Christmas Fun

Zoe is just so crafty and loves to draw and paint, anything where she can be creative. We have been making some great Christmas crafts of snowmen and trees. Here are a few of her any beautiful paintings and crafts.........

Learning, Learning, Learning......

I have been blessed with the opportunity recently to stay at home with Zoe and teach her new things. We have been engaging in a daily routine of circle time, reading, writing, singing and lots of imaginative play! We have been working on her Alphabet recognition. She can say them all day long, but when it came to recognizing them she didn't know A from Z, so we made flash cards together and bought a writing pad so that she could learn both by seeing and writing them. Along with this we are  signing the letters as well. She has done remarkably well with it, and we are adding the next four letter this week. I am just so proud of her progress and how eager she is to learn, each day she gets excited when it comes time to do our Alphabet!

It's been a while.......

Sorry for the delay...we have been so very busy here with work, Zoe, just life in general. As I'm sure most everyone is these days. Zoe is still enjoying school each and every day. She had multiple trips to the pumpkin patch in October where we bought a new pumpkin every time. Zoe, and Daddy did all the pumpkin carving this year. She insisted on a scary faced jack-o-lantern and when Jason drew up, then carved it she proceeds to tell him "Daddy, really you think that's scary?" Yes ma'am she is that sassy. Though she enjoyed the jack-o-lanterns after they were carved she did not like the gooey strings and seeds that came with the project! A few photos show her animosity!

    We decorated the front porch in orange lights, and have a blow up pumpkin she just loved to see every day. In the mornings on our way to school she would always no matter how many times we would tell her we turn out the lights and pumpkin in her sweetest voice "Oh NO! Poor pumpkin he needs a band aid he fell on the ground." LOL I loved it! We would then have to plug him back in so she would know the pumpkin was truly alright. I love how sweet and innocent children are. 

   We took her to the church festival again this year, they had her favorite activity. The infamous Bounce House! She would bounce for hours if you let her. She had a few moments of utter break down when she had to get out for 5 minutes so other kids could have a turn. Once she heard the whistle blow however, she knew it was once again her turn and all was well!

When Halloween rolled around she had originally had planned on being a fairy, that night though she grabbed her princess tiara and a cape and said "I want to be a Super Princess" and that is exactly what she was. We made it to about 7 houses around the neighborhood when she looks in her bucket and says Ok Mama, I've got enough, let's go. Wait! What? What child says that after 2 Snickers bars, and 3 Reese's cups? Mine of course! So when we got back home, she said we needed to hand out candy. I believe she had more fun doing that than the actual Trick or Treating! Every time she could hear someone coming she would get so excited and just giggle! More to come I have some hungry people asking for dinner! Stay tuned......

A girl after my own heart....

  Zoe has so many traits and features of both Jason, myself, and other family members that I can see changing each and every day! I love the fact that she loves to be outdoors and play golf with Jason. I enjoy that she likes to help me cook and clean. I absolutely love it when she sings, and she literally will wake up and just start singing and is happy all the time. Her teachers tell me it is a sign of a happy family that she is always like that at school. That blesses my heart to know she is this way everyday. I pray that we raise her to know and love God, to show his love to others each and every day!
  Tonight however showed me that she is truly my daughter! We said our prayers, sang a few songs, then kissed her goodnight. She began to sing to her doll, which isn't unusual. She usually talks about 5 minutes and sings about 5 minutes after that to help her doll fall asleep...(So she tells me!) Well after her singing routine which lasted a bit longer than usual, I assume she has fallen asleep! I continue a few things then head back to my room to dry my hair. As I open the door I notice the tv is on and then see her snuggled down in the covers head poked out watching none other than "The Golden Girls"! She saw me, sits up and says "I watchin' my girls Mama".....I could have cried I was laughing so hard! She is definitely a girl after my own heart! I then tell her if she sleeps in mommy's bed we have to cut the tv off and she pleads "no..I wanna watch the girls!" Oh it is too much! I just love her to pieces and the things she does and says are just priceless!

More Bird dancing and Singing!

I just love each and every day that God blesses me with. Especially with my sweet girl! We sang, and danced all night, I can not think of a better way to spend a day.....Here she is being...well just being Zoe!

Dance...Dance...

First Real Ride and CRASH! LOL

Zoe is really picking up on how to ride her bike. Tonight she had a blast and didn't let a little crash get in her way! Here is our little trooper....

