Madeline acted surprised when I caught her sitting on the coffee table. She apparently thinks it's her new seat to watch cartoons. Maddy also gets on the kitchen table quicker then a blink of the eye. Today she fell off the dinning chair and bruised her forehead but that has not deterred her from getting back up.

Happy Thanksgiving

Anyone who know me knows that I don't have any clue how to cook, bake, or do anything in the kitchen unless it's microwaving a frozen meal. I decided to do my best to make a yummy meal for Madeline to enjoy on this day and I actually think I accomplished this. Maddy was able to enjoy a grilled ham steak, rotisserie chicken, Parmesan cheese noodles, dinner rolls, stuffing and cooked carrots! I spent about an hour preparing everything and we sat down to eat about 1:00pm. Then at about 1:03 Madeline threw everything up onto her highchair tray! She was eating way to fast and back up it all came! Once we cleaned up the mess and changed her clothes she was right back to eating.

Madeline and I watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade this morning and will spending the rest of the day relaxing and watching some of our favorite Christmas movies.

Thanksgiving Cookies

Madeline helped me make some delicious Sugar and Chocolate Chip cookies today to start off our Thanksgiving day. Cookies were our second choice for dessert but late last night Madeline pulled our Hershey's Chocolate Pie from the shelf in the refrigerator and splattered it all over the floor!

I think Madeline has had a few too many sugar cookies because she has been running around in circles laughing for about 15 minutes straight!

We also started digging out Christmas Decorations as it's our tradition to decorate during Thanksgiving weekend :)

Thanksgiving Kisses from Madeline!

Girl Time

Madeline and I are still home alone (With Victor, Maizey, and Snicker of course). So we decided to spend a wonderful day out of the house. We arrived at Desert Ridge Marketplace around 10 am and spent over an hour just walking around and window shopping. I don't take the stroller with us anymore because Madeline loves to run free and she hasn't run away yet ;) The weather was perfect today so I let Maddy play in the outdoor play area for a while where she chased lots of other kids around and had a blast.

I decided to take Madeline out to lunch for the first time on my own. I have not taken her to a restaurant by myself since she was born so I thought it was time to take the plunge. We went to California Pizza Kitchen and shared a peperoni pizza. Maddy had 2 whole pieces! We enjoyed coloring and playing and she behaved great!

After lunch we still didn't want to go home so we went to Maddy's favorite store..Barnes and Noble. We read lots of Christmas books and she played with the train.

We had a wonderful day together and I am looking forward to the warm weather tomorrow so we can venture to the train park.

Madeline has discovered how to make scribbles with a pen! She has been taking pens from the drawers and scribbling all over paper and her books and anything else she finds. I thought it would be a great idea to buy Maddy one of those magnetic drawing boards that does not use actual ink. This way she can doodle all she wants without coloring on the furniture and all over the house. She really loves it and carried the board around with her all day. I held her hand with the pen in it and wrote "Maddy" so she could see how to do it...she tried to write her name many times. She also hasnt decided if she is left or right handed. She uses her left to draw and her right to eat. Maybe she is both handed! Anyways, the board was a great idea and she is loving it. She also loves putting the pen in her mouth but luckily it is attached to the board and it doesnt have ink in it.

Madeline and I were pretty bored today. All of our friends and family are out of town for the week leaving us all alone! I think even our neighbors are gone celebrating Thanksgiving...We took a little walk and the neighborhood seemed quieter then usual. We ran some errands then came home and just watched some Christmas movies and goofed around. I didn't realize how lonely it gets around here without our friends Allison and Lauren :)

Madeline and I are finding lots of fun activities to do since Kevin is away all week on vacation. He traveled to Oregon to be with his family for Fishing and Thanksgiving. Maddy and I have lots of time to have fun. This morning we woke up and went straight to MacDonald's for a Sausage McMuffin meal. We took our food to the park to enjoy our breakfast in the fresh air. Maddy loved the hash brown while I ate the muffin. Maddy had fun going down the slides over and over and running in the grass. There was another mother and daughter at the park so I was able to have some adult conversation while the girls ran around :)

Madeline's new favorite thing to do is climb onto the dining room chairs when I am not looking. She is very stong and can pull herself up without any help.

17 Months Old

Madeline looks all grown up. Her appearance seems to change everyday: her hair is growing out, and her legs are skinny as she is thinning out and growing tall. Madeline can say many words and she can point to almost everything in her picture books and say what the objects are. Madeline also can tell me if she wants something or has a dirty diaper. I will ask her if she pooped an she will say yes. If i ask her if she wants milk and she doesn't.. she wont say anything as she doesn't really know the word no yet.

Madeline will give kisses when you ask her for a kiss. She will pucker up her lips at you and she was taught to say "Love" by her Grandma Jill. So if I ask Maddy if she loves me she will cross her arms over her chest in the sign language position for Love. Madeline pretty much runs my life and we are on her schedule. I cant take my eyes off her for a second or she is either standing on the couch or inside the refrigerator within seconds.

Madeline already has 12 teeth which is a lot for her age and she eats almost all the same foods as I do. She loves pizza, Mac N Cheese, carrots, and juice. Maddy is also starting to overcome her separation anxiety because I have left her with my friend Allison several times so I can have some "me" time and Maddy has a great time without me.

Grandma and Grandpa

Mullet of the Year

It is cold here today in Indiana but Madeline had fun running around Grandma and Grandpas yard and chasing the cat.

Up and Down

Maddy can go up and down the stairs now with only a little help. She climbs up and down and up and down until I am worn out from following her!

Madeline and I have been at Grandma and Grandpa's house in Indiana for almost 2 weeks. The weather changes everyday so Maddy is getting to have fun indoors and out. Yesterday it was 43 degrees and it snowed! Maddy and I have been shopping, eating, and playing and dancing.

Madeline unfortunately has been really sick the entire time we have been here. I took her to Urgent Care and got her an antibiotic that cleared up the ear infections but not the cold. I have been chasing her runny nose and trying to heal her everyday.

Regardless of being sick, Madeline has spent a lot of time playing with her cousins Gabe and Bella and Aunt Kris. Maddy also has been able to visit with several of my friends like Jarrod and his 2 daughters, My Best Friend Adriane, and Pam. This trip has been a great reminder of all the wonderful people we have in our lives back here in Indiana.

Madeline has fun reorganizing Grandma's kitchen everyday.

Grandpa too Maddy and I on his friend Tim's Yacht while we were visiting the Ohio River. Maddy got to explore the boat including the tiny sleeping quarters. I believe this was Maddy's first time on a boat.

Madeline had fun camping in Grandpa Jeff and Grandma Anita's RV.

First Camping Trip

Madeline experience first "camping" trip last weekend. We weren't exactly roughing it in Grandpa Jeff's 50 foot RV but we had some fun. Madeline learned how silly it was to run up and down the RV while we were driving and she got to sleep on a pull out sofa bed. Grandma and Grandpa drove us 3 hours south to Snugglers cove on the Ohio River in Kentucky. We spent one night there and got to visit with all of Grandma and Grandpa's friends. Our campsite was right along the water so Maddy got to see the river and feel how cold it was!