Easter 2012

We had a lovely Easter, the weather was beautiful in Bakersfield not too hot or cold, and we spent the weekend visiting with family.  We ate at all of our favorite places... Sinaloa's (best tacos ever!), Bill Lee's (classic Chinese food) and a delicious homemade Easter lunch, complete with strawberry pie. We finally got to see Papa's new house, and Lindsay spent all day Saturday swinging at Nonna's. Before we left, we colored eggs... this was Lindsay's first time coloring Easter eggs...

She concentrated very hard to color them just right...

Proudly displaying her creations... Daddy and her both had purple fingers at the end of the night. I was worried it would stay until Sunday, but thankfully they are making the dyes more washable these days :)

 After church we went to Great Grandma's to have lunch... Here she is with her Great Grand babies!

Daddy's Girls

It was Maddie Girl's very first Easter! She looked adorable in her white dress embroidered with peonies... she was such a good girl at church!

 Hunting eggs in GG's backyard...

 Me and my little ladies :)

 Lindsay had fun playing with the various ceramic forest creatures in GG's backyard...

She had a blast playing in a new playhouse and car at Grammie's house... I think she succeeded in getting almost everyone to climb in and visit her house...lol.

Picking flowers for GG and hanging out in the backyard on a gorgeous day... a perfect day to celebrate Jesus is Risen!!

Bunny Lunch

Yesterday after bible study, I had the group of our mommy friends over for a Easter Bunny themed lunch! We shared some sweet fellowship, great conversations and of course, a Bunny Cake!

It all started with a bunny cake pan given to us last Easter. Lindsay found it when we put out our Easter decorations and so we decided to made the carrot cake with cream cheese frosting (yum!). She was so proud...It was tasty too!

 I have been addicted to Pinterest lately, and found a recipe for a Carrot Ginger Soup and a Strawberry Gorgonzola Salad that I have been excited to try. These food items would be classified into 'Chick Food" (foods that do not contain meat or have too many vegetables) so I thought it would be perfect for our ladies lunch, and I think the Easter Bunny would give his stamp of approval.

Kid-Friendly food... PB&J Bunny sandwiches with carrot sticks

 Sweet friends :) I am so grateful to be in our new place, which give me the space (although it was pretty crowded) to host parties and get together's, which anyone who knows me knows I love to do!

 New Mama Leslie and her sweet little gal, Mazzie, who was born 5 days after Madison. I think they will be great friends ;)

 Madison and Robert on their first date... I think Robert looks a little bored...LOL

 Lindsay hunting eggs in our hallway...

 There were boys at our ladies lunch, (Robert 5 mo, Liam 10 mo, James 1 year).  This precious lump of little boy sugar is James, and he held his own in this sea of pink!

 A photo of the gals and little people...

 We also made "Bunny Bait" a diabetic coma of M&M's, chex mix, popcorn, pretzels, sprinkles all coated in white chocolate.

Here are my sweet Easter Bunnies! *Lindsay is wearing a band-aid, but it is purely for sticker purposes :)
I love having our friends over, and it is such a joy to watch our kids play (or listen to them in the playroom) while us Mama's catch up. Being a stay-at-home mom is a blessing, but at times can get pretty lonely. It is wonderful to have these amazing christian moms in the same season of life to share ideas and swap advice with. Love you friends! Happy Easter!

Two Months

Madison Grace, 2 months

Look at this precious face I get to wake up to! Am I a lucky Mama or what?!?

We went to the pediatrician last Monday, and here are Miss Maddie's stats:
10 lbs, 3 oz (50th percentile)
23 1/2 inches (50th percentile)

