The Things that Madder

Bath time

2012-02-06T18:28:00.001-08:00

Madi is taking a bath. Baby duck: "mommy, I have to go potty"Mommy duck: "you can go potty"Baby duck: "will you take me mommy?"Mommy duck: "sure sweetheart"*madi puts baby duck on mommy ducks back and swims to the other side of the tub* I don't know what it is, but just listening to my daughter play is so amazingly priceless.

Beautiful Child

2012-01-06T10:20:00.000-08:00

My heart could explode. Every time I look at Madilynn I am in awe. It is amazing because my love only continues to grow for her - even when I don't feel like it can grow any larger.

Madilynn's First Day of Preschool - Salem Hills Elementary

So many changes are happening everyday, it is hard to keep up with her. She began Preschool at Salem Hills Elementary October 24th 2011. She LOVES it there and is excelling. I am so impressed with the program and everything that they have to offer. Ms. Kathy and Ms. Joanne are her fabulous teachers.

She is starting to grasp so many more concepts. Madi is wired so uniquely, it is really beautiful how she is contently her own person, I love it. She may technically be behind regarding her communication and language, but she is advanced in so many other ways - she feels deeper than the average 3 year old, she understands on a different level, she has depth. Her spirit is so sweet and kind - she is empathetic and realizes how her choices affect others. She is perceptive and intuitive, more so than any other 3 year old I have met. Her love is amazing, natural and pure - I can feel it, and I am addicted to it. Her hugs, her kisses, and her "Mommy you are beautiful"s are enough to get me through the toughest days. People are drawn to her, because she has this sweet positive energy about her. I can just sit and watch her and I can see God in her. I can never get enough.

Madilynn loves music, and thoroughly enjoys singing along to all music (whether she knows the music or not). The first two songs I noticed her singing along to were Super Base - Niki Minaj and Adele - Someone Like You. There is nothing more precious than hearing your child sing.

She loves movies, especially the intense dramatic ones, she quotes so many movies as she watches them. I love watching her engage with the characters. The other day she was watching a film and there was a sad, heartbreaking scene and she began to cry, empathizing with the characters - I was amazed that at 3 years old she is able to grasp the emotion behind the actions of the characters. Madilynn has a soft heart, full of love and tenderness.

October 2011

I am wowed day in and day out to see what she can create out of paints, markers and a blank piece of paper. She is truly an artist. Her favorite past time is to create art. She is always creating new designs, mostly abstract like the one above. I have so many pieces it is hard to know what to save and what to throw - so for now I have piles of hundreds of pictures more precious to me than a Picasso painting. My daughter is talented.

November 2011

She is a princess, and loves all things girlie. She is so her mothers daughter. My heart Gleams when I watch her dress up, put on her lip gloss, wear my high heels, beg me to paint her nails pretty, smile at herself in the mirror... she is adorable.

She loves Dancing. She began dance class in Sept 2011 and loves going to class. She is the free spirit of the class no doubt, usually doing her own thing - she stands out of the crowd - I cannot wait to watch her perform on stage.

Her teachers love her and have only great things to say. She listens and behaves so well. They said "we have never seen her anything but Happy" and that she is a joy to have. Madi is a very happy-go-lucky little lady who loves to be active, loves to learn, and loves to connect with people.

It keeps getting better. Parenthood is a roller coaster ride, full of excitement. I am so blessed. Everyday I thank God for Madilynn, with her my life feels so at peace.

3.5

2011-10-20T09:35:00.000-07:00

time flies... it has been awhile since I have updated. So here goes.

I have a ... Dancing. twinkle-little star singing. laughing. Pretty much, no more napping. Coloring. cleaning. Picky eating. 'I have an Owie.' Loving. Movie Watching. Play-dough playing. Lip gloss wearing. Pretty-pretty princess pretending. Fake food serving. Book enjoying. Somersault flipping. Melody Loving. Praying. Babbling. jump up in the air, tapping. water drinking. well-behaving. Energy producing. Leotard wearing. Chatting. Caring. little girl.

Everyone loves her vibrant energy. 3 years old is so much better than the terrible-twos. I only have to tell her once and she gets it, she understands consequences well, and she behaves so much better than she used to.

She is so curious about everything now... she went to Dodge Nature preschool over the summer. She loved it and the teachers loved her. She got to get her hands (and whole body) dirty pretty much everyday.

I am nervous about ever having another child just because I know that the chances of me ever having a child as easy and as great as her are fairly slim. She is such a good-girl and listens so well.

She loves bath time. She even embraces bedtime well, we have a set routine that she loves to follow. Brush your teeth (sometimes a bath), read a book, say our prayers, kisses, hugs and I love you's... every night we embrace each other for a good couple minutes before I tuck her in. She still loves to listen to her lullaby CD throughout the night.

She is an arteist no doubt. Her favorite thing to do is to color and paint (besides watching TV of course)

Oh wow... she is a dancing queen. Pretty sure I have created a monster here. On dance class days she is excited alllll day and when I tell her that she has dance that day I have to plug my ears to block out the high-pitched squeal that comes out of her tiny little self. AND if I let her, she would wear her dance shoes all day everyday...

We had a fabulous summer. Statefair, camping, going to parks... we did a ton of fun things. She loves to be active and do and see new things. Her excitement is so fun to see, she is always squealing and screaming exuberantly.

She loves to Love everyone and everything! If I could freeze these moments in time I sure would. I love every second with her - watching her and interacting with her. Madilynn Paige is a treasure.

Night and Day

2011-03-12T07:51:00.000-08:00

Madi keeps changing... she is growing up, and in less than a month she will be three.

Some of her favorite things:
-Melody (and her tag)
-Princesses. She wears a princess dress-up dress daily over her clothes - she will even demand to sleep in it.
-Painting. Water colors and fingerpainting - she prefers it over markers, crayons and pastels.
-Chocolate. It can be candy or cake it doesn't matter. The other day I gave her applesauce she pushed it away and said, "chocolate please" yeah Madi... not happening.
-Movies. Ponyo and TMNT are two of her favorites right now.
-Cereal, yogurt, noodles, mac-n-cheese, and candy are her favorite things to eat.

unique to Mad's:
-She hates anything dirty or messy especially her hands and face.
-Madi likes everything a certain way... for example she wants her cup and napkin set a certain way around her plate and if I move anything she will not have it. She likes to be tucked in a certain way at night.
-Green is her favorite color. she chooses green and blue over all other colors anytime there is an option of color.
-Bath time is not her favorite, by any means, she usually fights me when it is time to bathe... sadly.
-She is a picky eater and won't even try it based on appearance (she doesn't get that from me)
-She doesn't like hot food she prefers it Luke warm or cooler.
-One of my favorite things about her is that she doesn't get into things that she isn't supposed to touch. She has never even broken anything... I don't ever have to worry about "what she is getting in to" it is great.
-Attitude is her game. She has A LOT of it!
-Water is her drink of choice.
-Sleep is no issue with her, she embraces it well, as long as she has Melody, water, and a blanket.
-She thrives on routine. Every night before bed we read a book, pray, give hugs and kisses, then I turn on music - if any of those are not in the equation she is not a happy camper.
-Getting prettied up is something she loves to do.
-She is organized and likes things put together. She lined up all of barbies shoes in her princess castle in front of the dresser in barbies room. it is cute.
-Cuddling is something she is great at, and kisses and hugs - I love it when she is sweet.
-Stubbornness is one of her greatest characteristics, if she doesn't want to do it, she will fight tooth and nail.
-Music and dancing are things she really enjoys.
-She loves for me to tickle her skin: arms, legs, feet, face - she even prompts me.
-She is very sensitive - it reminds me of myself. She will become sad if I say no to something, and pucker up her lip.
-The camera isn't her favorite thing...
-Painting her nails is something that she would be happy if I did everyday.
-Her hair is fine and curly - just like mine as a kid.
-The car is her happy place. If she is screaming and freaking out, that is a place that will calm her.

