A Day at the Beach

Aunt Kathy and Kelsey (Boo Boo) came for a visit this week! We had a great time with them. One morning we went to the beach for some sun and fun. Kelsey and Madi were brave enough to play in the water. It was freezing!! Well....maybe not that cold for you Northerners, anyway. Aunt Kathy and Madi went searching for seashells for about an hour. Madi picks up just about everything she sees! She must have done the equivalent of 500 squats! Speaking of workouts, Kelsey must have pulled Madi out of the water 100 times!

Valentine's Day 2009

Unfortunately, Valentine's Day was overshadowed by this silly garage sale we held yesterday morning, bright and early. At the crack of dawn, Jimmy and I had been out setting up when we heard Madi begin to stir. Jimmy went in to get her, and I heard her say on the monitor, "What you doin' Dada? You doin' garage sale??" He got her up and out to see what we were working on. They set off, in pajamas, to Dunkin' Donuts to get some well-needed java. The first group arrived just past seven. Oh my gosh, I forgot how overwhelming this was! Thank goodness Jimmy pulled up, and I was even more thankful to neighbor Carol, who detected my panic and scooped Madi up and took her home for some normalcy! There are too many funny stories to recount, but now I remember why we don't do this more often. Thank you, Carrie, for keeping me grounded and reminding me that this was a good cause providing many people with items they could never afford otherwise.

Madi had a great day and played with many of her friends throughout. Once we tidied up, we went to the hospital to pay Grandma and Grandpa a Valentine's Day visit. We ended the day with a lovely dinner date at Biba and Grandpa's.

Everyone spoiled Madi yesterday...everyone but us. So, we decided to start over and celebrate today!! We took Madi to the Garlic Festival for some rides and went to lunch with Biba and Grandpa. Madi painted a pot with Daddy, and she tasted her first Shirley Temple! She has eaten wayyyyy too much chocolate and even went in the hot tub. It was a fun day:)

Trip to Morikami

Uncle Johnny (Madi calls him Opa like his Grandchildren do) and Aunt Donnie are visiting from New Jersey. Today is a beautiful day and we took a trip to the Morikami Gardens. Madi kept us moving along the trail at a good pace. Her favorite part was looking at the map and pretending to navigate for us.

The Three Cinderellas

Madi, Ana, & baby MoMo!

Madi's Playroom

Those of you with children can back me up. Kids have a way of taking over your home. Don't get me wrong, I know it's their home too, but one day, you look around and realize that the infiltration is everywhere--in every nook and cranny of your house. I realized that poor Jimmy had no civil, grown up space to sit and relax when he gets home from a hard day's work. We were living in a constant funhouse--the circus kind!

We had been contemplating several solutions, most of which involved a financial investment, when suddenly it hit us. Why did we have a bedroom designated for people who don't live here, anyway?

Appropriately, on Chinese New Year, which is very much about cleaning house and starting fresh, we decided to turn our guest bedroom into a playroom! Gone is the king-sized bed (sorry guests), but there is still room for a cozy Queen aerobed! And for our 'distinguished guests' (yes, Auntie D. and Uncle Shrimp--you qualify:) we will happily give up our bedroom and retreat to the playroom ourselves! It's the perfect solution! Well, let's say it's better. There is still evidence everywhere, everyday of a 3-year old shuffling her belongings from place to place. And it's a beautiful thing that we thank God for everday!

Flashback: Funny potty story

This time last year, we were beginning to work on potty training with Madi. We were at the YMCA, and while Madi and I were getting dressed for swim lessons, we used the toilet. It was a commercial toilet with a metal handle--the kind us women flush with our feet. Madi observed and asked, "Why Mama?" I explained that the toilet was "guh-guh" (the Murphy way of saying 'YUCKY'), and we shouldn't touch it with our hands. She pondered that for a while.

Later that day, Madi marched into her bathroom to pee on the potty like a big girl. When she was done, she kicked her leg up and flushed the toilet with her foot!! It was a hilarious reminder of how children take things so literally!