It's been a while. . . a long while.  At least once a week something happens and I think, "I really should blog about that," but I never get around to it.  So here is an overdo post about some of the more memorable things from the past few months.

Maddie still loves her baby brother, and despite the fact that sometimes she inadvertently tries to squish him or smother him, I truly believe Camden loves her too.  If we want him to smile, all we have to do is have Maddie talk to him or sing to him in her high-pitch "I'm-talking-to-a-baby" voice.  She always wants to hold him and often will try to share with him by prying open his fingers and shoving a toy into his hand.  I can't wait until Camden's really able to interact with her!

For Christmas Maddie wanted three things:  a pig, panties, and peanut butter.  We have no idea where she came up with these ideas, but she was insistent on the pig for a good month or so.  When I asked her if she meant a stuffed animal pig or a real pig, she informed me she wanted a real pig and that it would sleep in her room.  We clearly had no intention of buying her a real pig, but Santa did bring her a walking and oinking pig toy.  The pig goes everywhere with her, but as of yet I don't think she has settled on a name for it.

A couple of weeks after Christmas, I walked into Maddie's room and found her putting her new panties on some of her friends (stuffed animals).  I asked her if she was ready to start wearing panties, she said yes, and potty training began that day.  The process hasn't been nearly as bad as I had anticipated and has certainly produced a number of funny moments:

• We are not allowed to look at her while she goes potty.  We get told, "You look at the wall."  
• Before we left church today she needed to go potty.  While she was sitting there she looked at me with a big smile and said, "Everybody's waiting on me.  I'm special!"

Maddie has been tracking elephants at our house as of late.  All of a sudden she'll point to her ear and ask, "Did you hear that?  It's my elephants!"  She'll run off and feed them coconuts (pompoms) and if encouraged she will even pet them.  We also have lions in Camden's room and an ostrich that hangs out in Maddie's bathtub.  Did I mention she has an active imagination?

There's not a whole lot to say about Camden just yet.  He's a big boy weighing in at nearly 13 pounds at his 2 month appointment.  He's generally content and loves to lay on his activity mat and bat at the toys.  There's been a number of times recently when we'll put him down facing one direction and the next time we look he has turned himself around or even scooted to a different position.  My favorite thing about Camden right now is how smiley he is.  As long as his tummy is full and he's not tired, he will smile as long as you want.

I'll end with one last Maddie thing.  The other day I put her in a long shirt-dress that she'd been wanting to wear for a while.  She looked down at it and then up at me and said, "I'm a princess.  Mommy, get me a crown!"

Found this as a draft from November 18th.  Thought I may as well post it.

A Maddie update:

• The other day Maddie woke up early, wandered into our bedroom, and climbed in bed with us.  Not that I want it to become a habit, but I really enjoyed having our little family of four snuggled together.
• We took Maddie with us to Camden's two week checkup.  When Dr. H-B walked into the room, Maddie greeted her by telling her that cats have whiskers.  Why did she tell her that?  I have no idea.
• Last night Maddie woke up screaming.  When I went in her room, she pointed at her pillow and told me that Daddy was stuck under it.  I lifted the pillow up to show her he wasn't there and reassured her that he was safe in his bed.  I can't even begin to imagine what kind of scary dream she must have been having.
• Maddie is super excited about Christmas.  She keeps telling everyone that Santa is coming.
• We were looking back at pictures that I took when we went to the circus and when I showed Maddie a picture of her riding an elephant, I asked if she had named the elephant.  She said that she had and it's name was Elephant Our Last Name.  Eric then asked her what her name is and she told us both her first and last name.  This wouldn't be impressive except for the fact that we've never taught her our last name.

Maddie and Camden Meeting for the First Time

Several of you asked for me to tell you how Maddie's toddler clock worked out, so here's your update:

When we first got the clock we explained to Maddie that she was supposed to stay in bed until the bunny woke up.  She seemed to understand, and we went to bed feeling pretty hopeful.  Unfortunately, she was up bright and early the next morning. . . and the next morning, and the next.  Nap time seemed to be getting shorter and shorter as well.  Maddie truly did seem to understand the concept, she just didn't care.

After becoming frustrated about spending money on a clock that wasn't giving us the results we wanted and me freaking out about what would happen if Maddie was still doing this when Camden was born, we decided to try something new.  We kept the clock and the concept, but added an incentive.

I recently checked out a Halloween book for Maddie from the library and there's a picture of candy corn at the end.  Every time we'd get to that page Maddie would say, "I want some."  So we bought some candy corn and that night we told her that if she'd stay in bed until bunny woke up, then she could have a piece of candy corn.  Guess what?  It worked the very first night!  We've been using the candy corn incentive for both nighttime and nap time for a little less than a week now and she has gotten a piece of candy corn every single time.

