Maddie: 4 months

Dear Madelynn,

You are 4 months today! You have grown and changed a LOT this month.

-You actually lost a little weight this month. You are back around 12.5 lbs. There was about a week where you didn't eat well, and I think this is why your weight is a little down.

-You wear 6 month clothes & jammies and size 2 diapers. You still wear newborn size shoes & socks.

-You have started losing your hair! This is what I was hoping wouldn't happen, but every time I go pick you up out of your crib, there are little reddish-brown hairs all over the sheet. :(

-You have figured out the whole toy thing! Some teethers and toys you can get to your mouth to chew on, which makes you SO happy. Your favorite toys are your playmat and your little soft puppy rattle Great Grandpa Nichols bought for you.

-You love to be read to. Any book or story, really, but you especially love ones with bright colors and pictures.

-You met your Great Grandpa Nichols this month! You just loved him. He made you laugh and smile and you really enjoyed cuddling with him.

-You can laugh now! Not a full belly laugh yet (I can't wait for that!) but a little "ha, ha, ha" when you think something is funny. You think the most random things are funny, and they are only funny ONCE. If I try to do it again, you look at me like, Mom, that show is over. Move on to something else.

-We went to St. George to see our friends the Nielson's this month. You are still a great traveler in the car - sleeping most of the way and playing with your toys when you are awake. You didn't sleep that well in the hotel room, so you ended up sleeping right next to me the whole weekend.

-You are starting to "turn on" for the camera. When I pull it out, about 75% of the time you start smiling and talking. Not, of course, when I am doing a photoshoot with you though, haha :)

-You took your first trip to the zoo this month as well! It was a busy month for us. You enjoyed watching all the people, and could not have cared less about the animals. Don't worry, you'll enjoy it when you're older.

-You rolled from back to tummy for the first time as well! It was kind of a "cheater" roll, as it was on the bed and the bed was a little slanted, but you did it! On the flat ground you get about 85% through the roll, then have a hard time lifting up your head to finish it off.

-We took you swimming at the hotel in St. George, and you had a BLAST! You weren't sure at first, but soon enough you started kicking and smiling and laughing. It probably just seemed like a huge (cold) bathtub to you.

-You eat around 8:30, 11:30, 2:30, 5:30, and 8:30. Some days you eat more often. You nap around 10, around 2, and around 4. Generally. You don't have a set nap schedule. Naps are anywhere from 45 minutes to 2 hours, depending on how tired you are and if we are at home or out and about. The only one I can count on is that you will go down between 9:30 and 10 and sleep for about an hour. You go to bed about 8:30, and you wake up 2-3 times a night to eat, waking for the day about 8-8:30.

-You have discovered the baby in the mirror, the baby in my phone, and the baby on FaceTime and you LOVE her. Sometimes all I have to do is turn on the camera on the computer and you will just sit on my lap and talk and talk to that cute baby. You like to look at pictures of yourself on my phone too. You're so vain. ;)

-You always have your tongue out, too. It's your signature move! I love it.

-We call you punkin, munchkin, peanut, and princess. You turn and look at us if we call you Maddie or princess. I guess you know the important names!

-This month you began to refuse the bottle. This means I am afraid to leave you because I don't want you to starve yourself. If we try to give you a bottle, you act like we are poisoning you and start to choke (and we have a super slow flow nipple on the bottle too). You just prefer Mom, and that's okay with me for now.

Oh, my darling Maddie, how we love you!

Love,
Mom

There's that tongue again.

This is what she really wanted to do during this shoot. Chew on her arm!

If looks could kill....

You make this face a lot. I don't know what it is, but it makes me laugh!!

THIS IS MY EXCITED FACE!

So pretty.

Zoo Visit

We took Maddie on her first trip to the zoo this weekend! It was 80 degrees and sunny, perfect zoo weather. Maddie was much more interested in watching the people, rather than the animals. :) She definitely enjoyed being worn in the carrier and seeing so many new things! She was so tuckered out by the end.

My name is on one of the bricks on the bridge, along with some of my cousins'!

Family selfie!

WHY. AM. I. ON. THIS.

Move outta my way! I am driving here, people!

Tractor!

Milking the cow

I love these two. So, so much.

She was just SO tired by the end! She slept great the whole way home. :)

Little Artist

This is what we do on Saturday mornings...

For Good

I've heard it said,
That people come into our lives
For a reason
Bringing something we must learn.
And we are lead to those
Who help us most to grow if we let them.
And we help them in return.
Well, I don't know if I believe that's true
But I know I'm who I am today
Because I knew you.

It well may be
That we will never meet again
In this lifetime.
So, let me say before we part:
So much of me
Is made of what I learned from you.
You'll be with me
Like a handprint on my heart.

 -Wicked

We miss you, Mom.  I am who I am today because of you. I wish that my daughter would have the chance to know you in this life. I wish I could call you up and ask you all the questions I have about motherhood and you and myself as a baby. I wish you could know me as a mother. I only hope that I can raise my children the way that you raised us. I hope that my daughter feels like she knows you, through the stories I tell her. I love you, and I am anxiously awaiting the day we meet again.

