Chloe's wins her first major award

[A photo at left of the champion with her loot.] Yesterday we received a phone call declaring that Chloe had won a prize in our local drug store's easter coloring contest. By exhibiting superior coloring for a 19 month old (soon to be 20 month old), Chloe reined in this immense chocolatey bunny award thereby crushing her competitors in the 0-3 age group category.

Nevermind that there were only 2 other competitors in her age group (1 that was disqualified for cheating - seriously!). And nevermind that I think favoritism by the judges might have been a contributing factor to Chloe's win. Chloe is the coloring queen!

Little does Chloe know, her parents plan on making the bunny disappear tonight so that other children may benefit from the bunny's chocolatey goodness. :) Call us meanie-heads, but we're not about to embark on the mess and sugar high that this innocent bunny represents.






















Chloe tried her hardest to release the chocolate bunny from its plastic cage while pleading, "Open, open?"

















A close-up of the prize winning picture. Notice how well she colored that bottom left chick's feet! I know, I'm a dorky proud mama. :)

















This was the best shot we could get of Chloe, her picture and the bunny.






















The monster bunny says, "You will not eat me! I will eat you! Bwua-ha-ha!"

Good Friday thoughts

In preparation for Easter, I've been reading the different gospel accounts of the holy week. (When you read them side by side, it's so interesting to see the difference emphases and perspectives of the writers!)

I was struck last night by two thoughts: 1) the power of Jesus and 2) Jesus' complete trust in God the Father's plan.

John records that when the accusers came to arrest Jesus, He answered, "I am he" and they drew back and fell down at the power of His words. Wow!!! You'd think the accusers would know something was different about Jesus when they reacted that way to His simple declaration of identity.

Jesus also showed His power in restraint. When I read how the mob spat on Him and mocked Him in the book of Mark, I felt my blood boiling. If I were in Jesus' shoes, I would have used all my power to embarrass them or to come down from the cross to show them who was boss. But Jesus showed restraint and allowed Himself to be subject to God the Father's will and ways. His willingness to trust God completely is shown in His subjection to the cross.

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. [1 Peter 2:24]

A silly video and headbands

We have COLD SNOWY weather here in northeast Ohio today. Yuck!

Check out this cute (and brief) video of Chloe trying to sing . . .


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The sewing bug has bitten me again! This morning I sewed up the ends of some wide ribbons I'd bought to make cheap headbands for Chloe. I found each ribbon on sale at Jo-Ann's for 25 or 50 cents a yard. As ribbons are known for their unravelling tendencies, I sewed up the ends on a slant with a quick zig-zag stitch. I'm very pleased the outcome. Now I just need the secret to get Chloe to sit still long enough to tie these headbands on her wiggly head! I'm thinking I should put on a body-numbing movie to get her to sit still and then covertly sneak the headband on.

A hodgepodge

Thanks to all who commented on our Chloe Spring Fashion Show! Official results were . . .
White embroidered shirt/Jeans: 5 votes
Denim dress: 2 votes
Green polka dot skirt/Polo shirt: 2 votes
Mint green pants/White sleeveless top: 1 vote

My favorite is (drumroll please) . . . . the green polka dot skirt get-up. It's simply adorable on Chloe! And I'm a total sucker for polka-dots.

We are enjoying a beautiful day here in northeast Ohio. I can hardly believe that our porch thermometer reads above the 60 degree marking and is headed towards 70!!! This calls for a long walk after supper. Speaking of weather, has anyone else heard that our beloved midwest is scheduled for some snow on Easter weekend?!? Our forecast says snow and 30's for Easter Sunday - yucky! Oh well, it will certainly be an Easter to remember! Hiding eggs in the snow will be a new experience. I just hope our tulips will survive the last blast of winter.

What are your plans for Resurrection Sunday? Do you have any special family traditions for Easter? Do you do special dresses/outfits for your little ones? Who do you celebrate with?

After serving in the nursery at church on Easter morning, we'll be celebrating with our pals down the street - the Mack family. We have no family in Ohio, and the Macks have kindly invited us to join their festive tribe (they have 6 fun kiddos) again this year for Easter dinner. Chloe absolutely LOVES going to visit them and playing with all the Mack progeny. She's getting pretty stinkin' good at saying all the kids' names too! Though she often forgets Brittany. Sorry, dear Brittany!

