Helping Daddy

Taylor has a little pile of screws in front of her that she gives to her daddy as he needs them.
What a good multi-tasker he is...entertaining Taylor (and her friends) while he puts the chair together.
Nice job! I am so excited to finally get the glider I have wanted since I got pregnant with Taylor. We do have a cool older rocker which fits Ben great, but does not work for me as well. Taylor likes the new chair too. It is easier for her to climb on and rock in. She keeps telling her daddy "it's mommy's chair."

Fun at Cabelas

Today we went to Cabelas. It's always a fun place to take Taylor for a walk to see all the displays. Taylor thought it was great to walk inside the tents they had set up with her friend, "puppy." She said something about wanting a snack then meandered over to the area where they have the fudge. I was surprised she remembered it, but she did. She then sampled what they had out on display. After that, we went over to the shooting gallery. She loves to see the bear and the deer. This time we actually shot and she pretended to do it with us as she helped hold the gun.

Taylor and Daddy go Visiting

While I was at my RPM class yesterday, Ben took Taylor to go visit Great Grandpa and Great Grandma Dowers. Ben said Taylor walked in and said hi then climbed up on Grandpa's lap and sat there for about 20 minutes. This is a little unusual for Taylor. She doesn't always sit still for that long. She enjoyed visiting and playing with toys. That's all I've got...this was Ben's visit and he does not always give much detail. I'm sure they had a lovely visit.

Taylor Uses her Potty Chair

Yep she used it. She carried it over to the counter and "used it" so she could reach the strawberries I had been cutting. I hope she will soon show interest in using it for something other than a step stool.

Jump-A-Lot

My cousin Lorinda belongs to a mom's group. They all went to a place called "Jump-A-Lot" last Friday and Lorinda invited Taylor and me along. Taylor was excited, at first, to find and play with Anissa. However, when she stood on one of the bouncy contraptions, she decided she wanted me to hold her...tight. I climbed up one a couple of times and we slid down together. All the while small children were passing me by and climbing through my legs. Taylor thought it was loud too. About 30 minutes later, Taylor thought it was okay and was able to enjoy herself. The kids move so fast...this is Taylor with Anissa and Makenna...And Taylor watching Anissa jump...
And girls chatting in the ball pool...
And Taylor enjoying some good JUMPING...
Now that she likes it, I'm sure we will need to visit this place again!

Out to Lunch

Taylor and I met my cousin for lunch at the Coeur d'Alene Brewery last week. Taylor was excited! I said lets go in and see if Cindy and Kalyn are inside. Taylor said, "Yes, they love me." Cindy also had Claudia's boys with her, Tyler and Trever. Trever taught Taylor how to climb up the tall stool to sit at the bar. She thought that was great. As we left, she said, "my friends are leaving...follow that Cindy."

While Ben was away making sausage...

Ben spent ALL weekend making sausage. He and his friend Brad. It's made with their elk and deer. Ben was pretty proud. It was his meat which they killed, cleaned, ground, seasoned, stuffed, smoked, baked, chilled and packaged. It is very tasty too!

Therefore, he was unavailable all weekend. Taylor and I went up to Aunt Julie's for Grandma Dowers' 80th birthday. I put my hat on and Taylor said, "Oh mommy, I love your hat, it's so cute." Which prompted a couple mother-daughter hat pictures. I loved her expression in both and couldn't decide which to post...Jade entertained Maddie and Taylor with coloring, play-doh and barbies...After the party, Taylor and Grandma walked home to grandma and grandpa's house. Taylor loves a walk with grandma. Taylor saw grandpa's carrots and wanted to feed the horses. She always gets a couple of bites for herself too. I heard her calling, "Come here little Buddy, Buddy, Buddy."

River Park Square

One of my favorite things to do is go shopping with Taylor at River Park Square. We don't go very often, but we love to meet Grandma for a little shopping therapy and a nice lunch. An example: when Obama won the presidency, I had to cheer myself up by shopping downtown twice that week. It really did make me feel better. And it's not all about spending money, I just love to take my little girl and walk around downtown and look at all the pretty things. Taylor is such a joy to take out! Here she is blowing on her little trumpet at Restoration Hardware...always entertaining.

Things I want to Remember

Recent Taylor quotes:

When Ben came home from work yesterday Taylor said, "Daddy, come up here and see me."

When we were driving home from the store the other day. As I turned onto our street, she said, "I'm home." I said, and daddy is home too. She said, "Oh, he will be so happy to see me...he loves me"

When she drops something, "oopsy doopsy" or "oopsy daisy."

Singing..."Ipsy Bipsy Spider..."

We play a game sometimes when we are eating. When she is almost done eating she will say, "my mommy, my daddy, my sisters, my brothers mommy?" Then I put food on the fork and pretend that the food wants to go into her tummy with it's mommy, daddy, sisters and brothers, "Taylor can we go into your tummy with our family." She says, "Uhm, okay." I say, "oh thank you" and she takes the bite. Today, she said, as she patted the fork, "Your welcome....it's okay sweet heart."

When she is tired and it is time to go to bed she will turn off the lights, "it's sleepy time for Taylors."

Ben and Taylor play a game where they pretend they are falling (in slow motion) and then save each other from falling off the bed or couch. "Help me...save me, save me...thank you daddy, you're a good helper...thank you for rescuing me."