Madi is night and day - she is either the sweetest little thing, or the most angry little girl you ever did see. Naps are a must, if she doesn't get one than life is miserable! She likes to be on the go. But if I need a calm chill day, she does great with that too - she is content with cuddling up on the couch to watch a movie, I love it. Madi is full of life and character. Everyone loves her.

"it's okay"

2010-10-06T15:15:00.000-07:00

Madi reassures me often, telling me "It's okay" in her cute enthusiastic, high pitched girly voice. She is so cute, and even though she is so innocent and sweet and fragile - she is my backbone.

Time is flying by and I so desperately don't want to forget all of these precious moments as she grows. She is growing up so fast. There is always something new going on in her world. She is learning so much day in and day out. I am so proud to be her Mom!

She caught on really quick with potty training. The beginning of September 2010 she would wake with a dry diaper. So I decided to introduce the potty. Success! there have been some accidents here and there - which is to be expected, but so far it has been easier than I anticipated. I don't even dread public, it is great :) my two and a half year old is pretty much potty ready! I love it. We kissed diapers goodbye :)

her first official obsession, and when I say obsession that is EXACTLY what I mean... Princess!! She loves anything and everything princess. As far as being a girly girl, she has got it down pat. I love it! She even loves to rock my heels that are getting dusty because mommy doesn't wear them too often. I love it because, in her girly-ness I see myself all over again as a little girl. I cannot wait for her to start dance, she already loves it and she has yet to begin a class.

She digs movies, especially princess movies! She loves to color, and is actually quite good at it for a two year old. Purses, dress up, shoes and clothes - she loves it all. She loves her kitchen and enjoys pretend cooking and eating.

Melody is still her best friend, and she prefers her original bear - she won't take a new one to bed at night, she likes the worn out tags on the bottom. she nixed the music box though and just uses melody for a good cuddle every once in awhile, especially if she is worked up emotionally - it brings her security.

She still babbles a lot, but it is cute. I work with her on proper annunciation but she doesn't care to respond correctly - so I am not pushing her, that is what school will do for her at 5. She talks a ton, and is a little chatter box. She has the politeness down (finally) and I love it :)

Madi has such a youthful, particular, carefree personality - and is very headstrong. No one will ever stand in her way, that's for sure! She is independant but does great with her friends. She loves to give and get kisses and hugs, she is sweet in that way. But when she wants to be left alone she will be sure to let you know! she is a feisty one.

We began swimming lessons this fall. So far so good :) she loves the water. Her favorite is jumping in. Kicking a swimming seem to come naturally to her.

As for the terrible two fits she was throwing during summer - they have calmed and gotten much better, and now when she has them they are much more manageable. Some have forewarned me for the terrible-three's... hopefully they won't be as bad, but I am prepared.

She has my hair for sure - color and all. Dans coloring and his eyes. Her mouth is just like mine, but she has the beautiful Rosario (Puerto Rican) lips. she is a beauty, I can only imagine what the teenage years will bring. I need to get some more practice on the shotgun, the boys will be chasing after her.

Motherhood is a fun roller coaster of unknown twists and turns. The excitement is never ending, it only intensifies as time goes by. I never knew I could love something so much. Madi has truly been a gift, that has opened my eyes up to the beauty of true, unconditional love - the love of a mother for her child.

"I want Princess!!"

2010-08-13T18:12:00.001-07:00

said with a squeal!

My little love bug isn't getting any smaller...
Time is flying by and so are the precious moments with my {no longer a} baby. She is a big girl now, and into big girl things!

We went on a trip to California for GRandpa's wedding in July, it was fun, but a ton of work for Mommy. Madilynn was at the peak of what I refer to as her "Rage fits," which defines EXACTLY what they were. yeah... no bueno, for everyone involved. Some nanny 911 tricks seemed to help and she is much better now. Instead of screaming, yelling, hitting and kicking she goes into another room and puts her head in her hands sobbing quietly, cute and sad all at the same time - but I am not going to lie, it is much better than the fits.

Two years has been a blast and a such a challenge all at the same time. I am learning more and more everyday about how to be a better Mom.

Princess, barbies, girly things... that is all she likes right now. I am loving it!

talking. running. whining.

2010-05-28T07:46:00.000-07:00

"Watcha doin Mama? Watcha doin?"When those words came out of Madi's mouth I was in shock and I had a great admiration for my beautiful growing daughter. Just three months ago she could only say a handful of words and wouldn't attempt saying anything that she didn't know how to correctly pronounce. She must have gained confidence after turning two, either that or she fully believes me when I tell her that she is a big girl and she can do it. 'walk at one, talk at two' is the rule, and it was so true. Right after she turned two she would finally attempt all words.
I will say, "Madi can you say _____________?" and she will repeat it; sometimes butchering the word, but I love it nonetheless! My baby is growing up. She can talk and communicate now.

Madi has a beautiful, determined spirit, with a bit of impatience. She is beautifully head strong, and a risk taker, who seems to have no fear. It is only when she is presented to people that she is not that familiar with, that her shyness is revealed; she clings to my leg, I love it-it reminds me of when I was a little girl clinging to my Mom. She is demanding and at times not so kind. I am constantly reminding her to "be nice." She repeats it after me while showing me a nice touch, caressing her arm back and forth. She gets it, and I love it! Finally, we have moved past the phase of no communication.

Madi is a Big girl now. When she cries, I remind her, "You are a big girl Madi, you can talk now, tell Mommy with your words. I cannot understand screams like I understand words." It has been helpful, I think she knows what I mean. But it is the whining that has taken effect that I have a harder time with-she has started to whine more when she talks. Hopefully it is another phase...

She is two now. Since her outdoor birthday, which was a ton of fun, we have changed two big things; 1)she is no longer in a crib, she has a big girl bed now, and 2) No more pacifier!!! yayy!
It was a hard transition-the pacifier, I mean. The first night she cried herself to sleep. Emotionally it was very tough on me. I question ever using a pacifier again... I felt like a horrible mommy, taking her paci away. She demanded it til the moment her eyes closed that first night (following almost an hour of cries). The second night went better, and she only requested it a few times. I reminded her that she is a big girl. I had a talk with her about giving them to her baby cousins, because she has grown up and they are still babies. So Madi and I packaged them up, and I had her hand them over to abby, her baby cousin. I reminded her of that the second night, and then she demanded that we get them back. I had a little chuckle inside, because I knew that when I watched her hand them over, she probably didn't fully understand the implication of handing over the pacifiers to abby. Now when she sees them she doesn't even attempt to put them into her mouth, it is great living paci free :) As for the bed, it is great, the transition was simple and she does very well, staying in bed all throughout the night.
Melody and Madi are still a pair, she loves that bear. I don't foresee her ever sleeping without it!

We have started some potty training, but it might be a bit early - I don't want it to backfire, so I am letting her take the lead. She will tell me when she is ready. She loves the potty, and I don't want to ruin that. She will also go all night without going potty in her diaper, so I anticipate it not being too tough.
She is extremely independent, and a leader for sure. She is sharp and doesn't look past the details, she notices everything, even going to the extent of pointing out the little spot on the carpet. She is meticulous about things, putting them in their proper place-or atleast where she sees fit. Madilynn is determined, once she sets out to do something, even if there are roadblocks in her way, she will push through toward her goal. She is a fighter for sure, which has already posed many challenges to my authority. But her heart is kind and soft, I can tell she cares. If she knows she is wrong, she feels remorse and a will give the most genuine hugs and touches showing her sorrow. I love when she embraces me and pats my back with her hands. She has my sensitivity, which is a blessing and a curse-believe me, I know-she will cry with the lips curled down if I say no to her with the wrong tone. I love her. Every day I am in awe at my baby girl who is growing into a girl of her own. Madi is definitely her own person, and I love it.

