BIG GIRL BIKE

Chloe had her 4th birthday about a month ago. Her big present from us was a big girl bike. She loves her bike and always says she "wants to go out and get some exercise."

There's a lot more than I thought that goes into teaching a kid to ride a bike. It's been a real test of patience for me because she rides so slow! I think she could crawl faster. Part of it is she brakes literally every few seconds. We have yet to make it out of our apartment complex. By the end of the summer, I would love to have her ride down to the park, about a 1/2 mile away. That would be a big accomplishment people.

BUT...
Even with the learning curve for her and me, it has been awesome to watch her learn something new and succeed, even at a slow pace. 

10 THINGS

In the past few months, I have read a few parenting books and heard different speakers talk about parenting. The one thing that has stuck out to me the most is intentionally noticing our kids. Letting them know that we as their parents notice them and they are an important human being. It's such a simple idea, but can be life changing. What person doesn't want to be noticed and appreciated?

So at night, when we pray together, I have really tried to recognize and thank God for something Chloe has done well that day, whether it's her being more obedient, trying to be patient, thoughtful, etc. Tonight, I decided to randomly tell her ten things that I like about her. And random it is.

What I Notice About Chloe:
1. You're beautiful
2. You're smart
3. I love you
4. Your feet stink
5. You're funny
6. Sometimes your breath stinks
7. You were really good at obeying today
8. You're a nice friend to other kids
9. You're polite and have good manners
10. You tell funny jokes

When I was done, Chloe was beaming and giggly, as I expected. But, what I didn't expect was for her to turn around and say ten things she notices about me, her mom. I thought they were too precious not to share.

What Chloe Notices About Me:
1. You braid hair
2. You put kids shows on
3. You are good at drying my hair
4. You give me water
5. You sing me songs
6. You are a good cooker
7. You buy me Lucky Charms
8. You are not going to buy any more Lucky Charms (because she only eats the marshmallows)
9. You give good kisses
10. You let me sleep in your bed

These ten things are pretty random, but to a 3 year old, this is her world. It makes my heart full because she knows if she needs something, as her mother, I'm going to provide it for her. And, obviously number 8 shows that I mean business if she's going to pick through her cereal and only eat the marshmallows.

Being Brave

Chloe is becoming more and more of a brave girl. For the longest time Chloe had a fear of failing, mostly when it came to physical tasks. One area we really saw this was at the park, going down the big slide, climbing something tall, etc.

It's so amazing to watch her conquer her fear and just try. She climbs on the playground, goes down the big slide, and jumps off big things (that are maybe a little too big). She is so proud of herself.

A great reminder to myself, to be brave and just try.

The Many Faces of Chloe

Chloe is becoming a little actress more and more. She is very serious about the roles she plays, whether it be Mulan, a cowgirl, a cat... and we are always the bad person.

Chloe will play pretend with herself or with any child or adult that will give the time of day. It's so fun to watch her imagination grow.

Because of her imaginary play, her facial expressions are becoming so funny.

Mulan

Chloe, like any other little girl is obsessed with Disney Princesses. Right now, her current favorite it Mulan.

Here's a little video of her singing.

Looking Back

I love looking back at pictures and seeing how much people have changed, especially Chloe.

Happy Father's Day!

I know, I know. It's late, but better late than never. Plus, I have a good excuse. We were busy...on vacation in Florida! More on that later!

So Happy Father's Day Week to Cory Huffman! Both Chloe and I love you and think you are a great dad!

Favorites

1. The walking trail by our house. I was attempting to take a run, but Chloe had other ideas to explore.

2. My hippy child, channeling her Eugene, Oregon roots.

3. Chloe loves all her animals, especially the ones that are super soft.

4. Our budding photographer. Chloe got a camera from Santa this year and loves taking pictures, but almost all her pictures are a little blurry. We thought it would be fun to eventually make a photo book of her pictures and see the evolution throughout the years.

Happy Birthday to our Sugar Bums!

We are so thankful and blessed to have you apart of our lives. You teach us so much, make us laugh, and give us joy! We're excited to watch you grow from a baby into a little girl this year.

 

Love,

Your Mama and Daddy

Bowling

Back in January we got the chance to go bowling and play in the arcade with some friends from YFC. Before this, I was thinking it would be fun to have a little bowling party for Chloe's 3rd birthday.

1. Skee Ball, my personal favortie  2. Chloe trying to win  3. Cory and me

4. Our bowling shoes  5. All three of us together  6. Chloe carrying the ball to her ramp

7. Fun colors  8. Chloe and I on the motorcycle  9. Chloe's shoes, so cute! 

I was so excited to watch Chloe experience something new and so different. When we got to the bowling alley we found Chloe some bowling shoes. She has little feet, so the smallest shoes were a little too big, but still adorable. We found a light enough ball for her to carry (although I was worried she was going to drop it on her toes or mine). Lastly, we got a ramp for her to set the ball on and push it down the bumper lane.

She loved it. All three frames, and then we had to pull her away from her first love, the iphone, for the rest of the frames. By frame seven, I told Cory we should just finish the rest of the game for her. She didn't even notice that she was missing her turns.

