Madelyn Paige

Happy Easter

2009-04-13T16:49:00.020-05:00

Maddy had a great Easter this year! It was a fun day filled with the Easter bunny, fun with cousins, 2 Easter egg hunts, way to many gifts from the Easter Bunny and family, and candy........lots and lots of candy! Maddy had so much fun, she has a slight Easter hangover today (the day after) and has been quite lazy trying to catch up on both sleep and the meals. We were so happy at the end of brunch with my family that she finally warmed up to the Easter bunny and was willing to take a couple of pictures with him. Overall it was really a wonderful day and here are the pictures to prove it :)

Back to Blogging

2009-03-28T19:38:00.005-05:00

Fashionista!

Making Valentines Cupcakes with mom!

Maddy's new big girl room

Princess for a Day :)

Say Cheese

Happy Birthday cousin Mikey!

Finger-painting fun

Let it snow!

This was Maddy's 1st Christmas tree chop with the family,she found a good one

Oops we almost forgot Thanksgiving!

A funny picture from Christmas morning (Santa brought that princess couch for Maddy)

Our friend Jake's 1st Birthday party!

Daddy's 29th Birthday

Fall Fun (and the 1st day Maddy got to wear her new winter coat!)

I have been so bad about keeping up with Maddy's blog ever since I joined facebook because it all seemed like too much, but thanks to Quinn's nanny who informed me she still checks in from time to time, I am newly inspired again to get back on the blogging bandwagon. Here is a post to get everyone up to speed on Maddy's happenings over the last couple months. I promise to be more diligent about posting on a more regular basis, thanks nanny!

Future WIU Leathernecks

2008-11-17T13:13:00.011-06:00

This weekend we also had a fun get together with the Watsons and the Mullins. It was so great to finally meet Mallory and all it was also fun to see all the baby girls together (Mallory, Maddy and Avery)

Maddy, Jake, Helena and Peter

2008-11-17T13:03:00.014-06:00

This past Friday we went to Ela's house to visit Peter, and visit with Ela's sister Renee and her two babies Jake and Helena. Maddy loved Jake as you can see from the pictures, but really, who could blame her, he is quite handsome. She chased him around the whole time saying, "come on Jake," and, "where are you Jake." It was very cute. Helena and Peter (aka the newborns) slept and ate as Maddy and Jake romped around Ela's house getting into all kinds of mischief. It was a fun get together and we cant wait to see them again in a couple weeks for other events to follow.

Trick or Treat

2008-10-31T21:16:00.008-05:00

Maddy has so much fun this Halloween trick or treating with her cousins Katie and Mikey. It was so cute to hear her say trick or treat and thank you after she got her candy. Since we have been home I have had to hide the candy because if she sees it she asks for more relentlessly. It was so much fun this year to see her all dressed up and acting like such a big girl.

The Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-22T11:31:00.009-05:00

A couple of weekends ago we went, as we do every year, to Bengstons Pumpkin Farm with the Drains and Grandma and Grandpa Stout. The kids had a blast and it was a perfect day for a hay ride, pony ride, petting zoo, and choo choo train ride. Thanks to Grandpa Stout for treating the whole family to a day of fun.

Fall Pics.

2008-10-20T12:16:00.006-05:00

Welcome to the world Peter Jerry Baio

2008-10-20T12:10:00.009-05:00

Last Wed. Oct. 15th Ela and Paul welcomed a new baby boy into the world. Peter was 9 pounds 6 ounces (not delivered by c-section) and 22 inches long I believe. I got to visit him on Thursday night and he was adorable! Ela is the most calm and collected new mom I have ever seen which doesn't come to much surprise given her good nature. We are so excited for all of them and look forward to many more visits in near future :)

Playhouse Disney

2008-10-20T12:04:00.008-05:00

On Sunday afternoon my sister and I took Maddy, Katie and Mikey to see Playhouse Disney live. It was a cute show but I couldn't tell what Maddy love more....the show or the popcorn she scarfed down the whole duration of the show! Notice the excitement in the first picture and the exhaustion in the last.

