An Enormous Post (to catch up for my serious lack of posting)

It's been a while since I've really posted posted. I apologize. I have a ton of pictures and could/should probably break this up into multiple posts. But... It's easier this way. Ha. :)

This weekend, we went to to a local arts festival with Grandma. There were instruments to play, crafts to make and snow cones to eat (well, the snow cone was technically all mine and I enjoyed it very much). She loved being up on the stage (even when all the children went to sit back down, Maddie insisted on staying up on the stage) but was terrified of the puppets. I'll have to get a video of her discussing the puppets...
Grandma even bought her this duck hat, which she had to sleep with last night.

Noah and Maddie have been hanging out and I thought this picture was too cute.

We also went to Disneyland last weekend and hung out with Mickey. Maddie was super excited to see him (and I was super excited that there was absolutely no wait to see him).

One of her favorite things to do is to walk through Mickey and Minnie's houses. It never gets old. Ever.

Oh, we also went to our friend Payton's second birthday party. Since I had Mason for the day, we piled all the kids into Emily's car and went together. All three of them spent the majority of the way singing, shouting and generally irritating each other.

Maddie wasn't in the best mood at the birthday party, even though nearly all her friends were there. At least Lilly was happy. :)

And, in grown-up birthday party news, we also celebrated Heather's 30th birthday recently too. It was a super fun night, and also marked the first time I've ever hung out at a cowboy bar. I didn't necessarily line dance, but I enjoyed hanging out with Brandi and watching Heather get her groove on.

Oh... You're probably a little confused. Sorry. Just say a prayer for our family as we embark on yet another new journey together.

The Tent

Grandma bought Maddie this tent and it is now, officially, her very favorite place to play, rest and reign over. Poor Mason isn't even allowed to touch it. Yesterday, he kneeled outside the door while she barked at him to "Scoot back, Aason!" I got her out of her crib this morning and she ran right inside it (and then, in her very demanding little way, said, "Get my blankies Mama!"). Thank you Grandma!

Feelin' the Love Lately

We got to meet up with Mike and Maddie was super happy, as you can tell. I don't know if Maddie realizes it (yet), but she is SO lucky to have a pair of such amazing aunties. Annie and Megan are just wonderful with her and I know they will always be great role models for her, too.

Maddie LOVES her Grandma so much. She's always learning a new song from Grandma and always cries when we have to leave.

And, what would we do without this lady?! When Maddie is bored/sad/angry, she always wants Nana (who is, apparently, FAR nicer than me, according to Maddie). I don't know what we'd do without Nana's constant help.

Weekend Recap

Last week, we celebrated Grandma's birthday with massages (well, Maddie sat the massage part out), dinner and lots of gifts (or, as Maddie says, "Prezzzzzents!"). I love watching these two together; Maddie was heartbroken when we finally had to leave. On the drive home, she cried, "My Grandma! My Grandma go!"

We're also wrapping up a busy weekend. Mike didn't end up taking Maddie on Friday night, which left us free to go out with our friends Brandi, Kayla, Heather and Owen. We visited Emily and Alex's adorable new place and then walked to dinner. The kids were so well behaved (that is, once I got Maddie a sucker, which is hanging out of her mouth in this picture).

Maddie and Kayla ended up being dressed identically for our big night out. As we were walking up and down the streets, I was carrying Kayla (since Brandi is adorably very pregnant!) and holding Maddie's hand. I'm sure we confused a lot of people, leaving them wondering if I had twins or not (and hadn't remembered my stroller; Lol). Maddie outweighs Kayla by about 8 pounds though!

While we were waiting for her daddy to pick her up on Saturday morning, I grabbed the camera to catch this hair picture. Seriously, I feel like it's experiencing an enormous growth spurt. I recently bought some detangler spray and she loves it. So, instead of her screaming "Soft, Mama!" and trying to grab the brush when I do her hair, she now screams, "I spray!" and tries to grab the detangler. Overall, I think it's a good trade-off.

What a goof, huh? This is what happens when I ask to see her pretty teeth. So pretty.

It's a well-known fact that when Maddie is with her father, I'm a little bit of a mess. I know, I know... I should enjoy/appreciate/relish the child-free time. I try. I do. I take baths, watch Vh-1 and even attempt to nap. But, that whole miss-her-like-crazy feeling just never entirely fades.

So, my parents treated us yesterday to a delicious lunch out (at my favorite, CPK). It was quite amazing to have all us "kids" there and I really enjoyed it (even though I'm pretty sure I was getting on Annie's nerves; Because of our age difference, we may not have sibling rivalry, but we certainly know how to irritate!).

The evening was filled with... Well, lots of friends, wine and absolutely no pictures. Sorry. I'm sure you're all very saddened by that, huh? Ha!

Maddie returned home this morning and was almost immediately whisked off for an adventure with her Nana, Poppa and aunties. Lucky girl, eh? I'm not sure if they took any pictures... But, she had a ton of fun (as always), came home and totally conked out. It's been a little over 3 hours now!

Maybe Miracles?

I know, yet another post from me today. Sue me (no wait, don't do that; I seriously can't handle more attorney issues! Ha!).

For months and months, I've followed the blog of a family in Alaska. The mom has such an enticing writing style, she takes gorgeous pictures of her kids, and I love reading her opinions on things. Anyway, her youngest son has fallen incredibly ill (really, you'll have to read the background on this little guy, if you have a (long) moment) and she's been, obviously, blogging about it. Today she touched on the topic of miracles and how we don't always know what the miracle looks like or what it may look like. We know what we want it to look like, but sometimes we miss the fact that God is the one in charge and we may be, in fact, missing the miracles that happen around us.