I say I love you and she says, "I love you more."

I say me too and she says "me three" and we continue....me four, me five, me six, me seven, etc.

She really enjoyed Frosty the Snowman over the holiday season. She hasn't been watching the movie lately, but we still sing the song and read the book. She often tells me, "I'm baby Karen mommy." She will keep reminding me and repeat the statement. I comply, calling her baby Karen. She enjoys that.

Tea with Taylor

When we went to the beach house, Grandma had a cute tea set Taylor enjoyed. I was thrilled to find one at the antique store, which I gave to Taylor for Christmas. I thought she was so careful with grandma's set. I have had to use the super glue a couple of times already.
She is usually pretty careful, but she is only 2, so I think we are doing okay.

Getting Dressed

Taylor has been enjoying her hats and scarves lately. The other morning I got her dressed and walked into the kitchen. Ben asked where she was. I said she was getting a hat. Then she came out in a boa too....

Hide and Seek with Daddy

Taylor and her Daddy play hide and seek. Taylor gets so excited to find him she counts, "one, two...ready or not here I come." She can actually count to 15 perfectly, but doesn't when she is playing this game. This is her hiding. She will get so excited she just lays on the floor and covers her eyes. I guess if she can't see him, she doesn't think he can't see her either. Or maybe she is just making it easy on him, he does pretend he cannot find her.

Jury Duty

I had been agonizing over jury duty for months. I never leave Taylor and how early will I have to leave in this snow to take her anywhere. When the day finally came, we had so much snow it was ridiculous! I needed to reschedule. Taylor and I circled the courthouse looking for a place to park for over 30 minutes. We got stuck once, but the people behind us got out and pushed us out of the way...thank you so much! I finally parked over a half mile away and we started walking. A nice lady stopped and gave us a ride and dropped us off in front of the courthouse. I mostly carried Taylor, but then she would say, "I can walk." So, I let her walk, where the snow wasn't to deep. We walked back and forth between the two buildings, a couple of times, in order to reschedule. Everyone was so very nice. I realized I worried for nothing. Taylor and I had a nice stroll back to our car. The roads were one lane, very icy, and there were not many sidewalks available. However, it was quite the little adventure with my two year old as it snowed. It was a fun little experience for us. I need to stop worrying, everything I do with Taylor seems to turn into fun...

Stephen's Birthday

One of my favorite events of the year is going to Moscow to celebrate Stephen's birthday. I wish we got down there more often, but it never seems to work out. It was a gorgeous day for the drive. Ben said I am like a tourist with my camera...but it was so pretty...
Taylor said, "Daddy, can you put the sun away." It was very bright. However, the sunglasses seemed to work for her.
This was one of Taylor's favorite toys to play with while we visited. She loved this little duck...Hudson is getting so big...such a cutie!After the tourist comment from my husband, I was a little hesitant to pull out my camera, but now, I wish I had gotten more pictures! I look forward to seeing them again. They are one of my favorite families to visit!

Happy New Year

I love how pretty the snow is as it covers each branch of the trees. I wish I could capture how the flawless snow sparkles in the sun...like someone sprinkled diamonds across my yard.
There's my little "piggy tail" princess watching me shovel snow...while eating her "bagelful."
I told Ben I wanted to shovel. I had not been attending my RPM class due to all the snow and shoveling and the difficulty in getting out of my driveway. I thought I could use some good exercise. I really do like it. WOW...it was a little heavier than last week. I gladly let Ben finish the job. He's so strong :)
We went over to grandma and grandpa's house for dinner. Taylor and I always like to go for a walk with grandma. Grandma helped Taylor walk (while I took pictures), the snow was very deep in places. Taylor said, "Thank you grandma for helping me." Ben and I are constantly amazed and so proud of all the sweet things she says. Her manners...she is so pleasant and thoughtful...We just love her!!There was a very pretty sunset...It was a very pretty day.We were going to go get the mail, but Taylor preferred to stop to play in the snow. It was very cold, so we never actually made it to the mail box. We went back and had a nice dinner and Taylor helped grandpa with a puzzle...

Helping Daddy Shop

Ben was looking at the Cabela's "big book." Taylor hopped right up to participate. I heard her say, "are those tires big enough for me?" I love her little "pig tails." She actually asks for them sometimes. I love it when she lets me play with her hair :)

Taylor's Haircut

Ben says he missed Taylor's first haircut. I told him I had only trimmed a few random hairs getting into her eyes, but he seemed a little offended that I did this while he was at work.
Her hair in the front is not growing at the same pace as the hair in the back. I have been resisting the urge to trim the back to even it up...it was a little longer on the sides than in the middle. Ben likes long hair, so he did not think I needed to do anything. I did trim off almost two inches in the back. I was happy to see that it flipped right up. She has her daddy's hair, mine is very straight. I love her little flippy hair!

Taylor's Baby June

I sometimes just watch her play all day. I am glad to have that opportunity!

Grandma Judy's Christmas Card

My mom has been sending musical cards lately and I wanted her to see that Taylor really does enjoy them! She was dancing around with the card so I (of course) got out the camera to try to catch her in action...she likes to be a little ballerina...