Christmassy Day

Maddox loves to play with Jessi. Jessi . . . not so much. If I tell Jessi to stay she will though, reluctantly. One morning Maddox wanted to curl up with Jessi in her bed with her "kankie" and she lay there quite a while talking to her. This morning we went and had breakfast with Santa at a nearby church. She was not at all interested in seeing Santa and reluctant to sit on his lap. I knew she'd never cry though, as that would draw more attention to her than she'd ever want. She just sat on his lap holding very still and staring off into space. She's probably thinking "if I don't move too much or make a peep maybe this won't last long". As you can see, she wouldn't even relax her arms--she might accidentally touch this strange man!

Maddox was a lot more comfortable with Elmo. She had no problem going up to him and sitting down on his sled.

When we got back home we made puppy chow. She stood up on the step stool to help and loved it. She's not much help at all, but she liked to think she was. Of course, she got to lick the spatula after we were done . . . with Mommy's help . . .

Thanksgiving 2009

For Thanksgiving we went to Nashville again this year. We're never sure when it'll be the last year we see Memo, but there's always another one! Memo just adores Maddox. Maddox will sit with her in bed for a long time. I think she's too afraid to move. It makes Memo happy though and Maddox doesn't seem to mind.

On Friday we went up to Uncle Rob's house to ride the horse. He hooked the buggy up to Stomper and we all rode that. Maddox didn't want to get off so she rode it with me and with Aunt Jennifer. I forgot my camera but Jennifer took pictures. I just don't have them yet. After that we went up to the house where Maddox watched a movie with Graham and Isaac, my cousin Robert's kids.

After we had pizza it was time for cookies with cousin Emily at the little kid's table.

Maddox got pretty tired Friday night with all the relatives and staying up late and getting up early with the time difference. She finally just laid down on the floor with her "kankie" and cousin Ben. I think she liked Ben. A little later we found her laying on TOP of Ben just staring at him.

Out in the corner of Memo's back yard the big kids built a fort. That was also Jessi's favorite place to poop so we had a few dirty shoes. Pretty creative fort though!

We drove back from Nashville on Saturday and got home about midnight. So we actually got some sleep! On Sunday we put up the Christmas decorations and raked the leaves into a pile for Maddox. She doesn't quite get that it's supposed to be fun to run and jump in the leaves. She won't do it. When I put her in the pile sitting down she looks very uncomfortable and wants out. Still to itchy I guess. She did want to help rake the leaves though, but unsuccessfully. Grammy made her this princess dress and gave it to her in Nashville. She thinks it's itchy too and says "ouchie" while she has it on if there's nothing underneath. We let her put it on over her clothes and there were no ouchies this time.

The Christmas tree is up and a few presents are out and Maddox hasn't been too bad about the decorations on the tree or opening presents. She loves the lights and asks me first thing in the morning "lights on?" A few weeks until Christmas then we get to go to FL for almost 2 weeks!

Silliness with Daddy Video

Jeremy and Maddox have been goofing off since bathtime before bed tonight. Maddox is a wild child tonight! Don't forget, you have to go to the website to watch videos!

Halloween Weekend 2009

We had a busy and fun Halloween weekend! Saturday morning we and 2 neighborhood boys that we were watching, Darius and Jacob, went to North Davidson High School for a Halloween Carnival. Maddox was a little overwhelmed but quickly figured out that if she would do the activities handed to her she'd get candy in her Elmo (pronounced "Melmo") basket. The games were a lot of golf, throwing bean bags in things, rings onto things, etc. She didn't throw anything, but just walked right up and put the items where they were to go. Whatever, she got what she wanted and was being involved instead of too shy to do anything. She got a balloon at the coloring table that she would NOT let me hold for her.

Putting rings on the pumpkin:

She did a cake walk type thing and you won a cookie when they called your number. Luckily she won after about 3 turns. I think she was losing interest in walking around in a circle to music.

That evening a few neighbors got together at Jenn's house with her family for chili. Here's the kids in their costume, read to hit the streets.

Little Red Riding Hood and Super Dog. Gammy did a great job of making Maddox's costume and everyone was so impressed that she made it! Darius said, "She actually made that? All of it? Like, knitted it or something?" Yes, some people do still sew. She's hired at least until all my kids grow up. She provided Jessi's costume too, but she bought it.

Maddox loves her Jessi.

