I'm Dreaming of a (not so) White Christmas

Ok, so mommy has sung me this song alot, and of course I know I'm supposed to WANT a white Christmas. But this Christmas hasn't gotten off to the best start. We were supposed to fly to Chicago today to visit Nana and Papa, but there's a big snowstorm in Chicago and our flight got cancelled right before we were supposed to board. So not only do we now have to wait until tomorrow to fly out, but we had to wait in the airport for an additional TWO hours in the baggage area waiting for our bags to come back from the airplane. We were there for a total of 5 hours, which wasn't too fun for me. But I finally gave in and fell asleep in the baggage area waiting for our bags, while mommy sang me Christmas Carols. Hopefully we'll have better luck tomorrow.

Little Buddies

My best neighborhood friends Ryder and Ashleigh came over the other day and we did a little gift exchange. Here's a couple cute pictures from opening our presents! Aren't we cute?

Recap from our Move

We were so busy moving over the last week that mommy didn't have time to help me post on my blog. Long story short is that the move went well. I was a little bored with all my toys in boxes, so daddy kept me entertained on the computer. Then mommy, daddy and me drove 9 hours from Salt Lake City to Denver, and I was a perfect traveler (sensing a theme here?). I napped and listened to music, and at the 5 hour mark finally asked for Elmo so mom and dad put on the DVD player. With two hours left, I fell asleep again. Perfect.

When we were unpacking in Denver, I was a big help. Here's a picture of me throwing away all the wrapping paper that was in our house.

I think 3 moves in 13 months is enough for me. These moves make mommy and daddy super stressed out, so I hope we're done for awhile!

On the Road Again...

Well, lest my life get too boring, I'm about to make another big change. Our house is full of boxes and tomorrow, they will be loaded in a truck to go back to Denver. I'm not sure what mommy is more thrilled about - another round of packing/moving/unpacking or the 9 hour road trip they're taking me on to get us home. Thank goodness for our portable DVD player - I'm going to be a good girl and watch Elmo for as many hours as possible.

With all my toys packed up, I've had to be a little creative about my playtime. The other night, I had a great time building a little home in the kitchen for my favorite monkey. Check out the video mom made...highlighting my organizational skills and the use of a few of my favorite phrases: "be right back", "big pillow!" and "oh HIiii". You'll also see that my only speed is fast!

I Can't Get Enough of Myself, Obviously

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Look what I've been up to!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Big Fish, Little Fish

I just LOVE to go swimming with daddy. We try to go to the indoor pool at our fitness club once a week now, and we usually have the whole place to ourselves! Mommy snapped THIS video on our most recent trip, and got the cute pictures you see above. After we swim, daddy lets me sit on the top step of the hot tub and we linger there. I think I have a bright future of swimming ahead of me!

Fireworks and Cowgirls

Just a couple random tidbits from Beaver Creek:

- How cute do I look in this cowboy hat I discovered?

- How cool is this fort that Nana and Papa built for me when they were babysitting?

- One night there was a surprise fireworks show that happened right outside our window, so Uncle Nathan held me so I could see it all. I was mesmerized!

Sledding

Perhaps my favorite thing about Beaver Creek was that it snowed the entire time we were there. This meant I got to go on a killer sled ride with mommy and daddy. I spent the better part of a weekend cooped up and warm inside, so the opportunity for snowflakes and fresh air (not to mention being pulled around like a queen by daddy and mommy) was one I greeted with open arms (literally!)

Vail Village

One of the fun things we did last weekend was spend a few hours hanging out in Vail Village. I totally enjoyed eating whatever snow I could find, and running around in the open space screaming loud while my uncles chased me.

Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving Day was quite the blur! We started off at my Mimi and Pa's house in Denver, and there were 32 of our family members there! I was quite popular, and loved being social with everyone. I especially loved the fact that there were 6 dogs present, and I pretty much chased them around half the time. Luckily for mommy, she was able to grab me a couple times to get a picture or two.

