8 months old!

I'm 8 months old today!
Another 80 degree day...time to play outside!
New sandals with little strawberries on them

Playing intently
oh, there you are!
Welcoming Daddy home from work
I look forward to his hugs every evening!
Playing outside with my friend Jenna

On a walk with Mommy and Miss Clareanne
At our library program - it was so much fun! We did so many exercises!
Chatting with another friend...
Tyson sleeps on mommy's pillow, above her head, every night.

Last Wednesday was a busy day filled with errands and things scheduled to get done. On Thursday, Madison and I went to another library program where we mainly do exercises. It was lots of fun...although i was sweating again afterwards. But, madison just loved it. That day and Friday, were full of more errands, playing and cleaning house. Thursday night, I played bunko with lots of girlfriends - and I won a prize! Much better than the last time, when I won for "person who lost the most rounds". HA. On Friday night, I fixed a new recipe from my friend Amanda, of cheese tortillini, pesto sauce, shrimp, caesar salad and garlic bread. We invited Clareanne over. She and Mark were my guini pigs - and they approved! On Saturday, we hung out as a family and had a nieghborhood party that night. It was a blast. Today, Sunday, Mark had to work and me and Madison played and ran a few errands. It was a beautiful day - 80 degrees!

A Sunday Stroll

Outdoor Fun!

Eating Mommy's camera lens cover...she loves to put EVERYTHING in her mouth...

Here's what we've been up to since my last post: We had a great Valentine's Day together. Madison and I gave Mark/Daddy some new cologne (madison chose Armani Code) and a new cool shirt we found at T.J. Maxx. Mark/Daddy brought home some cards, a large beautiful bouquet, and a huge sushi spread. We (me and Mark) enjoyed it!

On Friday, I did housework, ran errands and played a lot with Madison. She is almost sitting up all by herself, finally. She would just rather stand up, that's all! That night, we just chilled out and had family time.

On Saturday, we all ran errands and played. That evening, we had Katie and Dan over for dinner and a movie. I made some homemade tortilla soup - great recipe I got from my mom. Anyway, right before company came, our power went out...and stayed out for over 2 hours. So, I gathered all my extra candles (which I have an obsession over, so it turned out to be really useful!) and we all ate by candlelight. The power eventually came back on, Madison went to bed, and we watched "Gone, Baby, Gone". It was really good.

On Sunday, we went to Sunday school and to church service. Madison had really good behavior in Sunday school, so we were told. :) That afternoon, we all took a "family nap". It was great. Mark watched Madison pretty much the whole day for me - it was so nice - so I could take a break, rest, and get some other things done. That evening, my friends took me out to a belated birthday dinner at a Japanese steak house and to a movie. We saw "Fool's Gold" with Kate Hudson and Matthew McCaunaghy. That's totally not how you spell his name...I should know that, right? Anyhow, we had a wonderful time!

We've posted some more pictures to our photo site, so be sure to check them out here. Also, be sure to check out my close friend from college, Courtney Latta's, website - it's listed at the right side.

Happy Valentine's Day!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S!
May your day be filled with lots of sweet treats!

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!! We hope your day is filled with lots of love, laughter and good memories.

Madison recently received her very first Valentine from a BOY!!! It was sent from the handsome Samuel, 2 1/2 month old son of our wonderful friends Katie and Rob Hoyle. Samuel also sent Madison the cutest Valentine's Day bib - shown in the picture. How sweet! Daddy had a little bit of a hard time with it (kidding) and said he was not prepared for her to already have an "admirer"! He better get used to it! We love you, Samuel, thank you!

Today we went to a new class at another nearby Library - this one was filled with lots of Mommy & me exercises. I was pooped and sweating by the end of the class, but Madison was laughing and smiling the whole time. At the end, everyone exchanged Valentines. It was really cute.

Swimming already!

Goin' swimming! Yes, it was over 80 degrees on Sunday, folks!
Madison loved playing in the water and when the bubbles were turned on in the spa!

Our princess!
Mommy time
What's that camera doing here, again?
On Sunday after church.

