Again!

She did it again! I took pictures. She'll thank me later :)

As you can see, she enjoys reading books on the potty. Like someone else in our family - I won't mention WHO.

I can't believe it.

Today, Madeleine told me she had to go potty. So I took off her diaper, sat her on the potty, and she WENT!!!!

16 months old. Pretty darn good if you ask me :)

16 months old!

I can't believe it, but my baby is 16 months old today! This kid gets cuter and and funnier every day! Here are some new things she is doing. She has a little table next to her crib - between her crib and our rocking chair. We keep a pile of books on the table to read before bed (and when she gets up too!) She has been getting books into her crib somehow. So last night I watched her through the crack in the door. She reaches through the slats as far as she can, uses her fingers to pull the book closer, picks it up and then has to turn it a certain way to get it through the slats. She read them all, then when she was ready to go to bed she put each one back on the table!

She can say SO many words. She especially loves animals. I bought her a Little People jungle with an animal for each letter of the alphabet. She can say elephant, giraffe, flamingo, rhino, hippo, penguin, yak, zebra, etc. It's just amazing.

She loves to hug and kiss everything - when we tell her something is nice, she kisses and hugs it and then says "Aw!" Sometimes if she really loves a book she likes to kiss every page as we're reading it! Reading books is still her favorite thing in the world. She'd read books all day.

She finally graduated to facing forward in the car today! Surely she's over 20 lbs now? If not, close enough.
She loves to talk on the phone, well, at least have pretend conversations! She'll pick up my phone and say "Hello?" and then proceed to have an entire conversation. Whenever I ask her who she's talking to, she usually says Ava or Grace!
We went to McAllisters today. They have the BEST sweet tea, although I wouldn't go THIS far....

This year

Sorry, didn't get any good ones today! But it's funny, I think her face in the first one looks just like the one in the last post :)

Happy 4th!!!

We're doing compare and contrast today. This was last year, and we're going to a little festival tonight so later you'll get a picture from today! Hope everyone has a great day!

Madeleine made a new friend

Well, it looks like my kid knows a good guy when she sees one! My cousin Nick stayed with us for the past few days, and Madeleine LOVED him. She learned quickly how to say his name, and it seems to be her new favorite word. Last night she gave him all her little animals and you can see what he did with them! She was fascinated by him and asked for him all day today. Nick says he doesn't want kids - we're hoping to change his mind! He'd be a great dad. You can see my kid working her magic!


She does NOT go to just anyone - especially someone she's just met. She knows you're special, Nick!! He looks a little more comfortable here than he did here, doesn't he? :)

6 great years

Happy Anniversary Ken :)

How did we get to 6 years already??

I'm such a slacker!

Sorry about the lack of posting lately! I had to work the last two days of last week, and I have to work Monday but then I have LOTs of time off - until the end of July! My Grandma and cousin Nick are coming tomorrow from Alabama and I can't wait to see them. Nick is staying with us - woohoo! He's my FAVORITE cousin. We might possibly be flying to DC on Thursday to the National Right to Life conference, and hopefully we'll get to meet Kathryn from Little Men. I think that would be the highlight of the trip!!

And not that I'm turning this TOO much into a craft blog, but I did finish another skirt - for the Fourth of July.

And we had a playdate with Quinn - she is so cute and funny!

And we did use the first skirt as our diaper cover all day today. I lanolized it and it took forever to dry. But I am happy to report that it worked GREAT!! It was dry all day, and we just used prefolds and changed her frequently (which we should do anyway!) She looked adorable in it too. Even after reading about all the benefits of wool, I was really surprised that it actually worked, but I'm about to order several more prefolds from Green Mountain Diapers. I actually think we might do this more often! After all, I have the stuff to make at least 3 more of these little skirts :)

Quick picture of the new skirt

This was just for "trying on" purposes last night. It fits her almost perfectly, next time I will make the rise in the diaper cover a little shorter, but everything else looks great. I lanolized it last night hoping she could wear it today but it's not dry yet!

I have so many ideas if this wool diaper cover thing actually works. Like - a little Colts cheerleader skirt for football season.... I worked a lot on it but it only took 4 days from start to finish - working a little during naps and after she went to bed. Not bad!

Haven't been on the computer in a few days

And that's because I got this great pattern and I haven't been able to keep my hands off of it!!

I am almost done with the first skirt and this afternoon I am going to the yarn store to get more wool. Don't tell Ken :) But they are having a big sale! I'm thinking she needs a red, white and blue one for the 4th of July....

Here are some new developments over the past week. I have been off work since last Tuesday, and it's been great! Madeleine is walking EVERYWHERE. She doesn't even crawl at all anymore. She is doing great, although still looks like a little drunken sailor when she walks. Now, she likes to hug and kiss everything. If you tell her something is "nice" she will smack her lips together and say "Kiss! Nice." It's so cute. And when we lay her in her crib she'll say "Kiss! Hug!" Also even when I leave her to go to the bathroom. I'll say, "Mommy will be right back!" She'll say "Kiss!" It sounds more like "Keese!"

It's getting hard to take her anywhere because now that she knows she can walk, she doesn't want to be confined to the cart or stroller. Most of the time she still likes her sling though - she especially enjoyed riding on my back in her Mei Tai last weekend when we went for a hike! Hopefully the extra 19 lbs will help me burn some more calories!!

Fun in the Sandbox

This will be my kid someday

Yesterday my friend called me with this story, which happened last week up by South Bend.

Her friend's sister works for a preschool, and last week they took the kids to the zoo. They were having a great day when suddenly they noticed that one of the little 4 year old boys was missing. His mother was there as one of the chaperones, and they couldn't find him anywhere. So they ended up calling the police and they searched the zoo for him. Finally after about 20 minutes he came walking back to the group. His mom and the other chaperones and the police tried to ask where he'd been or what happened to him, but he was acting really funny and wouldn't talk at all, say where he'd been or what happened to him. Everyone was getting really worried. Finally his mom said she was just going to take him home and maybe she could get him to talk to her there. On the way home, they stopped at McDonalds for lunch. When they got out of the car, the little boy insisted on taking his backpack with him. His mom said, "No, just leave it in the car." But he was very insistent and acting really weird. Finally his mom opened his backpack......and there was a penguin in it!!!!

