right now.  It was a little hard for me.  

I even offered to let my friend Scarlett borrow it for her baby that's on the way (#4 for her!) because her youngest is not even 1 yet....and she said, "watch, as soon as you give your crib away, you'll get pregnant."  

Hmmmm...think it would work? :)

 Finally, here is my big girl eating a popsicle 

(it's below freezing outside, but this is the snack she asked for!)

She is such a blessing to us, sometimes I wish we had 10 more just like her.

:)

On my camera...

Shelby does this kind of post from time to time and I think I will give it a try as well... it makes it easier to just throw a bunch of pictures together and play "catch up!" :)

This weekend, we went to a Western Kentucky University Basketball Game.  My mom and Royce had some extra tickets, and they invited us to go.  

 Here are Jason and Lauren outside the arena.She was so excited!!  

When we got inside, we saw some of the WKU cheerleaders while we were in the bathroom.  They thought Lauren was the cutest thing, and gave her a little temporary tattoo to wear on her cheek during the game.

I thought it was hilarious that the cheerleaders asked Lauren if she wanted to be a cheerleader when she got bigger.  She said "Yes!"  Then one of them asked her was she going to come cheer for Western.  She looked at me and I said, "not if her daddy can help  it!"  

(Jason's a Bama fan through and through)  

Despite not having a nap, Lauren did well during the game.  She didn't want to sit for very long at a time, but we got up with her and walked around.  I think all the sounds and lights were very interesting to her!

When we asked her before the game who we were cheering for, she said "Alabama!"  :) 

By the time the game was over, it was after 6 and we headed to the car.  Before we were out of the parking garage, Lauren was sound asleep! And I mean, drool-running-down-her-cheek and snoring- asleep!  

When we got home an hour later, this was Lauren.  

Too much excitement + not enough sleep = this grumpy girl.

We put her to bed and she slept until 8 the next morning!

Lauren has also apparently had some kind of growth spurt in the past 3 months that I hadn't really noticed.

Jason was getting her dressed for the basketball game and kept telling me that every pair of pants he put on her was about 2-3 inches too short.  What?!  

This happened last year as well...she outgrew her 2t's a month or so before the weather warmed up, and there was no way that I was buying a bunch of new winter clothes in a bigger size!

She does have a few pair of 3t pants that will get her by until spring, but most of them are going to have to be put away.  

Case in point:

I bought this outfit for Lauren in October.  She wore it for the first time to Aiden's first birthday a few weeks later.  I LOVE it....but look at all the white sock that is visible in that picture!  She looks like Steve Urkel. (minus the suspenders)

The frog outfit that she wore to the bball game is a 4t and I bought it for next year because I had gym bucks to spend at Gymboree. Obviously, she'll be wearing it now!

It's not that Lauren is a chunky monkey, she just keeps getting TALLER!  At least she gets her height honest. But good grief, if she continues to grow like this....I am going to have to learn to make her clothes. (HA!)

I have been working with Lauren on learning her ABC's a little bit at home.  I'm definitely NOT pushing it, just building on her natural curiosity.  (she really loves the book "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom and she points to letters as I say their names or names them herself.   yay!)

From my teaching days, I remember that it's easiest for children to first learn the letters that are most meaningful to them...i.e., the first letter of their name, their parent's names, sibling's names, etc.

 Sooo...I make sure to always point out "L's" to Lauren and tell her that "L" is her letter.  "L for Lauren".  (And "M for mommy", "D for Daddy"...etc.)

She is loving it! One day last week, she found her foam bathtub letter L and brought it to me saying, "look, mommy! L for Lauren" "It's for me! It's my letter". 

And our library has these huge wooden letters in their upstairs children's area and there just happens to be an "L"  (not all the letters are represented).  

Lauren was really excited to have her picture made on her letter... (wearing a pair of jeans that don't show her ankles) :)

There are also quotes on the walls of the library (you can see one in the pic above)  

Lauren will point out letters that she knows in the quotes.  The day I took this picture, she was showing me "O and E" 

I think she recognizes/names A, B, C, D, E, K, L, M, O, P, S, T, X, and sometimes Z.

I love that she thinks that it is fun to find letters!

  I will just run with this as long as she enjoys it, I don't want to push her and make it "un-fun", though.  :)

And..... (whew! this post is getting loooooong)..2 weeks ago at MOPS, our pastor's wife spoke about teaching our children about God and how to raise disciples of Christ.  

One of the examples she used was to make Bible studies more meaningful by having children "act" them out. 

Lauren is OBSESSED with the story of David and Goliath right now.

(it was Noah and the "big boat" a few months ago)

One day, she was playing with some craft pom-poms that I had in a little box for her and she was wanting to throw them like balls.  I started to tell her "no", because our rule is to not through things in the house.

Then it dawned on me: I could bed the rules a little and let her act out her favorite Bible story.

So here is Lauren in action....

She is throwing her "rocks" at the "big giant" (her bedroom door).

 I thought it was a great activity and was meaningful to her.

 Unfortunately, Jason came home not long after, and saw all the "rocks" on the floor and was not impressed.  

Maybe it wasn't such a great idea, but Lauren still talks about wanting to throw her "rocks" at the "big giant". So, I think it was worth the mess.

My dad also came up for a visit last week.  He had some time off work, and got to stay with us for about 4 days.  

Lauren was so excited!

This is my dad reading "Corduroy" to Lauren one night before bed. 

I love seeing my dad spend time with Lauren. 

