Lauren is 312 months old...

I can't believe I am 312 months old...how time flies! Cupcakes have been made and had...

.. and here's what I'm up to these days...

Now for reals...sorry for the 10 day hiatus...I was scolded by my mother yesterday so here I am being the obedient child that I am and blogging! I have had intentions to blog many nights this past week but have been working like crazy trying to get our house all put together that when I get in bed I immediately pass out...thus the blog has been abandoned! I am happy to report that only a little over 2 weeks after being in this house we are pretty much set up....whew! There are still a few minor things to hang and a few small projects (sewing curtains and refinishing a dresser)...but all in all we have a home and we are loving it. There are no more piles of cardboard, trash, or donations! Yeah for that!

Here's a sneak peak of our living room to prove that normalcy is going on around here!

Now for what else we have been up to this past week other than unpacking and getting settled!


Last weekend Cooper came over a few times to play while his mommy got ready for his daddy to come home from his deployment! These two are having more fun together each time they see each other...Cooper just cracks up at everything Riley says and does...it's so funny!

Here's Riley giving Coops a hug...he looks like he could care less!

Riley shows him how to make a mess in the playroom!

Dilemma: It's lunch time...two kiddos...one highchair...what to do?

Make my child eat on the floor!

Sunday we made a trip to Emoryville to go crazy at Ikea...and crazy we were! We got a glimpse of "the city" on our way and came back with a truck FULL of stuff...it was so much fun! I sent Jason and Riley back today for a few more things...it's so nice having one so close!

And here's a decent shot of the hills I have been mentioning!

After we stocked up at Ikea, Cooper and Riley had more fun toys to play with! We got Riley lots of kitchen utensils and they loved banging them! Riley likes to take a utensil and pretend like she's cooking in a pan and then she gives me bites of her concoction...it's so fun to see her adventure into the world of pretend!

Riley also got the cutest table and chairs thus solving my dilemma of feeding two kids with one highchair and providing a great place for coloring and crafty things!

During the week Riley and I spent some time checking out the local parks and I got my butt back in gear and started running in the mornings...we have lots of trails all around our house and people are always out so it makes it really nice! She has been consistently taking 3 hour naps all week so that was my time to get some things done around the house! We have been cooking some really good meals and that has been fun too!

This past weekend Jason had a 4 day weekend! Friday he spent the day putting together all of our Ikea purchases and I had lunch with some of the spouses from his squadron. Their were lots of kids so Riley had fun too!

Saturday we decided to just have a fun family day so we decided to head to Napa for lunch! It is so stinkin' close it's crazy...we just have to head up I-80 a few exits and once we exit it's only 11 miles! It was a little cloudy that morning which is the closest to "bad" weather we have had so far so these pictures don't do justice...no worries...the sun was out in it's glory within a few hours!

We had lunch at a Cal-Mex restaurant that sat on the Napa River...the food was very different than what we were used to but really good!

After lunch we decided to stroll around downtown Napa and we stumbled upon this cute little bakery called Sweetie Pies and Riley just had to have something sweet so she dragged us in there! It was the cutest place...mini cakes, tea, coffee...yum yum yum! We eyed this magnificent cupcake that was topped with marshmallow creme and a chocolate shell and Riley did not take her eyes off of it until she was able to dig in and eat it!

We had to stroll around some more after that dessert because it was so sweet and we were so full...had to burn some calories! Riley got to ride on her daddy's shoulders which is one of her favorite places to be!

There was this little outdoor amphitheatre and a local jazz band playing so we stopped and listened for a bit! We figured Riley would enjoy dancing to the music, but we had no idea she would eventually take center stage, woo the crowd, and manage to be filmed and have her picture taken by so many strangers! We may have the next "So you think you can dance" contestant on our hands!

Here's some video of Riley's dance moves...this was while we were still in the grass but after a while she literally got herself down right in front of the band and danced for everybody...it was hilarious!

After Riley's dance performance we made our way back to the car and found some really pretty flowers on the way that Riley had to smell!

On our short but leisurely drive home we came upon I-80 and this is what we found...grid lock traffic!

Saturday evening we went over to Paul and Jenn's to celebrate her almost 30th birthday and we met lots of great people!

Sunday morning I took Riley out for a mother-daughter date for her first taste of donuts! She loved it! I got her a cake doughnut with sprinkles on top and she managed to pick each and every sprinkle off and eat them first...we were there for a while! It was so cute!

To celebrate Memorial Day the Cameron's came over "Meals on Wheels" style and they brought dinner...baked spaghetti and boy was it good! I provided the cupcakes as mentioned earlier and we had a great meal outside!

We put the kiddos at their little table and at first they did well sitting and eating...

but after the dads were tired of getting up and corralling them back to the table this is what ended up happening...

That lasted for a short while until they both figured it out and weren't happy...so we gave them red velvet cupcakes and that held them over a little longer!

Finally we let them loose and they tried to escape the backyard!

Here are Jenn and I...

Cooper is glad to have his daddy home!

Last but not least a cute pic of Riley in her new outfit from DiDi and Doc...gotta love those flip flops!

Whew...that was a long post! We have had a lot of fun this past week but we have also had some things happen to those close to us that have put life in check. Cooper had a seizure just an hour before his dad was to come home...what should have been a happy reunion for their family ended up with Jenn and Cooper in the ER and Jason greeting Paul home...not fair. Cooper is doing much better and getting back to himself but it is so sad to see little ones so sick. The same morning of Cooper's seizure I found out that Sue, my previous boss, who means so much to me lost her son tragically 3 days shy of his 22nd birthday...not fair. She and her son had just finished up a mother-son trip in Africa where they successfully climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro and ended their trip with a safari...the morning they were to leave she could not wake him and he passed away in a Tanzanian hospital after they could no longer revive him. He died of heart failure and apparently had been living with an enlarged heart to which they had no knowledge. She was alone in a foreign country grieving the loss of her son and my heart has hurt so much for her. It's times like these that sometimes I wonder what God is thinking, but I know His plan is the best. All I can do is pray for Sue and her family as they deal with this tragedy and I ask that you keep them in your prayers too. Life is short and we have to take advantage of each day we share with our loved ones.