Mini Monet?

Caleb drew his first clearly defined picture. He drew a face with eyes, a mouth, a mustache, and hair. He gave it to Grace Ann. I was so amazed. Up until this point, he had mainly been scribbling.

Madi's New Vocabulary

Madi has been saying "Mama" for a few weeks now. But she has recently started trying to sign Mama and Dada. We think she may be trying to say "brother" as well. She is watching intently as we sign to her. I know that she is absorbing so much, but we're so excited that she's able to communicate back to us.

She is also walking almost all of the time now.

Caleb Quotes

"Suddenly Madi woke up!" and "I think that lady is exactly like GaGa Brenda."

Where did he learn these words. I think we've decided that "suddenly" is an adverb, but I don't even know what type of word "exactly" is. A modifier of some sort?

Also, he "read" (meaning he had memorized) a 50+ page book to me tonight. I'm sure that pictures comprised half off it, but it's impressive nonetheless.

A Muffled Cry

Two times yesterday, I left the children alone... for about 30 seconds (I do have to use the restroom occasionally). The first time, I reentered the circus and immediately heard a muffled cry. Neither child was in sight. It turned out that Madi was in the pantry. Caleb had shut her in there. I couldn't judge too harshly though, as I had subjected Michael to a similar (slightly worse) fate when we were little.

The second time I left the room, no one was locked in the pantry. Instead, Caleb and Madi chose to dump Richard's water bowl. I returned to find them both splashing in the mess.

Caleb's First Story

"Once upon a time, there was a boy who lost his harmonica. Then a good monster and a good dragon found it for him."

I'm not sure where he came up with this because we don't usually read him "Once upon a time" stories. Interesting though. I can't wait until his stories become more elaborate.

Clap for Madi

Madi is fascinated with the bowl of dog food. She loves to eat it. Whenever she starts crawling over to Richard's dog bowl, Matt, Caleb, and I begin our chorus of "Madi NO." When her restraint triumphs over her temptation, and she turns from the bowl without grabbing any food, we clap and cheer for her. Well, now Madi has learned how to clap. When she turns from the bowl, she starts clapping for herself. The only downside to the situation is that she's now a clapping junkie - she craves the clap. I think she is now intentionally going to the dog food, just so she can turn from it and receive applause. Quite complicated mental workings for a nine month old!

A Demanding Coach

Apparently, I need to sign up for pitching lessons. My baseball coach may be only 3 feet tall, but he is rather obsessive and quite demanding. It wasn't enough for me to play catch with him; Caleb insisted that I pitch him the ball properly. Never mind that I was wearing Madi at the time. He demanded that I wear a glove, hike the proper leg, and throw the ball even with his bat. After my valiant effort (more yoga than baseball, with the balancing involved) he declared "Mommy no is good at baseball."

Madison the Magnificent

A few days ago Madi took 20 steps - 20!!! She also climbed my parent's stairs at least four times. No amount of blockades could keep her from those stairs. She is cutting her 6th tooth! Whew - no wonder I'm tired!