Just an ordinary Sunday

Sorry it's been so long blog friends. It's hard to blog when your insides are revolting. And, we've got a new, fancy camera which means learning new software, shooting techniques, and I've decided to host all of our pictures on photobucket.
Today has been a pretty good day thus far. My stomach is feeling pretty good and Madelyn has been such a happy little girl today.

She loves to run around in circles. Giggling the whole time!

And her latest trick? Attempting a summersault. But... she falls sideways and... giggles!

Oh, and the other members of the family have made it to the blog. Check out their pictures on the right ------------->

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! We had a lot of fun here at our house - just staying in, being a family, shakin' our booties (See video...), and watching a movie to help us stay up late. Madelyn went to bed at her usual time while Jonathan and I stayed up for a champagne toast at midnight. {Oh and I'm experimenting with uploading images via Photobucket. Fingers-crossed that the quality is better.}

Trick or Treat

This year was Madelyn's first time to Trick or Treat. She did great and quickly learned the routine. Now, any office with candy dishes seems like an opportunity to trick or treat!

This house had full size candy bars! This girl knew exactly what to do - one for her and one for mommy! That's my girl!

Odds and Ends

Sorry it's been a while.
What's new? Ear infection #7 I think. I don't know. Maybe #8? I lost count. No matter how hard you try - they'll always find a way to catch something.
Antibiotics. Ibuprofen. Humidifier. We know the drill.
However, we've had some fun over the past few weeks before this new infection hit.
We went to the pool a few weekends ago. Before all this rain and cooler weather started.
She chills in her starfish like a professional now.


Madelyn and Daddy played in the Dora Ball Pit. :)


We all went to Chuckee Cheese for a friend's birthday party. It was pretty crowded, but we still found some games and rides for Madelyn to enjoy.
Honing her Skeeball skills early!


Riding a giant motorized rocking horse. Please notice her tickets in her left hand. She would not let go of those things for anything!

Trying her hand at Whack-A-Mole.

And on our first "girls only morning" with Daddy in class, we had fun!

More Chicago - Yay for Parks!

One thing I've noticed around here is a huge lack of parks in comparison to the Chicagoland area. They're everywhere up there. But - I suppose the weather's much more mild. Afterall, who really wants to go down a slide or swing in 100+ degree temperatures. Not me certainly. Maybe that's why you see so many pools and water parks down here...

Madelyn hasn't been on too many swings. I hope you get the sense of how completely happy and delirious she was in this one.

R & M. They're the same age {R is actually 2 weeks older.} We've decided they'll be lifelong pals. Just wish we lived closer to one another.

Going down one of the slides. I personally can't wait til she can do this herself - slides aren't made for mommies and daddies. {Should have tried to get a picture of Daddy & Madelyn on the twisty slide - funny stuff!}

Madelyn & Big Bird cruising in the HHR. Still not sure what HHR stands for or how Chevy came up with it... It was an interesting car.

Where we've been...

Yes, it's been over two weeks since our last post. But trust me when I say this, it's been a little crazy around here. We've been sick, we've been traveling, we've been tired, one of us has been teething, one of us got three fillings... New daycare. New toys. New books (for all of us in one way or another.)
Madelyn has some new fashions from her birthday:She already knows how to pose for the camera. Kathy Ireland look out! {And thanks Auntie C!}


In preparation for our trip, we had lots of laundry to do. This is someone's idea of helping...

Our first day in Chicago we went to a Schaumburg Flyers baseball game. We all sat out in the lawn section and I'm pretty sure it was somewhere between 65 and 70 degrees that night. BEAUTIFUL! Madelyn hung on til about 9, and we headed home for the night.

Thursday was a day in Evanston {Go 'Cats!} and the North Shore.

And what trip to the North Shore would be complete without some Portillo's Chocolate Cake?!

Water Baby

We went to our neighborhood pool this morning to try out Madelyn's first swimsuit and float. She loved it! The water was freezing but she never acted like it bothered her! Jonathan and I were the cold ones. She'll be headed to Schlitterbahn before we know it.



Pre-pool. Showin' off her swimsuit.



HEYYYYY!



She had the pool all to herself!



A couple of swimsuit models. ;)

Go Speedracer!

Uncle Ryan and Chris ran in the OKC Half-Marathon. They both finished under 2 hours. We all got up before the sun and cheered on the runners.

Madelyn's race shirt

Uncle Ry-Ry at Mile 7 - complete with a new mini-Mohawk.

Chris at Mile 9

Her new favorite vantage point.

Peter Cottontail

So, it was a busy weekend for us. I had Friday off so, Madelyn and I had fun shopping up in Southlake and around Fort Worth.
Saturday we went to church for an Easter Eggstravaganza. Madelyn got some help from Daddy on hunting for her first Easter eggs.





The Easter Bunny visited the Queen household and brought a little something for everyone - except the cats and dogs. (Why would a rabbit bring gifts for those that might try to eat him??)

We hunted eggs in the living room because it was pouring rain outside. She found some "puffs" and "yogurt melts" inside of her eggs!


Then it was off to church. We kept her with us during the service today and she was a bit restless, but everytime there was music, she was quiet and waving at everyone. She's a big fan of waving to everyone and everything now.

Then a quick photoshoot in her Easter dress...

And then it was time for Easter lunch! We had a Honeybaked Ham (worth EVERY penny,) green beans, mashed potatoes, cream gravy, and brown-n-serve rolls (JQ's favorite.) Madelyn tried everything except the gravy.




We had a fun Easter weekend and it's a shame it had to end.

True Texan

So, here in Texas, I suppose it's a rite of passage to photograph yourself with the Bluebonnets when they're in bloom. For those that don't know, the Bluebonnet is the state flower of Texas. Don't pick 'em or mow 'em - you'll get in BIG trouble. I've been trying to scout a good, safe place (i.e. not directly next to the interstate) to take a picture of Madelyn. I finally found a great one! It was very sunny today and warm so we had great weather and the Bluebonnets were out in full force. Thanks Lady Bird Johnson!

8 months and still growing

Not crawling yet, but trying oh so hard!

It's official - she's our sweetie.

St. Patrick's Day Fun

So, Madelyn got a new shirt yesterday in the mail from Grandma Dolly and we had to wear it today. The not so good news - Madelyn participated in snack time for the first time today at daycare. Evidence: All over her shirt collar!




I know I've posted that she has her first tooth. We finally got a fairly good shot of the new tooth. It only took Jonathan holding her mouth open and me taking the picture. It felt more like a dental exam than a photo shoot.



Madelyn and Gracie have a very special bond. I swear Gracie was never this affectionate with even me! She will intentionally lay next to Madelyn just so she gets rubbed and cuddled. Here's how it played out this evening.