Bathtime with Daddy

2008-09-21T20:48:00.002-05:00

While I was at work Saturday morning, Joe gave Maddy a bath. I am usually in charge with baths but as you can see they had fun :)

Birthday Party Extravaganza

2008-09-17T11:43:00.020-05:00

Sorry to be posting these a little late. Most of you probably have seen them on my facebook page, but here are the pics from Maddy's Birthday party. It was a lot of fun and Maddy ran around all day like she knew it was a party just for her. She was definately scared of Mickey but overall we thought Mickey was a big hit. She loved her cake and pizza (thanks Uncle Paul!), but most of all loved seeing all her family and friends.

Happy 2nd Birthday Maddy :)

2008-09-04T21:02:00.005-05:00

Today was a great day for us, as Maddy turned two years old. The day started out when I picked Maddy up out of her crib and sang Happy Birthday to her, she sang along and clapped when we were done. Then she asked for sausage and pancakes and watermelon for breakfast, which I made special for her. After we ate breakfast we got dressed for work and school and Maddy wore her number two shirt which she also calls her Happy Day shirt.

Mommy and daddy were a little sad they had to work, but were excited to get home early to have our own little family celebration. At daycare Maddy was given a crown to wear that was made just for her, everyone sang Happy Birthday to her, and she got a coloring book and crayons....and to top it all off she went peepie on the pottie for the first time ever! We were very excited to say the least.

When Maddy got home we had pizza delivered which she was very excited about, then we opened presents and had cake. She even blew out the candle all by herself! Presents took a little bit of time because as soon as she opened something she wanted to play with it, so then we had to coax her into opening another one....and then she wanted to play with that one. None the less it was fun to see her get so excited everytime she realized she had a new toy to play with.

All in all, I think she had a great day and we are very much looking forward to her big Birthday party on Sunday with all of our friends and family.

Announcing Mr. and Mrs. Joe Fanaro!

2008-08-18T11:40:00.009-05:00

This past weekend I had the pleasure of being a bridesmaid in my longtime childhood friend Melissa's wedding. It was a beautiful day and as you can see the bride looked particularly beautiful! Many of you know Meliss and Joe so I wanted to share some of the pictures. Maddy attended the ceremony at St. Vincent DePaul church with her daddy, and was a quite a good girl. She didn't make one peep the whole time. I was nervous she was going to see me walking down the aisle and yell ,"mommy," but there was none of that. I have never been in a wedding downtown and this is the 7th wedding I have stood up in so it was really fun. The trolly was a great time, the pictures we took in Lincoln Park Zoo are going to be awesome, the food at the reception was great, and everyone danced the night away to a variety of fun tunes such as NKOTB's Covergirl. Oh and I almost forgot to mention that at 11:00 p.m. because the Hyatt Lodge reception hall is located at the McDonald's headquarters in Oakbrook, they came out with platters full of cheeseburgers for everyone and passed them out as the waitresses danced around in their cheeseburger hats to Cheeseburger in Paradise by Jimmy Buffet. Overall, it was a great wedding and I wish Melissa and Joe all the best in their future together!

Maddy's 1st Day of School

2008-08-06T10:00:00.004-05:00

Ok, well it is really daycare but we are calling it school. I dropped Maddy off around 10:00 a.m. yesterday morning for her very first day at, Ready Set Grow, a new daycare that just opened up in Darien. Her teacher said she had a great first day playing with the other toddlers, making her very first art project with fingerpaints (as see above hanging proudly on our refridgerator), singing songs and dancing. Mommy was most worried about Maddy laying down and actually sleeping, but she took a nap for an hour and a half which isn't bad at all for her first time sleeping on a cot. She needed some encouragement when it came to eating, in fact they had to help her use the spoon, which is kind of funny because at home she doesn't allow us to help her with anything! She is very capable of using the spoon and fork on her own so I think she has them fooled, at least for now. Overall I think it went really well. Joe said she was really exhausted when he picked her up and went to bed right at 7:00 p.m.. She must have been tired because this morning she didn't wake up until 8:30 a.m., talk about a good nights rest!

Petey's Shower

2008-08-04T11:11:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was a fun day as I spent the afternoon at Ela's baby shower. Petey got a lot of fun stuff and I think that mom and dad have their work cut out for them getting everything organized and ready for his arrival. I cant wait to see his nursury when it is all done, because knowing Ela and her good taste, it will be super cute! Maddy was unable to attend the shower as she spent the afternoon with Joe, but I did show her a picture and try to explain that Auntie Ela has a baby in her tummy. That concept I am fairly certain is not yet understood. But Katie Drain was there and seemed to understand to the best of her ability what it was that we were actually celebrating. Congrats to Ela and Paul, and oh, I almost forgot to mention that the food was really yummy and today I am kind of wishing that I had taken some home with me!

