Maddie's First Haircut

Last week we took Maddie to get her first haircut.  Since we did a big production for Nate (Nate's First Haircut) we wanted to do something special for Maddie as well.  Since she is 3 years old and NOT a baby, we decided instead of taking her to Cookie Cutters we would take her to a "big girl" salon.  I have a friend that works at Borics and thought that would be perfect.  It was absolutely perfect.  Maddie was so excited to finally be getting her haircut.  She watches eagerly every time I cut Daddy and Nate's hair, wanting to have hers cut too.  And after chopping half her bangs and some of the hair on top to the scalp this summer, she was ready! :)

Alison did a great job making her feel special.  She even put a little bit of stuff in her hair and ran the blow dryer through it to make her feel like a big girl.  Maddie just grinned and you could tell she was just beside herself.  She did so good sitting still.  In the end, the cut is just perfect. It evens out the original Mohawk and makes her look older.  So bittersweet but then again I say that about every milestone with the kids.

before

she just enjoyed it so much

after

Maddie is 3!

Our sweet Maddie is three! Can you believe it!?! She woke up that morning at told me, "I'm never going to be 2 again!" Yep, she's excited to be a big girl. She is funny and clever.  A spitfire. She's super smart (she knows her numbers and letters and how to spell her name). She likes to do things her way and in her time. She is determined. She has the cutest little laugh. She sings. All the time. She loves Frozen and so naturally is the song of choice (incorrectly-"let it grow").  She really observes people, even if you don't think she is paying any attention. The smallest details too (she asked why my friend was putting peanut butter on the bread with her hand--she was holding it--as I keep the bread on the counter). She loves everything girly-dresses and pink and purple and make up. She wants to be a mommy when she grows up and loves to play in her kitchen and with her babies. We have been working on potty training for about a month. She has a stretch of a few days that she does excellent and then a couple days that she will just have one accident after another.  So we're still working on it but she is in big girl undies during the day and in a diaper at night. She likes to wear her hair in breads like "Elsa".  She thinks Nate is hilarious and will laugh and laugh at the things he says and does.  She loves to cuddle (especially after waking up).  She is shy in new situations and with new people but warms up and then look out! She loves wagons, dogs, reading.  She just learned how to swing by herself. She's super proud. She loves sparkle, glitter, toenail polish, and jewelry.  She is stubborn, destroys so many things, is messy.  She likes to tell me "I can do whatever I can do" (=I can do what I want) when I tell her to do something.  She likes a variety of food but is a grazer and will not eat an entire meal in one sitting.  She is a snacker.  She loves the pool but only the kiddie pool, where she will sit at the edge having a tea party.  She does not like to splash around in the water.  She is very helpful.  She loves to help me in the kitchen when I'm cooking and will get her toy appliances to "cook" alongside me.  She helps with the laundry and dishes.  She is very healthy--she hasn't been sick at all this past year.  Her wellness visit went very well-her vision is great and she looks good (she refused to pee in the cup, can you blame her?).  She is 40" tall (95%) and weighs 36 lbs. 4 oz. (90%). 

The Proposal

I think it was while watching Beauty and the Beast that Nate asked if they were getting married and why.  I told him that's what people do when they love each other, they get married.  He pondered this for a moment and then said, "I love Maddie. Me and Maddie are going to get married." 

That was a couple of weeks ago.  Then, this morning, it happened. The proposal.  They were sitting on my bed getting ready for our school time when Nate looked at Maddie, put his arm around her and this is how it went down:

Nate: Maddie, do you want to marry me?
Maddie: Yes.
Nate: Good job.
Maddie: Now we're married.

So there you have it. Keeping it in the family. ;)


On a side note, I don't want to forget this comment either:

Nate had an ear infection and as we were leaving the doctor's office he asked where we were going. I told him the pharmacy. He replied, "where the cows are?". I couldn't stop laughing. Not that kind of "farm-acy" buddy.

Our First Trip the Movies

We received another winter storm on Tuesday afternoon, dumping a lot of snow, mixed with ice, on us.  So the next morning MOPS was cancelled as well as Bible study that evening. I was feeling pretty bummed about it and tired of being cooped up in the house, when Michael called and asked if I thought Maddie would sit through a movie.  Possibly.  Maybe I was just very hopeful and slightly lying to myself because I saw this as a chance to GET OUT and DO SOMETHING FUN. Oh yes, of course, she'll do great in the theater! Ha! Michael found out that the YES! Cinema downtown was playing "Free Birds" for a $1/person. I didn't hesitate. Yes! Let's do it! Even if it's a disaster it's only a buck!

