Lindsay's 2nd Birthday: Part II

Nonna, Grammie & Grandma Rosie with Lindsay

Last Saturday we celebrated Lindsay's birthday with a family party at our apartment. Nonna, Aunt Katie and Cousin Katarina along with Papa, Uncle Matt and Grandma Rosie and Grammie all made the trip down to help us eat pizza and cake!Lindsay ate up all the attention, which she had been having to share with Madison a lot lately. We passed Maddie around like a football, and she was so sweet and snuggled and slept the entire party.

Papa and his Lindsay

Grammie and Lindsay

YUM! Pizza... Lindsay's favorite food of the moment!

Katarina (2yrs., 2 months) and Lindsay (2yrs.)

After lunch we opened presents, and Lindsay got some good stuff! She got lots of clothes, a two cute play sets that go along with her dollhouse, a table paint set and....

........a Minnie Mouse Tricycle!! She was so excited to open it, and couldn't wait to sit on it in the kitchen.

We sung "Happy Birthday" and she blew out her candle.

After cake and ice cream, Lindsay, Daddy and Papa with Uncle Matt went outside to test out her new wheels. She hasn't figured out how to pedal yet, but is loving pressing the buttons and playing music and jamming. It won't be long before she is speeding around outside and bugging the students studying for finals....LOL

A cute moment captured with her Papa...

Loving on her Cousin Kat :)

Thank you to all our family who was able to make it to Lindsay's party. We had so much fun celebrating with you, even those who I failed to capture on camera (Nonna, Aunt Katie, Madison and Myself included). We love you!!

Lindsay's 2nd Birthday...Part I

Lulu woke up on her 2nd birthday in her big girl bedding (still in her crib) and was a happy girl! She was a little confused by Valentine's day the day before, because she got some cards and some slippers. But on her birthday, Daddy & Mommy went into her room singing, and she joined in at the end and said, "Happy Birf-day to meee!!"

 After breakfast, we couldn't wait to give her gift: an indoor SLIDE!!

 She couldn't wait to try it out, and Daddy couldn't open the box fast enough!

 WEEEEE!!

"I Why-ket!" *translation "I like it!" She said, "FUN! Watch me Daddy & Mommy!" and proceeded to slide the rest of the morning.

 After a dinner of Chicken, Mashed Potatos and Gravy, and green beans, she had her "Birf-day" Crumbs cupcake... Yum!!

 We lit the candles TWO times for her to blow out :)

 

Happy 2nd Birthday Sweet Girl! We got to celebrate again with all of our family on Saturday, so poor Lulu was so confused, I think that she had a birthday week!

Lindsay Loo is TWO!!

Oh my goodness... I can't believe I am writing Lindsay's two year old post?!? My sweet first born turned two last week, and has been the joy, blessing, and light of our lives since her birth. Can she stay like this forever?

I was waiting until we went to the Pediatrician to get her stats before I posted:
23 lbs. (50th percentile for height, 10th percentile for weight)
33 inches tall
She had a finger prick test, and didn't even cry! I was so proud of her- the doctor said she was really healthy, and her BMI and cholesterol were perfect. I have to admit, I was a little worried about the cholesterol with her love of bacon.
Here is are a few new things with our girl:
*Talking... Up a storm!! Some favorite sayings: "Oh My Goodness", "Hugs (insert your name) Hugs", "I a big girl" (sniff sniff), "Where'd he go?", "Ok guys", *Will ask you a question like "Mommy go play?" and answer her question quickly with "Ok!".
*Favorites....
Food: Pizza!
Veggie: Green Beans
TV show: Calliou (not my favorite- it actually bugs me, but she loves it)
Color: Purple and Pink
Play/Toy: Lately she has really been into make-believe cooking, and will get her little carafe and serve us "coffee" in our mugs in the morning. She has been cracking me up "cooking" and imitates a lot of things really well! I caught her reaching her little hand into a bowl and proceeded to tell me she was sprinkling "pepper" on her plastic food. *I do not use a bowl of pepper when I cook; it is in a shaker, which makes me believe we have been watching too much Giada.
*Compassionate... Lindsay is very concerned with people who are 'hurt'. If she sees a scratch on your hand or a band aid, she will say "Awww, hurt. I give it kiss".
*Colors... She is doing great with her colors, and will get it right about 75% of the time. Anything grey she calls "Daddy Grey" because Jarrett has several grey t shirts that he wears around the house and she associates it with her daddy.
*Letters... Lindsay recognizes letters everywhere; she will point up at store signs and say "ABC's". She will recognize the letter "A"
*Counting... Lindsay has regressed a little bit with counting, and likes to go from 1-3 to 7-10. She recognizes the number "2" and when asked how old she is, will hold up both her index fingers :)
*Potty Training... We decided to wait until a few months after Madison was born to give it a try, mainly because it would be hard for me to be consistent about taking her. She has been really interested in the potty since Christmas, and I am hoping the window will be there in a couple months!
*Sleeping... She will go to bed between 7-8pm, and wake up around 7am-7:30am and takes an 1.5 nap at 1pm every day (mainly for my records). We got her a pillow, top sheet and comforter to go in her crib to begin the process of switching her to the big girl bed... although I am not ready for her to be loose at nap and nighttime, so we are taking our sweet time.