Yes, the 4 year old boy somehow got into the penguin exhibit, caught one of them, stuffed it in his backpack, zipped it up, and kept it quiet while being questioned by the police, his teachers, and his mom. Apparently he really wanted to have a penguin for a pet.

Anyway, the poor penguin got out and started running around inside the van. They called the zoo, and they said DO NOT drive anywhere with that penguin. They came and got it, the penguin is fine, and I bet that boy will not be going to the zoo anytime soon!

Happy Feast day, St. Anthony

Most of you probably know my St. Anthony story, but since it's his feast day, I'll tell it again.

Two years ago in early June, after trying to conceive for 2 years with no luck, Ken suggested that we pray a novena to St. Anthony. St. Anthony? I thought that was kind of random but he had found the novena online and printed it out so of course I agreed! We started it and prayed specifically that God would give us a child. On the last day of the novena, I was listening to Catholic radio and they mentioned it was St. Anthony's feast day. What?! No coincidences, my friends. Two weeks later I took my first ever positive pregnancy test. And you know the rest of the story.

So THANK YOU for your prayers, St. Anthony. And happy feast day!

Freecycling is great

Today we got a free sandbox in the shape of a big crab. Then I went to Lowes and got 250 lbs of sand to put in it. I think we lost about 25 lbs on the way home in the van. Too bad we couldn't try it out today - it's been thunderstorming all day!

I made her Cinnamon French toast for breakfast yesterday, and Banana Pancakes today. She loved both of them and ate like a little piglet! I am getting good at Milk free baking! And she can have eggs! Yay!

I forgot to mention that the other day at Borders I got a white chocolate macadamia nut cookie and without thinking gave Madeleine a bite. Pretty much immediately she started scratching her neck and it looked like she had a little rash or hives or something. I got a little nervous and pretty much stripped her down right there in the cafe to see if it was spreading. She was ok and I gave her some benadryl when we got home. So I told the doctor about this and he said that we should keep her away from all nuts and any further exposure could be worse, so we are getting an Epi Pen Junior tomorrow. The rash might not have been from the cookie, but we're getting one just in case because she's shown a propensity for food allergies. Poor thing. It makes me nervous and I hope this epi pen thing comes with directions, because I have no idea how to use it. And I REALLY hope she doesn't have a nut allergy. That will make her life hard (and make me worry a lot.)

Anyway, we're going to a birthday party tonight! Hope everyone has a great weekend!!

What a great day!!!

I don't think I will EVER, EVER get tired of being a stay at home mom. It's my dream come true.

15 Month Stats

Any guesses?........

Weight 19.6 lbs, still 5th percentile
Height 30.75 inches, 50th percentile

She's doing great! She said a bunch of her words for the doc, and he was VERY impressed. He said he's only impressed about once every 6 months :) (He's a funny one.)

She had 3 shots today, which was really sad, but she recovered quickly and had fun all day. She had a little fever tonight though.

We're supposed to keep her away from dairy and all nuts until her two year old appointment, at which point he'll recommend some allergy testing. He said the longer we wait the more accurate the tests are.

So, starting tomorrow I am officially a PART TIME STAY AT HOME MOM!! I honestly had been dreading the past 5 days of work, since I'd have all three kids and none of them had anything to do, but it wasn't bad at all. But I'm now on a 4 day weekend and now my work days are starting to get fewer and farther between. I can't believe it's actually here! I'm really really happy. It seems like I've been waiting for this forever. I'm planning on letting Madeleine sleep in tomorrow, reading her LOTS of books in her pajamas, and then making her her favorite banana pancakes. Maybe we'll go for a walk, maybe we'll go get her favorite sorbet (she can't have ice cream, so that's as close as she can get, and she loves it!), maybe we'll hit the library, maybe we'll go hang out at my mom's pool. Whatever we do, we get to be together and we get to make our own schedule!!! *big sigh of relief*

Summer is kicking my butt

I'm exhausted. I'm sunburned. All this fun in the sun. Extra kids. Swimming, chasing this new little walker. I need a nap......ZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

At 15 months

You are getting really good at walking - and you LOVE to walk. Whenever you're being carried or are sitting on someone's lap, you say "Alk!"

You have beautiful bright blue eyes with incredibly long eyelashes - everyone who meets you comments on your eyes. You have beautiful curly reddish brown hair.

You have a great smile which you give freely. You are very social - always talking to everyone. You say probably 200 words, and pretty much amaze everyone you talk to. You can even say giraffe and elephant! You've started to put a few words together. You've said things like "I dropped it" and "book fall down." Also, whenever you drop something, you say "Get it! Please!"

You still have your thumb in your mouth ALL the time, and love your "silkies." You like to have them in the car, when we're reading books, and when you go to sleep.

Speaking of books, they are your favorite things. You love to read books - and you even read to us! Whenever we're in the car, you have to have a book. When you get tired of one, you throw it on the floor and say "Book!" until we give you another one. You are not interested at all in TV. (that is good!)

Your favorite book is Good Night Gorilla. We read that one at least 10 times/day. If you can't find it, you say, "Illa! Where ARE you?" and look around until you find it.

Your favorite song is Baby Beluga. You LOVE this song. Whenever I start singing another song to you, you say "Uga!" and whenever we get in the car, you say "Uga!" as soon as you get in your carseat. Then again as soon as the song ends. You love it and you can say the last word of every line perfectly.

You have been sleeping through the night for a few months now, and Mommy sure loves that! You also usually take a good 2 hour nap in the afternoon. You are always happy, and have a great time wherever you go.

You are still pretty tiny - we'll see at your 15 month appointment if you've hit the 20 pound mark yet, and then you'll finally get to face forward in the car. You are in 12 month clothes, and even some of them are too big.

You LOVE playing outside - swinging, climbing on the playground, and playing in the sandbox. You're a great traveller too.

Every day Daddy and Mommy talk about how beautiful and smart you are, and how lucky we are to have you.

We love you Madeleine!

My Angel at 15 Months

She's a genius, I tell you.