I want to say that tonight, I felt a miracle, but I don't know if that's just me being melodramatic. I tend to lean that way sometimes.

See, my mother-in-law, Maria, and I have had, ummm, shall we say... a colorful past? :) I don't think she'd dispute the fact that we've butted heads more often than not. I think we're both strong-willed, stubborn women and we're both nearly always right. Ha! Well, tonight she came over for a visit and I can honestly and entirely say that I truly enjoyed her visit and her company.

I can't speak for her, but I don't think this would've happened a year ago today. In fact, I'm fairly certain that it would have never happened a year ago today.

This journey with Mike has been filled with a seemingly endless stream of tears from heart break and disappointment and sadness. BUT, I'm finding that there are also all these glistening little gems that have slowly started surfacing. A blossoming relationship with my brother that I wouldn't trade for anything in the world, knowing that I can lean on the support of special friends, recognizing my own strength as a woman and growing closer to God... Those are all treasures that have emerged from this situation.

And potentially a friendship with my mother-in-law? Miraculous.

I know that some of you will read this, look down and slowly shake your head, but I do still pray for a miracle with our marriage. Maddie knows her father's first name because we pray to St. Jude that he will "help bring Mike home to us." So, I do pray and I make those prayers known. But, I think in my fervor to pray for a certain miracle, I might just have been missing the miracles that are unfolding before my eyes. Does that make any sense?

And Maria, thanks for the jammies and the dress. When I asked Maddie tonight who she wanted her special prayer to be for, she said, "Geh-muh." I'm assuming that's you. :)

Fun at Nana's

Tonight, Nana, Annie and Megan took care of Maddie so that I could go out to dinner. I truly, truly appreciate it and I always know that Maddie will have wonderful time. I love you!

Annie and Megan built a HUGE pillow castle for Maddie. Apparently, they all had a very fun time. :)

Lilly and Maddie have definitely become buddies (a friendship that is made stronger by the frequent trail of food that Maddie drops).

A Shout-Out to Nana

Every night at bedtime, Maddie and I say our prayers. I always tick off people we pray for and she listens and smiles and ends with "Meh-men." Well tonight, we finished and she said "Amen" and then she sat straight up, throwing her arms in the air. I was super startled and asked her what was wrong. She said/screamed, in all seriousness, "Nana! Nana!" I hardly think we forgot her in our prayers, but maybe Nana was on her mind and she felt compelled to shout her name in my face. :) We added another prayer for Nana, I laid her down and she fell right asleep.

I know that my parents are really suffering throughout this whole ordeal. In many ways, it's like they've lost a family member and my heart breaks for the sadness they're feeling. Someone that they loved so deeply is suddenly so gone and I wish so badly that I could ease their sadness. Mom and Dad, know that Maddie and I love you and are (and always be) eternally grateful for the love and support and friendship you surround us in.

Recent Pics

Wow, it's been almost a WEEK with no blog updates! I've been super frazzled and tired and Maddie just MAY be learning how to perfect the art of the tantrum. We haven't done many new activities, but we've stayed busy with friends and family.

Uncle TT made her THE coolest tent/fort last weekend. She loved it. And now, every time I get out the blanket, she signs "please" and tries to drape it over the couch. :)

Maddie is BEYOND obsessed with brushing her teeth. She has a step stool that allows her to do the process herself, with the exception of turning on the water. Well, it looks like she's solved this problem... Crawl INTO the sink to get the water on!

And finally, a Maddie-Nana picture. :) I couldn't believe when I got out of tutoring and saw these two snuggled up in the chair. Maddie NEVER lets me rock her to sleep!

A Day of Birthday Fun!

We went to Dylan's second birthday party today and had SO much fun. There was a really cool bounce house and Maddie was completely obsessed with the slide attached to it. I think that between Brandie and myself, she was lifted in and out a bazillion times!

Maddie was eager for the birthday boy to take her for a spin on his motorcycle. :)

And, happy birthday to the best poppa in the whole wide world!! We had a less than enjoyable dinner (Maddie was not excited by the place, for whatever reason) but then had a great time hanging out with the birthday guy at the house.

Annie and Megan found these really neat magnetic dolls (think paper dolls with a magnet back) that they used to play with when they were little. Maddie loved them!

Art Time with a Cow

Maddie loves her new easel from her grandma! It's the perfect height for her and her numerous daily creations. :) Also, take a moment to check out our new, large, plastic cow. Just what our family room needed, huh? She fell in love with the thing at Lakeshore and when the lady told me it was $8, I pried it out of her hands. She began sobbing, so the checker sold it to me for $0.99. Way to go, Maddie. LOL.

Painting with Grandma

Grandma came over this morning and Maddie had a blast playing with her. They were even really brave and got out the paints!

She used these black sponges to spread the paint around. Even though they were finger paints, she hates getting her hands dirty! I should've included a picture of the final product (it was a beautiful assortment and yellow and orange blobs!).

Fun Times at Nana and Poppa's House

Maddie had a great weekend with her Nana, Poppa, aunts and uncle. I have Thanksgiving pictures to share, but I wanted to show these first. My sisters and I went to see Twilight today and Maddie got to play with some of her favorite people!

She LOVES playing with the white board and markers (under close auntie supervision, of course). We also put a big white shirt on her so that her clothes remain unstained.

Tommy and I used to play on this same stage when we were little! I should also mention that Maddie is wearing one of Megan's sweaters, hence the grown-up sweater coat look. :)

Poppa and Maddie had fun on the slide!

Swinging on the big girl swings with Uncle T!