Then Shaking it off and ready to go again!

Enjoying Summer...

     We have been enjoying this very warm weather by spending most weekends on the beach or in the pool. Anywhere to stay cool and beat the humidity! Of course for Zoe that just means all the fun in the world and time to perfect her swimming skills and tan. During the week after work we try to get to the pool for at least an hour for her to play and for us to get a little exercise in. (Chasing her around everyday just isn't enough sometimes ya know?!)  On Fridays she knows at school she gets to have splash day. The teachers set up small pools and sprinklers around the playground and the kids get to have at it. It is a favorite day for our little water baby, as soon as we pick her up on Friday the very first question out of her mouth is "are we going to the beach now?". She knows we do almost every weekend, and is ready to enjoy the ocean, chase seagulls, and build BIG sandcastles.
     We have had the opportunity to go to Myrtle Beach as well, where Zoe got to ride in a golf cart for the first time and loved it. You could hear her coming down the road yelling "weeeeeee" oh it was just delicious! She experienced her first lazy river as well, however that was a little slow paced for her liking. So she jumped out and ran into the kiddie pool where there were kids and waterfalls. There have actually been a lot of first for her this summer. Not only has she been learning to swim, she has also learned to ride her bike. She is getting the peddling down now, but I have a feeling she will be off in no time. Maybe this is a good time for me to take up jogging so that I can keep up with her.

More Songs

Sweet Innocence

There are many wonderful qualities that the Lanford's were blessed with. However my favorite is their singing abilities. I have always loved to hear my family sit around and sing old southern gospel songs! It is a memory that I cherish and any time I hear a song I immediately think of my family! So naturally I was very excited when Zoe began talking and then singing!! The girl loves to sing and sing. Any song, anywhere, and a lot of the times they are Zoe originals. Tonight I finally got the girl on camera singing a few...Enjoy the sweet innocence of a child!

Zoe's First Graduation

The first of many graduations came this past Friday June 3, 2011! Zoe is officially in the 3 and 4 year old class at school now.  She received her very own cap and diploma for completing the Toddler Two class. We are very excited as she is moving up 7 months early! We are hoping she will learn even more with this new class and experience! 

Sometimes you just have to DANCE!!!

The video says enough.....

"Why" is the Question?!

       I knew it was inevitable....the day would come when Zoe would ask me WHY? That  day was June 1, 2011! Oh YAY!! Let me set the scenario, I was cooking dinner and she was "just starving Mommy!" So we had given her some goldfish to snack on until dinner was ready. She runs back in the kitchen and says "Mommy mo fish peas!" I tell her "No ma'am dinner will be ready in a few minutes." Well, are you ready for it? She looks up at me with those innocent blue eyes and asks "Why not Mommy?" Oh my.... Because I said so came to mind first, but I thought she wouldn't understand that, so I said because we are getting ready to eat yummy cubed steak with rice and gravy! "Umm..no; WHY not Mommy?" So it began the use of a vexatious word in question form she will forever use to find out the answers to innumerable questions!
       With each new word, phrase, or question she learns comes a new obstacle or query. I simply love it! No matter how irritating it may be I wouldn't change it for anything.  I just hope I will always be able to know the answers to her questions......we shall see!

Golf Time

Since Jason and I share the hobby and love of golf, Zoe is quickly catching on to the game as well! She loves to putt-putt, and has no qualms if we take her along to the driving range with us. Here she is teaching Daddy to putt and enjoying herself!

My Little Fish

 A warm breeze blowing, the pungent smell of salt water, and the humidity that you can feel making your hair curly is what summer is all about here in beautiful Beaufort, SC! It also means that Zoe without fail, ever Friday asks..." Are we going to the beach? Or the Pool?" LOL I simply love it! She has now realized that her "swimmies" help her float and swim so she believes she is a fish! She will swim  from one end of the pool to the other non stop! She jumps in and says :" No mama, I got it. I a fish!" :) She is too funny!

Summer time in the life of Zoe!

