As of late

We have been a busy household.  For about a month, Madeline has had a cough and some wheezing.  We took her to the doctor one afternoon after work and the doctor said it was probably allergies and suggested that we try some baby Zyrtec.  A couple of weeks later, the wheezing was still going on, so we took her back to the doctor.  She didn't seem concerned, but wanted to nip it in the bud, so we have her on a nebulizer breathing treatment to get her back to normal.  She doesn't love it, but she deals with it.  Hopefully this will be the last time we have to use this thing.  


On a brighter note, Madeline is working so hard to walk.  She likes to walk holding Mom and Dad's hands (and giving it a try holding just one hand), and with her little walker.  Such a big girl.  We think we're running 100 mph now...give us another few weeks.

And because it makes me laugh...the girl loves a bath..

11 months

Our little peanut is 11 months old.  11. Months. Old.  And what a fun 11 month old she is.  She's all over the place - crawling, climbing, pulling up, cruising furniture, balancing while standing and thinking really hard about letting go of the table/chair/parent and walking on her own.  I said fun, right?  Fun AND exhausting.  I wish I had her energy.  She keeps her mama on her toes!  

She's saying:  Da da, Da-deee, cat (gat), hot, ball (baw), uh oh (thanks, Auntie Merv).  Still no mama.  She grins right at me when you ask her to say it, but she stays quiet (or says dada).


She's starting to tell us what she wants, too.  She'll point to what she wants and vocalize in some way, shape, or form.  And, she knows what things are without saying it.  When you say Mommy, she looks at me.  When you ask if she wants some water, she reaches for her sippy cup. She loves to clap, wave hello and bye-bye, and play pat-a-cake - and does so at the drop of a hat.  It's amazing to me what she knows and picks up on.


She's still loving her bath time (and soaking mom and dad while splashing water), and is sleeping from about 8 pm - 7 am.  Madeline is eating mostly what we eat now.  She still has a couple of bottles during the day, but prefers to eat meat, fruits, and veggies. Her favorite is green beans.  She eats sliced green beans like they're candy.  We haven't found much she doesn't like, really.  


At the end of month 10, Madeline had her first weekend sleepover at Papa and VieVie's house while Mom and Dad enjoyed a fun weekend at Uncle Darin and Aunt Kim's wedding at Smith Mountain Lake (congratulations, again, you two!). Madeline enjoyed a trip to the Natural Science Center, the barbecue restaurant, and Papa's pancakes - in the shape of a dog.  At the end of the weekend, we attended cousin Avery's baptism.  Such a special day.  


That's our little Madeline update.  It's hard to believe we'll be celebrating her first birthday in one month.  This has been the most incredible, rewarding year of our lives.  We love being this little girl's mom and dad.

Easter

Happy Easter!   Christ is Risen; He is Risen Indeed!

What a wonderful day for Madeline (and mom and dad, too!).  The Bunny came to visit our sweet girl, which started Madeline's morning off right!  We had lots of playtime while waiting for mom to cook breakfast.

Uncle Darin and Aunt Kim came with us to an amazing church service.  Pastor Powell delivered such a special message.  And as usual, one of the nursery volunteers asked if she could keep Madeline :)

After church, we headed out to Mimi and Grandbuddy's house for a delicious lunch (thanks, Mimi!!) and a fun Easter egg hunt (thanks, Grandbuddy!!).  And, Grandbuddy recently had one of his tractors restored - a very special tractor that his dad and grandfather bought in 1940.  This tractor was affectionately called "Big M" by the boys when they were growing up, so we thought it was appropriate that our "Little M" climb on board with dad for a photo shoot.  How cool is that?  Special memories being passed down from generation to generation.  I know two special people were smiling down on us today, with pride.

M and The Bunny

Madeline met the Easter Bunny today, and much to our surprise, enjoyed herself.  She looked at him, looked at us, smiled, checked out the Easter eggs on the ground, checked out the little boy in line who was acting like a hoodlum.  She had a great time!  So proud of our brave little girl.  Always up for an adventure!

Such a pistol, my child

Today's convo went like this:


Me:  Madeline, say "Mama"
Madeline: "Da da"
Me:  "Mama"
Madeline:  "Dadadadadadada"




This was after she climbed up two stairs by herself trying to get to Deacon (she was not unattended, mind you...we were there with her..).  Needless to say, the baby gate is up permanently.  


I'll say it again.  I LOVE this wild woman.  I can't even begin to explain it.