monthly mini – logan

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dressing, as anna : playing, up high, down low, in the middle too slow! : watching, the lion king : infatuated, by you tube videos of the big bad wolf : prefers, to sip her water from a shot glass : gaga, over horses : swears,  footed jammies make her fast : asks, for a lollipop and/or candy cane morning, noon and night : requests, a ‘shamwhich’, apples, fish and water for every meal : loathes, taking a bath : refuses, naps but eventually caves : wrestles, the bison : questions, ‘how your day was?’ : refers, to every meal as breakfast : says, ‘thank you’ three thousand times a day

paci problems

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we did it! we conquered our paci problems and it wasn’t even as painful as i had imagined. to be honest, looking back, maybe it was me who was too afraid to let go. other than the daunting image of my baby heading off to kindergarten with a buck toothed grin, who would choose to give up that magical plug that prevents all public meltdowns from ever standing a chance? i mean seriously! we eased into our big girl status by leaving our sippy cup for santa to take home with him on christmas eve. cause you know there are baby elves in the north pole just dying for some milk of their own! my scheme went off without a hitch and while we’re not drinking nearly as much milk around these parts, our appetite has exponentially grown. go figure!
fast forward two weeks later and i overhear logan telling our babysitter the whole cup situation in great detail and when the sitter asks ‘what about your pacies’ i stop dead in my tracks when i hear lo reply with ‘maybe we can send the babies a package’. seriously kid?! i’ve been trying to pawn those damn things off on every kitten and newborn creature for months now with not a glimmer of hope. i came home from work to find that they’d not only decorated but made paci garland and were waiting for me to help package up a box. is this women brilliant or what?! together logan and i stuffed a box, wrote a note, drove to the post office and delivered the package to be sent to the north pole. my girl shed a few sad tears that night but nothing some extra cuddles couldn’t fix. the next evening i blew the kids mind when a special note from santa, along with a photo of happy little plug-mouthed elves showed up in the mail. totally convinced that she’d made all those little guys happy, we haven’t really heard a peep about any pacies ever since!
clearly, this has reiterated that there’s a time for everything and everyone’s time may not be the same, and that said, i plan on continuing to follow my gut while following logan’s lead. the doctor’s always told me she’s not gonna go off to school in a diaper. or so we think!

according to – kim

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and just like that it’s over. yummy smelling trees litter the sidewalks and we’re already a week into january. i miss it already, cause man this holiday season was more magical than ever! for obvious reasons, and i imagine it only gets more exciting from here. we spent a decent amount of december chasing one christmas extravaganza to another, and while december was filled with record breaking tantrums, looking back i hardly feel the pain. the pain of a two week long sinus infection, now that’s another story cause it’s still lingering. although it completely ruined all plans i dreamt of making happen over our holiday break, it forced us to shut down and relax. remember that wicked path we were headed down that i previously mentioned? yeah, well looking back, i think the kid was on overdrive and craved a week of pajama wearing and toy playing within her own space. cause let me tell you, that wicked monster turned sweet as skittles. and although i wasn’t up for much, it was the perfect amount of enough for lo and i. let this be a lesson to myself that sometimes even the little people get stressed out, over worked and need a break of their own. here’s to more simple days in two thousand and fifteen. that said, the sofa beside the tree is calling my name…cause you damn well know she’s still lit and looking pretty over here!

monthly mini – logan

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52 project – a portrait of logan, once a week, every week, in 2014

i’ve lost track of the months. but who’s still counting right?! i am however, well aware that we’re somewhere in the second year. that year that everyone talks so highly of. two is tough! the pull on your emotions, tear your heart out, question your capabilities tough. the show up at nursery school drop-off in tears along side your tantrum throwing toddler tough. we’re having a rough go and i hope the attention of a nice long holiday break will help cure the current madness. good thing she’s cute, otherwise she might have found her way amongst my ebay listings.

monthy mini – logan

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52 project – a portrait of logan, once a week, every week, in 2014

it wasn’t long ago i can remember logan watching me play pretend with a little girl a year or two older than her with a distinct look of confusion on her face as i bought an invisible cheeseburger from said girl and theatrically ate every last bite. her look will forever be ingrained in my memory. i could tell her little mind was in over drive as if to say wt* are you two crazies talking about. can you blame her?! fast forward to last weeks two and a half year checkup, when logan’s doctor asked if her accompanied doll could talk and she responded with a ‘she’s just pretend.’ i blushed while he told us to hit the road, his work was done and he needed to examine my ‘baby’ no further. needless to say, this chicks imagination is on a fast paced tear. not only is it fun to sit back and watch her mind unfold but it’s even more entertaining to join in and egg her imagination on. she’s got a baby she meticulously tends to and insists we don’t wake up. she’s got a pal named hiccup, who looks like daddy but is a kid, and runs off with her cellphone constantly. and she often vacations to the beach where she swims with ‘shawks’. two and a half is silly stupid.

