She's no shrinking violet!

So Madeline's first birthday has come and gone but she isn't showing any signs of slowing down. She is so unique and has so much personality. She is no shrinking violet and wants everyone to know it. She is also getting pretty good at throwing a complete fit if she doesn't get what she wants. She is starting to speak and babble so much more. She loves to say Da-dee, Ma (usually screams it when she wants something), Ty-tee (for Tyson) and Maa (for Max). She is growing so quickly. At the beginning of th summer she was wearing 6-12 month clothing and size 3 shoes. Yesterday I put on some of her new size 4 crocs and they were tight. So we went shopping today at a huge consignment sale and I she got 7 new pairs of shoes!! She is wearing 18-24 month clothing, so we got lots of precious outfits for the Fall season. She is wearing a size 4 diaper still. She went from walking to fast-pace walking pretty quickly. She also loves to dance. I think it is so cute because she likes to bounce and move her feet.

One of her favorite pastimes is going through all of my make-up. She climbs on the step stool and takes everything out one by one. She loves to play with the my blush brush the best!

 Check out her ponytail. The fron isn't quite long enough yet, but it is getting there.

 Here she is speed-walking away from me outside. 

 She's a great eater still. Loves fruit, veggies and pretty much anything else you give her. She loves eating red grapes.

 Her and Max are partners is crime. Monkey see, monkey do! Her they are climbing on their table. Sometimes I think it is awesome, other times it drives me crazy. Nevertheless, I am so happy to see the bond they have with each other. Nothing better than seeing your babies play together, I wouldn't trade it for the World!

Children's Museum of Houston

We ventured into Houston this week with our friends Andrea and her daughter Leah. I have taken Max to the San Antonio Children's Museum but never to our local one. The drive wasn't bad at all, we even took the HOV lane. I always feel weird about using that lane because I'm not in a carpool, but I qualify because I have 3 people in the car, right?

I bought a Groupon for BOGO, so that saved us some money. There was so much to do there, and as usual the kids wanted to do different things. So I was on my toes!! We tried the pain first, big mistake. Maddie isn't quite ready for that, so it was hard to help Max. On to the next thing, HEB play store. They went in, but they weren't too impressed. Finally we made it to the Tot Spot and they were in heaven! They could climb, play on cars, a huge lite-brite, slides, cars, doors, etc. It's for 3 and under so I only have a while left where I can take them both. They were all over the place and a few times I lost sight of one of them which scared me. My friends little girl managed to get out of the tot spot and hide around a corner. We thought we lost her for a few minutes. Thank God we spotted her, very scary!

Max and the lite-brite

 Maddie and the lite-brite

 She loved the mirror, but can you blame her? She's gorgeous!

 Riding in the car

 I edited these pictures with an easy App called Instagram on my iphone. It's free, easy and it adds a little character to my photos. Not to mention it can brighten or darken a picture that isn't so good, love it!

We were both shaken up, so we re-grouped and headed to lunch at Zoe's Kitchen.The kids enjoyed their food (grilled cheese, backed lays, strawberries and milk). Then they slowly started to venture away from their seats and commenced to run around like crazy children. Luckily the place wasn't too crowded. I think we got a few "control your child" looks. Oh well, we played, we ate, we smiled and headed home. I'd say it was a successful trip!

Max loves "putting gas" in his cars, so he LOVED this!!

Beach Bums

This past week we took a big old fashioned family trip down to the Texas coast. Richard and Suzy found an amazing home on the Copano Bay in Rockport. All the brothers and their families came down. It was so nice to slow down and enjoy the last of summer and each other. We did alot of visiting, eating and playing. We had a shrimp boil to celebrate Richard's birthday. Even though he wasn't feeling good, we were able to share some stories, laughs and chocolate cake together. On Wednesday the guys went out fishing with our guide, Scott. Luckily they had a successful fishing trip and we were able to have an amazing fish fry on our last night in Rockport.

Max had a blast playing with his cousin Isabel. They played chase, watched cartoons, ate snacks and swam like fish most of the time. I love seeing those two together! Maddie tried her hardes to keep up with the big kids, but she was also very clingy to her mommy most of the weekend. This trip made us all realize how important it is to make time to be with the family. Richard made sure we all heard him say these wise words: "Take care of each other, because family is so important and its all you have". I feel so blessed that we were able to get together and make some great memories.

 Honey bought the girls matching dresses and they looked precious in them. :)

 The sunset was wonderful. Max kept repeating, "the sun going down". I loved it!

 My little fishy. Thank God for whoever invented these puddle jumpers. I know they aren't the best in teaching them to swim, but they gave him the confidence to get in the water and gave me a break too.

 Isabel is such a big girl too! She was a good example for her little cousin Max. I could tell he was trying to keep up with her this weekend. They practiced sharing, dancing, swimming and she even motivated him to potty like a big boy!

 My handsome son.

 Me and my girl Maddie. This girl was a wild thang all weekend! She was running, screaming, eating and stealing the spotlight any chance she got.