Does this mean she actually sleeps or is quiet until bunny wakes up?  No.  We occasionally hear her cry out, but more often she just talks.  As soon as the bunny wakes up, she starts calling out, "Bunny's awake!"  We then go in her room and tell her what a good job she has done and give her a piece of candy corn, even if it is 6:35 in the morning.

So, would I recommend the clock?  Yes, but be prepared to use some sort of incentive.

We decided to let Maddie pick out some presents to take to baby brother's baby shower on Saturday.  I knew she'd have no interest in actually choosing something off of the registry, since when you're two years old toys are much more interesting than diapers and sheets.  I also knew we had quite a few baby toys packed away and there's no sense in buying more since he's not going to play with them very much.  So, I came up with the idea of letting her shop through her old toys and whatever she "bought" (put in her shopping cart) is what we'd let her take to the shower.  Here's what happened:

She cracks me up.  I guess I'll have to go through her "purchases" and decide what she's actually going to take.  I'm glad we did it this way as opposed to going to a store to pick out a toy.  She had so much fun shopping with her pink cart.  :)

Just one of the sweetest things ever:

As for the lyric change, Mrs. Bobbi is one of her Sunday School teachers.  :)

Maddie is 2 today!

2010

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Happy birthday, big girl!

Do you know what the official name is for those tar lines you see on the road?

Maddie does.

According to her they are monkey arms.  She gave them that title at the zoo last week and has since seen them in our neighborhood and called them the same thing.  She cracks me up.  :)

Tonight is Maddie's first night in her "big girl" bed.  She was so super excited when she walked into her room and saw it.  She immediately gathered her doll, glowworm and blanket and lay down.  Hopefully she'll stay there until morning!

P.S.  Ignore the upside down flowers.  When we get the bed moved where we want it, the rail will be on the other side and the flowers will be right side up.  Thanks to Emily for altering our crib bumper into a toddler bed bumper!

Well Operation Get Rid of Passer was a failure.  When I first snipped the tip of the pacifier it was rendered unsuckable.  Maddie had a difficult time going to bed that night.  The next morning when she woke us up at the lovely time of 5:30, she showed me her pacifier and told me, "Daddy cut it." I'm glad he took the blame for that.  :)  Since she could still chew on the pacifier, she was not willing to let it go.

A couple of days later I cut off even more, meaning if Maddie wanted the pacifier in her mouth she had to hold it there with her hand.  This did not make her very happy.  She still had a hard time going to bed and woke up SUPER early in a terrible mood.

Yesterday morning Maddie decided to give her pacifier to Baby Brother.  Awww. . . . Later that morning we went to the library and one of the books we checked out was Pacifiers are not Forever.  She had Eric read it to her three times before bed last night!  Maybe we were making progress?  When Eric put Maddie in bed he reminded her that she had given her pacifier away.  She fussed some, like we expected, but around 2 in the morning she had a total meltdown.

Earlier in the evening Eric and I had discussed the fact that her waking up ridiculously early (and in a bad mood) was taking a toll on  us.  Maddie is also anxious to move into her toddler bed since she saw us putting it together in the garage the other day.  We thought that if we put her in her toddler bed without a pacifier she would be out of it constantly and fussing at our bedside.  In addition to all of this, Eric is going to be leaving for a two week training soon and he didn't like the idea of me handling all of this craziness by myself.  So at about 2:30 this morning we caved and gave her an uncut pacifier.  She didn't get out of her crib until 7 this morning and she was absolutely, positively cheerful when I picked her up.

Does giving her pacifier back to her mean that it's going to be harder on all of us the next time we try to take it away?  I'm afraid so.  Eric is optimistic and thinks that when she's ready to give it up it won't be so hard.  I guess we'll have to wait and see.

So I'm just a little behind.  Here's what's been going on the last TWO weeks:

• We participated in VBS at our church.  Eric helped with recreation, I did registration, and Maddie went to the nursery.  Eric and I took her to the opening program each night thinking the music and videos would be exciting, but Maddie preferred to play with the offering envelopes and Bibles.  With the exception of one rough night, each time I picked her up from the nursery she was talking away and having the best time.  Next year she'll actually be old enough to be in a VBS class!

• Eric and I have been working to get everything ready for Maddie's Minnie Mouse birthday party.

• We went to the Fourth of July parade where we saw lots of horses and important people (or people who think they're important) riding in cars.

