No more monkey's jumping out of cribs!

Here is Chloe's new sleeping arrangement. It took her about a week to get used to it and she still has her moments when I put her in her crib but it is so nice not to worry about her jumping out. Now I can leave here in there for hours..kidding! Some of you wondered what it looked like so here it is. When she woke up from her nap I told her I was going to take a picture of her but I had to go get the camera. She laid back down and didn't move a muscle until the photo shoot was over. I thought this was cute since she is always trying to get out..I guess she thought it would be fun to pose:)

Little Trooper

If you look closely you can see Lauren loves the new mask the doctors let her keep.


Lauren is doing great recovering from her surgery. The day of Surgery she got up at 5am which was my worst fear since she couldn't eat or drink anything. She cried and begged at first, but then felt better that Steve and I weren't "allowed" to eat or drink anything. Once we got to the surgery center she loved all the toys that the nurses were giving her. She also got to play with a real stethoscope and she knew right away that she wanted bubble gum flavor on the mask to put her to sleep. The doctor then gave her a mask with the flavoring to keep. As you can guess this is now a fun addition to our doctor kit. They decided not to give her any drugs before hand since she had no anxiety. The hardest part for me is when they wheeled her away. We told her she was going on a cool ride and she asked if I was coming too. This broke my heart and put me in tears but she did fine when they wheeled her away. After surgery she had a hard time for a couple of hours, but was back to eating and drinking by the afternoon. Today she is back to normal but mainly stays on the couch. Its amazing how much better kids recover. I just had to grab her and make her sit because she was chasing Chloe! We are very thankful that everything went well and that this is behind us!

Lauren Turns 3

Lauren turned 3 on the 4Th and we had another princess party which she absolutely loved. Lauren's middle name should be party. I thought I would list some of the things that I love about Lauren and her fun age.

1. Her new thing is to say "Hey mom,should I have..." rather than just asking for what she wants. Usually it is for something that I will say no to.
2. If she notices that I got hurt(stubbed toe..) She will run over to me and kiss me several times to help it feel better.
3. Sometimes out of the blue she will say "mom, I love you"
4. She will dance on demand.
5. She notices everything.
6. When she sings she typically yells it.
7. She loves the doctors office and hasn't cried when she got her last two shots.
8. Enjoyed getting stitches.
9. Laughs so hard sometimes that you can't help but laugh along with her.
10. Says Chloe and our dog are her best friends.
11. Loves school so much I can threaten to keep her home if she is not behaving.
12. Loves bugs and anything else that a typical girl would run from.
13. She embraces new experiences and most times could care a less if I am with her.
14. When she prays at night she often prays for the animals.
15. She loves to cook.
16. She loves to hide when her dad comes home from work so he has to find her. Usually her legs are sticking out of her hiding spot.
17. Loves baths and doesn't like to have her hair combed unless she is doing it.
18. Loves giants.
19. Early bird- typically 6:15am she is ready to go.
20. Loves all her cousins.
21. Sits and reads books and rambles on and on pretending she knows what it says.
22. Can play in the car for an hour with Chloe if I let her.
23. Loves candy.
24. Can't help but open packages or other interesting things that she is not supposed to get into. When she is quiet there is trouble.
25. Has to walk next to the cart and touch most everything in the store. Today she said "MOM, look at this..isn't it beautiful!" The lady in the isle burst out laughing because she said it with such passion.
26. Most favorite thing is going to the park..she asks daily.
27. Wanted a baby shark for her birthday from her Uncle Tony(see picture above..its really a Betta) We will see how long this survives!!

Happy Birthday little Lo!!

Please pray that everything goes smoothly on Wednesday as Lauren is having surgery for hernia repair. We are blessed that this is our only issue that seems to be due to prematurity, but non the less we are not looking forward to Wednesday. I will keep you posted on her recovery which is said to be quick.

Giving Thanks for family

We spent Thanksgiving with Steve's whole family in Michigan this year. It is not often that we can all get together so we had a great time. Lauren and Chloe were loving all the time they got to spend with their cousins and it was great for us because it kept them busy:) We managed to get a lot in for one weekend. The kids enjoyed Christmas with their cousins and Lauren got to celebrate her birthday along with her Uncle Jeff. We also took family pictures at the Museum downtown GR..can you guess which kids made it a bit difficult??? Thankfully there are some great pictures from the day. We also went bowling which Lauren got a kick out of. It was fun to watch her get all excited, except dad had a hard time lining the guide up so most of the balls were gutters:) She didn't seem to mind. Lauren also received her first bike from her cousin Emily. Thank you Emily!! It has been too cold to practice, but she is quite excited. It was a great weekend and we have much to be thankful for!

