Playdate

Miss Madeline typed her friend across the street to come over to play...and he did. Channing and Madeline enjoyed some playtime together yesterday afternoon.

Eventually the babies went down for the evening and the adults played. Well, we didn't play so much as we talked and munched on some delicious snacks all while the NCAA Tournament was on.

Good times.

Her name is Madeline....

....and it's written on her birth certificate.

I'm having a moment today, so allow me to vent. When John and I were deciding what to name our unborn child, we settled on Madeline simply because we liked the name. We even toyed around with the idea of calling her "Madie", but we simply never call her that. It would appear that many people haven't picked up on that, either. So I'm making the decision to boycott calling her "Madie". First of all, it just sounds silly and secondly, unless people can figure out we spelled it "M-a-d-i-e" and not Maddy, or Maddie, or Maddi....then really, what is the point. That would be like people calling me "Jessie".....I'm not a "Jessie". And if you ever thought of calling me that in front of my momma, she would be quick to tell you; "Her name is Jessica, and it's written on her birth certificate."

Happy Birthday Jersey!

Our puppy is 3 years old today! Happy Birthday Jersey! Here are a few photos from the last several months...at 3 years old, she continues to have an excessive amount of energy, but remains just as gentle and loveable as always.

baby food.

With all the rain we've had since our return from the SUNSHINE state, I decided it was time to start making baby food from scratch. First up, Peas. Madeline doesn't particularly care for the Gerber Peas, so I was eager to see if she would like them pureed at home.....and she does. Fresh is best! I have also made Pear and Applesauce with a pinch of Cinnamon and a Stawberry Apple Banana with baby cereal puree as well. Storage is the tricky part as I got ahead of myself. I need an icecube tray with a cover, which I know they sell at Babies R'Us, so I suppose a trip to that store is in the near future. For now, I use an old ice cube tray, pour the purees in there (1 cube is just about equal to one ounce)and freeze just until frozen, then I pop them out and put them into a freezer bag. Oh, and some of the puree I keep in the fridge for immediate enjoyment ;-) My mom suggested keeping her old Gerber containers and reusing, so for now, it works! Madeline was my little taste tester- for each puree I made, I allowed her to sample right away and she liked that. I think the test will be pureed meats. I'll keep you posted on how that turns out. Next up....Sweet Potatoes and Butternut Squash.

The morning after.

We arrived home yesterday afternoon. The flight was PACKED. We were hot, we were tired, we just wanted to get home. After sitting in line to take off for over an hour, we were in the air and Madeline was ready to get off the plane....only 3 more hours left! All things considered, she did pretty well and fortunately we were surrounded by many other unhappy babies and children with many adults who were able to order a Scotch or put on their noise cancelling ear phones. Or, like the people behind us, play Peek-a-Boo with Madeline between the seats. There really are kind people in the world.....they must be from Minnesota.

When we walked into our house, we were relieved. Madeline too. Her bedtime came early last night, but she woke up a happy baby this morning. So here she is at breakfast this morning.

Okay, so the flash was a little bright, and you can't teach a baby to keep her eyes open. But, the point of this photo is that I had her breakfast made, a nice dish of Oatmeal and Bananas. Evidently I underestimated her reach because just as I set it down, all warm and fresh, she decided she couldn't wait to enjoy it....all over her pajamas, her Bumbo and the counter. Oh well, she seemed to think it was silly. We did get the second batch made and it did make it to her highchair and most importantly, her mouth.

A day at the beach.

To summarize our trip to Florida, we relaxed, we played, we ate delicious meals, we were entertained, we enjoyed so much sunshine. It was a much needed break for all of us. Madeline loved Florida. And after a little nap under the umbrella, she loved the beach, too.

Little Tikes Pool

I forgot to post this the other day. We took Madeline to the baby pool at Nana and Papa's Country Club (The Player's Club). It was a little cloudy that day, but we made time to stop and pose at the baby pool. As you can see, Madeline thought those water spouts were so funny!

Turning 7 months old in Florida

Madeline turned 7 months old today.