Let's Hear it for the Boys!

2008-08-04T11:07:00.002-05:00

Yesterday I found out some very exciting news that our good friends, Tracy and Cory, will be having a baby boy come December! We are so happy for them and can't wait to meet their new little bundle of joy when he arrives. I have a feeling that he and Peter Baio will be good friends since they will be born so close in age. Just like Maddy and Camryn!

One more month of being 1

2008-08-01T22:05:00.003-05:00

Now that it is August it just dawned on me that Maddy only has one more month before she is officially two years old. I cant even express in words how fast this year has gone by and how much she has grown. It really is amazing what one year does in the developmental process. Well, I think Maddy loved being 1, and I think she will love being 2 too! Now when I ask her, "how old are you going to be?" she says, "two!" She really is such a big girl.

Daddy and Maddy

2008-08-01T21:52:00.002-05:00

Everyday I ask Maddy, "are you mommy's girl?" and her reply is, "no daddy." And then I say, "your a daddy's girl?" and she says, "yes!"

Camryn's B-day Party

2008-08-01T21:48:00.005-05:00

Auntie Ela was nice enough to just e-mail us some pictures she took at Camryn's second Birthday party. Maddy had so much fun playing with Camryn! I think her favorite part though was that she got her very own ice cream cone. She is a girl who loves her sweets! Now we are counting down the days to Maddy's second Birthday. Invitations should be arriving soon!

More Pudding Please....

2008-08-01T21:41:00.005-05:00

Maddy had chocolate pudding for the first time as a reward for eating all her dinner the other night. As you can see, she thought it was yummy!

Say Cheese!

2008-08-01T21:38:00.002-05:00

Maddy's Cheese face is priceless. It makes me laugh out loud everytime she does it! And the fact that she yells, "Cheese," at the same time is even more funny.

Long Beach Indiana

2008-08-01T21:32:00.006-05:00

As some of you know Joe and I were on vacation last week, not gone on vacation somewhere, more like home on vacation. Anyways, one of the days we went to Long Beach Indiana to Joe's sisters in-laws summer home. Maddy had a blast hanging out with all her big cousins again. She also loved walking with her daddy on the beach, eating cookies with her auntie Debbie and playing in the sand and water.

Picnic

2008-07-13T21:00:00.008-05:00

Today was a beautiful July day and we spent it with the Drains at a forest preserve park nearby. We saw horses that just happened to be trotting by, we grilled lunch, we played T-ball, and we went fishing, and we took some cute pictures in the process of it all. Another very eventful summer day for Miss. Madelyn. The weather could not have been more perfect for our picnic!

So Happy Together

2008-07-13T18:57:00.003-05:00

Maddy has recently learned to say Mikey, and she says it over and over and over. She kind of says it with a southern drawl too.....like.......Mi-keeeeeeeey! It is really very funny!

Fun in the Sun!

2008-07-13T18:53:00.006-05:00

My sister just e-mailed me these pictures from a few weeks ago......we are trying to make Maddy into a water baby, but so far it is not her favorite thing to do! MIkey on the other hand dives right into the ice cold water and loves it.

Fun on the 4th

2008-07-05T22:39:00.018-05:00

Happy 4th of July everyone!

I drank lots and lots of water!

I jumped in the moon bouncer and played ring around the rosey.....I was being very cute mommy said!

I learned to go down the slide all by myself and as you can see my daddy, Va Va and Gram were all very excited about this!

My big cousins Va Va and Mike are very cool! I love spending

time with them!

I swam with my daddy and cousin Kelly. The water was really cold at first, but then I got use to it.

I ate lots of watermelon!

Kelly and Allison pulled me in my wagon in the Friars

Cove Parade...this was my first debut in a parade.

We had a very busy, but very fun fourth of July. The day began with Maddy and Mommy watching the Darien parade, just a walk down the block from our new house. Then we ventured to Auntie Debbie's house where her sub-division, Friars Cove, hosts a big 4th of July extravaganza. Maddy had a blast hanging out with her big cousins! We wrapped up the day at a neighbors BBQ and watched some fireworks from our culdasac. Maddy went to bed at about 9:30 p.m. which was much past her bedtime, but she just didn't want to miss a thing. Overall, it was a very nice holiday and because it is always so eventful we look forward to it each and every year.