I'm still not sure what Chloe will wear for Easter Sunday. No homemade dresses this year. Her closet is bulging at the seams with cute dresses so there was no need to labor over a sewing machine this year. I'll be sure to post photos of our cutie pie in whatever she ends up wearing!

Here are a few recent photos of our crazy girl . . .


















Chloe and her chocolate pudding beard.

















Yo, my name is Chloe and I'm here to say, toddlers have fun in a majah way! Word to my homies! (Sorry, had to borrow the rap lyrics from the old Flintstone's pebbles commercial - my knowledge of rap is majorly lacking.)























Chloe models her pretty dress made by abuela Horn before church this morning. She looked so lovely and like such a big girl!



















Here's my best kissy-face for the camera, mom!

Spring Fashion Show

My mom spoiled Chloe by sending her some adorable new spring outfits. The outfits are so incredibly cute, we just had to put on a fashion show. And I got to learn how to make an online slide show with music (check out slideroll.com to make your own - I'm warning you, it's addicting!).

Which outfit do you think is the cutest on Chloe? I think they're all lovely but I have a definite favorite. I'll withhold my opinion until I hear from you. (How's that for bribery and motivation?) :)

Enjoy our spring fashion show!

Make a Free Flash Slideshow

Nana has to go home

We've had a wonderful visit with Chloe's nana (my grandma) and the time has flown by at an alarmingly fast rate! I can't believe we have to take her back to the airport tomorrow afternoon already. We've spent an eventful 5 days together and Chloe's had loads of fun with nana.

We love you, nana!

My latest project

It feels like I've not blogged in months! I don't know if anyone even noticed, but I haven't been blogging as much lately since I've been wrapped up in my latest project. I just finished a cross-stitch wedding record for my friends' 10 year wedding anniversary. Whew! This project has given me a new appreciation for cross-stitchery. It turned out beautifully and I thank God for the time and energy to complete such a monstrous thing.

Melinda was so touched by the gift that she started crying! Yay! It feels so wonderful to know that I surprised her that much and that she appreciates all the effort I put into this.

In other news, my vivacious grandma flies in tomorrow morning for a visit so I anticipate a lack of blogging for the next week. Chloe is so pumped about seeing her "nana".

Here are a few pictures of my darling girl to keep you occupied while we're enjoying nana's company. Blog ya later!





Chloe's new favorite seat is the bookshelf even though it's rather crowded.



















A close-up of the project. You would not believe how many shades of purple went into this.














Chloe and her beloved Elmo.

My attempt at rag curls

Tracy Hall inspired me to try rag curling Chloe's hair Saturday night. I'd love for her to be a curly head for Easter Sunday and I thought I'd do a trial run this weekend. Boy, am I glad I did! Because I didn't do a very precise job with the ragging, by Sunday morning half of Chloe's rags had fallen out or come untied. The result was strange looking. The top of her head came out very curly and the entire left side was straight. Kind of a different look. :) So, I salvaged her hair with pigtails and it ended up looking pretty cute.

The jury's still out on whether or not we attempt this for Easter Sunday. What's your vote? Curly or normal?
























This was the best shot I could get of Chloe in her Sunday morning grab. She's looking goony because she's trying to run over to me and see the camera display on the back.

Recipe blog?

Ok, I admit it. I've been lazy about the recipe swappers blog lately. I took January off and then didn't do a thing in February.

Now that it's March, I thought I'd start the recipe swapping up again. I've still got some winter excess to shed so let's do "Healthy Dishes" for our theme for March. Send your healthy recipes to me at aliciahorn@hotmail.com.

I count on your participation to make this recipe swappers blog fly so take a few moments and email me your favorite healthy recipes!

My little girl is growing up!

It has been incredibly difficult to capture Chloe on camera! As soon as she hears the camera's turn-on-noise, she bolts for it so she can see the photos on the back display. I've had to be sneaky and quick-on-the-draw to get any pictures of my not-so-little girl.