• Eric and I went on a mini vacation this past weekend.  This also happened to be the first time we have both been away from Maddie overnight at the same time.  On Friday evening we went to a murder mystery dinner.  It turned out to be a lot of fun.  Yes, the acting was cheesy, but the mystery required thinking to solve.  Saturday morning we attempted to sleep in; we made it until 7 AM.  That afternoon we toured Cowboys Stadium.  We attended a Rangers game with Chuck and Sarah that evening and thanks to the cool weather, it was probably one of the best baseball games I've ever attended.  Sunday morning we attempted to sleep in again, and this time we both managed to sleep a little longer.  I think we were both anxious to get home and see Maddie, so after brunch we headed back.

• Tonight is Maddie's first night without her pacifier, or "passer" as she calls it.  She only uses it for naps and bedtime, but with her second birthday coming up we decided it was time to get rid of it.  I read about several ways to encourage a child to give it up and in the end I chose to cut off the tip.  It did not go well.  She cried and cried and cried.  Those people online who said their child just said that the pacifier was broken and gave it up without a problem must be lying.  Over an hour after putting her to bed, she is finally asleep.  I can only hope that tomorrow's nap won't be so hard.

"How you doing, Lucy puppy?"

When did my baby start talking in complete sentences?!

Maddie has been pretty busy as of late:

making matches with her Brown Bear, Brown Bear cards

visiting (and petting!) the horses that live near our house

playing at a local water park. . . she wasn't a big fan

Today was Maddie's last day of her first year of preschool.  She loved going to school and I loved getting the chance to watch her interact with her friends.  While at school she learned many songs including "Six Little Ducks" and "Deep and Wide," which quickly became her favorites.  Maddie enjoyed playing on the playground and reading in the classroom.  Nap time didn't work out so well for her, so after about a month of trying we decided to leave right after lunch so she could nap at home.  I can't believe that next year she won't be in the "baby" class!

Maddie adored Mrs. T.  I think the feeling was mutual.  :)

With all of her friends.


Maddie got a surprise from her Aunt Carol yesterday--a slide!  She loves it, and I'd better you'd never guess what she was doing at 6:30 this morning. . . .

I think it's time for some bullets:

• Eric got a new teaching position he really wanted, but it means he'll have to go to Louisiana for two weeks worth of training.  I know two weeks is nothing compared to what spouses of deployed soldiers deal with, but I'm really dreading it.
• Maddie and I went to the "choo-choo" park with Rachel on Saturday.  We usually see a train or two, but this time I think we probably saw five or six.  I think seeing the trains is Maddie's favorite part of going to that particular park.  It's sweet that the conductors take time to wave at the kids as they go by.

• We set up Maddie's pool for the first time this year.  The water was freezing cold, but she didn't care.  In fact she thought it was great fun to try to drink it as it sprayed out.

• Eric and I went on a spontaneous date tonight to see What to Expect When You're Expecting.  I cried, I laughed, and I laughed until I cried.  That last one may have happened because of pregnancy hormones.  I thought the movie was pretty cute and Eric actually stayed awake 99% of the time.
• I've been feeling Baby T #2 moving around quite a bit in the last two days.  I love it!

Maddie's favorite song:



She calls it "Burger Cheese" and we listen to it nearly every time we are in the car. I've tried a number of times to videotape her singing it (because it's absolutely adorable), but she never wants to cooperate. The Veggie Tales video is kind of creepy though, isn't it?

We started playing hide and seek with Maddie a few days ago.  She LOVES it!  Some things to know about Maddie's version of hide and seek:

1. You better hide fast.  She certainly doesn't give you until the count of ten to find a hiding place.
2. Accept the fact that you will likely not have the chance to be the seeker.  She can't contain herself, so as soon as she knows you are looking for her, she will come find you.
3. Expect to be told to hide in the "baff."  I hid in the bathtub one time and Maddie now thinks that is the best hiding place ever.
4. Be prepared to be licked in the face by Lucy.  She gets in on the game too and is usually the one who will show Maddie where to find you.

Maddie and I went to the zoo today with my mom and Carol.  Maddie loves the zoo, and I really enjoy taking her.  The animals were a lot more active than normal, probably due to the nice weather and the fact that we were there at feeding time.  Maddie's favorite animals were probably the fish and giraffes.

One of the funniest things that happened while we were at the zoo was this:

Maddie watched one of the elephants pick up hay with his trunk and put it in his mouth, so she decided to do the same thing.  We were totally confused about what she was doing the first time we saw her do it.

This the second naptime in a row that Maddie has pulled out the inside of her Gloworm and F-R-E-A-K-E-D out.  I'm not quite sure why she takes it apart or why it upsets her so much, but oh my goodness the tears and the screaming that ensue are unbelievable.