Playdate at Amy's

It was so good to get out for a playdate today! I feel like we haven't been doing much lately other than running errands and hanging around the house. It was time to get out and have some fun! We headed over to Woodinville to see Amy & Odin and Marketa & Dominic. All the kids are walking now so it was fun to see them running around all over the place!

Madeleine & Odin really like giving each other hugs! So funny & cute!

The last few days...

We haven't been up to much, just the same old stuff. Here are a few pics from the last week...

I am still watching Eleanor once a week. Eleanor is almost 2-years old now and she brings over all kinds of new treats for Madeleine to try. Last week Eleanor shared her Pirates Booty with Madeleine and Madeleine kept eating it up! She loved it!

Doug, Amy & Odin came over for dinner this weekend. The kids had lots of fun and so did we. Odin really liked Madeleine's baby and carried her around most of the night. Too cute!

Madeleine really liked Doug! She kept walking over to him and giving him hugs. So funny!

Odin got a little jealous and moved in for a hug from his daddy!

Then Odin gave Madeleine a very enthusiastic hug and they tipped over!

A day with Grandma & Grandpa Schroeder!

Madeleine visited Grandma & Grandpa Schroeder today while Jeff & I went out on a little date. Madeleine had a ton of fun today during her visit! She loves all the different toys at their house and even got a surprise today! My parents brought out an old kitchen play cabinet that had all kinds of toy dishes for Madeleine to play with. She LOVED it! Madeleine is the 3rd generation to play with all this stuff. They are going to re-paint it soon so it looks all shiny and new!

Big Girls Need Big Girl Shoes!

Madeleine has been walking more and more everyday! It was time to get her some real walking shoes. She would rather chew on her new shoes or wear them on her hands though...

A Visit To the Big City!

We visited Jeff at work today to see his new office! Madeleine liked daddy's office...especially his cool new fish tank! She also liked a little purple stuffed animal she found there!

After visiting the office, we headed over to one of Jeff's favorite bakeries for some breakfast treats! YUM!

Bye-Bye Bottles

I finally took Madeleine's nap time bottle away today. I gave her a tippy cup of milk after lunch, we read some stories and then I put her down! She cried for a minute or two and then started playing in her crib and went to sleep. Is it really going to be this easy? I guess the next few days will tell.

I have to say, I'm not as happy as I should be. Of course I'm glad that it was easy. I just really enjoyed the cuddling time and watching her fall to sleep. I think I cried more than Madeleine today!

Happy St. Patty's Day!

Happy St. Patty's Day! We were pretty low-key this St. Patty's Day. Madeleine & I went to our last session of gymboree today and M had lots of fun. I think every baby and every adult had green on! We loved gymboree and will do it again but are taking a break from it to get back into swimming.

After gymboree, we headed to the gym so I could workout and Madeleine could play. Again, the gym was a sea of green with people running or lifting weights in their green shirts. Even the men had green on. Pretty funny!

We didn't eat any Irish food to celebrate. Instead, Jeff brought home some yummy Vietnamese food from our favorite Vietnamese restaurant! We all tried our best to wear some green...Madeleine has on her striped green pants, I'm wearing a shade of green (yes, I know it's closer to blue) and Jeff in his green sweater. That's the spirit!

Noooooooo!!!

Madeleine's mantra this week is "Noooooo"! She is definately letting us know that she is her own person with her own opinions! She is LOVING saying "no" and shaking her head back and forth. She thinks it is pretty funny...and so do we...for now!



Madeleine is still practicing her walking but would rather crawl right now. We're done with her night time bottle (hooray!) but we haven't taken away the nap time bottle yet. We just started this weekend and no matter what we did, she fell to sleep. I'll have to get creative this week and think of another way to take it away. I don't have the heart to do it cold turkey...I'll let you know how it goes!

1 Bottle Down, 1 To Go

So, Madeleine has been weaned down to two bottles for awhile now...leaving her two most important ones, her nap time bottle and her bed time bottle. Madeleine's doctor has urged us to take away these last two but I didn't want to before our trip to Mexico when we left her with Jeff's family for the week. But now that we are home, it's time to start.

"They" say to take away the most favored bottle last which for Madeleine is her nap time bottle. Tonight we skipped the bed time bottle and so far, it's going just okay. She is crying a little in her crib but I'm not sure if she misses her bottle or has a headache from hitting her head twice tonight when she fell from trying to walk. The bumps and scrapes are just beginning.

