Keeping Track of Lauren & Jack » January 2008 Journal Entries » AboutMyBaby - online baby scrapbooks, photo albums, videos, birth and pregnancy announcements

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Tue, Jan 29, 2008 10:05 PM
Monday Jack asked me very emphatically to go to the Kidz Club, so I relented even though what I needed to do was stay home and do about 8 loads of laundry. We saw a new member of our Mom's club Jody who's in Jack's playgroup that I actually recruited to the Mom's club, so I was glad to visit with her and her two girls.

Today I took Jack to MyGym and I am so happy about the new class. It's a much better fit for Jack. He fits right in size-wise and age-wise, and he seesm to be responding to the added structure. He waited fairly patiently for his turn most of the time. He spent most of the free play time taking a milk break, and after that it was hard to get him to stay with the cirlce time etc, but overall he's doing very well.

Lauren stayed home with Mike and they took a walk which I was so glad about because it's so beautiful out it's a crime to stay inside. I got home from the taking Sadie to the vet this afternoon and told everyone to go outside. Soon enough it's going to be prohibitively hot, so we have to take advantage of the "cool" (70's) climate!

Lauren was pitching some fits this afternoon, and so I tried ignoring her and refusing to speak to her if she whines and complains and throws herself to the floor in distress. (I am not exaggerating!) Some of it may have been that she didn't nap terribly well, but some of it is just 4 year old attitude. It gets very trying on days like today. And then Jack imitates some of her behavior. He's started asking me why all the time too, which is crazy because I don't think he even nows what he's asking, he's just copying Sissy!

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Sun, Jan 27, 2008 11:44 PM
Saturday was sort of a long haul for me, since I'm not feeling great. I took Jack along to ballet class for Lauren, mostly because he wanted to so badly. I also had a feeling we would be sort of house-bound the rest of the day. We went to the store, and boy, those kids know how to go right to the bakery where they give out free cookies! They did ask politley, which is something I suppose! And they were yelling "Thank you, Ma'am!" for a few minutes afterwards too.

The rest of the day was just trying to get through since Mike had a talk/dinner at USF to attend. It was cold and rainy so we didn't feel much like going outside. It just felt like a big accomplishment that the kids didn't kill each other and they were fed, bathed, and put to bed at a reasonable hour!

Today we were going to have a picnic with Barbara and Riley, but since it was so cold, we just left the food at home and decided to go out to lunch. The park was fun, it's a new one so there was lots of fun stuff to discover. Then afterwards we had lunch at a new place that has its' own bakery and it's now my new favorite brunch place! At naptime I conked out and slept til dinner (and I still felt like I was hit by a truck!) but apparently they went for a walk since the weather had improved considerably. Reports are that they saw our neighbor Hannah and also Dylan from school. You would think that all of this outside platime would make them less hyper, but, alas, that seems not to be the case today!

Tonight Lauren asked Mike when we are getting a new fish. I think he was hoping they'd never ask!

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Sat, Jan 26, 2008 8:05 AM
I forgot to mention that Big Blue the beta fish finally kicked the bucket the other day ater a long slow infection. The kids were a little prepared since he'd been so sick. Mike had them help him flush him down the toilet. Considering it's their first brush with death they are taking it rather well. Lauren had a fish in her class at school that died and they simply got another one, so maybe she thinks that just what happens with fish. I am probably the saddest of everyone because I saw that something was wrong but refused to deal with it. Fish are not really my thing. I won a goldfish in middle school and I had him for years, but tht's about the extent of my experience. Oh well, live and learn.

Jack is feeling better, except for some lingering chest congestion, but now I seem to have come down with whatever he had. Urgh. It's hard to justify staying in bed even though that's what I'd like to do. That just doesn't seem to be an option!

Yesterday Jack had Music class and he spent a lot of the class being very difficult and not participating. I didn't really have the energy to chase after him, so I tried just sitting and ignoring him, and sure enough he would come to ME! Afterwards we joined Lauren at her school where they were having Pajama day. Lauren insisted on wearing her flannel nightgown and it was cold, so I had her wear pj bottoms underneath, socks, slippers and a robe. They had a couple of activities and they shared a story which all the kids had written and illustrated about a snowflake. Most of the time Jack entertained himself with a box full of trains. Every time I bring him he seems to feel quite at home, even with all kids Lauren's age. That might be because he's just about their size!