Chloe will be 19 months old tomorrow but she looks more like a 2 year old! In fact, today we had some friends over and Chloe was just millimeters shorter than Sue's 2 1/2 year old girl.

At 19 months, Chloe is vvvvvvvery interested in letters, colors and books. She can identify the capital letters of A, B, and C and sometimes D and E. She loves to find the letters she knows on packages or book covers. Because Chloe knows her colors so well now, I've started playing an easy version of "I Spy" with her. She gets so excited when she finds an object of a particular color! I have a feeling books, reading, and letters are her aptitude because she enjoys them so much - I'm not doing any pushing to learn these things. In fact, it's been incredibly easy to do since she's got so much natural interest. Is this weird for her age?

Though Chloe is tall for her age, I wouldn't say she's advanced in motor skills or verbal skills. She's trying to talk more and more but most words are still gobble-dee-gook. She's a huge Elmo fan and aims to point him out whenever she can (on other children's diapers or shoes; on diaper packages in the store). She's also a fan of Curious George (whom she calls "Georgie"), Carl from the Alexandra Day books (of which I highly recommend!), and Curduroy from the Don Freeman book (another classic). Chloe's never really liked Dr. Seuss books but lately she's wanted to hear the Foot book and the ABC book.

Ok, that was probably more information than you ever wanted to know about Chloe . . . . Sorry for the overload. Below are a few recent pictures of Chloe. Does she look older and taller to you? Or is it just me? When will this kid stop growing?!?






















So, then I said to Kayla, "Which do you like better, string cheese or grapes?"























Chloe and daddy out for a real walk (sans stroller) to drug mart.






















Chloe in her spring/summer sun hat. It looks a bit goony here, but it's really cute with some embroidered flowers on the side.

















Chloe on her tricycle! I naively hope she can master tryke riding this summer.

The lifter of my head

Lately I've been struck with the beauty of God's Word in specific phrases from Scripture. Certain phrases paint such colorful visual pictures of our Lord's character. Friday God reminded me that He is the lifter of my head. Isn't it funny how God lifts a phrase out of His Word and then just bombards you with it in various ways? After listening to a sermon online, I heard the following song (this is only a portion of it) . . .

And I will praise the name of Jesus,
Praise the Lord, the Rock,
The Lifter of my head
Praise the God of my salvation,
All my days are in His faithful hands

During an evening game of Scrabble with Matt, God brought the thought to my heart again. I asked Matt where that phrase was found in Scripture, and he immediately replied, "Psalm 3" (I love being married to a fountain of knowledge!). Here's the first part of Psalm 3:

O LORD, how my adversaries have increased!
Many are rising up against me.
Many are saying of my soul,
"There is no deliverance for him in God." Selah.
But You, O LORD, are a shield about me,
My glory, and the One who lifts my head.
I was crying to the LORD with my voice,
And He answered me from His holy mountain. Selah.
I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the LORD sustains me.
I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people who have set themselves against me round about.

Then God reminded me of one of my all-time favorite hymns, O Love that wilt not let me go. The last verse reads as follows . . .

O Cross that liftest up my head,
I dare not ask to fly from thee;
I lay in dust life’s glory dead,
And from the ground there blossoms red
Life that shall endless be.

Tonight my heart is burdened for a dear sister in Christ, Janelle Johnson and her family's situation. Pray with me that God will lift up her head and draw her close during these hard weeks!

We're having a heatwave, a tropical heatwave . . .

Yesterday our porch thermometer reached the astounding height of 60 degrees!!!! I couldn't believe my spring-craving eyes. This called for a walk to a nearby park with Chloe. Though the park isn't quite play-ready (mounds of snow blocked most of the slides and mud was everywhere) Chloe and I still had a ball - especially on the swings. It was so delightful to get ready for a walk and to NOT have to bundle my daughter in her various winter trappings. [As a side note: I can't convey to you how excited I am that Chloe is finally of an age to enjoy a playground! Our city has a phenomenal park system (some with kid-friendly wading pools). Hours of entertainment and exercise!]

Ahh. Spring, you're welcome to arrive for good any time now!



















My giggling swinging girl.






















Even though you can't see her smile, I really like the composition of this photo and her laughing eyes. Check out her stylish pink converse hightops. Jealous, aren't you?

