Madeline is 18 months!

Our sweet daughter is 18 months! The time is really flying by! She is such a sweetheart. She snuggles and loves to give hugs and kisses. She loves her brother, and refers to him as "Bubba" or "Connie". She's talking a lot now! It just melts my heart when she says Mommy and Daddy. She likes to pretend to talk on the phone and clearly says, "Helloooo!" The last time I counted, I estimated that she has about 25 words! Her favored toy is any and all babydolls. She likes to carry them around, wrap them up in blankets, and push them in the stroller. It's amazing how she imitates what "mommies" do. She'll carry a little purse on her forearm, push the stroller with that hand, and then hold the phone up to her ear. She's already learning to multitask! One of Maddie's favorite things to do is play peek-a-boo. She'll initiate it and will hide around a corner or behind something and pop out saying "Boo!" She laughs hysterically when she 'scares' us. Connor is still the one to get the best belly laughs out of her! She likes to watch Connor and Daddy play baseball and she's starting to learn how to throw overhand. This summer, she has really enjoyed playing in the water! We go to the recreation center pool frequently and she is so happy in the water. She prefers to explore and bounce around on her own, but also likes to play games with mommy in the deeper water. She tolerates going under water and is beginning to float and kick. She's recently taken to books more and will often bring us books and then back into our laps to sit down. She loves to have books in the carseat with her and will flip through the books, looking at the pictures. She LOVES music and likes to dance. Whenever she hears music, she'll begin to shake her body and move around to the beat. It's adorable! She continues to be a good eater. Similar to Connor, she doesn't drink milk, but loves smoothies and yogurt. Her favorite foods are grapes, strawberries, spaghetti, chicken, pancakes, sausage, popsicles, guacamole, meatballs, and turkey. We just had her check-up and everything about her is perfect! She is 2' 7" (27%) and 23 pounds (59%) with her head being 47cm (68%). She has 6 teeth now (4 on top and 2 on the bottom). There are 2 more back teeth breaking through now. She continues to sleep well- usually 7:30-6:30am with one nap in the afternoon which is anywhere from 1-2 hours long. She loves her blankie and continues to use her pacifier when she sleeps. Maddie has the most beautiful smile and her eyes are just gorgeous. She gets a lot of attention when we are out and about. We are often stopped and people just gush over her. She often looks at them like they're crazy, but I'm sure she'll grow to appreciate the compliments. In fact, we had lunch at Subway today and a sweet grandpa came up to her and proposed marriage! He said he would wait for her to grow up. I told him he'd be waiting a very long time! Madeline is quite the girly girl. She often will go into Auntie Mallory's room and bring out necklaces and bracelets to wear. She likes to wear dresses and she'll bring nail polish to me for me to paint her toes! Such a sweetie! Although she's girly, I think she has an adventurous and athletic side to her. She loves to climb around the house and at the park. We have to keep a close eye on her! On a few occasions, people have been shocked at how adept she is on playgrounds at such a young age. I attribute it to wanting to keep up with big brother! She still loves slides and has begun to like going on the swings more. She's such a fun little girl and enjoys all of the outings with brother. She loves Fairytale Town, the zoo, and most recently, the Children's museum. We are so blessed by Madeline Emma. She brightens our day everyday!

At their 18 month and 5 year old check-ups with Dr. Phan at Kaiser.