Thoughts

A complete stranger took these pictures the other night, and I really liked them

On another note, that St. Patrick's Day post got me thinking.... Wouldn't it be fun to write about previous St. Patrick's Days and which ones were really fun? I could even have users write in with their most memorable ones. I have particularly fond memories of the one I spent during Spring Break in Ireland, circa 1994. Crossing O'Connell Street in the middle of the parade. Loitering around Trinity College. Sitting in pubs watching 10-yr-olds fight in the street. Ahh, Dublin. I had big plans to write about it in detail in the blog, then of course ran out of time and wrote only about Madison. But as the next holidays roll around, that is my grand idea. I am planning to write about my favorite past holidays. And I want user participation too! Now let's see if it actually happens...........!

:)

Happy Saint Patrick's Day & 13-Month Birthday

A wee Irish elf......

Happy Saint Patrick's Day everyone!

Have I mentioned how hard it is to get a picture of this child when she's not moving these days?? This was my attempt to get a picture in her Irish top, which was originally a little dress, straight from Ireland! Thanx again, Euro-dinner clubbers! And upon further examination of the photo, I noticed she's got one hand on the cord and the other on the remote. Nice.

So today mark's Madison's 13-month birthday. I decided to post a few pictures from a "big girl" birthday party we went to the other day at "Monkey Bizzness" (think Gymboree for big kids with some sugar thrown in). I think after she got over the initial stimulation overload, she really liked it and had a lot of fun!

It took a little while to warm up to all the excitement

Switched into play clothesThe 4-year-old birthday girlChillin with the big kids, eatin Cheetos

Birthday parties are fun!!

And I can still fit in Mama's belly wrap! Sort of!

MJ update

Just to sort of continue my blog from yesterday, I wanted to jot down some of the new & interesting things Madison is doing these days - & the things that make us laugh!

Madison likes to kiss her dolls, kiss her toys, kiss pictures on magazines. She'll make the "mmmmwah" sound and everything!

And while she likes to say the word "baby," I think she also thinks everyone is a baby. She'll point and a picture of a person and say "baby" even if the person is like 50 years old :)

Speaking of pointing, I've noticed, is that Madison will now point to various pictures of things in books and then look at me. So I'll say whatever it is, then she'll try to say it back. Example: "Elephant!" ... "Phant." ... "Moon!" ... "Moo." ... "Balloon!" ... "Balloooooo" ... "Sheep!" ... "Baaah" :)

Nodding is also on her list of fave things to do these days. Nodding "no" is lots of fun when she knows she's not supposed to be doing something. But she's also very honest. We'll ask: "Do you have a poopy diaper?" and she'll nod "yes..." Then we'll ask "Can we go change your diaper?" which is followed by "no"....

We are also brushing our teeth these days! I got some Thomas the Tank Engine toddler training toothpaste, which is exciting because now she can use toothpaste like Mom & Dad. She pretty much just sucks it off the toothbrush, but the idea is there!

And speaking of teeth, there is one new bottom tooth poking through on the right side. It will be the 3rd bottom tooth and the 7th total tooth! If you ask her to show you her teeth, she'll point to this new tiny corner of a tooth and stick her tongue there & smile.

She also likes to point to eyes, nose, ears, and mouth (but especially eyes). She'll suddenly stick her thumb in your eye when you least expect it, followed by the other eye, then Madison's eye, then your nose, then Madison's nose... you get the idea... She'd love to touch the kitty's eye too but that doesn't exactly work. Instead she ends up following them around the room, arms up, Frankenstein style!

Testing

...

Toddlerhood, here I come!

I feel like Madison's 1st birthday was the turning point. I know there are lots of little milestones people use to measure a "toddler" -- walking, talking, eating on their own... For us, it was her birthday! When I think back to that day, I remember her as a baby! And yet, when I look at her now, I can't help but see a toddler. It's like she woke up that next morning and was just a walking, talking human being!
Another surprise is that I suddenly feel like a seasoned mom! I find myself giving advice to moms with new babies, mothers-to-be, anyone who asks really. Some friends and I are planning a baby shower for one of my old roommates, and we were out at Babies R Us the other day getting gifts. I found myself saying: "Oh, you want this kind of tube of diaper cream because they can bite on the tube and it's not sharp;" -or - "Oh, you need at least two of these, because one will fall in the toilet or get lost;" - and - "Oh, you don't want to get the washcloths with edges, those just get in the way..." Things like that.. Things I have learned- and that other people may or may not care about! Ha! It's just funny because when I look back at my own baby registry, I registered for things like pacifiers and baby bottles, which take some experimenting to figure out the right kind!
But hey, we are all learning. And I also need to know when to shut up! And thank goodness my friends are patient people! :)

The toddler climbs a turtle ("tut-tut")