40 Weeks

Oh, Madeline.  I think I'll have to start doing your bunny pictures while you're napping, because homeslice is on the move.  

Observe:  

 Madeline is ready to go.  She's not crawling...yet.  But she's rolling up a storm, and pushing herself up onto her hands and knees.

Yesterday, she was standing up while holding onto an armchair, and every now and again she'd let go for a second to see if she could stand by herself.  Every time she let go, she'd get a shocked expression on her face and quickly grab the chair again to steady herself.  She's both curious to push her boundaries, and completely freaked out by her new abilities.

I've been trying to teach her the meaning of the word "gentle" because gentle she is not.  She loves to pull my hair, scratch my face, smack me, and attempt to pull the flesh from my cheeks.  I know it's all meant with love, but seriously...ouch.  Mummas have feelings too, Maddie Bear.  

Whenever she hears "Hi" or "Bye-bye" she waves.  It cracks me up.  She waves to everyone.  It's great because we didn't teach her specifically to wave, she just picked up on it because everyone is always waving at her.

Going to bed at night is becoming more of a "thing."  More nights than not she wants us in the room with her before she can fall asleep.  As long as one of us is in there so she can hold onto her hand, she'll settle down to sleep.  If we're not?  It's a struggle.  We'll have to adjust our bedroom routines over the summer to find something that works for an older Maddie Bear.

She's been eating lots of fruits.  She had watermelon for the first time this week, and she loved it.  She's also still obsessed with our drink glasses.  If she sees me sipping a drink, she wants some too...especially if there's ice.  We're trying to get her to use her sippy cup, but it hasn't taken yet.  She'd rather just skip to a regular glass.

And on top of it all, she's still as pleasant as a peach.  She rarely is fussy.  She's getting to an age where Eric and I can easily pick her up and take her anywhere.  She's just so much fun!

I finished with school today!  I have a few days of freedom before next week when I take a week-long class...and then?  Nothing but some quality time with our little Madeline.