Memories of Us

Thursday, June 16, 2011

15 months

This is not a normal monthly update. We have been going through some dark days I guess you would say, but we are slowly getting through it all. Thankfully, Madeline is doing well, but as she marked her 15th month we struggled and still are struggling a bit. June 8th my Aunt Ruth passed from this life at the age of 99, two months away from 100. June 11th (Madeline's 15th month bday) was the funeral. She was a doll, and I mean a perfect angel at the funeral, etc. My Aunt Susan and Uncle Phil were kind enough to watch her. To make things even more difficult Scott came down w/ strep throat and Grandmother went into the hospital on the Friday evening before hand. Then by Sunday, I had come down with strep also. Madeline has been having gunky eyes and nose and a yucky cough since last Sunday. We are in a bad place right now. Madeline's not getting the attention she needs and her mother is quite emotional. Honestly, Saturday I didn't think I could do it all. I just felt so sad and alone getting to the funeral with her by myself. Sunday I felt so terrible I could barely get out of bed. Thank goodness her daddy was starting to feel better. It's a week later, and we're still dragging. I'm hoping in a week we'll be back to normal, but right now it's tough.

I know I need to get this post done before I forget what this girl has been up to.

Well, she's walking, running practically everywhere.

She definitely has an independent streak to her.

She loves standing and looking out the window into the backyard.

She loves looking at our flowers.

Still loves reading but prefers looking on her own more than being read to lately.

Loves putting things into containers and taking them out.

Can identify tons of things, animals, etc.

Has decided to stop using a lot of the words she was previously. Still says Mama, Dad, cheese and yes.
If I ask her to say a word, she gets a little smirk on her face and kind of shakes her head.

Knows so much and takes excellent direction.

Loves prissing around the kitchen and standing in front of frig w/ door open.

When asked if she's hungry, she walks to kitchen if she is.

When asked if she's tired and needs to go night, night, she walks to her room.

When told we're going to change her diapers, she walks to her room and can get a diaper for us.

Puts clothes in hamper when asked.

Loves taking baths, throwing washcloth in tub, and getting wrapped up in her big girl towel.

Insists on eating what mommy and daddy are eating. Has gone through a few picky periods, but nothing too bad.

Loves to dust and wipe up. Uses whatever she can find (laundry, washcloths, dryer sheets, etc.). Can use a Swiffer duster like no other 15 month old I've ever seen.

Imitates our actions and sounds. (much to my dismay at times)

Is so determined to get things just perfect. Examples: putting cup in cupholder or on coaster and putting baby into stroller. She keeps trying and practicing. When she gets is just right, she gives herself a round of applause.

Loves to clap for herself and others.

Loves waving hello and goodbye.

Blows kisses. She had done this earlier but abandoned it for few months and has now picked it back up.

Loves her tea pot and cups and Noah's Ark.

Plays and loves on her baby dolls more and more.

Loves putting things in and taking things out. Puts cheerios on spoon. I attempted to color with her one day, but all she wanted to do was put the crayons back in the box and then shake it til they fell back out and repeat. Still playing with her easter eggs and basket.

We've started doing some puzzles together. She seems to get it most days, but isn't too interested.

Will go to her stash of books and "reads" independently. We love watching her do this.

Loves seeing that cute little girl in the mirror. She cheesy smiles at her all the time.

When she's been caught doing a no, no(eating paper or carpet fuzz) she takes off running to hide in the hallway.

Is just the sweetest baby. Gives the best hugs and kisses sometimes without us even requesting them.

Still takes 2 good naps usually around 11 and 4. Sleeps from 8:00 or 8:30 til 7:30 or 8:00.

It could just be me and the fact that I'm her mom and think that she's totally amazing, but she seems to be a really what I like to call "with it" kid. She knows what's up and rarely misses a thing.

15 month Stats

Weight: 21 lbs. 4 oz. (25%)

Height: 29 in. ( 25%)

And the picture roll..

1st Rangers Game

Ready for Bible class

Too cool for school

Busy texting

Let's go Mama!

Reading her Bible

1st wedding

Loves to moisturize

Blowing up her pool
(not really, just imitating mommy)

Loves to read
Cries when she gets to the end

Loves her new pool

Pretty sure she's plotting something

Taking Hedgie for a ride

Hey Hollywood!

Learning about soccer

Pulling the choo choo train

Serious discussion w/ Uncle Dave

Heading out for a swim w/ Zoe

Home from church

Showing off Loggie the Turtle

Let's talk

Such a sweetie!

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Rangers Game 5-14

Can you see those smiling cheeks?

Our friends from college, Tim and Deb called and wanted to know if we'd go to the Ranger game with them. We thought we'd give it a try even though we knew she'd probably not get an afternoon nap. She's been good about just going with the flow of things as long as she gets a little morning nap. We decided to quickly feed her some lunch right after she woke up from her morning nap and then head to the game that started at 4:30. We arrived just as the game was starting. We were like the second or third row from the very top, which was good. It was pretty shady, and she loved seeing all of the airplanes that flew over us. I'm not even really sure she noticed the baseball game going on below, but she enjoyed everything else going on around her. She made it through the entire game without having to be taken out. She was happy to be passed around between the four of us and even drew the attention of some crazy Rangers fan that was all dress up in a kinda of scary outfit. She did really well and even walked some on her own on the way back to the car. All in all it was a great fun first outing to the ballpark! Enjoy the pictures.

