More Outgoing

When Lauren turned 3 she started to become more outgoing and not so shy at times.  Her language and speech was amazing, as well as her memory.  She is still a kid that remembers totally random things from several months ago.  But can't remember what she learned in Pre-K today (or she just does not want to tell me...hmmmm...) 

This picture was taken in March, right after Lauren turned 3.  She was watching Mark shovel the driveway outside after a late snow in March. 

This is one of Mark's favorite pictures.  Lauren is 3 1/2 and this picture was taken at the KC Zoo.  I ventured out with the girls for the first time by myself on a little adventure (other than Target or Hy-vee.)  We had a blast. 

Easter 2010.  Lauren is 4.  We really started getting her involved in activities when she was 3 1/2 -  4 years old. 

She seems to really love gymnastics.  The trampoline, floor, and balance beam are her favorites.  The bars seem to scare her a little bit, but maybe with time she will like them more. 

She loved dance while she was in it, although she did not want to dance again this year.  She prefers the running and exercise she gets in gymnastics.  She did amazing in dance class and really made us proud by getting up on stage several times and performing in front of a very large audience.  This is a huge accomplishment for Lauren (again...more outgoing.) 

She also tried soccer and really loved it for about 4 weeks.  The first 4 weeks involved soccer drills, practicing dribbles, playing goalie, passing, etc...When it came down to the "games" it was too crazy with 9 boys and 3 girls all going after the same soccer ball. 

More tomorrow...I am off to wrap presents and get ready for the party day...or actually party weekend! 

Preparing for Addison

It seems like we spent most of Lauren's 2-3 age preparing for and then having Addison.  Little did we know the amazing bond these two would develop and have.  Lauren was an angel at 2.  We learned the true meaning of the terrible 3's, not the terrible 2's.  Potty training her was pretty tough at home.  Daycare had her potty trained about a month before we did.  Finally, one Saturday when I went scrapbooking all day, Lauren decided to go potty in the big girl potty and has been fine ever since. 

She transitioned into her purple room and her big girl bed like a champ.  She was ready to give the crib to Addison and loved her purple room.  We read countless books about the baby in Mommy's belly and Lauren becoming a big sister.  We did not know what we were having, but Lauren was still very excited to have a new baby at home. 

She was and continues to be an amazing big sister.  She never showed any jealousy toward Addison when she was born.  She did not regress in any way with anything...potty training, sleeping, etc...Lauren is a little Momma to Addison and Addison adores her.  Lauren is there to hold her hand when she cries because Mommy or Daddy yelled at her, she sits in time out with her, she combs her hair in the mornings, she gets her snacks, and always makes sure she is good.  Lauren is an incredible big sister and an amazing daughter. 

She is so excited for her birthday.  Her party at school is tomorrow, with cupcakes and suckers.  Her party with her friends is Saturday at gymnastics, and then her party with family is Saturday night.  Sunday is her actual birthday and her party with Mark, Addison, Zoe and I.  This will include lunch at Red Lobster, which she has been asking for for months now.  She wants to eat lobster..not really sure why???

Party time is almost here!

PS--Where did all these beautiful curls go?

We Survived the Blizzard of 2011

The amount of snow here in the Midwest is absolutely amazing.  It has been years since we have seen a snow like this.  Airports are shut down, I-70 was shut down, and Children's Mercy Hospital was on Emergency Plan, which meant only "Essential" employees had to report to work.  As a RN, I am an essential employee, but since I am in the outpatient/clinic setting, I had Wednesday off!  Commerce Bank even closed down for almost 24 hours.  Mark was off Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning. 

I got a little stir crazy with the girls this morning, wondering how I was going to entertain them for another day inside, but we survived.  We have done a lot of puzzles, read a lot of books, played in the tent, only watched one movie, watched the snow come down and then watched the snow plows and all the neighbors shoveling.  Addison went potty in the potty once, but that was it! 

Tuesday afternoon watching the snow out the kitchen window in the backyard. 

This was our cooking activity Tuesday afternoon.  Yummy...

And this was our cooking activity today.  I am sure I have gained 5 lbs over the last two days being stuck inside eating and not working out!  Oh, but the sudden onset of the flu in the last few hours should take care of that...I really feel pretty cruddy...I should go to bed I guess! 

Here is Addison Tuesday afternoon.  The girls wanted to go outside to badly, but I did not want to get them all bundled up. So, we put the garage door up and watched Mark attempt to shovel and played outside for just a few minutes. 

Zoe loves the snow, but was begging to come inside from the cold!

We made Lauren's Valentine box for school on Wednesday, and stayed in our jammies most of the day!

Addison is ready for spring by playing with the sidewalk chalk.  Who says is has to be warm and sunny to play with sidewalk chalk?

Lauren loved the snow and had fun making a "cake" for her birthday with the snow.  All we have done all week is talk about her upcoming birthday!  So much fun! 

Apparently there was not enough snow at our house, so Lauren asked if she could go to the neighbors to get more snow for her cake!  Doesn't our street look good?  It was plowed by 9 this morning. 

Again, Addison is ready for Spring...just like the rest of us!

Lauren's First Birthday, First Family Vacation, and Fun

Here is Lauren a few days prior to her 1st birthday celebrating the big day with family. 

