Happy Easter! (A bit late)

Life once again has been extremely busy for us. The three of us have been sick the past week and we are now all on antibiotics. Madeline has a double ear infection, but is such a trooper. We can tell she's finally getting better after being sick 3 times in the past 6 weeks. We're hoping her ear infections will clear up, but to look at her and see how she's acting, you would never guess that she was sick. She is still running around, laughing and playing. At least she was well enough to go outside last week on the 70 degree day.

Now....to Easter....

Easter was spent at Grandma Peggy's house with the Amicos. As usual, lots of food. Madeline wore her cute Easter dress that Matt picked out for her and it appeared that she loved wearing it. Actually, what she loved more than that, was wearing her new white dress shoes. She loves to stomp her feet on the tile floor to make lots of noise. She did get three Easter baskets: one from Mommy and Daddy, one from Grandma Peggy, and one from the Brummels. She made out like a bandit. She wasn't a fan of the stuffed animals, but she got Mickey Mouse DVD's and she watched them a few times already.

Madeline spent the day playing with her cousins. Still not a fan of meat yet, so no ham or beef for her; she did have some potatoes though. When we brought her home she passed out instantly.

Daddy did a great job picking out the dress!

Nice weekend weather

Since the weather was so nice this weekend, we had to take Madeline to the park. It took her awhile to get used to running on the grass, but she's a pro now. She loves walking down the sidewalk to the park at the end of the street and says "bye bye" to all the people we pass. She did really well until we left to come home. She wasn't a fan of leaving, so we spent some time in our yard with her bubbles:

March Updates

It's been awhile since I have posted...things have certainly been busy around here! I was hired two weeks ago by Hollister, Incorporated (medical company, not the clothing store) in their Training & Development department. So now I'm getting up at 5:45 and getting Madeline to daycare. She's back playing with the same children, including Pat's grandson, and they are having so much fun! Madeline and Anthony will talk to one another and chase each other around the house. It's been a hard adjustment from being home with her 24/7 to going back to work full time, but it's easier knowing that she's enjoying her time with the other kids.

She went for a 15 month check up two weeks ago and she is now 31-1/4 inches and weighs 28 pounds. She grew almost 2 inches in three months! It's crazy how fast she is growing. Matt and I keep saying that she doesn't look like a baby anymore...she looks like a little girl. She's still talking more and more and has added quite a few words to her vocabulary. She loves making noises like her daddy, and it's funny listening to her.

As promised, her are some pictures of Madeline from Gymboree:

She loved the fabric tunnel so much we had to get one for the house!

Causing Trouble

For Valentine's Day, Madeline and I baked chocolate chip cookies for Daddy. Who knew that Madeline would love them so much? She is now a fiend for chocolate chip cookies. She saw them on the cooling rack and was reaching and crying for them. It was too cute! She also realized that we put them in a tupperware container, so she cried whenever we used a tupperware container.

I know those cookies are around here somewhere!

Found them!


Madeline after her first chocolate chip cookie

Grandma Peggy came over on Sunday with the chair that she gave to Madeline as a gift. She made the cushion for her, and Madeline had more fun climbing in and out of the chair rather than actually sitting in it!

Tonight, she was so funny. We had finished having dinner and Matt was emptying the clean dishes out of the dishwasher. Out of nowhere, she began to climb on the dishwasher door and sat down. We put her back on the floor and she did it again! She thought it was hilarious...

I guess we have Gymboree to thank for teaching her to climb over and onto objects! Who can get upset with a face like this?!?

A Month's Gone By...

It's been a month since our last post, but life has sure been busy! Madeline is growing by leaps and bounds, and is talking A LOT! She said her first sentence last week, "I gotta go!" Of course, she says it really fast, but it is the cutest. She has also taken to the word "no" very well. If she points at something that she wants, and you hand her something else, she will shake her head and say no.

She is also learning words and sounds very quickly. Matt will make a sound or noise at her and she will try to copy him. She also watches our mouths while we speak and will try and say the same word. She can almost has the word "sit," but knows what it means. If I ask her to sit, she will. Smart little girl.

She is now 14 months old, which Matt and I cannot believe. She has completely grown out of her baby tub and is now taking "big girl baths." She was a little scared at first, but now loves being able to play with her water toys and crawl around the tub.

Today begins her Gymboree classes at Hawthorne Mall, so that should be fun. Matt and I just want her to get out and play with other kids her age, so we think this is a perfect started. Our free trial class is today, and if all goes well, we're signing her up. When you pay for a class a week, you also get free gym sessions throughout the week, so Maddie and I will be doing that as well. I think she and I are both getting cabin fever, so this will be perfect. I'll post more on that after class! :)

Happy Holidays!!

We've had a few busy weeks here (as I'm sure everyone has)...

Madeline went for her one year check up on the 15th. She's now 29-1/2 inches tall and weighs 26 pounds. The doctor said that she's doing well. Matt and I are just glad that she has now reached the age and weight requirement so we could turn her carseat around to face forward. I'm sure Maddie would rather look out the front window than stare at the backseat.

She is saying more words as well. She's gotten "uh oh" down to a science. She will drop something and say "uh oh." It's the cutest. She says mama, dada, and "buh bye." She says it in the sweetest voice. She also waves hello and good bye which is really cute.

Christmas morning was spent with Grandma Peggy and Aunt Lauren at our house. Madeline must have been a good girl this year because Santa really spoiled her (so did Mommy and Daddy). She didn't seem interested in the gifts, but she loved the ribbon! She played with the ribbon more than the toys. She loves putting things on her head and shoulders, so she wrapped herself up in ribbon whenever she had the chance.

The afternoon was spent with the Amicos/Brummels. Maddie had fun playing with Francesca and Vincent and loved playing around the Christmas tree.

We hope everyone had a great Christmas and wish you all have a wonderful New Year!

Here are some pictures from Christmas...

Grandma Peggy bought Madeline a new chair...she loves it!

Madeline and Mommy at Nickey & John's

Happy Birthday to Madeline!!

We cannot believe that Madeline is now a year old. Where did the time go?!? She's been walking for almost 2 months now and has begun jogging through the house. She's talking all the time and we wake up to the little songs she sings when she gets up.

Madeline's birthday was Friday and her party was Saturday. We had quite a turnout!! We were so happy that so many of you were able to come and celebrate her birthday with us. Thank you to the grandmas and aunts who helped us set up and clean up for the party!

Considering Madeline only had a 20 minute nap that day, she did surprisingly well with the number of people who attended. We also found out that she loves balloons! She still has a few at the house that she plays with. Most of the toys she received are now set up and being played with. We need to buy a bigger house!

There were so many cute pictures from the day, I couldn't post them all. Here are some of my favorites:

Madeline and her cousin Hannah