Arts n' Crafts..

Just so we are clear, I am the last artys-ist person in this world. I am not a scrap booker and I definatly don't know how to make cute little head bands and bows for Lauren. My "homemade" cakes come out of a box and I definatly have no idea how to decorate my house all cute. But I really wanted to start doing little projects with Lauren after Evan went down for a nap. I am really starting to recognize that Lauren is growing up and growing faster then I would like. Next year she will be in school. Ahhh!! Right now she begs me to play with her and read her books, in a couple of years she is going to tell me to get out of her room and remind me of just how "uncool" I am. So while Lauren is young and I am still the greatest person in her little world, I am really trying to set aside an hour or two each day dedicated all to my little Lauren. I found this cool blog that has a different art project up each day (it is called no time for flash cards and the button is on my side bar. Check it out, she has some great ideas). Lauren has been loving it. Everyday now she asks if it is time yet for "arts n' crafts". Things like doing crafts might be easy for some people, but it really isn't for me. But I am so glad that I have taken the time to do it. The one on one time that Lauren and I get to spend together is just priceless. And when she goes to school and it is just Evan and I at home, I will do it with him too.

We are making a puffy paint chocolate chip cookie. Except that Lauren wanted a pink cookie with red chocolate chips. And who am I to stiffle her creativity by telling her that she has to use brown?




She is litterally watch the paint dry! Funny girl.

And here is the finished product.

We also made a picture of butterflies using bow-tie pasta. She made a butterfly for everyone in her family (including Grandpa, Grandma Rita, Grandma Nancy, Mimi and Pop Pop-and who could forget our dog Radley)

We have made a cake and a letter E out of envelopes. Our next little art project is to make a watermellon in the shape of a "W". I hope she can look back on her childhood as she gets older as she can see how much I love her and how hard I have tryed to make lovely memories with her. She is my first baby. I had to learn how to be a mom on her. I hope she doesn't remember all of my mistakes and just remember how much I love her. I look at her and I am in awe everyday that she is my little girl, that she came from the love that Chad and I share for each other. She really is such an amazing little girl. So bright and funny and so full of love. And she is growing so fast. We have this door frame in our laundry room where we have measured all the kids in our family. Before we had our own kids, we measured my neices and nephew. And now we measure Lauren and Evan against the frame every couple of months. It is amazing to see how fast and how much they are growing.


Everyday I second guess how I parent Lauren. I am getting to where I don't do it quit as much as I use to. My relationship with my daughter has no reflection of my relationship with my mother. I will make my own mistakes with her that are completly independant of the mistakes I made with my mother. I am gratful everyday for my daughter. She is my baby girl and she always will be, no matter how old she is.