I had to dress up because I had a concert to sing at after trick-or-treating. Maddox and Jeremy came and she sat through the whole thing pretty well. The three of us walked the cul-de-sac while Jeremy stayed home with to greet the kids. I thought Maddox would be very shy and not do anything without me but after a couple of houses she figured things out. At one house she even said "tick uh teet" and "tankoo", but only one. Well, one house and at our house when she saw Daddy through the door. But I started staying in the driveway and letting her walk up to the door by herself. She would just stand there while they put candy in and then keep standing there expecting more, something else to happen?? I don't know. So I'd call for her and she'd turn around and come back. She carried her "Melmo" basket the whole time which got heavy and walked the whole time too. I went back to the house and let Jeremy take her out to a few more houses in the other direction so he could see how cute and independent she was.

When Maddox was done she had to organize and check out her loot.

On Sunday we went to Andrea's office (dentist and my employer) to her candy buy back. We chose half of Maddox's candy to take which still left her with an Elmo full. Maddox got $1 for her 1 lb. of candy. She and Daddy got to sit in a race car (Clint Davis maybe?) that Andrea is one of the sponsors of.

She didn't really like talking to the puppets or clowns or mascots.

Maddox has definitely figured out what's IN those candy wrappers. I had to put the basket up because she'll just start knawing on the wrappers until they open and she can eat the candy. I just took a shower and left her in front of some cartoon. When I got done I realized I had left a few pieces of chocolate on the desk near her. I went to check on her and she had knawed open a Hershey's bar and eaten some of it and started on a Whopper package.

On an unrelated note, she has completely given up her pacie. Well, given up may not be the right term. I decided last weekend was a good time to start with the naps (the only time she has it now anyway). There's been a few days of crying and some very short lived naps but she seems much better at it now. It worked out well that I chose a week that she's had a terrible cough and cold anyway so she can't breath through her nose. Can't keep that pacie in her mouth anyway! And, due to the illness, naps have been more needed and easier. I was sad about it the first couple of days and almost gave it back to her. Not because I didn't want her to cry, but because I was giving up the last truly baby habit she has. She's my little toddler now, not my little baby.

While I do this she's watching Aristocats on Disney and loving it. What better combination could there be? Cats singing!

Horne Creek Farms & Pumpkin carving

This picture is for mom (Gammy). There's a picture of me when I was about 5 sleeping in the laundry basket in front of the tv when I was sick. I thought I'd make Maddox a cozy little cartoon place. She curls up with her "baby", "monkey" or "panda" and watches Sesame Street. Today was a beautiful 73 degree day that Jeremy and I both had off from work so I wanted to go spend it outside. We went to Horne Creek Farms in Pinnacle. We learned how to shuck corn, peel apples, and see how they lived along with 100 jr high students. So, we actually spent a lot of time at the chicken and turkey coop. Maddox also got to pet a cow that kept mooing at her and sort of scaring her. It's the first time I've seen her shy away a little bit from an animal.

She kept mocking the roosters saying "ooo ooo ooo ooo ooo" (sounding just like cocka doodle doo but they really don't say that at all, just ooohs). I tried to catch it on video posted at the end but I don't think she ever really did it. There's a tiny one, but not like she was doing before I turned the camera on. She thought they were pretty funny. You can also hear the turkeys on the video which I think sound pretty strange. I don't know that I've ever really heard a real one. And they're ugly things!

After that we were going to to drive over to Yadkin Islands park to have a picnic and hike up the Yadkinville River. When we got to the car my battery was completely dead. The farm is WAY out in the country, but at least there were people working there. At the river, especially on a weekday, there would probably be no one. This is a place you have to cross two creeks to get to. So obviously going further out without a good battery couldn't happen. We got a jump, drove back to King and bought a new battery. It was too far to drive back to the river. I was really bummed that we didn't get to hike on the river on such a beautiful fall day. So instead we went to Horizons Park and went to the dog park, played on the playground, and walked around in the woods there. Maddox loves the dog park. All the owners are paranoid that she'll get knocked over or be afraid when the dogs come up and lick her and bump her. She doesn't care, she just laughs. Apparently we wore Jessi out. Last week we had our annual Naked Pumpkin Carving Day. We wait for a 70+ degree day and strip her down. She was reluctant to reach in there and grab all that gunk, but she did it eventually. It didn't really matter what she wanted, we threw it on her anyway. She got all gunky. She didn't like the mess and kept trying to clean up all the seeds and put them on the newspaper.

I still forgot to take a picture of the pumpkin. It said BOO and had a bat on it. But now it's all shriveled so you just won't get a picture this year.

