Happy Halloween!

Today was Madelyn's first official holiday. Well, I suppose technically her first official holiday was Columbus Day, but until that holiday gets some candy or fireworks or a big meal, I'm not counting it. I digress.

As you can see, Maddie was a doctor for her first Halloween...complete with little Crocs and everything! Her Aunt Kelsie (who is in her fourth year of medical school) gave her this little outfit before she was born, I think mostly as a gag. But alas, as it turned out, it made a perfect Halloween costume! So fun! She and I walked to adidas to meet Kurt for the last part of the day to trick or treat around his office. Every year adidas hosts trick or treating for the employees' kids. She was the littlest one there and quite a hit. You can see why!


Our first trick or treaters were our friends Took and Jeff and their little guy Max (aka "Maddie's boyfriend"). Have you seen a cuter Tigger?! Incidently, we only got four more trick or treaters the whole night. Sad! Evidently our neighborhood isn't exactly the prime location for trick or treating...

Hope your Halloween was just as sweet!

Much love,
Kim

Attempted Photo Shoot

Well, I attempted to do a photo shoot with Madelyn the other day that ultimately ended up being way better in my head than it was in reality. Kurt is definitely the photographer in our family! But fortunately, Maddie's sweet little face more than makes up for my lack of photographic skill. And in case anyone is wondering, she's wearing a Fuzzi Bunz cloth diaper. Yes, Kurt and I are using cloth diapers with Madelyn. I know, I know... Call us hippies if you must, but we do live in Portland after all. We love our Fuzzi Bunz, but that's a discussion for another post!

Much love,
Kim

CAUTION: Massive Amounts of Cuteness Ahead!

No big news or pontifications... Just want to share some fun photos of Madelyn. Enjoy!

Here you go, Molly!

This post is just for my dear friend Molly Rank who checks our blog "every five minutes" while on five and six hour conference calls... Hopefully this will bring a smile to your face and get you through the tediousness!

Madelyn is ready for her first Halloween, thanks to her great-grandma Johnson who has designated herself the "holiday outfit" purchaser (wait 'til you see her Thanksgiving garb!). I think the little spiders and bats look kinda cute and friendly, but Maddie doesn't seem to be convinced!


Kurt and I are enjoying our daughter more and more each day. She has started to smile at us, and she's right on the cusp of cooing and babbling...so cute! She loves to have us sing songs to her, and if you hold her little hands and clap them along with the beat, that's even better. We've started reading books to her as well, and she really seems to study the illustrations. Actually, she's already attended two of her mom's book clubs! I'll admit it... I'm doing everything I can to ensure that my daughter is a book lover. She can choose whatever other extracurricular activities she wants--sports, theater, music, etc.--but I really hope that she is an avid, eager reader!

Much love,
Kim

Madelyn and Her Parents

Happy Autumn! I LOVE this time of year, and we've had some beautiful, crisp, dry weather this week...perfect for walks through the colorful leaves. Madelyn and I have taken some great walks around Portland with our friends Nick and Beth Dekker who are visiting us from Ohio for a few days. Oh who are we kidding...they're visiting Madelyn and we just happen to be her parents. Today we're heading to the Pumpkin Patch to find Maddie's first pumpkin. How fun! We'll definitely take some photos and post them soon.

Kurt took the above photo one afternoon this past week when he got home from work. This is often how he finds Maddie and me. It's my absolute favorite time of day with her. She is so warm and soft and sweet, and I know she won't stay this little forever. It's also her favorite way to sleep, and there is no shortage of people in her life quite willing to allow her to sleep on their chest as well!

And this photo shows Kurt's fool-proof method of holding Madelyn when she is a bit fussy. I know...how on earth this can be comfortable for her is beyond me, but I promise you that she calms down almost instantly. In fact, most of the time she falls so completely asleep that he can just hold his arm straight out and all four of her limbs are limply hanging there along with all ten of her little fingers. Quite amusing.

Hard to believe that our little girl is nearly five weeks old. We've had some bumps and are sure to have more along the way, but overall it has been the most incredible five weeks of our lives. We have savored every day with Maddie and eagerly look forward to each coming day as she grows and changes and develops her own little (or big!) personality. Thanks for checking in...

Much love,

Kim

Maddie's First Date

So I realize that some of you might take issue with Kurt and me for this next picture. Many parents choose to wait until their daughters are 16 (or 35) before they allow them to begin dating, but alas, Maddie had her first date last Friday night. The very eligible (and handsome) suitor is named Maxwell Smoot. He is the 3 month old son of our good friends Took and Jeff Smoot, and how could Kurt and I resist when he is already courting her with SHOES?! He sent Maddie a pair of sock monkey booties that are just too cute, so we decided that that was criteria enough to betroth the two of them. Really, the four of us parents decided that betrothals are a lost practice in our culture that we plan on resurrecting.

This picture shows off Madelyn's fondness for her fingers and thumbs. She found her hands before we even left the hospital, and her determination to get them solidly lodged in her mouth has only increased since then. Suck that thumb, Maddie! Self-soothe away!
Ok, and this photo is just too cute not to share. Being 3 weeks old is hard work! Madelyn just gets exhausted eating and pooping and growing. I love that she uses her whole body to yawn. Her back arches and her arms shoot out... So sweet! In this picture, she's being held by her great-grandma Johnson (aka Resident Baby Snuggler).