'Nastics

Probably the best decision I made this summer was to sign Taryn up for a gymnastics class. Lee was skeptical, but then again, he always is when there is money being spent. The classes are on Thursdays at 9:15am and they last only a 1/2 hour. At first I was like "Seriously, only 30 minute classes?" But after the first class, I realized it was just right! Think of the attention span of a gaggle of 2-year-olds... Phew!
Taryn LOVES gymnastics now! She calls it "Nastics". This week she started asking on Tuesday if she could go to gymnastics!

This week my mom and grandma came to watch. Taryn called my mom off the "bench" to participate in the class with her, so I got to snap some pics from the sidelines.

In class the kids walk on the beam, they hang on the bar, they jump on a springboard and climb and bounce on everything they can get their hands on! I think Taryn is already gravitating towards the bars, just like her mommy! Although, I think she is already better than I was at beam. Must be those tiny feet!

Despite all the fun and excitement, Taryn's favorite part of class is the end! They get a stamp on each hand and a coloring page. Score!!! One week, she requested to nap with her coloring page. It's pretty special.

You better believe that we'll be signing up for the 3-year-old class next summer. The best part... Once she is 3, it is no longer a mommy & me class so I can just be a spectator! (Although I have been dying for an excuse to get on that tumble track in the gym!)

Tea for Two

First off, when did my toddler turn into a teenager??
My mom, grandma and my mom's dog Akilla came for a visit today. Taryn was getting us all teacups and telling us "Tea hotttt." As she was counting out the teacups, she counted one for Akilla. She took Akilla's teacup out to the kitchen and dipped it in the dog's water bowl and brought it back for Akilla.

And shockingly, Akilla drank it. Lapped it right out of the cup. Of course, I didn't have my camera out to catch that!!

All that tea party hosting really wears a girl out!!

Man vs. Bush

Background: Our house was built in the late 50's. We have a bush in the backyard that may have been planted at the same time. It is HUGE. While I am not usually a fan of deforestation, this bush was taking up way too much of our yard. And right where we wanted to put a swingset no less!

I wish I had a before pic, but the pics above and below are the massive piles of branches that Lee first cut off the bush.

And then he brought his truck around to try to pull the rest of the bush out of the ground.

Lee has a pretty serious 4WD truck, and the bush made it look like a SmartCar. The first attempt was a failure, so he tied up the bush from another angle. The bush put up another amazing fight and stayed put in the ground. In the end, I'm pretty sure the bush defeated Lee. But, I'm sure there will be a rematch very soon!

Jason Aldean - Dirt Road Anthem (With Lyrics)

Pics From My Phone

Taryn got this "princess tent" for her birthday. Now that we're moving into a bigger house, we can have more of these obnoxiously large toys. Taryn was a little grumpy, so I decided to break out the tent and set it up... With Daddy at work. Yeah... Reading directions, wrestling a tent AND an excited toddler who wants to get in the tent while it isn't set up... Not easy. It was worth the battle though!

"I am not a morning person. But I do enjoy pancakes."

Taryn on the Choo Choo Train at Columbian Park!! Loved it!! We'll definitely be doing that again this summer.

Enjoying the park in our new town!!

My tooth-y little blondie!

Scaredy Cat

Taryn has always been a bit of a scaredy cat. Often she will play hide'n'seek and end up scaring herself in the process. She also ends up scared when her and Lee try to sneak up and scare me. I always thought that if I was laid back about things and wasn't overly cautious with Taryn that she would not end up with so many fears, but I guess some things come pre-wired in our little ones.
****************
Last night Lee and I took Taryn on a walk down to Fort Ouiatenon to check out our new walking path (love it!). We were doing great, walking along together. Then... Taryn saw an incredibly scary sight... A BUTTERFLY! After dodging the wrath of the butterfly, she just about climbed my leg to have me carry her. About 10 yards later we saw another of those dangerous butterfly-beasts and Taryn hid her face from it by burrowing into my shoulder.
****************
Today was Taryn and my first real SUMMER day. Nowhere to go and no schedule to keep. So, after a trip to Target (of course), we went to Columbian Park. Columbian Park is an awesome park considering Lafayette is not exactly a huge metropolis. It has a small FREE zoo, an extremely nice waterpark (not free), a few small rides including a train (also not free) and a ton of playground equiptment. I texted Lee this list of things that Taryn was scared of at the zoo: monkeys, goats, eagles, parrots, wallabies, emus, water, toilets, a large fake caterpillar that kids climb on, llamas and ponies. And surprisingly, what was she NOT scared of???? The butterfly exhibit where you walk around amongst many butterflies. Go figure.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame...

On Wednesday Taryn went to her first Cubs game! Every year the Klemme family goes up for a game. We missed 2009's game because Taryn was a newborn and Lee had class. We missed 2010's game because Taryn had a double ear infection... Soooo, we finally made it for 2011!