She has jumped ship!

Chloe has figured out how to climb/jump out of her crib! It all started Monday when I was in the basement with Lauren during Chloe's nap time. It was about an hour before Chloe normally wakes and all of the sudden I hear her crying in the kitchen. My first recaction was who took Chloe out of her crib?! When I got to the top of the stairs I saw it was just her and my heart sank..how could I be already dealing with this..she is only 19 months old! I scolded her and told her she is not allowed to climb out of the crib(yeah..that worked). Not only that, she has learned how to open her door! So now she has done it several times and clearly I need to do something before she hurts herself. Her cousin Hayden broke his arm playing this game. I have heard of a crib tent so I either have to go by one asap or borrow one from someone. I thought Lauren was going to keep me on my toes but little Chloe seems to be doing a better job.

Oh Deer!

Steve got his biggest buck yet this weekend.

Congrats John and Kelly

I had the pleasure of meeting little Katelyn Grace this weekend! She is a little cutie. Congrats John and Kelly:)

Finally done..well almost

This is what the bathroom once looked like...



The result of all of Steve's hard work...



For the last 6 months we have been remodeling the girls bathroom. Most of it was done in the first month but when you do it yourself it seems to go on and on and on. Tonight was the first night the girls got to take a bath in it since we had our friend who is a plumber come and adjust a few things and I was finally able to seal all the tile this week. Steve did an awesome job once again. There was only one major mishap which was hitting a water pipe while drilling in new drywall:) It was actually pretty funny because I see Steve flying to the basement and all I hear is water and I am envisioning water flowing through the hallway. Luckily it was spraying into the tub so not too much damage was done. All that is left is securing the granite and a little paint touch-up..yeah!!! Now I have to convince Steve to spend all his free time remodeling our master bathroom:)

Halloween 2008

It has been a busy,yet fun week around here. We managed to get use out of the Halloween costumes four different times. On Wednesday night we met my whole family at BW3's for their kids night. It was a lot of fun..they had a clown who did face painting, pumpkins for the kids to decorate(which they got all over their costumes!!) and a costume contest which my nephew won! My dad has just returned from Texas after doing some hurricane relief so it was great to see him. On Thursday Lauren had her class halloween party. That was adorable. I got to see what the teachers deal with every day...wow was it hard to get them all to stand still for a picture. I was a little discouraged about my sewing skills after leaving since the teacher asked Lauren if she was a squirrel or a mouse and a mother complemented me on Lauren's cute mouse costume:) I think part of the problem was my ability to face paint (at least that's a good excuse!)
On Halloween we went trick or treating in downtown Lisle which is great because you walk from store to store and its all close together. The girls absolutely loved it. Chloe walked the whole time and had a death grip on her banana bag filled with candy. The first store we went to she let the lady put candy in her bag and then proceeded to walk further into the store to go shopping. Then if a store was closed, she would stop and look through the windows. It was the cutest thing. Lauren was in heaven and was content following all the big kids. I think it was also quite confusing to her that all the stores had candy.
Saturday night was spent at the Ley's house with some friends and their kids. They enjoyed making cookies and playing in their costumes once again. Of course we got together just for the kids sake:) Thanks Sara and Mark for a great night!
Now its a matter of keeping the candy stash hidden so that Steve and I can raid it..the joys of being parents.

So far so good

For a girl who loves candy and a pacifier, I was a bit nervous for her first dentist appointment! She clearly loved every minute of it and it helped that they play a video for kids while they get their cleaning. I even was able to use the "Your not going to the dentist unless you...." and it worked like a charm:) Anyways, the verdict was good! I guess I need to learn from Lauren because lately I have seen the dentist all too much..the latest was my first root canal!! It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be but still not fun. Steve blames it all on my McDonald Coke addiction.. really one Coke a day??

Fall is in the air

This weekend we took the girls to a pumpkin patch that has a lot more than pumpkins. The weather was great and it is now starting to feel like Fall. Lauren loved feeding the animals and Chloe enjoyed the train ride. When I asked Lauren what her favorite part was she said "The sucker".. of course it is the simple things they want! I guess all I have to do is buy a big bag of suckers to give them a memorable childhood:)
Lately Lauren keeps asking if she can go trick or treating..this is going to be a long month! I am attempting to make their costumes but once again I am wondering what I got myself into? I have already spent a few hours on them. They are going to be little monkeys..I couldn't think of anything that would fit them better;) Wish me luck!