Date night for the three of us

It feels like forever since I've blogged! Being sick really takes a toll on a family.

Anyways, now that we're all back to normal (except for Chloe who keeps trying to be queen of the universe) we're celebrating our health with a date night for our whole family. We never did use our Red Lobster gift card when my mom was here last month (the place had an hour long wait!) so we're going to try it tonight. We're planning to leave at 4 p.m. so there's no waiting. Who knew Red Lobster was such a popular place?!? I've heard lots of wonderful things about their cheesy biscuits. Can't wait to try them for myself!

Do you and your family have any special outings planned for this weekend?

Mostly healthy and back online!

Well, it happened. Chloe's flu bug passed to me on Friday. WAH! I hate throwing up (like anyone out there likes it?!) and yesterday I pretty much slept all day or laid on the couch like a limp dishrag. Thankfully, Matt was superstar daddy/hubby of the year and cooked all the meals, fed Chloe, changed all of her diapers, took her for a walk, and watched her all day long. Thank you, Matt!

After 13 more hours of sleep last night, I'm feeling much better this morning. Not sure if we'll brave church or not - probably not. We'll most likely lay low again today.

Chloe is really into blogging lately! She LOVES watching videos of little ones displaying their antics. Lately she's been climbing up on the computer chair and saying "Babies! Babies!". So, because I have no recent sick photos or videos, I thought I'd post a video I took a few weeks ago but never got around to posting. I call it, "The Inspiration of Folk Music". :) Chloe just cracked me up with her elbow-in-the-air dance moves. Enjoy!




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A sick little girl

Our Chloe had a rough day yesterday. Lots of vomiting and snuggling with mommy (and sometimes both at the same time). After many outfit changes and baths, she held down her dinner of a popsicle and saltines. I know, very nutritious. We snuggled some more and after much rocking she fell asleep in my arms. Ah, I'd forgotten how precious that can be! Though my arms were asleep too after rocking my 30-lb.-not-a-newborn-anymore-sized child. She slept well last night and didn't wake up to be sick and seems to be in good spirits this morning. I'm glad she's feeling better but I think I'll miss her excessive snuggling. :)

Here's a funny anecdote from Chloe's sick day yesterday. It was mid-afternoon and Chloe and I were snuggling in the living room reading books and singing. She was on the verge of sleep and nuzzling my chest. All of the sudden, I hear a knock on our front door - a very rare thing for us. So, I gather up my bundle of Chloe to answer the door. Mind you, our house was not the most picked up tidy place after all of Chloe's ordeals yesterday so I wasn't too excited about welcoming a visitor into our messy home. Anyways, in walks my neighbor (I was hoping to chat briefly and keep her out on the porch) and plops herself down on the couch. I explain that Chloe isn't feeling well and that explains her lethargy and our messy surroundings. She brushes off those things and plows ahead with her proposal to hire me as her math tutor for the summer. Sure thing, I say, trying to close up the deal and wrap up the visit. She goes on to explain her situation more in-depth - her struggles in the past, her college history - when Chloe quietly vomits up her lunch and snack contents. And my neighbor goes right on talking! Granted, she didn't notice Chloe's spewage at first but as I stood up with my erupting Chloe and ushered my neighbor to the door, she got the hint. Good timing, Chloe!

Hope you and your kiddos are keeping healthy during this winter season!

Chloe will be 6 foot tall?

Last week, Chloe had her 18 month well child check-up. She weighed in at a whopping 30 lbs. 5 oz. and measured 37 inches tall! Her growth curve continues to be off the charts (above the 97th percentile).

Our doctor, who I like but who always races through our exams and doesn't offer much education, predicts that Chloe will be 6 feet tall when she's an adult. What?!? Sorry Dr. Kline, but I have to disagree. No one in our families is that tall and I know that height is linked to our genetic potential (I only found that out after a bit of google research). It's like this, the genes from mom and dad give the child a potential maximum height. If the child reaches that potential maximum height is based on nutrition and environmental factors. (Click here to read more.)

So, here's my question for you experienced moms out there. How does the height/weight percentile measurement compare with your real life experiences with your children? If you had a baby who was low on the percentile charts, did she stay small and underweight as she grew older?

