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Lauren had such a fun 1st birthday! We had lots of family and friends over to help her celebrate- it was a great afternoon to relax in the backyard and the kids kept busy with bubbles. Lauren didn’t quite know what to do with her cake, but it didn’t take long for her to make a complete mess out of it!
Lauren also wants to walk everywhere now- too old to crawl anymore, I guess! She’s still pretty unsteady, but she gets to her destination eventually. Hopefully we can get some video up soon.
We all crashed yesterday afternoon and I hope Josh had a relaxing Father’s Day :) Lauren entertained him with her new toys last night and we were laughing at her funny antics. Hard to believe she’s a year old… seems like yesterday that we were bringing her home from the hospital!
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Lauren is so close to walking- maybe she’ll wait and take those first steps on her birthday! Her new favorite thing to do is pull all of the clothes and towels out of her dresser drawers. She’s also getting a little attitude, which the girls at daycare claim is her way of expressing independence. Lauren definitely knows when she’s doing something she shouldn’t by the little smirk on her face when we say “no, no”!
We spent a nice Memorial Day weekend at the lake with the Kecks- the lake was a bit too cold so Nana Jo had a splash table for Lauren on the deck. She loved playing with the boats and squeeze toys and didn’t seem to mind that she was completely soaked! We also had a baby shower for Erin this past weekend… I’m very anxious to know the gender of their baby so I can do some real shopping :)
Some sad news- my Grandma Wanda passed away peacefully yesterday. She was a very special lady and I treasure the wonderful memories I have of her. We’re looking forward to celebrating her life with the Hall family this weekend.
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- Amy says:
HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I cannot believe I got that call a year ago that you had arrived…seems like yesterday!!! Enjoy your first birthday – We’ll see you later for cake!!
We did it! My couisn Jess and I ran the Fargo 1/2 Marathon this past weekend and it was a great experience. It really was a fun one to take part in … so many people came out to cheer on the runners and it was a such beautiful morning to be out running! We finished in 2:21:27 and were very satisfied with our performance. Jess did great for her first race and we are already talking about doing it again!
Aside from the race, we had a great time with all of our friends and family. The weekend went too quickly and there is never enough time to see everyone, but we packed in as much as we could!
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- Amy says:
SO PROUD of you, my friend!!!! Good job!!
It’s great to finally be able to get out and enjoy some warm spring weather! Josh repaired our swing set in the backyard and hung a baby swing for Lauren- she loves it! She’s also has fun playing in the grass and getting dirty… I think baths will have to become more frequent now!
We had a hectic weekend at home- my friend Manda and I had a garage sale on Saturday; we were very happy that the weather cooperated and we did pretty well for our first experience. Not sure we will do it again any time soon though! My mom and dad were also down to visit- it was great to have the extra help with Lauren and she definitely loved her time with Grandma and Grandpa. The weekend wrapped up with a 10 mile run for me, the last long one before the race. We were all pretty wiped out by Sunday night!
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- Nana Jo says:
Oh Lauren, That looks like one of your favorite things to do!
Busy is the word around our house lately! Lauren is moving a lot faster now and is getting into everything… she climbs and crawls over anything in her way and tries to pull herself up on whatever is near. With the nice weather lately, Josh has been taking Lauren rollerblading and although she enjoys the ride for the most part, she gets antsy and tires of just sitting when she’d rather be on the go herself!
I’ve been training for the Fargo 1/2 marathon which has been good challenge but also a struggle at times. Vacations and a sinus infection took its toll on my training initially and it’s also hard to sacrifice my time with Lauren to go out and run. I’m definitely not as prepared as I was for the Walker 1/2, but Jess, my cousin and fellow runner, continues to motivate me and we’re determined to give it our best!
And Josh is about to start remodeling our downstairs bathroom and tiling the front entry. There is work to be done outside, too… I’ve got him busy with lots of jobs :) There is always something on the to-do list!
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- Amy says:
Thank you for new Lauren pictures!!!!! I love the crawling video, but it’s been a month!!!! She is adorable as always….can’t wait for a squeeze soon!!!!
We spent a wonderful week of vacation in Arizona visiting Rob, Joanne and extended family. It was great to enjoy some family time, warm weather and sun! Lauren’s first plane ride went smoothly- she slept most of the way there, although the return trip was a little more stressful. It is hard to entertain a 9 month old on a plane for 2 1/2 hours! She even adapted to the time change fairly well (albeit a few early morning wake ups at 5 am). It was a relaxing and low-key week, just the way a vacation should be- lots of walks, a hike up Silly Mountain, afternoons in the kiddie pool on the patio. Rob, Josh and I got in a round of golf (and agreed it would be dangerous to live on a fairway) and took in a Phoenix Coyotes hockey game.
We also got to spend some time with great-grandpa Paul, Joanne’s brother Howard and his wife Yvette. We saw Charlie and Marilyn, Mike, Chris and Jayne Keck and their kids. The kids loved playing with Lauren and Josh and I entertained them with a Rock Band performance. We also took a day and drove down to see great-grandma Merle in Green Valley. It was really great to see everyone!
