Maddy 15 Months

15 MONTHS


9 MONTHS
'

6 MONTHS


3 MONTHS



Happy 15-month birthday, Maddy!
You are really developing into your own little girl a lot these past few weeks.
Maddy basically understanding everything you say to her (when you say it on "her level") and is becoming much more communicative lately. Here are some new developments for our big, 15 month-old-girl:

9 MONTHS
1. No longer walks... she runs!
2. Dances and spins in circles
3. Eats strictly table food
4. No more ba-bas (bottles)
5. Goes down by herself for nap & bed time
6. Understands simple instructions, like "Bring the book to Mommy"
7. Can point to and identify her favorite stuffed animals (Cookie, Elmo, Sponge Bob, Pooh)
8. Can do the Itsy-Bitsy-Spider song with gestures
9. Tells you when she's thirsty (cries in front of fridge), when she "wants more" at dinner and when she's "all done"
10. Understands "up" and occasionally asks (this request is going to snowball very soon, we're sure).
11. Climbs like a monkey on steps and furniture
12. High-fives
13. And, the best of all... gives big, sloppy, wet kisses!!!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas...

Everywhere we go! And, we are really feeling the hustle and bustle of the season between all the shopping, wrapping, decorating, cooking and running around lately. This past weekend, we stopped by Penn State's Centre Furnace Mansion's holiday tour in between running errands and putting the finishing touches on the indoor holiday decorations. Saturday night we turned down the lights, turned up the Christmas classics and decorated our first real family Christmas tree! Maddy is absolutely awestruck, always pointing, looking and carefully pawing at the tree. Sunday we had a lunch visit from Pittsburgh friends Laura, Jeremy and Daisy (Daisy was just a pup the last time we saw her when they visited us back in East Stroudsburg--this time she came back all grown up and showed Lucy who was boss!). Maddy loved watching the doggies play and, as usual, also loved having a new audience to entertain. The weekend wrapped up with Maddy down to bed early and Sunday night Steelers. Not bad!

Bring on the Turkey!

Although a stomach flu almost got the best of us, Thanksgiving 2010 turned out to be wonderful! Maddy enjoyed Turkey Day at home with a visit from Grandma, Pappy, Uncle Mike, Aunt Alysia, and Talia plus "Saints" Gordon and Bella! Maddy loved having Talia around for a partner in crime to run, play and take baths with all weekend. She also enjoyed the weekend-long attention, kisses and squeezes. Our little girl is really getting spoiled as her Turkey Day extravaganza comes just after a long weekend in Buffalo where she got hang with the big kids (all her cousins) while we stayed with Poppy and Grandma Joy. She loves all of her cousins, but is definitely most curious about Jack ("Hey, he's almost my size but a little bigger!"). It's great to see Maddy get so much love, having a blast while we enjoy great food & company! We're looking forward to Christmas already...

To see more pictures from Thanksgiving 2010, click here.

Happy Halloween!

Wow, what a fun Halloween Ms. Maddy had! She got to dress up like Tinkerbell and go to a kid-filled party in town. Maddy loved running across the gym floor and hugging her orange balloon. She was wide-eyed and quiet the entire time, soaking in any and every last detail. The hit of the party was no doubt the big surprise visit from none other than... the Penn State Nittany Lion! He did lots of flips, tricks and dances for all the kids. Maddy's neighborhood girlfriends Leah and Sofia were there, too (dressed as a giraffe and a duck). Together, they danced, laughed and chased around the Lion like little Penn State groupies! It's no wonder our sweet Tinkerbell was sound asleep by the time we got home. Click here for more pictures from the weekend. Trick or Treat!

Loving Fall!

Last weekend, Maddy was once again a busy girl. She headed to Pittsburgh with Mommy for a visit to Grandma and Pappy's. She was a wild woman all weekend, running all over the place, chasing doggies and giggling at her own silliness.

Some of her newer developments include:
Hugging- Loves to hug her stuffed animals, pillows, parents, friends and pets!
Sitting- She likes to sit on laps and on pillows while she plays toys
Gesturing- Maddy now points to things she wants and recognizes. She even pats the glider at night when she's ready for her bed-time bottle!
Running- Those slow, Frankenstein steps are no longer. Maddy now runs like the wind!

Her favorite foods are tater tots, fruit cups, chicken nuggets, cheese, pasta and she LOVES meat! Milk still the #1 beverage of choice.

As of last Friday, she weighs in at 21 pounds. Still just a peanut, even will all that good eating.

See more pictures from this past weekend/week here.

