The Sky's the Limit

Madeleine went on her first plane ride to Omaha in September.  She did a pretty good job on the plan, if i do say so myself!  There were a few rough moments, but overall it wasn't as bad as we knew it could be.  I packed a bag full of toys - one for each hour - but she was thouroughly entertained with Jacques the Peacock, her car toy, the entire time.  No need for any other entertainment...he really fit the bill.  We almost lost him in St. Louis, but disaster was averted by Daddy, who asserts that Jacques almost lost himself.  When she wasn't playing with him or eating, she was fast asleep by the window. 

And yes, if you look closely, that is a drop of drool hanging off her chin.  Through trial and error, we've learned not to wipe Maddie's face if she's happy or asleep.  A little drool never hurt anyone.

Once in Omaha, Maddie was showered with attention and gifts!  She loves these blocks - they can entertain her for hours!

Maddie spent a good deal of time playing with Grandma and Grandpa Bailey - Grandma even bought Maddie a super pumpkin so she wouldn't miss her pumpkin at home!

Aunt Katrina played with Maddie at the bead table and boy did they have fun!  Madeleine desperately wanted to pull herself up to standing, but she was soooo tired she just couldn't quite make it up by herself.   

It was really cold in Omaha (compared to Baltimore!) so we had to go shopping for a coat and hat before we came to visit.  She looks so cute all dressed up for the cold weather!

The visit wasn't without drama for Miss Madeleine - sleeping was a bit rough what with being in a new place and all.  Much baby carrying was required - Maddie even helped Mommy brush her teeth while she was being carried!

Now we're back home and after a quick Thanksgiving trip up to New York, we plan to hibernate at home for the winter.   

At the Farm

I wanted to get some good pumpkin patch picture with Maddie, so we headed out to Weber's Cider Farm.  They have great cider, but not too many spots for Kodak moments.  Good thing, because our camera died just minutes into the trip.  We did manage to snap this one though, and it's a keeper: 

The farm didn't really have a pumpkin patch, so Maddie picked a little pumpkin off the table and this became her new favorite toy...until it started to rot from all of the slobber she shared with it.  And she's wearing a cute little bow that my cousins made her!  Isn't it sweet?

After our first failed attempt at finding a pumpkin patch, we headed out to Larriland Farms.  It was awesome!  Madeleine was all smiles the entire time we were there.  She was quite impressed by all of the pumpkins.

Fun was had by all (and Mom and Dad enjoyed some very tasty sweet potato fries and fudge).  We headed home with more apple cider and a sweet and tired out baby.

Six Months

On September 24th Maddie celebrated her six month birthday!  Wow!  She weighed in at 19lbs, 2oz and was 27 1/2" long - still sittin' pretty in the 95th percentile.  She was pretty happy about the whole thing, as you can see.

Bad Blogger!

It's been more than a month since I posted...I'm a Bad Blogger.  But, as most of you know, things have been a little crazy here for the last month, so I think I get a little wiggle room.  So now I'll get to posting for real, dear readers (reader?).  I'll be serving up quite a few Maddie posts all at once!  Get ready for some cute!

Wild Ride

Sometimes Maddie has a hard time going to sleep because she just doesn't want to miss anything.  We've tried to convince her that we're boring and we stay boring when she goes to bed, but she doesn't quite believe us.  One night, in a desperate act to both keep her from crying and wear her out, Dakota put her on his shoulders.  The giggles began almost immediately - huh huh huh, huh huh!  Huh huh huh, huh huh!  

Now she'll never believe us that we don't do anything interesting once she's in bed.

Food for Thought

Maddie's been spending a lot of time playing with her food, er, refining her palate.

So far she's sampled rice cereal (she's a fan), applesauce (not a fan), bananas (she appears to be allergic), and sweet potatoes (which may have also caused an allergic reaction, or she might have still been reacting to the bananas).  We're trying peas tomorrow (if I get my act together and go make them).  As for the allergies, Madeleine's been referred to Hopkins for allergy testing at their earliest convenience (which happens to be April of 2010). 

Baby Dedication

Maddie's baby dedication was September 5.  There was a little slideshow ofthe first 5 months of her life, and then Pastor Ann led a responsive reading about our commitment to raising Maddie.  At least, I think that's what it was about, because as ridiculous as it sounds, the silk dress Madeleine had on (totally adorable) made her REALLY slippery and I was terrified I was going to drop her.  I wish I hadn't been so preoccupied, as baby dedications generally move me to tears pretty easily, but I really shouldn't be surprised that Maddie kept me from noticing what was going on around me.  It's a common theme in our house.  As for how she did?  She LOVED being on stage.  She was grinning from ear to ear and adored being the center of attention.  She may look like Daddy, but there's definitely some Momma in her.