I N D E P E N D E N T

I N D E P E N D E N T...do ya know what that means mayne? These are the lyrics to a song that is currently Maddie's theme song at this stage in life! She wants to do everything by HERSELF. So, for the most part it is great, until I am in a hurry and need to get her snapped into her carseat, only to have her tell me she wants to "start over" and do it "herself" after I have hurriedly lifted her into her seat and snapped her in. Or, I lift her out of the Tahoe and shut the door, and again have to "start over" and let her do it by HERSELF.

I am reminding myself to be patient and let her do things on her own even when I am in a rush as I do want her to grow up to be an independent woman! I have slowly been giving her more responsibility in things, such as dressing her self in the morning. I organized her play clothes, underwear, socks etc in low drawers so that she can pick them out herself and get herself dressed. I have also been teaching her to set the table, which is now one of her nightly "chores". Here are a few pics of Maddie setting the table, unassisted I might add ;-)!

Ready to GO to Summer!

Today, I picked Madeline up from her last day of "school". Apparently, they must have had conversations today about summer break, because when she climbed in the car she excitedly told me about how she was ready to "go" to summer, like it was an actual place! Me too! This was Maddie's first year of attending school, and she passed with flying colors! What a difference 9 months makes, I can attribute many of her social skills & growth in doing things independently to her time at school.

She had two very loving teachers whom I often heard Maddie speak lovingly about. I am thankful we selected a program that has enriched Maddie intellectually and fostered a great start for learning!

May Day

May Day has been one of my favorite little holidays (if you can call it that) for as long as I can remember. It seems to be a forgotten holiday by most, but it is one of my favorite, and quickly becoming a favorite of Maddie's.

A little background.....
The tradition of the ancient Roman and Druid holiday of May Day has endured for centuries. It has been a celebration of spring turning into the pleasures of summer. Traditionally, a "Maypole" was the focus of the festivals. Even today the Maypole is used in the replications of old-time festivals. The Maypole is a tall pole in which ribbons are woven around by groups of dancers to make unique designs and patterns. Gathering flowers and branches became a tradition and "bringing in the May" became a popular activity on May 1. The giving of baskets became part of the festivities later in the evolution of May Day. Today baskets are often made by little children, filled with candy or flowers and then placed on people's doorsteps or tied to the door handle, as they ring the doorbell and dash away before they are caught.

My mama started the tradition with me, and every year we would gather our supplies to make our baskets. My mom, the teacher always had cute and creative ways to make the baskets! We would fill them with special treats and deliver them. As I got older, I stocked them for my friends with nail polish and things older girls would like, and then as I became too old, I make them for the kids I babysat for!

Now, I am making them with Maddie! We made a special trip to Michael's where Maddie carefully selected all of her papers and stickers to make her baskets. We picked out some prizes and candies too! She asked me a couple of times if the stuff was for her, in which I would quickly remind her of the spirit of giving, and that the fun was in giving not keeping for herself. Sometimes that is a hard thing for a 3 year old to understand. Much to my suprise there was no fit thrown, and she quickly began personally selecting the perfect prizes for her special recipients!

We spent one evening making the may baskets. My mistake was doing that 3 days before we were supposed to deliver them as then she wanted to "ring & run" right then. Finally, May day arrived. Someone (Mimi) had beat us to the punch, as Maddie had a May Day basket waiting for her on our doorstep the moment she woke up.

So, she excitedly got dressed, informed me she was putting on her tennis shoes so she could run away real fast, and off we went! We had so much fun sneaking up on our friends and neighbors and watching from afar their delight in receiving a May Basket. The May Day spirit must of spread, as by the middle of the afternoon, Maddie has recieved some May baskets in return!

Maddie Turns Three

So as most of you know, I love to plan parties. Mostly I do weddings, but once a year I get to plan my monkey's bday party! This year's theme was inspired by the Great Wolf Lodge's kids spa Scoops. Since Maddie loves to get her nails done, I decided it would be fun to host her party at the Great Wolf Lodge and incorporate the Scoops Salon. So, that is what we did! We had an ice cream themed party. We kicked off her special weekend with all of her cousins coming to town. We had a slumber party with matching pjs for all of the cousins. They woke up to doughnuts and all of the girls went down to Scoops Spa to get their nails or toes done before the party. The birthday girl got both done. A few weeks prior to the party I called to finalize the nail appointments, only to find out the girls had to be 4 years old or older. Uh oh....this was a problem! 1.) I had spent 6+ months of collecting ice cream items to go with the theme, and 2.) I had already told Maddie about getting her nails done with her cousins...and she doesn't forget a thing. So, I explained to them about how Maddie makes Dustin or I paint her nails and toes almost nightly and that she would be sure to sit still the entire time. So, they agreed! Thank god!
Maddie was the first to get her pedicure done along with Emma & Addy sitting next to her. They were all so good and loved every minute. After the girls got their pedicures, Gracie, Cece & Mckenna went. They then ended with Maddie getting her nails painted...green! It was so much fun. After the girls got their nails done it was time for the party. As I mentioned, I had spent a few months collecting items for her party, and was pleased with the results of how it all came together. We had tons of sweets including a candy buffet, build your own sundae bar, and cake!
We ate pizza, opened presents and had a visit from Wiley the Wolf. Maddie had a blast and so did I. The planning and work was well worth it....and would you believe I already have a theme in mind for her 4th party! I love you Maddie, this has been the best 3 years ever because of you! Happy 3rd Birthday!

Christmas!

What an exciting Christmas we had! Maddie was such a perfect age this year for all of Santa's Magic! We had a major snow storm on Christmas eve, but made it to Church! After church the snow was much worse, so we headed to Mimi & Papa's for dinner & a few presents. Then, it was home to prepare for Santa's arrival with cookies & Milk! Maddie then put on her Christmas nightie and we tucked her in bed. Somewhere between 10pm & 3am Santa came! Maddie promptly woke us up at 3am, and because we didn't want to miss her reaction to Santa's suprises, Maddie's Daddy and I got up to start our Christmas! We opened presents, and had breakfast and started cleaning up round 1. Santa spoiled Maddie this year with a purple camera (as she specifically requested from him), a pink kitchen stocked with food & pots & pans, and dishes and lots of DORA things! Mimi, Papa, Uncle Luke, Beth, Shelby & Great Grandma Marian came over for Christmas Dinner and round 2 of presents. Wow, what a special day! Maddie was loaded up with good stuff! Here a few pic's of our Christmas 2009. What a special year!

Polar Express & Girls Day Out

So, I had two holiday parties this weekend, which meant not much time on Friday or Saturday to hang with Miss Maddie. So, today we had a girls day out. Daddy needed to run some errands and do some shopping, so Maddie and I headed to Union Station and Crown Center for the afternoon. First, Maddie has never been to a movie at a theatre, we watch them all the time at home, but she can run around etc when she feels the urge. So, I was not sure how this would go. We arrived at Union Station, bought our tickets, popcorn, pops and m&ms. We headed into the theatre. We were there to see The Polar Express in 3D. Maddie immediately put on on her glasses and settled in. She watched the WHOLE show, 1 hr 40 mintues! We walked out, and she said "That was fun Mom!" Yes, it was Maddie! So, then with our ticket, came a free ride on a train. After the train ride we walked across the link to crown center to check out the sites, view the Mayors Christmas tree, and of course have some cotton candy. Finally, Maddie said she was hungry, so we ended our outing at the Crayola Cafe! It was a busy busy day, full of happy memories!