Go Beavers!

Well the game was unexciting, but Lauren seemed to enjoy it! I found her Beaver cheerleading outfit and decided to try it on. The sweater was a little big, hence the reason why her sleeves are rolled up. But the spanky pants fit snuggly and the outfit is a 6-9 month size! Our little Lauren is growing like a weed! Especially her Badonkadonk! Maybe the rest of her is just trying to catch up to those big feet.

Growing Girl

Lauren is accomplishing a lot these days....well "a lot" as far as a baby's perspective goes! Today she spun herself 2 leaf lengths on her tummy time mat, which is almost halfway. Lauren is taking less naps during the day and talking more. She wants to make sure that no one has forgotten her if we are out of her sight. If Lauren is "crying" she's only really upset if there are real tears, otherwise we know she's just trying to get our attention. She's also becoming more aware of her toys. She actually picked up the bee rattle that's on her tummy time mat and rattled it. She also sits in her boppy and tracks her new Animal Parade train go back and forth in front of her. Here is a pic of Lauren in her Bumbo with one of her cow rattle/teethers, she's really checking him out. She's been drooling a lot and wanting to put things in her mouth especially toys and her entire fist. I keep expecting her to be cutting teeth, even though it's still too early! We shouldn't expect that for at least another 3 months.

A Belated Holiday Greeting!

I typically do this every year, but I think the web site had been overwhelmed this year since I haven't been able to get on until now. Follow the link and enjoy our foolishness! It's only good for about 20 days.
http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/PIxhePC2uz4o/8k5nxfUATR4M0BXJ212BhfYy

Hope everyone is planning a safe and eventful New Year!

Merry Christmas!

Lauren celebrated her First Christmas today. She made out like a bandit with all members of the family. Lauren scored big with larger sizes of clothing, which she needed. She got a collectible "Bambi" snowglobe from Nana and Papa. She also got lots of toys that she will be able to play with as soon as she starts to sit up on her own. Within the last 3 days she's starting doing crunches, trying to pull herself up....so we are sure that she will be sitting up on her own soon. Here's a picture of her and her daddy with a gift from her Great Great Aunt Hazel and Great Great Uncle Harold. It's a baseball tee and bat that makes lots of cute sounds. Lauren already has her game face on! I'm sure mommy will be tired of the noises all of the toys make sooner than later. Lauren even helped with gifts for mommy and daddy. She managed to shop and bought us a cute picture frame that says "Mommy + Daddy = Me". She also bought a Montana earring and necklace gift set for mommy and a Coastal Farm gift card for daddy. Note to self: No credit cards for Lauren when she gets older!

Christmas photos with the Cousins

This year Nana made Lauren her very first Christmas dress. It is very pretty and matched Cousin Sydney's dress. Cousin Sam wore a sweater vest, which Uncle Jake doesn't approve of. It made for very cut photos though! I'm trying to figure out how many more times she can wear the dress before she outgrows it!



There's our little angel!



This photo is for everyone that says I only post happy photos. This is after about 40 pictures. Lauren had enough! She really is a happy baby 95% of the time!



Mommy was using her creative side for this picture. She's hoping to maybe be able to make a little extra money on the side!

Guitar Hero and Cousin Sam

Today we celebrated Christmas with the entire family on both sides at our house. It was nice to stay at home this year and we are thankful that we didn't have to travel. Uncle Jake broke out Guitar Hero and Sam really thought he was playing the game with Uncle Jake. Here's a short clip of Cousin Sam rocking out. You can see Lauren in the background sitting in her bumbo chair on the floor near Cousin Sydney. She was Cousin Sam's "groupie". At one point she gave him the thumbs down veto of his performance!

Lauren's talking

Ok, well maybe she's not actually saying any words....but this is her trying to talk! I thought it was cute and wanted to share the clip. I have a camera that shoots video, so now that I know how to work it, I'll try to get some longer videos. Normally, Lauren is shy to the video camera but maybe mommy is tricking her with a real camera!

This clip is during floor time while watching NFL football...one of Lauren's favorite pasttimes. However, daddy grounded her from television until she's one because our pediatrician told us that there have been studies linked to A.D.D. and T.V. at early ages. She doesn't need any help! Her legs and arms are constantly moving during floor time!

Tummy time Christmas toy

Nana and Papa bought Lauren a tummy time toy for Christmas, but Mommy picked it up and couldn't resist but to get it out and let her play with it. Her neck is getting stronger every day, allowing her to lift her head up even more than before. The large lady bug that suspends her in the air spins around on the bright colored mat. And she's realized that she can move herself around in a circle with her feet, which she demonstrated for grandma and grandpa yesterday. So she'll be a pro when nana and papa come visit her for Christmas this week!