While burning time at the grocery store, Josh found a chicken-dancing duck that Lauren went nuts over… seeing her laugh and dance along with it kept all of us laughing for the whole trip. Check out the video in the store:
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She stills enjoys him here at home:
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- Erin says:
I had heard about the duck, but the video is even better! Looks like you had a great trip! I always love new photos of Lauren!
Love, Erin
We hope everyone is having a nice Easter! Grandpa Nick and Grandma Mary are here for Lauren’s first Easter and Josh made us all a wonderful ham dinner today. Lauren is the best entertainment- she’s such a happy, smiley girl!
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- Grandma Mary says:
Would we have missed this “first” Easter with you and your mom and dad? Not a chance! You were the sweetest little one in the “Easter parade”, for sure! That smile of yours . . . just melts Grandma and Grandpa’s hearts! Love you guys. Thanks for the great pictures, too!
Lauren is getting bigger and smarter every day! She is now tired of baby food and only wants to feed herself… which makes eating times a lot longer and much more messy. She’s also got a couple more teeth on top although I’m not sure how much she actually chews her food. Her new thing is to grind her teeth together (which is hard to listen to) and clicking her tongue.
She hasn’t started crawling yet, but she scoots on her bum and likes to stand and play with her activity center. We think she likes falling backward into the pillows the most so we are constantly pulling her back up. Just this week, Lauren has started trying to pull herself up on anything near her so it’s definitely time to start securing furniture down. We’re excited for her to start moving around, but she will be harder to keep an eye on!
Josh and I went to Las Vegas almost 2 weeks ago and although it was a lot of fun, we sure missed our girl. We saw Cirque de Soleil “O” and Spamalot, which were great shows. Josh tried his luck at the craps table but I just stuck to the penny slots. I stayed a couple of days longer for a training seminar for work and that’s when the homesickness was the worst! But Lauren had a great time with Grandma Mary, Grandpa Nick and the whole ND crew- she even stayed up late and cheered on the Spoilers through triple overtime, to a state hockey championship, dancing with the pep band all night!
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- Nana Jo says:
Lauren,
We miss you and are looking forward to seeing you and Mom and Dad soon. Your Mom and Dad are such great cooks, I can see why you prefer “people” food now. It’s hard to believe that you were just a tiny little baby several months ago and now you are feeding yourself and starting to explore your little world:) The fun will begin. And already such a little hockey fan! Can’t wait to see your smiling little face. See you soon, Love Nana Jo
Lauren and Koda are getting to be good buddies… she breaks into a smile every time he walks up to her and she doesn’t mind a few licks here and there. She also likes to pull his hair, grab his paws and gives him a hard pat when she can, but he takes it all with an occasional sigh. The trade-off for him is that Lauren likes to feed him from her high chair- she sticks her hand over the side and gives him a taste of her dinner… good thing Koda is not a picky eater!
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- Joe says:
I think that is my favorite picture you have posted yet. It looks like those two will be great companions.
Lauren wishes everyone a happy Valentine’s day! She had a party at daycare today and her room was completely decked out in streamers, balloons and goodies (although Josh and I got to claim the treats). And Josh made a feast for us at home tonight- crab legs and steak, yum!
Sending lots of love to you all! XOXO
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- Great Auntie Laurie says:
Happy Valentines Day little Lauren! I saw the card you sent GG in her room and she was ooohhing and aaayyying over the sight
of your beautiful face! We are counting down the days until you are in Grafton! Love, Great Auntie Laurie
Lauren is going to have a cousin this summer! Joe and Erin shared the news over Christmas that they are expecting a baby in July and we are so excited for them… and Nana Jo is already planning “cousin camp” at the lake :)
If you look closely, you can see Lauren’s two bottom teeth- she got them over New Years and loves to chomp on anything she gets her hands on. She also started clapping and we’re working on waving and crawling. It’s amazing how fast she learns new tricks!
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- Amy says:
ADORABLE new Grandparent pics and Lauren in dress-up!!!!!! LOVE THEM!!!!!!!
We started off the new year in Grafton and had a fun time celebrating a late Christmas and New Years with my family. It was great to have Jeff and Jonny home- they loved playing with Lauren and gave her a baby grand piano of her own. She loves dancing to the music!
I was just thinking that it was almost exactly a year ago that we started this blog- Josh’s birthday is on Saturday and my first entry was that the baby kicked for the first time on his birthday. I can’t believe how fast this year has gone by- although most of the summer was a blur :) But what an incredible year this has been!
We hope your 2008 is off to a great start!
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- Grandma Mary says:
Our precious family! What a blessing to ALL be together for a few days . . . every minute seemed to just fly by! Lauren, you were loved and treasured by everyone . . . your smile just lights up every picture! Thanks, Josh and Steph, for capturing all those special moments . . . wonderful memories! Can’t wait for all the “firsts”you’ll give us in 2008, Lauren . . . don’t grow up too fast! Thanks for making the trip “Up North” . . . we loved every minute of our time together!
Love and kisses from Grandma Mary
Such great pictures of you and your party, Lauren . . . and that party dress of yours!! Such a cutie and now such a big girl, too! The look on your face when you first saw the birthday table was priceless . . . you just knew you were the main event, didn’t you?!! So much fun to celebrate with you and all the little ones!! Love you so much . . .