A Balloon Birthday Party

I felt like I was a little belated in Lauren's birthday party plans this year.

We had a trip to California planned a couple days after her birthday, 

and we weren't sure what we would do.

But we decided to venture out of the birthday party in the home mode,

book a venue,

invite her class and friends from activities

and celebrate our Lauren.

She chose a balloon theme,

we chose The Little Gym,

and it all came together from there.

We had a lot of fun with the balloon theme

and the fact that I dropped off everything at Little Gym and they decorated for me...

amazing.

It also was perfect place for kids of all ages to play together. 

They explored the gym,

played games,

laughed, ran, and giggled.

Caroline had a very good time:)

After playing in the gym, we headed back for some cake!

Lauren's hair nearly caught on fire,

but Dad was quick to prevent emergency calls or hair cuts. 

Lauren was thrilled to celebrate with all of her friends 

and have Grandpa & Grandma McQuinn celebrate with us as well!

Mom and Dad were thankful for all their help as we prepared and got into party mode!

It was a wonderful little party,

fun theme,

great venue, 

lots of smiling faces,

and one very happy birthday girl.

four

It's truly hard to believe we have a four year old in our house.
It's so cliche, but it really does go so fast.
We can barely remember our life before this strong, confident little girl came into it.
Time could stand to slow down a little bit...
because right now she still wants to hold my hand, gives me kisses, lets me lay with her at bedtime,
and thinks her parents are the best.
Her words, not mine.
But I'm not naive enough to know that will last forever...
and neither will the rest of these wonderful characteristics of our Lauren at four.

She is brave.
She is bold.
She is confident.
She is not afraid to share her opinion.
She loves all things dress up - just not the itchy dresses.
She really likes the shoes.
She is a picky eater.
She has a voice immodulation disorder. This is not a real disorder, but a something that many of my family members suffer from where we can not speak at a low or soft tone.
She is silly.
She is smart.
She is a great big sister.
She is a leader.
She takes a moment to warm up to people.
She has a great vocabulary, my favorite is when she has a 'diagnosis' or something is 'amazing' or 'dangerous'
She loves all things Frozen, Disney Princess, and Doc McStuffins.
She loves books.
She can write her name.
She loves wearing dresses and fancy shoes and having her hair down with a bow.
She is a negotiator and loves to make a plan.
She likes things done her way and she is not afraid to correct you.
She has a big giggle.
She is a dancer.
She is lovely, and beautiful, and kind, and makes us smile each and everyday.
She no longer calls herself Laurno.
She is 4.

twenty-one

This girl.
To know her, is to love her.
You just can't help yourself...

At twenty-one months, our Caroline...

... is hilarious. You can't help but laugh at her. Even when you're not supposed to. Like when she crawls out of her crib or climbs on top of the table and laughs in your face.

... is learning new words and even started combining two. It usually comes in the form of 'more'. "More apples?" "More cookies?"

... has added 'why?' to her vocabulary. It seems a little early for that, but I guess I can thank big sister for that. While we continue to work on please and thank you, 'why' is a constant. A normal conversation at our house... "cookies?" No, Caroline. "Why?"

... loves her some animal sounds, frozen soundtrack, dressing up like Doc McStuffins and giving check ups, dolls and books. Still obsessed with Anna as well.

... adores her Bella and kisses her. She also adores her sister and they play together so well. Most of the time. They have their moments and when they do she seems to be able to stick up for herself pretty well. I'm not sure if thats part of being a younger sister or just our Caroline's personality. We will keep you posted.

... is expressive. Big eyes and surprise is her signature look. We can't get enough of it.

these sisters

While Caroline's crib escape has been a large dose of reality in how big she is really getting,
there is one thing that I love seeing as these girls grow...
their love for one another.

They genuinely love each other,
they love playing together,
celebrating together,
and spending time together.

Of course not every moment looks like this.
but when I see one reach for the others hand,
hear them playing and singing together upstairs,
or catch them reading together...
my heart swells to borderline bursting.

It's so sweet.

glimpses of life lately

So, I'm a bit behind on my whole daily blog.
Is anyone surprised?
Life has been busy,
with school starting, birthday party planning, gearing up for a family vacay,
I put the memory card in my computer and there were no photos.

But that's okay.
I read an article recently about keeping a family blog with some tips.
And I may be adjusting my goal of posting daily,
it seemed a little easier in the summer breeze,
but that doesn't mean the blog will go dark again.
2-3 times a week,
and who knows... maybe daily?!?

