02.19.11 - Daddy's lttle helper

I finally got the chance to get out in the backyard and take care of the fallen leaves. I raked some, bagged some and mulched the rest. Maddie helped, too. Sort of.

02.13.11 - Valentine cookies

In honor of Valentine's Day, Maddie spent the afternoon decorating some heart-shaped sugar cookies that Angie made.


Of course you gotta eat 'em! Perhaps we let her have one too many cookies!


She's a big fan of the icing!


In fact, she tried to get all the icing off this one before putting a single M&M in the middle.


Maddie, will you be my Valentine?!!

02.12.11 - "Noball"

Maddie has wanted to play in the "no" all week so we went outside today and made a snowman. Or, a "noball," as she calls them. She was very happy about it!

01.25.11 - More books

Maddie went to the library for the first time tonight. She was overwhelmed at first and why not? It's a room full of books! We checked out five books, due back in four weeks, and we read them at bedtime. We'll probably go back sooner than four weeks.

01.23.11 - What a busy day!

What a busy day! Maddie enjoyed a nice big brunch at Legends at the Airport Hilton. We can't go anywhere anymore without at least one baby dolls in tow. Today she brought Polly along for the ride.


While Nate and Daddy were shopping for groceries, Maddie and Mommy baked cookies. Here, Maddie gets her first taste of cookie dough out of the bowl.


Want some?!!


Come on now, Maddie. We really should bake those first!


And at bath time tonight, Maddie plays with her duck family. She lined up all her rubber duckies and assigned each one a family role. The daddy duck was the small one with pink and orange flowers. What's up with that?!!

01.12.11 - Baking cookies

Maddie enjoys helping Angie bake cookies after dinner. She enjoyed eating them, too! And if her "big smile" isn't cute enough, when they spilled a little baking powder on the floor, Maddie was quick to the rescue. "I have a broom!" she exclaimed, and grabbed her broom and dust pan to clean it up.

01.10.11 - Snow day

Maddie was running around the house all morning yelling "No outyide! No outyide! No outyide!" (That's "snow outside!" for those of you who don't speak toddler.) When we actually got out there, she was less impressed.

01.09.11 - Toothbrush

Maddie likes to brush her teeth with the new Elmo toothbrush she got for Christmas.


She's almost tall enough to see over the counter. She still has to use a step-stool, though.

01.02.11 - Woooo Hoooo! Maddie's 2!

Rubber Ducky you're the one, you make birthdays so much fun!


Someone thought they'd be funny and sneak some contraband into the party. I didn't think I had to worry about stuff like this until she was a teenager!


She liked 'em. Ugh.


Blue punch! (Because ducks swim on water, duh!) Maddie's got one clever Mommy!


Opening her first gift. Harley wants to know if there's anything to eat.


Nope, it's Maddie's first camera!


What's this one? "A BOX!" Well, yes. But look over there. There was actually something in the box, silly!


Get outta my way, tissue paper!


Grampy Keith and Nan and Pop watch as Nate tries to get in on the action.


Maddie lets Nate help open a gift.


Maddie sneaks a bite of icing before we can sing Happy Birthday to her. She ate the icing, ice cream and M&Ms but pretty much turned her nose up at the cake.


She had no problems blowing out her candle.


Her most special gift came from Nan and Pop. Nan's dad (that's Maddie Great Great Grandpa Scheer) made this baby bed for Nan when she was a little girl - nearly 75 years ago! And if you ask Maddie how many babies she has (between Christmas and her birthday) she just says, "more."

And in our house, ain't that the truth?!! Happy second birthday, Maddie Girl!

12.24.10 - Maddie's 2nd birthday

Maddie turned 2 on Christmas Eve. Despite the extra work involved, I kinda liked that there was a Christmas tree in the background of this photo. Given that Christmas is her Mommy's favorite holiday, I hope that Maddie grows up to like it as much, too, even if it coincides with her birthday. And if not? Well, sorry kid. It wasn't our fault! As for the bagels? That's been a family tradition for as long as Daddy can remember. We used to celebrate with doughnuts but they aren't as healthy and good eating habits form early, right? She was able to blow out both candles so we're excited for her birthday party next weekend.


We asked Maddie is she wanted rice or pizza for lunch. Both are her favorites. She emphatically said, "Pee-tuh!" so we went to Pizza Hut. She gets plenty of healthier items off the salad bar, too.


She was actin' all sorts of silly while Mommy was away in the restroom.


Hey, Maddie! Let me see that 'big smile' one more time!


That night, we gathered at Nan and Pop's for Christmas Eve. She shared a chair with her cousin Emerson ... for awhile. This is close to her birthday minute. I wish it were, though. You'll see why in a second.


One of her birthday gifts was this cool "I'm 2" t-shirt. Yes, she's definitely 2. You'll see why next.


This is the photo from the minute she turned exactly 2. What is she saying? "NO!" as we sing Happy Birthday. Yup, she's 2 alright.