Lynamland Heads to Kinnick!

Yesterday was a very exciting day for all of us.  I'm not sure who was more excited though... Lovebug or Coach.  You see, Coach got to take his girls to Kinnick Stadium to watch our beloved Hawkeyes.  Though this was not Lovebug's first game {when she was just 7 weeks, Coach Ferentz touched her feet at Jack Trice, a memory that is gone, but nor forgotten}, but this was her first game at historic Kinnick Stadium.  Boy, oh boy, was it a super fun day!!!

After one long trek up the hill and past the many port-a-potties...



{I agree Lovebug.  Those things are disgusting}

...we were tailgating with some great friends.  Lovebug learned the fine art of kick the can {yep, we teach the good stuff here :)}


Then, it was time for the game!!! 

{we are one happy Hawkeye family}

Enter the part where I said earlier I'm not sure who had more fun.  Coach was one proud Daddy, that's for sure.  And Lovebug?  Well, she was elated with the fact that she saw Herky... from a long, long distance.  Poor kid... costumed people still scare her :(.  She yelled "A" every time it was our turn, cheered and yelled "touchdown" when we scored 'em, and high-fived some people sitting near us.  Oh, speaking of the people near us... one girl let Lovebug eat some of her popcorn, while another played peek-a-boo, while a third neighbor helped point out Herky every few seconds. 



{l-o-v-e}





{based off this picture... I'd say Coach is the happiest}

We all made it until the start of the fourth quarter {about 2 quarters longer than I thought we'd make it}, and made our way back down to Daddy's truck.  On the way, Lovebug eyed a big Hawkeye truck! Of course, Daddy had to show it to her :)

One more landmark stop left for us...

Ahhh... this was one great day, and one of those memories that will live with Mommy and Daddy for a long, long time. 

Throwback Thursday--2nd Birthday Edition

Lovebug's 2nd birthday {ahem, 2 months ago} was picture perfect, as you will see by the zillions of pictures below.  We are so grateful to have such wonderful family and friends share this special day with her.  Even her boyfriend, Marcus, came to celebrate :). 

We ate, but of course, the real fun was opening presents!!!

After presents, she just had to cheese it up for everyone...

...as well as get a kiss from earlier mentioned boyfriend :)

{Daddy will not be a big fan of this picture...shh!}

After presents came the best part, well to this Mama anyway... CAKE!!!  I worked my hiney off to make Lovebug the perrrrrfect cake, and I think it turned out extremely well.  What do you think?

{white cake with strawberry cheesecake filling... all dressed up like Minnie Mouse}

Silly head gear and the candles came next, followed by pictures with a few of our friends and family.

{Lovebug's godparents Matt & Cheri}

Once all the excitement of the day had come and gone, Lovebug had a chance to help Daddy water the bushes... but more importantly, use one of her new presents :)

{what.  don't you water your bushes in your party dress???}



Preschool--Hy-ya Style

Hy-ya {Holly to those of you who do not speak in toddler lingo} started doing pre-school curriculum with Lovebug and her boyfriend, Marcus, this year.  It's so much fun to see her show off her papers when she comes home from school.  Since Coach does the majority of daycare drop-off/pick-up, he always helps Lovebug tell Mama all about what they did when they get home.

Here are a few pics of Lovebug's very first day of pre-school, Hy-ya Style :)

{ready for my first day!!!}

{showing off her sweet backpack}

{coloring her brain... that's what they did on the first day}

{cutting out and gluing her brain}

{showing us where her beautiful brain is}



{Lovebug and Marcus...showing off their work}

 Since being in pre-school, Lovebug has learned about:  her brain & ears, the color blue, apples, fruit, the letter B, hand washing, and much, much more!!  And of course, what would be school for Lovebug without a few visits to the principal's office.  Yep.  She's going to be that kid.  Great!

Reward... or bribery?

