It's no fun being sick

Sorry, no pictures today! We are stuck at home this week. Lauren has RSV and Dylan is getting over his cold/cough. With the really cold weather and Lauren being sick, we aren't doing anything! So far it hasn't been too bad. I can only handle a few days of it though! Lauren doesn't have it bad enough to be hospitalized, thank goodness! She is just really congested and you can hear it when she breaths. Poor girl. We have been trying to keep up with the housework around here. That's about all!

Yeah for nap time!

I gotta say, I love it when both kids take a nap at the same time! It makes me a happier mom! Even if it's only for 1/2 hour, it gives me a little time to myself. What have we been up to? Dylan has a cough, gotta love the cold season. It hasn't been too bad other than him wanting more attention. Movies have been great. I'm just hoping that Lauren doesn't get it, too! Oh well!

Lauren got a new blanket for Christmas that she loves. When I lay her down in bed, she rolls to her side and grabs the blanket with her thumb in her mouth. She loves to curl up with her blanket! She also likes to pull it over her head. It's so cute!
Well, I feel like being productive, so I'm going to get all my info. for taxes together! Yipee!

Little Lauren

My little Lauren is 6 months old! Can you believe it? Here are her stats:

Weight: 16 lbs. 4 oz. (50th percentile)

Height: 27 3/4 inches (over 100th percentile)

Head Circumference: 42.5 cm (50th percentile)

So, there you have it. We have a long skinny little girl! Dylan was the same length, but weighed 6 oz. more at his 6 month. She seems chubbier than Dylan ever was. She has rolls on her thighs, which Dylan never had! I think they are cute! She also got 4 shots and an oral vaccine. Poor girly. She only cried for a second! She was very brave! I'll let you know how she's doing tomorrow. The day after always seems to be the worst.

Lauren has the cutest little laugh. Her most noticeable trait is her big eyes. Everyone always comments on how big her eyes are and how long her eyelashes are. (She gets her eyes from me!) She loves to sit up in her bumbo seat and watch Dylan play. She gets bored if you leave her at one place for too long. She is enjoying her cereal and looking forward to starting baby food! She still has no motivation to roll over. I found her one morning on her tummy, but she was really upset about it.

Dylan is continuing to be himself. He thinks he can get away with throwing fits. I guess he has something to learn! What can you expect from almost 3 year olds?!? We started potty training again! He seems to be getting it this time! He just filled his 3 sticker chart and loves his puzzle prize! He will come tell me that he has to go potty when he's wearing a diaper! Yeah! He loves to sing in the car. He learned "Book of Mormon Stories" at church last week and has been singing ever since! He picks up on things fast! I love waking up to his cute little face in the morning! He is such a big boy! I can't believe that he will be 3 soon!

It's snowing outside right now! I love the snow! It's beautiful! I think I'll take Dylan outside when he wakes up! I'm not going to love the wind chill tomorrow! It's supposed to be negative something. Not fun to play in! Guess we'll just have to stay home and play all day!

And a Happy New Year!

For New Year's, we went to my aunt's house in Illinois. It was really fun having all of the cousins and their kids together. The family keeps getting bigger! We celebrated the New Year with everyone by playing games all night long! Here is my mom and her sister with Dylan and Madeline. They love to read books!

Lauren's still eating the paper! We should have just given her some paper for Christmas!
While we were in Illinois, we got to visit with my dad's mom. Here is Dylan and Lauren with their great grandma.
My lovely grandparents! Grandma fell last year and broke her hip. When she went in for the hip replacement surgery, she never made it out. She has been in the nursing home in Monticello by my grandpa. We are so grateful that she is doing well! The nursing home will drive them places for a few hours, so she went to her house to see all of us! We had a wonderful time with them.

Dylan and Lauren with their great grandma and great grandpa on my mom's side of the family!

Four generations! (Can you tell we are all related?)
Great grandpa had a wonderful time with Lauren! He even got down on the floor to play with her!
Lauren grabbed the wind chime that hangs down from the fan. She was even strong enough to turn the fan on! I didn't know that she was such a strong little girl!

Thanks to everyone for a wonderful holiday season! We had a great time and look forward to seeing everyone again soon! Love ya!

More Christmas

The day after Christmas, my family came up here to celebrate together. Dad made a fried turkey for dinner with his new turkey fryer and we had a wonderful time visiting with everyone. We really appreciated everyone coming up here since Ricky had to work.

Here is our lovely Christmas tree. Dylan helped us pick it out this year. He was so excited that we had a tree in our house. He was telling everyone about it!
My mom and dad in front of our tree. How cute!
Boys will be boys! Dylan loved playing with his cousins. They do get kind of rowdy!
My brother and his girlfriend.
Lauren loving her new book. Thanks for everything! My mom and dad gave all of us a trip to Ohio to an indoor water park for the weekend. I think we are doing it in February. We are very excited! We also got a homemade tree skirt. It is beautiful! Good job mom!After a long week, this is how the kids looked!

Merry Christmas

The Sunday before Christmas I dressed the kids in their cute little Christmas outfits. They looked so adorable! We got a few good pictures before Dylan was done. I'm not quite sure why the second one is so dark, but it was really good. Dylan was giving Lauren a kiss on her cheek!


On Christmas morning, we decided to stay home and enjoy some time together as a family. Ricky only had Christmas day off of work, so we wanted to relax a little this year. It was really fun watching Dylan open his stocking. It gets more enjoyable the older he gets! Lauren was really cute pulling the toys out of her stocking. Her eyes were very wide! She got some slippers, a toy that plays music for her car seat, and the movie Tinkerbell. Dylan got a jumpy thing, some Geotrax trains, and the movie Horton Hears a Who. We invited the missionaries from our church over for breakfast. Ricky made some good waffles and sausage. Then we all opened our presents. Ricky got a universal remote, some work pants and shoes, and some tools. I got a memory card and case for my camera, the game Settlers of Catan, and the movie Wall-E. We had a wonderful Christmas! While Lauren was opening her stocking, Dylan ran off. I asked him what he was doing. He replied,"I'm eating my cherries." As most of you know, Dylan doesn't eat fruit. I went to the kitchen and found him under the table eating a whole package of Peez candies. Gotta love Christmas morning!Around noon, we headed over to Ricky's parent's house to visit with his brother and sister-in-law. His brother had to work in the evening, so they didn't get to stay long. We really enjoyed visiting with them. Dylan loves his cousin Alex. I just love this picture!

Look at that cute little smile!
Daddy loves spending time with his little girl!

He couldn't stay away from his phone for one minute! (Can you tell why they call the phones "Crack-berries"?
Grandpa and Lauren smiling.
She was so happy and in such a good mood all day! I love my children!