This Girl

She is just too much fun!! I honestly don't know what I did before she came along. She is my whole world and I love her more than I can say.

Daddy's girl! This is where she must be when he comes home from work. Like, immediately, she must be in Dad's arms!

I can hold my head up like a big girl now!

Cutest little bed hog.

Trying on Daddy's boots!

This picture just kills me.

Obsessed with her "iPod"

Finally figured out how to get toys in her mouth!

Trying out the high chair.

Maddie & her monkey. We call her Mona.

Maddie: Three Months

Dear Madelynn,

You are no longer a newborn anymore, in age or in personality. This past week was really rough - you fought eating, fought sleep, and were very clingy. It turns out you were having a growth spurt plus a huge developmental leap! As of yesterday you can hold your head up during tummy time, laugh (more like a little giggle), pay closer attention to books, grab toys and get them to your mouth, and you seem a bit taller. You are also back to your normal, happy self! I am so proud of you and everything you are accomplishing so far. :) Here are some things about you at 3 months:

-You have attached yourself to Blankie - a soft, green & white, part minky blanket that my Aunt Suzanne gave us. You must have Blankie to sleep or if you are fussy. Blankie must also be right by your face (or over it!!) when it's near you. Let me tell you, that scares me half to death!! We have had to stop swaddling you because you scream and throw a tantrum until your arms are out and you can snuggle Blankie. Girl, you are opinionated!

-The Christmas holidays kind of threw off our schedule we had going. You haven't napped very well since we got back, but here's the sort-of schedule we have going, as far as eating and sleeping.

• 8:15 wake up
• 8:30 nurse
• 10:00-11:00 nap
• 11:30 nurse
• 1:00-2:30 nap
• 2:30 nurse
• 4:00-4:30 nap
• 5:30 nurse
• 7:00-7:30 nap
• 9:00 nurse and go to bed
• You have been waking up 2-3 times per night to nurse. What happened to just once? Mama is tired! :)

-You are enjoying playtime more too! If I put a toy in your hand, you can bring it to your mouth. You talk and smile at the animals on your playmat and your stuffed animals. You love to read books with Mommy.

-You nurse about every three hours. I've stopped timing you so I don't know how long you eat for. Sometimes you eat one side and sometimes you eat two sides. Just depends on how hungry you are! You have also stopped spitting up as much. Some days we can make it through in the same outfit! Not often, but it happens.

-I think you are beginning to teethe. You are drooly and loving chewing on your knuckle. You also love the Nuby teethers I bought you that look like a paci, but have a gum-shaped silicone teether instead of a nipple.

-You are a big time Daddy's girl! As soon as he gets home you smile and want him to hold you and play with you. If I try to take you from him for any reason you get mad. You love your Daddy!

-I am thinking it might be time to gently start sleep training you, as you are only napping in your crib for about 30 minutes at a time now. If you are in your swing you nap for 2-3 hours. Honestly, because I need to work, most days you take one nap in your swing so that I can get everything done. I need to stop enforcing this habit, though, I know. But I'm not quite ready to sleep train you!

-You love when we hold you up and you can "stand" on your feet. Your legs are VERY strong and you stand up straight. You love it, too.

-You are finally okay with tummy time since you can hold your head up and push on your arms a little. You love when I put your Touch and Feel books on the floor in front of you so you can "read" them during tummy time. You also like when I pull out the video camera and turn the screen around so you can see yourself.

-You wear size 2 diapers. You can still wear 3 month size onesies, barely, but generally wear 6 month size clothes. You wear 6 month jammies but have nearly grown out of those in length as well. You are just a tall girl!

-You are very social. You LOVED Christmastime and all of the attention you got from family. I don't think you got put down once! And you totally relished every second of it.

-We now have a bedtime routine that you have gotten used to. We do lotion and jammies, then pass you over for a few minutes of Daddy cuddles. Then, we rock and read a story. Then, turn off the lights, turn on the sound machine and your lullabies, and nurse/rock to sleep with Blankie. I usually give you your paci when you are done nursing as well. Then I lay you in your crib, where you sleep until your first waking of the night. Usually after that, I bring you back to your Rock N Play in our room to sleep.

-You enjoyed Christmas morning! You weren't quite sure about what was happening, but your face lit up when we "opened" your baby doll from Mom & Dad! Maybe you thought it was a friend to play with you, I don't know, but you definitely smiled big. I thought it was adorable! You made out like a bandit this year too - we couldn't help ourselves. :)

-You were also SO good on our road trips! It's about 17 hours round trip of driving, and you never once had a meltdown. You slept a lot, and when you were awake, you just stared down the mirror, looking at us with puppy dog eyes.

-You are still a fairly mellow, happy, easy going baby. You are starting to develop opinions and you definitely let us know how you feel about things! But, 90% of the day, you can be found smiling and talking. Sometimes you are trying SO hard to tell us something, but can't form the words. You really do talk most of the time though. Just like mom. :)

-Your nicknames are Princess, punkin, peanut, and monkey. Princess and punkin get used the most.

-Sometimes, I look at you, and I can't believe that this is real life. How did I get so lucky?

We love you so much, Maddie! We can't imagine our lives without you.

Love,
Mommy