Christmas

What a difference a year makes! Last Christmas we had an 8 week old little baby and this year we had big girl! Time sure flies!!

Christmas was a blast! Santa came a few days early because he heard we were going to be away from our house at Christmas. That morning we felt like our own parents did back when we were little..."Wait, get the camera ready before she comes down to see her gifts!" It's like I've always heard, just getting to see her face light up at the sight of something new and fun is priceless. :)

Her "big gift" was a slide!

(and there were some other fun things too!)

We were fortunate to spend the week from Christmas to New Year's down in Birmingham with our families. What a wonderful time we had catching up with everyone!
Here are some Christmas highlights...

Santa rode on the firetruck through the neighborhood!

Just two months prior, Madelyn wasn't into opening gifts at her party. But she sure was at Christmas!

"If I get close enough, I'll figure out what it is!"

"Ok, who are you?!"

"You want me to sit here for a picture?!"

If this year was so much fun, I can't imagine what next year will bring!

Thanksgiving

Where did we go for Thanksgiving?

You guessed it...Birmingham! Actually, we were there for an entire week! Steven and I attended a wedding the Saturday before, and we sure weren't going to drive back and forth two times in one week. So a week in the Ham it was. How wonderful to get to visit family and friends.

We had a blast, especially on Thanksgiving Day. Here are some pics to fill you in on the fun!

We don't let Madelyn watch TV, but the Macy's parade is an exception (and a tradition.) She loved it!

For lunch we headed to my grandparents house to meet with aunts, uncles, and cousins.

I was soooo excited about all of the yummy food we'd be eating that day. And I couldn't wait for Madelyn to dig into our family favorites for the first time!
(fyi: in the south everything is served as a casserole! sweet potato, squash, broccoli/cheese, dressing...)

Sadly, she wasn't interested in eating; too much excitement I guess. Little Girl did not know what she was missing out on in the kitchen! (I think I ate the food off her tray so it wasn't wasted!)
She'd rather be....

and...

...and once she explored the house, outside she went!

the Fab Four: Bethany, Drew, Holly, me

sweet pic of Steven and me ;)

love the candid one!

The Stanford clan

This year sweet Autumn's 1st birthday was on Thanksgiving Day. Precious!

She loved her cake (that matched her dress by the way.)

From there we headed over to Jay and Melissa's house to celebrate the day with the Hyde side of the family.

Cooking it up in the kitchen (no, she's not a lunch lady!)

the hostess with the mostess!

Melissa worked hard on her pretty table :)

Another first for the day:

we don't feed Madelyn sweets, but yet another exception...she loved pumpkin pie!

Our time in Birmingham was wonderful! Everyone enjoyed seeing Madelyn (and Steven and me too I suppose!) After being gone about 9 days, the three of us were glad to be back home. And Miss Madelyn was right back where she left off...

June

The month started off with Steven in CA for a week. We weren't alone for too long though! My brother and youngest sister came up for a visit. I loved spending time with them! Madelyn loved having playmates (and an audience for her recently learned tantrums- just 2 so far!)



She started to get the hang of balancing and learned to sit up when we put her down! (A sitting baby makes things easier for Mommy!)

This month Madelyn started playing with a sippy cup. I say "playing" because that's what this teething girl likes to do- chew on the straw. But once she figured out how to suck through the straw she loved it! We like to take water breaks throughout the day. :)

We would catch Madelyn rocking back and forth on all fours in her crib and sometimes on the floor. Not crawling...her preferred method of movement was no longer rolling, but creeping! She kind of looked like a seal at times pushing and pulling herself with her hands while little legs and feet trailed behind. She's getting closer to being mobile!

In mid June, Aunt Shelley and Uncle Hans stopped by for a visit on their way to/from Bham. They had not seen Madelyn since Thanksgiving, so she sure appeared to be a big girl! Madelyn loved playing with them!

FYI: We love purple! ...

On June 14 we celebrated Steven's first Father's Day. He is such a great dad! Many of you know Steven as "Mr. Tough Guy," but not around his baby girl. He is patient and kind with little Madelyn and loves her so much. She smiles so big when he enters the room; she sure loves her daddy!

Towards the end of the month Madelyn learned to sit herself up. I figured this out when I went in her room during naptime one day...oh my!

Here's how I learned to sit up in my crib!

1. start out on all fours...

2. hit the splits...

3. walk hands back and push up...

4. sit up! (and play instead of sleep!)

Teething!! Going in to June Madelyn had her two bottom teeth. At the start of the month she cut two on top and by the middle of the month she cut another! So the June count is 5!

We ended the month of June with a trip to the beach! Much more on that later! :)

May

May moved right on by!

We continued our journey through the world of solid food, trying all kinds of fruits and vegetables. While super messy at first, Madelyn (and Mommy) got the hang of it and meal time became something we look forward to. :)

Madelyn did find something else she likes to eat...her feet! As soon as she found them, those piggies were in her mouth just as much as her hands.

Our roly poly kept right on rolling and began to do so with purpose. She learned to roll and wiggle in the direction she wanted to go, usually towards something the wanted to get her hands on. It seems like once she hit the 6 month mark she just kept right on going, doing something new everyday! Madelyn's personality keeps developing and so far the words "sweet" and "funny" are the words we use most often when describing her.

On May 10th we celebrated my first Mother's Day, and more importantly it was Dedication Day at church. Words cannot describe what it feels like to be Madelyn's mother. And everyday I am reminded that I do not deserve her, but the Lord blessed us by bringing her into our lives. For that we are so grateful!!

Towards the end of the month we made a quick trip to Bham for my youngest sister's high school graduation. The funny thing is that I received my reunion invitation just weeks before receiving her graduation invitation- talk about feeling old! We enjoyed seeing our family and they of course loved seeing Madelyn!