Wrigley's New Summer Hair-do

2008-07-05T22:33:00.005-05:00

Wrigley is cool as a cucumber now that we got him shaved for the summer. He is one handsome pooch...isn't he? As you can see Maddy is a big fan of the new haircut.

Day at the Zoo!

2008-06-29T21:42:00.009-05:00

This past Saturday after I got home from work we decided to make our way over to Brookfield Zoo. It wasn't the best zoo day becuase we didn't get there until 4:00 p.m. and then realized the zoo was only open until 6:00 p.m. Mommy spent most of her time taking pictures and daddy was in charge of showing Maddy all the animals. Maddy did love seeing the monkeys, riding the carousel and watering the plants in the greenhouse at the Childrens zoo. We will have to go back again before the summer is over so we can see a bit more. Our niece Alison tagged along too!

Playdate with Avery Jayne

2008-06-29T21:35:00.008-05:00

Avery, Wilson and their mommy Quinn came over this past Friday and spent the whole day visiting. Maddy was so excited to have a baby all to herself...and as you can see she was all over her like white on rice. Kissing, holding, laying, hugging....you name it! Maddy loves her new girlfriend!

While Mommy Was Gone.........

2008-06-23T11:26:00.006-05:00

Maddy had a fun filled weekend with her daddy. Daddy did a great job of entertaining Maddy and certainly kept her busy and out of trouble. On Saturday they went grocery shopping, then to Camryn and Uncle Cory's for a play date, and then even paid a visit to Gram and Papa V. And on Sunday Daddy took Maddy downtown to the Lincoln Park Zoo and the beach! This was Maddy's third visit to downtown Chicago, but first visit to both of those places. Joe said she had a ton of fun looking at all the animals and dipping her toes into Lake Michigan. Maddy is very lucky to have such a fun daddy! He even remembered to take some pictures too!

Back from North Carolina!

2008-06-23T10:56:00.009-05:00

Last night Ela, Tracy and I safely returned home from our very first visit to North Carolina. It wasn't as long of a visit as we would have liked, but it was great to finally get to meet Madison Lynn. She is a really good little baby girl and I just loved her. Our trip began with a wonderful BBQ at Missy and Chris's house, then all of girls headed out to get some mani's and pedi's, then we were on our way to a local mall when we had to pull over because we got stuck in a really bad storm (we are talking nickle sized hail and big trees falling...we were all pretty convinced there was a tornado headed in our direction) . We finally made it to the mall and did a bit of shopping. I sold Missy on a cute Fourth of July outfit to get for Madison, similar to the one I got Maddy. And then convinced both Missy and Tracy to purchase my favorite Philosophy lip gloss. After that we enjoyed a nice dinner at Champs and all split a rather large desert (Petey, Ela's baby boy and baby Hadaway definately enjoyed that I am sure). By the time we came home we were all pretty tired so we headed to bed to get a good night's sleep before Madison's big day.

Madison was then Baptized on Sunday, and as you can see mommy and daddy were both very proud, as so was her Godmother. After that we headed back to "Casa de Barry" for yet another wonderful meal and a few hours of relaxation and good converation on their screened in porch. Chris and Missy were very gracious hosts as always, and did a great job entertaining us as well as all their guests. Thanks so much you guys, I really had fun, and cant wait to visit again hopefully sooner than later!

I Like to Have My Cake and Eat it too!

2008-06-06T11:50:00.006-05:00

Maddy craved sweets even in her mommy's tummy and apparently still loves them!

Gymnastics Fun!

2008-06-06T11:28:00.006-05:00

I present to you two members of the 2022 olympic gymnastic team......Madelyn Ventimiglia and Camryn Hadaway! As you can see we have started our tumbling class and what could be more fun than sliding, jumping, rolling and swinging from the bars! Today Maddy reached for the bar on her tippy toes, grabbed on and tucked her legs up all by herself. The girls had a blast and were quite tired when it was all said and done. What a fun playdate!

Some news we have all been waiting for...........

2008-06-03T21:51:00.003-05:00

It's a boy!!!!!!!!!!!!........... for our very good friends Ela and Paul Baio that are expecting in October. I was thrilled with excitment when I heard the news, it's about time someone has a boy right????????? We just cannot wait to meet him when he arrives! I had to share the good news and publish a very special congratulations to both of them and their families!