• She is beautiful, she is hilarious, she has the biggest blue eyes in the world
• When we hold her hands and say "Stand up" she will in fact, stand up. And when we say "Sit down" she will in fact, sit down.
• She continues to laugh at her puppy and when mommy and daddy, or anyone else, makes her laugh.
• Her nap schedule remains consistant at 2-3 per day and sleeps about 10 hours at night. Although I think the day light savings is throwing her off a little.
• She eats 3 meals her day of the fruit, veggie, meat or cereal sort and those are of course accompanied by her bottle feedings.
• She continues to enjoy her toys and her Baby Einstein. She has one toy in particular, a train, which when you press the big yellow button, it makes the balls go round and round....she loves to grab the purple ball and take it out and is learning how to put it back in the toy to keep it going.
• She LOVES Florida. She loves swimming, she loves all the long walks we go on; she sees the flowers, the trees, the water...feels the warm breeze. We may have to move if she is always this happy here!

Chillin' in the Pool

We're in Florida for the week and so far it has been wonderful. Madeline is quite the traveler. She's barely 7 months old and has already flown twice! I must admit, she was such a trooper on our way here. She just makes eyes at everyone around her and they love her :-)

Day one we arrived at Nana and Papa's and got ourselves settled for the week.

Day two John and I went up to Fort Myers for the Twins game. It was 85 and sunny. A few beers and a hot dog later, we came home early to swim with our little fishy....here are some photos of that, along with a video. Needless to say, she LOVES the pool. We were tired of the water and ready to get out, but as you'll see in the video, she literally laid in her baby ring and floated for at least an hour. So sweet and so hilarious.

Florida agrees with her.

We'll have more to post, so check back soon!

miss. giggles.

Jersey can always make Madeline laugh. Here she is from earlier today.

Being Silly

Considering my last post was reflecting on warmer temps and walks....today we're home awaiting a snow storm- possibly the worst all season. Currently, as I write, it's 8am and it looks very wet and foggy outside. I wouldn't expect a blizzard to be knocking on our backdoor anytime soon, but the weather man suggests otherwise. So, Madeline and I are cuddled up on our regular area of the living room floor with cozy pajamas and lots of toys. I took a few shots of her this morning. Her personality develops more with each passing day and I have to admit- I love it! And I know her daddy would agree.

Here she is acting like a goofball. She loves to grab her feet whether she's sitting down or laying down and I think it's hilarious. And at "breakfast" this morning, she was the most messy she's ever been. She really wants that spoon to do it all by herself, but she just can't get it in her mouth- but she has no problem getting it everywhere else, her eyes, her chin, her hair, her nose.....laughter ensues when she's trying to feed herself.

Where is Spring?

We took advantage of the somewhat warm-er temps late last week by taking a walk...I was worried that Madeline wouldn't understand the difference between 0 degrees and 40 degrees so I made sure she was bundled for a snowstorm. She seemed to enjoy the walk- so much to see and smell...and FRESH AIR! I wonder if babies understand the term "cabin fever"? Regardless, it was a quick walk that we all enjoyed. A small taste of what's to come!

Treats.

My neighbor and I are becoming quite good pals....she has a 3 month old boy named Channing. The four of us often get together during the week and recently we got together to discuss homemade baby food. She shared this book with me and we're going to start making some baby food together. Madeline is doing great with her Stage 2 Gerber favorites, however, I feel as though I would be doing her a better service by making baby food out of actual food. Regardless of whether this works out or not, I can say I've tried it. It might be too much work, but something about the idea of waking early this spring/summer and going to the local farmer's market to pick up the freshest fruits and veggies and feeding them to our princess seems like a good idea.
And another thing my neighbor friend shared with me are "No Pudge Fudge Brownies". One serving, mixed with your favorite yogurt and you've got a fat free fudgy delight....and no "pudge" to worry about. They truly are delish! I dare you to try them.

Puppy Dog Toys.

Thank you, Elizabeth and Catherine, for the super cute puppy dog toy! I like the way the ears crunch and how it sings the alphabet to me!

Pictures!

This weekend was Madeline's 6 months portraits. They turned out even better than I had hoped! She was a little ham during the session.... As you've noticed in other photos I've posted, she does like the camera, but I think being in the middle of a large white canvas surrounded by umbrella lights and having a large camera in her face shocked her a bit. It took her some convincing but we definitely were pleased with our photographers work yet again. She took our maternity shots, as well as her newborn shots. Nicely done. We have a BEEEAUTIFUL BABY!

Please take some time to check them out yourself. Here are the directions:

www.janakunz.com
Click on the "Clients" tab
Click to create an account (and you won't get junk mail from her)
Click Log In Click on "Maslow"
Enter Access Code: Madeline
The slideshow is set to music, so turn your speakers on if you wish!