She likes to be on the go constantly, demanding me even. "Outside Mommy!" she loves to go... to get out. One night she woke at 1am and I went into her room, she grabbed my hand and began to tug at me, "Bye-bye mommy! go bye-bye!" she demanded. She wasn't to happy when I told her it was night-night time.
She is active for sure. She can run circles around me. I am convinced that if we ran a 5k together she could outrun me today. Sean and I went to the park last month, to go for a walk. I let Madi out of her stroller, and she began to run.When she was about 30 feet away, down the walking path, I began to commence her back. But she didn't listen. I continued to call to her, but before I knew it she was about 60 feet away. So I continued to call to her while beginning to jog toward her. But she was determined to run, and like I said-nothing can stop my driven child from her goal. She ran, and she ran, and ran. I began to laugh as I picked up my pace. She is like me, someone who is driven toward what they want, even if others attempt to stop us. She warms my heart.

She works well with others, and yet is totally fine playing and being alone. She loves to be very active, taking walks and playing at the park are her favorite things to do. She loves puzzles, and always demands to color, especially with pens, rather than crayon (of course). Again, like I have said all along, I think she might be a singer-she loves music. In the car she bops her head and tries to sing along, like mommy does. It is so stinking cute!

She has such great enthusiasm, it comes out all the time, but is the cutest when she is excited about something. Her pitch elevates, and she gets louder with excitement, usually screaming too. Her voice is adorable, everyone comments on it, she has brought smiles to so many faces.

Madi is a chatty kathy most of the time-unless she is in a shy or tired mood. She still has parts that are her own dialogue, I know that she wishes she could babble on like I do, and so she does-in her language atleast. She is putting few word sentences together, and knows to say please and thank-you.

She loves animals, and definitely shows enthusiasm every time she sees one! The cutest is how she responds to bugs, squealing and jumping around, she will even picking them up.

She loves being a girl: sunglasses, shoes, purses, babies, and loving everything colorful, frilly and pink. But with that said, she has no issue getting dirty or being rough and tough for that matter...

She is growing pickier about the food that she eats, preferring anything sweet over everything else. It is hard to get her to eat a lot. She likes milk, and loves water. Candy is her favorite, and the enthusiasm shows it face again when candy is in the picture.

She is very adaptable, although she may be shy in the beginning she will usually always open up to something new.

I see myself in her, and I am surprised at how much I love it. She has grown to be someone that gives me such a great meaning to life. When my day is hard, all I need is a kiss or hug from her and it can turn right around. If only she knew the power that she had over my heart, I don't know what I would do without her. I cherish her more than anything I have ever loved. I never knew that I could love something or someone so passionately, intensely, and unconditionally. I am still amazed day in and day out. I am so blessed to be her Mommy!

Cheese!!

2010-03-03T16:08:00.000-08:00

It is her very Favorite, Cheese that is. I am pretty sure that if that was the only food we ate she would be content! She also loves to say "CHEEEESE!" for the camera, it is pretty cute! She is getting so big, growing up so fast, and intellectually - it seems like she makes leaps and bounds every day! She is talking more, and her babbles are still frequent, she is a chatterbox. I have gotten a couple videos, but I am striving to get more, I know I am going to miss these days! My most enjoyable moment yet with her has been this -- she pulls my face close to hers and whispers, "i love you" it is so precious and sweet.

Motherhood still amazes me daily, Madi has challenged me and helped me grow in so many ways. Being a Mom is the most amazingly beautiful thing that I have experienced and at the same time, it has been one of the hardest most challenging ventures I have experienced~

"I Love you" she whispers sweetly, as she pulls her face close to mine. I can feel her breath and it is so sweet! She is so passionate and loving. She cuddles, and kisses, hugs, and will even embrace your face in her hands or wrap her arms around your neck and squeeze. I love it when she blows kisses my way as she leaves to go with her Daddy. It is in these moments that I am reminded of how awesome it is, and what a privlege it is to be her Mommy. Times get tough and she throws many challenges my way, screaming to get her way, or demanding and yelling at me. We are learning how to work with eachother more and more everyday, it is a learning process for both of us. Neither of us are perfect, but we are perfect for each other - Her as my daughter, and me being her Mom. I know that I am here to help her to choose the right path for her life, being Madilynn's Mom is awesome!

She has been talking more and more everyday, it is great! I am so proud of her, she has been trying really hard! We do flashcards once in a while and I even work with her on learning different words like up, down, hot, cold and so on. I love her dialect, she still babbles, and it is adorable! Her new favorite word is fritty, meaning pretty - other than the words "No! Mine!' when she gets frustrated. She can say peoples names now, or even pick up on random words that I say, now it is becoming imperative that I watch what I say. She will attempt to say things now when I prompt her - sometimes she has her moments where she will completely ignore me though. As Alyshia said, sometimes we feel disrespected when they completely ignore us, but that is the beauty of the 2 year old! I know that sooner or later she is going to be talking my ear off, so I try and remind myself not to rush her or put too much pressure on her to advance.

I am pretty sure that she is going to be a singer someday. She loves music, and along with that she loves to Sing, scream, and yell! Her lungs are amazing, she can hold a note forever, and if she puts forth that energy in the future toward something positive, I have a feeling that she will sing beautifully.

This age has been particularly challenging due to many factors. With being almost two years old and just learning how to communicate - which isn't all the effective yet, it is usually her babbling or screaming trying to get me to understand what she is saying, through frustration. Not only that Madi is discovering that she is her own person, and she wants to make her own decisions, regardless of wether or not it is a good choice. If I step in she tends to defy me. She is strong willed (and so am I), stubborn, and opinionated. But like I said, we are both growing together learning how to work with one another. Through all of this the one thing that has been a great tool for me is timeout, it works wonders. She has atleast one timeout a day (I can say that for sure, if not many more!) typically she is forewarned that if she doesn't make a good decision that her conseqence will be timeout. I am hoping that she is starting to comprehend the concept of consequences to her behavior. Positive reinforcement has been great tool as well. Clapping, or even telling her that she did a great job and giving her a high five really gives her motive to want to make good choices! This has been especially effective when it comes to cleaning. When she plays with toys, I try to keep them to a minimum, that way she doesn't get overwhelmed with the amount that she has to clean up when she is done playing. I always help her clean as well, and when we do clean we sing the clean up song, then we clap after it is all done.

She loves baths as long as I don't wash her, in her opinion they should be strictly recreational! Speaking of the bathrom, she has been going to the potty!! She Loves the her potty chair and the toilet. When I suggest it she typically runs to the bathroom and attempts to pull her pants off, saying 'Potty!! Potty!!' the whole way there - she makes me smile. But she is not quite to the point where she will communicate when she needs to go. Usually she goes in the big girl potty about once a day now, and I figure that it is a great way to introduce it and to start the process of potty training. I don't want to be forceful, I know that when she is ready she will let me know. I like to make things that seem like they are a chore, fun for her, that way her learning to get in the habit of doing them won't be a struggle - it will be a choice that she can make and feel good about. For now she is still in diapers - boy it will be awesome to retire them!