Another Fast One

They look so sweet and innocent in this picture, but if you look closely Lauren is up to no good. I gave them mini marshmallows as a treat and the next thing I know, I have sticky marshmallows smeared all over the sliding door? I thought that Lauren was quietly eating, but rather I had chunks of marshmallow all over the glass. When I was looking at the pictures I just took, I noticed that Lauren was getting ready to destruct. Of course it is more fun to make a mess with your treat rather an eat it!!

Happy Birthday Mom

This weekend we celebrated my Mom's birthday. Lauren and Chloe had a blast flying around with their cousins and we all enjoyed spending time with baby Avery:) Happy Birthday mom!

Introducing...

Avery Kristen Tazelaar! I am a proud new Aunt as of today. Annie and Ron had a beautiful baby girl at 12:07 this afternoon. She is 7lbs 5oz and has lots of dark hair. Anne had to have a cesarean since Avery was breech, but they are both doing really well(as you can see in the picture..Anne you look great!) Congrats Ron & Anne..she is such a cutie!

School is a hit

Lauren had her first day of school yesterday and loved it. I just decided to put her in a 2's program at the park district since Lauren likes to keep busy or else she gets herself into trouble;) She has been asking me to go to school everyday since I told her about it and the first thing she said to me yesterday morning was "O.K., lets get ready for school" I was a little nervous about the drop off, but she was the first one to run up to the teacher and then she blew past her to the table with playdo. Needless to say I don't think she missed me a bit.

Please Pray

My friend and college roommate Mindi and her husband Frank tragically lost their son Jake today. He had a seizure on Sunday and has been fighting ever since, but today he went home to be with Jesus. I keep wondering how this can happen? It has been a depressing last few days and all I can think about is Mindi and Frank and cry. Please pray for them and their daughter Maddi(Jake's twin)who is used to having Jake by her side at all times.

The first set of stitches

Today was quite a day. We stopped at the store to try and buy a gift and every time I wonder why I even attempt to actually shop with the girls. They were fine for about 10 mins and then both girls wanted out of the stroller and Chloe was having a fit(most of you have seen this.) So I let Lauren walk next to the stroller and I held Chloe. She was wiggling to get free so I let her down..mistake #2! Chloe darts off around the corner and Lauren looks like she is going to run the other way, so I am trying to grab Lauren and in the meantime Chloe is running in the clothes racks and I can't see her. Now panic sets in because I am calling her name and she is not answering. I am now running all around, and dragging Lauren behind me. Meanwhile she slips and hits her head on a toy shelf and cries a bit, but I pick her up and off we went to find Chloe. She stopped crying right away. Finally I see a lady bent down talking and I knew it was Chloe. Now that the whole store is involved I was quite embarrassed. This was my first time actually needing help to find my child. Meanwhile I have my sunglasses on the whole time since Chloe gave me a huge black eye last night by hitting me with a book. Finally I get out of the store and promise myself I will never let them out of the stroller again. I lift my sunglasses up and notice that I have blood all over my arm. Then I look and Lauren's head and her hair if wet with blood. Panic sets in again and I can't get a good look at it since there is blood everywhere. My doctors office is right there so I decided to go there first to see what I should do. Needless to say, We looked like quite a mess. Blood all over us and my black eye! The bleeding stopped pretty quickly so thankfully I knew it wasn't going to be that bad. The doctor said she would either need a stitch or staple but we would have to go to the med center or ER for that. So they wrapped her head in a bandage which all the nurses had fun with. Lauren was loving all the attention and they were bringing her around showing everyone how cute she looked in the bandage. Next was the fun part. I thought she would have a fit when they stitched it. They first numbed it with a little cocktail and said they were going to try and stitch it without numbing it with a needle. This made me a bit nervous! But the doctor started stitching and she just sat on my lap. Not a tear shed and she talked about her upcoming vacation the whole time. Three stitches later I think she loved the whole experience? Mom on the other hand needs a nap. I guess she wanted to be like her friend Sid who just had a similar experience:)

No more naps

Lauren has decided that naps are overrated. The last few weeks she doesn't want to take a nap and when she does she doesn't want to go to sleep at night. We have even had a few nights where she is wide awake at 4am. This is driving me crazy! She hasn't had a nap in 4 days, so she was super crabby this morning. She was asking to take a nap by 12:00 so I let her and guess what game we are playing tonight? She has been out of her room about five times so now I am camped outside her door. I need to stay at the computer so I can put her back to bed every 10 min. We need to buy a mega lock for her door. We have had a very busy and fun last few weeks and I am hoping to post pictures soon. We had a great weekend at Kelly's cottage in Michigan and had Annie's baby shower was last night. Wish me luck with miss naughty pants!