I took Lauren home at 12:45 when the activities were over because after that they just nap and then I would have had to come back and pick her up. So I brought her home and put her down for a nap, then fed Jack a late lunch which felt funny since it's usually the other way around. Lauren did not really nap much because she was so excited that we were having her friend Allie (from school last year) over for a playdate. I'm trying to arrange more playdates with other people so that we don't burden Taylor with the sole resposibility! Allie's mom Celeste brought her cute baby girl Ainsley who is 6 months old and cute as a button.

I'm considering having Lauren go back to her old preschool, Hand in Hand Academy. It just seems like a much better school, and if Jack is going there too, I'm not subjecting him to the commute unneccisarily. Her current school is more convenient, but that's really the only thing it's got going for it. I think the teachers and the curriculum is much better at Hand in Hand. Plus there is more parent involvement. Plus, since Taylor is going there, we could probably work out some sort of carpool. I really need to decide this week.

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Thu, Jan 24, 2008 11:36 PM
Jack has been feeling a bit under the weather with a slight cough and a runny nose. It never seemed bad enough to keep him home though. And he already seems to be feeling a lot better, so it was some 2 day virus.

Lauren had her follow up dentist appointment on Tuesday and he said it seems to be doing fine, and he didn't recommend doing anything and to come back in 4-6 weeks. He did say to stop using sippy cups because the sucking will put a starin on the tooth. He said we could us a cup with a lid, but to take out the valve part that makes them non-spill/non-leakable. That is going to be quite an adjustment, especially since Jack still has his, but she seems to have accepted this new rule fairly graciously. She drinks out of little dixie cups t school, so she's been getting progressivly much better at drinking out of a big girl cup.

Jack went with Mike again to his new MyGym class, and though I pump Mike for details, all he says is that it was fine.

In other news. . .Yesterday while on a walk with Sara, Jack bit Lauren so hard on the chest that it broke the skin and she has a big bite mark there! Yikes! I was just so horrified and not really quite sure what to do. He did take his time-out in silence and seemed truly contrite when he apologiezed to Lauren. Other than that, I'm at a loss as to how to deal with it.

Wednesday our playgroup was supposed to meet at the Kidzclub, and no-one else showed up, but since we live in a relatively small community, we knew quite a few of the people there. There were a bunch of Moms there who used to be in Jack's playgroup, and they all quit the Mom's club a while back, but they still meet anyway and are very tight knit little clique. It's hard not to feel rejected by them, it's ridiculous, I thought I left this stuff behind in high school! It's funny because they all had girls and they were very precious about playgroup. Now they're all pregnant with their second kids and I wonder if that will lighten them up a little about the whole thing!

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Sun, Jan 20, 2008 9:24 AM
Yesterday we all went to the library and Mike and I voted early in the Primary. We brought the kids along to show them that it's their civic duty. They mostly had fun helping us push buttons on the screens and receiving stickers! They had a demo ballot box, and they put them up on a chair and let them push the buttons on the screens. Lauren voted for George Washington for President and Theodore Roosevelt for Sec of State and voted to adopt the costitution. Jack voted against the constitution, so we may have a little anarchist on our hands!

After that we went out to lunch where Lauren refused to eat much more than salad, even thought we'd ordered her a pizza. Jack ploughed right through his, but Lauren said "I don't like pizza!" which is puzzling since she ate it last week! I should have just ordered her a turkey sandwich because she ate a few bites of Mike's.

I forgot to mention that we had her 4 yr, check up on Jan 8 and she is in the 50th percentile for both height and weight, which means she's evening out from her previous 75/25. I have noticed that her clothes don't fall off of her the way they used to, so I'm trying not to worry so much about her eating habits. Mealtimes are often becoming a battle of wills around here, so I'm going to make an effort to diffuse that by not fighting about it. It's very hard for me to just let them go if they don't want what's in front of them. My fist impulse is to jump up to find them something else that they WILL eat. But I'm going to make a supreme effort NOT to do that. I'm also trying to get away from offering rewards (sweets)for eating veggies. But the veggie situation with Jack is pretty dire. I'm not sure what to do about that except trying to sneak them into foods he will eat.

