Spring Time in January

We have been so blessed with this awesome spring-like weather in January! We have taken advantage of going to the park, going for walks, swinging in the backyard, and playing with the toys that were packed away for winter in the shed!!

We made a trip to the Arboretum on January 2nd, and Lauryn was enthralled with the bin she could dig, scoop, throw, and hide rice in. We decided to purchase all the supplies needed to make our own at home. It was a great idea, but if you walk out of our house with rice all over your socks and stuck to your shoes, you know why. She LOVES to play with it and begs for her rice bin everyday. We had to resort to hiding it in the laundry room!

Of course, today was a nice dose of Minnesota winter, as the ice covered the cars and the wind could blow you over. What a change from 54 degrees on Tuesday. Then, we get a text message with a lovely picture of Grana and Grandma McMahan in Hawaii...geez...

Another dose of winter reality is the crazy "stomach bug" Lauryn has been suffering through the past 3 days. Or, should we say the bug that dad and mom (dad mostly!) have been suffering through? How come we weren't warned about the absolutely nastiness of a 1 1/2 year old with diarrhea? Come on, people!!! A warning would have been nice. Going on day #4, and hoping the Pedialyte does miracles over night!?!?!?

Some Christmas Pics, Finally

We didn't have a very functional camera on Christmas, so we don't even have pictures yet to post of Christmas Day. We did a Christmas Eve morning of surprises in our boots, gifts and Jesus' birthday celebration at our house, then headed to Grandma & Grandpa McMahan's for Christmas Eve service, dinner, and Christmas Day with the McMahan's. There were lots of pictures taken, just none on our camera!

Lauryn enjoyed herself immensely! She was, of course, interested in the gifts, but not all that much. We really try to not give her too much, and we try to make it as much about Baby Jesus as a 1 1/2 year old can understand. She was more into being a "ham" with her new toys than anything else. We truly enjoy her spunky little personality (most of the time!)..

We didn't get Lauryn's picture with Santa. Quiet honestly, the time just got away from us, and when we had an opportunity, the line was nearly 2 hours long. There is a song "Where's the line to see Jesus?" by Becky Kelley, and it completely summarized our experience. Instead of waiting in line to see Santa, we headed to the local church with a life-sized Nativity scene, and got right in to get a picture with baby Jesus. No wait, in fact, people saw us and looked at us a bit strange, but no one thinks it is strange to wait 2 hours to see Santa.

Excited for the Gruis' Christmas in January, as Lauryn will have cousins to play with!