Friday, September 3, 2010

Miss Maddy-Cakes

Among other things I love about my job, getting a 30 minute lunch break all to myself is a beautiful thing. I get to sit back, relax (unless my pager goes off) and lately, write about my kids...

It’s hard to believe that Madelyn has only been with us for 7 months; it feels like she’s always been part of our family. Our lives surely would not be complete without her but that’s the way it is with babies, isn't it? When they become part of your life you wonder how you ever went one day without their sweet little smile. How did I go 32 years without having this perfect little girl in my life? With only the hope and dream of her in my heart for so long and then all of a sudden, she’s here and she’s more than I could ever imagine. Our little Maddy girl is all personality and a tough little cookie - she needs to be with daily love tacklings from her big brother! She weighs 17.4 pounds (68th percentile) and is 25 1/2 inches long (32nd percentile). Here are some new and exciting things in the life of Madelyn:

School: She began attending The Goddard School two days a week while I am at work. Maddy was immediately taken with her teacher, Mojgan (pronounced Moosh-gan), who is very sweet and animated. Madelyn loves when she sings to her in Farsi while clapping her hands and dancing. It was no surprise on the first day when she refused to drink a bottle but we were told she made it through the day smiling. Each day Madelyn comes home with a daily activity report that tells us what she did throughout the day. It's adorable to read the things the infants do in language arts, life skills and creative art. I appreciate the details they include, the titles of the books they read, the music they listen to, etc. The teachers let Patrick visit Madelyn a couple times each day and often email pictures to us of him kissing her or talking to her. He is so proud to tell his friends in his class that his little sister is in the baby room.

Crawling: Right now her movements are not fluid or the most coordinated but she’s crawling nonetheless and getting where she needs to go. Of course when she finally gets to the object of her desire (usually Patrick or Roxy) it has usually moved and this frustrates her a bit. Madelyn loves to crawl into my lap while the three of us are playing on the floor. She giggles and makes happy little noises as she cuddles my legs. I never can resist the urge to scoop her up and cover her with kisses, which she tolerates for only a minute before she wants to be put back down to crawl again.




First Teeth: Madelyn’s first tooth broke through the morning I was getting her dressed to meet her new teachers and other babies in her classroom. She kept making a funny little face and a clicking noise. Sure enough her first pearly white was popping through! The second one made it's debut at Uncle Thomas's birthday party last weekend. Happy birthday Uncle Tom, sorry about our little fuss pot!

Love Bug: Maddy loves giving hugs and full-on open mouth kisses. She is content to be held if she is outside, especially if she's being rocked on the front porch swing or in one of the big rocking chairs at the cabin. She’ll even lay her little head down on your shoulder for a while to snuggle while she watches the leaves blow on the trees. Madelyn seems to prefer women to men (besides her Daddy, of course), and little kids to adults. She loves Jordan Barker because Jordan lets her stare at her face really close and even pull on her beautiful curly hair. Bless you, little JB!

Ba Ba Babbling: I went out one Saturday to get groceries and when I came home Toby had taught Madelyn to say "ba ba ba". (Side note: he's pretty amazing with the kids. He would be an incredible stay at home Dad. If there were no such thing as a morgtage I am pretty sure he would be content to be with them all day, everyday). It's quite possibly the cutest thing Madelyn has done thus far. Her lips curl in, which makes her cheeks look even more full, her jaw juts out with each "ba" and her saucer eyes look around the room, talking to everyone and everything.

Veggies, Fruits and Baby Shots: She loves her veggies - sweet peas, carrots, green beans, you name it, she’ll eat it! The day I first fixed her squash for lunch she went nuts. Each time I put another spoon-full in her mouth she would swallow and then giggle until the next bite. This went on and on until she finished the entire helping. Since Maddy has an aversion to bottles she's been practicing drinking out of a cup. Plastic medicine cups and shot glasses have a small enough rim that she doesn't dribble too much while she attempts to drink. She squeals and smiles when we let her hold it (with help) and she immediately brings it to her mouth and sticks her little tongue inside.

Pulling Up: Daddy started a pull-up game with Maddy a couple months ago where he puts out his hands, palms up, when sitting face to face with Madelyn. She grabs on with her chubby little fingers and pulls herself up then smiles and looks around proudly. It’s an easy way to become her new best friend, although when Patrick tried it with her it didn’t quit work out as he planned ;) She tries to pull up on everything now- on permanent and not so permanent objects alike (her brother and the dog). Last night she was standing in her crib twice in the middle of the night, crying. Her little brain couldn't help but practice her latest skill but her body wanted to be sleeping.

Big Bro: Patrick remains her most favorite person in the world. Whenever, wherever; he can always make her smile and laugh. This is very helpful when she is tired and fussy in the car. All he has to do is sing (which, as you've seen, takes almost no convincing) and she kicks her legs and shakes her head in excitement. When she does fuss he says sweetly, “It’s Ok, Sassy, we’re almost there”. She still has issues with reflux so when she spits up Patrick’s face distorts with the most disgusted look and says disdainfully as he backs away “she spit up! I better get away!” He’s not mad, just disappointed. It’s hilarious every single time to Toby and me. Maddy doesn’t seem to notice, she just keeps grinning and cooing at him, happy with any attention he gives her. Lately, all he has to do is look at her and talk and she bursts into a giggle fit. Patrick is starting to figure this out and loves it almost as much as she does.

There are days when I wish the kids would nap at the same time so I could get a bit of a break but when I take a second to think about it, I really am grateful to have the one-on-one moments with both of them throughout the day while the other one sleeps. This time is so precious and I want to be fully present for each moment no matter how small it may seem now. All the little moments are what we’ll remember anyway…singing and dancing after dinner, rocking on the porch while the sun sets, hearing Toby read Patrick a bedtime story over the monitor, watching the kids splash around in the bath…


8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wonderful detailed update on Maddy-Cakes!! Glad that you get a short lunch to write. So love seeing her make her way across the room and then hearing her giggles! So precious!!

TERA said...

Loved Maddy giggling at her super big brother! This time in their life goes so fast yet it is so precious.

TERA said...

Loved Maddy giggling at her super big brother! This time in their life goes so fast yet it is so precious.

KBBean said...

She's getting so big so fast! What a sweetie--and how fun to watch her and Patrick together!

Amanda said...

I love both videos...she has grown up so much since the beach. Love you all, Mina

Aunt Mollie said...

I can't believe that Maddy is already crawling!!! This is crazy!! I miss being home and spending time with her. I am glad that my internship at home will allow me to help you and Toby out with the kids though!!! I love you all so much and the kids are so much to see on your blog!!!

Anonymous said...

nice post. thanks.

Anonymous said...

Wow this is a great resource.. I’m enjoying it.. good article