She quickly made a new friend in Deb.

FYI: There were no tears involved.

She catches the eye of all sorts!

I love this one.
Check out their reaction to something Tim did or said

A fun but tiring day!

Saturday, May 21, 2011

14 months

Well, she turned 14 months 10 days ago, and I've just been putting off writing this post. So here goes.

Walking

She decided a week after Easter when she got the stomach bug that she could walk by herself no problem. Pretty much all she wants to do is walk all around the house. After having to keep up w/ her on Mother's Day, her daddy came up with a helpful solution. He blocked off the entry way separating the kitchen from the living room and removed the door stopper in the hallway. Now she can fairly safely walk around without having to be chased. She loves carrying her easter basket all around. Of course, she takes the occaisonal fall, but she seems to enjoy putting her eggs back in her basket. She has abandoned her stroller and dinosaur and prefers to walk totally unassisted. There are a few precious moments where she wants to hold both of our hands. It makes us feel so special.

Language

She is talking up a storm. Sometimes we can understand her and sometimes we can't. She can for sure say dad, dog, cat, yes, duck, quack, bug, pig. She attempts many other words. She of course understands much more than she can actually say. She loves to just play in her bed, but she has to have an audience. She loves peek a boo. It's a sure way to get a smile. She loves being outside and visiting the puppy who lives behind us. She points and says "dat" or "dog"

She can identify several body parts: head, hair, eyes, ears, mouth, nose, teeth, tongues, fingers, toes, tummy, and belly button. I taught her to close the lid on her sippy cups if she is done. She can point to several different animals correctly most of the time: lady bug, butterfly, flower, pig, cow, frog, turtle, sheep, cat, and dog. She still loves her books. She loves her Bibles. She has a little New Testament and a children's Bible. If you ask her to go get her Bible she will grab one of the two. She likes to pat them, love them(puts it up next to her cheek), and turn the pages.

She definitely is understanding more of what we say. If we ask her to wave at someone she does. She's quite good at following our commands and can be a good helper at times.

Eating

She has gone through stages of not being interested in eating. I think teething had a lot to do with it. I went back to making her porridge and food cubes just so I would know she was getting a balanced diet. If I sing or put music on, I can usually get something down her. Sweet potato cubes in yogurt, porridge, or spread on bread are her favorite, and she hasn't lost her love for bananas or cheese. She was eating peas and cottage cheese quite often but now refuses it. In my baby food book it suggest making Super Sandwiches. I think the average person would think they sounded super gross, but I decided to give them a try. First, she had sweet potatoes and cheddar cheese on wheat. It was a winner. Then bananas, cream cheese, w/ some wheat germ sprinkled on top. Again a winner. I decided to try and add in a little broccoli to the sweet potato sandwich and she ate it up. I was really happy because I had been struggling to get any green veggies down her. The only meats she has liked are ham and Italian turkey meatloaf. Therefore, she is still getting lentils in her porridge and a boiled egg every other day in her yogurt. I also stopped buying the YoBaby because honestly it's pretty expensive. Now I buy a large carton of organic whole milk yogurt and mix it w/ a veggie cube and different flavors of applesauce. I still try and give her as much organic food as our budget will allow. I feel very strongly about her having organic/ hormone free dairy, eggs, and meats and any fruits and veggies I can find on sale.

I weighed her on Mother's Day weekend and she was about 21 lbs. She seems very healthy and happy so I'm just gonna keep doing what I'm doing.

Napping/ Misc.

Pushing buttons is also a fav of hers. She loves anything musical and she can always bop to the beat. She is such a good dancer. We listen to Raffi on Pandora a lot. She is starting to play w/ her little people toys more. She is still the best sleeper (usually from about 8 to 8). She usually always takes a good morning nap (1.5 to 2 hours) and most days a good afternoon nap but sometimes not. I used to really stress if she would go to sleep in the afternoons. Then I realized life went on and was fine. She didn't have any kind of break down or fit. She just got fussier sooner and went to bed for the night a little earlier. No Big Deal. So now we don't even try on Sunday afternoons, and guess what she's totally fine. She missed them on some Saturdays because of where we were and guess what she was fine. No Big Deal. Life went on and was fine.

She finally showed some signs of separation anxiety this month, but got over it after 2 or 3 weeks. She still loves seeing people and waving when we are out and about running errands. She moved from her ducky tub to the big tub. This happen when I bathed her at 5 am when she had the stomach bug. She has loved it and hasn't tried crawling around like the first time we tried.

She's grown, changed, and matured so much this past month. She is not our little baby any more, but our little toddler. Every time we see that little smiling little face we are reminded of just how blessed we are each and everyday.

And here are the pictures