This and That

We have had a few fun playdates over the last week. Last Sunday (2/22) we met my friend, Stacy, and her two adorable kids, Alex and Kendra at Adventure Park. The kids, of course, had a great time, and it was fun to catch up with Stacy!

Yesterday we headed to the Mall of America's Nickelodeon Universe. Leah and I were joined by Sara and Michael and Jody and Morgan. The kids had a blast and were so worn out at the end of the day!

For the most part, Leah is doing so well with her new glasses. She even told me today that she can see with her glasses on, but that she can't see with them off! She is also doing well wearing her patch (minus a few days- but I can say with experience that it is very uncomfortable- I had to wear it with her for a few days!). Here is a video of her singing while she passes time wearing her patch. Introducing Leah Benner singing Tayor Swift's "Picture to Burn."

This week, Leah and I are all by ourself as Joe is out of town for work!

And, I will leave with what Leah told me today at dinner...

"Ya know what...When I get taller, I can go to work all by myself, and ya know what...when I get taller, I can stay home all by myselft."

Leah's New Look

Leah had her Kindergarten Screen on January 31- which she passed with flying colors, except for the eye exam. So, not thinking it was too big of a deal, I scheduled her an eye exam on her 4th Birthday (I know- cruel, but it worked for our schedules). Well, turned out that it was a bigger deal than I anticipated. She was so well behaved for the entire time that we were there- which was 2 hours!

She was diagnoses with 1. amblyopia, 2. astigmatism, 3. hyperopia.

• So, what that means is that she had such a drastic difference in her eyes, that her brain as turned off her right eye. She will have to wear an eye patch over her left eye for 2 hours per day for at least 4 weeks, then we recheck with the optometrist. This will hopefully "recharge" her neurons to allow her vision to grow in her right eye.
• She sees things blurry.
• She is farsighted, which typically means that a person can't see objects nearby, but in Leah's case, she has weak eyes, and has difficulty seeing things both far and near.
• She has a mild prescription in her left eye, and a significant prescription in right eye.

We got her glasses today. She is not comfortable with them yet. She is constantly adjusting them and wanting to take them off. Hopefully, she will get used to them soon.

Happy (Belated) Birthday Dad!!

We celebrated my Dad's Birthday on 2/16/08. I FINALLY got a picture of Nonna and Grandpa with Delila, Leah, and Thea- yes, this is the first time I have gotten one with them and all 3 girls!

Hope you had a great Birthday Dad! We owe you!:)

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

To see who she is mimicking in this pose, follow this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aKgUxcQnL4I

February Celebrations

HAPPY BIRTHDAY:

2/1 - Cousin Drew

2/2 - Aunt Maggie

2/10 - LEAH is 4

2/12 - My DAD

2/13 - Liz

2/13 - Cousin Emily

2/13 - Cousin Ronda

2/19 - Cousin Matthew

2/23 - Amanda

2/25 - Aunt Susan

Hope you all have/had a FABULOUS day!

Our baby is 4 today!

Wow, Leah is 4 today. How she has grown. Some Leah facts:

• she still loves her "baby"
• she is lovable, fun, sassy, and sensitive
• she says her favorite color is pink, green, blue, and yellow- "I like all of them"
• she says her favorite movie is Madagascar (some things don't change)--she has gone through a Tinkerbell, Cinderella, and Barbie Movie phases
• she counts to 30, but sometimes mixes up the 20s
• she spells her name, and is able to "write" it-- meaning she scribbles it and says it is her name (it is really quite adorable)
• she loves art
• she plays "waitress"
• she is a picky eater- very limited fruits/veggies/meats.
• Fav meals- , PB (no jelly) sandwiches, mac and cheese, hot dogs, and waffles
• she loves dessert- especially chocolate (hmm..this reminds me of someone that I know)
• she loves to read and tell stories
• she loves to wear dresses, she typically insists on picking out her clothes, her current favorite- a black/white dress
• her favorite singer is still Taylor Swift, and she can sing most of her songs
• she sings and dances a lot
• she loves to swim
• she says "I love you" without being prompted!

Leah's Birthday Party

LEAH'S Birthday Party
Adventure Park
Saturday February 7, 2009
Guests: 7 friends (Thea, Michael, Morgan, Kaylee, Kurtis, Delila, and Bailey) and 11 adults (Mom, Dad, Grama, Nonna, Grandpa, Uncle Dan, Auntie Tiff, Sara, Jody, Rick, Jaclyn)

We had a great time during Leah's party. It went by so fast! She and her friends had a great time playing at Adventure Park. It was a great way to celebrate a winter birthday! The kids really seemed to enjoy themselves.

For her present, Joe and my dad refurbished the barbie dollhouse that my dad made for me when I was her age. It looks great. They did such a fabulous job. It is decorated primarily with leftovers from our house! To go with the house, she was given presents of furniture, barbies, clothes, puppies, and a car. Joe even refurbished the "trunk" that my dad had made for me that stores barbie stuff. What makes this even more fun...when asked what she wanted for her birthday last week (after these plans for a Barbie theme had already come together), Leah said that she wanted a Barbie!

I can't believe she is 4 (well, almost...I still have 2 days to get used to the idea)!