Madi is big and healthy - growing like a weed! She is about 37 inches tall and 27.6 pounds. She has a very solid build like her Dad. I am determined that she is going to have a very athletic body type, maybe she will be a hockey player some day ;) She is so beautiful, it really amazes me. Her hair is growing, and the curls remind me of my own hair. She has perfect eyebrows, beautiful big brown eyes, and gorgeous long eyelashes that bring out her eyes. She is perfect, often I stare at her in awe! God has really blessed me with an amazing little girl.

It is really cool to watch her personality bloom. Sometimes she reminds me so much of myself. She is so sensitive, crying at any little thing. If I tell her no, or try to quiet her down when she is screaming by saying 'Shhh'- she will start to cry and look for consolation - as if I just shamed her. It makes me giggle, only because I myself am too familiar with being sensitive. I have grown out of it in so many regards, but when I was her age anything would set me off, and my feelings would be hurt, and of course the tears would start to flow - just like Madi! It is so true, that statement "You get what you give."Another thing that is pretty cute is that she loves her arms, legs, and even her belly to be rubbed, and tickled. She will pull her sleeves up and hand over her arm, asking me to rub her. I just love it, I am the same EXACT way - anyone who knows me will get a good chuckle out of this It is great having a little mini me.

She loves to hang out with her friends too. She is a social butterfly, and sometimes she will request me to take her Bye-bye. We love hanging out with Alyshia, who is a very close friend of mine from highschool, and her daughter Sophia who is almost one year older than Madi. They play great together, and it is awesome to watch them play - I don't think that either one of us thought back in the day 'our daughters are going to grow up together and be friends,' it is just really cool to have that! We also have some other really good friends from church. Our Ladies Group' as we call it, almost all of us are Mom's - it is great to have one another for suppor. It is awesome bringing our kids together to play and socialize. Madi and I have an amazing group of family and friends in our life!

As for playtime, Madi has really started to take an interest in toys that are more interactive, and geared toward toddlers and young children. Instead of playing with the usual baby toys, she is starting to gravitate toward other interests like: Barbies; puzzles; playing with dolls and treating them as though she would a real baby; her doll house; she especially likes cars that she can put her dolls in - she even makes cute noises and such mimicing noises that people would make or wha a car would make; She loves books, and will even go sit in her reading nook and look at books and pretend read to herself, it is adorable; she loves to dress up; no matter what she is doing it needs to be hands on. She loves to be active in everything that she does, so if it involves running around she is all for it - her energy astounds me, she is seriously like the energizer bunny.

She just recently has really started to take a liking to TV and movies... It is great! Not many parents would say that, but in my case I believe that TV, in moderation of course, can be a great thing!! There are some amazing shows, especialy on the sprout channel, that are great in helping develop a babies mind, and to aid them in learning some basic things like counting, ABC's, and so forth. She loves to cuddle up on the couch with me to watch a little TV, we don't do it often, because we don't watch too much, but it is fun great when we do.

As for her sleeping habits, they are great. She has been down to one daily nap for the past few months, and goes to sleep usually with no issues at all. For the most part there are no tears or crying, and she embraces nap time and sleepy time well. She wakes anywhere from 7am-8:30am, takes about a 2-3 hour nap, then goes back down around 8pm (usually, unless we have something going on). She sleeps with a paci, and Melody and is a great self soother - very seldom do I have to go and tend to her at night!

She is a risk taker just like her parents - I see it even more when she is playing with other kids, she will do things that the other kids won't do. Madi isn't scared or timid of anything it seems, other than when she is first introduced to a dog. She will jump right up and give anything a try for the most part, even if it is jumping off of a toddler chair, only to crash down on the ground leaving her with a big bump on her head. It doesn't help at all that she is definitely accident prone- which is becoming all to familiar these days, running into the wall or falling to the ground with a crash. I dread the first broken bone, or serious injury.

When she gets hurt she always wants to turn to three things for comfort - other than the comfort of me that is: Melody - her bear, her pacifier, and a sippy cup. The paci is pretty much my worst enemy, I am constantly fighting against it, and Madi is fighting for it - it is a battle that has yet been won. Hopefully soon we can get rid of them. I sometimes wish that I had never introduced them to her. Two will be the cut off for me though, so hopefully at that point I can rationalize with her that they need to go, and explain to her that she is a big girl now. We will see how that challenge goes...

Just one more month from today and my baby will be two years old! Where has the time gone? Looking back it is mind blowing to see how far she has come physically, developmentally, and mentally. It is no wonder that our minds forget the beginnings of our childhood, so much happens in such a short period - it is probably incomprehensible to a babies mind.

Leaps and Bounds

2010-02-03T11:23:00.000-08:00

Madilynn, she is taking leaps and bounds. It almost seems like everyday she learns something new. It is amazing to watch, as a parent, seeing a beautiful little flower bloom. As I watch the beautiful colors and blossoms grow I cannot help but smile.
Madi is so animated, and excited! She loves to dig in and try everything out. She has so much energy it is really astonishing, the other night she just kept running laps around the house just for the fun of it giggling along the way.

I am pretty sure that anyone who has spent any time with her in the last few weeks will agree with me when I say that Madi has her own dialect and language. She will talk your ear off forever and you might not even understand a word of what she said, but with all of her expressions and animations you know that she really did say something with meaning behind it, it is so adorable. I actually did get it on video the other day, it is pretty darn cute when she goes off on tangents.

Madi is getting really good at puzzles; she loves baby dolls and caring for them, even pushing them in a stoller or carrying them around in a baby seat; she loves to be with me and be at my level, hence being on the counterop - one of her favorite places; As always shoes and purses are her favorite things, especially my stiletto heels and her princess dress up shoes she got for Christmas; She really understands the concept of ownership and that certain things belong to certain people, so she will do things like take away my phone from someone who might be using it and come and give it back to me; Coloring is something that she really loves to do, especially if I give her markers; She is doing really well with interaction and play dates, overall her sharing is really good, although every once in a while I will hear squeals from either her or her playdate; Books are something that she really enjoys, even on her own she will go and sit in her book corner in her room and pretend to read; she loves the childrens museum, or anything that interactive and active like the park; she loves to climb jungle gyms and go down slides; Madi is so lovey, she loves to give and get hugs, cuddles and kisses to and from everyone, it just melts hearts! I love having a happy baby.
Madi and Melody are like a team, very rarely do you see Madilynn without Melody her bear. I am completely okay with it, because it brings her security wherever she is at whether it is my house, Dan's house, her gradma's house or someplace else she can find security in it. The pacifier on the other hand became like a crutch and she began demanding it more and more. The last few weeks we have decided that we will only be giving it to her at night or nap-time, and only if she asks for it. It has been going really well.

She is coming into her own and gaining more and more independence everyday. She eats very well with a spoon and fork by herself, and drinks from a cup really well. She likes to blow her own nose, and brush her own teeth. She is picking up on a lot of things that I do and she even mimics the small things that I don't even think to notice i.e. taking my deodorant and putting it down her shirt, through the collar - just like I do every morning :)

She is really starting to understand the concept of manipulation. She is quite dramatic and will throw a fit or give out a scream or even cry if she isn't getting what she wants, the "Terrible Twos" as they call it, has really set in. It is challenging to me and Madi both, but I know that we are both growing through it.

Parenting is tough, but as they say what doesn't kill you makes you stroger, and it is true, because of Madi I am a stronger person. I think that once you have a baby something changes in a person, for the good, I understand now the love of a parent and the drive to be better for your child. I am excited to grow with Madi, this adventure called Motherhood is an amazing fun adventure.