Well, it wasn't a disaster at all.  Our little Maddie actually did quite well.  It was good the theater wasn't full, because she wanted to walk around a little bit and stand up and watch the movie a lot. But she did great not running around or yelling.  Nate did awesome.  It was wonderful to watch him watch the movie and see his reactions.  The ate up all the popcorn (minus the bit that was spilled on the floor) and we all really enjoyed our night out.  So even though Bible study was cancelled it turned out to be a great night and mark another "first" off the kids' list.

Bunk Beds

We bought bunk beds this summer, not really intending to use them until next summer.  Maddie just moved into a big girl bed not that long ago, and we didn't think she was ready to share a room yet.  So the bottom bunk stayed in her room and Nate got the loft bed in his.  However, we caved and gave in to the constant requests to share a room.  We didn't think she was ready and we were right, however the move was made and the bed wasn't going back.

While the transition has been less than smooth, with most nights moving Nate out of the room until they both fall asleep and then putting him back in bed, there's is something so sweet to checking on the kids and seeing them in the same room sleeping.  And last night was the first night that they both fell asleep in their beds.  Granted it took them awhile to settle down, but eventually they did, all on their own.  Victory! At least for one night.

Maddie, Oh Our Little Maddie

Just a "quick" note for a Maddie update:

For memory keeping purposes (because I can't remember what happened yesterday), I will give a little update on Maddie. She is super smart. She knows her alphabet and can recognize many of the letters and some numbers too.  She loves singing songs and her favorite right now is "Jesus Loves Me".  Often, though, she is too smart. But when she's trying to get out of something and she gives that little grin, who can stay mad? (which is the problem)

Maddie now thinks that if she closes her eyes she is invisible.  Which means she can do whatever she wants.  So whenever the desire to be naughty and not listen arises, she simply closes her eyes and the proceeds with whatever it is that makes her happy and drives Mommy crazy.  It must also affect her hearing, because when she's "invisible" she can't hear a word I'm saying. Gotta love her.

Maddie and I were sitting on the couch, watching Toy Story.  She turns to me and out of no where tells me she was naughty at church last night.  So I thought, okay this is good.  She is feeling bad about what she did.  So I told her that next time she can be good.  She looks at me and says "no" and then turns back to her movie. So I guess she wasn't trying to clear her conscience, but just simply stating a fact.

She has also started biting her nails. It's weird. How do kids pick up these habits? Well, at least I don't have to cut them anymore.

Our First Visit to the Love Chapel

We had our first volunteering experience and it was wonderful!

I meet with an amazing group of ladies each Thursday for a Bible study.  That in itself has been such a blessing.  Encouraged by the church and each other to take our studies one step further with service projects, we found our first opportunity at the Love Chapel.

After study and lunch on Thursday, we headed over to help them out.  The staff and volunteers at the Love Chapel were wonderful.  With all our little kids in tow, we don't know how much of a help we would be (or really were), but they were gracious.  While we desired to help, we also wanted our kids to learn about serving others.  They set up stations for the kids so that they could help.  They could roll up utensils in napkins, sort plastic bags, stacking bread, and help divide dog food into smaller portioned sacks.

Nate did a great job helping.  Maddie did well, for about 2 minutes at each station, but about as well as to be expected. So it was a lot of running around after her and we left with her screaming (granted it was naptime), but it was completely worth it. Being able to bring them there to help other people and talk with Nate afterwards about it will hopefully develop servant's hearts in our children.  I don't think he completely understands at this age why we were doing what we were doing, but my hope is that they will continue to help others and when they are older it will be a part of their life,

as if "they've been going to the Love Chapel as long as they can remember".

 

Halt on Potty Training

We are pausing the potty training and so happy to do so! It was going nowhere fast. :)  Maddie did figure out what the potty was and what to do in it, but didn't quite get that she needed to tell us before she had to go.  She would also only tinkle a little tiny bit and then turn around and have an accidents within seconds of using the potty.  So needless to say I was cleaning a LOT of messes.

The only reason we started was because she was constantly taking off her diaper, knowing she wasn't quite ready yet but moving forward with it anyway.  So, when a couple of weeks ago she decided to start keeping her diaper on we decided to stop the madness and let her keep her diapers!

