January 14, 2012
Five Months!
Every month, I am wowed by the growth of this super little girl. I don’t have her exact measurements and we’ll get the official stats when we go to the doctor for her six-month check up in February, but Madelyn is almost 14 pounds and probably a little more than 25 inches long. The real growth — the fun growth — is in her personality! It’s shining through now and she is so much fun to play with and watch as she explores.
This month, Madelyn has…
- Started the motions to sit up. She can’t fully sit up on her own yet, but she keeps doing what looks like tummy crunches and is on the verge of getting herself up in a sitting position, but! Oohhhhh crash. I’m thinking by six months, she’ll be sitting up to do most of her playing.
- Gone on her first trip to the snow… even though there was no snow. We went to Tahoe in December and had a blast with our friends. She got to wear adorable clothes that bundled her up for warmth and she did a great job sleeping in a new place/mansion.
- Taken a great interest in her big brother, Princeton. She follows him with her eyes everywhere he goes! She’s absolutely fascinated by him. She’s also gotten curious and wanted to pet him, which is fine and dandy until her Wonder Woman Mega Grip crumples his fur into her hand and he looks at me like, “Um? Excuse me? You’re going to let her do this to me?” If he gets annoyed, he never takes it out on Madelyn. He just removes himself from the situation and Madelyn finds something else to explore. I couldn’t be happier about my kids’ relationship with each other. Tee hee!
- Started to teethe a little bit. There is a tiny white dot on her lower gum that gives her some trouble here and there. It’s slowed up a bit, but she was showing more signs of teething in December when her entire fist was in her mouth and the drooling was flowing like the Mississippi. So far, though, nothing has cut through so she still has that cute gummy smile.
- Tried solids for the first time! The doctor said to give it a whirl, and we did, but she didn’t much care either way for the oatmeal cereal. More on that later, but we haven’t continued because it may still be too soon. But it was definitely cute to feed her with a spoon and watch her discover the cereal in her mouth in confusion!
- Been rolling over non stop! This is Madelyn’s preferred method of movement. She’s discovering new things on her playmat now that she can look at it from above. Sometimes, though, she rolls over in her sleep, wakes up, and is not happy about the position so she lets us know. Boy, does she let us know!
- Begun to grab for everything! Toys she used to not even care about are suddenly in her hands. She also likes to grab our food when we eat so we have to be careful when she’s on our laps at restaurants that she doesn’t get spicy sauces on her hands or get close to the water glasses. It could be disastrous. And of course whatever goes in her hands, goes in her mouth! Thank goodness for the Babyganics cleaners and wipes!
- Attended her first University of Arizona basketball game! This future Wildcat joined us and some of her favorite friends to watch the Cats beat the Trojans at USC. We had a great time and she was an amazing sports fan! She sat on my lap and was mesmerized by the action and movement on the court and on the big screen. Perhaps we have a future basketball star? Probably, more likely, a future cheerleader. Or, actually, if she gets her mama’s thighs, not a cheerleader. How about mascot instead?
Bloopers from our 5-month photo shoot:
Chanukah Princess
For the majority of my adulthood, the holiday season has been pretty anticlimactic. During my college days, if I was still in Tucson during Chanukah, we hardly celebrated. When I graduated and started dating Bryan, we exchanged a couple gifts for a year or two and then decided we’d just treat each other well all throughout the year. The first year we lived together, we decorated the house with blue and Chanukah-themed tzchotchkes, but for the few years after, the decorations stayed in their plastic tub beyond 365 days. This year, though, with Madelyn in everyone’s lives, Chanukah took on a whole new excitement and we celebrated as if it was the first time the holiday had meaning since we were kids ourselves.
The takeaway: people really like Madelyn! Her grandparents loved spoiling her, her great aunts and cousins made sure to include her in their generous gift-giving, and her Auntie Ali enjoyed buying new things for her niece. Lighting candles and watching her stare at the lit menorah was magical, and we used our best singing voices when saying the prayer. We patiently helped her tear open the wrapping paper and savored each moment as she discovered what she was holding in her hands.
