About Me
Name: Lauren         Location: Middle Tennessee, USA

Welcome to my blog! I am a Christian, wife, and mother who enjoys reading, running, and all things Disney. Stop by regularly for a glimpse into my life!
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Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Look, Mom! My Scary Face!


This is my best girl's scary face. She showed it to me last weekend. Unfortunately, mom was truly scared last night! When giving my best girl her nightly allergy medicine, I accidentally gave her my adult cough medicine with codeine.

Everything is fine now, but I had several scary hours. Although the amount of codeine was within the allowable dosage range for a child, it was on the high end. Since she had never had codeine, we just had to wait to see what happened. I checked on her every 15 minutes or so for half the night, and thankfully, she is fine.
Mom, while not planning to receive any mommy awards any time soon, is just so thankful she is okay. She is my best girl, and I love her (scary face and all).

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  posted at 9:31 PM  
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Monday, January 29, 2007
Small Talk at My House
As I was preparing lunch, my two-year-old best girl was demonstrating some rather ugly behavior. I put her in her crib for a few minutes as a punishment and to enable me to finish the lunch preparations. The following conversation ensued when I went to get her out:

Mom: What do you say to Mommy?

Best Girl (penitently): Thank you.

Mom: No, you need to tell Mommy that you are sorry for acting ugly in the kitchen.

Best Girl: Sorry Mommy...and yes, sir!

I just had to laugh! At least she was trying!

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  posted at 9:30 PM  
 



Friday, January 26, 2007
Efficiency
I appreciate efficiency, probably a little too much. I enjoy planning out a route for my errands so that I don't backtrack; and if I manage to plan my route so that I make right hand turns into the stores (instead of crossing traffic), I give myself and extra pat on the back. When I go grocery shopping, I try to list all items in the order I will find them. I also spent several weeks getting my cleaning routines (especially mopping my wood floors) down to the most efficient methods. This really makes me happy (I know I am weird that way).

On Wednesday evening, I took the kids to McDonald's for dinner before church. Happily, I saw that my best girl was able to manuever the entire indoor playplace on her own for the first time. Unfortunately, this led to one of her first playground problems as well.

I noticed a little boy who seemed sick when we entered the play area. Since it is winter, and since most kids have runny noses at some point, I tried to ignore this (although the hacking cough was difficult to discount). I know kids are exposed to germs all the time, so I sent mine off to play. A little while later, my best girl came running to me crying. She raised her hand to my face and said, "That boy bited me!" Sure enough, the sickly boy had bitten her hand, and she had the bite marks to prove it.

The father walked over with the boy in tow, and instructed him to apologize. I appreciated this gesture, I really did; but instead of apologizing, the little boy took his hand out of his mouth and stuck it into my best girl's mouth.

At this point, I just wanted them to go away. I think the father probably understood this because he did. I realized, however, that there was nothing I could do to stop the lovely germ transfer that had just taken place. I sat back into the booth and started the countdown until the runny nose and coughing show up at our house.

The rest of the evening was enjoyable, and we packed up to go. As we were leaving, I will admit that I actually thought, "That was the most efficient display of germ-spreading I have seen in quite some time." At least I can give that little boy, who I am sure on most days is just as sweet as can be, credit for that!

  posted at 9:29 PM  
 



Thursday, January 25, 2007
Small Talk at My House
Dad has been gone for several days, so the kids and I have been together non-stop for most of the week. This morning, I was getting them ready to go when my favorite boy realized that Mom was going to be alone (for about an hour and a half).

Favorite Boy: Mom, are you going to be all by yourself?

Mom: Yes.

Favorite Boy: What are you going to do?

Mom: I am going to exercise.

Favorite Boy: Wow, that's going to be really boring without us around!

Mom (looking serious, but smiling on the inside): It's going to be very quiet, but I'll be okay!

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  posted at 9:28 PM  
 



Monday, January 22, 2007
A Gourmet Birthday Meal


I know he already ate at Chuck-E-Cheese, which means any other birthday meal is a little bit anticlimactic . However, when given the option of having any meal he wanted for his birthday, my favorite boy chose plain pasta, cheez-its, and banana. He topped that off with birthday cake. Obviously, he is not on a low-carb diet. I think I am raising a child with very distinguished tastes!

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  posted at 9:27 PM  
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Saturday, January 20, 2007
The Titans Scored Big!


The Tennessee Titans may have missed the playoffs this season, but they certainly won my son's heart. Since my favorite boy has been obsessed with football this year, I signed him up for the Titans' Kids Club. The joining fee was worth seeing the excitement when he opened his birthday card from the team. Of course, it was a preprinted card. The inside said, "Happy Birthday from the Titans." My favorite boy, however, acted as though Vince Young and his buddies picked the card out just for him and then took it to the post office after they left the locker room. If only birthdays could be as exciting in the 30s!

