Lunch with the Fishes

...Or would that be "Lunch with the Fish?" Perhaps I'll try "Lunch with the Fish Family."

Gary's Aunt Tammie and Uncle Duane Fish and their three kids came to town, and we were delighted to have them all over for lunch. The last time we saw them was for the baby shower that Bonnie threw for Madelyn last March.

Madelyn had fun playing with Kendra's bracelet. Kendra is really great with Madelyn too.

Madelyn was especially cute saying goodbye to everyone outside--especially to their dog, Charlie.

Cous Cous

Madelyn always wants to use a utensil now. Which would be great if she had the skills and patience to actually use it. Instead she tries a few times then starts shoving food into her mouth with her fingers. That's absolutely fine for peaches or chicken. But when it comes to yogurt, soup, or cous cous, the finger-feeding just isn't practical. And I'm just not the kind of mom who wants to facilitate three baths per day.

Note the alternate spoon on the tray. Madelyn gets one with which to practice feeding, and I have one with which to actually accomplish the feeding.

Mmmmm. Cous cous. Soon to be in every nook and cranny.

Candle Garden

To my dear friend Bridget: You might remember this scene. Miriam was 15 and a half months old, exactly Madelyn's current age, when you guys came to visit her as a newborn. Do you remember this candle display on our coffee table? Miriam loved picking up the stones and showing them to us, and then putting them inside the deep candles. Well, this is now one of Madelyn's favorite daily activities, and it always reminds me of you guys! It's fun to think back to the way Miriam acted and seemed so grown up compared to my tiny little bundle at the time, and now here Madelyn is acting so similar!

Madelyn has completely destroyed these poor candles. They are covered in dents and (bad mom alert) teeth marks.

Filling the candles with rocks. She also likes to put them in the coffee table drawers.

This is the following day, pushing the candles around the house on a stool. Hey, some kids have teddy bears, mine has a set of decorative pillar candles. What are you gonna do?

Oregon Weather

It is Spring Break here in Oregon. Mother Nature may have missed the keyword "spring" in the memo, though, because we have seen snow falling on several non-consecutive days! Then, later in the same day, the sun will shine in a clear blue sky. It is crazy Oregon weather, but really beautiful! I love seeing bright pink cherry blossoms juxtaposed with snow-covered hillsides.

Madelyn played in our 1/4 inch of snow on the deck for a few minutes. We've had a lot of snow this winter, actually, but without any good snow gear for her, Madelyn hasn't been able to play in it much.

Having a little taste

Daddy dragging Madelyn back inside from the cold.

Madelyn still eating her snowball.

Bum

Madelyn took her first shower with Mommy today. Don't worry, no shower pictures. But since this was a first, I wasn't prepared for the post-shower logistics. I realized when we got out that I would need to dry off and get dressed before walking through the house to get Madelyn a diaper in her room. So she ran around the bathroom naked, and managed to pee right on the rug in front of the toilet. I like to think that she was trying to get it right! When I was finished she took off through the house, and I figured since she was empty by then, there was no harm in letting her.

Love those cute baby bums!

Shopping

We went up to the children's department in Macy's to say goodbye to Kathleen. I always love checking out the great clearance racks up there.

Madelyn looked like a pro shopper, checking out price tags and feeling the fabrics. Where did she learn that?

Hide and Seek!

Padded Playground

We met Grandma Bonnie at Washington Square. First we had lunch with her (and our) friend Kathleen, who works at Macy's.

Drinking her applesauce

After lunch at the food court, we played in the kid area while Yuka did a little shopping. I have never seen anything quite like it before: the "playground" was all made of this molded foam stuff. It was squishy and shiny.

Crawling through a log

Madelyn was having a hard time figuring out how to walk on this foreign material.

Climbing on a giant turtle

Sliding down the Mt. Hood replica was the best. Madelyn squealed in utter delight each and every time. There was one little incident when a small boy pushed Madelyn over. I expect kids to get knocked around a bit in play areas. I mean there is only so much space, and when your balance isn't that great to begin with, it's inevitable that you will fall over. But I was a little surprised when this child, maybe around two years old, completely shoved Madelyn with both arms so that she fell flat on the ground. She wasn't even in his way, he just wanted to push her. The boy's mother was so embarrassed and apologized profusely. I wasn't actually upset, and Madelyn only cried for a few seconds, but I still find these situations intriguing. Was this just an example of "being a kid," and one day I'll be that mortified mother?

Best Bedhead Ever

Today Madelyn took a bath right before she took a nap. The result of sleeping with wet hair:

Chocolate Cake

We can always count on my sister-in-law Emma to bring a delicious, made-from-scratch cake to any family party. She is always very creative, and for Easter she shaped and decorated the cake to resemble a giant painted egg! It was really cute, but more importantly, it was delicious. I love seeing Madelyn sit at the kids' table with her cousins! Clockwise after Madelyn this is Shelby, Lucy, Audrey, Jimmy, and Danny. Ethan is getting a bit big for the kids' table, and the Fairhurst clan was out of town for Easter.

Mmmmm.

Are you going to finish that?

I'll just help myself.

Happy Easter!