I'm apprehensive about taking away the nap time bottle...we've got such a great routine and it is SO easy to get her down for her nap which means I get some down time! I'll let you know how it goes. Wish me luck!

Pictures from the weekend...

Madeleine pushing her baby!

Madeleine standing all by herself!

Raymont's Basketball Game! He made 6 points! (Pictures didn't turn out too well)

I saw Andrea & Bella for a bit. Bella is getting BIG!

Madeleine enjoying a chocolate ice-cream sandwich with Jeff! She loves it!

First Steps!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Madeleine took her 1st steps today! I took my 1st steps at 14 months and Madeleine is just shy of her 14-month birthday! She went from being able to stand to taking a few steps in no time. She'll be off and running soon...and life will surely change!

I can stand!

For a while, Madeleine would only stand by herself when she was super distracted and didn't realize what she was doing. Well this morning (at the crack of dawn I might add), Jeff was getting ready to leave for work and Madeleine and I were downstairs with him and all of a sudden, Madeleine just stood up! It was kind of cool that we both witnessed it together! I caught her on tape before her bath tonight - check it out!

Making New Noises

Madeleine loves to make these noises - check out the video!



In other news, we've gone from 85 to 35, from sandals to snow shoes, from sun to snow...we're definately back in Seattle. It snowed today! I couldn't believe it.

Ola from Mexico!

Jeff & I headed to Cancun, MX for a week for some sunshine and well deserved relaxation! We left Madeleine with Jeff`s family in Dallas and can't thank them enough for taking such good care of her while we partied it up down South! Well...we didn't actually party too much but we had a great time! As my friend Kristy would say, it was GLORIOUS! Our hotel was amazing...beautiful pools, comfortable room, yummy restaurants and the Caribbean Sea was breathtaking. So blue and so warm! Warmer than our pool! The weather was warm and sunny while there, typical of this time of year. We slept with the window open every night to hear the waves crashing and we both slept so good. Hope you enjoy our pics!

In front of our hotel on the beach...

This was our favorite pool to hang out at. It was an infinity pool with awesome views!

The view from our room

Of course I had to take one of these shots to remember what I got to look at each day while laying out. I already want to go back.

Everyday I would swim to this spot and look out. I loved the view!

Our hotel had three great restaurants - this one was appropriately called "The Beach"

Our last night in Cancun. I was sad to leave the warm weather but happy we got to be together and relax for a week! We were both missing Madeleine too.

Rumor had it that MTV Real World was being filmed at our hotel for next season. I guess I'll know for sure next year but this film crew followed their every move. Bazaar!

Our Room - the hotel was pretty modern so I tried my best to look cool in the picture! LOL!

Just me having a drink in the lobby

One of the restaurants in our hotel was an Asian Bistro and we had yummy sushi!

Jeff enjoying a Cuban cigar

Most days we just laid by the pool but one day we took a trip to Xel Ha and Tulum. Xel Ha was amazing! The park is centered around a natural inlet and lagoon. The inlet of Xel-Há is a natural aquarium where hundreds of species inhabit; such as tropical fish and an abundant flora. In the park there is also a turtle reserve. We loved it! We snorkeled, jumped off cliffs (well Jeff did, I was too scared), went off a rope swing and just relaxed. It was a nice change of pace for the week.

Then we were off to Tulum. Tulum is the site of a Pre-Columbian Maya walled city located on 39-foot cliffs, along the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula on the Caribbean Sea. Very interesting place to visit! It is one of the best-preserved coastal Maya sites.

Madeleine Visits Grandma Julie & GG in Dallas for the week!

Jeff & I headed to Mexico for a week to vacation and Jeff's family watched Madeleine for us!

The plane trip to Dallas was our best trip yet with Madeleine. The plane wasn`t full so we had a bunch of open seats around us allowing Madeleine to stretch out and sleep almost the entire way there. She doesn't sleep well on us so this was perfect. She arrived to Dallas a happy and well rested baby...excited to see her grandparents and Aunt Laura! She had fun while in Dallas too! Grandma Jollay bought her a new push toy and some new toys while there so she had plenty to keep her busy.

Madeleine learned how to blow her nose while in Dallas. She still has a bit of a cold and Grandma taught her how to blow. It is so funny!

We missed her though and were so happy to see her when we got back! She really latched onto Julie & Greg while there, we could tell that she fell in love with them. She didn't act that excited when we got off the plane and saw her for the first time....I think she was trying to figure out who we were. By the time we reached the car, she was smiling and understanding that her mama and dada were back but she still wanted Grandma and kept reaching out for her. Very cute!