Busy Fall Weekend!

Miss Maddy had a full schedule this past weekend, thanks to the beautiful weather and local fall festivities. Saturday, Maddy had a blast stomping around the pumpkin patch at the Way Fruit Farms Fall Festival. She's excited to go back when she gets bigger so she can play like the big kids in the hay stacks, tractor ride, face painting and petting zoo. Sunday was another beautiful day (felt more like August than October!), which made for a great day in the park after church. Maddy got to feed (and chase) ducks! She waddled and quacked just like them! It was quite a sweet scene... to see more pictures from the weekend, click here!

Fun to be One!

Maddy is really taking to toddler-hood these days, and it's just amazing to watch her grow. In the past few weeks, she's made the full transition to whole milk, while ditching the "baby food" for table food at every meal. She's also exploring her boundaries--and pushing them--more and more each day. She loves to be chased around the house and will even tease you with "fake cries" when things don't go her way. Still, she knows how to turn on the charm and has found a new favorite hobby: hugging. She loves to hug her stuffed animals and her family (including Lucy dog) any chance she has. And... perhaps the most exciting development: Maddy walks! Here's a video of her just starting out (she improved greatly since this video, which was taken last weekend).



Being one also means you learn how to wave the Terrible Towel!

Ready for Fall!

Although it was 90 degrees (!) on Friday, it finally cooled down to fall temps on Saturday... just in time to get the house ready for Halloween! Maddy already seems to love all the bright and sparkly decorations. She looks around and goes "ahhh..." around the house. If she thinks this is good, just wait 'til Christmas!

A Few Small, "Big" Steps for Maddy!

When at first you don't succeed...


Try


Try


TRY AGAIN! :0)


You're almost there, sweetheart

Maddy & Tally Play

Video disclaimer: This recording of Maddy and Tally playing together is so sweet it just might melt your heart!

Maddy 12 Months: She Takes the Cake!

Dig in sweetie! Here's Maddy's gobbling up her first taste of birthday cake! Yum!

Maddy Pre-Party Video

Maddy was so excited for her first birthday party Monday morning. Here's a clip of the party girl celebrating early! If only she were this excited when it was time to come out last September 7! :0)

Maddy Turns The Big One!

Today was happy birthday to Maddy and mommy!
We celebrated all weekend long with a visit from pappy & grandma "D" and uncle Mike, aunt Alysia and cousin Talia. Maddy got lots of fun presents and cutsie outfits! In fact, she insists on staying up late to get in all kinds of good playtime with her new baby Elmo, farm set, plastic buggies, books, and giant Dora bouncey-ball playset!
Enjoy some of the pictures. Video coming soon.
You can view even more pictures online here!

Getting Ready to Turn One

... And so much to do! Miss Maddy's days have been filled with a recent visit from her friends Erin, Greg, and Onyx, a trip to Grandma and Pappy in Pittsburgh (where she swam in the big girl pool and got her first hair cut!), going to "school" and learning new sounds/moves, and keeping mommy and daddy very busy with some of the these new big girl tricks:

* Eating lots more solids (mostly all table food with some yogurt or baby food to supplement)
* Standing on her own (walking is just literally a few short steps away)
* Playing loudly with toys(Maddy talks/sings with her toys)
* "Dancing" around the room
* Shaking her head "no"
* Drinking from sippy cup

No wonder she's turning one on Tuesday! She's SUCH a big girl!!!

Dry Swim Take 2

Sorry everyone! Mommy's brain apparently wasn't working the past week as I completely forgot I had to compress the video before uploading it... no wonder I kept getting an error message! At long last, here is the video of Ms. Maddy swimming in her pool last Sunday. We call this a "dry swim." She seemed to love it. Now she knows it's even better with water! :0)

"Dry" Swim

Settling In & 11 Months

I guess you can say we've been a "little" busy since our last posting. Now that Mommy has found the camera (and some sanity), though, we promise to give our little Bean blog its due attention. In addition to moving into a NEW HOME, Ms. Maddy has kept us busy with her new adventures as she moves closer to toddler-hood each day.

Here are some of her latest developments at 11 months...
*Knows mama/dada
*Can go from sitting to standing
*Eats more solids (potatoes, bread, strawberries, cheerios)
*Learning how to drink from a cup (she loves this)
*Can go over one step
*Can pick up small items with finger/thumb

Here are a few pictures of what we've been up to in the past few weeks. Enjoy!

Moving Day:




Checking Out Her New Pool



Spoiled by a Visit from Grandma & Pappy