Sleeping Cutie

I just couldn't resist taking a picture of Lauren sleeping this morning in her "Hooo's Sleeping" union suit. She was up at 5 a.m. to eat, poop and spit up all over daddy! Daddy said that the outfit I put her in after her blow-out is a spotted owl outfit and that's why she spit up all over it. So after daddy took a shower and cooked us breakfast, she went back to bed...in her crib in her own room! We decided to try to get her to nap in her crib and she seems to like it. Shorter naps, but she'll get use to it. So hopefully it won't be too bad to make the transition from bassinet to crib. The outfit was another cutie from Aunt Bethany and the beautiful quilt Lauren's napping on was made for her by one of my girls at the Pioneer Clinic, Della. It was her first rag quilt and it's absolutely gorgeous!

Lauren and Biscuit

Everyone keeps asking how Biscuit is getting along with Lauren and I realized I haven't posted many pics with Lauren and her doggy. Biscuit is doing great! She's sometimes a little overprotective, but we kind of expected that. She was very curious at first, lots of sniffing and would let us know when Lauren would be crying in her bassinet. She's very aware of Lauren's noises over the monitor. Biscuit also lets mommy know when Lauren has a dirty diaper....if I haven't already figured it out!

Their first meeting.

Biscuit wouldn't let her out of her sight at first.

Biscuit sleeping next to Lauren. If Lauren has managed her way into our bed at night, Biscuit sleeps at her feet now!

Making sure no visitors get to close to daddy and Lauren.

Biscuit making sure that the spit-up doesn't ruin the photo opt!

When daddy is gone, Biscuit sleeps with one eye open! Every little noise deserves a gruff growl or quiet bark. Biscuit still gets up with mommy and Lauren for the nightly feeding....but sometimes goes back to bed with daddy once she's surveyed the situation. During floor time, she tries to share her bone with Lauren. Lauren's hands, arms and legs are always moving during floor time and she'll sometimes grab a handful of hair which Biscuit never minds. While Lauren's nursing, she sometimes lays right next to us....which Lauren moves while she eats, kicking Biscuit, but she doesn't mind that either. When I leave with Lauren in the carseat, the first thing she does is check the carseat when we get home. She's going to be great with Lauren!

Staying Warm!

With the recent artic blast, there is absolutely NO going outside. I thought about trying to get a picture of Lauren in the first snow....but 1. it was just a dusting in Browntucky and 2. I was not risking frost bite of any kind! So we stayed nice and snug today indoors! We found a warm sweatsuit type outfit that Lauren hadn't worn yet that Aunt Bethany bought her. It's a true size 3 months! And Lauren has officially graduated to Size 2 diapers. She's growing so much! Check out those chubby pinchable cheeks!

Lauren's First Christmas Tree

So last week Daddy was up in the woods for work and had a Christmas tree permit. He did the manly thing and chopped down a tree....a tall one at that....just to find Lauren the perfect First Christmas Tree! It's very pretty....all natural....cheap....fresh.....and perfect. Lauren especially enjoys the lights. These are some pics of her next to it sitting up like a big girl in her Bumbo seat!

Blossoming Personality

Miss Lauren's personality is starting to blossom. She's a very happy baby 95% of the time. The other 5% is at night when she is fighting to go to sleep for the final time. She also gets very mad when trying to burp sometimes. Her first tears came at her doctor's appointment. 2 large crocodile tears! Poor thing.

Sometimes she decides to talk to me instead of nurse which is quite funny. I know she's trying to tell me something important, but so far no words yet. She's an overachiever though, so I expect her to talk any day....especially with parents like hers! Just kidding. Her cousin Sydney swears she already has said words like "Hi" and "Love". I think Sydney's hearing things! But then again maybe they have their own cousin language.

Lauren seems to be a little ticklish under her arms. Sometimes she likes it...other times she glares at you. We are always amazed at how quick this little person is growing inside and out!

Family Photo

So hopefully by now you all have received your Christmas card with our first family photo. Of course we all had our Beaver gear on. Biscuit was even wearing her Beaver dog collar. Trying to get a 2 month old to smile didn't happen....or even to get her to look in the general direction of the camera. Too many things going on outside! Even Biscuit was preoccupied! Oh well.....maybe next year if she'll stand still!

Well Child Check-up

So yesterday, Lauren had her 2 month Well Child Check-up. It was all about 2's. She was 22.2 inches long and weighed in at 12 pounds and 2 ounces. She's in the 50th percentile for head circumference and height. And she's in the 75th percentile for her weight. Dr. Davis humored mommy with her list of questions and concerns. Grandma attended as well since mommy has been without a vehicle since daddy's truck broke down on Friday and we had to rescue him in Mohawk.

It was shot day. Oh boy. Three of the bad boys! The first one Lauren just got mad and glared at the nurse. The second one she turned bright red. And the third she screamed and screamed so hard nothing came out at one point. Poor thing! She calmed right down though and passed out in the carseat on the ride home. She needed lots of cuddling last night and went to bed about 9 p.m. Miss Lauren slept until 5:30 a.m. I thought for sure she'd be up needing a dose of Tylenol but she didn't.

Here are some photos of her outfit...and her beautiful smile with dimples! Obviously these were taken before the appointment! She still needs some help sitting up for her photo sessions with mommy....so the couch will remain the background for now! Soon enough she'll be able to hold that head up. She sits in her Bumbo chair fairly well, but still needs a little bit of help!