Baby Watson has arrived!

2008-05-29T22:17:00.002-05:00

Congratulations so Adam and Alicia on the arrival of Mallory Shae Watson. Mallory was born on Monday May 16th and was 8 pounds 6 ounces. Maddy is very happy to have another girlfriend born into this world and we look forward to meeting Mallory very soon!

Katie's Princess Party

2008-05-29T22:04:00.005-05:00

Unfortunately these pictures are not from Katie's kids princess party but from her family party the day after. Katie turned four on May 15th and as you can see she is looking quite grown up in her cinderella gown.

Maddy meets Avery!

2008-05-29T21:55:00.008-05:00

These pictures are from a few weeks ago, but Maddy finally got to meet her new best friend Avery Jayne. She was very curious and intrigued by her as you can see by the pictures and I am pretty sure Maddy thought Avery was just like one of her baby dolls. We had much fun spending the afternoon with both Avery and her mommy and daddy. Avery is adorable as you can all see and we are looking forward to many more play dates to come!

Maddy's very first Graduation/ Looking back on the last 20 months!

2008-05-07T22:20:00.022-05:00

Maddy was just over 4 pounds in this picture

Ugh, I don't miss those cords at all!

Maddy's first Christmas

First Easter

First 4th of July

Just too cute not to add to this post

Here and now

Hi friends! Today is a very exciting day for Joe and myself as we got the wonderful news that Maddy no longer needs to go for checkups/evaluations at the hospital. For the last year and a half we have gone back every three months or so, so that the neonatologist, the speech therapist and the occupational therapist could evaluate Maddy's development. Today they had such great things to say about her and we couldn't have been more thrilled. Maddy is officially 20 months old as of this past Sunday, technically though they evaluate her according to her due date which means she should be performing as that of a 17 month old. What was so exciting though is that her speech and language skills are right at 20 months (with a vocabulary of about 50 words so far) and her gross and fine motor skills better yet are that of a 22 month old which is awesome, we kind of figured they had to be advanced because she is extremely extremely active. Her height measures in the 95th percentile and her weight in the 75th (she is definately a skinny little thing), but all things considered and from where she started she has exceeded all the doctors expectations which is the best news we could have heard. She really has come a long way in her short life thus far! Here are some pictures that remind us of that.....

Star of the Show!

2008-05-04T21:06:00.010-05:00

This Sunday the whole family gathered to attend Katie's first dance recital. As you can probably tell by the costume Katie is wearing, she danced a ballet number. Unfortunately because she is still only three her song was the shortest of all the dances performed, but especially cute as all the girls danced to, "oh Suzana" while the audience clapped along to the beat. Afterwards we went to Red Robin for an early dinner and took some fun pictures there while we munched on some very yummy cheeseburgers. Then we headed back to Katie's house to play. Overall it was a very fun eventful day for the Drains, the Ventimiglias and the Stouts. We look forward to many dance recitals in the future for both Katie and Maddy.

The Best of Friends

2008-04-30T14:52:00.008-05:00

It seems everyone is always asking me how Wrigley and Maddy get along with one another.....I think these pictures say it all. They are best buds as you can see!

Exciting News!

2008-04-23T21:10:00.004-05:00

I just wanted to share with everyone the exciting news, which is that today, I was asked to be Madison Lynn Barry's Godmother. I feel very honored to have been chosen by Missy and Chris out of all of their many dear and close friends. I am looking forward very much to going to visit them in June, and getting to meet Madison on the weekend of her baptism. I will make sure to take many pictures to post so that everyone can see how much Madison has grown since I e-mailed her newborn pictures.

Another Beautiful Day!

2008-04-23T14:42:00.005-05:00

What could possibley be better than a sunny 72 degree day, and already in addition to a few really beautiful days. Maddy and I started the day with a nice early walk, around 7:30-ish, then came home and played outside, came and played inside, then it was time for nap (for Maddy of course), and then after about 2 good hours of sleep, she woke up ate lunch and we were outside yet again. Keep these sunny warm days coming is what I say!

A Day at the Park!

