The Five Month Mark

Well, seeing as how Madeleine is (over) five months old now, we figured we should list her accomplishments up to this point.
1. Miss Fuss definitely knows Mommy and Daddy, and has developed an awareness of strangers. She rarely wants to be held by anyone other than Mommy or Daddy, and can handle one or two new people at a time. Any more than that is asking too much.
2. We are falling into a routine. MJ wakes up somewhere between 8 and 9 a.m., nurses and has cereal. We then play for about an hour, then go down for a one or two hour nap. This cycle repeats itself about three times during the day (eat, play, sleep) until veggies at around 6 p.m. then bath and bed at 8. She usually wakes once between 4 and 6 a.m. to nurse, then goes right back to sleep. Yes, we know, we are very blessed.
3. Although Little Monster has only rolled over a handful of times, she is very close to sitting on her own and can stand for long periods with assistance. Maybe she'll be one of those kiddos that will skip crawling and go straight to walking. God, help us.
4. Favorite things include the jumperoo, Exersaucer, chewing on any number of things that come within range, and laying on her back giggling at goofy Mommy and silly Daddy antics. Not so favorite things are tummy time, the aforementioned strangers, and having her clothes changed.

Mommy feels so blessed to have such a happy, easygoing baby. Miss Fuss is rarely actually fussy, and when she is it's within good reason, the most common reason being Mommy keeping her from napping. We're just waiting for the terrible twos.

Hello, Solids!

One of the big developments while in Texas was Little Monster's introduction to rice cereal. The first three or four times Miss Fuss was not having it, but all of a sudden, she changed her mind. This is video of that time. As you can see, Wee Goblin has prospects of becoming quite the Wee Tank. Mommy couldn't shovel food in fast enough for her. Tonight we moved on to sweet potatoes, which despite Mom's reservations, Miss Madeleine took to like a fish to water. Just wait until she's buried up to her elbows in birthday cake.

A Long Absence

Hello, all! Originally, the idea was to keep you apprised of all Madeleine activities while Miss Fuss and Mommy were in Texas, but Daddy cannot remember the password to the blog, so no dice. Hopefully we can spend the next few days sharing pictures of our many adventures in Texas.

Both plane rides were pretty uneventful. Little Monster was very good, even sleeping for about half of the time. The other half was spent playing and making friends with any surrounding passengers and flight attendants. The first two days in Texas were spent with Grandma B.J., Grandpa Roger and Uncle Nick. Miss Fuss was unsure of her new surroundings, but warmed up nicely after the first day. Nights and naps were spent in Mom's suitcase, which was just the right size for the goblin. Unfortunately, Mommy forgot to take a picture of that (mostly for fear of waking the crabby girl up) but rest assured, it was a pretty amusing sight. Most days were spent puttering about town, shopping with Grandma B.J., Great-Grandma Chris and Great-Grandpa Dwight, who arrived several days after Mom and Miss Fuss. MJ made out like a little bandit, batting her eyelashes and cooing at Grandma B.J. in order to get all sorts of goodies. Among the winnings were new clothes, a Halloween rubber ducky, several teething rings, and a rather dashing sock lion, who is posing in the second picture with our photogenic darling. More tomorrow, as Mommy is still catching up on sleep from traveling and taking care of a jet-lagged Goblin.

We're Back!

A more involved post for later, but here's a picture from last night's Halloween party. Lobster Goblin was a huge hit. Don't worry, no goblins were harmed in the making of this photo.

Daddy's Birthday

Newsflash: Daddy's old. So old, his birthday went by with barely a blip on the radar of day-to-day events. Unfortunately, that's because poor Daddy had to work all weekend. Friday night was fast food and a work reception for him, while Mom and Little Monster had a low key, early evening. Saturday Mom and Wee Goblin went to yet another baby shower (Yes, lots of babies on the way, but who can blame those guys for wanting one after seeing how sweet a goblin can be?) and then spent the afternoon catching up on sleep. Daddy left for the dj job and both ladies had early bedtime again. Sunday, which was Dad's birthday, was spent at work for him and with Fred, Rachel and Spencer for Mom and Miss Fuss. We took her Exersaucer over to their house and played on the patio with Spencer and watched the dogs attempt run-by-lickings of Sweet Goblin. Today Mom cleaned house so that Dad doesn't have to worry about it while Mom and Lil' Monster are in Texas for Aunt Kate's wedding. We did take Daddy to dinner at Dolce for braised veal breast (Dad) and crab risotto gnocchi (Mom) and a chocolate souffle for dessert, which Goblin missed because she had already conked out. Note the tired eyes in the above picture.

Tomorrow is another dentist appointment for Mom, during which Dad will keep Miss Madeleine at home. The rest of the day will be spent with furious preparations for the Texas trip, because Mom is always a maniac when she travels, and that is now compounded by having to fly alone with Miss High Maintenance. The plane leaves at 7:40 a.m. Wednesday morning, so everyone send cheerful baby vibes our way! Mom will keep you apprised of all developments from Corpus Christi for the next two weeks.

Also, I'll bet Grandma B.J. will recognize the pink doll below. That's right! That was Mommy's when she was a wee bairn. Apparently there was some sort of tussle going on in the below picture, and Little Monster was furiously churning feet and arms to avoid the attack. Our feet get in on the action quite a bit lately, so we're sure it's only a matter of time before those monkey toes are in Maddie Jo's mouth. There are worse things that could be in there.

Dentist Visits

Not for the Goblin, of course. Mommy needed her teeth cleaned and Daddy needed some repair work. Actually, he got them all pulled and had scorpion stingers put in. Very attractive, and amazingly, Little Monster doesn't seem to mind. Miss Fuss was very good during Daddy's appointment, smiling and cooing at the receptionists, and slept a little during Mommy's appointment, but then we had some diaper pyrotechnics and had to skedaddle. The rest of the day was spent at home, with Wee Goblin alternately snoring while napping and playing in her jungle gym. Mommy did housework and played pillow to MJ. Tomorrow is more of the same... perhaps we will order the infamous Halloween costume online.

Keeping Busy

Little Monster's favorite pastime is bouncing in her spring-swing. Watch her little feet kicking up a storm! Dad wanted to put some Judas Priest in the video, but Mom wanted everyone to be able to hear the wee goblin's squeaks and giggles. Just let us know which you prefer in the comments section. Provided, of course, you prefer Judas Priest.

We think Little Monster might be teething. You've seen her teething ring in a photo or two, and she sometimes gets a little cranky and only somethin' to chaw on sets her right again. Who knows -- you may see the little nubs of some wee teeth here in the pictures sometime soon!