Laura is 2 Years and 2 Months!

Likes: blueberries, suckers, treats, fries, ketchup, cereal with milk, playing outside, going to the park, watching "Go Diego Go" and "Dora the Explorer," spinning in circles, her new purple sandals, messing around in her crib when she should be sleeping

Dislikes: Daddy scaring her with the spider, not being allowed to have her plug

Any new tricks? Laura must be learning shapes at daycare because the other day she was looking at her shape flashcards and said "triangle!" She is getting very good at running around and kicking a soccer ball, and at parks she can climb up the equipment and go down slides by herself. She's definitely getting more independent and will tell us all the time, "My do it" or "I do it myself." At night she likes to take her diaper off herself which is hilarious because her little two-year-old belly makes it hard for her to see the tabs, and she almost falls over because she has to bend so far down to see the diaper. We've heard her count to 13 without getting mixed up, and she can sing some songs by herself now too like the ABC's and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.

Vocab is exploding

Laura's vocabulary has increased immensely since she turned 2. So much so, she has picked up a naughty word and knows how to appropriately use it.

A week or so ago, Little Miss Laura was struggling with peeling a sticker out of her book, got mad and said, "damn it." Since then, we have heard it several more times.

Now I have to admit, I am guilty for saying this from time-to-time but have made every effort to avoid dropping it in front of her. We have no idea where she picked it up from?

Mother's Day (Year 2)

Lost in Translation

The plan was to have Laura wake mom up with a whisper and kiss and give her cards/presents. The two year old attention span was put to the test.

Just prior to the wake up, I coached Laura to whisper in mom's ear, "Happy Mother's Day" and give her the gifts.

Laura walked up the stairs and decided mid way she needed a drink. Try #2. She walked up the stairs and stepped on a cracker crumb and it was stuck inbetween her toes. Had to stop to dig that out. Try #3. Walked up the stairs, walked passed her bedroom, she stopped, turned around and ran into her room in search of her plug.

Try #4. After all that monkeying around, she finally ran into the bedroom to wake mom up. Unfortunately, Mom was already awake and Laura said, "Happy Birthday Mama." Oops. Still very cute!

The mind of a two year old!

Laura is 2 years and 1 month old!

Likes: Going to the park, playing outside, watching other kids play outside, bubbles, Easter candy, Dora the Explorer and Go, Diego, Go!, hiding, reading books

Dislikes: Rainy and cold weather, not being able to go outside or go to the park

What's new and cute: Laura always wants to know what's going on and will ask you, "What doing?" Somewhere she learned to be reassuring and keeps telling us "Don't worry." "Don't worry mama, be all right."

Singing in the Tub

Singing in the Tub

Here Laura is singing "Happy Birthday" to Uncle Matt, "Wheels on the Bus" and her take on "One, Two, Buckle my Shoes..." Pay attention to 5,6 and 7,8!!!

2 Year Photos

Last year we hired Stacey to take Laura's one-year photos and she did a great job, so it was a no-brainer to hire her again.

How to best describe the photo session? Short. Lousy. Tantrums. Tears. Plug. Get the picture?!? Couldn't even bribe her with emmy nemas, candy or a plug. Now that should tell you something!

Laura started off OK but quickly descended into meltdown mode. Which is fine. Have to remember she is two years old. We were prepared for this since she hasn't cooperated with any picture taking from us for a long time.

I felt bad that Stacey drove from Minneapolis to Prior Lake for less than a 30-minute photoshoot. Good news...She will come back to finish the pictures in a couple of weeks.

Here is a link to some of the pictures from this session. I like 'em! http://staceylcordesphotos.blogspot.com/2011/04/calling-prior-lake-mn-child.html

Birthday Party Recap: The Emmy-Nemma Party

Laura's second birthday party bash was yesterday and we are in recovery mode today! Lots of our MN relatives/family were able to come and celebrate Laura turning two, and we celebrated by holding an "emmy-nemma" (M&M's) party in honor of Laura's favorite treat.