Change is happening every moment of everyday

2010-01-14T15:16:00.000-08:00

Madi is a busy bee, doing so much and learning so many things. Everything is happening so fast that sometimes it is hard to document it all. So I figured I would make it simple for myself and just write a list of updates:

~ Madi LOVES Purses, they are one of her favorite things.

~She has recently discovered two things: how fun it is to flush the toilet over and over and over, and how to pick her nose - she really enjoys doing the latter all throughout the day.

~She is a Pro-Present opener, so much so that she opened anything that was in front of her on Christmas day, that included my gifts and some of her cousins gifts too.

~She has become a pro at throwing tantrums too! The other day when I suggested that we leave she yelled no and proceeded to throw herself and the ground, scream, kick, and hit... Yes, it was a public place and I finally managed to get her out of the building, although it was without a jacket on... anyone who says parenting a two year old isn't challenging, I have a bone to pick with them.

~She loves baby dolls, it is adorable to watch her care for them.

~She is verbally behind, but so was I at her age. She does say a lot of cute things, although most of the times she rambles on and on, without really pronouncing anything.

~Some of the things she says often: 'What is that?', 'Here you go.', 'No, mine!', 'Wa-wa', 'Num-num', 'Up', 'Shoes' and all of the other small things like Ma-ma and Hi.

~She has discovered how to smile for the Camera, using her "Cheese Face" (picture posted, it is too cute for words)

~She has been saying some interesting words... she really likes the word Uck and everything that rhymes with it, hence we have the F word, not so appropriate, which seems to be fitting for Madi ;) nothing she seems to do is appropriate in public, quite the deviant I know.

~She seems quite obsessed with shoes lately, preferably heels of sorts, her favorite gift this Christmas was... drum roll... you got it: SHOES! Princess shoe set.

~Her hair is growing finally, and she was cursed with my fine hair that tangles really easily, she might just loves or maybe hate the curls some day... we will see.

~She has gone potty on the toilet twice now!! Hopefully her fascination with it will continue!

I am loving every moment of this thing called parenting, she sure does keep me on my toes.

Ta-Da!!

2009-12-02T11:22:00.000-08:00

Madilynn almost 20 months old

Ta-Da! It is all gone Mommy, can I have another??
She sure is a Smart Cookie - sometimes she is too smart for her own good :)
Oh how I love her so much!

Adventure

2009-11-24T08:38:00.000-08:00

Madilynn, is so great. I get to experience the best and worst of all worlds with this little one! It is great, tough, challenging, and amazing all at the same time... I guess that is why they call parenthood the greatest Adventure of all. It is an adventure no doubt.

She is becoming more and more expressive everyday. It is fun to see her communicate with me and with others, sometimes I wonder if her favorite word is 'Mama!!' and yes she says it with the exclamation points, remember she is her mothers daughter! Oh but her little babbles light up my life, and give everyone a good laugh - it is so cute to hear her act like she is conversing, with the serious facial expressions and all!

Madi is not the little girl that stands behind the scenes, nope, she is the one up on stage - she is the main character, demanding attention. She brings smiles to peoples faces, and warmth to their hearts. I am so proud to be her Mommy.

Although this adventure can be difficult it is still oh so much fun, I never know what to expect. I am learning from Madi to be a little more laid back. Sometimes I strive for perfection... and with a little one in tow, all of my human imperfections come to the light.

Whether it is trying to get her to pose for a picture, or attempting to go out to eat (ha!) - I am constantly being challenged by little Madilynn Paige. I know now why babies are so small, if they were big could you imagine the damage that they could do?

Here are a couple pictures of Madi and Will at the YMCA, she had a little incident that night too, she fell and they had to file a report - no dull moments with her!

I look forward everyday to this Adventure it is filled with fun and wonder.

Eventful Times

2009-11-18T06:52:00.000-08:00

With Madi there are no dull Moments... Because of who she is! This picture describes it perfectly. She sure does light up my life though, and there seems to be laughter at all times. I love this kid!
Sunday night was fun, doing our usual routine: Dinner, Bath, reading, then 'Ni-Ni' AKA bedtime, which she has not been a huge fan of lately...

She has been picky lately with what and when she wants to eat, so I was having a hard time getting her to eat dinner. I told her that I would give her a treat if she ate a little more - who knows if she knew what I was saying, but she ate a little more, so I gave her a white chocolate covered red velvet cake - yumm! She loved it! She started to crawl out of her chair (I didn't have her in her high chair, because she is getting a little bigger and she knows how to sit in a chair and eat at the table now) and she crawled up on to the counter, I asked her to come down and sit on her bottom. She shook her head no. I told her if she didn't sit in the chair I would take her cake away, she was still reluctant, so I took it away. She did the usual, screaming at the top of her lungs in frustration. My response was, "Sit in your chair and I will give it back." Again she shook her head no, so the cake was done, and Madi wasn't too thrilled. Can you say stubborn?

It was bath time, and she loves the bath which is surprising, because she hates me washing her hair or anything else for that matter, all she wants to do is play. She grabbed the cup that I use to wet her hair and scooped up water and began to drink it pouring it all down her chest, she choked a little and I raised her arms. She kept choking, when all of a sudden red vomit came out with the water that she was choking on. That wasn't the end of that... Once she saw the 'red stuff' in the water she of course responded very quickly before I could grab her and stuck her hands in it and stirred it around in the water. I couldn't help but laugh, because NO moment with Madi is dull! So I had to give her another bath!

Bedtime was fun, we read and snuggled. Mommy, Melody, and Madi - it was probably a Kodak moment. She loves me to read to her... I don't know if it is because it is soothing to her or if it is because it delays bedtime, but regardless I still LOVE it! These moments are priceless to me, I cannot get enough. Sometimes I wonder if children are a gift, to parents. Everyday my eyes are opened more and more to beauty and life because of her... Being a Mom is truly amazing, and indescribable! I love it!

some candy Plllease!

2009-11-06T08:03:00.000-08:00

Halloween was a blast. We had fun hanging with cousins: Ember, Cole, Cleo, Collin, and of course Auntie April and Uncle Seany.

We started at Levona's apartment building. Then we headed to the Harvest Party at church for a bit. Following that we went to Rolling Meadows in Inver Grove Heights. Yes, we have a ton of candy!

Madi was a fairy princess, she is so stinkin cute!

Cups

2009-11-06T07:25:00.000-08:00

Okay - So I am a little late posting this, but better late than never... right? I am a busy Mom

Last week we went to visit our friends Alyshia and Sophia. Sophia is about a year older than Madi. They have fun together.

When Alyshia was scooping up food for the little ones, she gave madi a cup - not a sippy cup, but a big girl cup! Madi struggled a little spilling it. But she seemed to perfect the task before dinner was over.

Yayy, Madi! She is growing up and becoming a big girl. My baby can drink from a cup!

A little more on Madi

2009-10-29T08:01:00.000-07:00

I wish that I would have started a blog for Madi a long time ago! I am bummed because there are so many posts on my blog that should be over here. So I decided that I am going to link all of those posts HERE

Crabby Patty

2009-10-28T08:47:00.000-07:00

Madi has been pretty cranky lately, I was thinking that she was coming down with something. Then yesterday I noticed 4 new little teeth poking through, she has 4 on the bottom front, four on the top front, and 4 molars total - one on each gum top and bottom (proportionate). Now she is getting all four of her eye teeth, two on top two on bottom - holy cow when they come, they come!
She is going to have a mouth full of teeth here in a month or so :) Poor baby is in pain!