2 months old!

Lauren turned 2 months old on Saturday! She's getting so big and definitely is a happy baby. She does a lot of smiling and does quite a bit of bullshitting while having floor time. I'll post some soon of her bright smile...and dimples too! She recognizes mommy and daddy which is very comical!

On Saturday, Jake and I did some canning....but Jake said he did the canning part, so he called it "manning". We did sweet potatoes for Miss Lauren since she'll start eating baby food before we know it. And with sweet potatoes being so cheap after Thanksgiving, we are hoping that maybe it will be cheaper to can some of her food. We had a jar that didn't seal and I took a taste. I think they turned out pretty good and she'll probably eat them up.

Grandpa and Grandma came over on Sunday and watched the little munchkin so mommy and daddy could go watch Four Christmases. (Very funny movie by the way.) It was nice to get out of the house and have a "date" but we both missed our girl.

Lauren and Mommy

My girls at the Brownsville clinics threw me a shower the Saturday before Thanksgiving. It was nice to get together outside of work with everyone. Lauren (and myself) once again were spoiled with clothes, a Baby Mozart DVD, blankets, teethers and a super cute pair of baby slippers! And this was the first time I had my photo taken with my daughter! It will definitely help to have a photo of the two of us when I go back to work.

Lauren is growing like a weed. Daddy was gone for a week elk hunting and he swears she gained two pounds. She's almost ready for size 2 diapers and is mainly wearing 3 month outfits.

Civil War outfit

Here are some pics of Lauren in her Civil War outfit. She was outfitted in Beaver overalls, an orange onesie, OSU Nikes, a Beaver rattle and an orange pom pom. These pics were taken at the beginning of the game, hence the reason why she was smiling and happy. By the end of the game Lauren melted down with the rest of the family! Dumb Beavers!

Trip to Nana and Papa's

Last Friday, Lauren and I left for the Point to visit Nana and Papa for the first elk season. Daddy met us there after picking his Air Force buddy Chris up from the airport. She did really well on the way down and slept the entire trip. On the way home, we weren't as fortunate and made it to Eugene before we had a meltdown. But who can blame her, she was hot and hungry!

Opening morning of elk season Lauren and I loaded up in the Tahoe (Nana had offered to watch her, but I didn't have the heart to wake her). So we went down to the end of the road and waited for the fog to lift to look at a couple of openings. Then we ran down the road to check out another area we new Daddy and Chris were in....then went the other way back towards the ranch and found Papa and "Grandpa" Walt. Walt later informed me that he and Lauren had something in common, Saturday was both of their first elk hunting experiences! So we weren't successful, but it was priceless watching other hunters pass us on the road!

Sydney finally got to hold her cousin for the first time while we there. Here are some photos of the two of them. Overall Lauren did pretty well. The last night we were there she slept for 7 hours straight!

10 lbs 7 oz!

Yesterday Lauren had a weight check, just because I was curious and she doesn't have an actual appointment with Dr. Davis until her 2 month check. She weighed in at 10 lbs 7 oz, which puts her in the 75 percentile, up from 8 lbs since her 2 week check. Her head and length were up from 25% to 50%...so we are definitely growing! She's also been eating every 2 hours right now and I've been told that's a sign of the 5th or 6th week growth spurt. I was also told that it only last about a week or less and we are on day 4. Hopefully there is some truth to that!

Here are some photos from our outing. She wore a super cute outfit from "Uncle" Kyle's mom and dad. The carseat photo has the jacket on, but the hat completes the look!

Our visit to Grandma and Grandpa's house

Last weekend we spent Saturday with Grandma and Grandpa. Jake had to help my dad pick out a new tv and other components....as well as weed through all the wires and set the thing up! So Lauren and I spent the day with Grandma. We had some good floor time and my mom caught some great moments with Lauren and myself.

Cousin Sam stops by

Yesterday Cousin Sam stopped by on his way to a doctor's appointment in Portland to see Lauren. At first he was pretty hesitant and kept telling everyone else, "You touch her." Finally he gave in and wanted to hold her. Then when Baby Lauren, whom he calls "Lauren E" since I'm "Auntie E", started to fuss and cry Sam wanted nothing to do with her. Sam left Lauren on the couch and started to cry, and that was when we realized that he thought he hurt her. He then went with me to change her diaper and then insisted that he holds her again. It was enjoyable and I'm sure he can't wait for her to be more active!

A little spit up never hurt anyone! Check out their noses!

One month old

Today Miss Lauren is one month old. It's amazing how quickly time flies by.

Lauren's starting to make more and more expressions. She grunts when she stretches and when she wakes herself up. She does the "Frankenstein" when she gets startled when sleeping. She snores. She slurps when she drinks, like she hasn't ate for days! She'll snort if she's excited to eat. When she gets mad, her whole head turns red. Her dimples show when she smiles. She's only been getting up once a night for the last 5 nights.....and I hope it's not a phase!