In the early afternoon, we hopped in the car and drove up to Beaver Creek to spend the weekend with Nana and Papa and the rest of Daddy's family. Check in with my blog soon to see some of the fun I had!

Thanksgiving

Happy Belated Thanksgiving! I've been so busy this past week, and mommy didn't have her laptop so I've got alot to tell you!

We started off last week by going to Denver. I loved hanging out in my old neighborhood with my good friends, and I got to check out the new park they just built a few houses down from our house. Isn't this big blue swing cool?

I also got a chance to go see Aunt Maggie's students in her classroom this year. I have to say I was a big hit (especially with the boys!) and I showed off my writing skills.

Much more to report from my fun week...still to come!

Down and Out

I'm sick. Really sick. I've been running around 104 degree fever for the past three days, and I'm starting to get grumpy about it. At first I was still my happy Lauren self, but now this fever is starting to wear on me. Mommy and daddy are keeping me on Tylenol and Motrin, and they are giving me lots of TLC, but I'm just crabby. Plus me and mommy aren't really leaving the house (she doesn't want to wear me out or get any other kiddos infected) so we're both going a little stir crazy. Even worse, its been sunny and warm this week - bummer to have to sit inside!

Please say a prayer for me, if you don't mind. I'm off to Denver on Sunday and I hate being sick when I get to see all my aunts, uncles and grandparents.

Banana Face

When I eat bananas, I eat bananas. I insist on holding the whole banana, and then I shove so much in my mouth that mommy wonders if I can breathe. Then as mommy laughs at me, I make as many faces as possible. Here's a sampling! I have a feeling these could be used as blackmail against me in the future, but you guys think I'm cute anyway, so I'm not worried.

Wuvvin' the West

I have really liked the weather in the West ever since we moved to Denver and SLC. Compared to Chicago, it seems almost always sunny and the temperatures are nice even in the winter. There are MANY things that mommy, daddy and I miss about Chicago...but the weather isn't one of them!

This weekend it sunny and in the mid-60s. We took full advantage of the weather by logging in some time at the local parks, and today mommy and daddy took me minature golfing! It was super fun, although I was much more interested in running after the golf balls than really using the golf club. Here's a few pictures of our day!

Live a little!

I've got a new look for my blog! I realized that I've been pretty boring for most of my blogging days, so now I'm going to shake things up every once in awhile!

My 21st Birthday!

Well...not that 21st birthday.... But a girl can have a little fun on her 21 month birthday, right? Today was the (not so)big day, and mommy had a strained look on her face all day. She's mentally figuring out that she's not too far away from being the mommy of a 2-year-old. My oh my, how the time flies by.

As my little birthday gift to you, I've uploaded all the pictures from this "summer o' fun" (as mom likes to call it), including my fun trips to Dallas, Door County and Hawaii. The links are on the right - Enjoy!

Oh My God

Okay.... So mommy doesn't really like me to talk about this, so lets just keep this between you (the reader) and me. Since I know there aren't that many of you who read my blog, this can be called a relatively well-kept secret. I say "Oh My God" about 20 times a day. Usually without provocation, but always in response to something (new toy, new book, what's on my plate at mealtime, etc).

Naturally this has made mommy feel bad about her mothering skills, and also has kept her and daddy paying extra attention to when they say the Lord's name in vain. I mean, I had to pick it up from one of them. (shh...it was mommy)

So here I am, caught on tape. If you don't have time to watch the whole 4 minutes (which isn't boring, I promise you), skip forward to 2:30 for the good stuff.

Watch: Oh My God

Bang-Free

Mommy's experimenting with new hairstyles, trying to keep my bangs out of my face. I thought I looked pretty cute today!

Can't Get Enough

Just had to show you a few more pictures from Halloween, including my response the first time mommy dressed me up earlier this week. Thankfully, I reacted much better when it was "go time".