My ladybug

My good friend needed a ladybug with a carseat strap. Here's what I came up with. What do you think? Ken edited it a little. I was pretty proud of it! And by the way, today was my first day off!! Even though this day included a pap smear and a pelvic exam (one year checkup, sorry TMI!) it was a great day. We had a playdate with my friend Susan and her three great boys. Madeleine kept kissing one of them! They'll be in the same class at school so we tried to capture a picture but she was too fast. Too bad - it would have been fun to show them that picture around 8th grade :)

We start 'em early around here

Enlarge to see the title of the book. And obviously that date is not correct on the picture, since she wasn't born yet. For some reason, Madeleine really likes religious books with no pictures. I tested it out one day - got her a religious book and a book that looked the same but wasn't religious - and she threw that one on the floor! The religious one she "read" for 15 minutes. She is especially partial to our Chaplet of Divine Mercy book.

Little Christopher

Yesterday I went to a Memorial Mass for the son of a good friend of mine. The baby died at 16 weeks gestation, so his parents were blessed to deliver him and get to hold him for a while. The mass was beautiful. Sad, but beautiful.

I was blessed last night to get to spend some time with his mother, and hear the stories of how, in his short life, he touched many people's lives. One example is the doctor who delivered him came to the memorial mass. She is Catholic, but doesn't have a church that she attends regularly. Now she knows she's welcome at our parish, and knows the priest who was with them at the hospital and said the mass. How amazing - this little boy could be the person who brings her back to the church!

I also got to see a picture of him, and he was so tiny, but perfectly and beautifully made. I am really sad for his family, his parents and brothers and sister. Please say a prayer for them, that they will be comforted in this time of grief.

I discovered yet another hidden talent

*Yes this is another potty post.* My life revolves around the potty these days, what can I say?

Today, here's what I was able to do successfully:

1. Navigate Archivers (scrapbook store) with Madeleine in the stroller and holding Ava's hand.
2. Find the bathroom with one second notice.
3. Push the stroller into the small bathroom with Ava and me all crammed in there.
4. Pull down Ava's pants and pull up and sit her on the potty.
5. Wipe her and flush.
6. Pull her pants back up and wash her hands.
7. Get her a mento (that's her treat for going potty.)

All while talking to my friend Lori on the phone about her VISIT this weekend! Yay! Am I good at multi tasking or what? I was pretty proud of myself (although probably pretty annoying to the other customers :)

In other potty news, because you're all SO interested, Madeleine said "Poo poo Mama" this morning. As if you don't think that's exciting enough for a 14 month old to say, she told me that right before she went!! I can't even get Ava to do that. Could this be an early potty trainer? Let's hope so.

One last story from the trip

So, Ken and I went out for a drive the first day we were there. We forgot to bring Madeleine's blanket, which she calls her "silky." She actually has several silkies and she sleeps with them and likes to have one when we're in the car. Anyway, we were on the sixth floor and when we got down to the car in the parking garage and started driving, she started saying "Silky. Silky." Over and over. We felt really bad so instead of going back up for it (D and P were taking a nap), we decided to try to find a Walmart or something and just buy her a new one. Of course this is the one place in the country where there's no Walmart to be found. It was really sad, she just kept saying "Silky." So finally we found a Big Lots. We went in and of course in the tiny baby section there are no silkies. (There were however, several kids running completely wild and no parents to be found.) We were walking around the store when we came to the clearance aisle. There was a silky looking thing with a handwritten tag that said "Bottom only, $4.00." It was all wrapped up so we couldn't tell what it was, but as soon as Madeleine saw it she got a big smile on her face. She grabbed it, put it up to her face and started sucking her thumb. So we bought it. When we got out to the car and unwrapped it, it was a TWIN fitted sheet. She didn't care that the thing was huge, she just held it and went straight to sleep for an hour in the car. Apparently she's not particular about her silkies.


Don't tell her, but that thing went in the trash can at the airport. There was no room in our suitcase!

Our first date

Yes, Ken and I finally went on our first date alone since Madeleine was born - almost 15 months! Maybe we shouldn't wait another 15 months before we go on the next one! Anyway, my Mom very generously came over to watch the kiddo and Ken and I went to Barnes and Nobles for some actual reading time (as opposed to reading one sentence, then handing her another book or piece of food or picking up one of those things off the floor after it's been THROWN.) And then we went to see Indiana Jones and the Golden Corral, I mean Crystal Skull. :) It was actually pretty good.
In other news, Grace has 5 and a half more days of school, and I only have this week and next week of working full time. I do work quite a few days in June, but have almost the whole month of July off. Then I'm working 3 full weeks in August and in September I will start my part time schedule - all day Monday and half a day Friday. Won't that be great?

Two more pictures from the beach:
My little crab.

Oh and if you think the wallpaper in the naked baby picture was bad in the last post, check out this couch!
And one from Memorial day - she did have a patriotic outfit!

Back from the beach!

And we had a great time. I'm not exaggerating when I say that Madeleine was perfect the entire time. I cannot believe how good she was. We had to wake her up really really early on Friday morning and she didn't even mind. She slept perfectly well for naps in the car, the plane, her stroller and in her pack and play, and even slept 12 hours both nights! We had a great time with our friends and Madeleine loved them. I think everyone knows "Baby Beluga" by heart now that we sang it so many times over the weekend. That kid is obsessed with that song. And the book "Good Night Gorilla."
Of course, there WERE some things that went wrong. For example, we missed our first flight, which was supposed to be at 6:10. The good thing is that we made it on a 7am flight and still made it to Florida before noon. We learned without any shadow of a doubt that an Evenflo convertible carseat does NOT fit in a bulkhead row of a plane. The rest of the 150 passengers learned it as well when we singlehandedly caused the plane to leave at least 10 minutes late. After 20 minutes of finagling with that thing, including scrapes and bruises on our forearms, a seatbelt extender, everyone on the plane staring at us, and flight attendants standing around looking helpless, the entire row behind us offered to switch us seats. Voila! It's MUCH easier to get the carseat in when it's forward facing AND you can lift the armrests - who knew?

The rest of the trip went extremely well. Madeleine LOVED the ocean, as you can tell from this picture. Whenever the waves hit her legs, she yelled "MORE!" When we tried to leave, she crawled back toward the ocean. She didn't even mind the cold water.