For now, she uses the potty when she feels like it but it's mostly diaper time. So the Minnie Mouse undies will stay comfortably nestled in her drawer for a bit longer. We will try again when she is ready and I think the process will be a lot smoother. :) 

Big Girl, Big Changes

A few weeks ago, Maddie decided that she no longer likes to keep her pants or diaper on.  So every opportunity she gets, off they come!  This means finding her with messes. On the floor. She hates the diaper, I hate the mess, so I guess it's time to potty train! YAAAaaaaayyyy......

It has been and continues to be a struggle.  She's not quite ready for it, but with her shredding her diaper all the time we don't really have a choice. She is getting better.  We were changing underwear LOTS throughout the day.  She was good at telling me "potty" after the fact.  She is starting to catch on to telling me beforehand but still needs lots of reminders. And while she has gone #2 in the potty a couple of times, it will not phase her to go in her underpants.  So if I stay on top of it, she is accident free. The biggest problem is she will have an accident immediately after going potty on the toilet because she only tinkles the tiniest little bit. I think she knows how to work the system because she gets marshmallows as a reward for using the potty. The other biggest problem is bedtime. She almost always takes her diaper off during nap time/bedtime and I am washing sheets everyday. Help! And by help, I mean come do my laundry. :)

To keep with the big girl theme, yesterday was day one of no paci. Neither of us are ready for it. At all.  But she keeps chewing on them and biting them up.  We decided when we bought the last pack that would be the last pack.  It has become a choking hazard and so when the start to become worn, I have to throw them away.  As I examined her paci on Tuesday, it had a tear and I knew I needed to throw it away.  She did not sleep at all during nap time yesterday and I don't think she's sleeping at all today (I hear her cry out every so often so either she's not sleeping or won't stay sleeping).  She did end up falling asleep last night, of course, but not without a lot of heart-wrenching pleas for her paci.  It's like her little heart was breaking because she couldn't have it and so of course it broke my heart. I think she stopped crying before I did. I know it's a necessary step and she can't have her paci forever, but I also know it's difficult because that's her piece of comfort.  We struggle as adults if we can't have our comfort things. I know it won't last forever but hopefully within a few days the paci will be but a memory. One can hope.

End of Summer Blues

As the end of summer draws near, the kids (and I) are getting more restless with each day.  We have had plenty of fun-filled days this summer, enjoying outside, play dates, parks, the zoo, the pool, just to name a few.  When summer starts we are ready for lazy summer days with no schedules or set plans, but by the end of summer we are more than ready to get back into a routine. 

 

This restlessness has easily translated into naughtiness the last couple of weeks.  And I mean naughty.  Big meltdowns, lots of fighting, and lots of defiance. Which has left me worn out!  But, I will tell you how good God is. Because at that moment when you think you've had just as much as you can take for one day, He gives you a little glimmer of hope that says "hang in there, it's all going to be okay". 

 

For me, this time, the glimmer of hope happened while I was cooking dinner.  I sent the kids outside to get out of my hair, er, play.  I kept stealing glances of them out the window.  Expecting to see them fighting, instead I saw Nate pushing Maddie on the swing as she squealed with delight, shouting "higher".  I saw them running around the yard chasing each other.  I saw them playing together in the sandbox.  I saw them play house and Maddie pour Nate a glass of "lemonade".

 

Seeing those smiles was exactly what I needed at that moment.  Hearing that laughter makes it all better and all the fighting and screaming and tantrums worth it.  Watching them play together just melts my heart.  It's in those moments that I know all the hard work is worth and it WILL be okay.

 

 

Our Feisty Two-Year Old

Maddie is two!

And she's a feisty little girl.  She has so much character and cracks us up that we'll take the naughty with the good. 

She gets into everything.  I mean EVERYTHING.  We have locks on doors we never had with Nate-every door is locked and we also got locks for the oven and fridge (both of which have been broken already).  She is always trying to climb up on the counters so she can get into the cabinets.  She can open child-proof bottles (I have no clue how she does it).  And we have two good stories just in the past couple weeks to paint a picture of our destructive little girl.

One afternoon the kids were playing upstairs while Michael and I were talking downstairs.  We went up to check on them to find Maddie in her room with the bottle of bath bubbles (the bathroom door should have been locked).  She had dumped out the entire contents and was rubbing it into the carpet.  It probably took at least 2 hours to clean that mess up.  At least her room smells bubble gum fresh!

