Lauren

(We love dress up)

Favorite #1 comes in the form of a petite 3-year-old, who is full of spunk and attitude. Miss Independent doesn't want any help from anyone, and she won't do anything unless it's her idea. While these might not be my favorite things all the time...I think they are attributes that will help her accomplish amazing things in the years to come. As long as we teach her how to use them in the right way. Oh, and we need to teach her patience and sharing and gratitude, and the list goes on and on. It will be no easy feat, I'm sure.

In December, Lauren finally decided that she was ready to be potty trained. I admit that I didn't push her as much as I could have, but given the above statement I just made, you can probably guess why. Things have been going really well and we decided that she could make it through the night without pull-ups anymore. So far, we have only had a few accidents...which leads to us doing extra loads of laundry the next day...which Lauren LOVES to help me with. I tell you this because last week Lauren came in my room and saw me pulling the sheets off MY bed. Here's how our conversation went:

Lauren: "Mom, what are you doing?"
Me: "Taking the sheets off the bed so I can wash them."

There was a long pause and then,

Lauren: "Did you pee the bed mom?"
Me: "Nope. (insert much laughter here) We wash sheets regularly, not just when we have an accident."
Lauren: "Oh. Can I help you?"
Me: "You bet."

Pure awesomeness.

Another recent observation:

Lauren was sitting at the table with a stuffed puppy and a bowl. She had the dog's head hanging over the bowl and was chatting away with it, comforting it. When I asked what she was doing she said, "My puppy is going to throw up mom." More Awesomeness. I bet you can't guess what sits next to your bed if you have the stomach flu at my house?

Lauren loves to play with Audrey. If Lauren has slept long enough for Audrey to get out the door and off to school, the first thing she asks me when she wakes up is, "Where is Audrey mom?" When I tell her she's at school she will always hang her head and say, "Awwww." And then proceed to ask me 15 more times where she is and when she will be home.

Lauren is my favorite little helper. She comes running when she hears me loading and unloading the dishwasher. She's in charge of the silverware. If I'm in the laundry room, she's putting things in the washer and dryer for me. Every Friday we empty the garbage's together, and she loves to help me clean the bathrooms...even though I don't love that. Why did they decide to put bleach in Comet I ask you? Maybe all this helping will last? One can only hope...

If you want to know my favorite thing about Lauren, it has to be...her sweet kisses. Really, she knows how to smooch a cheek, and she loves to give them out. They always come with a sweet hug too. It's really quite a treat. You must try one someday...

And there you have it. A few of my favorite things about my favorite #1. Please remember, these are in no particular order. I like all my favorites the same.

My Favorite People

Lately...well, lately life has been a little boring around here. This is the time of year when most people start going stir-crazy, and we are no exception. The weather has kept us indoors for FAR too long, and add to that our extreme frugalness, and you get two bored kids and one somewhat annoyed mother by the end of the day. So...in my bored state, I've been thinking about all of my favorite people...that I get to spend time with, and wish I could spend more time with. I got to thinking that I wanted to document these thoughts, so I'm going to feature my favorite people every couple days in a post. Exciting right? Since only a handful of people read this blog, it's mostly for myself. But, it will be fun to think about each person and their unique qualities and things that make them so likeable...and loveable! Will you be featured? Well, since most of my favorite people are the only one's that read this blog...it's highly likely! Plus, more posts more often right? Please try to contain that excitement. Now, off to think and work I go.

February 6th 2011

The day Adam's dreams were crushed, was the day Audrey and Lauren shouted from the back seat to leave the radio station on a Taylor Swift song. "I LOVE this song! I LOVE Taylor Swift!", they shouted. And Adam hung his head in defeat and said, "I've lost them already."

And, I laughed all the way home...

Don't worry dad, they still LOVE Weezer.

P.S. I don't LOVE Taylor, so who knows where this is coming from?

A Stroll Down Memory Lane

Two weeks ago...

I stepped on a jet plane and flew off to Sacramento to spend some time with my parents. When my Grandmother passed away last November, my mom knew she would have to travel back and help get the house ready to sell. When the time came, she was pretty apprehensive I think. And, rightly so. She moved into that home when she was 3 years old, and didn't move out until she married my dad. That means there were TONS of Memories to sort through...and it wasn't easy.

