The Mouse Family Blog

Check out what our niece Sophie has to say about her uncle Jace!

Labels: Movies

are not really toys. All you other parents out there already know that. Lauren has had the most fun playing with one of those key/badge holders that you wear around your neck. We hung a few toys from it. She wore it ALL day today. She crawls around with it on and since it's so long on her, the toys drag out the back between her feet. It's been a pretty funny sight. I taught her how to use both hands to take it on and off over her head. She even managed to put it over my head a few times. Sure, it could be a strangulation hazard, but I've kept my eye on her the whole time. She might be a girly-girl. First it was a handbag obsession and now she's into a necklace. What next, painted toenails?

touched down in the Mouse kitchen this afternoon. Local reports indicate that Gladware was mostly devastated and an entire family of measuring cups may never be reunited.

Lauren is starting to take some steps! She's still very tentative, and we have to coax her into walking since she's so happy to crawl everywhere. Check out her first steps on video!


That's right Lauren, real grass. Where the heck are we?



The video and these pictures were taken while visiting our friends Ben and Colleen (and baby Anna) at their new place. They have a great new house in the suburbs, with a nice lawn, and a feeder full of seeds that attracts lots of "tweets" for Lauren to listen to. Lauren also got a glimpse at a deer that wandered into the yard.

Labels: Movies

Lauren has everything she needs to hit the town! She's got her purse (of course), and a walk-behind toy that Rachel and Ian Pogany out-grew.



P.S. - We got a little behind on our posts, so die-hard followers might want to scroll back through the past week.

Labels: Movies

Our friends Vann and Amanda (and baby Charlie) live in a Chicago neighborhood called Lincoln Square. The neighborhood hosts a special kids day every spring, where all the stores host special kid-friendly events.

We stopped into a coffee shop that had a balloon artist. Lauren got a "loon" that was twisted into a poodle on a leash. It took Lauren a little time to recognize this as a "puppy," but she eventually relented and called it as such.

We also had time to hit the park for Lauren and Charlie to get in some time on the swings. We then met-up with our friends the Peterson's and their 6 week-old baby Lindsay for brunch in the neighborhood.

Labels: Movies

While Lauren was napping one afternoon, Liz was a gardening machine. She planted some spring flowers, and a set of lettuce. We also have some tomato plants started, but it might be a bit too early for them to survive. Time will tell....

We kept Lauren out a little later than usual on Wednesday. Eventually, she decided to stop waiting for the trip home, and to just sack-out on Daddy instead.

Lauren is continuing to live the urban baby lifestyle (urban babies wear black... urban babies have business cards to hand out for play dates). She now loves to carry her handbag (thanks Emily!). She is showing off how easily she can slip it onto her arm... with effortless grace that only an urban baby can pull off. Haven't you heard of the Prada and Gucci handbag lines for babies: 'Da-da' and 'Goo-Goocci' ;)

Labels: Movies

Pogany Play Time! Liz and Lauren took a trip to visit the The Poganys! Lauren had a great time with Rachel and Ian, whom she hadn't seen in quite a while.

I realize that some of you don't get to hear Lauren laugh as often as we do. Here's a quick video of Lauren, having a good time with mom and dad.

Labels: Movies

Psych! It's just her and daddy hanging out at home, playing with a toy from Florida that somehow made it home in the diaper bag.

It does demonstrate Lauren's new-found interest in handing things to other people. We're not usually sure what she intends us to do with the things she give us, though she sometimes cries if we take it as a sign to put the item away.

The video is long and a bit mundane. But if you just can't get enough of Lauren, this video is for you.

Labels: Movies

Well, sort of. Actually she just took a single step, and used two words she's already been using for some time now. We think she's still quite some time away from walking, though she has been surprising us today with how often she stands unassisted.

So this video is a bit mundane, but here you go: You'll have to excuse her eyelids -- they're a bit puffy from today's procedure.

Labels: Movies

Lauren had a minor out-patient procedure to clear her clogged tear ducts.

The procedure itself lasted just five minutes, and we were out of the hospital in under three hours. The bill (before insurance)? $7,000! We haven't seen the final bill so maybe they were just budgeting for a worst-case scenario.

Everything went fine, though her eyes are a bit puffy and swollen.

At any rate, here's Lauren before the procedure, enthralled with the staff walking past our room.

Labels: Movies

Lauren likes to swing in the park on a sunny day! We were there with what seemed like every other family in a 2 mile radius...which brought me to question what is correct public swing etiquette? Is it like a treadmill at the gym...if people are waiting you get off in 20 min. Or is it more like 10 min since we're talking about kids here? Do you form a line so as not to cut in front of kids who have been waiting longer? Or is it a mad free for all...like trying to get your kid into the best preschool?