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  posted at 9:26 PM  
 



Friday, January 19, 2007
Party!
Oops! I forgot to tell my favorite boy to make a wish, but I don't think it mattered. He had a ball at Chuck-E-Cheese today with his three best buddies. His actual birthday is not until Monday, but I think today was the highlight for him.

Each of the boys got 30 tokens. At the end of the party one of the boys said, "Did Mrs. Lauren buy the tokens for all four of us?" His mom told him that I had. He responded, "Wow! They must have hundreds of dollars!"

I just love this age! Unfortunately, I can't freeze him at five!

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  posted at 9:25 PM  
 



Saturday, January 13, 2007
Breaking All the Rules, Part Two
Just a tip. If you are going to grate Velveeta, it helps for it to be cold. Of course, I didn't know this today when I was trying to make the macaroni and cheese because I had never grated Velveeta. What I ended up with was a mushy mess and cut up fingers. I must have looked desperate because my husband quit watching the Colts/Ravens game to help me out. I guess it wouldn't have been a bad idea to buy those Velveeta Shreds instead of doing it myself. I ended up using some shredded cheddar that I had in the fridge to finish it up more quickly. I guess it is now obvious that I meant what I said about being a Velveeta Shells and Cheese girl. Those silver cheese packets take no time at all!

Even with this wonderful cheese grating lesson, the meal turned out well (it was about 30 minutes later than I planned, but still tasty). No one complained about the paper napkins, and no one was offended by the everyday salt and pepper shaker that I used with the fine china. We enjoyed catching up, seeing how much the kids had grown, and talking about old times. That is the enjoyable part of an evening with friends (and then come the dirty dishes)!

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  posted at 9:24 PM  
 



Breaking All the Rules, Part One
Tonight we are having company for dinner. My two closest friends from college and their families are coming. We all live in the same area, but we rarely get to see each other. In the ten years since we graduated from college, we have made an effort to have dinner together twice a year.

I have grand plans for a fabulous southern meal. We will be having ham, rolls, green beans, macaroni and cheese, corn casserole, and blackberry cobbler with ice cream. Of course, we will also be having a choice of iced tea or fruit tea to go with our southern meal. The only problem with this plan is that I am breaking the cardinal rule when it comes to cooking for company. I have never cooked a ham, and I have never made this mac-n-cheese recipe (my usual mac-n-cheese is called Velveeta Shells and Cheese, and it comes in a handy box at Kroger). My hope is that it will all turn out fine. Of course, I know the corn casserole will be good. If the other things don't turn out, we will be having really good corn for dinner.

Along with my fine meal, I am planning to use my china for the FIRST TIME since I married almost eleven years ago. However, I ran into a problem. My good tablecloth shrank, and it no longer covers the table. I ran out to buy another tablecloth (which I better get busy ironing), and I realized I do not have cloth napkins. Unfortunately, Target (the perfect place for all your fine dining needs) was out of the napkins to match the tablecloth. Considering the fact that there I have no time to go anywhere else, I will be making Martha Stewart proud by using fancy PAPER napkins with my nice tablecloth and fine china.

Hopefully, since we have all been friends for fourteen years, I won't be written off tonight over the paper napkins. I guess if the napkins are the only thing that goes wrong, I will be doing alright!

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  posted at 12:23 PM  
 



Tuesday, January 9, 2007
The Future Mr. and Mrs.


On Monday, we had a visitor. It happened to be my favorite boy's "girlfriend." Yes, this is the one he has called his girlfriend since he was 18 months old. Her mom and I have decided to get as many snapshots as possible so we can use them in a slideshow at their rehearsal dinner (both families would be thrilled if we could have an arranged marriage). They were hilarious eating lunch together. It was so cute when she leaned over and said, "Hey! We are eating our sandwich at the same time!" Then they just smiled at each other. Ah, young love!

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  posted at 9:21 PM  
 



Monday, January 8, 2007
Out of the Mouth of My Very Grown-Up, Almost Five-Year-Old
As we were looking at some of our DVDs today, my favorite boy held up the Wiggles' Toot-Toot and said, "Mom, did I like this when I was a kid?" I just smiled and said, "Yes, honey, you did." I guess he will be heading to the Social Security office for his check pretty soon.

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  posted at 9:21 PM  
 



Sunday, January 7, 2007
Susanna in the Highest
As it is the first day of the week, we will be heading to worship this morning. "Hosanna" is a song we often sing. The first line is "Hosanna! Hosanna! Hosanna in the highest!" Lately during worship, a young teenager named Susanna has been sitting with us. She loves children, and my best girl is certainly one of Susanna's adoring fans. That leads to the song my confused daughter has been singing all week - "Susanna! Susanna! Susanna in the highest!" I guess she wonders when we will sing a song about her as well!

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  posted at 9:20 PM  
 



Friday, January 5, 2007
The Eyes of a Child
On Thursday morning, the kids and I had about thirty minutes to fill before the Creative Discovery Museum opened. They decided they wanted to ride the free electric shuttle bus around downtown Chattanooga. Before we stepped onto the bus, the driver and I had the following conversation:

Mom: Could we ride just for fun?