Neil's family couldn't go this year, so we got a 15-person van and just fit! There were 12 of us, but with 4 kids in carseats, that takes up some space! When we got to CHI, we ate some lunch that we packed and headed in to the stadium.
Taryn was WAY too preoccupied with the hustle and bustle of Chicago to pay attention to the camera!

Family pic during BP!

Lee ended up catching a ball that was hit during the Astros batting practice. It was the first time Lee ever got a ball at a game. He said he was giving the ball to Taryn, but somehow I think he won't...

It's too bright out here!

It was a HOT day. Fortunately there was a bit of a breeze, but out in the sun, it was pretty unbearable. Fortunately we were right by this shaded standing area, so we kept taking turns watching the kids in that area. At one point Sonia said "Do they still play 9 innings?" Um yes. We all knew we weren't going to make it the whole time! Finally, in the 7th inning Lee's mom started bordering on heat stroke. We made it to the end of that inning and convinced Lee's dad it was time to go.

The kiddos in the shade.

Like all Bleacher Bums, Taryn did not when to say when. She ran herself ragged and was a walking toddler-zombie by the time we left. When we got back to the van, we were all milling around making a sandwich for the road and getting drinks. Taryn got in the van, got in her carseat and tried to buckle herself in. She was ready to hit the road! I managed to get some water and a piece of string cheese in her before she passed out and slept most the way home!

It was a long, tiring, hot day and the Cubbies couldn't pull off the W. On the way home, we started deliberating if the Chicago trip was just getting to be too much for the kids. The tickets are SO expensive and you have to get the kids a ticket once they are 3. Next year we'll have 2 new babies in the family (Christi is due in August and Sonia in December!). It's all just getting too hectic. An Indianapolis Indians game may be a better option!

Happy 2nd Birthday Taryn!

May 20th Taryn turned 2 years old! On the 21st, we celebrated this momentous occasion. I wasn't sure what theme to do for Taryn's party. She loves Mickey Mouse, Sid the Science Kid, Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy. I likely would have gone with Mickey, but Lee's sister had JUST done a Mickey party for their daughter a few months earlier and I didn't really want anyone to have deja vu! So... Wheel of Fortune it is!!!

My student made this painting for Taryn's birthday.

My mom made this Wheel for Taryn's party.

The cupcakes had letter tiles that spelled out "Happy Second Birthday Taryn". The other cupcakes had dollar amounts and other prizes like "Doll House" "Disney Trip" etc.

Family pic minus Taryn (she was still napping).

Mich & Sam made the trek down to celebrate which was much appreciated!!

Kylan was there for Taryn to adore.

Taryn actually blew out her own candle. And unlike last year, she knew exactly how to chow down on her cupcake!

Cute smiles from Kylan!

BUBBLES!!!

One of the toughest things for me about Taryn being two (other than the stubborn Terrible Two's temper tantrums) is realizing that next birthday she'll be THREE! Three just seems SO old. I know I should live in the moment, but that's just not how I work.

Taryn, these last two years you have brought me so many moments that I will treasure forever. While sometimes I get frustrated with how clingy you can be, I know I need to hang on to these moments where you want to sit on my lap and snuggle. You are absolutely amazing to me and I know your daddy feels the same. Your smile and your sociable personality brings joy to so many people in our family. I love you baby girl!!

Lee Has a Baby

Since Lee got his new job, we have been looking to upgrade his '97 Ford Explorer. The thing had like 186k miles on it, so it was nearing the end of its life. Lee wanted a truck. So, we had been looking for a truck for about 6 weeks. We FINALLY found one. This isn't the actual truck, but it is identical to this!!
As some of you may know, I consider myself a Ford person, so I am adapting to driving a Chevy around. But, I must admit, it's a nice truck.

It is especially good that we finally found Lee a truck since there was an incident this week with the Jeep. Lee was driving Taryn to daycare when they got hit by a deer. An UNINSURED deer. So irresponsible. But, literally, a deer ran into the drivers' side door. Lee swears that it came through the window and head-butted him. The phone call from Lee went something like this:

Lee: You need to come pick me up. A deer ran into me.
Lauren: OK. You were on your way back from daycare right?
Lee: No. Taryn is still with me.
Lauren: OH MY GOD IS SHE OK?

Needless to say, I was MUCH more appalled when I heard Taryn had been in the car. When I got to the scene of the crash, the car was blanketed in broken glass. She was just quietly holding her backpack. I asked her "Taryn, do you have any ouchies???" She lifted up her hand and showed me a tiny scratch from our cat three days earlier. I figured she was fine after that.

So, the Jeep is in the shop. And I'm driving... The Explorer. Yeah, I got screwed on that deal!!

So true...

P.S. This t-shirt was for sale at Wal-Mart. Classic!