At any rate, Lauren eventually got to swing. She enjoyed leaning forward and kicking her feet and reaching out for the camera. Then a pigeon caught her attention.

Labels: Movies

Sometimes when we take Lauren's diaper off, we tell her "You're free!" She clearly gets the concept. Today when I laid her down for a change and the air hit her, she proudly announced "free!" It was our small feat for the day.


Later in the day Liz and I were having some conversation about hair-something-or-other, when we looked over to find that Lauren had taken the cue to reach and touch hers. She's also learned the color "purple" (but no others) and we're clueless how that happened. We've decided our little brainiac is on her way to curing cancer or something, thought I'm sure we'll have to come back to reality just as soon as she starts to pick her nose and get her head caught between the stair balusters.

It's as if Lauren was reading our last posting and decided to prove what a dynamic little person she is. She surprised us this morning by sleeping until 6:30 a.m.

Not much to report this week. We've just been hanging out and getting back into our regular flow after so much traveling. Over the next few weeks, we're gearing up for Lauren's Mexican- Themed "Cinco de Mouse-O" birthday in early May, and then a family trip to Chattanooga in mid-May.



Lauren continues to amaze with her "developmental milestones" ("tricks" to be honest, but that's just not boastful enough). Here are a couple highlights form the past week:

• Asks to play with "keys" by name. I think this is a new first for her.
• Has learned the fine art of "gimme five," including "up high."
• Has a few new words -- baby, puppy, Tigger and probably a few others. She repeats a lot of what she hears, so it's hard to discern which ones she's truly learned.
• Seems very discerning in the books she brings to have read to her. She'll dig past four or five before finding the one she has in mind.
  
• Walking holding just one hand. She's still a ways away from walking on her own, we think.
• Waking every morning at 5:30 a.m. Some days she decides to sleep in till 5:31 a.m. We're amazed how consistent she is, regardless of how we adjust her night time or meals (and we've tried a lot of things). :) Since this is the same time Daddy usually wakes, I guess it's just a genetic trait.

The second day of warm weather got us out in the neighborhood for a stroll to Cafe Gelato. Here's Lauren trying daddy's lemon sorbet.

Labels: Movies

This past weekend, it warmed up in our state, so we found some outdoor activities to keep us busy. We visited Starved Rock State Park in Utica, IL for some hiking. Jace had been here before, but it was Liz and Lauren's first time. I (Liz )was surprised at how much (for lack of a better word) tax dollars had been put on the trails. At times it was like we were strolling down a wide boardwalk through the trees. The scenic overlooks all have deck platforms, railings and benches. There are a gazillion stairs, most with extensive railings. It was light years beyond the trails in the state parks that I remember growing up in Indiana. I think I even remember once my dad had to build a makeshift bridge so our family could get across a stream on the "tree trail." Family, help me out, am I remembering correctly??

Anyway, we had a fun time. Lauren enjoyed being backpacked by her daddy. We got many of the usual comment from adults we passed: "I wish someone would carry me around in one of those."

Look at those teeth! Lauren has been an eruption of teething these last few weeks. She broke ground with her bottom two front teeth at the tender age of 5 months. And then we didn't have anymore until just a few weeks ago, the top right one came in. It's next door neighbor (also on the right) came along a week later. On the plane ride home from Florida I discovered another one on the bottom, and today we have the just barely through the gum appearance of two more on top (left front and it's lefty neighbor). That brings her teeth count to 7!!

Other development news is her increase in mobility and verbal skills. She has fully emerged into a the baby babble stage...where it seems like she talks in her own language. She says several words with meaning: mama, dada, woof, duck and ducky, hat, papa, book and plop. She understands several commands like "hug" "give me - " "where's -" and you insert the name of an object she knows like blue puppy, Tigger, block, giraffe, etc. She knows what we mean when we say "no touch" but she usually doesn't comply ;) She will try to parrot back words, especially ones she hasn't heard before.

She is such a good eater. She eats anything we put in front of her and is getting better at her dexterity. She likes to "walk" holding onto the sofa, chairs and fingers. We wish she was a better sleeper. It seems like she only wants to sleep 9 hours at night, which is cramping my (Liz's) style. My style being the one where I want to sleep until 7am. I didn't even get up before 7am when I had a paid job. Oh well, it's not much of a burden since Lauren is so much fun to play with these days. The next update will be the big one-year-old! It's shocking how fast the first year has gone. But Lauren is certainly a huge blessing and we are so thankful she is happy and healthy.

Labels: Monthly Photos

Another boy to chase little Lauren around!

Our friends Joe and Hollie welcomed their baby boy today. Marcus James was born on April 2 at 12:41pm. 6lbs and 5oz.