Bathtime!

Tonight Maclain got to take a "real bath" with Maddox.  We used her bath seat for the first time and she loved it!  Maddox really liked it, too, and was cracking up at her.  It was so cute!  We had to remind him several times not to splash too much, and I am sure there will be more of that in the future.  I love them!

Cutie Pies

I want that camera, Mommy!

Telling secrets :)

I May Be Partial...

...But I do believe I have the sweetest kiddos ever!

Happy Wednesday!!!

6 Months

Our sweet little girl is 6 months old, now.  I am loving each new stage she is entering and try not to dwell too much on stages that have passed.  She is a true joy and we are so blessed to have her!

She went to the doctor this morning and here are her stats:

Height: 25 1/2 inches (30%)
Weight: 16 pounds, 8 ounces (60%)
Head: 42.2 cm (50%)

She is such a happy, laid-back baby and is pretty go-with-the-flow.  Here are a few things I want to remember:
-Has been sleeping through the night since about 5 months.
-Takes 4 seven ounce bottles a day
-Wears size 3 diapers and 6 month or 6-9 month clothes
-Jabbers a lot
-Prefers to sleep on her tummy and rolls all around on the floor
-Puts EVERYTHING in her mouth!
-Eats baby food really well, but does not like green beans or peas yet
-Has started sitting unassisted for longer periods of time
-Loves to smile

I started last week making a little bit of baby food myself.  This is not something I would normally care that much about doing, but since Maddox is SUCH a picky eater, I thought I would give it a try with Maclain and see if it helps her transition to solid foods better.  I started with sweet potatoes and they were a piece of cake to do myself.  I am going to try some others this week.  She liked them a lot, so that's a plus! 

Homemade Sweet Potatoes

I saved most of the store-bought baby food containers that we have used so far and have been using them for the homemade food.  I hope she likes the other things I make!

Sitting Up

Maclain has been getting better at sitting up in the last couple of days... she still needs the support of the Boppy, but she is really enjoying toys being within her reach now.  She is a lot happier playing in the sitting position than she is playing on her tummy...

Someone please tell me... how is it possible that she will be half a year old tomorrow??

Here Froggy, Froggy...

We were in Opelika last week and Maddox desperately wanted to catch this frog... 

Water Boy

Saturday evening we took Maddox up to our neighborhood pool for a little while to enjoy some time in the water.  He refers to it as the "big boy pool" since most of the kids there are bigger than he is.  He loves the water, but I am thankful that he is a very cautious little thing... we definitely do not have a daredevil on our hands!  He will jump off the side now to Daniel and he loves to splash!

And this morning we spent a little time hanging out at the mall and it wasn't too long before Maddox found himself a fountain...

By the end of it, he was drenched, but at least he had fun, right??  And this little lady thought her big brother was just hilarious...

I am sure by the end of Summer Maddox will be somewhat water-logged because I have a feeling it's going to be a HOT one!  We will be in the water every chance we get! :)

Fun Friday

I have to admit I have been stuck in a rut lately.  I feel like we have been confined to the house every day during the week and I have been itching to do something .  There is no real reason we have been stuck at home, other than the fact that it is sometimes hard to get out with both kids by myself to run errands, go outside, etc... It seems if one child is awake the other is asleep, and by the time we get going in the mornings it is time for Maclain's nap, then lunch, then both their naps, then a little playtime before dinner.  Before I know it, it's bath time and we never left the house that day.  This morning I was determined to get OUT of the house and get some fresh air.  So to Tom Brown we went... 

Then we went out for lunch and ice cream...

I realize neither of these activites is different from what we usually do when we get out, but it felt WONDERFUL to be outside on a beautiful day.  Happy Friday!! :)

Missing...

I am missing these sweet babies today!  We will be getting them back from my parents tomorrow and I am so ready to see them!  The house has been too quiet!  Daniel and I have enjoyed a nice, low-key weekend together, but we miss our kids!!  I have talked to Maddox on the phone several times and he is having fun.  I hear that he has been a little daredevil in the swimming pool and is having himself a good ol' time!  Can't wait until tomorrow...

Wakulla Springs

On Tuesday, Renee and I took Isaac, Maddox, and Maclain to Wakulla Springs State Park.  It is about 30 miles from our house and I had heard really good things about it.  They have all sorts of things to do there: biking, snorkeling, swimming, hiking, etc...  They also have these really neat boat tours that take you through one of the oldest and deepest freshwater springs in the world.  You have the chance to see all sorts of wildlife, including deer, turtles, birds, alligators and ducks.  We had the best time and saw soooo many alligators.  The boat tour was about 50 minutes and it did not disappoint!  We plan to go back as often as we can!

Ready to take off!

Isaac and Renee

Another gator

He did a LOT of pointing!

We are loving Tallahassee and all that it has to offer... It's such a neat place and I am thankful God brought us here.  Speaking of thankful, I am THRILLED about this upcoming weekend.  Daniel and I have a kid-free "staycation" of sorts planned and it could not be hitting at a better time.  We had a trip planned to Tampa for this weekend, then changed our minds and were going to go back to Disney to use the 3rd day on our tickets, then changed our minds AGAIN, and settled on a nice, low-key weekend at home.  My parents graciously offered to take the kids for the weekend and excited does not even cover it!  We have several things on our "to-do" list and we are looking forward to it! :)

Disney World

Almost 2 weeks ago we took a trip down to Disney World.  My parents came down on Tuesday night and spent the night with us.  We left Wednesday morning and drove to Orlando. It is only 4 hours from Tallahassee (with no stops) and we had a great ride down.  I was not sure how Maddox would do since he is still pretty young, but he amazed me.  He loved every second of it and was a lot more fearless than I expected him to be.  He rode everything he was tall enough for and was begging for more.  I am so glad that we went and I know there will be many more trips in our future (at least while we are living so close!).  Florida residents get in for a steal so you really can't beat it! 

We spent Thursday at Islands of Adventure in Universal Studios.  I had never been to this section of Universal before and I was impressed.  They had several things for younger kids and Maddox loved it all!

Getting ready to go into the park

Wil and Thomas :)

Maddox's favorite part... watching everybody get wet on the boat

Sharing popcorn with Pop

Where Maclain was happiest...

On Friday we spent the day at Magic Kingdom.  I had not been here since I was in middle school, and it was every bit as awesome as I remember.  I did not take many pictures on this day for some reason...

Teacups!!

About to ride Dumbo

Waiting in line... our longest wait was about 25 minutes

While Maclain was a trooper the entire time and mostly slept in the moby, my parents graciously offered to keep her at the house Saturday so Daniel and I could take Maddox to Animal Kingdom and really focus all of our attention on him.  It was so nice of them to do that and we LOVED Animal Kingdom.  I had never been so I had no idea what to expect.  Everything was on Maddox's level and it was a lot more low-key and less crowded than Magic Kingdom.  I would highly recommend Animal Kingdom for younger kids (especially animal lovers). 

Getting ready to go in

Checking out all the fish

Looking at the ginormous Rhino

On the Safari

Kissing the big dinosaur

Bein' crazy while Daddy rode a roller coaster

Getting one last look on our way out of the park... so sad!!

I knew this trip was going to be a lot of fun, but it far surpassed all of my expectations.  It was so amazing to see everything through Maddox's eyes and I am so thankful we were able to go on this trip.  Maddox was a trooper and did so well!  Here are a few more pictures I took at the house where we stayed...

Eatin' some pizza

Wanting to get in the pool so bad!

Rise and Shine!! :)

How can he sleep like that???