Outside in Late November

For late November, in Iowa, it was an awesome day to be outside!!!! Lauren and I went out to take full advantage of the nice weather and get away from sicky grammy! Lauren would probably still be outside if I hadn't brought her in crying from a face plant! She was crawling on and off the trike, playing in the sandbox, going down the slide and yelling at the dogs. She has said both "puppy" and "woof" several times in the last two days. Finally, an animal that says something other than "MOO"!

Happy Turkey!

We are thankful for a happy, healthy family. Mike, Lauren and I would like to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving.

Sick

Lauren hasn't been herself since Friday. When I came home from work she had a 101.7 temp. Has been up and down all weekend. She's been clingy...doesn't want down....doesn't want to be held, etc. I learned this morning that a kid at daycare has H1N1 and that secondary things like ear infections make it worse...of course Lauren has been pulling at her right ear since last night.

We made a trip to urgent care just to be sure. No flu. Ear infection. The gave us antibiotics, but as most ear infections are viral, I am not sure what good it will do. Girl is sleeping - for now.

Mommy's Little Helper

Lauren decided to sweep the garage while I was making supper! Of course, the regular video camera wasn't handy, so I grabbed my regular camera. Unfortunately, it doesn't have any sounds.

The Cutest Cow in the World

We took Lauren to Great-Grandma Holm's this afternoon for a little Trick or Treating. We are going to be Trick or Treaing in Sioux Rapids, so we had to go see her! We were going to see the Walls', but Janelle was sick, so we stayed away!

If its not one thing...

...its another.

Lauren has been handling getting her new teeth fairly well. We only have the dreaded "I" teeth left and we'll be done for a while. She gets a little crabby and we give her some Motrin and she's good.

She had some sinus issues for a while...nothing a little Sudafed couldn't fix.

But now, we are having sleep issues...for like the second time ever. I will not complain too loudly because I have friends (love ya Julie) whose baby's have had sleep issues pretty much since the beginning. And I know I am making it bigger in my head that it really is. It just worries me.

Lauren had become a night owl...being ready for bed between 9 and 10. She'd sleep all night and get up around 8 or when I had to wake her about 6:15 for daycare. Then, for 5-6 nights in a row she was an absolute bear to get to sleep. Kicking, screaming, etc. and it resorted in many car rides to finally get her to sleep. I knew this was a habit that I didn't want to get too deep into.

After consulting many knowledgable mommies, including the Daycare Goddess, Kathy, I tried putting Lauren to bed way early - like 7 - thinking that she was getting overly tired. I have tried that for 2 nights now. The first resulting in us being awake at 3:30 and the second at 4.

Tonight, we are meeting in the middle and going to bed at 8...I won't be far behind her!

Race for the Cure

Lauren and I, along with our friends, Brenda and Morgan participated in Omaha's Race for the Cure on today. At place where we started from it didn't look like there was a horde of people there, but as soon as we came up over the hill and could see 20,000 people it was inspiring. A great big lump came to my throat to see it! It was amazing to run into people we knew along the route - coworkers, friends and coworkers that are friends. The most amazing part was thinking about the 22,000 people that paid a minimum of $25 bucks to be there and how far that can go to finding a cure.

I walked in honor of my friend, Julie, who is currently kickin' cancer's a$$! I also had in my head Johnylyn Williams, who is the art teacher at our school and my friend Becky's mom (whose name is escaping my head right now) who are both survivors. I also thought about the friends and family who were walking "In Memory" of their loved ones who lost the battle, but are not forgotten.