 Here is Lauren Sunday afternoon after church getting ready to make her "Valentines" for our MOPS Valentine's exchange.

She said that she wanted to make a "surprise" for all her friends.  :)  

( there is nothing better than a surprise in Lauren's mind)

 We made little bags with Valentine's inside, and Lauren got to add a mini playdough and some heart candy.

I thought she looked adorable in her dress and sweater and HUGE bow (which matched her white tights, not the pink dress, clearly)

But Lauren was being silly and these are what I got....

She's such a ham!

"Mommy, stop taking my picture, please!" :)

Here is the almost-finished product. 

I tied the little bags with red ribbon...they are too cute!

 I just printed these Valentine's onto cardstock.

  They have a little fairy on them and say "Have a fairy nice day! Love, Lauren" 

She's super-excited to give them to her little friends from church.

And, finally....

today it snowed again.  (surprise, surprise...) 

So Lauren and Katelyn got to watch a movie.

I had to get a picture of them laying on the couch.

Love that Kate copies everything Lauren does. (that could be good or bad) 

And she's such a sweet little friend to Lauren!

When Jason got home, he took Lauren outside for a few minutes so she could get some fresh air and play in the snow for about 10 minutes.

 Warm clothes? Check. 

 Hat? Check.  

Coat? Check. 

Gloves? Check.

One Happy Girl! :) (with a very pink nose)

 Oh, Spring...we are so ready for you!!

seriously funny kids

Last night I was mindlessly flipping channels on tv long after I should have been in bed and I came across a new show on Lifetime called "Seriously Funny Kids." 

 The new host(ess?) is Heidi Klum.  

I love her.

Not that I actually know her or anything. 

But, from the interviews that I have read about her in Redbook magazine, etc, she seems like a pretty down-to-Earth mom who is in love with her husband and kiddos.

Never mind that she is 7 feet tall and gorgeous. 

Anyway, Heidi has decided to trade in her former job doing this.....

for a job doing this....

Lifetime describes the show this way: The half-hour series Seriously Funny Kids follows supermodel and supermom Klum as she interacts with children and brings out the hilarious and often insightful things they say.  

I watched most of the show and it was pretty funny.  The kids are hysterical and Heidi seems to be genuinely enjoying talking to them and being silly. 

Maybe because I spent a few years teaching 4-5 year olds before Lauren was born, I find this sort of show so funny?!  Kids are so honest and it's actually refreshing to hear the things that they say!  

If you want to catch the show, it's on at 9pm on Tuesday nights on Lifetime.  

Muffin Tin Monday (on Tuesday)

I have been following the Muffin Tin Monday posts for awhile. 

But I haven't linked up before now.  Mostly this is because I have not made the time to plan Lauren's meals far enough in advance to have a theme for our lunch.  Good grief, I'm doing good if I can get her to EAT her lunch these days! :)

I know that when I put a little time into making Lauren's food look more fun and appealing, she generally eats better.  And when you make food fun, kids are more likely to try new (i.e. healthy) foods. 

 It's true. 

 I'm sure someone, somewhere 

 has done a study about it.

Anyway.....

Monday's theme at MTM was "favorite foods".  

Well, that is easy- peasy, lemon-squeezy.  

Good thing the theme was not "favorite-foods-that-must-be-healthy and-not-contain-high-fructose corn-syrup", 

or else we'd be in trouble.

Here is Lauren's lunch from Monday (I'm just getting the pics up today, my camera battery died after I took the pictures!)

Lauren's Muffin Tin Lunch

Clockwise from top left: Chickadee crackers (Target's version of goldfish),

 cut-up string cheese stick & ham, 

green & purple grape skewers, 

homemade chocolate cookie, 

welch's fruit snacks, 

small container of roasted red pepper hummus (to dip the crackers in)

 (don't know why, but this is her fave flavor of hummus, which she refers to as "dip") :)

*While Lauren's favorite fruits are cantelope and strawberries, 

 they are seriously out of season right now and $$!  She does like grapes as well**

Kate's lunch (I can't get the pic to rotate the right way....sorry!!)

Green and purple grapes, 

popcorn chicken with ketchup, 

ham and string cheese bites,

PB crackers.

She also had a cookie, but it wouldn't fit in her little tray.

You will notice that both of these "favorite" food lunches 

are lacking in the vegetable category.  

Enough said.

Happy Lauren

(with crazy hair)

Happy Kate

They both ate their cookies first, but then ate most all of the other foods as well.

They also had juice pouches, which made them think they had died and gone to heaven, I'm sure....since we rarely have them!!

I will try to continue to link up to Muffin Tin Mondays every week, but if you know me, don't hold your breath! :)

winner, winner, chicken dinner

And we can thank Guy Fieri for the title of thist post.

We have chosen a winner for the One Thousand Gifts book giveaway!

I used a most scientific method for determining the winner.  (who needs random.org?)

I just wrote everybody's name out on pieces of paper, stuck them in a bowl, and allowed my lovely assistant to choose a name.

Don't worry, this is not your prize! :)

Holly....you are the winner! Luckily for me, Holly lives here in O'boro, so I can save on shipping costs and deliver the book to her in person.  

Maybe I will put the shipping costs that I would have used to mail this book towards another giveaway! Whoa, I gotta slow down.  I'm making myself a little dizzy.

What once started as a personal blog to keep up with Lauren for myself and the gparents, has turned into a great way to meet other women and moms online through the "blog community." I love it!

Thanks to everyone who entered and thanks to those of you who take time from your busy days to read my blabbering.  :)