    Wow... I didn't realize how long it had been since my last blog! Tax season was a whirl wind, and getting into the swing of working mom, cook, mom, wife, and then me time is hectic! I promise though from now on to be more regular with my blogs. Especially since Zoe is changing and growing so very fast!
    Ok...let us see....the newest and greatest Zoe info! Our sweet little birdie will be moving up to the 3 & 4 yr old class in a couple of weeks. They evaluated her and decided the class she is in now doesn't stimulate her enough and asked if it were ok for them to move her up. We are very excited about this new transition for her, we know she will be challenged and will learn so many new things. At the same time she loves her teachers and friends in the class she is in now, so I'm sure it will be an adjustment as well! She is counting to 13 now, knows her ABC's,  she has a signing vocabulary of 52, she knows how to spell her own name ( I know, I know it's 3 letters and easy lol), she has been completely potty trained now for 5 months, and sings ALL the time. I believe the last time I counted she knows 23 different songs!
    She blesses me heart with her singing...we will be riding down the road and she will just bust out "He's got the Whole World In His Hands" and she likes to name every one! From Mama, and Daddy...to Papa and No-Nah! It is the most precious thing I have ever heard! My cup truly runneth over. I have to sneak to get her to sing on camera, because as you all know as soon as the camera comes out the mouth closes! LOL I haven't gotten her singing all the good ones yet, but here she is singing Chick Boom Boom and sings the  "A told B and B told C I will meet you at the top of the Coconut Tree", then of course "Frere Jacques" Enjoy....

Island Playground

In Bluffton there is a great playground for kids called Island Playground! It is a lot of bounce houses and just a great place for kids to run out all their energy lol! Here Zoe is sliding on the largest slide they have, little miss fearless lol! Enjoy!

Playing Around

So the silly bird found a pacy the other day and proceeded to carry it around all day! The child wouldn't take one to save her life when she was a baby, but now she does lol! (It has since this photo been tossed!)

Zoe is my little chatter box now. She is constantly talking about any and everything! She is also going to be a great singer I believe, for when she is not talking she is singing songs from "Itsy Bitsy Spider", "Twinkle Twinkle", "Jump up and Down", to her Zoe originals (which happen to be my absolute favorites!) She will sing about a bird, about how Daddy's back hurts(which is quite amusing since she bends over and walks like an old man when she sings it), or she will sing my personal favorite "mama's a pretty girl" lol! Where she comes up with these I'm not entirely sure but they put a smile on my face and so much joy in my heart!

She is also learning to write now, she was standing at her easel last night with Jason, picks up her marker and says "look Daddy an A" and writes an A on the board! It was amazing, so we are now practicing with her A, B, and C, we will add another letter each time she progresses!  She is still watching the baby can read series and can now read the words hi, clap and eyes! It is a remarkable program and I am hoping she continues to learn more and more from it.

More pictures will be posted very soon and a few videos! We love and miss you all so very much!

Z-O-E

I have been trying for the longest time now to get Zoe on camera spelling her name! Tonight was my night lol! Here is the sweetest bird playing around and spelling her name!

    So now that Zoe is loving the phrase "Come on Dude" we are working on others as well lol! Such as "are you serious Mama?" Oh my, she never ceases to amaze me. I am also proud to say that we have not bought a pack of pull ups since the week we got back from Christmas! She has been wearing her big girl panties each day and is doing great. She still may have an accident every now and again when she gets to playing and forgets lol, but I must say it helps tremendously not having to buy diapers. Everyone was correct, that is very expensive.

    I am going to be posting another clip of her playing in just a bit, so watch for it. Let's see I am trying to think....she has all of her teeth now but 5! I know this because I made the mistake of "nibbling" on her finger the other night when we were playing. When it was "Zoe's turn" her nibble was more like a full on chomp down that would require the jaws of life to get it off my finger! Oh well, that's what I get for not explaining is should be done easy. More to come on our birdie soon, I am hoping we get a little of this wintry weather we are hearing about so I can record her being in the snow. We love you and miss you all so very much!

Come On Dude!

The Flipper

Zoe's Newest tricks!

    Well our growing birdie is now two, and just rowdy all the time! I love it! She is constantly saying, or learning something new that amazes me all the time. Her newest accomplishment is spelling her name, I have been spelling  it for her a few weeks now. So the other day she said "Zoe, Z-O-E, my name!" just out of the blue. It was so funny and sweet, she just blows me away sometimes.

    Also she has learned to flip over now! She will make a bridge, then push herself over. This I was fortunate enough to catch on her first time. Once she had it down all she would say it "more again, more again". (Video coming soon!)