Next year, when Madelyn has a better understanding of the holiday — or that there is a holiday to be excited about — her mommy and daddy will have a present to open all eight nights. This year, though, we let everyone else enjoy the gift-giving experience with a mini gathering at our house with Mimi and Poppa and Mimi’s parents, GG and Grandy. There was a bigger party a few nights later at Grandma and Grandpa’s house with lots of cousins. And the next night, Grandma and Grandpa showered their granddaughter with even more presents! Holy matzo balls! All of the Chanukah party nights were full of yummy food (no latkes for Madelyn this year!), lots of new toys, and a full-on game of Pass the Baby.
Madelyn may not have had any idea about why all of her family gathered or about the historical and storied significance of the holiday, but it was another milestone in her first year of life that will make great photo collections!
Woo hoo! An excuse to use the fancy married China!
Bryan's latkes went straight to my thighs. Worth every calorie.
GG, Madelyn, and Mama: content after latkes and formula.
Madelyn shows off for her great grandparents
So far so good -- the baby didn't try to grab the candles.
Madelyn surrounded by a deep blue sea... of presents.
One day, she'll be tearing open pink rectangular boxes of Barbies, but this year it's all about...
THE RING STACKER... in. her. mouth.
Madelyn and Madeline. The little French girl must taste as good as a baguette.
Dog kisses. The gift that keeps on giving. And giving. And giving.
Madelyn gets deja vu for 8 nights in a row.
Chanukah at Grandma & Grandpa's is like an episode of the Jewish Partridge Family -- everyone sings!
... and 3.2 seconds later, the water ducky became the saliva ducky.
Twelve months of Madelyn!
Two babies, both dressed up in animal outfits.
Madelyn's first tea party set! Baby Bri'ish accent not included.
I need to come up with new synonyms so I can keep telling you how adorable you guys are! Seriously, you’re killing me!
The 1st photo displays the delicious table of latkes and brisket……and then I see your exercise ball in the background. Was that to remind us that we needed to burn off all those well-received calories!? Madelyn, you can enjoy the yummy latkes next Chanukah!
Happy New Year
2011. No big deal. Nothing happened. Nothing changed.
Oh wait, I’m thinking about 2010.
Our 2011 was hah-uge! We had a baby! Our lives changed for, like, EVER, and it’s been the craziest, sweetest, scariest, coolest adventure to date.
I’m scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed (I know, shocker. I’m never on Facebook) (does our blog look good in sarcasm?), and I’m seeing lots of posts related to the exit of 2011. Most people say that 2011 was “meh” and that 2012 will be better; that 2011 didn’t turn out to be anything fabulous and they’re looking forward to what 2012 will bring instead; that 2011 was crappy and here’s hoping for a happier 2012. I’m having Déjà Vu all over again because I swear I saw these same declarations last year when 2011 was the fresh and promising start to goodness after a ho-hum 2010! Wheeee!!
But you know what? It’s just a number. It’s just a year. The good, the bad, and the ugly of life don’t know numbers from letters. They just… happen. We’re not getting all tangled up in the idea of a new number, branding 2011 as a certain adjective and 2012 as an opposite adjective. New Year’s Eve is a marker of time, and a visible chance on the calendar to do your best, hope for best, and plan for best.
Unfortunately, there is no switch to a lighter, brighter year as soon as Seacrest smiles at the camera at midnight. The switch is there all throughout the year, and we get to flip the switch any time we want. Why wait for the ball to drop? Instead, let’s be on the ball!
Our switch flipped on in August of 2011. No confetti. No balloon drop. No champagne. Just two hopeful people and a perfect little girl. A happy new year — a new life — indeed!
The best part about new years, though, is the chance to make a new New Year card! Did you know it’s awfully hard to get a baby, a dog, and a mom to cooperate for the camera? The dad just gets irritated over the whole charade because he manages to look great at every click of the camera. These were the photos and captions that almost made the cut.