She loved the sand too, and was more than content to play in it for a long period of time. Lucky for us, we had SPF 60 sunscreen - no rays were getting through that stuff! She didn't mind getting sticky, dirty, or sandy one bit.
But she did enjoy her baths in the sink very much! We also had a whirlpool tub in our room and she took a bath in there with me once. She LOVED it and cried when Ken took her out.
Her hair was extra curly down there with all the humidity - it was very cute!!

This was her church dress - we went to mass on Saturday night. Right after the opening prayer and everyone said "Amen," Madeleine waited until everyone sat down and was quiet, and said, "AMEN!" really loudly! That was the first time I've heard her say that. Everyone around us laughed, so she kept repeating it until we had to take her back to the cry room. Of course she was a perfect, quiet angel back there.

We had some GREAT food, including lobster and steak and great salad the first night, and sushi and teriyaki chicken the second night. We went out for ice cream and Madeleine was perfectly content to have her "pop" (lollipop) for dessert that night. We got home last night and she went right to bed. She was really SO good the whole time, just went with the flow. I just love that baby :)

D and P, we had a great time with you - thank you so much for being so patient and working around us and our schedule, for the great dinner, for helping us with everything, and for reading and singing to Madeleine. She really loves you guys - she has said your names several times today and has been looking for you!

I guess I really didn't need to worry so much about travelling. It was a great trip but I am very glad to be home again!

She may throw food but at least she's polite!

Our screened porch

It was so nice outside today that we decided to eat on the porch!! It's is a GREAT porch, very pleasant out there, really one of my favorite rooms in the house. The only problem is the HUMONGOUS hot tub. It's really a nice one, and it came with the house, but we have never even put water in it. Maybe this winter, you never know. We cleaned and vacuumed out there so Madeleine got to crawl around out there for the first time. (There were lots of spiders and bugs out there before we got them all.) I have a feeling we'll be out there a lot this summer.

Just a few more days

And we're heading to the beach!! Madeleine played in Ava and Grace's sandbox on Friday afternoon for an hour and LOVED it. It was her first sand experience. She didn't even try to eat it, just played. I think she'll love the beach. We bought her a little life vest type thing yesterday, just for a little extra safety in the ocean. Now this week we'll be working on getting her to wear a hat.

What should I pack? And any travel tips with a busy toddler who likes to "alk" (walk) all the time? We are flying standby, but hopefully she will get her own seat with her carseat, so I think that will be good. She does great in her carseat. If we don't get her a seat... well I don't even want to think about that! Our flight leaves around 7am on Friday, so we'll be getting her up early.

Let's see.... for her - bathing suit, cover up and towel, swim diapers, sunhat, sunglasses (she's actually pretty good at wearing those), sunscreen (spf 60 - that should do it!) life vest, snacks, drinks, toys and books, clothes, jammies, baby shampoo, diapers, wipes, silky blanket, etc . I figure when we get there we can go to the grocery store and get some food for her and a little pail and shovel or some other beach toys.

Ugh, trying to pack lightly with a baby seems impossible! Luckily they have cribs where we're staying so I won't be bringing the pack n play this time.

I'm really excited, and a little nervous too. She has NO fear. I hope our friends still want to hang out with us after this trip!! I hope she gets enough sleep and is not super cranky, and I hope we all have a great time!

Seperation Anxiety

Um, not her. ME. I have a big problem.

Tonight my mom came over at 7:30 so I could go hear a talk at church - one of my favorite priests was telling his conversion story. She goes to bed at 7:30 but she got to stay up a little later to play with Grandma. She was thrilled about that too - she LOVES her Grandma. So tonight was the first time EVER that anyone else besides me has put her to bed. I mean ever. Ken has never even put her to bed. We have a routine, we stick to it, and it works.

I totally know she's fine - actually better than fine - with my mom. She's having more fun with her than she would if I brought her to the talk, she's going to bed pretty much on time, and getting the most excellent care. But I sat at the meeting fidgeting, checking my watch, just MISSING her so much! I knew she was asleep and I wouldn't get to see her if I was home anyway, but I just wanted to be home. I have never left her for more than 3 hours in her entire life - and only with my mom.

We have this conference coming up in July and I am going to have to leave her ALL DAY on Saturday- all day! How am I possibly going to do it? Oh my goodness, is this normal? The conference is Friday night, all day Saturday and half the day Sunday. I am thinking I'm going to take her on Sunday because it's only half a day, and I'm not sure about Friday yet.

I know she will be fine, have lots of fun, get lots of Grandma lovin' and attention. Will I be able to relax and have a good time? I know I wouldn't if she was there - she's high maintenence in those situations. I better start praying for peace of mind. I am SO blessed that I have had a job where I could bring her, because I think if I had to leave her to go to work I'd have a nervous breakdown or something. Sorry if this is all TMI for everyone :)

Up to my Elbows

That's what I think I should name this blog sometimes.

I know I'm a first time mom. I know I want a lot of kids. I know I'll have to deal with a lot of poop. But seriously, I need like a weeks break of not dealing with anyone's poop!!

Ava is potty training, so who knows where the poop will end up, sometimes in the potty chair and I have to dump it out and wash out the chair, gagging all the while. Sometimes in her diaper or God forbid her pull-up. It gets on my hands. It gets on my carpet. It gets on the changing table. I spend a good portion of my day cleaning up someone's poop, wiping someone's butt, or coaxing someone to go on the potty. Not to mention our neighbor's DOG who poops every day in our yard. No, they don't clean it up, and yes, I have to watch very carefully for it when I mow.

I usually don't have TOO bad an attitude about this, but lately it's been a lot to deal with for some reason. It could have to do with an incident that happened a few days ago. I was pulling off Ava's pull up and a little piece fell out onto the carpet in my dining room. OK, I can deal with that. But when she takes her bare foot and grinds it into the carpet, I have had just about enough. Another thing is that lately, Madeleine has taken a certain affinity to corn. I won't say anything more detailed, but I really don't see the point of her eating that particular vegetable.

