A Hodgepodge

It has been awhile since I have posted any pictures so here are a few from the last couple of weeks. This weekend Tyler and I went to a friend's wedding and stayed overnight at a hotel, leaving the kids with my Grandma and Grandpa Nyhlen. Zoey had a great time. They took her to the mall to ride the carousel, then visit the bookstore and then went to Perkins for Rainbow Pancakes. A trifecta of her favorites. Zander is staying mum about the whole experience, but I am sure he also had a good time. Tyler and I enjoyed our night out. Thank you Grandma and Grandpa!

Today was a very nice day. After the kids took their naps, we went outside to wash the cars. Then we went to explore the beach that I found the other day while garage sale-ing with Zoey and Zander. Zoey loved the water and there were fish in the lake that just sat and stared at us. Zander also enjoyed a little time in the water.

Tom Sawyer?

Here Zander and I are in my favorite little spot of shade in our front yard, enjoying his 3pm bottle.

Yes, I planted the blocks. Isn't it cute?

Here are the kiddos swimming at Hazel's pad last week. It was Zander's first time swimming outside of the bathtub. He is hooked!
Here are a few pictures of Zoey at the Taste of Maplewood festival. She didn't win the Hula Contest, but she sure had fun!
Her favorite thing at the fair was the huge blow-up jumpers and slides. She went on them like a thousand times.

Rob and Nicole have been on me to get pictures up of my paint job in the kitchen. I painted the walls green. I like it!

Quotes from our Princess

I took Zoey to the Taste of Maplewood celebration tonight and as we were walking around looking at things, Zoey very sincerely turns to me and says, "Mommy, I need a balloon and a new friend."

Another quote I thought was cute was told to me by Auntie Tammy who helped take care of Zoey and Zander last night while Tyler and I went to a play at the Guthrie for a school field trip/Tyler's birthday (Happy Birthday Tyler!!!). Tammy had the pleasure of once again putting Zoey to bed and Zoey finally convinced Tammy to sing the song "Tomorrow" from the movie Annie. When Tammy was finished Zoey looked at her and said, "Annie is a long movie. That was a short song." Apparently implying that Tammy cut some corners on the singin'.

Note: there are no short cuts when it comes to Zoey. She always knows when you leave something out. Her memory quite frankly scares me most of the time.

Happy Father's Day!

Tyler was off reffing basketball on Saturday and Sunday. So we celebrated Father's day without him at The Livingston's house. Uncle Eric made a delicious brunch for the family and Zoey got to continue her weekend of playing with her Auntie Tammy. Tammy came over on Saturday night to hang out with us and Zoey was beside herself with glee. Tammy played in the backyard, ate supper with us, played downstairs, AND put Zoey to bed and read her lots of bedtime stories. Then we got to see her again on Sunday! So, thank you Tammy for making her weekend!



As a gift for Grandpa Livingston, my usually not so cuddly kiddos enjoyed some cuddle time with Poppa. Zander fell asleep on Poppa's shoulder and Zoey did in fact climb up and sit for about a minute with him as she wished him happy father's day.

We played outside for a bit, twirling and playing catch.

I can't help but post every picture that Zander decides to smile for. This smile has shown up in our family before.

Here is a flashback to when Zoey was about 7 months old--smile look familiar?

And I will leave you today with the Bubble Wrap Band, enjoy! (Oh, Tammy, Eric and Nana--did I mention that my camera also takes video?)

Butterflies

Today Roz, Kevin, Hazel and Maria (Kevin's sister) came to visit and to go to Como Zoo with us. I was excited because I wanted to see the new Butterfly Exhibit they had and it was really cool! You walk into this huge butterfly cage, basically, and are just surrounded by hundreds of butterflies flying around you. One of them landed right on Zander's head. Zoey sat for a long time waiting for one to land on her. One finally did, but I don't know if Zoey even realized it.

It was a beautiful day today to be out and walking around. Zander and Hazel had a little chance to play together. I think that they will be great friends as they grow up together.

Above is Zoey waiting for the butterflies to land. Below she is giving Hazel a hug.

Kevin took Zander from me for a bit to let me rest my tired arms--that boy is heavy! Then Zander got another chance to play with Hazel.

Instead of fighting the crowds in the animal exhibits with a big clunky stroller, Zander and I sat in the grass and played while we waited for the others to view the animals. Zander was just happy to be sitting in the grass.