Easter Sunday at Gramps and Nana. 

Our first of many family vacations.  We travelled to San Diego when Lauren was about 18 months old.  We went to Sea World, the San Diego Zoo, Animal Kingdom, shopping and to Coronado Beach.  It was a great vacation. 

One of my all time favorite pictures of Lauren.  Mark took this at Coronado Beach. 

Christmas was very fun this year.  You got lots of baby doll stuff and Little People stuff.  It seems like just yesterday that we celebrated this Christmas. 

More to come...

One Week till Lauren's 5th Birthday

Birthday's are a big deal around here.  Lauren has been talking about her 5th birthday for months now.  She wants a Hannah Montana birthday party at gymnastics.  Saturday is the big party and Sunday February 6th she will be 5!  She was due on Superbowl Sunday and this year we will be celebrating on Superbowl Sunday.  Well, we will celebrate all week with cupcakes at school, party on Saturday, party at Church on Sunday, lunch at Red Lobster on Sunday (this is where she wants to go.  This is also something she has been talking about for months) and of course presents from Mommy and Daddy on Sunday. 

I will flood this blog all week with Lauren through the years.  Mainly it is for me and something I can look back on in the years to come.  I think you will enjoy it to! 

This was taken a few days after we got home from the hospital.  I used one of the pictures from this photo shoot for her announcement.  She was a great baby, slept all day and night for the first few weeks.  She breastfed well and started sleeping through the night at 9 weeks! 

Her first Valentine's Day and my 30th birthday.  She was an amazing birthday present! 

Headed to her first birthday party.  It was one of our friend's son, Calvin's birthday.  She slept through most of the party! 

About 8 weeks old and starting to smile.  I loved this little duckie outfit.  She wore it a lot! 

Another big smile at 8 weeks old.  This is one of my favorite pictures.  It sits framed on one of our tables. 

So if my memory serves me right, Lauren was an awesome baby.  At 2 months old she weighed 10 lbs 14 oz and was 23 inches long.  She was sleeping most of the night and a very easy going baby.  She was not a huge "cuddly" baby, she liked to do her own thing and just lay in the swing or on the floor checking the world out. 

More to come everyday this week!

This One...

This happened right in front of our eyes.  Addison colored with marker all over her face.  You can only see half of her face here because she was not real cooperative with taking a picture.  Mark, Lauren and I were watching the new Paula Abdul show, Live to Dance, and Addison was sitting on the floor coloring in her coloring book...or so we thought!  She had green marker all over her face in no time! 

By the way, we love the show Live to Dance.  There is a team called "Dance Town Chaos" and they are from Miami.  They are an all guys team and they are amazing dancers.  Well one of the guys on the team (the only white guy with blond hair) is from Lauren's dance studio right here in Lee's Summit.  I don't know how he got hooked up with this Miami team, but it is really fun to watch him on TV and know that we have seen him at the dance studio here in town. 

So I am off to a fun filled Saturday of some major scrap booking, while Mark and the girls hang out.  I am sure a trip to Paradise Park will be in the mix, and maybe Bass Pro Shop.  Oh, and he said they are going to make a home made pizza.  Sounds like fun.  Happy Weekend everyone!

A Much Needed Escape

Mark and I spent the weekend here, at the Chateau Avalon, and it was amazing.  You know how you get in a rut doing the same things over and over again...day by day, week by week, month by month?  Well, back in December Mark and I decided we would get away one weekend, just the two of us.  Get away from the daily grind of getting the girls up, rushing out of the house, off to school, hugs and kisses at school, sitting in rush hour traffic for an hour, work, work, work, rush home (rush hour traffic again) fix dinner, clean up the house, baths, pay the bills, do the laundry, fix lunches, upload pictures, go to gymnastics, run errands, and the list goes on and on....This weekend was perfect.  A much needed get away for Mark and I to reconnect, communicate, relax and think about us and our marriage.  We can't wait to do it again. 

We went out to lunch, shopping, out to dinner and then hung out at the hotel.  We enjoyed a massage for an hour, and breakfast in bed the next morning.  It was a great way to spend the weekend. 

We are happy, in love, and amazed at the two girls we have created.  They are a blessing to us and we could not be more thankful for the joy they have brought to our lives.  Lauren and Addison enjoyed the weekend with Gramps and Nana and had a blast.  They kept Gramps and Nana very busy and did lots of fun stuff. 

Anyone else want a weekend get away?  Mention our name and you will get a complimentary gift with your stay and Mark and I will get 10% off our next stay...and I think there will be many more stays at the Chateau Avalon. 

Snow Day

The girls love getting all bundled up and going outside to play in the snow...even if it is only for 10 minutes. 

I had an unexpected stay home day since the daycare closed today for the snow.  We have been going to the daycare for almost 5  years now and they have never closed...until today!  I had a great day with the girls.  We watched movies, played games, played house, listened to music, danced, made snow ice cream, did laundry, made brownies, cooked dinner, played outside....and finally hung out with Daddy when he came home.  It was a great day! 

Our snow ice cream...right before we stirred it up and made it into ice cream.  It was yummy!

I think Zoe wished we were not home...she wanted to sleep today, but was too busy keeping up with us.  Back to work tomorrow and then a weekend get away for Mark and I.  I can't wait!!!