Something else I've been meaning to mention, both kids have had a renewed interest in our Baby Einstein dvd collection (due to the reapperence of the baby Einstein exersaucer that Barbara returned). First it was Baby Galileo and I was amazed to hear Jack singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star", not only getting most of the words, but also in tune and on key! Then later, during Baby Doolittle there was "Old Macdonald" and again, it wasn't the words so much as the musicality that I was impressed by! It's the cutest thing seeing them both sitting there singing together.

They have also been caught in the act of being very good, sitting side by side, each reading a book on the couch, and having little discussions about their books. Of course where is the video camera for these precious moments? I really need to have it around and ready to go so I can attempt to capture this "lightning in a bottle."

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Fri, Jan 18, 2008 11:27 PM
Wednesday we had Jack's playgroup where they had a full collection of Toy Story dolls including a Buzz Lightyear which Jack was coveting, and it took some convincing that he couldn't take it home!

Thursday we had Lauren's playgroup and it is actually full of boys at the moment, so I think Jack almost gets more out of it than Lauren. it was very cute to see him and the older boys all pushing trucks along in a line. It's almost like seeing how he would be with older brothers.

Today Jack had the first of the new session of music class and it went pretty well, all things considered. It's SOOO much easier with just Jack alone, even though I feel bad that Lauren's missing out. I am realizing that even when I don't think Jack's paying attention at all and he's rolling around on the floor, he will be rocking or stamping his feet in rhythm, so something must be sinking in, even if it's just through osmosis!

Lauren was very cranky when I picked her up from school this afternoon. She pitched an absolutley hysterical fit, saying she didn't want to go home becuase they were playing in the sand box. I was puzzled, so I asked her if she was hungry when we got home, and lo and behold, a few graham crackers and some apple slices later she was cheeful again. It was like night and day. I guess she was experienceing low blood sugar or something! Jack was also testing the limits today even though he napped well - throwing food at dinner, struggling with diaper changes, running away at bathtime etc. Oh well, some days are just like that!

Oh yeah, and despite my constant nagging at Mike that he needs to give Big Blue some attention, the poor fish seems to have contracted some sort of fungus on his scales and he does not seem to be doing well. He's floucning around on the botom of the tank acting very strangely. Despite my standing refusal to deal with the fish, I finally went to Petco and asked for some advice and there is a treatment for this sort of thing which is just some drops you put in the water, but I'm afraid it may be too little too late. I hope he doesn't die, I will feel awful for not doing more!

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Tue, Jan 15, 2008 6:54 PM
I took Lauren on Monday to the general dentist and they took an x-ray. It seems as though this is not the first time that she knocked that tooth, and the root has completely receded. The dentist said she needed to see a Pediatric dentist and she may need a root canal because it's way too early for her to be losing her tooth. I was frustrated because I had considered taking her to the pediatric dentist, but according to our dental plan, they are considered specialists, which is ridiculous if you ask me. Most general dentist won't even see children under 11! So we went to the pediatric dentist today and it was a whole new world in there. A waiting room with a tv and toys and books and small chairs and even a huge aquarium with a fish that had Nemo fish!

The dentist said she does not, in fact, need a root canal. He said that it's very loose and she could actually lose it any time. If she loses it she can have a false tooth put in there purely for aesthetics. He said to come back in a week and just to avoid taking big bites of anything hard to chew.

Jack had his new MyGym class at the same time as Lauren's dentist appointment, so Mike took him. Apparently he refused to particiate in most of the circle time activities, but he was somehwhat willing to sit in line and wait for his turn for other things, which is a step in the right direction. I expect he'll take a few weeks to adjust to the new people and structure.

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Sun, Jan 13, 2008 9:23 PM
Friday Lauren had school and they had show and tell and the theme this week was dinosaurs, so we had a great book for her to share. I asked the preschool director what happened before the Christmas break, because Lauren has been talking a lot about a fire drill they had, and she's become very concerned about smoke detectors and fire extinguishers. And then on our recent flights she spent a lot of time looking at the laminated safelty instuctions that show what to do in case of an emergency landing. So she basically seems to have some anxiety attached to the word "emergency". I have a hard time explaining it to her in a way she'll understand. I mean, an emergency does require urgency and immediate attention, but I don't want her to get the idea that these things happen all the time. I want her to feel like she'll be safe even if there is an emergency. And then I'm dismayed to realize that even though I'm saying that, I can't really guarantee her that that's really going to be the case. I think that's one of the hardest things to come to grips with as a parent, you're not always going to be 100% in control. Yikes!

