So, how were you using this thing Mama?

Madeline likes to help me get ready in the morning. I usually give her little things that I'm using that she can't break or that she can't hurt herself with. She likes when I "powder" her cheeks and nose. I pat the little puff on her face and she thinks it is the funniest ever! Today she was being extra busy and pulling all kinds of things out all over the floor. So, I gave her the eyelash curler (which she hasn't had before) to distract her. Sure enough, she was really interested in it, but I think she was trying to curl her tongue.
To fulfill Raymey's birthday IOUs, Raymey and I went to Il Trovatore last night and Madeline had a fun night with our friends. Then, today we went out for a special birthday lunch while Madeline played at another friend's house. We never go out so much! We love this area and are so glad to have such nice friends here. I'm starting to miss Nashville a little already. We'll be heading to Cincinnati soon, and then we'll only have one school year left here. Every time we start to settle somewhere, we pick up and move! Raymey and I will have been married 5 years in August, and we've been in 5 wards since then (although after Cincinnati in will be 6, and we met in a student ward-7). I guess change makes you grow!

All of your wildest dreams will come true

First, I want to thank the comment leavers. I love to get comments-it lets me know if anyone is looking! Second I should have mentioned earlier in my posts that if you leave a comment all of your wildest dreams will come true. Last, I am taking a Spanish class right now, and though I am in my second semester, the "First Semester Spanish Love Song" is pretty darned funny and I think that you should check it out. Don't worry, it is clean.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=2eVO9V98-Bw









Now for three silly Madeline stories complete with pictures. We were doing laundry while listening to conference on Saturday. I thought it would be funny to put my socks on her hands. I figured it would be like putting scotch tape on a cat's paw (I'm not abusive to animals-I just know that they shake their paw and it makes them a little crazy). Surprisingly she just looked at her arms like, "huh, that's weird. Anyways, what was I doing?" and just got back to business. She had them on for 20 minutes and finally I took them off because she couldn't pick things up. She's no fun to tease! It was like a little mini-lesson to me (Mosiah 3:19) "...submissive, even as a child doth submit to his father." I guess it is different because I was teasing her, but it was kind of neat how she was so resilient. It reminded me of the great example that my mom is being to me with everything she is going through right now.









Later Madeline got a huge plastic serving bowl and 4 small ones and decided that they are her new favorite toys. She insisted on crawling around the apartment (for much of the evening) with the bowls in her hands. She couldn't crawl very well because they are so big and akward, but there was no way she was letting go of her awesome treasure.

And...Madeline is walking-but not unassisted! She's figured out (with the help of her Daddy) how to use her little train toy to walk around the apartment. She's been pretty busy with it, but pretty proud. Madeline makes our life so fun and entertaining!!

Happy Birthday Raymey!!!!!

It is Raymey's birthday today! He got an udon bowl and chopsticks, Gardetto's mix, sunflower seeds, a cheese slicer (Raymey is really into cheese), restaurant gift cards, and the promise that we will go to Il Trovatore next week, providing we can find something to do with the baby! Madeline had fun playing with the wrapping paper and I've decided that I'm going to give Madeline wrapping paper for her birthday next month. My big present to Raymey was a Dwight bobblehead doll. I've been really looking forward to giving it to him and I almost spilled the beans several times (what am I, 5?). The last picture is Raymey making a Dwight Face while holding his doll. Haha, I gave Raymey a doll. Madeline loved the bobbling. She kept laughing at it and looking at us like, "Hey, I get the joke". We have a video, but I can't get it uploaded to the blog.
Anyways, Happy Birthday to Raymey! We love you and think you're the bee's knees!

Happy April

I need to get better at this. I guess I don't have to have pictures every time. I heard a splash in the bathroom yesterday and Raymey started yelling "Oh my gosh!!! Madeline fell in the toilet!!!Madeline fell in the toilet!!!" She's been trying to pull herself up on things so I figured he'd left the lid up and she'd gotten into it. So I ran to the bathroom bracing myself for something disgusting, and Raymey was standing there holding the baby and laughing at me. I was an April Fool! He'd filled up the sink and plopped a conditioner bottle in it. You know, that wasn't my favorite joke! He did get me though:).
I had a weird experience tonight at Walmart. I was picking out bread and one of the employees came up and told me he had to tell me I looked nice. He started telling me how he'd been tracking me down the aisles. I'd forgotten to wear my wedding ring so I said (the first thing that came to my mind), "Uh, thanks, I'll tell my baby," and I went on to tell him about Raymey and my 10 month old. Then he told me all about how married women are always beautiful and happy, but single women aren't (I do not agree, this is the philosophy of the night shift worker at Wal-mart). It was really akward (suprisingly just for me, not for him). I wondered how many married women this guy has tried to hit on. I realized that I should definitely not go shopping after 9pm by myself again. In Provo grocery stores are like the hip hangouts late at night:). I guess it isn't like that most places! So, beware of stalking stockers.

Easter Morning

It is the Saturday after Easter and I'm finally posting these pics. We've just been busy with Jess :) On Easter Madeline got a little Easter basket with a couple of eggs (she had a lot of fun with the cheap plastic eggs!), a noise maker, some wooden blocks, a bunny, a book, and a little clicky wooden egg. She's had fun with everything! We also had an Easter basket with eggs full of the little Cadbury eggs (who doesn't love those things?!) and Jesslyn had an Easter basket. I can't remember why Madeline was crying, I just know that we always snap pictures because it looks so funny (don't worry, then we take care of her!).









We had a nice time at church teaching our CTR5s about the Resurrection. It was kinda hard for them to pronounce, we heard "house arrest" and "afterated" from them. I hope that something stuck! It was fun for us to teach them-we can't wait until Madeline can understand some of the story! Happy Easter (late)!

Easter Egg Hunt

Madeline had her first Easter egg hunt today. We were late and rushed out of the house without time to get ready because we didn't want to miss it. We got to the park (Red Caboose Park, just down the street) in time for the toddler egg hunt. We didn't really care about the candy-Madeline can't eat it, and it isn't very good! We just wanted to get pictures and see the baby's reaction. She still has a cold so she was looking kinda dazed for a lot of the time!

When the hunt started I took her out and held her right over an egg to pick up, and she just whined and cuddled up to me. She wouldn't get it. So I picked it up and held it to her and shook it around and everything, but she was still unimpressed.

I think there were too many people around and she was feeling uncertain about the whole experience. So, she sorta dropped 4 eggs into her Easter basket and we called it good! It was still fun and funny to watch her. Jesslyn was there with us, and she was being such a good photographer I didn't realize until tonight that we didn't get any pics of her! We'll get some tomorrow! Happy Easter!

Jesslyn comes to town!!

We (well, Raymey) picked Jess up from the airport last night at midnight. It is her spring break and she chose to spend it here in Nashville with us. Madeline was excited, but a little confused, to find that we had a visitor this morning. She's had fun hanging out with her aunt Jesslyn. Unfortunately Madeline woke up with a really runny nose. It is only her second ever, but it is still so sad and pathetic to see. She just looks exhausted and like she doesn't feel well. She didn't make it a half an hour at the YMCA this morning before they had to come get me to take her. So sad! We got some Easter candy today and we plan to dye eggs tomorrow!