I went to try and help with all that sorting, but by the time I got there...most of the hard work was done! I think my mom was in need of a desperate break, so after finishing everything on Thursday, we planned to spend Friday exploring some of my Dad's childhood memories, and a couple of my mom's.

Stop #1: Marie's Donut Shop

This was possibly the best stop of the day. Yup, pretty sure about that. This little shop has been around for many a year. It's nothing special, fancy or cutesie like all the fad places these days...but their donuts are to die for. My Grandfather used to take us here to get donuts when we would visit. All the way home he would remind us, "Now, remember, don't tell your Grandma where we went." Grandpa was always sneaking treats, because Grandma had him on a strict diet...yet he never lost weight. Hmmm, no wondering why there. And, apparently we were kindred spirits because he was a maple bar lover too. Feature Donut...the cream filled one...dipped in maple. And, when I say cream filled, I mean CREAM FILLED. Like real cream, and lots of it. I even took a picture to show. Don't be jealous...I ate every bite and enjoyed each one thoroughly. And if you know me, I'm not really a donut girl, but these are not your average donuts.


Marie's Donuts...and THE donut. This picture hates me and rotates when it uploads. I tried everything and I can't fix it...

Stop #2: Muir Woods National Monument

Muir Woods is one of those places where the sheer awesomness of the trees, aka their height, makes you feel pretty insignificant. I have never stood side by side with a redwood or sequoia tree. I've always wanted to, and now I can say I have. They take 2000 years to grow to their full height (Sequoia's take 3000+ years). Amazing. Muir Woods is located across the bay north of San Francisco. If you're ever in the neighborhood...it's worth a visit. There are miles of hiking trails that you could spend hours on...I'm going back one day.



Stop #3: The Oakland Temple

From the Oakland Temple, you can see the entire valley below you...and it was quite picturesque...even with some smog. I had never been to this temple, and it was where my father was sealed to his parents when he was eight-ish (I think) and my parents were sealed to each other. A pretty significant place for our family, and worth the visit. It's already showing signs of spring in California...daffodils in bloom, tulips coming up, primroses looking cheery...and the Camellia bushes were beautiful. I know why people live in California, because the weather is delightful. Too bad there's all that traffic and such.



Stop #4: San Jose

My dad's old stomping grounds. You see, my dad lived the quintessential childhood. He had a group of friends...4 to be exact...and they had some good, clean fun. Bikes, tag, wheelies, mud, baseball, welding, visits to the drugstore for sodas, haircuts at the barber shop, these were the things my dad did. We were able to visit the house he grew up in, which is being remodeled so we walked around the inside too. He took us to the elementary school...and the high school.


The house on Ross Drive (that used to be blue...)


Sartorette Elementary School

I think my favorite stop was the church house. It was one of the last buildings the church built where the church provided materials, and the members donated their time for labor. My grandfather was a concrete contractor, and did a lot of the flat work around the building...you can still see it. My dad learned to ride his bike, backwards, sitting on the handlebars, in the church parking lot (much to every one's amusement). I think there was a lot of crashing involved. He also showed us where he would start doing a wheelie...and how far he would try to go before he had to stop (we're talking miles here people). It was great hearing all these stories, and I'm so glad we went.


The church house and Grandpa's flatwork

We finished the night at a friend's house, one of the 4 I mentioned above. My dad has kept in contact with all of them throughout the years, and it was fun to hear more stories and realize he's exactly the same now, after all these years!

I am so grateful that I was able to go on this trip with my parents. In addition to all the fun we had, it really was wonderful to spend time in my grandmother's home. The smell when I walk in reminds me of my grandparents. There are so many great memories tucked away in that house...the playhouse, fireworks with grandpa, sneaking out for treats, playing with the cousins. I swear I could hear my grandmother's voice saying, "Oh Bill..." Grandpa was always teasing her you know. Although it's hard to let someone go, I am eternally grateful for all the memories that I have to treasure.