according to – kim

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nothing says fall more than a romp at the old pumpkin patch! we’ve already hit two so far this season, making this family date a tradition and seeking out a different farm each year. so far, i think this was our favorite. there were countless seasonal activities spread amongst acres of corn lined fields that made us feel as though we had the place all to ourselves. i could get lost for hours with these people every weekend if i had it my way!

look at how small my baby was this time last year

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52 project – a portrait of logan, once a week, every week, in 2014

logan. she’s adorable. she’s smart. she’s silly. she’s creative. she’s imaginative. she’s two and a half and currently knows all the right buttons to push. particularly mine! motherhood has taken on a whole new light most recently. i thought sleepless nights and finding the right formula were tough. but this, this kicks my egos butt on the daily. by nature i’m laid back and it takes a lot to ruffle my feathers. two point five has me ruffled. add a splash of gilt and a constant test of my patience and we’re working up a recipe for disaster. i question when to step aside and let the tantrum play out and when to stand strong and fight the battle at hand. this kid is depending on me to teach her the way and i’m determined to get it right. i’m told it’s her age and this too shall pass. here’s hoping it passes fast and that we can all get back to regular business. here’s hoping i don’t mess us up along the way…

tonight we found ourselves attending our first ‘parent/teacher night’ where both logan’s teacher and the school’s director shared their perspectives on our girl. ‘she’s strong. she’s confident. she’s decisive. she’s a leader.’ and as we sighed in relief i thought, ya know what, we’re all doing ok.

most importantly, she’s ours!

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 52 project – a portrait of logan, once a week, every week, in 2014

conversation with this spitfire should not go unnoted, that’s for sure…

to drue who’s the quietest mouse there ever was – ‘calm down druebie and listen to me’

while doing squats on the bottom step and holding onto the banister – ‘i’m doing my exercising’

when she noticed i put a runner on the dining table – ‘is it my birthday?’

as we pass the obnoxious barking dog every night on our walk – ‘he thinks i’m a cat’

while i was talking to the sitter one morning – ‘stop talking to my friend’

after every spill that could potentially cause tears – ‘i’m ok!’

when she couldn’t open the lid to a toy – ‘i’m frustrated mommy’

while bossing us around – ‘daddy’s the big boss, i’m the little boss, and mommy’s nothing’

to her baby on the way to school – ‘it’s ok bub, it be fun there’

after i torture her every night about her days activities – ‘stop asking me no more questions’

every time we leave lo’s bedroom – ‘we have to shut the door so the big bad wolf can’t get in’

to the mama in the park who’s baby approached lo – ‘we getting a baby at our house soon’

when we discovered we ran out of diapers – ‘oh come on!’

as my stomach was growling – ‘you not hungry, you had dinner last week’

every morning since our stay in brooklyn – ‘we go to my new bedroom in new york city?’

when asked what all the scartches on her thumb were from – ‘playing with the razor mommy shaves her ears and face with’

i could go on for days. and no, i don’t shave my ears and my two year old definitely doesn’t play with razors. you can’t make this *hit up!

summer lovin’

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is summer really almost over? i feel like it only just began! and so goes the story of my life these days, constantly flying by faster than i’d like. so to suppress those end of summer blues, my girlfriend and i packed up and headed to the beach today. it’s days like this that go down in my book as favorites and i look back on often. spontaneous, adventuresome and as relaxing as possible with a two year old in tow. we grabbed my sister and our best little brunette on the way and soaked up the last bit of hot summer rays. i don’t think these turkeys had any fun at all (wink).

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52 project – a portrait of logan, once a week, every week, in 2014

this has been the month of adventure. two is treating us well and has enabled us to pick up and go for hours on end with no planned agenda. i think we’ve visited more philadelphia attractions in the past 30 days than the past 3 years. on the other hand, two is pushing the desire to add a newborn to the mix farther and farther from our radar. this poor kid may be twelve before she lays hands on a sibling. however, with adventure comes independence, and i’m not yet ready for this baby to turn big girl quite yet. her vocabulary if off the charts, the crib has been converted and pre-school enrollment has been payed for. talk about a punch to the gut. all this change has left me quiet and secretly panicked over how fast time does fly. maybe a new squishy set of thighs isn’t a bad idea after all. just kidding!

things worth remembering about 28 months:

enrolled in ‘pre’ school come september

after frequenting the zoo often this month is obsessed with the bison

painted her piggies for the first time

often asks for turner since our canadian cousins skipped town

wore pigtails for a total of thirty minutes

enjoys a nightly walk around the neighborhood (occasionally costume clad)

packed up all our baby toys and are filling our space with more engaging finds

converted the crib to bed and took the transition like a champ

requests rio + over the hedge

tells us we’re her best friend

visited the philadelphia art museum and painted like monet

joined the scooter gang

devours salmon + corn on the cob