Here's what I have to remember:

"I'm changing culture, one diaper at a time." Kimberly Hahn

and when asked what she was going to do when she couldn't serve with her sisters in the same capacity anymore, Mother Teresa replied,

"Well, I'm good at cleaning toilets."

Steps!!

She's taking about 5 steps on her own, and can walk across the room pushing her little toy. She LOVES to walk, whenever I am holding her now she says "Alk! Alk!" and wants to get down. She wants to hold my hands and walk EVERYWHERE, and now she wants to walk back and forth from me to the couch and back. Unfortunately she seems to have inherited my and my mom's coordination.... I see some trips to the ER in our future :)

Happy Mother's Day!

For Mother's day my sister in law and I got Madeleine and Eli's picture taken together for my mom. Sorry about this poor quality, but it's a picture of a picture! Mom loved it, and said it was the cutest thing she has ever seen :) We actually got her a kind of collage of three different pictures which were all really cute!

Ken got me a great gift. On a piece of paper he printed out a list of jobs he will do for me - including cleaning my bathroom, changing diapers, doing dishes, filling up my gas tank, and hours of baby-free duty where I can do whatever I want! He did pretty well, I'd say! Thanks Ken!

This morning at Mass, Madeleine was SO good. I just held her and her silky blanket the whole time and she was calm and quiet. The music was beautiful too. At the end I got to stand up and get blessed with all the other mothers. I'm so grateful to be a mother, it's the greatest thing that has ever happened to me. When I was standing up there, I was reminded of all the Mother's days when I didn't get to stand up. I wanted to be a mother so much, but I couldn't be one yet. I had to wait. Please if you are reading this, say a quick prayer for all the women who long to be mothers but for whatever reason, it hasn't happened yet. And know that you are all in my prayers every day.

Happy Mother's day to you all, and may God bless you!

Spoiled. By Grandma.

Have I mentioned

That Madeleine has been sleeping through the night for about a month now? And when I say "through the night" I mean 7:30pm to 7:30am. I actually feel like a real person again! Oh it's been great.

We went to visit my Grandma this morning. Of course she was thrilled with Madeleine. She kept saying, "look at those eyes, they are fantastic!" And then "Look at those dimples!" She even held her hands and let her walk around. One thing Grandma always does is pull Madeleine's thumb out of her mouth over and over. She is NOT thrilled with that, and we tell Grandma she doesn't like it, but you know she doesn't remember. I think she is doing well, when we got there she was down in the dining room listening to some gospel music with several other people.

We also had to go to the Anderson court house to get a copy of Grandma and Grandpa's marriage license. You know things were a lot different on these licenses 68 years ago. For example, they ask what "color" you are. Then they ask if the person is an imbecile, idiotic or feeble minded. Well. You think people are going to be honest on THAT question? Speaking of idiotic, the whole place was filled with "O" supporters. You know who I'm talking about. They were wearing shirts and buttons and generally being loudmouths. I think he's in Indiana right now. I say good riddance when he leaves.

This post is SO random so I am going to sign off and go see who was voted off American Idol :)

There's a first time for everything

I'm sure you're not going to believe this, but tonight was the first time I've ever cooked chicken!!! EVER. See, I got married right after college (and didn't cook much in college - except processed, frozen food) and Ken's allergic to chicken. So last week, we went to Mom and Dad's house for dinner when Ken was out of town, and they cooked chicken. That was the first time Madeleine had tried it since she was about 9 months old. She loved and and had no reaction! I can't tell you how thrilled I am that she is not allergic to chicken. So here is what I cooked:

Mandarin Chicken (milk free, of course)

Put one and a half cups of rice in a dish (I used brown and wild rice). Then put chicken breasts (can do 4 but I only did 2) on top, pour 2 cups of orange juice and 1 cup of chicken broth on top. Add salt and pepper and any other spices you want. Then add a can of mandarin oranges and throw the whole thing in the oven at 375 degrees for an hour. At the very end I added some frozen peas.

It was DELICIOUS! And received rave reviews from the kid. I am SO excited to be able to try out some chicken dishes. Anyone have any favorites?

Freecycling

Have you heard of this? I went on www.freecycle.org and signed up.

Say you have something laying around that you don't need. Like some nursing pads you bought over a year ago that have been sitting, unopened, in your bathroom. You just post an offer on freecycle, a bunch of people who want them email you, and you give them away to someone who needs them. That was my first freecycling experience yesterday. We met at Barnes and Nobles so I didn't have to tell them where I lived.

So I plan on freecycling a bunch of stuff around here, and hopefully if something comes up that I want, like a sandbox or some outdoor toys, for example, I can snag them.

Funny face

This is the face Madeleine's been making lately - a silly, squinty eyed smile. We find it hilariously cute, just like everything else she does :)

It's been great the past few months to see her personality really start to develop. I think she's going to be a stubborn little thing. She knows what she wants and she lets you know. She loves to make us laugh. Unfortunately she thinks "No" is the funniest word she's ever heard and keeps right on doing whatever it is we tell her NOT to do. Like throwing food on the floor. At EVERY single meal. She does it and then looks at us with those huge blue eyes like "What are YOU going to do about it?" Very unfortunately for us, we have a hard time keeping a straight face when she does this. She is definitely testing her limits.

She is a very social young lady. Today we went to Ava's music class and she crawled around saying "Hi" or "Hello" to everyone. She went right up to the kids and tried to take their instruments. She is everyone's favorite baby at the grocery store and everyone fights over who gets to check us out. We frequently hear "that is the cutest baby we've ever seen." Of course we totally agree! She says at least 50 - 75 words very well, and learns more every day. She LOVES Grace and Ava (Gace and AAAhva). She gets SO excited when Grace gets in the car. She makes her laugh every day. She always tries to get her attention. "Gace. GAACE. GACE!" And when Grace finally says "What?" She says, "Hi."

Even though she's asserting her independance, she is usually a very patient kid. She's happy to sit in her stroller and carseat. She hardly EVER cries (except, for example, when her MOM tries to take her away from her GRANDMA - heaven forbid!) She's always up for an adventure. I think she is going to be a very fun, laid back, stubborn, sweet, silly girl. And I love every bit of her.

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Is this "Restaurant Behavior?"