Wanted to quickly post for this past week before Mad wakes up from her nap! We've missed posting in a while! Last week, we were kind of off-schedule. Mark was out of town all week in Florida for work. His trip/meetings were really successful! I think I pushed too hard last weekend, so I spent all last week pretty much recovering from the flu. It was awful, but I'm happy to say I'm feeling so much better now. On Friday, we had a family night and hung out together watching a movie. On Saturday night, Mark and I had date night with another couple. We went to a new Italian restaurant that we just loved. The food and atmosphere was wonderful. Afterward, we all went to a new dessert bar that opened up nearby. Mark and I split the Snickers cheese cake - yummy. My good friend Rachel babysat Madison. She has two kids, Avery (5) and Reagan (just turned 3). They loved keeping Madison! Reagan, however, was upset when she woke up the next morning and Madison was no longer in the crib! Madison just LOVES to be around other kids - especially in the church nursery and at our library programs. She just talks and talks and tries to "touch" them, although she mostly "grabs". We're working on that. Anyhow, we had a good time at church on Sunday and I volunteered in the nursery. It was interesting to see how the babies interact and are at different developmental stages. Madison is the tallest in her class. She can't yet sit up for a long time by herself, or fully crawl, but she stood on her own for three whole seconds the other day! She definitely prefers to scoot/roll across the floor or stand more than anything! She bounces all the time.

Congratulations to our good friend in Atlanta, Alexis and Summer Pezullo who gave birth to Cruz Stowe Pezullo on January 31st!!! He is just precious!!

Sarah & Dave Visit/ My Birthday!

Big blue eyes! Mark gave me my favorite and most awesome camera for my b-day!!
Baby and Mamma on walk in our community.
Sarah and Dave goofing off in the butterly exhibit.
Happy 30th Birthday!
Super Bowl party!!

We were going non-stop last week and it was so much fun! Mon/Tues we spent running errands, doing laundry, cleaning house, etc. in preparation for Sarah and Dave to arrive. And we had a blast while they were here!!!
On Wednesday, Madison and I picked them up from the airport. We then went to the large outlet mall to shop. Mark came home and we ate a nice dinner at home together. On Thursday morning, I noticed Mad wasn't acting the same and irritable, so I went ahead and took her to the doctor. Come to find out, she had a stomach virus, which we treated dietarily - and after a shot, she was feeling better in no time. That afternoon, and okay with doctor's orders, we all (except Mark who was at work) went to the Museum of Natural Science. We had a great time at the museum and especially in the butterfly exhibit. On Friday, Mark was going to take off work as we all had plans to go to the zoo with Madison and then host a first birthday party for me back at home. Well, Thursday late night/Friday early morning, Mark and I got sick...Like, Mark slept on one bathroom floor and I slept on the other downstairs bathroom floor. We were so sick that night and the next morning...and then we finally went to Urgent Care Friday evening. I had the flu and Mark had the flu/sinus infection...but we got medicine that worked really quickly. We cancelled our big party for neighborhood friends that night, but we'll make it up soon! Sarah (& Dave) was our hero - she took care of Mad for us like a little Mommy 24/7. Saturday was my 30th BIRTHDAY!!! I just couldn't believe it! 30 used to sound so old and I loved still being in my "twenties". Anyhow, Dave golfed with our friends (Mark still sick) and that evening we went bowling and back to our house to party with a few couples - good friends of ours who all attended/were in our wedding. We were glad the other people who we invited for Sat night took a raincheck for a later date b/c we had been sick. We had a blast bowling and then a great time back at our house for a gourmet cook-out (thanks, Raymond!) and my fave Basket Robbins icecream cake afterward. Needless to say, we had a great time and didn't get to bed until the wee hours of the morning...but we were good girls/boys and got up in time for church! Sarah/Dave enjoyed our church. Afterward, I took them to our favorite Tex-Mex restaurant, "Escalantes", and then we did some shopping. That evening, we went to a Super Bowl party at our neighbor's house a few doors down...and it was such fun!! We came back and played a game here, ourselves. This morning, Dave, Sarah, mad and I went out for breakfast + coffee and window shopped. Then, we walked by a few nearby small lakes, came home, and then went to the airport!

We already miss them!!! We hope they can come back real soon!!!!!