Maddie's Fancy Dress

A friend and co-worker of mine gave me a beautiful dress for Maddie at a baby shower I had last year. The dress has been hanging in Maddie's closet since before she was even born, waiting to make its grand appearance.

The day finally arrived.

We pulled out the fancy dress on Sunday, as Maddie and I were deciding what she wanted to wear to church. Words cannot even describe how beautiful she looked in this dress. The tag on the dress says, "Cinderella," and yes, she definitely looked like a little princess. The ladies, young and old, at church were oohing and ahhing over our sweet girl. I couldn't complain. :)

So, as if this is a shock, we had to take pictures when we got home. Here are a few of our favorites.

Guess who is 10 months old?

It certainly isn't Brant! You guessed it. Madelyn is 10 months old today! She is growing up so fast and is in constant motion. I am not exaggerating. Our baby girl is crawling all over the place, over anything in her way and through spaces I didn't think she could maneuver through.
Every morning we tear down our living room and create a large play pen area for her to freely roam. No kidding; we have suitcases out to barricade our entertainment system, as she has successfully discovered how to pull one of the knobs off of the amplifier and stick it into her mouth. :) Ah, the joys of rearing a mobile 10 month old. And it is a joy! We are so in love with our little Maddie Mae and are equally blessed by her blooming personality that is overflowing with bubbly excitement, happiness, and loud vocal chords! Yes, it is true. My daughter appears to be taking after me; she loves to be heard, she enjoys being the center of attention, and she will do anything it takes to get you to notice her (which in turn equates to her voice becoming loud, louder and loudest)! What can I say? The girl's got a lot to say! :)
This past weekend, Maddie discovered the joys of responding to us asking her the question, "How big is Maddie?" Let me tell you, she is "SOOOOO big!" We have not been practicing this little game at all, and on Friday, she threw her hands up in the air while she was sitting in her high chair. So, I decided to respond to her actions by exclaiming how big she was. That's all it took. She was hooked! As are we. It is ridiculously adorable to watch her little arms fly up into the air and frame her cute face, as it looks back at you with a smile that can't be beat. :) She is showing me how big she is in this picture, but holding on for safety's sake!
Speaking of smiles, if you look at Maddie smile these days, you will notice that she has two more teeth trying desperately to poke through her gums. She is about to start sporting two bottom teeth, one on either side of the two existing teeth in her mouth. Who knows how many more are just about ready to make their entrances. But for now, it looks like we are about to have 4 total.
Happy 10 month birthday, Maddie Mae! We love you!!

Easter Pictures

This post is simply for the pleasure of our adoring blog readers who love to see super cute pictures of our baby girl. Be warned: she is really cute in these pictures. Get excited!!

Easter Sunday. As told by Miss Madelyn Mae.

Look at my pretty hat!! I'm so excited about this hat!!
I love how it keeps the sun out of my eyes!
I could lounge outside in this hat all day long.
Whoa! Check out my cute pink shoes!
I can't believe how much fun it is to get all dressed up for such a special Easter Sunday!
My Daddy and me. He's just the greatest! But I'm still the cutest!
Did you notice the pretty bow on my hat?
I just can't decide if I want it to be on or off!
Yay for Easter Sunday, and pretty white dresses, and for clapping!
Here's a good picture of my Mommy and me, without so much sunlight. It was such a pretty day!
We ate a yummy Easter dinner at our friends' house. Everyone was clapping for the camera right before the picture was taken, and it made me really happy!
He is Risen!! Happy Easter, everyone!

I Heart Oregon

A few weeks ago, Maddie and I had the fabulous opportunity to travel home to Oregon to visit our family. My parents blessed us by flying us home for a week-long visit (truth be told, they really needed to see their granddaughter - I was the bonus! :)). We started the trip off with a wonderful time in Sunriver. My sister, her husband, and their 1 1/2 year old daughter, Ellie, joined us for the fun! The only bummer about the whole vacation (besides Brant not being with us), was the terrible chest cold I was fighting. I got sick a few days prior to flying out to Oregon, and as I sit here typing, I am still not feeling myself. Maddie caught the cold halfway through our vacation, and is still fighting the virus. Unfortunately, I believe we spread our sickness to a few of our family members as well...I suppose that is the risk you take when an adorable, yet sick 9-month-old baby is just begging for you to play with her and love on her. What else are you going to do? :)
Here are some picture highlights of our time in Sunriver!
Maddie and Ellie sharing a bath. Maddie had lots to say, and Ellie was fascinated.
Mohawk babes.
Sarah bought matching t-shirts for the girls, that read, "One Cute Chick." They are pretty cute! Its amazing to think these girls will be in the same grade in just a few years, when they are at such different developmental stages right now! They had a blast together!
Grandma Kris bought her granddaughters matching Easter outfits (watch for upcoming Easter post for adorable pictures!).
Grammy and Pop-pop came by for a visit. Maddie and I were also able to enjoy a longer visit with them in Eugene later in the week.
My baby girl loves to swing. This was her first experience, and it was a big hit! We have been swinging at the playground in our neighborhood everyday since we returned!
Sisters and our girls.
Some pretty happy grandparents!
While we were in Oregon, as I mentioned above, we visited my grandparents in Eugene. I was really happy to be able to spend good time with all of them.