If I had a dollar for every time I was asked this question growing up, I'd be a rich woman. Now I have to ask it myself. This was Ken's birthday at Kincaids, hence the shirt. She does some of her animal sounds at the end, too.

Naptime

The best news I've had in a long time

Don't get your hopes up. Seriously. I know what you all are thinking and it's not that. But it's big news to me!

In just 4 short weeks, I am going from working full time to working PART TIME!!!

That's right, at the end of May I will be a part time stay at home mom. My dream is coming true. I absolutely cannot wait. I do know that I've been very blessed with my job, I've never had to leave Madeleine and have had great kids to take care of. But now, several days every week, I'll get to stay home and just take care of her and our house.

It hasn't really sunk in yet. I just can't believe it is actually happening. I have so many plans. We will be going to the library and getting books every week. We'll go to story time. I will plan out our grocery list every week and make delicious, healthy, home-made meals. I'll try to save money by planning it out this way. We'll go to the Farmer's market. My house will be clean and the clutter will be significantly reduced. We'll go for walks. Madeleine will take good naps. We'll be able to spend more time with friends and family. My yard will look nice. I will read to and play on the floor with my beautiful baby. I will finally start my etsy shop.

I hope that I never, ever forget how lucky I am to stay at home. I think it's like all those years we were struggling with infertility - it made me really understand what a blessing she is. I appreciate her so much more because I had to wait so long. Now I will appreciate staying at home so much because I had to wait for it too. And Ken, I really really appreciate how hard you have worked and will continue to work to make this happen.

God is good! And I am blessed.

What we're dealing with over here

Memories

The funeral was really nice today. There were a lot of people there, and they had a very simple but reverent ceremony. At the cemetery, a Veteran's group came and presented Grandma with a flag, and also did a 21 gun salute and played Taps. It was really beautiful (and I covered Madeleine's ears during the firing of the guns, so it didn't faze her.) Afterwards we had a little luncheon at a neighborhood clubhouse. It was nice to catch up with family and friends that I hadn't seen for a while.

I was thinking of some memories of my Grandpa that I'd like to share.

One is a story that he told about when he was a little boy. He went to a one room schoolhouse with one teacher for all the grades. One day they were outside having recess when he found a bucket that a big truck has flattened. He picked it up and threw it like a frisbee. It caught the wind, came back and hit the teacher in the face as she was coming out of the outhouse! He got spanked and sent home that day.

He always liked to tell stories of Grandma's less than perfect driving abilities. One time she was driving and cut a corner so close that she sent a man's cane flying! Then later she turned straight down the railroad tracks. The funniest thing was the way he told the stories with his dry sense of humor. He said, "Well, then I had to take over."

He loved to garden and always had tons of great vegetables. I remember always being outside with him. He'd always let us "help" with everything and would drop anything he was doing if we wanted to play. I remember he made me a little wooden box with a piece of screen over the top of it and he'd help me catch bugs all day long in his yard. My brother and I loved to explore the barn and his big yard on the farm. I always remember him doing yard work. One of the reasons I love to mow is that I think of him, and how he experienced all the same sights and the smell of freshly cut grass. (Of course Grandpa didn't have a self propelled mower and an ipod, but that's beside the point!)

He was one of 11 kids, and he was the last one left. He told great stories about growing up in such a big family, sharing a bed with his brothers, helping their dad and mom, etc.

We spent a lot of days and nights at Grandma and Grandpa's house, and they would always play as many games as we wanted. We played Old Maid, Po kee no, Rummikub, Crazy 8s, and lots of other card games.

He was very mechanical, and it seemed like he could fix just about anything. He always let my dad help him when he was a little boy, and taught him a lot. I think Dad can pretty much fix anything too! He was very patient with kids, and I hope that I can have that trait too. I always want to let my kids "help" even if it takes longer or doesn't get done as well as I'd like. He really enjoyed his Grandkids I am sure.

One time around Christmas we were at their house and a little girl came to the door. She was selling little handmade angel Christmas ornaments. Grandpa asked how much they were. She said, "Well, these are $1.50 and these are $2.00." Grandpa, obviously not impressed with the craftsmanship that required him to pay an extra 50 cents, said "Two dollars! Where's your cheaper ones!" My brother and I about died laughing and we still repeat that line to this day.

One really funny story happened on their 50th anniversary. The whole family got together and rented a lake house in northern Indiana. We rented a waverunner for the day, and everyone convinced Grandma and Grandpa to take a turn. Grandma said, "For God's sake Lester don't turn right or left!" They got on, got about 20 feet from the dock, and flipped over! We got it all on video, and we still love to tell that story at family gatherings. They had a picture slide show at the funeral, and of course one picture was the one of Grandpa in the water wearing his life jacket, a big grin on his face.

Grandpa, thanks for all the great memories, great example, and lessons you taught me over the past 28 years. We will miss you!

Light blogging ahead

Hello everyone! We had quite the weekend.

First of all, my Grandpa passed away yesterday morning. It was definitely his time and it was very peaceful. If you get a chance, please pray for his soul and for my Grandma, who is having a really hard time. She has short term memory loss, so basically every hour or less she forgets that Grandpa is gone and has to relive it again. It's really sad. Her name is Irene.

So the funeral home is tomorrow and the funeral is Wednesday. I'll be with my family so I doubt there will be posts for a few days.

I do have some good ones coming up though, so stay tuned!

Happy Birthday Ken!!!

Some may own castles on the banks of the Rhine

and hear an orchestra each evening at nine

But richer than I they never will be

I had a dad who spent time with me.

Happy Birthday Ken! We love you!!!

New Dress

Inspired by my nine year old niece, who sewed this dress for Madeleine,
I decided I was going to give it a shot and sewed my first dress last week! I was really happy with how it turned out so she wore it today. I think I want to try something a little more challenging now. I figured out how to do buttonholes, but I'm not sure I'm ready to try a zipper yet! The buttons are my favorite part of the dress.

Mom was teaching her how to walk on her driveway today. We also went to the playground and Madeleine crawled all over the playground equipment! I was a little nervous because there were a lot of other kids on it, but she crawled up the steps and then sat and waited for me to help her down the slide! I have never seen her play like that, and it was really fun! She is getting to be a big girl :)

If you haven't already

Please take the time to read this story, and watch the video at the end too. Then pray for this family. Their hope and trust in God is amazing, and He has done great things for them!