While I cut out the pattern Maddox did her favorite thing and chased Patches around.

Random Activities

Gammy Garrison sent us Halloween costumes for Maddox and Jessi. We tried them on to test them out. Gammy also sent a Little Red Riding Hood book that we read a lot so Maddox might understand that's what she's dressed up like. Jessi is super dog. I'm sure I'll talk pictures on Halloween and post again. Maddox had her first watercolor experience last week. Gammy also sent her this paint smock so we had to try it out. She painted about 6 pictures and then I wanted to clean up and put it away. She threw a huge fit when I wouldn't let her paint anymore. Huge. And now she goes to her pictures, and says "paint?" almost everyday.

We bought a frame and hung her first real artwork. She thought that was pretty cool.

Jeremy ran a 5k on Saturday for the first time in quite a while. Maddox, Jessi, and I cheered him on, chilled. He finished 5th overall and won his age division. Next race is Thanksgiving! Garrison/Wheeler family . . . get ready! Already, we have an overflow of books. Couldn't be because Maddox loves them and I love to buy them, could it? This shelf is in her room, but she can't get to them, and there's books on top of books . . . She has another shelf in the toy shelves we have in the living room and that one is overflowing too. It was time to get another book shelf that she could get to and choose her own books at night.

A little thinned out and not stacked on top of each other now. I didn't want to give her access to too many of her books. I know where they all will be if she could reach them all.

Her new shelf that she saw this morning when she got up. She's been thrilled with it all morning, pulling books off, reading, putting them back, another, another . . .

See? Thrilled!

Let's see, what else is she doing? Talking, a lot. She talks gibberish ALL the time, just like she knows what she's saying. But she's also saying a lot of words. We're already having to spell words in front of her. Like cookie. If she hears you say that she's sure she must have one and cries if she doesn't get it. others: pumpkin, boo (if she see's a ghost),night night, moon, apple, pee pee, poo, potty, please, kank koo (thank you), up, down, all done, constantly bossing around "jessi, jessi", Gabby, Gady (Grady), knows most of her body parts and will point to them. Even obscure ones like her elbow and shoulder. She's to the point that if you ask her to say something she'll try and she's starting to put two words together. "bye bye pee pee" "mo cookie?" "jessi jessi, sit"

I've been trying to teach her to fold her hands and pray and say Amen. She'll sit on my lap at night, reluctantly fold her hands and bow her head for a few seconds then look around while I bow my head and pray. Then I say Amen and ask her to. She wouldn't do it at first so I'd put my finger on her chin and move her mouth and say A-men for her. Now at the end of the prayer she puts her finger on her own chin and says "may men". She figures the finger must be part of the deal.

I just asked her "What else can you say Maddox?" And she said ppllllbbbb (buzzed her lips, how do I spell that?) We went to the zoo twice in one week that last time we went and talked about what the elephants said a lot, buzzing tight lips really hard. Now anytime she sees an elephant on a cartoon, book, movie, picture, stuffed animal she points and says ppplllblbb. That new nickelodean cartoon Jungle Junction just came on that has an elephant, she loves it.

You can also ask her just about anything and she'll say "no" in this cute, quick voice. Maddox, do you want to take a bath? "no" Maddox do you want to go outside? "no" Maddox, will you give me a kiss? "no" Maddox, do you want a cookie? "cookie?", and she runs towards the kitchen.

Well, that's all the cute things I can think of for now. I think we'll get dressed and spend some time outside!

1st Birthday party invite and Zoo Trip

Maddox went to her first birthday party last weekend. Our next door neighbor turned 3 and invited her to his Batman party. She even got a cape! She's coming out of the batcave.

There was a pinata and M was the last one to get a change to pull the strings. She chose the right string and all the candy came falling. She was a little confused by this. But once the bigger kids got all the candy they wanted she had a great time gathering and organizing what was left. No, we didn't take it home!

On Monday Jeremy had the day off so we went to the zoo. This panther had his eye on a guy working in the woods because he thought me might have food. He was pacing back and forth in front of that window right by Maddox.

A helicopter in the Elephant exhibit.

I guess the rest of those didn't really need explanation. Typical zoo activities. We stayed until about 2:30 and she promptly fell asleep in the car. She had a good time checking out all the animals and got plenty of exercise running all around the zoo. So did I, carrying her on my shoulders and back! She quickly figured out the stroller was not half as fun as Mom's shoulders or back!