Celebrating the Little Moments of Joy

I'm not going to lie to you, America: it's been a difficult week and a half at the Weyel house. Lauren is still fighting this cold, and when she doesn't feel well, she wants everyone around her to know just how miserable she is. She also wants someone to fix it RIGHT NOW. In spite of that, we have decided to choose thankfulness in our family, so in that spirit, here are some recent little moments of joy that I thank God for.
Lauren has discovered how to turn the TV on and off... and on and off... and on and off...

She will even show you which finger she uses to push the power button!
Lauren still loves to "read" and we go to the library every Wednesday to pick out some new books for her.
She has also mastered opening and closing video, DVD, and CD cases, so most of those have been moved out of reach.
We had a fun visit from my parents this past weekend who, in addition to taking me shopping on Saturday and allowing me to escape for an afternoon, brought Lauren a Halloween balloon. She loves playing with "Jack," which of course is short for Jack-O-Lantern.
In an attempt to cheer Lauren up yesterday, I spent a whopping $4 and bought her these stacking cups--something every baby should have. They're useful for so many things, especially throwing!

Lauren also discovered the joy of animal crackers yesterday, a special treat from her daddy. She LOVED them so much that she got upset when I didn't put them on her tray fast enough. Here she is asking for another one with her "more" sign language, which looks remarkably similar to her clapping.
Another favorite pastime: shredding Kleenex and then attempting to eat it. Yuck!

"Gee, Mom, I don't know who could have shredded all that Kleenex and then left it all over the floor!"

But one thing that always cheers her up is a little game of hide and seek. She follows us as we crawl around on the floor and then "hide" behind the coffee table. Peek-a-boo!

I am always thankful that I get to see this beautiful face every day...


And finally, I'm thankful that parts of our backyard still look like this, in spite of a year of mostly neglect. Thank you for beautiful flowers, God!