Happy New Year from my crib to yours!
Happy New Year! If only this card was a video instead a photograph where you have to hold still for .2 seconds.
Happy New Year from mom and both her chins!
Happy New Year and wishing you lots of focus in the year 20 -- OH LOOK A PARTY BLOWER!
Happy New Year and wishing you good hair days a head. A HEAD. AHEAD. Get it? Eh?
Happy New Yezzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Happy New Year and hoping you and your hair don't take flight.
Happy New Year and may you take comfort in your oral fixations.
Happy New Year and be classy as you celebrate! Don't fall asleep on the bottle!
Happy New Year to you and your dog. Wait, where is the dog going?
And after all that, we finally got our act together, so from our family to yours…
I can’t remember laughing this hard over welcoming in a new year. The best part of it is that the source of the laughter is from the 4 of you. You make me smile 365 days a year! I love & cherish Madelyn’s arrival in 2011, and I cannot wait to move into 2012 with her & Princeton (and their parents). Happy 2012! Cheers, Laughs & Love–Mom/Sharon/Mimi
Baby On The Go!
Madelyn gets around. We have always been the type of parents to say that a newborn baby won’t keep us jailed in at home, and we’ve definitely stood by that mantra. Restaurants, friends’ houses, the mall: we have been brave enough to bring a baby out in the great, big world beyond our cozy little condo and so far, so good!
So we decided to really test the waters last month and brought Madelyn along for her first road trip to Las Vegas. Before you gawk at me for allowing Madelyn to vacation in Sin City, you should know she never danced in a club or gambled at the tables.
During daylight hours.
No no, I kid. We didn’t even make it to The Strip! We visited with friends, my best friends/sorority sisters from college and their men, in the suburbs of Vegas to attend Harmony’s surprise 30th birthday party! The drive to Vegas was uneventful. Madelyn slept the whole time and didn’t even have to endure the “beauty” that is a gas station in Baker. We had a sweet suite at the JW Marriott in Summerlin and set up shop with her tropical playmat and the Pack N Play. Best. Inventions. Ever.
We had lunch with friends at a new shopping center on Saturday and Madelyn was happily passed around among the girls. We walked around and spent some time at the hotel before getting ready for Harmony’s big bash that her fiance, Conor, had planned for her. She had zero idea that any of us were in town.
We gathered at Harmony’s favorite restaurant and when we yelled “Surprise!” when she walked in, she was definitely shocked to see all of us. I was so glad that we had decided to come. Her face was worth the drive and short trip!
The party was a lot of fun! Conor did a great job organizing the event. And because Harmony is a style inspiration, her cake was a Chanel bag, courtesy of her equally stylish mom (Hi, Marla!). Amazing. Madelyn hung in there and was a social butterfly for a good chunk of the party, but got sleepy halfway through, so we put her down to sleep in her stroller and she passed out like a champ. As much as I love holding my little mini, it was nice to be able to put her down so I could
drink my winesocialize and eat.In the morning, we all met for brunch at the JW and rehashed the night. The trip was too short, but oh so special! And when we said our (Jewish) goodbyes, we knew we’d be seeing each other in a few weeks for Nicole’s 30th birthday in Lake Tahoe!
Yes, we went to Tahoe this past weekend. I’d never been and obviously Madelyn was a Tahoe rookie as well. But Nicole and Michael are Tahoe lovers and have a family friend who owns a glorious cabin-mansion in Truckee that we all thoroughly enjoyed. We joked that we felt like we were on The Real World, exploring the house and shrieking “OHMYGOSH” as we got acquainted with all of its splendor.
The drive to Tahoe really wasn’t that bad because we broke it up. We stayed in Monterey on Thursday night and woke up on Friday to drive to Sacramento where we met the rest of the party who’d flown in from L.A. and Vegas. After a quick lunch, we caravanned up the mountain to Truckee.
