don't worry, mason. i'm coming.

i was getting madelyn dressed for school this morning and mason started to cry in his swing. madelyn said, "mason's crying." and then called out, "don't worry, mason. i'm coming. i'll be right there!" she gets very concerned when mason is crying and i encourage her to give him "magic kisses" because they always stop him from crying, hence the "magic" part.

this post is just going to be a hodge-podge of the goings on around here.

- the picture is of madelyn's newest facial injury (why is it always the face?!). i guess she fell while trying to hide from daddy after bath time and hit the bridge of her nose on the edge of her bed. she came out crying pretty good, but it doesn't look like it is going to bruise much at all. just a little scrape.

- madelyn knows the days of the week and often tells us when things are going to happen. if you ask when her birthday is she will say "thrusday".

- i have made a little fun about matt's ambitious garden in the backyard, but the veggies have been really delicious and it has been nice to have a variety of fresh veggies for dinner. good job, matt (and madelyn)!

- madelyn gets herself into her car seat. once i unlock the car she opens her door, gets in her seat (sometimes she climbs into other seats first), and does the larger of the two buckles. she even slides the buckle up so that it sits high on her chest. this has made my life easier because she is safely in the car while i tend to mason before finishing up tightening her straps.

- mason gets excited when he touches my face. while his movements are still a little erratic, he definitely knows when he touches what he sees and gets excited.

- madelyn was watching the intro of "so you think you can dance" with me last night before bath time and was trying to do the pivoting kicks the girls on the show were. the funny part was that she told me that she had to "practice first" and would go off to 'practice' before coming back to dance with the show again. i had her reenact some of her dance moves this morning. it wasn't quite as good but she did try with both legs.

- "practice" is not the only new word yesterday that amused me. when i would repeat what she said correctly, proving that i understood, she would say "exactly". i am guessing that is how her teacher responds at school. "alright" has made it into the mix too. these expressions have really stood out to me so i thought that i should note them here.

- madelyn always seems to know where we are. her memory for locations amazes me! when we pass a parking garage she points out that is where we parked for the parade. and she definitely knows the way to school and even tells me to "turn left here, mommy" where appropriate. across the street from her school is some sort of work truck facility and madelyn always tells me that it is where the "trucks live". i am never sure how to respond to this so i usually just ask, "it is?" and she tells me "yes!".

- mason is sleeping about 6 hours at night before needing to eat again. it isn't as great as madelyn slept at this age, but once a night isn't so bad. i haven't quite gotten him on a nap schedule during the day and can't remember when i got madelyn on one. i think i had her on a decent schedule by 2 months, but it is going to be more difficult with mason because madelyn's schedule of events is so different every day. i really want to get him down for at least one crib nap each day pretty soon here. today was my first attempt and it was not the right timing. i am going to try again this afternoon because i don't want mason to get into the habit of catnapping whenever i set him down. he is starting to look a little tired during the day when we are moving around the house a lot and he isn't getting to nap in any one location more than an hour. i think that returning to work next week is going to make a difference because i will be in the office most of the day and he can nap in the pack and play or hopefully his crib. we will see... love.