Lovebug has been rockin' this potty training thing for quite some time now, and well, we still haven't mastered it.  Partly, wait, make that mostly, my fault.  I've still got her in pull-ups, I don't get her to the bathroom as often as I should, but dangit, she's just a smidge over two, so I shouldn't be so hard on myself, right?  Right.

Anyway, Hy-ya is helping out with this potty training gig, and of course, she gives Lovebug rewards for going potty.  Girlfriend never wants a reward from us at home... so perhaps I'm going to have to find some of this as bribery instead.

Here's Lovebug showing off one of her rewards for using the big girl potty.

Princess lipgloss for the potty princess :)

Messy Bessy

Err, make that Messy Lovebug.

It should come as no surprise when I tell you that our beloved daycare provider, Holly {Hy-ya to those of us who know and love her best} sends us pictures of Lovebug througout the days to let us know what she is up to. 

On this particular day at the beginning of the month, Lovebug decided to get messy while playing outside...

{note the purple sidewalk chalk in her hair}

Messy Lovebug.  Wouldn't have it any other way.

Go Hawks!!!

I know, it's been well over a month since you've all last heard from me.  I've been a little busy.  Fear not... I will do one of my usual post a jillion posts in one day thing real soon :).

But for now, take a look at Lovebug... our cheerleader {and when I say our, I mean mine... Coach was less than thrilled when I let her try my old pon poms from my high school days last night}.

Go Hawks!!!

Happy 2nd Birthday Lovebug!!!!!

Happy Birthday Lovebug!!!!!

Though probably sounding cliche, I cannot believe where these first two years have gone.  They have absolutely flown by!  And we've been having the time of our lives with lil' miss thing :).

So I don't forget to remember what Lovebug was like as a two-year-old, or you dear blog reader, here's a quick run-down.  Do not feel obligated to read everything, but there may be some cute pics at the end :).

Eating:  Anything and everything all.day.long!!  Your favorites include:  sticks, spring cheese {string cheese}, fruit snacks, yogurt, hot dogs, pizza, mac & cheese, McDonalds {yep!}, cheeseburger, french fries, strawberries, grapes, Diet Coke :).  You are not a great breakfast person, even when Daddy brings you a donut. 

Sleeping:  You're getting better.  You will most nights go to sleep on your own again when Mommy says "I'll check on you".  Sometimes, you're a stinker and you run out to see where Mommy is, though.  You go to bed {since we're on our summer schedule} around 9:30pm and wake up to have "mama sit me" between 3:00-4:00am.  You'll wake up a few more times until you're up and at 'em at 8:30am.  Every night before bed, you do your thing with Daddy, and then you and Mommy read "Hello, Herky!", which by the way my dearest daughter, you know most of it. :)

Playing: You love to play with your babies, and to write and color pictures.  You LOVE to play with Mommy & Daddy's cell phones... even trying to text other people :).  You play your ABCs, MacDonald's, and your Mickey Mouse on the iPad.  You run the bases around our house multiple times a day, but love it when we chase you then surprise you.

Potty time:  You now wear pull-ups, though don't use them consistently.  You love to use your potty, but never really want a treat for it. 

Vocabulary:  wonders never cease your Daddy and I when we hear you talk.  Though there are times we can hardly understand you, most of the time you speak pretty well!  You sing your ABCs and other songs, you're favorite questions are "What doin?" and "why?", and you love to tell Mommy "no time-out" when you know you've done something you shouldn't have.

Overall demeanor:  you are spunky, independent, "I do myself", "no Mama", throw down, beautiful, silly, strong-willed girl.  You hate baths, but love to splash in the hose.  You hate holding my hand in the parking lots, but will pull me around the house to have me turn on your songs. 

To there you have it, dearest Lovebug and followers.  You are officially 2. 



{Daddy was in charge of the balloons.  A big ol' Dora is rockin' the top of the balloon stack}





{Happy Birthday, sweet Lovebug}

A birthday party post will be coming soon folks.  I'm still trying to recover from it, so I can't imagine how she's feeling :)