23 months

I am guessing that this is the last month I can refer to Kaitlin in months instead of years! She is looking more  like a little girl every day!

Or maybe she is trying to look like Justin Beiber!

Kaitlin is climbing on EVERYTHING!!  Anything elevated she wants to climb on and it makes my job just a little tougher.

She also like to get in the tiny spaces and sit. Kory and I call it playing hamster. She will climb between the coach and coffee table and just be so happy.

Kaitlin in deep thought. She knows what she wants and has an opinion about almost everything.

She already acts like she is 2 but she isn’t official for another month!

Playing around

Kaitlin in the basket is a regular sight around here. She will hide and then giggle when we are trying to find her. It is the best sound to hear her really laughing. I just hope she doesn’t get any better at hiding.

We had a warmer day here yesterday so after her nap Kaitlin played outside in her spring clothes. She loves being outside so she is not happy that I won’t let her go outside in the rain now!

We had some thunder and lighting last night that woke Kaitlin up. She has never ever been scared in a storm! Just another sign she is growing up!

Dog Gone Cute

After ALL the snow the first 2 weeks in February we have had a wonderful warm week. It was in the 70’s this weekend so we played outside a lot. We went on a few family walks and enjoyed grilling out. This week has made me love February in Arkansas. Colder weather is on the way today but we have enjoyed every second of the warmth!

Getting  3 people ready for church and out the door on time is always a struggle!  So getting a picture of Kaitlin BEFORE church just doesn’t fit in the schedule. She looks so cute that I attempted to take a few after church.

Here is Kaitlin after church and before her nap! She slept almost 4 hours yesterday. They must keep them quite busy in Sunday School!

She looks so sleepy! But still so cute!

Kaitlin after her LONG nap! Ready to play

She had a snack and was a happy girl!

Kaitlin still loves to find new things to sit on! She has a perfectly good chair but prefers alternative seating!

We’re ready for Spring!

Love Bug

Kaitlin has had a busy Valentine’s Day. She was SOOOOOO excited about going to school after 2 weeks at home. I loved her outfit!

Kaitlin had a few little goodies waiting on her at breakfast. She is kinda scared of her Big Balloon. Every time we go to Walmart, she is always amazed at the balloons but it looks so much bigger in our house!

Here’s Kaitlin wearing her new sunglasses! She is a smart girl wearing them on her head. It was pure instincts!

Kaitlin snuggled with her Valentine Buzz Light-year before school

And worked really hard on her valentine for Kory

Ready for school and so excited!

Kaitlin RAN into school and gave her teacher Mrs. Erika a huge hug! They had a party and Kaitlin decorated her own bag for all her goodies!  She got a ball, bubbles, and all sorts of snacks. We have talked about bubbles all afternoon.

While Kaitlin was at Mother’s Day Out Kory and I had a lunch date at Abuelo’s. It was so fun being out of the house on a real date again. I printed out a date cheat sheet that Parent’s magazine sent me.  It had questions like “what countries would you like to visit” and “what dream job would you want for 1 year”. I thought it would be LAME but it was really fun. Here is the link http://www.parents.com/parenting/relationships/staying-close/date-night-a-cheat-sheet/

Here’s my Valentine at lunch!

We figured out that Kaitlin’s “love language” is Chick-Fila so that is where we are taking her tonight for her big night out.  She will be so happy. We will be home by 7:00! A perfect date night with a toddler.

Happy Valentine’s Day from our little Love Bug!

Pre-Spring Cleaning

Kaitlin is loving her new Valentine shirt from the cutest shop  http://www.ifyousaysewgifts.com ! She was so proud of it, and we practiced spelling her name all day.

We have been doing some spring cleaning, and Kaitlin has had a blast getting involved around the house. This is her FAVORITE thing to do lately … Swiffer! She runs toward it every morning and gives it a hug after breakfast. 

It is a well deserved 58 degrees here today with even warmer weather on the way. We are going to enjoy every warm day and anxiously anticipate spring!

Living in a Winter Wonderland

Kory and I both grew up in Tennessee and survived the “Blizzard of 93”! We had very found memories of being snowed in for a week with  12 inches of snow on the ground in Knoxville. We didn’t LOVE snow but it wasn’t until this past year that  we started to think that  snow was a very bad word! I am thinking about renaming the blog “Snowstorms and Sippy Cups!”

This is 20 plus inches of snow from last Christmas when we lived Virginia…. we had never seen that much snow EVER!!! It was amazing

Then again in February 2010 in Virginia  20 inches of snow!!!

So we moved to Arkansas with 20 inches of snow in our yard. We were tired from the 72 inches of of snow we saw that winter.  Kory even gave our snow shovel away saying “ we won’t have to worry about snow out here!” HA!

The forecast called for 3-6 inches of snow on Wednesday and we got 20 inches! The most snow Northwest Arkansas has ever seen!

We were featured on the Today Show because of ALL the snow!

So for the 3rd time in 13 months Kory has shoveled 20 inches of snow off our driveway! It is a crazy amount of snow and it is even crazier that we are almost use to 2 feet of snow.

This is what Kaitlin thinks when they forecast snow!!

We have had lots of fun but we have CABIN FEVER! Almost 2 weeks stuck at home is tough on anyone!

Kaitlin is so excited they are calling for a warm up this weekend. That is something to smile about!

Allergic to snow

Kaitlin is on the mend but we were stuck inside for the entire week! We got creative playing cowgirls and interior designer! I am out of ideas for a bored almost 2 year old! We are playing outside everyday this spring to make up for all our time indoors.

Kaitlin rearranging the pillows …

Moving her chair in the best place …

Cuddling with all her friends …

Cowgirl Kaitlin …

They were calling for a dusting on Friday …. well we ended up with at least  4 more inches of snow! We were SO not going anywhere for another day.  It finally warmed up on Saturday for Kaitlin to play outside with Kory. Kaitlin had fun playing snow soccer and ran around in the snow for about 7 minutes. I think Kory was hoping to play a little longer!

Sunday ALL all 3 of us felt under the weather so we had to miss our Sunday School Super bowl party. We had a party for 3 sick Shinlevers! Kory got us soup and we snuggled on the couch watching the game. We must be allergic to snow!

Kaitlin got bored of the game and was catching up reading Southern Living. I am so proud!

They are ONLY calling for  4-10 inches on Wednesday so we are hoping that is the last we see of snow for the season!