We were seriously doubting her ability to "party" at all when she woke up from her nap - she was a fussy, crying mess for a good 20 minutes before party time! Luckily Uncle Mike & Auntie Kaitlin arrived first and they were able to work her into a good mood. The weather was nice so people could spend time outside, and we had plenty of M&M's for everyone to snack on.

Grandma Nels & Papa George gave Laura a Little Tikes Cozy Coupe for her birthday and it is a big hit. In fact, she chose to sit in it during present opening time...luckily cousin Lilly was a great helper and would entice Laura out of the car to open a new gift every now and then. Once she saw a present she'd say "Oooh! Oh yeah, ok!" Lucky Laura opened up lots of fun gifts perfect for outside weather.

She is able to handle crowds much better now but still isn't quite sure about being the center of attention. Laura had a very serious face as everyone sang "Happy Birthday" to her and she blew out her "2" candle. Her birthday treat was an "ice keem" cake with "emmy-nemmas" on top - 2 of her favorites, can't get much better than that! To quote one of her fave shows, The Fresh Beat Band, "We had a great day!"

Laura's Birthday

Laura's second birthday has arrived! We cannot believe we have a "big girl" on our hands...not literally as she is still such a peanut, but 2 years means we really can't call her "baby Laura" anymore.

To celebrate the day, Mom & Dad took off of work and we had some fun outings! In the morning, we took Laura to the Minnesota Children's Museum. Even though we arrived pretty early, it was one wild and crazy place! Laura liked all the climbing and sliding in the Habitot room, and wanted to climb up and down all the flights of stairs in the museum. Right now she is very excited about "kool bus" (school buses) and was very happy to find a "kool bus" (technically a city bus) that she could ride in! She liked to sit in the seats while all the crazy kids ran around and it was hard to get her to get off the bus. We also found a room with water tables and bubbles that she liked quite a bit. We'll have to return on another day when it's a little calmer there - I was proud though that she could hold her own in the crowds and was not intimidated by all the bigger, noisier kids and all the action around her. (Thanks, daycare!)

After a non-existent nap, Mom had finally come to terms with the fact that Laura needed to get a haircut...it was so hard for me! I told Mike on the way there that I felt like I had to throw up; somehow the idea of cutting off that baby hair was kind of tough for me. So she had her first haircut on her birthday, just a trim as there really wasn't a lot to be cut. We expected her to be very fussy, but thanks to Thomas the Tank Engine and Dum-Dums, she did pretty well. In the end, her hair looked much better "cleaned up" and I do think she looks a little older.

Laura knew after the haircut was over...we were going for "ice keem!" We stopped by Dairy Queen on the way home to pick up one of Laura's favorite treats. At home, we shared a Blizzard and sang Happy Birthday to our very favorite two-year-old! We love her.

Fun with new friends

This past weekend, Mom and I met up with some friends we haven't seen in a long, long time. Laura was introduced to new kids and reunited with someone she hasn't seen in awhile.


Friday night we visited Scott and Connie and their children Nathaniel and Chelsea in Oakdale. Another couple, David and Rachel and their kids Ava and Colin were there as well.

I don't know what it is but I am very intrigued on how Laura interacts with other kids. I like to watch how she responds to new people because I was rather shy and quiet as a kid and can clearly see those qualities in the Bagooz.

At first, she was quiet, shy and played by herself. After dinner, she opened up a little bit and ran around with the kids but for the most part she kept to herself.

The next night, we hosted a dinner with Jeremy, Lindsay and their son Evan. Laura has played with Evan before but again she started out the evening quietly watching Evan play with her toys from a distance. Unlike the night before, she slowly warmed up and played the rest of the night with Evan. As you can see from the pictures, it didn't take too long before she was her fun, little self!

Potty-time

The Start of Potty Training

Good news, Laura went on the potty! We have been talking about it to her for awhile, she has tried a few times but last night actually had results. Mom, it's time to buy a kid seat.

Great job, Babes!