14 Months

Stats: I think she has an appointment coming up (kids have a 15 month well check, right?) but I know our little sweet pea is growing like a weed! She is sooo tall. I had her on my lap the other day, and she was being the usual little wiggly worm she is. My sister said, in shock: "She's about half as long as you are!" And it can't be far from the truth! She wears 18-24 month pants, but can still fit into some 6-12 month tee shirts and hoodies. Long and thin- like her dad!

Teeth: She recently cut her first pre-molar or molar. I can't get in there to see which one it actually is, because she will NOT let me mess around in her mouth. Its goes hand in hand with not letting me pick her boogers. What do you get when you have a strong willed, determined little girl with big crusty boogers and her strong-willed, determined mom who hates hearing those sticky rattlers? Red face, screaming, tears, and a determined mom trying to hold the girl down while delicately using her pinky nail to get the boog. She gets over it quickly.

Food/Schedule: Whole milk bottle upon waking (will probably switch to water and just give her milk with breakfast soon) breakfast around 9. Lunch around noon. Bottle before nap at 1-2pm; which usually is 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Then dinner, and warm bottle before bed. I'm working on scaling the bottle back so she pees less during the night. Just thinking ahead to potty training ;) She loves anything with tomato sauce, but it gives her a rash on her face. She loves avocado, but when it comes to other veggies, she puts up a fight. We need to sprinkle a little salt on them and feed them to her first when she's hungry. We have had some temper tantrums over this :( I hold my ground though. She loves cheese and shakes her fists with glee when she sees it. We have a video I hope to post soon of this! She is also a meat lover; especially chicken. I cut up chicken nuggets to give to her, and she tried to fit like 4-5 pieces in her mouth at one time.

Friends: She seems to along best with kids slightly older than her. She has had some really fun play time with Lilli, the daughter of some dear friends of Ross and I. Lilly is almost 3, I think, but her and Maddy played together for about 2 hours or more and I have never seen Maddy giggle so much! They even wrestled, which made my abs hurt from laughing so much. She recently started playing with Elliott, the cute little boy down the street.

Personality: Kind strangers in stores are always charmed and amazed with Madelyn. Many girls her age would be afraid or justifiably skeptical of strangers. Madelyn will often look at a nice lady/girl admiring her, smile back, and stretch out her arms to her. The woman always looks to me for approval, and then willingly scoops up Maddy, who then talks her ear off. She is very, very social and sweet. She spends most of the day smiling. She's not a big crier- just a WHINER when she doesn't get her way (remember the part about her being head-strong?). Over all, she is very easy going.

Okay, I'm getting bored with my own writing now. I just really wanted to make sure I document more as she is changing and growing every day; so fast that it scares me. When I look at her I cannot believe that just a year ago she was a sweet little 2 month old swaddled up meatloaf who nursed for 30-45 minutes at a time and puked every time we burped her (we were remembering this this morning; how we had to change our sheets 3 times a week from all her spit up) . I don't wish she was a baby again; because she is SO fun now. But I am scared she will grow up too fast.

Maddy- I love you so much, sweet pea. You are the brightest joy in your dad's and my life. Our days have more smiles, laughs, and kisses now that you're with us. You just make life better.