I was also very fortunate to be able to spend time with the other side of my family, the Himes crew. We had a great day together, which was kicked off with fabulous pedicures for the ladies, while the men held down the fort with the kids. The only downside, again, was Brant's absence. I was really missing him by this point in my trip, and to be at his house with all of his family made this particularly difficult. Regardless, we still had a wonderful time! Maddie's three girl cousins had an absolute ball being "little mamas" to her. It was so endearing to watch. Here are the highlights of our day!

Adalie (7) and Maddie having a great conversation, catching up after months of not seeing each other.
My time to get away from life for a little while, and feel pampered. Ahhh. This picture is hardly posed...I really was feeling this way. :)
Amber and Martha, in their element!
April, also taking advantage of being away from the little ones for awhile. So nice!
Toes!...because you always need to get a picture of your toes after a group pedicure! :)
Photo opportunity!
Family Picture!
And this is how everyone felt that Brant was not with us...I think his daughter was the most upset!
On the last day of our trip, we went to the park again, and took some fun pictures. Of course, we had to do the same set of family pictures as I had done with the Himes.
And how does everyone feel that Brant is not with us?
We had such a fantastic trip!! We can't wait to see all of again you in just a few months, this time, with Brant! :)

9 Months!

Let me start this post by informing you to keep checking our blog. I am WAY behind in my posts and have high hopes in getting a lot of them out and published before the weekend is through. So be sure to stay tuned!

Maddie turned 9 months old a few weeks ago. 9 months old! I can't believe it. She is growing up so much and every day seems to bring about vast changes. She had her 9-month check-up and came away with the following vital stats:
height: 28 inches (72%)
weight: 19 lbs 8oz (68%)
head circumference: 43.5 cm (43%)

Here are some super fun facts about 9 month old, little Miss Maddie Mae.

Maddie is crawling all over the place. She had been army crawling for a few weeks and we could afford a few moments to turn away and take care of something before returning to her. Those days are long gone. Maddie is a fast crawler. She started to really take off when we returned from our trip to Oregon, just in time for her afternoons with Daddy. :) Needless to say, he is no longer studying while I am at work. Maddie requires constant supervision. Its a good thing she is so cute and lovable, and her father is head-over-heels in love with her, because she sure does take away several hours of his study/work time!

Maddie started pulling herself up onto multiple furniture items the last few weeks. It all started when we found her after her nap, standing up in her crib calling out for us. We had just lowered the mattress the day before, luckily. She looks so proud of herself, doesn't she?
On Monday, she pulled herself up onto the coffee table and before we knew it, we heard loud, painful cries coming from the ground. We were less than 10 feet away, but had our backs turned for just a moment...we found our sweet girl on the floor, tears streaming down her face, and blood coming out of her mouth. Panic? Only slightly. :) She had a little red mark on her chin and had clearly fallen against the table, causing her chin to push up against her upper gums. Her two bottom teeth cut into the gums above, causing the bleeding. :( Poor thing. She was happy and none the wiser once she was in my arms, sucking on a teething ring. Good thing the mouth heals so quickly!

Maddie now has two new words that have been added to her vocabulary of baby talk. The first word occurred an hour before Brant was going to take us to the airport to fly home to Oregon. We were playing with her when she looked up at Brant and said, "Dada!" It was so heartwarming and awesome to hear her say that, while intentionally looking at him! She knows her Daddy and will find him in the house, whenever you ask her, "Where is Daddy?" The second word she said happened earlier this week. Drum roll, please...she said, "Mama!" Can you believe it? I was not expecting that one to come so quickly after her "Dada debut." Brant and I are so charmed to hear her say these words throughout the day.