Copy Cat

2009-10-28T08:04:00.000-07:00

My little Mini-Me, Madi, decided that she wants to be like Mommy. Yesterday I decided that it was time to clean out my mess of a closet. As I began to pull everything down from the shelves Madi was right by my side. I am sure that it was all fun and games to her. She left the closet for a seco0nd only to come back with an arms full of clothes that she decided to pull out of her dresser. I told her to go put them back. I followed her as she waddled back into her room - her arms filled with her clothes, she approached the bottom drawer of her dresser that was opened with clothes strewn about, and she plopped all of the clothes back from where she found them. I smiled, she is so cute. Having a baby is quite entertaining!

We then proceeded back to the job at hand, cleaning out the closet. Madi wandered in and out, playing with things that Ipulled off of the shelves. She left for a few minutes, and so I became suspicious as to what she was doing and where she was. So as I walked out and approached the living room what I saw brought an even bigger than before smile to my face...

She apparently wanted to clean and reorganize the place too. As you will notice in the photo above she gathered items from many different places, some of the items are: Her teddy bear, blanket, candles from the living room shelf, my purse, her bowl with peas in it, books and toys from her room, a few items of clothes from dirty clothes hamper, air freshner, and the pile of mail (which looks like magazines). Whew, she was a busy girl! I cannot wait until she is older and really knows how to reorganize, with this talent she could go far!

I love her, she never ceases to bring a smile to my face.

"Ruff, Ruff"

2009-10-15T10:24:00.000-07:00

she has discovered how to make all kinds of new noises and sounds. When she sees any animal whether a cat, Dog, or a bug crawling on the ground she starts to Bark. It is pretty cute!

Noodles Please

2009-10-14T08:37:00.000-07:00

No meat, she is not a fan! She loooves her noodles, and I have proof... yes, of course it is in picture form! Alyshia calls me the paparazzi - well to Madi at least.

Finger licking good!

Digging in...

Shoessss!?

2009-10-14T08:22:00.001-07:00

Her favorite word EVER - and one of her favorite things, yes Shoes! They are all over the place all of the time, because she loves them so much! I cannot help but wonder if she will be a girly girl...

She is 18 months old now - and growing like a weed. Everyone seems to be enthralled by her. The things she does, and the way she does them are so cute. I don't know. maybe it is just me, I am her Mom after all... But she is just so darn adorable!

This morning she woke up early. I reluctantly got up, a little irritated. As I opened her door, there she was with that cute little grin on her face, revealing the cute gap in between her front teeth. She was jumping up and down, ecstatic to see her Mommy. My attitude immediately changed and I couldn't help but giggle at my precious little one. I love this little girl so much - and she doesn't even realize it! This must be how God feels about us as his children... A parents love for their child astounds me, it is so powerful.

Wanna Sucker?

2009-10-07T05:52:00.001-07:00

She did great! We went to get her first hair cut, and it was perfect. She stayed still and didn't move an inch. Boy, she sure is growing up in a fast way!
She even got a sucker, and she strolled around like she owned the place, it was adorable

Cutesy Girl

2009-09-28T08:14:00.000-07:00

So her thing right now is baby-dolls, shoes, purses, pretty things... and of course, I just Looove it! She is growing up and it is so fun. She is saying a ton of new things, and it was great yesterday when I was handing her a baby and I prompted her over and over to say baby, she finally got it, then kept reapeating it over and over as if she discovered something new, "Babay, babay... Babay!" I love her.

Here is a picture that I took when we went shopping yesterday at Target. Gotta love the pigtails.

look at this little life

2009-09-25T07:25:00.000-07:00

Play on Words

2009-09-25T06:21:00.000-07:00

"Madi, say Hot."
"Hotttt," with her teeth poking through.

"Madi say down."
"Dowwwwn," and her lips pucker...

"Up?"
"Up!"

Awe, my little baby girl is getting it! She is actually talking and comprehending the concept of having the ability to make these sounds, and copy what I say. It is so awesome watching her little life bloom. She is a little human, it is amazing. Just a year ago she couldn't even move around on her own and now her she is cruising around, chatting it up, and taking all of it in!

People always told me how much they love their children, that it is like no other love, but you really don't know it until you experience it yourself. The bond between Madi and I is amazing, I am determined that my love for her can move mountains!

Busy {little} Body

2009-09-09T08:21:00.000-07:00

She is a busy bee for sure! and so much fun!

We had a very eventful Labor day weekend. We went to the cabin for a bit - four and a half hours later Madi was ready to be out of the car with good reason! There are so many fun things that she did - this is the best stage yet! According to Shirley I will continue to think that throughout her life...

A few fun things that Madi is doing right now:
- Copying everything that I do and that includes taking my tissues putting them up to her nose and blowing... Yes, I have seasonal allergies and they just kicked in - no fun!
- Loving the life of being a girl - carrying purses; playing with dolls; and Yes, she indeed loves shoes - that is my girl!!
- She says cheese for the camera - with the cheesy grin on her face.
- She is getting into everything now and there is no stopping her, or for that matter keeping up with her... hence the house is a mess, but it is all worth it.
- Putting things in places they should not go - She shoved my toothbrush down the sink, I had to fish it out, silly girl. Other places she loves to put things like her toys: the Toilet and the Garbage can.
- She can climb off of the bed and the couch with no assistance and also can go up and down the stairs like a big girl.
- Her babbles are adorable and sound very much similar to what normal talking would be but it is just a bunch of sounds put together - no real words, although I do hear her say some words dispersed throughout her babbles.
- She does not like anything around her neck - this includes bibs, and life jackets - sad I know, no life jacket = no boat!
- She is very vocal, and opinionated! but I guess that is nothing new
- I really feel as though the terrible two's have set in! She has the fit throwing down pat, that is for sure. I just let her do it though, and try to pay no attention, it seems to help her simmer down sooner than when I respond - not only that my reaction teaches her how I am going to respond, so I try not to give in...

It sure is fun, and I am learning sooo much, as is Madi - she is a little sponge, I really really would love to put her in early childhood development classes of some sort because she is taking it all in right now.

So long for now - no need to worry, I am sure that I will post again soon - life with her is eventful, I can only imagine all that I will be blogging about next...

Toddler Time

2009-08-27T09:04:00.001-07:00

Her true colors really popped out on Tuesday when Amanda, Madi and I went to dinner at Outback...

Screams galore, and tantrums as well. I think that I had my first official 'Mommy Meltdown', I got sorta panicky, stressed, and of course... embarrassed! I couldn't believe that my precious little baby, who once was so helpless and dependant on me, had become defiant, opinionated, and as independent as EVER!

If I touched something that she didn't want me to touch, or if I did something that she didn't want me to do the squeals came out {and I am talking the breaking the glass high-pitch screeeeaaams!}... We got some interesting looks, and got to hear some outsiders perspectives. We relocated from inside to the outdoor patio, where there were a lot less people to agitate.

The Mommy Meltdown consisted of me feeling inadequate and not knowing what to do - after all, I have never experienced anything like this with a child of my own, so I just dealt with it, and if she would scream for something I would take it away that way she knew that screaming didn't get her what she wanted... we will see how it all goes - but I am not gonna lie, the 'Terrible Two's' are right around the corner and I am not sure how I am going to handle, I just want to do what is right, I am not a huge fan of making mistakes...

So put your glasses up ladies and *Cheers* to Motherhood :)

all of the small changes...

2009-08-20T10:30:00.001-07:00

Kisses, clucking her tongue, giving high-fives, hugs, chatter, carrying a purse, saying lots of new small words, doing lots of new fun things, being ultra attatched to her paci at the moment, all of the cute little faces that she makes - and oh so much more! How in the world can anyone keep up with all of these changes!? I feel like they are getting away from me!