Big Girl bedding... she was super excited for a pillow. When we tucked her in, she said "Cozy!".

She has a thing for pockets... and cracks me up when she walks around with her hands in her pockets.

*Social Butterfly... she still loves to interact with people, and since her vocabulary has increased, she has fun carrying on full conversations. Lindsay loves other children, and will frequently talk about her friends from bible study.
*Dancing Fool... this kids still loves to dance! I am going to enroll her in dance as soon as she is old enough!
*Singing... This has got to be my new favorite! She has been singing songs, and even better, creating songs with everyday phrases. I will ask her what she wants for lunch, and she will sing-reply "Sandwich please". Too cute!

I am so proud of our sweet girl, and the beautiful little person both inside and out she is becoming! Love you sweet daughter!

Madison 2 Weeks

Miss Madison has been doing some growing this week! Although today she is 3 weeks, I wanted to post her stats from our Dr.'s appointment on Friday:

7 lbs 13 oz

20.25 inches

She has been eating and filling out; we are loving her double chin right now :)  Maddie loves to be held and snuggled, and will let you know when she is hungry by rooting around and arching her back. We consider it a 'good' night if we can get a 3 hour stretch of sleep in; she has been sleeping in her crib since day 1, and so far, been doing great. We have noticed she gets fussy in the evenings, and is on the gassier side. I am hoping it's one of those things she will eventually grow out of. She has been losing some hair, but still has a ton; it seems to be getting lighter and sticks straight up after a bath. She for sure has some Jarrett in there! Her eyes are a dark blue-grey, and similar to her sister, is not a big fan of the pacifier. I can't believe how much she is changing and growing... time is flying way too fast. Can't believe my newborn will be 1 month in a week?!?!

Love the way she is looking at her Daddy! She likes her baths so much more than Lindsay did at this age.

Such a strong girl! She loves to lift her head and check out what's going on around her.

Big Sis kisses...

1 Week Old!

Miss Madison is 1 week old...

Here's some of what she's been up to this week (besides growing!):

Weight: 6 lbs, 9oz (As of Friday at the Pediatrician... but probably more as of today)
Height: 19.5 inches
Eyes: Grey/Blue/Dark Green? We really have no idea yet...
Hair: Brown

*Eating... Barracuda!! This little gal LOVES to eat. I wonder if her little legs are hollow... anything that gets near her face (a finger, a nose, your lips to give her a kiss) she will try to suck on. She roots around and when it comes to milk doesn't mess around. She will arch her back and look for her milk on anybody holding her. She makes the funniest faces in search of her meal.
*Sleeping...She has been giving us pretty good sleep (compared to Lulu at this age) and will sleep for 1-2 hour stretches. Last night we got 3 hour stretch! She has been sleeping in her crib since we came home from the hospital, which was hard for me the first night, but gets progressively easier every night. She still wakes up around 7am, along with big sis, so Jarrett and I divide and conquer at breakfast time.
*Hair... Whoa Baby! We were so shocked to see all that gorgeous hair, and in the sunlight and after bath it look like a soft brown. We are wondering if she will lose it all, or develop a mullet for a while like Lulu did.
*Eyes... We have no clue what color they are. In the sun they look blue, in fluorescent light they look green and sometimes look grey.
*Skin... Maddie appears to have my skin tone (a touch of olive from Native American from Dad's side.. Thanks!) so she will tan well in the summer. Lulu has Jarrett's skin tone, much more fair, and will probably burn (she hasn't yet due to my diligence with sunscreen!).
*Looks like Big Sis... Jarrett and I have been trying to figure out who Maddie looks like, and we think she does look a lot like me (besides the dark hair) in her mouth, eyes and round face. BUT, we were looking at photos of Lulu at this age and they do look similar, especially their nose and eyes. Maybe they will pass for sisters ;)

Bottom: Lulu around 1 week old                    Top: Madison 1 week old

*Personality... Madison seems to be pretty mellow most of the time (except when hungry). She focuses on faces and other objects, and likes to be where the action is, usually that is near big sis. Last night Jarrett and Lindsay were reading books and Madison could hear them from her room where I was nursing her and she listened to every word, memorized. Early reader!

