It has been brought to my attention...

that I need to update! I don't even know where to start! Miss Madison turned 10 months last Wednesday, and is becoming less of a baby and more of a little girl each day. I was looking at some of her pictures from our cruise, and I couldn't get over how much she's changed in just those 3 short months. It's amazing to me how old I thought she looked then, and now looking back, how young she looked!! She was still a baby, now she's my (almost) toddler!

She's now crawling at an alarming rate of speed! She's everywhere and into everything! She loves to get Zoey's dishes out and throw them around. Apparently the metal hitting the wood floor is appealing to her ears! She's also pulling herself up at every opportunity and standing on her own more often and for longer periods of time each day. Last night she almost took a step, but decided to plop down and crawl instead. Which I am quite OK with...I'm not sure I'm ready for her to be a walker yet...that would just solidify that I have a toddler...no more baby. I'm not ready to let my baby grow up, yet!

At 10 months:
* Weighs 19 lbs 7 oz (at her check-up on 7/20/09)

*28 inches long (same check-up)

*Eating 2-3 8 ounce bottles a day (1 in the morning, 1 around 2 or 3, and 1 before bed)

*Eating anything you put on her tray!
*Her favorites include bananas, sweet potatoes, macaroni and cheese, turkey dogs, corn,
chicken

*Babbling like crazy!! She loves to talk.
*Dada – starting to figure out that “Dada” is Daddy
*Mama – not sure if were at “Mama” = Mommy yet…
*Dodo/Dod – Doggie
*“I did it”
*“I got it”
*Sounded like she was saying “Hey Dude” this weekend…seeing as though we both say
that to her a lot so it wouldn't be surprising!
*Many more sounds that mean a lot to her but Mommy and Daddy are still trying to figure
out exactly what they mean!

*Pulling herself up on anything and everything...the girl loves to stand!

*Cruising like a pro!

*Standing on her own

*Clapping – she loves to clap for herself!

*Pointing at things...sometimes what she wants, sometimes just to point!

*Still sleeping 12-13 hours a night

*But still not really napping…½ hour here, ½ hour there…

*Loves the water!! She would stay in the pool all day if we’d let her I think! She’s not afraid at all. She crawled from Grandma’s chair to the pool the other day and would have gone in if Grandma would have let her! Seriously…no fear!

*Is really starting to love her doggies! She lets them out of their cages every morning and when we get home in the afternoon. Nugget doesn’t really want anything to do with her, but Zoey will let her crawl all over her, which Madison L.O.V.E.S. to do!! She uses Zoey to pull herself up, pulling Zoey’s ears and fur in the process, but Zoey just lets her. She’s so good with her!

*Loves her Ball Popper. She knows she has to push the red button to get the balls to pop up. She also likes to put anything she can find down the hole.

*Loves her Activity Table. She loves to turn the pages of the book back and forth! She also likes to take the phone off and carry it with her, stopping every once in a while to shake it (it rattles), smile and be on her way!

We are just loving this little princess so much!! She is a funny little girl, and such a joy to be around. We are truly blessed with an amazing little lady!

How?

Can someone please tell me how its possible to go from this:

To this:

in just 9 short months?? How is it possible that my baby is 9 months old already?! Detailed post coming soon :)

Old Settlers

I got to take Madison to Old Settlers this weekend. Even though the only thing she could ride was the carousel, it was still fun to start this tradition with her. I remember looking forward to Old Settlers every year when I was kid. I'm excited to take Madison back every year, too! She got her first taste of fair food, too. She had some of the breading from a corn dog, some ice cream, some cotton candy, and some elephant ear...all very small tastes, I assure you, but we had to let her experience the great food!

Madison "jumping" into the pool

She was fearless! She would come in whether you were ready for her or not! Can't wait to enjoy more time in the pool with her this summer!

First Time in the Pool

Madison and I were up visiting my mom this weekend and we went to the pool. The last time we were there, she wouldn't get in the water. She cried everytime we put her toes in...in her defense, the water was FREEZING!!! This time the water was great, and she LOVED it!!

Time and Money

Time and money…the two things in life there never seems to be enough of. I constantly feel like I’m running out of time to get the things I both need and want to do done. There are not enough hours in the day. I guess the bigger issue is I’m still learning (and not doing a very good job of it!) how to be “Mommy Lindsay”, “Wife Lindsay”, “Home-keeper-upper Lindsay”, “Worker Bee Lindsay” and just “Lindsay.” Of course “Mommy” is my most important “title” and if I could only have one for the rest of my life I would choose that in a heartbeat! Madison is everything to me and I don’t want to miss anything she does! This in turn brings us back to NOT.ENOUGH.TIME!!!! She is growing so quickly…every day brings a new skill making her more of a little girl than a baby. I love seeing her personality blossom, but part of me yearns for that little baby that was completely dependent on me. Why did I not spend more time just holding her? Everyone told me how quickly it would go, and I tried to just stop some days and just be with her, but it wasn’t enough. I need to rewind…I need to go back! Why doesn’t life come equipped with a DVR?