We ran through the grocery store to collect nosh for the weekend and then spent some time in the great living room of the house to relax before going to Nicole’s favorite restaurant, Cottonwood, for dinner. We had a yummy meal — who knew a simple hamburger could be so heavenly? — and spent the rest of the night at home with some great wine, laughter, and conversation.
Saturday morning was yummy as we all made breakfast in the big kitchen. Michael is the master of eggs and Jordan makes a mean bacon — extra crispy! Some of the gang went skiing at Northstar while the rest of us took our time to get ready before heading to the village to walk around. We also took the big gondola up the mountain and enjoyed a fabulous lunch at the Ritz Carlton where we met Top Chef Masters contestant, Traci De Jardins who is a consulting executive chef there and happens to visit once a month! Good timing gang! She was so nice! All of us foodies were impressed.
Harmony, Nicole, and I went to the candle shop toward the end of the day to make our own candles. It was a relaxing craft with good conversation and pretty results. Madelyn slept through the whole thing, but I think in the future, she’ll enjoy arts and crafts, too!
The sun went down, we all reunited in the village, and took some photos before heading back to the cabin-mansion for a team-cooked meal. Lots of specialties graced the table like Nicole’s eggplant parm, Harmony’s baked tomato and feta asparagus, my spring-even-though-it’s-winter-salad, Bryan’s vegetables and pasta, and Madelyn’s formula. Oh wait, she didn’t share that with the group. We were okay with that. Lots of champagne toasts and great conversation made the dinner one of the most memorable meals we’ve ever enjoyed together. So fun!
After dinner, we played a white elephant gift exchange and then showered Nicole with some presents. We played some fun board games and got silly while Baby Madelyn slept for the night. It was like our late nights in the sorority house… except with boys in our group and a baby upstairs. And Albert didn’t make our food and Kristy didn’t shake the trees. But still! It was a Phi-tastic night!
Sunday morning was our dreaded wake-up where we had to clean up and anticipate saying our goodbyes. Once the cabin-mansion was in order, we drove to the lake to have brunch and then exchanged hugs before going our separate ways. It’s always sad when we leave each other. Madelyn loved being with all her Auntie AEPhis; Love you, Auntie Nicole, Auntie Harmony, Auntie Alison, and Auntie Lindsey (and we missed you Auntie Erin!).
Before heading to Paso Robles for the night to sleep, Bryan and I decided to swing by San Francisco for a couple hours to see his friends from college, Brian and Anna and their two adorable ones. Their daughter, Adie, is two weeks older than Madelyn and it was so fun to see them together and analyze their similarities and differences. What cuties!
Our big road trip ended in San Luis Obispo with a quick trip to eat at Bryan’s favorite college grubber, Firestone Bar & Grill. We enjoyed yummy pork and tri tip sandwiches before heading back home.
I think that’s it for our big road trips for a while. We definitely put the miles on the Jetta before turning in the lease, and it was fun to spend so much time as a family with some of Madelyn’s biggest fans!
Where should our next road trip be?
When would you want that to be? The sooner the better.
Our next road trip should be to Hawaii. We can drive there, right?
Four Months!
I seriously can’t even believe we’re 1/3 of the way through Madelyn’s first year. Wow. December 9th marked four months of Madelyn! We are constantly blown away by what a little person she is! Every day is better than the next and it’s really a fun age! Her personality is shining through, she expresses wants, needs, and even her opinion, and I am even finding that over this time, I am able to read her better.
Before having a baby, I never believed that a mom could really know her baby’s different cries. And… now I do! It feels like such an accomplishment. I can tell when she’s hungry. I can tell when she’s sleepy. I can tell when she has a diaper that is anything but empty. This method of communication blows my mind, and I’m so glad to be involved in Madelyn’s little language.
At four months, Madelyn has…
At her four-month check-up, Madelyn weighed 13 pounds, 4 ounces and measured 25 inches long. She’s doing great and right on track. The doctor likes her schedule, and says she’s meeting all the developmental milestones perfectly. You can call us proud parents. Sure, why not?