Zoey has been extra lovey with her brother lately. I think she enjoys the fact that he is able to do a little more lately. Just wait until he is walking--she'll be in heaven!

Hazel, our goddaughter, is a walker now.

The Troublesome Threesome

Mommy Daycare

This has been a fun and challenging week for me. I am used to making lesson plans daily for kids at school, knowing that routine and structure are essential to well-behaved kids who feel secure in knowing what comes next. So with that in mind, I made a chart for Zoey and I to follow throughout our day. That way, I can show Zoey where everything falls--for example, she knows that after breakfast she can watch a little bit of TV and then she goes to swimming lessons. She knows that after lunch there is a little bit of playtime and then comes nap. When she asks if she can play on the computer, I can show her when that time comes. Zoey has taken really well to the chart. My next step is to also teach her about being flexible and allowing the plan to change when needed. She is very quick to tell me that we can't go outside on a beautiful day, because the chart doesn't say that. The chart has been a blessing and a curse, but is good enough to keep around.

Here is another craft project that we did this week. We both got to decorate a pair of sunglasses. It is fun to just sit with Zoey and talk with her. Tyler and I were just commenting today how we love how she is developing her language. She phrases and processes things very uniquely sometimes and it just makes sense. For example, today Zoey did not have a nap so she was extra touchy this evening. Supper was a little too spicy for her taste, so Tyler made her some peanut butter toast to supplement the meal. Apparently, don't ask me how, but the toast hurt her and she got an owie and started crying. Tyler, who was trying to be patient with her, said, "I'm sorry that the toast hurt you." Through her tears she cries, "It's not your fault, daddy! Don't say sorry!" Then she calmed down and told us that we forgot to butter the other side of the toast.


Tuesday night is now Dance class night. Zoey takes a ballet/tap/gymnastics class in Woodbury. There are about 6 girls between the ages of 3-5 and they are so cute. Zoey had a good time.

Wednesday it rained and we set up the tent inside for the kids to play in. It was fun. Zander and Zoey had quite the game of hide and seek going. Below is Zander finding Zoey hiding in the tent. . .again!
Tomorrow is Friday. Zoey and I have designated this day to scope out garage sales. Zoey told me that she needs to "keep her eye out for a Cinderella Puzzle." (Little does she know that I have a Cinderella puzzle that someone from school gave to me. I plan to use it as a well deserved surprise for her someday soon.)

Let Summer Begin!

It was my first official day at home with the kids and although I am exhausted and will be going to bed way before 10pm, it was a success. This week Zoey has swim lessons every morning this week. She was very excited to learn to swim and maybe meet some new friends. Of course when she actually got to the pool, fear set in and it took quite a bit of prodding to get Zoey into the pool. Between each of the activities, Zoey sat on the edge of the pool. She claimed that the water was too deep, and that when she is four, she will not be afraid anymore. She did however agree to go back again tomorrow.



When we got home, I put Zander down for nap and Zoey and I had "Craft Time." Our first offical craft was painting our art smocks. I painted Zoey's and Zoey painted mine, and her hand, and her arm, and a little bit of her shirt. It was very fun.


The rest of our day was great. She actually napped and then we went to the park for awhile. Zoey is all about meeting new friends. Apparently, last night, Tyler and Zoey talked about how to meet new people. So today at the park, I watched it in action. Zoey went up to a little girl and said, "Hi, my name is Zoey. I like your shirt." Instant friendship for the 5 minutes we had left. It was very cute.

Zander's New Trick

Zander's new trick is standing--on everything! He won't ever stop. He tries to get up to his feet whenever possible. We had to lower his crib this weekend, because it was dangerous for him to be standing in it.




It was a pretty typical weekend. We did a lot of cleaning and organizing. There was a fair at the library when Zoey went on Saturday. She got her hair colored pink. We also made it to the park on Saturday. It gave me a chance to play with my new camera. (Thanks Rob and Nicole for the recommendation!) Today Zoey and Zander went over to Nana's and Poppa's house. Zoey was so excited to go and learn to sew today. When she came home, I asked her how it went. "Sewing is hard work!" she said. She is up for the challenge, though.

Happy Birthday Uncles!

We would like to extend birthday wishes to Uncle Eric (June 2nd) and Uncle Robby (June 5th). We hope that each of you had a wonderful day!