So now I have come to the conclusion that bowling for a 3 year old party is a no go. Lately, she's been asking me for a Hello Kitty party. Who am I to deny her wishes? Besides, I LOVED Hello Kitty when I was younger, so it's awesome that she likes it too. I may have forced it upon her, but what matters in the end is that she loves Hello Kitty.

We will have to try bowling in another six months or so.

Happy Tuesday! 

PYT (Pretty Young Thing)

I would love to be bold like Chloe with her style. She has great fashion sense.

New Vision

Notice Chloe's new glitter hipster glasses?

I got her glasses her at puglypixel.

Skidamarink

I always sing Skidamarink to Chloe. I'm glad she has caught on and finally sang for the camera. If you watch all the way through, you'll be one of the lucky people that get to hear me sing. I don't just let my wonderful voice be heard by anyone.

 

When I hear this song, I always think of my sister, Beth and I, and how we would watch the Wee Sing videos together. Here is a sample.

 Ahh, memories or the '80s and early '90s.

Silly Slime

A while ago I learned a big lesson:

I made silly slime for Chloe. It was an easy project that was fun, fast and free. A triple "F".

What in the world could go wrong?

But then "it" happened.  While playing, the slime made its way onto Chloe's head. Note: I was probably on Pinterest or Facebook (darn you social media!). I remember seeing her do it and thinking nothing was wrong with it, but maybe it would be a little messy, then a minute later I thought, "what the crap, that stuff is going to take forever to get out."

She is all smiles at this point because she thought it was funny. It was funny...at first.

I was right. That silly slime was no longer something fun. It was a pain in the butt. I spent at least an hour with a comb, a crying Chloe and lots of shampoo, trying to get it out.

I also have dried silly slime stuck to the baseboards behind the toilet. I haven't taken the time to scrub that up. I will probably get to it when we move out.

Lesson: Put the silly slime out of Chloe's reach, or just pay more attention.

The Body "Pojet"

Chloe loves doing "pojets" or as we would say, projects. What can I say, she's like her mama. Plus, doing little projects is a good time to not be on the computer or watching tv.

One of our projects was outlining her body and coloring it in. I remember doing this in school and all the time with my sisters using sidewalk chalk while playing outside. Doesn't every kid do this at some point?

Oops, her body looks a little wonky and yes, it may have been naked time. Or as Chloe likes to say, "gankin time!"

Do you see her nail polish?

All done!

Chloe is very proud of her body project. Any time someone comes over she shows it off. It's hard to miss, since it's hanging on the wall as you enter the apartment. She has also kissed herself. So funny! And, do you also notice the green lip gloss?

Bellview Park

A long, long time ago, in July...

Chloe and I went to Belleview Park with some friends. The park was lots of fun for the kids. It has a stream where the kids could play, dig and catch the occasional water creature. I had fun too, but the heat is a real downer for me. God did not create me to enjoy extreme heat, and by extreme, I mean warm for most people. Once it hits 80 degrees, it's hot. If it goes above 85, I will be hiding inside the air conditioning.

Chloe loved playing in the sand. I didn't love cleaning it up for days.

The park also had a petting zoo and a small train ride. Petting zoo and a really hot day doesn't mix well, so we went with the train ride. Of course Chloe loved it. I think it was her first train ride.

Chloe has discovered how to make her silly face, a.k.a. akward pictures. Oh well, this is a good remember of her and what she thinks is funny at this time in her life.

Speaking of "this moment in time", this is another phase Chloe is in...her cheese face. I think it's cute, but not cute enough to be in all pictures.

If you are wondering where Cory is, he wasn't around too much this summer because of his work travel schedule. I felt a bit like a single mom at times, but am glad I'm not. When Cory was home, we just wanted to chill as a family and didn't take many pictures of us lounging around in our dark apartment, wearing pajamas, and trying to avoid the heat.

Cheyenne Mountain Zoo

Earlier this summer we took a trip to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, in Colorado Springs, with some friends. This was Chloe's first zoo experience. Unfortunately, Cory was out of town at a camp so he missed out. The night before we went, I told Chloe we were going to the zoo and she was like, what in the world are you talking about crazy lady, what's a zoo? Once we arrived the next day, it took about 30 seconds for her to understand what the zoo was.

Chloe pretending to be a spider in her web, or me trying to get her to pretend.

Chloe with her best Colorado friends, Maddie and Taylor. I can't remember what kind of eggs they were, maybe turtle eggs?

Eww... BIG. NASTY. FISH. I hate fish, they are disgusting, but some are tasty.

So, that was part of our trip to the zoo. For some reason I didn't get any pictures of myself or any other adults or animals. Hmmm... I'll work on that.

Mountain Climbing

Chloe loves Dora and always remembers an episode where Dora climbs up a mountain. I'm so proud of my little baby climbing the mountains at the playground.

The Big 2!

I cannot believe how fast the last two years have gone by. My sweet little baby is a toddler. People always say how fast time goes, and it's so true.

Happy Birthday Babycakes!

Whoopie

For some strange reason Chloe loves a little potty humor.

Hmm, I have no idea where it can from.

Surely not from her father or mother.