Graduation Day

Madeleine graduated to the big girl car seat today! She's still facing backwards though - her doc said to keep her backwards until she reaches 20 lbs.

Shout to the Lord

Ok, did anyone else just about fall out of their chairs last night when the American Idols sang Shout to the Lord?! I could NOT believe it. I mean, this is one of the most popular shows out there, and they sing a BLATANTLY Christian song. And the gospel choir with them was great too. Wow, I was blown away. So this season they have mentioned Jesus a LOT, especially in the Dolly Parton week. I like this show even more now!

Go Jason Castro!! :)

First sentence, naughty girl, and the shoe saga continues...

Yesterday morning we (myself, Madeleine and the kitty cat) were hanging out in Madeleine's room. One of her favorite activities is chasing the cat (or "tee tat" as she calls her) around her room. The cat is not so thrilled with this activity, but she takes it all in stride. Anyway, she was crawling around after her saying "Hello, Tee Tat!" "Hellooooo Tee Tat!!" over and over. It was really cute :)

THEN, she decided to be really naughty. She crawled over to the night light, touched it, and said "no no!" She knows she's not supposed to touch it and that I'll say "no no!" This doesn't seem to faze her. So she kept touching it, saying "no no!" and looking at me and smiling. I was able to be firm for a few minutes and keep telling her no. But THEN, she decided she was going to touch the space heater. So she was standing precariously between the night light and the space heater, touching both of them and looking back at me and laughing! I tried REALLY hard, but I could not help but laugh - she was so naughty! She knew exactly what she was doing. Of course, my laughing only made things worse. Finally I had to distract her with something else, which is what I should have done in the first place.

I was telling my mom about it on the phone, and she said that I absolutely can't laugh! I told her that was impossible and then she proved that herself today at lunch, when Madeleine was throwing food on the floor and saying "No no!" and laughing. Mom tried really hard not to laugh, but she lost that battle and my naughty little girl can only get worse with this kind of parenting!!

And then the shoes. the 6 - 12 month pedipeds and robeez are just about too small for her, and the 12-18 month size looks like they would fit giant babies. Her feet are SO narrow too, so that doesn't help anything. I am going to try the Target brand that Angela suggested (thanks!), and if that doesn't work, I guess she'll just have to wear her robeez she wears every day until she absolutely grows out of them. I have a feeling she's going to be hard to fit. Her feet are long and narrow, and she is tall and skinny. She's in the weight range for some 3-6 month clothes, but almost in the height range for 18 months. 12 months works pretty well if she has a cloth diaper on. If she has a disposable the pants just fall right off of her. Oh well, it is not that bad of a problem to have!

Speaking of problems though, if you drove by Kohls today and heard alternate crying and laughing spells coming from the dressing room, that was me trying on bathing suits.

Our breakfast

Today I did something that I've never done.. cooked pancakes and let Madeleine eat breakfast in her jammies! It was great, we didn't even finish until 9:30! We are usually out the door by 8am. I actually made Banana Pancakes - milk and egg free - and they were absolutely delicious. We made so many that we called my mom - Grandma - and asked her to come eat with us and she did!

It was a big hit!
Ooh, Mama gave me a whole one?!
Delicious!
I'm ready for number two, Mom!
In case you're interested:

Banana Pecan Pancakes (without the pecans)

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour (I used some wheat flour in there)

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

pinch of cinnamon

2 well mashed ripe bananas

1 1/2 cup soy milk plus 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar - mix and let sit for a few minutes

1 tablespoon canola oil

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup pecans, chopped (I omitted this)

Mix dry ingredients together. In seperate bowl, mash bananas well and mix with soy milk, vanilla and oil until smooth. Pour wet ingredients into dry and mix but do not overmix. A few lumps are ok. Fold in pecans, if using.

Cook like regular pancakes and serve with sliced banana and maple syrup. YUM!! This recipe made about 15 small pancakes. This is definitely going to be in the regular rotation of recipes!

The rest of the day was great too. We went shoe shopping again and tried on pedipeds and robeez in the next size up from what she's in now. They were both HUGE on her. I think we're going to have to wait a month or so to buy her shoes, and see if she's walking by then before I make this decision. We went to Starbucks and had lunch there. She took a great nap and I made her some healthy carrot cranberry muffins, which she loved. I made a delicious dinner of meatloaf, baked sweet potatoes and roasted broccoli with garlic, and had it ready when Ken got home - yay! Madeleine absolutely loved dinner. I guess beef is the only meat she likes so far!

Off to watch American Idol! Good night! And try those pancakes tomorrow - they are SO GOOD!

Roadtrip!

This weekend we went down to visit some friends in Louisville. We had such a great time! They are so thoughtful - they bought fresh flowers for our room, and had water, gum and candy in a bowl by our bed. They also put their OWN very nice pillows on our bed - they were seriously the best pillows I've ever slept on :)
They took us to a park for a bike ride and Ken and I realized JUST how out of shape we are!! We need to work on that. Then they cooked us a delicious meal of steak, baked potatoes and salad - with some great wine.
The church we went to on Sunday was so beautiful, and the brunch restaurant was delicious too. I only wish we could have stayed longer (and that Madeleine would have slept a little better!)

Thank you so much again for a GREAT weekend!

Today was just fantastic. I got a ton of stuff done around the house, went shopping for shoes for Madeleine, and took 2 great walks on the Monon trail. It was a beautiful day so I kept the windows open all day. I am loving this vacation so far.

Speaking of shoes, does anyone have any favorites for a one year old? I went to Stride Rite and they tried to tell me she needed these "walker" shoes with a huge rubber piece on the toes so she could still crawl. She tried them on and couldn't even stand up in them, they seemed so cumbersome on her. So then the guy (who was like 12 - why wasn't he in school?) said that MAYBE she wasn't ready for those. Um, yeah. She wears Robeez all the time, but she is outgrowing them. She doesn't walk yet, crawls everywhere, but is standing up and cruising, so I know it will be soon. I also had a pair of Pedipeds that she's outgrown. I like those too. I want to get her a pair that she can wear pretty much every day all spring and summer, and she'll probably be learning to walk in these next months. These shoes are so expensive so I want one that will last for a while. Any suggestions?

