Week Thirty-Five

• She started taking just one nap a day.  Her naps were getting so short (20 minutes), so we decided to just go along with the new schedule since she will have to eventually go that direction anyway.  I am usually a book follower when it comes to Maddie and I know that every sleep book I've read says that babies need 2 naps until 18 months, but with daycare we don't have a choice.  She actually did pretty well with her one nap this week and was happy just about every day when she came home.  
• Started clapping! She gets a big smile on her face, claps her hands together, and bounces up and down!
• Pulls up on everything and can now get her knees underneath her to sit up.  
• Is teething again...  I can't feel any teeth on the top yet, but she has been cranky and lets out her "Oh my gosh this hurts like heck" scream.
• Celebrated Philip's birthday with good friends on Saturday.  With everyone going back to work, we haven't seen our friends in awhile.  Maddie got a chance to play with her friend, Brayden while Shawn and I got a chance to see all of our friends!
• Tried lentils, but wasn't a huge fan.  If you fed them to her then she was okay eating them, but when given the choice she passed. 
• Got a much needed care package from Granny!  She grown out of all of her 6-9 month clothes and now is in all 9 month clothes (despite the fact that she is only 8 months old!).  I didn't realize that our hand me down have pretty much ended, so when I went through her clothes she had about 5 outfits that fit her.  One day she went through 3 outfits in one day at school, so you can see our problem!!  Granny came to the rescue and now Maddie has clothes to wear!! :)

Daddy and Maddie

Trying to pull up

Week Thirty-Four

• I went back to teaching my big kiddos!  I saw my 125 returning students and met my 80 new 6th graders.  Year two is going to be much better than year one at my new school.  On the first day of school I taught the fire evacuation procedures 6 times and only mispronounced one name!!  
• Maddie went back for her second week at school.  In true form, she went back with a stuffy nose after one week in daycare....luckily, she felt fine and played fine all week.  Our little girl is going to have one heck of an immune system by kindergarten!  
• Continued to take her two naps at daycare (except they started getting shorter and shorter) and even took a few on her little cot.
• Played outside on the playground with the Grasshopper kids and went to story time in their room almost every day!
• Loved her puffs at snack time.  
• Started trying table food during dinner time.  She has been eating some cheerios and peas along with her pureed food and loves them.  After she tried table food she started trying to chew her pureed food and always wanted to grab at her food, so we decided that maybe it's time to introduce more big girl food! 
• Crawls everywhere!!!  She has become so fast at her army crawling and is everywhere at home and at school.  The teachers tell me she can be found in many of the toy cubbies (just like her daddy)!
• Beats her highchair tray like a drum.  She loves to yell and bang on her tray like she's playing in the band!  I love my little musician! 
• Has provided Noah with a new role in the household.  Noah is now our resident floor cleaner!  Maddie drops food on the floor and Noah comes to the rescue...I have such a new respect for our little furry child! 

Maddie's new big girl food!

Enjoying her dinner!!

Yum-O

All gone!

Reading a book in her new chair!

Week Thirty-Three

• Had visits from both Grandmothers.  My mom (Grandma) came on Sunday and stayed until Wednesday evening and Shawn's mom (Granny) came on Wednesday night and stayed until Saturday.  They both came to help us out and take care of Maddie.  Monday-Wednesday I was working on things for school and trying to get things ready to head back to work.  On Thursday and Friday I was gone to Lakeland for a project I'm working on for the Dept. of Education.  Maddie loved spending time with her Grandmas and Shawn and I are so grateful to both of them for helping us out!!  
• Went to breakfast on Saturday with Granny.  Maddie sat in the highchair and ate her food like a big girl!  She smiled at everyone there and got so many comments on what a great baby she is.  By the end of breakfast she was a little fussy, so we had to hurry out...no leisurely breakfast time anymore!
• Got some new kicks!  In preparation for Maddie's new adventure at daycare (The Grasshopper room) she needed to have sneakers.  I went a few different places trying to find cute little girl sneakers and with waiting to the last minute ended up paying $30!!!  That's right, I paid $30 for shoes for my 7 1/2 month old daughter who doesn't walk!!  According to daycare it is a requirement for all children in the grasshopper room to have sneakers everyday...ugh!  I am now on the lookout for sneakers on sale in the next 50 shoes sizes....that's what I get for waiting until the last minute!  Oh...and I found out that she is a size 2!  
• Went back to school!  On Monday, Maddie went back to school at Ladybird Academy and mom went back to work for pre-planning week.  Maddie is going to transition between the infant room and the Grasshopper room for a few months until she gets use to the new schedule, new food, and new nap routine.
• Did not do well only napping once a day.  With the transition to the older infant room, Maddie is only getting one nap in the afternoon.  She was only napping about an hour each day, which meant that her afternoons were spent falling asleep on something and getting very cranky.  Shawn and I were going to work everyday and then coming home to a cranky child...no fun!  On the third day back at daycare we made the request that she stay in the infant room and take two naps per day...this turned out MUCH better!  
• Is wearing size 3 diapers now.  I don't know how much she weighs, but it must be between 16-18lbs. according to the diaper sizes.

First day of school as a Grasshopper!

After her first day of school

Showing off her teeth!

Grocery shopping with mom and dad!

Week Thirty-Two

• Maddie got her two bottom teeth.  They are out of the gums and growing bigger and bigger each day and sharper!
• Is army crawling all over the place.  She still doesn't get her tummy off the floor, but she moves pretty quick crawling her way.  Our house is officially semi-baby proofed.  All of the outlets are covered and things are pulled off the bottom shelves.  As she gets bigger, we'll baby-proof even more.
• Is trying to pull up on just about everything.  She loves to crawl over your legs if you're sitting on the floor.  They are almost like speed bumps!
• LOVES Noah!  She crawls to the sliding glass doors and bangs on them when he's outside, "duh, duh, duh"!  She also loves to grab his tail, grab his ears, and tries to crawl over him too.  Noah is learning to be a good sport!
• Maddie brought home lots of new toys from Granny's house, so she is now enjoying all of her new toys.  We have turned our front formal living room into a semi-playroom for now until we get furniture, so all of her toys are in there. 
• Smiles and laughs all the time!
• Is starting to eat puffs.  I got her some puffs, so she could practice her pincher grasp in preparation for eating table food.  At first she wasn't so sure, but after seeing Shawn and I eat a bunch she figured it out.  
• Got a visit from Grandma on Sunday.  Grandma came to stay and help take care of Maddie until Wednesday, so I could go back and begin to get things in order for work next week.
• Loves bath time and her ducky bath tub.  Every time we're in there she smiles, yells, and bounces up and down!  She has a little duck and pig that she plays with during bath time and always has a HUGE smile on her face when she sees them.  One day she crawled from the living room to the bathroom, so she could go and get the ducky!
• Loves her books!  She is getting better at turning the pages and focusing on different things on each page.  She still likes to eat them, so we are only reading board books for now!

Shopping at IKEA with mom and dad