I remmeber last year when Madi was an infant and she made some tiny little changes every once in a while and I would take note at every single small little change, and now they are being spewed at me, no longer in a calm consistent fashion... but from every direction, she makes multiple changes daily! I keep thinking to myself, okay where do I begin writing all of these cute little things down?? But I know that I am appreciating the new moments because they are coming and going in a fast paced way... I will try to keep up, but now it makes sense to me why the baby books only cover the first year - there is just too much too cover in the following years :)

I love her!

Yes or No

2009-08-18T10:56:00.000-07:00

No it is! Everything is happening so fast, how can I keep track?!

I have been long awaiting the day when I would hear this word come from my daughters precious lips, "No!" not necessarily anticipating, but definitely awaiting, because I knew that it would come... and it came over the weekend. It happened so fast, she is already a pro at saying No. She even knows how to shake her head all of a sudden!
Did someone teach her or what!?
hmmm, that was probably me.

She does know how to say yes now too, apparently they came as a pair because last week she couldn't say (or at least she Didn't say) either of the two.
I love her - she sure is growing up quick, I am missing the baby in her but I am loving the new little girl that I see in her with so much personality.

My big heart is so proud of her, I hope that she can see herself someday through my eyes - she will be amazed!

Little Spunk

2009-08-14T07:10:00.000-07:00

No quietness, calmness, or peace around here!
She is an explorer discovering her world and if you try to stop her she might just run you over or give you hearing loss with the shrill tones of her screams...

She is a blast though, and it is no wonder that she still naps more than once a day (sometimes 3 times). She is a ball of energy when she is awake! We went to dinner last night and it was quite the experience filled with screams, tantrums, laughter, running around, and food all over the place... needless to say I was exhausted after our small endeavor was over! I am thinking that eating at home just may be the better way to go at this stage in her life.

She is 16 months old now, and moving forward full speed. She is a just a little kid, taking it all in. She really observes everything around her. I have been noticing how she will mimic everything that she sees: laughing a belly laugh when others around her are laughing; trying to snap herself into any seat that I put her in; trying to brush her own hair and teeth; trying to unscrew the water bottle top; Her new thing is shaking her head No, amazingly she still has yet to say the word, which I am totally okay with :)

I love her, she rocks my world!

"Oh, Shoot!"

2009-08-05T06:07:00.001-07:00

Apparently parents do rub off on their kids, it isn't just a rumor - It is a FACT! and as a matter of fact Madi decided that she wanted to mimic something that I tend to say quite often, "Oh, Shoot". Wow, it sure does get funner, being a Mom and all... She is at such a great age. She is a ton of fun and boy does she make Dan and Me smile!! as well as everyone else smile for that matter. I couldn't have created a better daughter, God knew how precious Madi's heart and soul was going to be to me, I adore her, she spins my world around!

She is so cutesy

2009-08-04T10:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we had a fun time running around town getting stuff done and Madi tagged along and observed all that was happening. She is such a little girl now, no longer is she my itty bitty baby, it blows my mind.

I set her in her car seat and she put both of the straps over her arms and started to attempt buckling the seat... SO stinkin cute! what a big girl.

She was so good. She was quiet and observant most of the time, she would chat a little bit or sing to music in the car. I just love being with her and watching her grow, she rocks my world!!

It was a fun day.

The Most Beautiful Experience

2009-07-29T05:26:00.000-07:00

Last night was such a relaxing night. Madi was sleeping and I was relaxing and lounging around our new home, listening to a beautiful compilation of songs performed by Don Ross and Andy Mckee, the Album is titled 'The Thing That Came From Somewhere'. It is purely a compilation of guitar, no vocals or anything else, it is so soothing.

Madi started crying at about 10:30, the crying did not taper off after a couple minutes, so I went into her room. As I looked into her crib she was laying there with her arms wide open, signaling me to pick her up. It was the cutest thing, especially because her PJ shirt said 'I Love Mommy'.

I reached down and grabbed her and Melody - Her bear, that she loves so much. I handed her her sippy cup and she guzzled the water down. Once she was done she handed me her cup, let out a big sigh, then she nuzzled her face into my chest - as I smiled.

I went over and turned on her nightlight, as she continued to grip me close to her. I figured that it was a great opportunity to give some love to my daughter, which I love doing! We proceeded to the rocking chair and I embraced her, wrapping my arms around her as I rocked the chair back and forth.

She was loving it, embracing Me with one arm, and Melody with the other. As she lay with her head on my chest, I could tell she was at peace. We were both loving each other - and I felt so invigorated - I felt beautiful - I felt so blessed...

As the music played I reminisced over the last 15 months, of her amazing little life. I continued to rock her... I was running my fingers through her hair, and caressing her little face, and rubbing her tiny arms and legs as she laid so vulnerably in my arms, falling back asleep. I cannot believe the responsibility that God has given me, to guide this child through her life, to help her grow, and to teach her how to best live her life, I am like a shepard and she is like a little sheep that God has given me to care for...

It was so beautiful, I wish I had a picture... But instead I only have words to describe last night, and a memory that I will cherish forever!

As time passes...

2009-07-27T11:12:00.000-07:00

My daughter is growing, and it amazes me to see how far she has come, how much she has grown, and how amazing she is...

Yesterday when we got home from church she walked into the foyer sat down and began to un-velcro her shoes. She was taking them off at the front door, so I assisted her, once they were off she stood up, then started to climb up the stairs like a big girl! It was so adorable, I want to capture all of these precious moments because I know that before long they will be over...

I love my little cutie pie - she brings smiles to my face constantly!

Little Lady in {pink}

2009-07-24T08:02:00.000-07:00

"uh-oh" she says!

Oh... she knows if it is wrong! She may look innocent, but she knows! I love her for it though. Throwing things in the toilet, pulling all of the toilet paper off of the roll, putting things in the garbage that do not belong there, and the best story EVER... drum roll people... Painting her own toenails - and everything else - on Mommy's new carpet :)

I know, I know. What was I thinking?! right... if only I had put it away. But that is life, and that is what brings smiles to our faces - moments like these!

Well, there is no doubt that she mimics everything that I do. I remember about a month ago I went in and opened the bathroom cupboard, and madi was in tow as usual, I grabbed a Q tip and began cleaning my ears, Mini Me Madi, decided to grab one too, then she proceeded to attempt putting it in her ear, as I pulled it away she screamed... that was only the begining... it was a learning lesson for Mommy, for sure!

So back to the subject at hand: Yesterday I figured 'hey! her personality has mellowed down a little bit, maybe she will finally let me paint her toenails' - with a smile on my face. So, I ventured out to find a pair of cute sandals that I could put on her that way her toes were somewhat contained before I painted them... I put the snug sandals on her feet, pulled out the OPI Cherry Blossom {bright pink}, cute as ever, nail polish and began to paint her cute little toes. She loved it and she stayed still sitting in my lap, watching in adoration, and of course, I - the girly girl of all girly girls - was thrilled that she is finally letting me do what I have wanted to do forever! For the first time, her feet resembled cute girly feet, yay! I felt accomplished...

So, I screwed the top back on the polish and set it on the living room end table then I went back into madi's room to clean up the mess that I made searching for the perfect sandals for her, she didn't follow me - which is unusual because I often mistake her for being my tail... it was quiet for a few seconds and part of me was suspicious, So I ran back into the living room and to my great surprise she was sitting on the carpet painting her toes a "little" more, apparently I didn't paint them enough.

I gasped in horror!

I said in a very loud voice, "Madi!!"