 Our last full day we thought we would be brave and venture out to the Rockport beach. Thank goodness Shawn came after an early morning of fishing to help set up the tent. It made the afternoon at the beach much more enjoyable. Maddie loved the whole experience. Max on the other hand did not like the ocean. In his defense though the water was HOT! It felt like a hot tub. But he did like playing in the sand. Another thing he didn't like were the hermit crabs, but again who can blame him. He is my son for sure!

Pinot Grigio anyone

So, if you know me, you probably know that I am a fan of all the Real Housewives series on Bravo.One of my favorite "stars" is Ramona Singer. She started bottling her own Pinot Grigio and had a wine signing in Houston. Maritza, the kids and I went along with a sweet friend Andrea. The whole time I spent with her was about 30 seconds. The kids were all over the place once I got them out of the ginormous shopping cart. I was lucky enough to get a good photo though. The wine was delicious.

After the signing we went to City Centre to have dinner at Cyclone Anaya's, a really good Mexican restaurant with even better margaritas. Max did a great job at dinner, but Maddie was so tired she fussed the whole time. Thank goodness Shawn met us and helped me out. City Centre was a cool place and we might take the kids again for lunch one day, but it might be even more fun to go on a date there someday. ;)

A potty we will go

     So we took plunge and decided to start the dreaded potty training. I always said I wanted to train M&M together, but Max was showing signs of being ready. We have had all of the supplies for a while including a small potty and the toilet seat kind also. He even had pull-ups that I bought once with a coupon.

     Well one reason I felt he was ready was that when he goes swimming lately he hasn't worn a swimming diaper. He always asks to go "pipi" when he is in his trunks. So I figured I think he is ready. Never mind the fact that I was feeling like I was drowning in diapers sometimes!! 

     So on Sunday we went ahead and bought him some CARS underwear. Monday morning I took him to potty and talked-up his new underwear. He did great, I even took him to baby bootcamp (BBC) in big boy underwear. He went potty before and after class. I kept reminding him all day to go and I'd bribe him by picking a favorite car. He took his nap in a diaper, then I put underwear on him when he woke up. I thought we were right on track until he would tell me he had to go, then we wouldn't quite make it. Then the dreaded #2. From about 4-7pm we went through 7 diapers!! That night I wanted to give up, and put a diaper on him. Well he kept asking to go the bathroom. No turning back anymore. So day #2 wasn't great, but we survived with 7 soiled diapers. Now we are on day #3. He woke up dry and hasn't had an accident yet. I did put him in a pull up today for BBC and a trip to Target and his nap. No accidents at all AND he even went #2 in the toilet. WOOHOO!! I know we still have a long way to go, but I am so proud of my baby boy!!

p.s I sing after he goes - "Max went pipi in the potty, Max went pipi in the potty, Max went pipi in the potty because he's a really big boy" - sung to Blues Clues song "We just got a letter"

Peanut Schmeanut

I've talked about Max's peanut allergy before, so I wanted to give an update. We did a blood allergy test and it basically said that Max has food allergies to the most common things (milk, eggs, wheat, etc.). Of course those were low and his peanut allergy was off the charts. It really hasn't been as hard as I thought it would be. I check labels, I travel with an epi pen and benadryl and I have to watch what he eats. I sometimes feel like an annoying mom at parties with food, but I do it to protect my son. I won't stop that any day soon!! The next chapter will be sending him off to school and entrusting his teachers to do the same. Fingers crossed!

I have however introduced him to some other nut products. I bought almond butter, which is very similar to peanut butter. It states that it "may" contain traces of nut (just like almost any chocolate or baked product). I put it on some ritz crackers and assumed he would eat it up. I had my trusted benadryl right next to us. He takes a bite and immediately sticks out his tongue and makes a yucky face. No interest in it, but no allergic reaction. Yay! On the other hand he loves Nutella, so it looks like hazelnuts are okay too.

I love my son and I hate that he has to avoid nuts, but I am so thankful that he is healthy, rambunctious and cute as a button!! 

And then she turned ONE!

It happened, she finally turned ONE! This day was big for her, so we made her party as special and as PINK as we could. We were lucky enough to have so many helpful hands at her party. Maddie had a blast. She loved seeing all the family. She looked absolutely adorable in her outfit. I love the way it turned out. She got so many wonderful gifts, I don't think I'll need to shop for months! Max thinks he hit the jackpot with the toys too. 

 I really wanted to make Maddie's cake and I did. She had a pink strawberry cupcake cake and it was so good. Thankfully her Godmother (and mine too!) is like Martha Stewart and helped to make the cake look so cute. Maritza, Jessica and my mom helped too. We also made pink cupcakes. :)

My parents got her a little car of her own. Her and Max are already having issues with sharing this one.

 

This girl loves to walk!

We had Maddies appointment this morning. She is doing great. She weighs 22 pounds and is 30 inches long. She is in the 90% for height and 75% for her weight. She is now drinking whole milk and takes about one or two bottles a day. She is still wearing size 4 diapers and 12 -18 month clothing. One big piece of news is that she is walking. She started walking about one week before her actual birthday. She is getting stronger and better at balancing herself better everyday. And she has 2 teeth, and 2 on the way. Talk about change!! I keep thinking about the day she was born. I was so excited but scared at the same time. But now I see that I really had nothing to fear because she has brought nothing but joy, happiness and lots of LOVE to our family. Love you Madeline Kristine!