My growing girl....

Kisses all the way around!!!

Riding her 4 wheeler from Papa!

Being silly...
My little helper!







Best Friends Forever!

Playtime with Bella! Dropping food for Meatball then getting mad that he ate it!

such a silly girl...she's making us laugh constantly!

CONSTANTLY outside! She really like balls...of any kind!

I realized I haven't really updated much about Maddie's "progress" at 18 months! Where to begin?? There is so much happening right now. She is so fun and energetic. She is like a sponge...we have to be careful what we say! She also is willful and can try my patience daily! It's so amazing watching her little personality develop and seeing her gain new skills every day. I'm in awe of the whole process, really! Some more tidbits:

~She baaarely fills out 18 month clothes...she's kind of a pipsqueak! Very petite like Mamma, but has Daddy's long torso.

~She wants to be outside...all day every day, weather permitting or not. She seems to have no regard for the record low temperatures SW Florida is experiencing!!

~She talks...all the time! I suppose she gets it honest :). She can say lots of words and is starting to put them together: "all done, so cute, so big, yes please, oh no (her current favorite)..." She "converses" quite a bit although much of it is in what I like to call Baby Latin. But if you engage her, it really feels like a conversations, facial expressions and all!

~She just discovered Barney, much to my dismay! I try to keep TV time to a minimum, but it is a fun distraction and she does love the music and the other children in the video. A purple dinosaur. Who thinks of these things??

~She has always been a great sleeper (7pm-7am) for months now...until about a week ago. she is suddenly waking up around 10pm every night. We've pushed bedtime back to 8...so let's hope that works! She takes one nap a day, for about 2 hrs.

~She and Meatball are finally starting to bond...especially when she drops food on the floor (usually intentionally, for him).

~She's developing quite the little sense of humor! She does funny things that makes us laugh and, seeing there is a response, she does it over and over!

~We're trying to teach her how to share. She's not doing so well :). She and Bella bicker quite a bit over toys, food...anything and everything! But they are also best buds and I am so glad they have each other, especially sice Bella lost her brother :(!

~She loves to help or just be into whatever I'm doing. If I'm vaccuming, she wants to also...she really likes to wipe surfaces down. I'm hoping to harness this and eventually have her cleaning the whole house while I sit on the couch eating Bob-Bons...

~she's quite affectionate and gives lotsa kisses...my favorite thing about her :)

Catching uuuup!

No comments from the Peanut Gallery...

The birthday crew!

"May you live to be 100 and may the last voice you hear be mine..." ~Frank Sinatra

Ok, not really...he's still younger and always will be. What can I say, I like my men a little younger! ;) We had a great time celebrating Garret's big 3-3 (on 1/11/11, by the way!)...both with a family dinner (excuse the very cheesy and amateur football cake to which Garret smirked, "What am I 12?") and a fun night out at the local Japanese Steakhouse and our favorite bar! Maddie was with Yaya while the grown-ups had some grown-up fun. One of the two best days of my life when that man was born....

Maddie's first trip to Disney!!!

Since it was her first time, she got a Mickey and a pin that said "First Time!"

She loved It's a Small World...

The parade was definitely the biggest hit!

Bye Disney...we had a blast!!!

Well, until the end of the night, that is...nighty-night!

So, after running 13.1 miles, what sounds like a good time?? Walk all over Disney World!! Since we had free tickets, we had to go, of course. The timing could have been slightly better. We went Sunday after the run and I was hurting. I mean, feel every muscle in my body with the slightest movement kind of hurting. I figured Maddie's still a little young for alot of it, so I thought (and hoped and prayed...) that we'd be finished somewhat quickly. The hotel hot tub and Ibuprofen the previous evening did me some good, so off we went. She had a blast, I didn't suffer too much, so I say it was a success!

My First Half Marathon!!

Caleb's Hat...signed by Spiderman, worn by Monique

Our pre-race spagetti dinner

I'm so proud of my sister....


at the starting line...

Crossing the finish line!!

I think I can, I think I can...

running through the castle..

The gang just before the start...

The reason for it all...

I did it!!!!!!

My amazing support system...

On January 8th, I ran my very first distance race...the half marathon at Disney! What an amazing experience for several reasons...

A: I realize I kinda abhor running. I am not someone who enjoys the long hours of solitude, blah, blah, blah. I'm amazed I even signed up for it!

B: I ran for my sister's foundation, Caleb's Crusade so I had to raise funds. People I haven't seen in YEARS were making donations...I was so touched.

C: the run itself is pretty awesome! You run through Epcot and The Magic Kingdom (through Cinderella's castle!).

D: there was so much camaraderie between the runners. Everyone seemed to really root for one another and encourage those of us who were struggling more than others.

I am so glad I did it. It's one of those things you feel so accomplished about... the difference you pray you'll make in the lives of children suffering with Cancer, crossing that finish line feeling more physical pain than I can remember next to childbirth. Toward the end of the race, I was really running out of gas. I mean, I literally hit "the wall" as they say. My shirt had a picture of Caleb and someone passing me must have noticed my impending collapse. She taps me right in the middle of the picture and says "Don't give up, remember who you are doing this for." I still think she was sent by Caleb to root me on. I finished with a smile and so much emotion. I thought alot during that run about Caleb and those like him that have suffered so much. This was not real pain. It was not suffering. They and their families would give anything to see them run. Like our motto says: "I run because I can, I run because they can't." I am proud of myself. I'm not always the best at following through and I did it. Go me :)

New Year, new illness...

2011 is off with a BANG! Mads and I have a horrendous cold (I feel only slightly guilty for wishing it upon Garret as he continuously reminds me how healthy he is...jerk) and had a very uneventful evening. Unless your idea of exciting is a nasal spray, Robitussin, cough drop cocktail. Here's to hoping for a happy and healthy New Year!