(Want to have some more fun with this? Check out these height predictor tools for an estimate of your child's future height.)

My latest sewing project

Thanks to my mom's recent visit, I had some help on my latest sewing venture. Since we don't have money to spend on decorating our home, we don't have many curtains hanging. I really like the homey-ness of curtains though and for a while now I've been wanting some cherry curtains for our kitchen.

After some depressing searching on e-bay for cherry fabric ($7-$10 per yard plus shipping), my mom and I visited a Jo-ann's superstore in a nearby city. WOW, we were both blown away by the huge selection of fabrics and the cheap prices. I found some cherry fabric for about $4 a yard and some ribbon for 10 cents a yard. Voila, kitchen curtains!

Here are some photos of the finished lovelies (please don't look too closely at my sewing handiwork):























This larger window is above our kitchen sink (those are clean dishes drying).


















A far-away shot of the smaller window over the stove so you can see the full effect of the curtain.


















My attempt at showing both windows in our small kitchen.

Blood Emergency!

We are experiencing a blood emergency in northeast Ohio as the recent winter storms have curbed blood donations. I'm so thankful to my mom for always being a role model to me in blood donation. She gives regularly and consistently (except now she can't give blood for a year since she went to Mexico recently).

I haven't been able to give blood since Chloe was born simply because I never have a babysitter (I can't imagine that Chloe would sit patiently in her stroller while I give blood) and I seldom have a car at my disposal to travel to a blood drive. Since my mom was here this weekend, I jumped at the chance to have her watch Chloe so I could give blood on Monday. THANKS, MOM!

I encourage you to donate if you can to help our nation's blood banks recover their supply. Use this link to find a nearby blood drive. Happy donating!

Back online after a week-long absence

I forgot to tell you all that my mom was coming for a long weekend visit. And that explains my recent lack of blogging. Instead I spent my time enjoying my mom (we played 4 games of scrabble, did the Sunday crossword together, shopped, and sewed kitchen curtains) and took a break from the computer.

Chloe and grandma had a grand time together! They had a special evening alone so Matt and I could go on a date (YAY!). They also enjoyed dancing, playing, coloring, and reading lots of books together.



Unfortunately, we didn't get many good photos of our creative 18 mos. old Chloe. She's extremely aware of our camera and as soon as she spots it she races over to see the picture display on the back. Here are a few of our best shots.

















Elmo mesmerizes Chloe.

















Fishies! Fishies!

















My mom just beamed with pride when Chloe wanted a purple balloon (my mom's favorite color) at Applebee's! And boy did Chloe impress the waitresses when she pointed and said "pah-pull".






















Chloe and her cool Subway backpack.


















What am I doing? Duh, mom, as anyone can see I'm obviously scooping up snow and putting it into my tupperware bowl to save for later. Do I have to explain everything to you?

An unexpected Valetine's gift

Better than a box of chocolates is the unexpected gift I got today - Matt's school is closed because of our recent snow dumpage! YAY! No classes for him to attend and no classes for him to teach all day. What a great break for him and what a blessed Valentine's treat for us to have him home.

Unfortunately, he hasn't had too much time to read or study. He spent most of the morning shoveling our driveway and sidewalk and then he did a few neighbors' sidewalks. This evening we're going to splurge and have a dairy queen dinner (we just love their bacon cheeseburgers) and either play a game of scrabble or watch a movie. I'm hoping for scrabble. Matt's whomped me the last two times we've played and I need to redeem myself. :)

A quiet snowy Valentine's Day for our family trio. How nice! How are you celebrating today?

The cutest girl in the universe

It's not up for debate. My Chloe is the cutest girl in the entire known (and unknown too, those aliens have nothing on her) universe. :) Here are some recent photos to prove my point.
















You said we had to get ready to go mom, so I decided to help and put on some mittens and a hat. They seem a little big though.


















Aren't I glamorous, dahling?























Styling my pigtails for church.

Chloe sings you a song for your Lord's Day

Forgive the poor quality of this little video. I was trying to record this while Chloe was sitting on my lap and attempting to avoid getting any of myself on the video. And don't I sound like I'm trying to be on Broadway? Maybe I should consider a career change? Anyone know why the sound is a bit delayed?


