Choo choo!

Lynette's actual birthday was on Sunday so we opened gifts from family that day. I was as excited about it as Lynette was. I found this great little train set from IKEA that had been hiding in my closet for a month. Lynette fell in love with trains a little while ago when her train-obsessed cousin-once-removed Dylan played trains with her. Her reaction to opening this gift was the kind that every parent dreams of on Christmas morning. She jumped up and down and cheered when she saw what it was and waited impatiently for us to open the package. She then sat down and played with it for an hour, stopping only to tell me Trevor was getting too close and that I should pick him up (she was very concerned about him touching her trains). It was great. She plays with it everyday. So fun.

"Mommy, I'm really busy right now."

Trevor gives his teeth marks of approval.

Trevor is dangerously close here. I can't tell you how many times Lynette asked me to pick up Trevor to get him out of her way and away from her trains. I have never seen her so possessive of a toy before.

Thrilled beyond the ability to give a normal smile for the camera.

The anticipation is mounting...

Penguin Cupcakes

Alright Emily, here's how I made the cupcakes. Lynette requested they be chocolate so that's what I made with just a basic recipe (I myself would have prefered yellow cake because I'm not fond of the chocolate cake/vanilla frosting combo- but hey, this is Lynette's party, not mine). Whatever cupcake you choose you have to put on white frosting. The penguin itself is a fudge covered cookie (like Keebler's grasshoppers) cut in half. You use three halves for each penguin, one for the head and two for the wings. *Note, there were only 18 cookies in the package I got, which was exactly the amount I needed for a dozen cupcakes, so I was not able to nibble on any of them while making these things- good thing I counted!* The beak and feet are apricots (or golden raisins) cut into triagles. The eyes I used were just raisins because I'm cheap, but m&ms would probably look cuter. Stick these on with frosting. I used extra frosting to stick on the eyes so there was white around the black, making a bigger, cuter eye. And that's all it takes- easy. For an artistic dunce like me I was pretty happy with the result.

When you look at it this close you can see how simple it is and how unprofessional I am. It's okay though, the kids enjoyed it.

One more look at the flock, just for good measure.

Party Animals

Hold on, wait a minute- this can't be my blog. My daughter did not just turn 3- no way. She's only a baby..right? Wow, yup that's my little girl at her 3-year birthday party. And what a party- it was a zoo! Well, at least the theme was. It was dang fun. We had the kids make animal noses out of egg cartons, play "Hippos in the mud" (a version of cupcake walk), and "Feed the bears"(bean bag toss). I will say though, I think it was funner coming up with these zoo-themed games than actually playing them. We had the party at a park and the kids did not want to be interrupted from valuable playground time to play a silly game. But did I give in and let them do what they wanted to? Oh no, it was very much a "I came up with these games and your going to play them and like it, dang it!" So they humored me, perhaps because I bribed them with cupcakes. I will say that I'm glad I went with the zoo theme and not the fairy theme I was originally going with since Lynette was the only girl there. Over all it was a success and a lot of fun. Happy Birthday Girlie.

Bears, pigs, and rabbits- oh my!

"The bear says 'roar'"

I think she likes it.

Penguin Cupcakes made by yours truly.

At the end of the table do you see the stand up puppet theater I got at IKEA? Its so cute- especially for only $2.50- boom baby!

Lynette and her favorite cousin-once-removed, Dylan.

Birthday hugs.

Umm..you can never have too many birthday hugs.

O give me a home where the bison roam?

This past month Michael has been working 90 hours a week. In order to distract my loneliness I found a great cure, the Brookfield Zoo. We are fortunate enough to live in a city with a fantastic zoo. Though coughing up the dough to buy the year pass made my stomach knot I haven't regretted it once. I take the kids to the zoo about twice a week each time checking out a different area. We love the sea lions, dolphins, giraffes, baboons- its a great zoo, right up there with the St. Louis zoo and we never tire of it. We saw a cockatoo there that has been there since the zoo opened (over 60 years) got to saw a clip of the baby giraffe being born- and in case your wondering the giraffes stand up in labor and the baby just plops down- eek. We learned the difference between bison and buffalo (bison live in America) and that pygmy hippos and dang cute. Here are some shots of two of our outings.

Kids down at the swamp.

" Friends call me speed."

Lynette at the waterhole.

Awwww.

Hmmm...something is not quite right with this picture, right? Trevor's smile is adorable but the unnatural posture of his head looks off, here's why- his back is actually what's facing you with his head turned up and back to look at the camera. Oh well, at least its a cute smile.

Joey in a pouch.

A Day at the Beach

In our effort to learn to love Chicago Michael and I took the kids one Saturday to the lakeshore. They loved it. Though the temperature didn't exceed 80 (in the middle of July!), it was still a nice day. Lynette enjoyed the waves, Trevor enjoyed the sand, and I enjoyed laying out on the beach while Michael watched the kids for a bit. We only stayed for a few hours before heading back for naps but it was just right for us. Of course when we got back home I got to clean the trail of sand Lynette shed all over our small apartment, but it was worth it. Maybe being in Chicago won't be so terrible afterall.

I took dozens of pictures of Trevor trying to get him to look at the camera. This was the only one where I could catch him before he looked down. Cute kid.

Lynette and me playing "alligator".

Michael and Lynette tried to build an ocean liner in the sand. Trevor saw the big pile of sand and headed right for it to give his artistic imput.

Trevor loved the sand. It was sure fun trying to keep him from eating it.