Tom Boys

They gravitate towards messes. I thought all of you who get chuckles out of Lauren and Chloe's passive behaviors would appreciate these pictures. It crossed my mind to stop them, but then I thought "Is it worth the fight?" Typically once they find something really messy there is lots of tears if I take them away from it, and the only way to stop it is to remove them from the situation. This means taking them inside which would mean mud all over the house. They were already a mess so I just pulled out the swimming pool and hosed them down. Bradi you would be proud.. they were flying around naked and loving it:)

Had no clue..

Steve pulled it off..My 30th came and went and I thought we were going to stay a night in the city for my birthday, but instead I was greeted by friends at Ron and Anne's house for a surprise party. I was completely surprised! All week long everyone had been busy planning and I didn't catch on one bit. My parents came over to watch the girls while we went for dinner(or so I thought) but as soon as we left they packed the girls up and took them to their house overnight. I was so excited to stay out late and sleep in!!! The party itself was so much fun. When I walked into Ron and Anne's I had no idea until I stepped into the kitchen. I was going through the whole day in my head and I was so impressed with Steve's skills of hiding it from me. It was a great party and it meant so much to me that Steve went though all the work to plan it..what a great husband:) Thanks Ron and Anne for all the work you did as well and to Mom and Dad for having the girls and making most of the food! By the way the pictures were taken with my new camera from Steve..yeah!!

The Cape

Here are some pictures of our trip to the Cape. We had a great time visiting with family and enjoying the beach. The traveling was a bit difficult, but once we were there it made it all worth it..Thank you Mom and Dad for having all of us! Chloe had her moments and we are not sure if it was teething or just being overwhelmed by some many people. At dinner one of her cousins even prayed for Chloe to stop crying all the time which we thought was pretty funny. I think Lauren really had a great time. The other day she said "Mom, I love my blanki" I laughed and thought that it was quite cute so yesterday I asked her "Lauren what do you LOVE?" seeing if she would say her blanki. She responded "Nana"(Steve's mom)and I said what else and she said "my cousins". We are looking forward to doing this every summer.

P.S. Lauren had fun destroying Nana and Pop's bedroom on our first attempt to put her down for a nap..but after she got that out of her system she went to bed fine and stayed in bed. Although she was up bright and early every morning between 5:00 and 5:30am!!

Off to the Cape we go..

Bright an early tomorrow morning we will be experimenting with flying with Lauren and Chloe.. this makes me quite nervous. I got advise to wrap lots of dollar store toys/candy to keep them busy so we will see if that works. We are really looking forward to spending time at the beach..I think they are at good ages for having fun in tide pools. Steve's whole family will be down at the same time this year which will be fun. I'm sure the cousins will have a blast together. I hope to get some good pictures to post. Happy Fourth of July!!

On a lighter note :)

Some say that I just show the naughty side of my kiddies so I thought I would post a few pictures of them having good clean fun :) We had a busy week doing VBS. I was a crew leader which meant that the girls were in the nursery everyday. I was a little nervous that they wouldn't want to go back after the first day(since it was three hours everyday), but they did really well. After day two no tears were shed- at least by Lauren. Each day in the car she would tell me all about how Chloe was crying at Church:) I actually really enjoyed having a change of scene and it was fun being part of such a great program. I even told Steve a part time job in the morning wouldn't be so bad:) Steve is out of town this weekend for his cousin Scott's wedding so we have just been hanging out around the house most of the time..we are 1/2 way there so I think I can make it! We will all be glad to have Dad home.


Steve and I went on a little date Wednesday night and then over to John and Kelly's house. We had a great night! Before the sitter came I wanted to quick wash Chloe, but didn't have time for a bath so I thought I would just put her in the sink. Of course Lauren wanted part of the fun. Before you know it there was a party in the sink! Now Lauren always asks to have a bath in the sink..what did I start?


They wanted blankets tied around them?



Sometimes it doesn't matter that you have two of the same toy..(yes we have two of these cars-a lovely addition to our yard!) they want to ride together. Actually in this picture Lauren is trying to take off Chloe's diaper..maybe she will be behaving on the next post:)