She dropped the brush and began to squeal, with the cute puckered frown on her face... Poor baby, she was only doing what she just saw me do. (sorry I didn't even think to get a picture of the carpet until after the fact, it lloked worse than her foot, thankfully I caught her before she ingested it!)

I laughed, picked her up, embraced her and reassured her that everything was okay, then I put her into her high chair and immediately began to make phone calls, to figure out how to get the "what was once beautiful pink" out of my beautiful new carpet...

I love her! It was great, I ended up using a whole bottle of acetone to clean the carpet, and it worked... amazingly! I calmed Madi, gave her a bath and now, I will have a great memory to share with her when she is older.

*smiles*

it's the small things that matter...

2009-07-21T12:34:00.001-07:00

she can officially unlatch the top clasp of her Graco car seat - kid is wayyy to smart for her own good!

she totally calls out to me and calls me Mama, I love it, it gives me butterflies.

An independent streak has kicked in and if she doesn't want to do it, she is sure to let you know!

Madilynn is a daddy's girl, she kicks and screams when I attempt to pick her up from him, not all the time but some of the times - and I am not going to lie it breaks my heart a little bit when it happens.

She is a great walker, she can even run really well.

Her babbles are sounding more like real bits and pieces of words, before I know it she is going to be a chatter box.

She loves to dance and sing, and she still loves Melody, her bear.

The pacifier is only an nighttime thing now, which is a relief, I was worried that it would be hard to break her of it.

Madi loves to give kisses she sucks in, puckers up, and leans in... assuming that anyone is going to kiss her - it is cute!

Madi is not into TV, which is sometimes tough, because I would love to cuddle with her on the couch and relax and watch a movie - it won't happen though she is way too rambunctious!

I love my 15 month old daughter - Can it get any better than this??

Most Beautiful

2009-07-21T07:00:00.000-07:00

My wonderful friend, Tamrah, took photos for Madilynn's 15 month shoot, last night. CT Ryan does an amazing job! she sent me a little teaser and I cannot help but want to post it...

"he won't answer my call!"

2009-07-20T12:12:00.001-07:00

Picture taken July 10th - 15 months old

Madilynn's 14th Month

2009-07-20T11:46:00.000-07:00

Originally Written on June 17th 2009-
Although I have a few baby books going, I can't help but feel like I am going to miss documenting some precious and priceless moments with my ever growing beautiful daughter.

Madi is doing fabulous! she is as cute as ever and loving her life.

A few fun facts about Madi at 14 Months old...
-she is: Climbing CLIMBING Climbing, all over Everyyything!
-Saying "whats-that" while pointing at anything and everything is a hobby of hers.
-Getting into everything possible, and snickering at me if my reply is "No."
-She hates laying still for me to change her diaper!
-She has so many curls, her hair is hard to tame... often it is scruffy in the back from her laying on it, so I will call her Scruffers!
-I think that she thinks she is a celebrity because I take so many pictures of her!
-Leanna, her cousin who she goes to daycare with, is her arch enemy. They beat eachother up and fight often. It is a love-hate relationship, I think that she is really Madi's best friend
- she is a girl already, drama and all.
-Her knees are all scuffed up and bruised, from falling... she just gets right back up though without tears in her eyes now, she has learned to tough it out, and just keep going...
-She loves her bouncy horse and her princess mobile.
-Anything that makes noise is her favorite!
-If I say "Kisses" she puckers and puts her lips to mine, talk about melting my heart...
-She loves to climb stairs, but DOES NOT know how to come down them properly, I about have a heart attack everytime she goes for the stairs to go down... fearing she is going to crash pretty hard someday.
-She laughs a lot - by throwing her head back - and it is contagious.
-She throws some pretty good fits. She typically throws her body backward and falls to the floor hurting herself in the process. I find myself wondering what age 2 will be like.
-Her big thing is handing me something and yelling "Thank-you" at the top of her lungs, as if she is trying to let me know that I NEED to take it from her. Probably because I say thank you and reach my hand out to her to hand me something that she is not supposed to be touching!
-She is a screamer and she always has been, it is becoming more like a very loud, shrill, screech... I laugh, because little does she know it doesn't phase me much!
-I call her my Little Spunky, My Boogie, Babes, My Love, Mads, Babe-sters, and Madders!
-She will actually wear flip flops, the thong in between her toes doesn't bother her, amazingly, because everything else seems to bother her.
-She loves to share her food, even if it is soggy from already putting it in her mouth.
-She is extremely clingy to her Melody bear lately.
-She is off of the bottle for good, and she has no issues with it, she loves her sippy cup, and loves drinking out of a big girl cup.
-She would rather be naked than have me put clothes on her.
-She freaks out now when I pour water over her head in the bath, she used to be fine with it, I don't know where or when the switch occured.
-Mac and Cheese is by far her favorite food, I can tell because none of it ends up on the floor and when she eats it she says nummmm, numm, num, the whole time! - as well as all other noodles... -She likes to try and put my shoes on her feet.
-I am finally able to somewhat successfully brush her teeth.
-She loves Music, and is a natural dancer, I must say I am very proud of her dancing skills!-Snacks are something that she must have all the time, but they end up all over the floor at home or in the car by the end of the day.-She is quite opinionated... like she has been since the day she was born.-She is taking her pacifier less and less, which is great.
-She is becoming a little more attatched to me and less receptive to being with strangers.-Madi is very uninterested in TV, which is good I guess, although it is a bummer for me sometimes when I want her to be occupied so I can get stuff done:)
-I cannot get her to stay still, she is way too interested in running all over the place.
-She grows cuter and more adorable everyday, I cannot believe that I gave birth to such a beautiful child!
-She is a fun filled, entertainment for me, all I have to do is watch her and I will be amused!-Yesterday she attempted to put my bra on, it was hilarious!
-Everything that looks like it can be put on goes over her head: My sunglasses, my purse, a shirt, socks... you name it she tries to put it on over her head.
-She says "Uh-Oh" a lot, which is fitting because she either drops or breaks everything...
-She is so smart, she loves taking my phone putting it up to her ear and babbling, I must be on my phone a lot...
-She loves to look at Pictures.-I didn't baby-proof the house, and it is going pretty well so far, I just have to work with her a little bit.
-I am pretty sure that she loves both Dan and I ALOT, we are by far her favorite - which brings a smile to my face.
-She definetly undertsands the concept of Bye-Bye, and likes it :)
-The biggest thing that I have noticed is that she is a big girl now, it seems like there is no baby left in her...
Two days ago I was laying on the couch watching TV while she played with her toys, she picked up her bear, came up to me, and put her hand in my direction wiggling her fingers and grunting - signaling that she wanted me to pick her up - so I did, she actually layed still with me and we fell asleep snuggling on the couch together... It is the priceless moments like that when I feel so blessed and in love with my baby girl!

Madilynn Paige - My Love

2009-07-20T11:13:00.000-07:00

Today Madi is 466 days old, or to simplify it - Because she is growing up so fast - she is 15 months and 10 days old. Where has the time gone?? My baby is no longer a baby, she is a little person with her own preferences, attitude, and cute spunky personality - she is toddling around everywhere, and discovering the world, her life is like a blank canvass that is becoming a masterpiece.

Why I haven't created a blog, just for her, I don't know... But better late than never! right? So I have finished her 1 year baby book, and began another - that I had to compromise because there are NO good baby books for babies over 12 months - It is fabulous, and fun, keeping track of all of the milestones and now I can enjoy looking back and reminiscing over the first year of her life. It went by so quickly and so much has happened, I am glad that I was able to document it all.

So my goals will be to update this often, and to note small cute little changes that my daughter encounters. I am so proud, and really I couldn't be more in love and in awe of her, she is the LOVE of my life.