Lil' Code Monkey

Maddie is VERY impressed with Dakota's coding. See?

Bad Reception

Can you speak up? This connection's a little fuzzy.

First Steps

I can't believe I didn't post this already! On March 3, Maddie took her first three little steps. We don't think she realized she was no longer holding on to Mommy, and in typical Maddie fashion, she's not repeated the skill just yet. This was her just after she did it!

Bacon Bacon Bacon!

Even vegetarians are getting in on this cultural phenomenon.


And ohmygoodnes, it's a-ma-zing.

Happy Birthday to Meeeeee!

Today is MY birthday. I am one year old now. How exciting!

This morning I woke up and there was a present in my room already! I couldn't wait to open it. Mommy and Daddy came in and sang Happy Birthday to me and then I got to open my present!

I looked in the bag...


and found a...

wheely bug! I am very excited about it (but it kind of scares me, too. All the other kids had fun with it at my party, but that comes later).

Then Daddy made me some yummy Tofurky sausage because it's my favorite food. Nom nom nom.

Later in the day, I had a party! Lots of my friends came and we ate snacks and played. Mommy decorated my play area and I really like the things hanging from the ceiling.

And she made us cupcakes! She told me they're chocolate chip cookie dough cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting. That's a lot of words. They're cupcakes.


Mommy put me in an outfit and made me wear a bow. It's MY birthday and I like to be naked, but no one asked me. I thought it was my day? Hmph.


Along that same line, Mommy insisted on making me wear this stupid birthday crown. I think it looked fine on the cat. Anyway, she would put it on...

and I would take it off...


until finally I pulled the crying baby card and won that round.


I have to admit I was a little overwhelmed with all of the people at my house. When the party was over, I needed a nap.

When I woke up, Mommy and Daddy sang me Happy Birthday again only this time there was fire on a cupcake! They blew it out but I was a little scared.

Then - and this is the important part - I got to EAT the cupcake! The frosting was so nummy! I thought the whole thing was just frosting!


But then I got to the cupcake and it was good, too. Except for a couple of things. First, my cupcake broke but Mommy and Daddy didn't give me a new one. See? It's broken.


Then I found this...thing in my cupcake.


Apparently it's called chocolate and some people really like it.


I'm not one of those people.


I gave the icky brown stuff back to mommy after I sucked off the cupcake numminess.

Then they gave me a birthday bath because they said I was a sticky mess. I think I was fine, but Mommy said something about frosting in my hair and Daddy said the sprinkles were stuck to the back of my arm. So picky, these parents!

Once I was clean I had to eat some brocolli and ravioli, but then it was time for some presents! I was really tired from my big day, but I always have enough energy to rip paper. The stupid tape kept getting in my way (and making me cry).



I got some beautiful clothes and some fun toys and there was a lot of wrapping paper to play with!


Daddy and I were both a bit worried about this toy:


But I think it's ok now.


This was the best birthday I ever had! I mean, I know it's the only birthday I've ever had, but it was pretty great. Thank you to all of my friends for coming to my party, and to all my Grandmas and Grandpas and Aunts and Uncles for making this such a great day! And Mommmy and Daddy - I love you, too. But can we have a quieter day tomorrow?

Birthday Eve

Tonight when we went through our nighttime routine, we let Maddie play in her birthday suit like we always do...


Except that tonight is special, because it's the last night we put our no-year-old to bed.


So instead of reading Pajama Time...


We read this birthday eve poem...

When I have said my evening prayer,
And my clothes are folded on the chair,
And mother switches off the light,
I'll still be no years old tonight.

But from the very break of day,
Before the children rise and play,
Before the darkness turns to gold,
tomorrow I'll be one year old!

one kiss when I wake,
one candle on my cake.

Happy Birthday Eve, Madeleine. We love you very much.

Feelin' Crafty

I think my creativity was just absolutely dormant the whole time I was pregnant, and it took another 10 months for it to really come back after Maddie was born. But boy is it back! I just want to make so many things, and since there's not enough time to actually get everything made, I've been making things in my sleep! Well, dreaming of making things, anyway. Wouldn't that be something to wake up and have a project done, though? Or, say, the cleaning finished? Now we know I'm dreaming!

I'm working on Maddie's scrapbook of her first year, and here's a page I worked on Saturday night:

I used my new Cricut and had so much fun! I haven't glued these down yet because I haven't decided if I'm happy with it. I just got a cartridge for the Cricut that has a butterfly on it, so I may swap out the flowers for some cute butterflies.

And then I got another cartridge called Sweet Treats - so super cute! I made these invitations for Maddie's playgroup friends for her first (cupcake themed) birthday party!

Now these I love. I've been drooling over them all day!

And I believe, after two batches of cupcakes and four batches of frosting, that I've found the recipe for Maddie's birthday cupcakes. It's this cream cheese cupcake, only with an amazing vanilla buttercream frosting. I must be getting old because this is definitely the first time in my life that I've ever preferred vanilla over chocolate (in both cake AND frosting!).

Only 21 days till my little baby turns one...it's absolutely unbelievable. Where did the last year go?