All of 14 months...

Whats going on with little girl now that she's all of 14 month's old? 

Ahhh...my sweet little girl just keeps growing bigger and taller and getting cuter and cuter.  She's picking up things so quickly and her little personality is getting stronger and stronger.

She is still a skinny little thing...but eats just about anything we put in front of  her.  Most recently she's tried shrimp...

And sushi...

Someone's got a Temper with a capital T.  The terrible twos fourteen months have started...If they start 10 months early does that mean they end ten months early?

She's fallen in love with her blankies now and carries them around with her.

They are almost always over her shoulder so we decided maybe she needed a cape?

And when there is one caped girl you can always find another...

I gave her a box the other day and its become the favored lounge spot...

She and big sissy Madmad love to dance.  Their favorite song is YMCA.

She says baba for bottle, bah-bah for bye bye, hawwwt for hot, pbttttt for elephant and her best "first word" was just the other day...she saw her dad come in the door and said, "Dadddeeeeeeeeee."  Now she's non-stop chatterbox.

She loves to read stories.  Her favorite books right now are pop up books or lift the flap books.

She can identify eyes, nose, mouth and bellybutton.  Be aware that if you ask her to say bellybutton you better be prepared to bare your midriff and show yours.  :)

She loves Sesame Street and we watch "1...2...3...Count with me" pretty much every day...she likes to sit in her box while its on...at least until number 12 "Honk around the Clock" comes on and then she's up and grooving.

She's fascinated by the dishwasher...and weirdly enough likes to lick it.  Ugh...yeah...so today dad caught her trying to lick the soap dish.  Blech.

Last, but not least she is a waterbaby.  This summer we'll be going to the pool and learning to swim. 

She's learned to go to sleep all on her own.  I'm so proud of her.  We put her in her crib and she lays down and then waits for us to give her a baba (bottle).  Then she snuggles up and goes right to sleep. 

With that in mind...we bid you all a good night.  Bah-Bah!

...so I ran away screaming

I love seven.

Maddie:  Guess what He said to me at school today?

Me:  What?  And who is He?

Maddie:  I don't know his name.  He won't tell me.

Me:  Oh, ok.  So, what did He say?

Maddie:  You're cute!....  so I ran away screaming.

Me:  Good job.  You keep doing that when boys say you're cute.

Artist in the making...

Prepare yourselves for fantastic masterpieces in the mail.  :)

Good friends can be judged...

...by whether or not you can sing karaoke in front of them.

And yes...I'm so glad that John and I have found a couple that I can belt out Hotel California and Livin' on a Prayer with during our Rock Band Gig.  I think what I'm most proud of is that I actually scored in the high 80% on my first two tries.  :)

Whats your judge of a true friend...what would you do with them that you wouldn't do in casual company?

Snow Angels...

We've been really loving the snow here in Vilseck...at least the part where it falls so beautifully, covers all the brown/gray slush and looks like a winter wonderland...

C'mon already...I want to go OUTSIDE!

We took walks daily for awhile...

But haven't lately as the snow has been mixing with rain which isn't good for the baby girl's footie snowpants which aren't really waterproofed.  BUT, when the snow is falling and the world is winter wonderland white...we love it....and we make sure to play in it.

Sometimes its as simple as gathering large chunks of ice...but her mean stepmom won't let her collect them on the back porch (I've got fears of piles of ice and slush on our back deck for the next 5 years if I let her bring it all home...)

But other times we are lucky enough to see a few angels flying in the sky...

Or leaving their mark on the ground...

And when we're done seeing all there is to see our little family heads home...

Leaving baby shuffle tracks in the snow (with mama's footprint for sizing)

And when we see our house it sparkles with the long icicles hanging from our gutters.

Aaaaaaaaah...We're home...

Mahna Mahna

One thing I always loved about the home I grew up in was how much music was involved in my life.  My mom hummed or sang all day long, I listened to music before going to sleep, I watched musicals as a primary source of entertainment, I learned how to play instruments and read music...good grief...we were like the Von Trapp family and even went to nursing homes and sang together in church.

Its something I'm determined to duplicate.  Maddie is always humming or singing.  John used to be quite shy about singing, but has learned to just belt it out these days and Isabella...well, she's picking it all up.  I love it. 

One of my favorite songs that she's just started mimicking is Mahna Mahna...

Just in case you've never heard of Mahna Mahna....



and now our version....

Our's for the long term...

Well, its been awhile since I've posted about the trials of being a stepmom...most recently we had discussions with GBM (Grand birthmother) about what the long term looks like for miss Madeline.  The original email we received made it pretty clear that if John and I wanted her for the long term we would get her. 

So, it didn't take much discussion for us to know that staying with us is the best thing for Maddie. She's done better than anyone could have ever imagined.  I really think she needed structure and boundaries in order for her to figure out how to manage her behavior.

And now she's ours for the long-term. Who knows if she'll ever go back to Cruella's house for more than just a visit...Its been a long time coming.  Welcome home little girl!

 

Resolved in 2010...

I've been "fast blogging" lately because it just seems that I have so little time and the events and activities of my life can be shared so much better in photos...

But now...its 2010....and things are starting to settle down after the holidays and I've decided is time to get back to my regular programming.

So, what better way than to start with my New Years Resolutions...?

This is the year that I will publish the children's books that John and I wrote.  We've got 4 of them now - and I think they are good.  I just really hope someone else does too.  I need to spend some time figuring out which publishers I want to approach and how exactly I'm going to do that. 

This year I will spend more quality time with my family reading stories, creating things, coloring and drawing, making messes, listening to music and dancing in the living room, building forts, playing in the snow, going for walks, cooking together, snuggling on the couch...I think you get the idea.

This year I will continue to exercise and eat right...and as a result I'm hoping to continue to drop weight and help my body feel better.

This year I will explore my spirituality and make some changes.  I've been neglecting it..it hasn't been a priority, but I can notice it lacking and want to make changes in that area.

This year I want to expand my social group.  I've made a few wonderful friends here in Vilseck, but I think there are so many more things that the military offers that I don't take advantage of.

This year I want to explore more of the world.  I won't be in Europe forever and I need to take advantage of this time.  I'm especially hoping to make it to Eastern Europe where my dad lives.

Looking forward to a wondeful new year....

First Train Ride