Christmas in July

After we woke up, we decked ourselves out in holiday jammies before heading downstairs to open presents.

Maddie was still a bit sleepy, but was definitely surprised to find a new kitchen and dishwasher in her play area! She wasted no time in getting to work on some laundry.

We all opened the rest of our presents and Maddie was much more interested in tearing off the paper this time than she was during December Christmas!

Later in the day, Dakota made an amazing Christmas feast (turkey "thing" with stuffing and mashed potatoes!) and we were joined by our neighbors for a lovely Christmas dinner.

It was a fabulous day and a great start to a new (and quirky) family tradition.

What a Weekend!

This weekend was so much fun!  On Saturday morning I helped Mommy make a fruit salad.  I had watermelon, grapes, cantaloupe, and bananas!  It was yummy and I was a really big helper.  She said she couldn't have done it without me, and I know that's true because I was there.

Then I spent the afternoon with Daddy.  It was really hot outside so we stayed inside and played...

and rested...

And then on Sunday morning we all went for a bike ride, got bagels at Sam's, and then Mommy and Daddy wouldn't let me have any coffee.  They're really mean like that.  After Mommy and I napped, we went to the garden and picked tomatoes with my pink bucket.  Then tonight we went to the park for a picnic and a concert - and - here's the REALLY important part!  I walked to the park ALL BY MYSELF.  

I'm very pleased with myself.  And with my shadow.  Isn't it cute?  It walked there, too.

Splish Splash

Today Mommy took me to the splash pad at the Inner Harbor.

All of my friends were there and we had so much fun playing in the fountains! 

Some of the fountains were really big and scared me, but there was one that was perfectly sized for my friend Xander and I to play in!

If you want to play in the fountains with me, just come to Bawlmer, Hon!  

Big Reader

Look, I'm reading!!!

All Gone!

Maddie just wanted you all to know that her yogurt is "All gone!"  She began mimicking Mommy's hand gesture for that phrase this week, only with a lot more drama and enthusiasm than Mommy conveys!

Putting it All Away

We're always looking for better storage systems in our tiny rowhome.  Thanks to Ikea, we finally found a great way to store the baby!

The Sorting

Today Maddie and I went through The Sorting.  It didn't result in her being placed in Gryffindor (or, shudder, Slytherin!), but it did end with us finding about 4 newborn jammies, 3 0-3 month jammies, and an outfit and pj set in the 6-9 month range that were not highly feminine.  She helped me look through the bags and boxes of stored clothing, pulled things out and said, "This?" to the pink ruffled shirt, the flowery dress, and the yellow shirt covered in pink cupcakes.  "Those are nice, but maybe not for little brother."  Whereupon, she would drop them on the floor unceremoniously and return to searching for suitable clothing.  

After all of our sorting (and the kind of happy/sad "awws" over all of the absolutely adorable and completely pink clothing she wore that no other little girl of mine will wear), we had a little pile of clothes that will stay.  I'll go through the clothes again (with a little less help) and pick out my favorites that I want to (someday, in my free time) turn into a memory quilt of Madeleine's first year, but the rest will be passed on to other mommies and their little girls, though I'm not sure anyone will look quite as adorable as Miss M in them.

Happy 4th of July!

I had a big day with Daddy - we went to the Farmer's Market and over to his friend's house while Mommy took a nap.  Check out our matching code monkey shirts!

Then this afternoon we went to Mommy and Daddy's other friends' house to play on the slip and slide!  

It was so much fun and I was exhausted because I only slept 30 minutes all day.  If I could have stayed awake we were going to grill out and have s'mores and watch fireworks.  But I'm too tired, so goodnight everyone!  Happy 4th of July!