Mommy Maddie

Already acting like a little mama... now if she would just SAY "mama!"

The World is Our Oyster...

...now that we know we have THE BEST traveling 8-month-old EVER! We took Madelyn to southern California this past week for her first major trip away from home and she did AWESOME. Auntie Kelsie graduated from Loma Linda Medical School (what an accomplishment!), so we flew down to celebrate with her and the rest of the fam for a few days. She was happy and flexible and easy to please and slept well the entire trip. We were so proud of her! Here are some fun photos for you all:

Just Another Day...

Here are a few recent photos for you all. Nothing extraordinary going on right now, but lucky for us, the ordinary is pretty darn fun :)

Our friend Max came over to play the other day, and as you can see, the kiddos could hardly contain their excitement:

Actually, they had a blast together and were literally chasing each other around the room, but every time I got out my camera, they clouded up. I was having flashbacks to that cartoon with the dancing and singing frog that only ribbits and sits there when other people are around.

Madelyn wants to go hang gliding for her first birthday. We're giving it due consideration and thought we'd give her a practice run with Daddy.

She also loves to check email with Daddy. Don't be surprised if she starts writing these posts one day very soon...


Maddie loves looking out our front window. She gets a kick out of the fact that she can pull herself up and stand there all on her own. She bang bang bangs her hands on the glass and squeals in pure delight.

And look what we found in Maddie's toy basket one day?

Uncle Freddy Would Be Proud!

Well, we hope he would be proud! For those of you who don't know, Kurt is a descendant of the world renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted (he's a great-great-great uncle, I believe). "Uncle Freddy" is the creative mastermind behind New York City's Central Park and Boston's Boston Public Gardens just to name two. This past weekend, Kurt and I channeled Uncle Freddy and did a bit of a landscape overhaul on our front yard. For those of you who haven't yet been to our house, we live on a fairly busy street--busy enough that we won't ever let Madelyn play outside in our front yard. We had grass, but the grass was sparse and half moss and was just ultimately not that pretty. So we decided to get rid of it altogether, and with the help of many of our dear friends and Grandma O. (who was on Maddie duty all day) this past Saturday, we did just that. What a day! We started at 9:00 a.m. and didn't finish until 9:00 p.m. And then on Sunday, we started up again around 2:00 p.m. and finally finished the whole project at 9:00 p.m. For weeks, we dreaded getting started because we are such novices and we knew we had bitten off more than we could chew (or a mouthful at the very least). But we actually had fun! TONS as a matter of fact! And thank God for the input of all of our friends (Pat Rank, we said an audible prayer of thanks specifically for you and your gentle suggestion to rent a sod cutter rather than tear up all that grass with our shovels and our bare hands). All in all, we are thrilled with the outcome. Our little yard is modest and we look forward to continuing to add to it in the coming months, but it has definite personality now and will grow and flourish alongside our little family.


Highlights?

1. THE ROTOTILLER! What a wild ride! We decided that next time, the guys need cowboy hats and an 8 second count in order to really complete the experience!

2. All the neighbors. Nothing like a yard project to bring out all the neighbors...and some of them even pitched in!

3. The weather. Sandwiched by cold, gray, rainy days, the weekend was gorgeous. The temperature was just warm enough and the sun shone brightly. Beautiful!

4. Our friends. We have the BEST group of friends. It was Alli's idea to begin doing these group work days at each other's houses, but I think we set the bar pretty high! They were enthusiastic and encouraging and strong and energetic and didn't complain once. We had a blast!

5. The Bells of Ireland in the half wine barrels. They're the coolest plant...like little green Martian suction cups. And the wine barrels are totally authentic. They made our garage smell like wine every time we opened the door.

6. Saturday night's sleep :)

Mounting Soap Box Now...

So here's my latest soap box rant: I am absolutely infuriated that Avent (and other major baby bottle companies like it) have knowingly manufactured their bottles with toxic chemicals such as BPA that leach into the milk that then goes directly into my baby's body. I guess this information has been out there for awhile now, but it's only just recently hit the larger media. Who are these people? How do they sleep at night? These are BABIES for crying out loud! For those of you who haven't heard, the upshot of it is that all plastic products are divided into seven different categories depending on their specific composition of materials. Most products have their assigned number inside a little recycling triangle on their bottom. Only 2's, 4's, and 5's are safe. All of the rest leach toxic chemicals, and number 7's are among the worst. So...guess which number most clear baby bottles fall into? Yep. 7. Nalgene bottles also fall into this category, so for those of you (like Kurt and myself) who have drunk thousands of ounces of water out of your Nalgene bottles, stop now! Get rid of them and get a SIGG (exceptionally well made Swiss aluminum water bottles). But back to baby bottles. All week I've been researching other options for bottles, and I think we've finally settled on good old fashioned Evenflo glass bottles. I went to buy a bunch at Babies R Us the other day and they were totally out; the gal said they've been flying off the shelves. I managed to find one ridiculously overpriced one at a local children's boutique, which of course I purchased, and we've been washing it between every feeding until I can find some more. I just can't bear the thought of knowingly putting toxins in my little baby's body, and I'm so mad that I have to even be worrying about it in the first place.

(Dismounting soap box.)

On to happier things! Madelyn is moving and shaking as always. Here are some highlights from the last week or so:

PDA? A-OK!

Ok, that is the cheesiest title ever; please forgive me :)

It occurred to me today as I was kissing Madelyn all over her sweet little face while doing some grocery shopping at New Seasons that for the first time in my life, I have absolutely no problem displaying as many public displays of affection as I want. I kiss her, snuggle with her, stroke her face, make silly faces at her, stare at her, and whisper in her ear with absolutely no regard for who is watching and what they might be thinking. That is a major step for someone like me who is constantly, endlessly, excruciatingly aware of others' opinions and critiques! Yay for me! Progress! Poor Kurt. We dated for months before I would even sit next to him in a movie theater. Ok, not really, but it probably felt like that for him. He is the epitome of a carefree, in the moment, affectionate, expressive person. I've always loved that about him and have envied how he is so easily who he is. It is extremely difficult for me to get caught up in moments, but having my own little baby and experiencing the profoundly fleeting nature of time is helping me learn to just get lost a bit even if (gasp!) other people are watching. Plus, I know in about six or seven short years, "other people" will be the least of my concerns; Maddie won't want her mommy smooching on her in front of her friends forever, so I'd better just indulge while I can!

strong girl...

This is so great! Madelyn's most recent trick (along with pulling herself up to a standing position) is showing off how strong she is. Mark and Jan have said that Kim used to do this same thing when she was little. It's hilarious and she does it on command which is even funnier! That said, we are a little worried that she may get a hernia because she gets SO intense at times... I think she gets that from both of her parents ;) Enjoy!