Last day of work for a week!

I'm so happy that we'll be on vacation next week. I'll get to play "stay at home mom" again. I don't have a lot of plans other than sleeping in, bringing her in bed with me in the morning and then eating breakfast together in our pajamas, instead of rushing to get dressed and out the door. I plan on playing on the floor a lot with her. It's supposed to be in the 60's all week so I'm sure we'll go outside for a walk every day we can. I plan on having delicious and healthy meals on the table when Ken comes home, so we can eat together as a family. I plan on catching up completely with the laundry, doing some deep cleaning, and maybe even tackling a few extra projects. For one thing I have a little sundress all cut out and ready to sew, but I have never made anything like this so I'm scared to try to sew it! But it was pretty inexpensive fabric so it's ok if I mess up. If I do really well, maybe I'll make her another one with some better fabric? Who knows? The sky's the limit :)

Another project I want to tackle is to start cleaning out my craft room. I could probably drop off several huge bags to Goodwill just from that room alone. I also need to go through Madeleine's clothes and see what she needs for spring and summer.

I know a lot of these may sound like boring, mundane chores, but I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to them!!! And I can't tell you how excited I am to be able to spend all this time with Madeleine, just her and I. She is just the most fun kid I've ever met, and I am happy to have this opportunity to slow down and just enjoy her.

Tagged!

By one of my favorite blog moms, Mum2Twelve! (She is studying to be a midwife (right?) and I am SO flying her up here next time I need her services!!)

Rules of the meme:

1. Post these rules of the game first.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5 people and posts their names. Then the tagger goes to the blogs of those who have been tagged & leaves a comment letting new players know they’ve been tagged. The tagger asks them to find the meme and instructions back at his/her blog.

What I was doing 10 years ago:

10 years ago I was almost done with my first year of college at Ball State University. I was trying to figure out my roommate situation, if I would stay in the dorm for one more year, or if I would get an apartment or house with some friends. I decided to stay in the dorm for one more year, which was a good choice, since I had a BLAST my sophomore year. I was also really upset because I was one credit shy of getting a really good parking pass on campus and realized I still had to park at the stadium for one more semester. (Don't worry though, there are ALWAYS ways around these things.... :)

Five things on my To Do List today:

Oh my life is much different today than it was 10 years ago when I didn't have a care in the world. If you're in college and reading this, ENJOY IT!!!

1. Get up, pack breakfasts, lunches, diapers, get Madeleine ready and get to work by 8am.
2. Get Ava fed, dressed and out the door by 9am (their housekeeper comes today.)
3. Clean the kitchen, sweep and mop the floor.
4. Do at least 2 loads of laundry. Should probably do at least 3.
5. Get the kids up from their naps by 3:10, change diapers, get them in the car and pick up Grace from school. Drop her off at piano at 3:30, run through Starbucks drive through (really there's no point in loading and unloading 2 kids in 1/2 hour), and pick her up at 4:00.

Things I would do if I were a billionaire:

1. Be a full time stay at home mom!!!

2. Take a trip, and let Ken pick wherever he wanted to go.

3. Pay off all my family and friends debt.

4. Give a ton of money to the Missionaries of the Cross in Tijuana.

5. Give a ton of money to our church and various other causes we believe in.

Three of my bad habits:


1. STARBUCKS
2. Laziness
3. Procrastination

Five places I have lived:

1. Kokomo, INY
2. Anderson, IN
3. Noblesville, IN
4. Thousand Oaks, CA
5. Muncie, IN

(Wow that's a depressing list!)

Five jobs I’ve had:

1. Bagel girl at Chesapeake Bagel Bakery
2. Babysitter for TONS of kids over the years.
3. Lifeguard (that was my favorite)
4. Youth Programs Director at El Centro Hispano
5. Abstinence Educator for inner city kids in Indy

Five people I want to know more about (a nice way of saying TAG!):
Heather, Lifehopes, Pa Beck, Ma Beck, and All You Who Hope

Remembering John Paul the Great

Pope John Paul II was the Pope for my entire life. The Sunday after he died they hung a huge picture of him up by the altar, and it looked like he was waving goodbye. I was so sad. Actually, I cried so hard during mass that my good friend Jenny had to tell me to get ahold of myself! But like the young people said, we were like orphans that night. I feel priviliged to have lived through his papacy, and I will forever remember him and teach my children about him. I got to see him in person 3 times while in Rome in 1995, and his Eucharistic procession is one of my greatest memories. I got within 10 feet of him. Thousands of people gathered around him, but his eyes were fixed on Jesus in the Eucharist the entire time.

Lord, help us to follow his example and keep our eyes fixed on You!

Awful awful awful

Yesterday, right when I was getting ready to leave work, I was putting in a Barney DVD for Ava when I heard a huge crash. I looked behind me and Madeleine had pulled herself up on the huge, heavy, metal fireplace screen and it crashed right down on top of her. The poor thing was pinned underneath it. I pulled it off her before she even had a chance to cry, but then she screamed and screamed, and had a huge bump on the side of her head and a big bruise all down the side of her face. I was SO scared. We tried to put ice on it but she wouldn't let us, and just kept screaming. Then she finally calmed down and laid her head on my shoulder, which she never does unless she's really scared. I was able to hold it together until we got home, but as soon as we walked in I started crying. It was just SO scary. I called my friend who is a doctor and he said to just watch for changes in behavior. But she was fine last night - I gave her tylenol and she ate a big dinner and played on the floor like usual. I checked on her several times last night and this morning she still has a big bruise but it looks better than yesterday, and she is acting normal.

I just can't stand when things happen to her and she gets hurt. I want to protect her from everything like that, but I just can't. But Ken says that she will learn that she WILL get hurt sometimes, but she'll get through it. But will I get through it?! I definitely think it was worse for me than for her. I better learn to hold it together though, because I'll have to be there for her when she gets hurt throughout her life - hurt feelings, skinned knees, broken hearts. But I just can't stand to see my baby get hurt.