busy girl

madelyn had a busy day today! so busy that she ate and slept more than she has in a very long time. she slept for 10 hours last night, then took a 1-1/2 hour nap this morning and a 3 hour nap this afternoon! i was able to get so much work done today. here is maddie pursuing the library in my office - i told you that she loves books as much as i do.

after she woke up from her morning nap we went down to see the dogs. madelyn gets really excited when she sees our dogs on the deck or sees pictures of dogs in her books but has not shown much interest in seeing our dogs up close and personal - until today. she was kicking her feet excitedly on the way down and when she saw the dogs she said "hi" and started giggling. then she kept trying to pet them and give them 'kisses'. the 'kisses' consisted of her opening her mouth (the way she kisses) and letting the dogs lick her drool and boogers. and then when we were going back upstairs she kept kicking excitedly and looking over my shoulders at her dogs. i can't wait until she can hold her own with them.

she said na-na (sounds like "none-none") for the first time and ma-ma more than da-da today - yea! and best yet, you can see the video proof below.

and then after her afternoon nap she was in the crib 'talking' happily with her teddy bear (a new pastime). when i came in she said "hi" and waved one hand/arm at me! and just in case i didn't hear and see her, she did it again when i got over to the crib. things are starting to get really fun! i love that we are starting to see her personality as she gets more and more expressive.

we also have two new fun games. the first i call "free standing". basically i hold her upright in front of me and say "ta-da" as i let go and she stands in a surfing pose (arms out, bent knees) before sitting down and crawling to me to do it again. today i added a "1-2-3" countdown to the "ta-da" and i can see her getting excited and 'ready' for me to let go by assuming her surfing pose. the second game is "chase". she crawls away laughing/squealing and then sits up to look back and make sure that you are chasing her before squealing and taking off again. the longer this goes the more erratic her crawling becomes and the harder she laughs. i think that i have just as much fun as she does.

now for a story from matt. last night i went out for a much needed haircut and matt stayed with maddie. he said that she was picking up one of her cars and holding it out to him. he would take it from her and put it down. then she would pick it up again and hold it out for him. its nice to see that she is transitioning from a bully to a nice sharer!

madelyn is also becoming a climber. today she 'climbed' up on her mirror (yes, its flat) to get a better look out the window in my office. she moved it over to the window and then stood on it. she even got up on her tippy-toes at one point. and then she sat down at her 'desk' to do some work of her own.

sorry for the long post tonight. i just get all excited about her little accomplishments and how quickly she is growing up. i can't help but share! love.