Jack had Mygym and I'm really coming to the conclusion that he needs to move up to the next class. There really is not a good time on the schedule, so something is going to have to give. Either we're going to miss playgroup or music class or do it on a Thursday which I'm trying to keep free so we can do something else every now and then. Urgh. Decisions, decisions.

Saturday Lauren had ballet, which went fine considering she hasnt been in at least 3 weeks. The rest of the day was dedicated to Project Wipe Out. Meaning, play the kids so hard that they will go to bed early because of the welcome party we were throwing for Bill Satrbuck and his wife Joan Dunbar. (Bill was Mike's disseration chair at NYU and he's having a 3 month visiting professorship at USF.) First we sent the kids off on a walk to the park with Sara so we could clean the house without interruption (and sabotage in the form of toys all over the floor!) Then I made an exeption to my resistence to anyone else driving the kids and allowed Sara to drive them in my car to McDonalds where there is a huge 2 story playspace. It's only a few miles down the road but I was still really nervous about it. But I think it was a wise move because they came back, had their bath and they were in bed by 7:45. Lauren made one potty run but no-one was there yet, so we successfuly ushered her back to bed. And thankfully we didn't hear a peep out of them all night. Which is, truly, a miracle!

The party was fun and it was nice to have an adult evening, even if I did talk about the kids the whole time! Then this morning there was little time to relax, between cleaning up and getting ready for Lauren's pal Cameron's birthday party. Somehow it was all I could do to get her dressed, her hair done, the gift wrapped, and out the door. The party was 1-3PM so I made the executive decision not to bring Jack. He did ask "Can I come too?" in such a cute way it was was heartwrenching, but he seemed to accept the decsion that it was nap time. I think he was tired.

The birthday party was ay MyGym which is always a blast, excpet for when Lauren took a fall and bit her lip. They gave her a popsicle and a few moments later she was back playing. But later she was complaining that her top right front tooth hurt and I was able to wiggle it a little. So now I'm thinking I need to take her to a dentist tomorrow. Some of the other moms said that that's happened to them before and that it got better on its own. I don't think I can just leave it to chance. Plus, she's never been to a dentist before and she's LONG overdue as it is.

As if that wasn't enough, we had Barabara over to visit right when we got back from the party. Her daughter Riley is so big, she just turned 1 year old and she's just starting to walk, I can't beleive it! Lauren was very cute with her, being very gentle and nurturing, as if she was a real life doll. Jack was a little surly since he'd just woken up from his nap and was a bit upset that Riley was not only in his chair but had the gall to covet his sippy cup. And he kept calling her Hailey (neighbor Taylor's baby sister). "No Hailey, that's mines!" Lauren used to make this same error, sort of like a cross between mine and yours.

So . . I feel like I can finally relax now. Except that I was cast in that show and have a read-thru tomorow night, and I have 3 plays to read by Wednesday for the Florida Playwrights Festival. Never a dull moment!

BTW, I was very bummed that the Golden Globe Awards were cancelled due to the Writer's Guild strike. I hope they work it out before the Academy Awards, I missed the red carpet and those crazy acceptence speeches!

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Thu, Jan 10, 2008 8:44 PM
So, Uncle Peter left about 7:30 this morning. Luckily Lauren was up in time to say goodbye. I think she would have been a little upset if she didn't have a chance to say goodbye. Jack slept in a but which was only to be expected after such a big day out. Jack wasn't too fazed when he did get up.

So, it was back to normal today. We went to Lauren's playgroup at the park which was great because it was such a beautiful day. I had a few moments of pure bliss right before lunch where the kids were both dancing around in the kitchen to their little Elmo boombox. I just thought, how could I have known 4 years ago that this is what I had in store? Sometimes they are so cute, I have to stop what I'm doing and just watch!