Back to lately.

Lauren started soccer.
And Matt became her coach.
It was all a bit last minute and we spent our Friday evening googling ideas for U4 soccer practice,
but they made it through a HOT first practice
and everyone had fun!



Caroline has taken her climbing skills to another level and escaped from her crib.
Matt and I were so shocked we couldn't stop laughing,
but after the third time,
it wasn't really funny.

We haven't really decided what our plan of action is,
but we're taking it day by day,
or night by night.

Dress up is still a daily activity at our house.
It's so FUN!



School.
Both girls are loving it.

Lauren can't get enough of it and celebrates every morning that is a 'school day'.


Caroline had one morning that was a little rough,
but I was told she was just fine about 3 seconds after I left.
It's also been reported that she is quite the leader.
As evidenced by her flag holding role.

And they send me photos like this throughout the day.

I cannot HANDLE it.

Caroline's bunnies

Caroline's lovey is a bunny.

Her love of bunnies has grown

times three.

While her original bunny, is still her most loved lovey,
all three get snuggled, and kissed, and cuddled.

And seeing this little darling walk with all three tucked in her little arms.
I can't.

I didn't manage to get a photo of it,
but that's okay.
Because it's a sweet little memory this mama will keep in her heart.
And those are the best kind.

sisters & summer nights

Because in Texas,
it is definitely still summer.

School

Both girls had school today.
And rather than running errands I came home
and did laundry,
vacuumed,
put laundry away,
and cleaned my bedroom,
all while Bravo played on in the background.

AND I did all of this uninterrupted.

There are no words.

I also got out the Halloween books.


this is pretty exciting.
I love children's books,
and holidays,
and themes,
so these things coming together makes me quite happy.

Apparently it makes my girls happy too.


today was a good day.

our second daughter

and her facial expressions.






I can't handle it.
Does she remind you of anyone...?

Back to School

Today was the girls first day of school.
Both my girls.
Caroline is also attending Mother's Day Out this year, twice a week,
while Lauren will go three times a week.

Both our girls were SO excited.





We dropped Lauren off first this morning.
She walked into her classroom, before we could even hug her.
That girls has been ready for school to start for months.
And that confident smile she gave us, as we waved and said goodbye
was all the reassurance we needed that she was going to have a great day.
And she did.


We took Caroline to her classroom next.
We were told to expect tears, but as we walked to the classroom we noticed everyone was calm.
Caroline walked right in and never turned back.
Matt and I couldn't have been prouder.
We received a few texts of our littlest school girl enjoying her day
and smiling on the playground.
When I picked her up she was napping,
with her beloved bunny and a dolly from the classroom.

Mama spent her first school day meeting a girlfriend for coffee,
stopping at homegoods to search for a fall wreath,
and doing some laundry.

It's going to be a great school year.

Sunday Best

This girl loves a hat. 

Game Day

It's a family tradition.
Every year we let the girls choose their attire on the Iowa v. Iowa State game.

This year,
the girls failed their mama again this year.

But made their daddy proud.
And chose the winning team.

Perfect Day for the Zoo

The news said something about a cold front,

which means perfect weather for the zoo is here.

That's what we thought when we planned this playdate.

It was HOT.

It was fun...

but hot.

But thankfully our zoo also has a splash pad.

Meet the Teacher

Today was Meet the Teacher.

All went well.

Caroline played bashful for all of four and a half seconds...

then she saw the dolls and made a mad dash for them in the classroom.

Lauren has been waiting to walk back through those doors from the minute she left them in May.

Speaking of our strong confident girl,

when did she become a little girl!?!

And starting this week, she dropped the 'Laurno'... she's Lauren.

cue the tears.

and this girl.

there are no words.

Fall in Texas

It takes a while for fall to really kick in here,
but the calendar gets me every time.

That...
and the dollar bin at Target.
We've got pumpkin notebooks and stickers folks.

we're still here

We've been a little quiet lately.
In our post-Harvey haze,
it felt a little strange to be posting 'cute' pictures
and telling funny stories about our daily happenings.

But we're starting to return to some sense of normalcy
and the focus seems to be shifting to the 'rebuilding'
part of Hurricane Harvey's aftermath.

While our daily lives may have felt a little off the past week or so,
the two girls in our house haven't slowed down one bit.