Tumbling temper-tantrums...

As I have previously asserted: my baby girl is, well, spirited. And this leads to much "correction" and discord, especially since entering the "terrible twos" (they didn't come up with the slogan for nothin'). We have multiple mini-tantrums a day. I call them mini as I have heard and seen some horror stories and while she stomps her feet and whines, they're somewhat manageable.

We assumed that perhaps a little releasing of energy would do her good, not to mention she could do a somersault at 1 1/2 so we thought we'd try gymnastics (well, "tumbling" at this age). The local Gymnastics World offers a free class so we took her and, well, let's say I'm not certain it was the best thing...for anyone involved. It made me realize that while we are seeing improvement at home with her behavior, public outings are still a challenge. As an only child that isn't in daycare, she still has difficulty with sharing, taking turns, etc. That said, during the class, while the girls all waited behind one another at various "stations", Maddie ran amok. She cut line, she whined, she stomped, she ran, she cried...it was a real wake up call. I certainly expected a little disobedience from her excitement but was literally unable to reel her in. She was beyond defiant. I think she had fun and enjoyed the class but we have some work to do before we return.

I hope we can work on these things and maybe this sort of thing is exactly what she needs. We hope to sign her up soon but will take a little time to be more consistent and vigilant about learning what discipline tools work best for her!

Sunsplash Play date with the OTHER Madelyn!

Cape Coral has a water park called "Sunsplash" that my friend, Jen and I decided to take out girls to. I met Jen through my good friend Colleen and we became pregnant within a few months of each other AND names our babies the same name...only hers is spelled differently! They had a great time although I was somewhat disappointed at how limited the play area for toddlers was (and it's quite expensive to get in to!). But the girls enjoyed it and at least we stayed cool given the unrelenting heat and humidity! The slide was definately the biggest hit!

Maddie was quite intrigued with the elephant that spewed water!

FSU vs. Oklahoma

Garret took me to my 3rd FSU game...the 2nd in Tallahassee. Our last experience was, um, not terribly pleasant since FSU lost AND not a single touchdown was scored. Boooring. I'm not much of a football fan to begin with, so it kinda ruined it for me. This experience was much better! He gets so excited to go and relive his college days. If only I could make him realize they are waaaaay behind him...

ESPN College Gameday was there!

Some of Garret's College Buddies

Superpowers are hereditary...

Maddie has Caleb's old Spiderman towel...it makes me think about him. She seems to almost adopt his mannerisms and spunk when she has it on. She pretends she can fly and fling webs...maybe it's his way of reminding me he's still here....

GO NOLES!!

We're gearing her up for her years at FSU (I'm afraid she has no say in the matter). So far she is forced to watch games, does the Tomahawk Chop with precision and can almost spell along with "F-L-O-R-I-D-A, S-T-A-T-E, Florida State, Florida State...whoooooooo!!"

Summer's almost over!

It was the first day of college football season, so we had to be home by three, of course, but we decided to take Maddie to the beach before the water starts to get too chilly.

Our friends Trisha and Jason brought their jet ski and let us take Maddie on it! The little daredevil had a blast and kept yelling at Garret, "Go faster, Daddy!!". I fear skydiving and bungee jumping are on her future bucket list. Oy.