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Wed, Jan 9, 2008 11:32 PM
Yesterday afternoon, as I was feeding the kids lunch, I get a call from my brother, Peter. He asks if I'm up for some company. Now, he had told me he may be in town this weekend, so it wasn't completely out of the blue. So I said, when? He said, we'll be there in about 3 hours! Of course I was thrilled, but in no way prepared for my brother, his friend Shawn and Shawn's nephew Zach. So I managed to get the kids down for their naps and spent the next few hours whizzing around trying to clean out the guest room and dining room which always wind up being like store-rooms for all our excess clothing, leftover Christmas decorations, wrapping paper, etc. As soon as Sara arrived I ran off to the store to get some food for our guests. They arrived before I got back, and Lauren and Jack had shown them all over the house and all their new toys etc. We managed to have dinner and I was glad we had so many cupcakes left over from Lauren's party. The kids were on a sugar high, and, of course, just thrilled to see Uncle Peter and have a new reader for bedtime stories!

Peter and Shawn's plan for today was to take Zach (14 y.o.) to Busch Gardens, so I made the executive decision to blow off school and playgroup and go with them. As luck would have it, Sara didn't have classes, so she came with us. (Mike has a paper deadline so he couldn't come). I am so glad that we were spontaneous and seized the day, because the weather was perfect, (warm, but low humidity,) and since most kids are back at school the park was really empty. It made everything easy to do, there were no crowds or lines at all. Plus, Sara knows her way around so I didn't have to keep consulting a map. There was plenty of stuff to keep the kids amused ,like all thhe animals, while the big boys went on the roller coasters. The sky ride was a wonderful way to see everything from above. The kids did both have a meltdown on a little kiddie ride which was just airplanes. I think it was approaching naptime and also it was a ride they have to do alone, you can't get in there with them. After that I tried to get them to get in the double stroller and "rest" (hoping they would nap) but it was just not happening. I guess it was all just too exciting.

We finally made it over to "the Land Of Dragons" which is perfect for their age range. I have vowed next time we'll go straight there. (When you're a Florida resident, you pay for one day and get unlimited admission for the rest of the year.) So now that I saw how easy it is, we will be coming back more often. I just can't believe Jack functioned on absoltuely no nap whatsoever. He was in pretty good spirits too! We didn't get out of there until almost 6PM, so they were late having dinner too. Luckily we had packed lots of snacks and they nibbled on those the whole car ride home. Daddy was in charge of dinner-bath-bed because I had to run off to my call-back (audition) right after we got home. Uncle Peter and "the boys" went out to dinner so by the time they got home the kids were already in bed.

And they're off very early in the morning to drive back to Ft Lauderdale where they are taking a cruise to Cozumel. So it's been short but sweet, and I'm really glad we spent the time with them today. I felt like I was playing hooky from my entire life! And it felt good! But I'd better get to bed or I'll never get up in the morning. I didn't get too many pics but I will have to download them tomorrow, I'm too exhausted now. More soon. . .

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Mon, Jan 7, 2008 11:40 PM
Sunday Lauren finally opened all her presents from the party and she certainlu made off with the loot! Jack was convinced that some of those presents must certainly be for him, especially the Woody doll from Toy Story that came from Taylor and Hailey. He kept running around saying "MINE!!" But Lauren was in a generous mood seeing as she had so many other things to contend with!

My big accomplishment is that I went to audition for the local community theatre as a way of picking myself off the floor and dusting myself off after the whole professional theatre debacle. Oh yeah, and we finally took the tree down. Mike took the kids on a long walk/lunch which is the only way that became possible. And. . . I got all of the thank you cards from the party at least written.

Today was just a gorgeous day, so even though I had a million other things to do, I couldn't resist taking Jack and Sadie for a walk to the park before lunch. On the way back from picking up Lauren I had to take her with me to the drug store. I had been nursing the worst headache on and off since yesterday, bordering on migraine, when Tatiana suggested I go get some Exedrin Tension Headache. It might be psychological, but it really worked! I also drank a ton of water which must have helped too since I'm always feeling dehydrated.

I have a pet peeve about Lauren's school. Every day I get there early, because they're supposed to go outside at 3PM so I want to get there BEFORE they do that so I don't have to drag her away. Today I got there about 2:40-2:45 and they were already outside! Lauren seemed unhappy to see me becuase they were heading to the sand box. So I agreed to let her stay and play for about half and hour before she finally seemed to have enough.