The kids had a particular difficult time going down for their naps one Saturday recently.  Tired of listening to their crying, I shut our bedroom door (we were trying to have a lazy afternoon watching tv in bed).  Some time later, Maddie comes strolling in our room and climbs up in bed.  Instantly I smell her and see she is messy all over her hands and face.  I rush downstairs to find she got into the pantry (also usually locked) and there were chips and cheese balls all over the kitchen and living room floor. 

Moral of the stories: make sure all doors are locked, even if it's nap time and you think your kids are securely in their rooms.

She loves to be girly.  She loves wearing dresses and bows in her hair (when she actually keeps them in). Whenever we tell her she's so pretty she lifts up her toes because we call nail polish "pretties".  She also loves to take care of everybody.  We play house a lot and she makes sure everyone has something to eat and drink.  She's always concerned that everyone has what they need. 

She's not potty trained and hasn't gone on the potty since that first time. Not a concern for me.  Of course having one potty trained I can get anxious to have the other one done too, but it can wait until she's ready.  She sits on the potty and doesn't have a clue what to do.  It might take some time.

She talks like crazy and loves to learn.  She is learning colors and shapes.  She can count to two. But my favorite recent story about her learning is the Bible story lesson.  At church last week, the lesson was about being kind to others.  They had a picture of a bear and were taught to say sorry and give big bear hugs when they hurt someone or do something naughty.  We put the lesson up on the fridge and work on it that week.  So, every time we do something wrong, we hug the other person and say the memory verse, "love is kind".  By Tuesday she had it down.  She said "sorry" and came and gave me a bear hug and then without prompting said, "love kind". 

So even though she's rotten, she's so stinkin' adorable and sweet. 

Playing in the Pool

I can't believe we are into the second week of July and it was our first trip of the summer to the pool, especially after practically living there last summer.  But it has been a cooler summer, but even on those hotter days for some reason we just haven't gotten up there.  With the ominous clouds we probably could have skipped it, but we went and it was fun even if just for an hour or so.  We left before the storm rolled in, but the kids had so much fun-we will definitely be getting in more pool time before the summer ends!

We went with a couple of my friends and their kids so lots of fun and kids to play with (7 kids!).  Nate spent most of the time in the kiddie pool but a lot of the other kids were in the big pool and he wanted to give the slide a try.  My friend Kim had a life jacket for him but I still wasn't sure if he was actually going to do it.  He hesitated for a minute at the top of the slide and then went!  Kim was in the pool to catch him.  He stayed in the big pool for a little bit with her but soon wanted to go back to the kiddie pool. It was very exciting to see him in the big pool and hopefully we can spend some more time in there getting used to it. 

Maddie wanted nothing to do with either pool, which didn't surprise me.  She's never been big on the water, not even with our little tinypool at the house. 

 

I don't think she even put one foot in.  She kept to the perimeter, watching everyone else and eating a snack.  Maybe I can get her toes in the water next time...baby steps, haha!

 

Let the Potty Training Begin Again

Maddie peed in the potty tonight! She has been taking steps towards getting ready for potty training for a couple of months. She asks to sit on the potty, usually pushing hard with no results but a bunch of smiles and giggles. She has been telling me lately before she poops or right afterwards. 

Nate never used the floor potty seat, just the one that goes on the toilet seat, however Maddie is younger than he was when he started and therefore smaller.  So I thought it might be a good idea to get the floor potty seat out and see what happens. She thought that it was great fun but for not much more than sitting on. So there it has sat not seeing one tiny little drop.  So last week we went to the store and I bought her some Minnie Mouse underwear. This is a big deal.  She wanted to wear those babies so badly.  We gave it a shot.  First pair ended up in the garbage-I don't think I have to tell you what I won't clean out of underwear.  So we just went back to diapers.  Last night she wanted to wear "mouse" so much that after bath I put a pair on.  Not more than 10 minutes in she's wet and so is our carpet. Still not ready. 

And then there was tonight. Ahhh! {music playing and the town cheering} I was giving her a bath and she kept telling me "potty", so I'd get her out of the tub and on the potty just for her to play around. I was getting tired of it and was ready to just ignore her when she cried "potty" again.  But I didn't. I am so glad. She got out of the tub and sat down and we heard the glorious sound of tinkle in the potty!

Now I know that this is just the start. Nate peed in the potty for the first time in August and wasn't potty trained until October, but THIS IS THE START! We are all very excited and after gobbling down some jelly beans and putting "mouse" on again, she is excited and we are hopeful.

Big Girl Bed

Around March, Maddie climbed out of her crib for the first time. She did a few times but fell out and didn't attempt it again. Until last week.  And now she has the hang of it.  Awesome.