Driver (with a look of irritation): You can ride, but I don't know how much fun it will be.

Mom (cheerfully): Oh, you do not know the fun my two year old and four year old will have just from riding a bus!

Driver: Yeah, whatever. After the first three or four trips it starts to seem a lot like work.

After about ten minutes of the kids being on the bus, the change in the driver was obvious. He was in a better mood, and he even started pointing things out to the kids and making jokes. It reminded me of why I have always liked to be around children so much. It is so much nicer to see the world through the eyes of a child!

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  posted at 9:19 PM  
 



Thursday, January 4, 2007
Fun in Chattanooga

What fun! I admit it. I had just as much fun at Rock City as the kids. I hadn't been there since I was a child, and it was a ball. It was about 60 degrees and sunny. We couldn't have asked for a better January day. The kids really enjoyed walking the Enchanted Trail. My favorite boy particularly enjoyed the Fat Man's Squeeze, and my best girl liked the wishing well in the underground caverns. The swinging bridge was even higher than I remembered it, and letting my best girl walk across it was a little nerve racking (the picture does not show the height)!


We also spent a day at the Creative Discovery Museum (my favorite boy's dream location), and we enjoyed dinner and dessert on the town with Dad. As always, just staying in a hotel with an elevator was excitement all by itself. We are home and worn out, but we are thankful for these special trips with Dad!

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  posted at 9:18 PM  
 



Tuesday, January 2, 2007
Don't Let the Sweet Face Fool You


My best girl has not been very good with her table manners lately. This picture shows her covered with yogurt which she put on her hands and then spread by clapping. "Look, Mommy! I clapped my yogurt!" She was covered with it, and so were the table, blinds, floor, chair, etc... Starting today, the rule is that if food is deliberately put somewhere other than her mouth, she gets no treat. Knowing that she can sense candy from a mile away and that she is constantly asking for some kind of treat, I hope this will be a powerful motivator. We'll see how it goes!

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  posted at 9:16 AM  
 



Monday, January 1, 2007
My 2007 Reading List
The Prince
My Sister's Keeper
Love Comes Softly
Dear John
The Thirteenth Tale
The Prophet
The Innocent Man
An Untamed Land
Love's Enduring Promise
The Red Tent
A Voice in the Wind
Love's Long Journey
The Church Ladies
Ever After
The Debt
Love's Unending Legacy
The Innocent Man
Forever
Love's Unfolding Dream
The Great Gatsby
Love Takes Wing
The Secret Life of Becky Miller
Thorn in My Heart
Bringing Up Boys
Love Finds a Home
Ordinary Days
Pride and Prejudice
The Double Bind
At Home in Mitford
The Poisonwood Bible
Echo in the Darkness
Chocolate Beach
Nineteen Minutes
The Memory Keeper's Daughter
Beyond Tuesday Morning
1776
Fair Is the Rose
Holy Discontent
As Sure as the Dawn
Straight Up
Sense and Sensibility
In Search of Eden
Letters for Emily
Whence Came a Prince
Emma
Sunrise
Summer
The Kite Runner
The Scribe
Peace Like a River
A Valley of Betrayal
The Choice
Austenland
A Proper Pursuit
Northanger Abbey
The Parting
Same Kind of Different as Me
Bad Girls of the Bible
Songs of the Humpback Whale
A Shadow of Treason
A Woman's Place
The Excellent Wife
Erec Rex: The Dragon's Eye
Everything's Coming Up Josey
Chill Out, Josey!
The Five Love Languages
The Five Love Languages of Children
Uncharted
Where Mercy Flows
Erec Rex: The Monsters of Otherness
The Note

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  posted at 8:54 PM  
  0 comments



A New Year
Today is the beginning of a New Year, but it is an ending for us as well. Dad has been off work for two weeks, and he has to return tomorrow. It will be a great disappointment for my favorite boy and best girl when dad doesn't get to hang around all day. We will get back to our usual routine: heading to the Y, a trip to the library, cleaning, playing, etc... Fortunately for us, we will get a quick break in our routine. We are going with Dad to Chattanooga for the rest of the week. I will share pictures when we return!

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  posted at 10:14 AM  
 



Beginning Blogging
Hello family and friends! This is my version of a blog. I hope you will visit to see what is going on in our home. I will try to keep you updated with pictures and stories. The title, "Baseballs and Bows," is in honor of my favorite boy and best girl. Of course, knowing my favorite boy, I probably should have named it "Footballs and Bows," but that did not sound as catchy. I hope you enjoy checking in on us every now and then.

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  posted at 9:13 AM  
 



Previous Posts
  • A Disney December, The Final Chapter
  • A Disney December, Part Five
  • A Disney December, Part Four
  • A Disney December, Part Three
  • A Disney December, Part Two
  • A Disney December, Part One
  • Backtracking
  • December Happenings
  • Update on Me
  • Thanksgiving

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