Then when we got home she demanded I call Taylor and invite her over for a playdate. As luck would have it, they were home and game, so it worked out this time. It's hard to convince her that sometimes they are simply not home or busy doing other things. She thinks they are at her beck and call!

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Sat, Jan 5, 2008 8:03 PM
Well Lauren's Dora the Explorer 4th Birthday Bounce House extravaganza is officially over! Phew!! It went remarkably well, and I think Lauren and Jack both had a fabulous time. We had one boy who had to cancel because he was sick, and 2 girls from her school just didn't show up at all, so the numbers were low, but it was actually fine. We had 40 minutes in one room which has a 20 ft slide and a bounce house with a big mushroom like thing inside that they would climb up on and dive off of. Then we had 40 mintues in another room where there is another 20 ft slide and also a sort of obstacle course thing where they have to climb up one side and slide down the other. And a sort of bouncy basketball court too. Then we had the last 40 mintues in the party room where we had pizza and cake. There was a lot of room when we were in the bouncy rooms, but in the party room it would have been crowded with any more people. I think there were 18 altogether, and when you add in all the adults, it's actually quite a few people.

We just had a few minor mishaps during the play, and few times an adult had to go rescue a child who got stuck at the top of the slide. (or they would just refuse to go down) At one point Jack was crying because he didn't like how he went down the slide, then Lauren came down and plowed into him, so they were both in hysterics for a few minutes, but other than that I'm glad to say there were no major meltdowns or injuries!

The nicest thing was they had a party coordinator who set everything up, so I really didn't have to do anything once I got there, and they cleaned it all up! That was worth it right there. But because they have a steady stream of partiers going through there, they have rules about what you can bring. They make you buy the pizza and drinks from them, and anything else you bring has to be sealed from the factory. So I brought some little individual snack packs of a variety of chips, goldfish, trail mix, graham crackers, and mini cookies. And I brought some apple slices that came sealed in a bag. They told me I couldn't have them when I got there, but I said, they're sealed! So they allowed that. The cupcakes were great too, they were all put together to look like a cake, but they were sort of individually iced, and very easy to pull apart. I put a little plastic Dora or Boots ring on each one as we served them that the kids could wipe off and keep if they wanted. And at the end they each got a treat box and a balloon, which they all seemed happy with. I had ordered these mini binoculars online, and when they arrived I saw they were just too big to fit into the boxes. So I had to tie them on top of the boxes with some ribbon. It wasn't how I planned it, but it worked out fine.

Naps were a complete disaster afterwards, despite trying to get them to sleep for over two hours. Finally we just gave up and tried to put them down early for bedtime(although that wasn't especialy early either). Since Lauren was screaming and woke up Jack, she was not allowed to open her presents, so she'll still have that to look forward to tomorrow. I am so relieved that it's over. I am vowing to get the thank-you cards written tomorrow and then I will be DONE!!! Yay!

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Fri, Jan 4, 2008 8:46 PM
Today Lauren had school and I brought cupcakes for her class which she was of course thrilled about. I was hoping to see some other parents there at drop off time because (Grrr) I still have not heard from about 5 of them. Oh well, at this point I've got to assume they're not coming. If any of them have the gall to show up and not let me know I will be extremely miffed!

Jack had MyGym class today and he seemed happy to be back there. Unfortunately we're getting to the point where we need to move him up to another class. He's at the high end of the age range, and since he's also big for his age, he's just about the biggest in there. I'm just worried that he'll have a hard time with the added structure, but I think he also needs the challenge. They also don't have a time for that other class which is convenient with our schedules, between Lauren's school and playgroups and Music class etc. I suppose I'll work something out.

So I gave the party place my final count and ordered extra pizza for the adults. They actually handle the drinks too, so I just have the cupcake cake, a few extra snacks, the treat boxes and the balloons to bring. I only have 3 extra treat boxes, I hope that's enough! But this is proving to be much easier than last year. I must be learning something!

