2 Years

My Favorite Things - 20 Months

Show: anything that involves Mickey Mouse or Elmo

Book: "Yummy Yucky"

Food: blueberries and strawberries

Lovey: paci and sippy cup

Game: moving/throwing her toys around/all over the house

here she is pushing her refrigerator through the

kitchen and into the living room

Toy: whatever mommy and daddy are playing with

Treat: ice cream

Friend: too many to name... she's a popular girl!

Other: loves to sing and shop with her mommy!

Song: "Part of this World" - Ariel; "The Lazy Song" (or as Leah likes to call it, "The Monkey Song") - Bruno Mars

Easter

Grim Grinning Ghosts

Leah loves listening to music so we purchased this video for her off of Amazon.

I remember being obsessed with Disney Sing Along's when I was kid, so I just assumed that Leah would share the same affinity.

And she did... until yesterday...

Leah was sitting on my bed watching this video and all of a sudden she started yelling "NO!" over and over again at the TV. When I ran back into the room to see what was making her so upset, I saw that the "Grim Grinning Ghosts" song was playing.



The look on her face was priceless. She had this worried look..as if the characters were going to jump out of the screen and attack her. I tried to explain to her that it was just pretend, but she wasn't having it so I just skipped over the song.

I never knew that at only a year and a half, something like this would bother her. I always thought that this type of fear was something learned... I guess I was wrong.

St. Louis Trip - Part 2

During our visit we stayed at the Moonrise hotel, which is located on the popular Delmar Loop. If you're planning a visit to St. Louis soon, we would highly recommend this place!

View from the rooftop lounge at our hotel.

City Museum - This is not your typical museum. It is an eclectic funhouse made out of random objects found in the city. I think Brett enjoyed this place just as much as Leah, maybe even more!

The Magic House - Hands-on children's museum where Leah learned everything ranging from the Presidents and the judicial process to insects and plants.

Gateway Arch - Josh and Leah standing in front of the Tallest man-made monument in the US.

Leah posing in the car that takes people to the top of the arch.

St Louis Trip - Part 1

We made the most of Brett's Spring Break by taking a trip to St. Louis. The four hour drive was well worth the added excitement. It was nice to get out of Iowa City so that we could show Leah that there is more to do during the winter then just hanging out at the mall...

We met up with Brett's old roommate, Josh, who was able to show us all the cool places to visit. One of those places was the Zoo. Leah loved it...

The chimps would come up to the glass and stare back at all the people standing on the other side. It was so cool to see them so up close.

Each time we tried to take a picture of Leah near the reptiles she would get this concerned look on her face and repeat "NO!" until we took her away. She was not a fan. I guess she takes after her mommy.

This was the best photo I could get of her near the lizards... she is already trying to get as far away from the glass as possible.

Leah loved riding the "choo choo" around the entire zoo. There were four stops on the ride for people to get on and off, and each time we'd stop she would look up at us and sign "more."

Cool play area for tots...

Leah and daddy enjoying the warm weather at the zoo.

Leah loved seeing all the animals, especially since she had read about most of them in her books. We also took full advantage of the warm weather. It was a treat to finally be able to walk around outside without a jacket on.

Stay tuned for more pics from our trip...

Leah on her trike with the GoPro

The cold weather has kept Leah and me indoors more than I would like. Luckily the wood floors are great for racing:

Leah's First Birthday Party

We're snowed in today, which has given me the perfect opportunity to finally post pictures from Leah's birthday party. Leah celebrated her first birthday back in October. We invited family and friends to our home for a Tea Party.

Birthday girl is ONE!

We served tea sandwiches, salad, and an array of yummy treats,

compliments of Grandma Bobbi and me.

Can't have a tea party without TEA... and lemonade.

We used the shelves in our dining room to display photos from Leah's first year.

Leah was a pro at opening her presents.

Leah LOVED her cupcake...

My family could not make it to Iowa for Leah's birthday, so they watched Leah open her presents and eat her cupcake via skype.

My first attempt at making my own icing... they were tasty, but sooo much work!

I had so much fun planning Leah's birthday party. I don't think I could have asked for things to turn out any better.

Hmmm... what should we do for her 2nd birthday?

Our Day at the Beach

While we were in California, we went to the beach to take photos with Brett's side of the family. Leah looked so cute with her bow and mini skirt...

Leah Before

She loved playing in the sand and running around. Unfortunately, our adventurous little girl got too close to the water... the next thing we knew Leah was saying, "Uh Oh momma."

I was tempted to leave her in the outfit, since she looked so cute. But Brett, the more rational one in our relationship, convinced me that she needed to be changed out of her drenched clothes.

Of course we forgot to pack a change of clothes. Luckily, Leah's cousins came to the rescue. Cousin Jack let Leah borrow a pair of pants and cousin Mckenna let her borrow a sweater. Good thing Leah can still fit in to size 6 months!

Leah After

Despite the early setback, we had a great time at the beach. Leah LOVED it! We also came away with some really great photos. Remembering how much fun the beach is makes us miss living in California even more.

Family Photo

Pictures From our Winter Break

We are finally back in Iowa after a hectic trip to California for Christmas. It turns out that taking a vacation with a kid is not much of a vacation at all. It was great seeing our family and friends...keeping Leah so far from all her cousins is the hardest part of living in Iowa. Here are a couple of pictures from highlights of the trip:

The Coppenger-Side Cousins (from left: Lilly, Jack, Leah, Mckenna, and Fletcher)

The McCoy-Side Cousins (from left: Ashlyn and Leah)

Our Little Chatter Box

Leah continues to change right before our eyes. She is communicating with us more and more (or at least trying to communicate more and more).

Signs you know:

-eat

-milk

-more

-all done

-tired

Words you know:

- Mama

- Dada

- Baba (bottle)

- Wawa (water)

- Book (but without the "k")

- Paci (but it sounds more like "Pa" without the "ci")

- Baby

- Chip

- Cookie

- Cracker

- Hi

- Bye

- Yes (whenever we tell you no)

- Uh Oh

- Nana (banana)

- Night Night

- Hat

- Shoes

- Car

- All done

Sounds you know:

-Woof Woof for dog

-Meow for cat

-Moo for cow

-Baa for sheep

-Grrr for lion, bear

-Naah for horse

-Quack for duck

-Beep Beep for car