More Easter Festivities

Next comes the Easter Egg Hunt. Yuka helped me hide all of the eggs after they dried. We let Madelyn and Audrey go first, without any bigger kids.

Madelyn "found" the pink egg that was sitting on top of the table, while Audrey decided she wanted to go for a ride in the car instead of this egg nonsense.

I was trying to point out the egg hidden in this drawer, but instead Madelyn shoved her basket inside and shut it. I bet Easter will be more fun next year.

Easter and Eggs

Madelyn got dressed up for Easter Dinner in this adorable jacket I found in her closet waiting for her to grow into. We bought this on a Macy's clearance last year (thanks Bonnie!), and I love hiding cute stuff away to find in the back of the closet like that. It's just like getting a present!

It may appear that Madelyn is getting her groove on, but this was actually her flail of protest. Yeah, she has started doing that really annoying toddler thing where she arches her back and slides to the ground when she's not getting her way. Sigh. Well, at least she is close to perfect.

Trying for a family photo

These are the adorable socks that Grandma Bonnie gave to Madelyn for Easter. They have glittery thread and are really cute.

Before eating dinner, we took off the cute jacket and button-down shirt, replacing them with a rad, vintage towel-bib we found in my mom's pantry. It provided excellent coverage, by which I mean that it hung down to the floor when she walked.

My dear mother wasn't feeling very well on Easter, so I had to take charge of the festivities. If it weren't for me, everyone would have probably just suffered through the day lounging around with a full belly watching basketball on TV. But thanks to me, they were instead able to dye eggs and participate in the subsequent hiding and hunting of said eggs. No "thanks" necessary, you guys. I did it all out of love.

Some cousins coloring eggs while Madelyn supervises from above.

And now it's her turn! We worked with cousin Shelby, and Madelyn got the idea right away about dunking the egg in the glass. She liked to splash it around, so I consider it an Easter Miracle that my sweater escaped without any blue stains. Well, either a miracle or some expert Mom Maneuvering.

This is so much fun, we should do it every day!

Hot Tub in the Rain

I love sitting in the hot tub when it's cold outside.

Madelyn and I went for a "swim" this rainy morning.

Fun bubbles!

Prodigy

Check out that nice hand position (if she weren't so short, anyway).

Exploring Outside

It was a nice spring day today.

Helping Daddy wash the Yukon

Taking a trike ride to the end of our cul de sac. I love how there are neighbor kids playing in the street and folks out mowing their lawns...it's a nice neighborhood. Our house is way down on the right past the kids playing.

Walking down to get the mail. We have those locked mailboxes, and there is one directly across from our house. But no, our box is in the one two blocks away, so it's a big deal to go get the mail. :)

Enjoying our neighbors' beautifully landscaped yard. And hoping that Madelyn doesn't destroy their lovely flowers.

Madelyn discovered her shadow on the walk back up the hill. She waved her arm back and forth, watching her shadow move too.

Egg Hunt

Madelyn went to her first Easter Egg hunt today. We joined some ladies from Moms Club at an event hosted by a clinic for elderly rehabilitation. Madelyn hasn't been feeling her best for a few days, and has been a little cranky because of it. The expression on her face below summarizes how she felt about the whole thing.

Well, maybe it's no so obvious, but as her mother I know that as the "ehhhhhhhhh" face. General irritability and discomfort.

The hunt was held in the facility's "multi-purpose room," where plastic grass lined the walls and surrounded fake potted trees. The "grass" had been strewn with candy-filled plastic eggs. Not sure why we still label these events as egg hunts, because the ones I have seen recently do not involve any actual hunting, but rather scrambling and grabbing at eggs in plain sight. Anyway, I don't mind that they didn't separate the big kids from the little kids, because we were there to just pick up an egg or two and take some cute pictures. Acquiring as many pieces of cheap candy as possible was not our purpose. So once all the kids were running like mad trying to fill their giant baskets (or in some cases, grocery bags), I whisked Madelyn into a calm corner behind a few wheelchairs. We squatted down, I pointed to the eggs, showed her how to put one in her basket, then pointed to another one for her to try. As she was squatting there, staring blankly at the bright green egg, I continued to point to it and encourage her to pick it up. She started reaching toward it as I noticed some very quick hands behind her picking up the eggs along the wall. He hesitated for a moment when he saw me pointing to "Madelyln's" egg, but ultimately he proceeded to snatch the exact egg that Madelyn was fixing to* pick up! I think the picture just represents the reality of the situation perfectly, so I will say no more.

Now, this young man is actually the son of a friend of mine, so if you happen to read this, please do not be offended! Although I found this situation to be very humorous, I was certainly not upset and don't hold it against your child. He was just being a kid!

I found another egg for Madelyn to pick up, and she put it right into her tiny basket! (This is actually not an Easter basket at all, but a purse that my mom bought in the Bahamas with Madelyn's name sewn on it!)

All in all, I think Madelyn was just confused by the ordeal; plastic eggs, forbidden candy, giant bunny-person...

*Fixing to: the equivalent of 'about to' or 'getting ready to'. Typically used only in Texas or the deep south, or by people from these regions. Also pronounced as "fittina."