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Thu, Jan 3, 2008 8:08 PM
Happy Birthday Lauren! I can't believe my baby is 4 years old! She had a really great day. First she woke up and saw her brand new princess bike with training wheels and she was jumping up and down, she was so excited. She wanted to get on it right away, and it fits her just right. I am relieved because I worried about the size, measured her and everything, but it comes in a box and it was hard to visualize in the store. A bike really needs to fit so they can reach the ground, but it can't be too samll or there will be no room for growth. Mike put it together last night and it is very cute. Then Lauren saw all her presents lined up on the kitchen table and she had fun ripping her way through those. I did get one present for Jack so he wouldn't feel left out, but that didn't really satisfy him. He kept wanting to open hers, and did NOT seem to like that this day was all about her. I guess he's used to getting equal attention (and gifts)! Lauren was much more gracious on his birthday, but of course, she's older. Then after breakfast we hosted her playgroup at the house which was fun. It wasn't technically a party, we just had the normal snacks and then cupcakes. Lauren was glad to see all her buddies, and Taylor came too, which made her happy because her playgroup is mostly boys at the moment. The two girls were running around trying various princess dresses on while the boys pushed around all the various vehicles!

They had good naps and then we went outside to try out the bike. Lauren did great on hers considering she hasn't shown much interest in the trike we have. It also helps that the pedals brake when you go backwards, so if she wants to move forward she has to pedal correctly. We have a little boys bike for Jack that we inherited from a neighbor and it's just his size and has training wheels too, but the pedals go backward, so he can't seem to coordinate the pedalling. Then I put him on the trike and he was much happier. This is one time I'm very happy to live on a cul-de-sac, because 3 times around that thing and we were done. It was VERY cold out there!

Luckily we also had some things waiting in the mail, a present from Grandma Elizabeth and Papa Rooney,(wonderful books!) and the dvd of Cinderella II came from Netflix, which has been an instant hit, we've already seen it 3 times. Then a good dinner and another cupcake and we sent her to bed a very happy 4 year old!

Pictures of today are actually already in a book over in the photo section! (Don't die of shock!)

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Wed, Jan 2, 2008 1:42 AM
Just want to say I FINALLY figured out how to upload the photos easier than one by one, so there are 3 new albums over in the photos section. I still need to add comments, so be sure to check back in a day or so, they may be more interesting that way

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Tue, Jan 1, 2008 10:14 PM
Happy New Year! My resolution is to be better about getting the pictures downloaded to this site. I will work on it tonight, I promise! I've decided to start with the most recent and work backwards because the backlog is such a daunting task!

Just to finish up about our trip, even though it seemed like a long time to be away, I think it was important to reconnect with the family we have there. I can tell that Lauren remembers everyone, but Jack needs constant reminding. He called Uncle Billy by Uncle Joe a few times, which cracks me up because they're not at all alike! Christmas itself was the usual chaos and Lauren kept asking for more presents long after she'd unwrapped all of hers. I felt bad, because I knew how many presents we had waiting for them at home which just weren't practical to bring with us. But they got some great presents and had fun checking them all out. We always open presents on Christmas Eve, so before they went to bed we made a big production about leaving milk and cookies for Santa, and we even left some carrots and celery for the reindeer. The biggest surprise to me was how excited they were about their stockings on Christmas morning, which were full of little fiddly things. I swear, they were more thrilled about those than any of their other presents!

I was amazed that we were able to get everything back into our suitcases and we had a pretty good trip back. Except for the fact that they changed the gate at the last minute in Dallas, so we took a shuttle train all the way around the airport, got to the gate and then had to turn around and get back on the train to go to yet another terminal. That cut into our eating time for lunch, so the kids didn't eat very well the whole day really. Then It was a shock to get back to 80 degree weather again!

It's been a much better transition back here than it was after Thanksgiving, at least in terms of Jack going to bed anyway. He seemed relieved to get back to his own bed. They both seemed to really enjoy being back with all their toys. We had a sort of belated Christmas the morning after we returned, and that was fun, seeing them ripping open all their other presents. Lauren's main reaction was "Oh my Gody!,(a cross between God and golly?), "Look at this!!"

Last night we all went outside after dinner and watched some fireworks going off in the distance. Fireworks are legal here in Florida, so people set off huge dispalys right in their back yards. We also tried sparklers, but those were deemed "scawy", so that didn't last very long. Then after bathtime, we all had a toast, the kids with cream soda in plastic champagne glasses, Mike and I with the real bubbly stuff. That was so funny, they both really like the idea of clinking. Jack wouldn't drink his though, saying it was too cold, but I think it's the bubbles he doesn't like.

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