Anyway, being “Mommy” is my most important job. I drop anything and everything for it. But being “Wife” is also important. He is my support, my partner in this parenting gig. He is my support and partner in life. I feel bad that there are nights that I just want to go to bed right after I put her down because I’m just so tired. I love him more than anything, and although I know I’m doing better at nurturing our relationship, I’m not doing as well as I should be. It’s hard. He asks me more often than I would like, “What’s wrong? You look sad” I don’t want to be sad, I just feel like I’m barely keeping my head above water, and that creeps into my attitude towards him…I really need to work on that.

Then there’s “Home-keeper-upper Lindsay” Yeah, she’s one of those that’s supposed to “be” but really isn’t there enough. The house is a mess…always. I know with an 8 month old and two dogs it’s hard, but it makes me crazy. There’s dog hair everywhere. I have been tempted to shave Zoey many times…seriously; the Golden Retriever hair I find everywhere is ridiculous. Besides the hair, there’s dust, there’s crumbs, there’s formula, there’s the laundry…it never ends. I need one day a week where I have a couple hours alone to just clean, but that’s not going to happen so I guess I need to figure it out with her there.

“Worker Bee Lindsay”…thankfully this one only has to exist for a couple more months (course then she will be replaced with “Student Lindsay’, but who’s keeping track!) My job is a job…it gives me a paycheck twice a month. Other than that, there’s not much good I can say about it. Working for Brokers (well basically sales people) is hard. They take, take, take, but don’t do much giving. They need everything yesterday, but give it all to you tomorrow. They are not “team players” which in turn makes me look like I’m not either because heaven forbid I be helping someone out when they think they need something NOW (which they usually don’t). It’s frustrating and draining to be in this environment every day. I’m really looking forward to giving my notice…which hopefully will be to quit, not just request part-time. Because quitting would obviously mean even less money, and I’m really scared it’s not going to be doable.

We are literally going to have enough for bills and groceries (and really I’m not sure how much I’ll have for groceries!) Its scary, and I ask myself daily if I’m being selfish trying to go back to school now. I really felt like this was God’s timing, but its getting closer and closer, and we still don’t know childcare for the princess or how we’re really going to survive. I’m starting to think I wanted it so bad, I “made” it God’s timing. The school is S.L.O.W.L.Y. going over my application and transcripts, and I’m patiently (haha, yeah right) waiting on their response. Is this God’s way of telling me, “Just wait.”? I feel like I’ve been waiting for too long already…I’m not getting any younger! I want to have another child in the next 4-5 years…That has me finishing school, maybe teaching a year (if I was lucky enough to get a job right after graduation), and then having another kid. I feel like in the long run, I’m doing something for the betterment of our family, but not sure if this is the right time. I’m trying to put all my faith and trust in God that He will provide, but I’m only human, and it’s starting to really get down to the wire…

But back to the “Lindsay’s”…which would bring us to just “Lindsay.” I feel selfish when I try to take time for myself…I feel like this is really the least important role I play, and when I’m portraying this one, I’m cutting time out of my other more important roles. I want to exercise at least an hour a day…I usually get in about 25-40 minutes (depending on what I choose to do that day), but if Tony’s home, I feel guilty because after I exercise and then shower, that’s an hour or so that I could have been spending with him, but I chose myself instead. I cherish my lunch hour, and admittedly sometimes take a little longer, because I can just sit and read. I don’t have to feel guilty that I’m not being “Mommy”, “Wife”, or “Home-Keeper-Upper” because I have to be at work. But I would love to go to the park on a Sunday afternoon and just lay on a blanket and read…but I can’t I have too many roles to play on the weekend and just “Lindsay” is not one of them.

I have so much more I need to write about, but this is long enough, so it will all have to wait for another day.

8 Months! Already!

My baby is 8 months today. I can't believe she's been here for the exact length of time that I knew I was pregnant! The pregnancy went fast, but NOTHING compared to how fast these last 8 months have gone! It is so amazing how much a child changes in that first year. The growth is amazing and sad all at once. I told Tony last night after I went in to check on her one last time before bed, "She looks more like a little girl and less like a baby everyday." Its amazing how that realization can make me want to cry remembering how tiny she was, but also make me so excited for the little girl she is becoming.

She has a personality like nothing else. She is such a happy little girl! She makes some of the funniest faces, and loves to talk. She's also recently started "singing" to herself in the car...its so adorable. She gives kisses now, too. Wet, slobbery kisses, but the best kisses I've ever received! She will also kiss her animals in the bathtub now.

On Wednesday, June 3, my baby crawled. The look of accomplishment on her face was priceless! She was SO proud of herself. Yesterday morning, Tony said she crawled over the couch where she proceeded to try and pull herself up. I know that once she gets strong enough to get herself all the way up, she's going to crawl to a place she can pull herself up and start cruising. The girl loves to stand! If you hold her hands for her, she will walk. She can feel free to wait a couple months before walking on her own, though...Mommy really won't mind!

I will try and upload some pictures when I get home!! Happy Eight Months, Madison! Mommy and Daddy love you SO MUCH!!