So last weekend we went and got her a big girl bed and some bedding.  She was so excited. Mommy was so sad. Yes, I literally cried. She's been acting like a big girl, but now it's concrete. All that's left is the diapers and she's officially old. (let me be dramatic)

It has been going well in her new bed. She likes it and does really well.  Last night before bed we peeked in her room and she had pulled the changing pad off the table and fell asleep on that.  About 2am she woke up and crawled into her bed. Guess it wasn't that comfortable. 

Mayonnaise

my pretty princess

Maddie is the same age Nate was when she was born (not even really, because she's now 21 months!). I don't know where the time is going, but it is surely going! I'll have to agree with my dear friend that she is no longer a baby-she's really a big girl. 

eating some hot cereal

She's a sassy pants and feisty and I wouldn't change a thing. She loves to have fun and laughs at so much; especially Nate. She's talking like crazy. It's mostly naming items or saying one, sometimes two, words at a time. Her big thing right now is asking "sound?" so every time she hears a noise she asks. We were in the public restroom last week and I was changing her diaper at the changing station.  Someone came in and started tinkling in the toilet and sure enough, Mad's is asking "sound?".  Cracks me up.  She's very independent and has started wanting to dress herself (she is just managing getting her pants on).  She is really getting into playing with her dollies.  She likes to put them in their little bed and she holds them and pats their backs.  She pretends to change their diapers and earlier this week she sat down to change her baby and said, "eww, gross"! She is also the messiest eater on the planet.  This is probably because she eats everything with her hands, even hot cereal. She is now letting me put bows in her hair, which this mama is super excited about!

Oh, and I almost forgot, the title of the post is mayonnaise because when you ask her to say her name, that's how she says it.  It's really so funny and I need to get it on video.
 

I love my babies!

Sometimes I just need to shout it out loud! I love them so much! As they continue to grow I am laughing more and truly enjoying my time with them.  Not that I didn't before, but the first year of Maddie's life was difficult and all my sickness this past year hasn't helped. But they are becoming much more independent and now with adding in conversation that just leaves me laughing.  Our play time is so much fun.  I am just so blessed to be spending these days at home with them.

Nate at 3 years old, so far, is better than 2 years old.  I will probably be eating these words.  He has just entered a very sweet stage.  It's not that he doesn't test us still, but he really enjoys being the big helper and has become sensitive. He doesn't like when we're mad at him and he wants to be a "good boy".  It probably also helps that Maddie is starting her terrible two's and Nate sees her getting in trouble all the time and wants no part in it.  He has developed quite the imagination.  We always have to protect the house from ogres.  When he's calling out for me and doesn't get my attention right away, he calls me "Beckie".  Not loving it but it's kind of funny to hear this little voice say my name. The other day he called out for Daddy and he didn't respond so he said "Beckie" to get his attention too. I don't think he gets that my real name is Beckie and thinks its a term used to get our attention. Afternoon naps are almost completely nonexistent, except the days he is really tired he will lie down and go to sleep.  We are maintaining quiet time though, and he does a good job playing quietly in his room until Maddie wakes up. He loves to be funny and if he does something that makes us laugh (usually a goofy face) then he will continue to do it. He just loves getting laughs out of us.

Maddie is talking up a storm. She loves to learn. The other day she was getting into the dog food. We have a book and in it it says "no no" to eating dog food and "yes yes" to eating a banana.  So when Nate saw her playing in the dog food he told her "no no".  She stopped, ran over to the book shelf and grabbed the book and opened it to that page! She has to copy what big brother does all the time. It's so cute to see them running around and playing together. She can be stubborn, but I guess she just knows what she wants. A couple of weeks ago she woke up in the middle of the night. I am trying my best not to take her back to bed with me (I had gotten into a bad habit when she was teething/sick) so I went in and sat in the chair to rock her. She said "no" and pointed towards our room.  She didn't want to be rocked, she just wanted to go sleep with Mama! She loves to wear her Hello Kitty snow boots, everywhere, everyday. She likes her toenails painted so they're "pretty".  I did it once to see if she would sit still and she did. Now she gets into my nail polish container and picks out the one she wants. She hasn't quite gotten blowing her nose yet. When I hold a tissue up to her nose and tell her to blow, she blows out of her mouth. It's hilarious.

Maddie's 18 Month Wellness

Maddie had her 18 month wellness visit this week.  She's actually 19 months but that's how it goes sometimes with scheduling the visits at the doctor's office.