Maddie's hair is finally starting to grow. This makes me very excited, because I can start doing things with her hair! This is her first ponytail, or "unicorn horn," as Brant likes to refer to it as. I think it is super cute, and we have continued the trend almost daily. :)
Our baby girl has also reached another milestone this month. On Monday, she started clapping with us. She loves to clap! She will clap after every mouthful of food. She will clap when her diaper is being changed. She will clap when she has found a toy. She will clap in the bath tub. She will clap when she has tears in her eyes, which then quickly turn to smiles because the clapping is so much fun! :) It is really neat to see her interacting with us in so many new ways!
Lastly, Maddie is just on the brink of waving to us. She is really good at waving both of her hands wildly, for no particular reason. But this week she is starting to raise one arm while looking at one of us, and wave. Cute!

I told you we had a growing girl on our hands! She is growing up so fast. Sometimes it feels like we blink and she is doing something else brand new. It is such a fun time and so wonderful to watch her little personality blossom.

I think I'm going to miss it here...

I did not think this day would come. Actually, I only assumed it would come after we spent a few years on the east coast and really became acclimated to the culture around here. But I sit here this afternoon, slightly mourning the fact that we will be leaving so soon.
Let me get this out there...I am SOOO excited to be moving to Pasadena. I could list a dozen things I am thrilled about! I know that we are going to have a great time in California.

The weather in Princeton is currently in the high 60s, and it is glorious. We just went for a walk around our neighborhood, talking with several people that we saw along the way. Everyone is outside with their dogs and their kids, some are barbecuing, while others are making chalk drawings on the sidewalk. The birds are singing that spring has arrived! It is picture perfect! I am sad to be leaving the friends I have made out here. I am sad to be leaving the community we live in. I can only hope that in the 10 months we will have lived here, that we really took advantage of as many wonderful opportunities that we could have. I know there will be things that we missed, but I hope there aren't too many.

Although our home is old and falling apart (and they are tearing it down this summer), I'm really going to miss it. I like the way it feels. I like how we've made it "home." I'm going to miss the idea that NYC is only an hour away from me. I'm really going to miss so many wonderful people. I'm going to miss being able to pop in to any one of my friends' houses on a random afternoon to say hello, without having set foot in my car. I am going to miss my husband attending Princeton Theological Seminary. I'm sure there are other things...

I bet you know what I'm going to say next: I'm so glad that I feel this way. As I mentioned above, I didn't expect to feel this way until I had been here for a few years. But here I am, admitting my sadness. The difference between this sadness and the sadness I felt a year ago when we were preparing to leave the NW? Oh, it is a significant difference. I am not scared about our next move. I am at such a wonderful peace about it all. It is going to be exciting and fun! How awesome to live in a warm climate, on the west coast and 35 minutes from Mickey Mouse?! :)

Yeah, I'm going to be just fine.

Atlantic City

As Brant told you in a previous post, we were gifted a night in Atlantic City by some friends of ours! We left last Monday for our overnight excursion to the electric city that some refer to as the "Las Vegas of the East coast".

We stayed at Harrah's Resort and Casino. Let me tell you right off the bat, we did not win any money during our stay, mainly because we did not put any money into the machines...funny how that works. :) We arrived early Monday afternoon, and spent several hours walking from our hotel, to the waterfront, and all up and down the famous boardwalk. We could not have wished for better weather! The temperature stayed in the 60's, with lots of sunshine and clear sky. It was a great opportunity for us to get away, celebrate Brant's Fuller acceptance and explore a famous city neither of us had been to before. I'll let the pictures do the rest of the talking! :)

Harrah's Resort and Casino. Our room was on the 15th floor, behind the white sign, next to the purple sign that reads "Pool."
We walked about 2 1/2 miles to get to the Boardwalk from our hotel. Our destination is on the other side of those tall casinos in the distance! We did not get the luxury of walking along this scenic path for long...we were mainly walking through some pretty sketchy neighborhoods before we reached the Boardwalk.
Maddie was ready to take down anyone who gave us trouble on our walk. As a result, no one messed with us.
One of Donald Trump's many casinos and hotels in Atlantic City. Of course his name could be seen in any direction you looked. This was the Taj Mahal, and it was kind of sleazy...okay, so maybe really sleazy.
The Boardwalk! The weather was spectacular.
We walked through a popular shopping mall on one of the piers that was full of all kinds of neat things. One aspect we really enjoyed were the Adirondack chairs that were placed along the third story windows, overlooking the ocean and the city. The chairs were placed in little sandy coves and were quite relaxing! It was late afternoon by this point, and the view was awesome.
Daddy and his girl.
We're so happy! :)
Everything looked like this, along with lots of lights and noise.
So, I choose to pose like statues I see...why not? :)
The lighting did not work in our favor for this picture, and the giant advertisement that was hanging outside of our window makes the shot look a bit "grainy." Nevertheless, this was our view. We both thought it was pretty amazing!
Yay, for a fun and spontaneous trip to Atlantic City!