I know this post is all about Madison, but I have to tell you- her Daddy is a pretty special guy. Jarrett has been Super Husband/Dad taking care of me while I am healing and managing a toddler looking for attention and a newborn! He is simply the best. Maddie, Lulu and I are so blessed to have such a wonderful man in our life. Love You!!

Madison's First Days at Home

 Maddie, 4 days old

 Big Sis and; Little Sis

 Sweet Bright Eyes!

 Getting ready for her sponge bath... She was not a fan!

 BUT... Daddy washed her hair and she thought it felt pretty good!

 All fresh and clean, I took the opportunity to snap a few sweet little pics!

Lindsay has been adjusting pretty well, and we have only had a few times where she wanted attention (either negative or positive) while we were busy with Madison. Mostly, she was happy just doing her own thing, and not really too interested in her baby sister for only a minute or two. I think the hardest part of it was Mommy and Daddy being gone for 3 days (first time) and just having to be patient, which is hard for me, let alone a 2 year old! Jarrett and I haven't really been pushing her to do anything that she wasn't ready for, and we were so excited when she asked me if she could hold Baby Maddie on Friday. Here are my loves all together! Yay Big Sis Lindsay!

 We told her Maddie's hair felt like "feathers" and she loved touching her hair and saying "Soft Feathers!" She has been fasinated with her pacifier, which is funny because she wouldn't take one when she was little. She's been sporting a binkie lately around the house, more to chew on rather than to suck on it.

 Maddie gave Sister a sweet smile! Her eyes look for Lindsay whenever she hears her voice.

 After our first doctor's appointment on Friday, Jarrett surprised me with a Red Velvet Cake from Gelson's, which he got me when Lindsay was born too! It was so yummy!

 Madison's favorite spot to snooze... on Daddy's chest!

Welcome Madison Grace!

 Madison Grace Fisher, born January 30, 2012 at 1:20 p.m., she is 19.5 inches long and weighing in at 6lbs, 10oz of pure love!!
We went into the hospital on Sunday evening for our scheduled induction around 9:30pm. Similar to when I delivered Lindsay, they gave me Cervadil, a medicine that helps you dilate and efface. When I entered the hospital, I was 1cm and 50% effaced... just like with Lindsay!
That was about it for the similarities between birth stories! The doctor came in around 7am, and I was 4cm. He broke my water and my contractions went into overdrive and I was in active labor; they had planned on starting Pitocin, but my body knew what it was doing this time around and I never needed it. I got my epidural (thank goodness!) around 9am, and was much more comfortable. Around noonish, I was feeling some pressure and they checked me and to my surprise, I was at 10cm and ready to push. An hour and a half later, our sweet girl was born! We were surprised at all her gorgeous dark hair, and what a tiny little peanut she is!

 Burr... Cold!!

 Hi Daddy and Mommy!!

 Check out all that hair!! This little lady was born with a TON of gorgeous dark hair!

 A shy first meeting... there was a ton of people watching Lindsay's reaction. Pressure! She did great, and pointed and said, "Baby!" She was very gentle, touched Maddie's hair and hand and gave her a little kiss.

Mommy and her girls!

 Hello Bright Eyes! Taking after her sister, Madison is very alert and didn't want to miss a thing!

We got home on Wednesday afternoon, and it was windy and warm. When we got to our door, we were greeted with this adorable sign made by Lindsay and Nonna!

Proud Daddy bringing his second daughter across the threshold...
We are so in love with Madison already, and are enjoying every moment listening to the sweet newborn coo's and sounds, snuggles and funny faces. Being second time parents, we are relaxing way more, and just simply trying to take in all the precious moments that come with having a baby. Thank you to all our family and friends who came to visit us in the hospital and for all the well-wishes and prayers! We can't wait for you to meet her!