She is 35 1/2" tall (100%+) and 27lbs 13oz (93%). No surprise there. Other than her ears still having some fluid in them and doing another round of antibiotics to completely clear it up, she is a healthy little girl. 

She talks so much it's crazy.  Most of it is mumbo jumbo but she does repeat so many words. Her independence has not changed, nor has her fiestiness. It is something I've decided I need to really bring in before she gets too much older and it gets out of control.  I've been a little easier with her because she is the baby, but I can tell with her personality that she's going to need me to be firm.  So she has had several time outs today and I can already tell that she is learning to listen a little bit better.

We were upstairs this morning playing and she hit Nate so I put her in her bed for a timeout (I hate lugging the kids all the way downstairs to go to timeout so they have to go to their rooms instead if we are upstairs).  Next thing I know she's walking back in the room!  I couldn't believe it! So now she can go free.  It is naptime and so far she is staying in there.  We will see what happens but once she really gets the hang of it and remembers that she can leave her crib whenever she wants we are going to have to move her.  Boo!

Double-Double Ear Infection

Both kids have a double ear infection.  I took Nate in on Tuesday for a cough.  It was a deep, hoarse cough that started Friday.  Normally I wouldn't have taken him in just for a cough (no other symptoms besides the nearly constant and normal for the season runny nose), but he had the same cough less than two weeks ago.  Thinking that it might be bronchitis, I decided I better take him in just to be safe.  Glad I did!

Maddie hasn't been sleeping well for several days, but I chalked it up to teething.  She always seems to be gnawing on something lately.  But last night she spiked a fever and could not sleep.  We were up almost all night, on and off.  I even brought her to bed with me and gave her Motrin, but nothing was working.  So first thing this morning we headed back to the doctor's office (kicking myself for not having the doctor check her when we were there for Nate as she had a runny nose too) and sure enough, she has a double ear infection too.  Hers is even worse than Nate's.  And you could tell.  She was miserable today (so snotty and gunky around the eyes).  I had to lie with her on the couch all day as she would fall in and out of sleep.  She finally started feeling good enough to get off the couch and play this evening.  Hopefully they both get a good night's sleep and feel better in the morning.

Maddie is 18 Months Old

Maddie is now 18 months! She doesn't have her check-up at the doctor's until March so no stats at this time.

 

She has been babbling for awhile but she has really started saying quite a few words here recently.  She says: ouwy/ouchy, dada, mama, uh-oh, baby, paci (papi), bye bye, juice, mine, hi, please, thank you, boots, shoes, and no (we'll get to that one in a bit).  She is also saying a few other babbles that sort of sound like the word: apple, balloon, dog, and door.

 

So, yes, she's officially telling us "no".  It's great.  And of course it's the word she uses most often.  Enter the defiant stage.  We are definitely at the starting line of the terrible two's.  She is as feisty as can be.  She doesn't want to listen, refuses to do what we tell her to do, and has started hitting-especially Nate.  When she gets made she throws things or knocks things over.  Let's just say that she spends a little bit more time in time-out each day.  This has made it very difficult to take her out in public.

 

But I know that this new behavior is all part of it.  She is really becoming very independent.  She gets around so well.  She can go up and down the stairs (she really has been able to do so for quite some time), she jumps on the trampoline, can jump with both feet off the floor, and loves to tumble.  She loves to do things on her own (feeding herself, brushing her teeth, etc.).  She's still eating really well, which isn't surprising-she loves food and her mood is often dependent on it.  You should see her face when I actually have breakfast waiting for her on the table in the morning.  She literally squeals with delight. It's hilarious.

 

She still loves to read and has several in her favorites list now.  She's starting to really play with her dollies, mostly to take them on "walks" in the baby stroller around the living room.  Today she had a good time with her baby on her lap, playing, as well as hitting her, laughing the whole time. Rotten, I say, just rotten! :)  She loves Potato Head, has to play with it everyday.  She likes doing puzzles, playing with the Little People figures, and building blocks.

 

 

 

 

 

Playing Doctor

 

For Christmas we got the kids a doctor kit, so now we play almost everyday. This works out very well in the morning when I am tired and I can lay down and be the "patient".  It cracks me up to play doctor with them.  Nate will do his examination, and after each test he will say "sick!"--check my temperature-sick! heart beat-sick! knee reflexes-sick! Maddie likes the stethoscope best and will hold it up to my chest and make little "boom boom" sounds for the heartbeat. It's so cute!