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Survey says . . .

Thanks so much to all of you who posted about your thermostat readings! I found it really interesting to read all your comments. Because there are so many variables, it's hard to compare and contrast the findings. But, for those of you who are graph-oriented (feel free to call me a nerd), here's just a basic chart depicting average daytime thermostat temperatures . 68 degrees was by far the most popular temperature choice.

Enjoy your weekend and stay warm!

Thermostat Survey

As the arctic chill moves across the midwest, I've attempted to convince my husband to crank up our thermostat. And he did! We've gone up one whole degree to 68! Thank the Lord for a working furnace and indoor heat to stay warm during these crazy frigid days.

Our household thermostat debate has made me curious, what temperature is your thermostat at during this winter weather? When you post your answer, also indicate what type of abode you heat (apartment, one-story house, duplex, etc.) and also which state you live in.

Stay warm!

Superbowl quandry

Here's a question for you: What happens to the hundreds of hats made for the losers of the superbowl? You know how they make up hats that say "XLI Superbowl Champions" for each team to wear just seconds after the game ends? I imagine there were hats made for the Bears in the unlikely event that they won; what happened to those caps? Do they get destroyed? Or sold on ebay for pennies?

I didn't think I'd find an answer to this question by mere googling, but after 3 tries, I came up with this article link (technology is astounding!). Turns out the 288 shirts and hats made up for the losing Chicago Bears were donated to World Vision, an African relief organization . Those Bears are so kind to lose so their shirts could be donated to needy souls.

Superbowl recap

This photo is of Chloe as she imitated the superbowl players when they were introduced last night. It was so cute I had to snap a photo. She thinks she's just as tough as they are! I'm sure she's at least tougher than Rex Grossman (that dig was for you, my dear friend, Tricia).

We were disappointed by the superbowl commercials this year. Most of them were serious or just dumb. Out of the poor selection our favorites were the beard comb-over (Sierra Mist) and the Robert Goulet (Emerald Nuts). We also chuckled at the "surviving the work week" commercials by careerbuilder.com. Did we miss some good ones at half-time? We turned the tv off at half-time though I did sneak a peek at the artist-formerly-known-as-prince-and-now-known-again-as-prince.

What commercials tickled your funny bone?

Chloe's jumping talent

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Excited for church tomorrow!

Since we missed church last Sunday due to illness, I find myself greatly anticipating the fellowship of believers tomorrow! Our pastor is preaching an awesome, and very practical, series working through the book of James. He just began the series so right now he's talking about how to consider our trials as valuable joys. If you're interested and have the time, I highly recommend you listen to his message from last week. (While you're there, check out the Gettys' concert at the 1-21-07 evening service! They are modern hymn-writers and have written some beautiful sound songs in the last few years. They've been at our church for the last year and I just found out they co-wrote one of my favorite new hymns, In Christ Alone.)

Enjoy your Lord's Day tomorrow!

Playing with markers

In my constant quest for fun creative activities (finger-painting, painting with water), Chloe and I have recently been coloring with washable markers.

What a mess Chloe made during her first time with markers! And those markers come off on EVERYTHING. She got marker all over her hands and then proceeded to wipe her mouth. That wasn't the best though. The funniest moment came when she had an open red marker in her hand and decided to scratch her head with it! Oh my. Her golden hair turns out to adhere very well to marker colors. So, I had a bit of fun and colored her tresses some funky colors as you can see in the photo below.



















Here, mom. Try the yellow marker on my head!

Recipe call for February

After a month off from the recipe swappers blog, we're back with a new theme for February.

I don't know about you, but I'm still struggling with some extra holiday and winter weight. So, let's make February's recipe theme, HEALTHY COOKING. Submit any recipes that are tasty and use healthy ingredients. Maybe you have a dessert recipe in which you've substituted applesauce for oil. Or a delicious fish recipe. Or maybe a veggie and lentil packed soup recipe. Or a whole grained bread or casserole recipe. Or maybe just have a tip for a healthy snack. The possibilities are endless! Send your yummy healthy recipes to me at aliciahorn@hotmail.com.