**Eating: She is a good little eater, and has been putting the weight on. Her rolls have only multiplied, and we are LOVING those sweet cheeks ;) Maddie has been a gassy baby from day 1, and would cry and cry, arch her back and draw her legs to her tummy, especially in the evenings. I hate to label her as a "colic" baby, but she would frequently display the symptoms. We tried mylicon drops, gripe water, etc... to no avail. One of my friends recommended a probiotic (a bacteria found in yogurt that helps the digestive track) to us called Biogaia. She has been taking it for the past few weeks, and boy, she seems like a new child! It really does seem to be helping the gas, spit-up and tummy pain she was having. I also noticed this week that she is sensitive to the dairy I consume, so I have been extra careful to avoid things like hot chocolate ;)
**Sleeping: She goes to bed between 7-8pm, and will sleep for a good 4-5 hours. I wish this stretch would be from 12-5am, but it does make Jarrett's and my evenings quite pleasant. She wakes up from her long stretch to eat and wakes up at the 3 hour mark, then 2 hours, then 1 hour or until I am ready to get up with her. She still sleeps in her crib at night, and will nap during the day in her swing. She usually has 3 naps per day, one 2 hour in the am, a 2 hour in the afternoon (when Lulu is down too...it is Mommy-time!) and a 45 minute one in the evening.
**Hair/Eyes: She is still my little brunette, although it has turned into a soft, feathery light brown. She has deep blue eyes and creamy skin... such a little beauty!
**Personality: This girl has been busting out of her newborn phase, and her little personality has just taken off! She coos, gives those melt-your-heart gummy grins, and kicks her arms and legs. She responds to Lindsay, and ususally saves the best ones for her :) She is not a fan of tummy-time, but boy, is she strong! She arches her back and pushes with her legs so hard, that if you don't have a tight grip, she will launch herself out of your arms. Madison loves bath time, and especially the sound of running water or rain. The rain setting on her sleep sheep is her favorite.

We love you precious girl!

Hafee Birf-day Nate (and Puppy?)

Lindsay has been slightly obessessed with birthday since celebrating mine in January (19th), then hers (Feb. 15) and Nate's (her cousin) and Daddy's (Mar. 4th & 5th). She frequently will run into the room and say, "H-prize, Hafee Birf-day!" we were trying to get capture it a few days ago and this is what we got:

Not sure where the "puppy" came into the picture...LOL.

Rainy Sunday

This past Sunday it poured rain... so we decided to stay inside and have a family day.

 We stayed in our jammies and obviously did not comb our hair....

 Shared our toys and built indoor tents...

 Had meaningful conversations...

 Took cat naps...

 Baked sugar cookies with my favorite sous chef...

And snuggled a TON!!

I would say it was a pretty successful day.

Little Miss Bright Eyes

Maddie Grace, 6 weeks... Caught a smile :)

Madison: One Month

I am a little late on this one, but we've had a busy couple of weeks :)

Madison, 1 month... this is her "Jarrett" look ;)

Yep. I like to eat... a lot.

Our sweet little Maddie is already one month old!?! She is doing just great, and we are loving our life as a family of four. I am not sure of her stats for this month, but next month we are going to the pediatrician, and I will post them then.
**Eating...She has been putting on lots of weight, as you can see in the second picture, and she has a cute double chin and little leg rolls.... we love it!
We were worried about her for the first couple of weeks, because she cries and cries between 5-7pm (and later quite often) and will arch her back and get stiff-as-a-board and seems to be in pain. We asked the Dr. about it, and have been using gas drops which have been working so-so. She does spit up frequently, but it seems like more of an air-issue rather than acid reflux; it is really hard to get a good burp from her. I think between gas and over stimulation/overtired by the end of the night, she is pooped and just plain cranky. She is quite the snuggle-bug, and we have been taking full advantage :) *Sleep...Lately on a good night she has been giving me two 3-hour stretches of sleep, which has been great. Starting today we have been working on an eat/sleep schedule for Madison and attempting more daytime crib sleeping... let's just say the swing has been how I have gotten anything done these days...LOL. There is nothing wrong with the swing, but I think she gets better rest in her crib, without Lindsay and the TV for constant stimulation.
**Hair... Her hair has been lightening up, although I am not sure because lately a LOT has been falling out. I don't think she will lose all of it, because there shows signs of growth at the front. Her eyes are still dark blue.
**Alert... Maddie is very alert, and will push up on your shoulder to see what is going on. She isn't a fan of tummy-time, but likes to lay on Daddy's chest. Does that count? LOL
**Smile? She has been doing lots of tracking with her eyes, and making cute cooing sounds. She has smiled a couple of times, although I cannot rule out gas :) There looks like there might be a dimple on her right side.

Love you Maddie Girl!! xoxo