2008-04-21T16:11:00.012-05:00

Yea.....I am finally getting around to putting up a new post. With the beautiful weather we have been outside everyday, so there hasn't been much time for a new update. Hopefully some of you are still checking in just to see if there is anything new going on. Finally today I remembered to bring my camera with me! We spent a lovely afternoon at the park where Maddy had so much fun climbing, swinging and running......she certainly tired me out, and I think we both worked up our first sweat of the summer. Her cheeks were bright red when we got home and she chugged a sippy of ice cold milk. There is truly nothing better for an active toddler than a lot of fresh air, which then equates to a really good long nap, which is what Maddy is doing right now as I type this.

Easter 2008

2008-03-23T21:32:00.011-05:00

Easter was fun filled this year with a whole day of eating, hunting for Easter eggs, opening Easter baskets (3 of them to count), and fun with the family. We started out the day by meeting the Drains and the Stouts for brunch in the morning. The Easter bunny made an appearance there but it didn't go over to well again, as you can see. Then we headed to our house afterwards where Katie helped Maddy find all the Easter Eggs the Easter Bunny hid that Maddy could not find herself. Then all the kids searched high and low for their Easter baskets, eventually finding them, opening them and playing with their new toys all day long. Joe's family then arrived around 3:00 to share in the festivities. Maddy recieve many more Easter gifts from her Auntie Debbie and cousins and Gram and Papa V. (Joe and I were joking at the end of the day that Easter was like having a second Christmas....Did anyone else feel that way??????) And then we ate some more. Maddy wore her dress all day and looked absolutely adorable in it, as you can also see.......10 minutes into having it on we did get a little chocolate on it but mommy got it out right away. It is fun having a house now and being able to host family events with everyone. We think everyone had a really great time, and we did too!

Mommy's 29th Birthday

2008-03-23T21:22:00.008-05:00

On Saturday we celebrate mommy's 29th Birthday. We went to Grandpa and Grandma Stout's house, ordered dinner out, had cake and opened presents. At first mommy wasn't so enthusiastic about turning 29 but then she realized she better make the most of the last year she has in her 20's. Somehow I think the smile Maddy gets when everyone sings Happy Birthday, because she always thinks we are singing for her, will help to keep mommy young. Thank you to everyone for all the nice cards, phone calls, e-mails etc. I am so lucky to have so many wonderful friends!

Auntie Ela and Uncle Paul's House

2008-03-16T23:28:00.014-05:00

This weekend we paid a long overdue visit to Auntie Ela and Uncle Paul's house. Maddy had so much fun playing video games with the boys (and watching them drink their oversized beers, as you can see), while mommy and Auntie Ela chatted away. Be sure to check out Maddy's very cool vintage style t-shirt, which highlights Dirty Dancings famous phrase, Nobody puts baby in the corner. Auntie Ela gave this to Maddy and Maddy made sure to pick it out special to wear on this very day. Maddy had so much fun and her mommy and daddy did too!

Easter Bunny Terror

2008-03-02T19:06:00.002-06:00

This past Saturday morning we took Maddy to the mall to find her Easter Dress, and much to our surprise, we totally forgot the Easter Bunny was going to be there for pictures. We were the third customers in line as the Easter Bunny started to head our way. The look on Maddy's face at first was filled with utter curiosity and astonishment....but as you can see that turned into pure terror (so the picture shows). This happened immediately as Joe sat Maddy on the Easter Bunny's lap. We snapped a quick picture and chuckled at her reaction. And for the rest of our afternoon at the mall if we even so much headed in the direction the Easter Bunny was in she would start to cry. The picture is kind of hard to see but you get the jist.

Sleepover Fun!

2008-02-25T12:16:00.013-06:00

It was another busy weekend in the Ventimiglia household as Maddy's two youngest cousins Katie and Mikey arrived for a sleepover. The evening was jam packed full of fun with an itinerary including; playing, dinner, more playing, some mischief, Little Einsteins, coloring, vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup....oh and did I mention some babbas and diaper changes in the mix of all that? Have three to tend to is a true test of your parenting skills. Trying to get all three to pose for a picture is a true test of your photography skills. I think we did the parenting part well, the posing for pictures, just o.k. Fortunately grandpa and grandma Stout provided some reinforcement so the adults officially outnumbered the children. This was especially helpful as we tried to get them all in their jammies, in bed, and sound asleep. Needless to say at the crack of down the next morning the house was active once again.

Check out my new playroom!

2008-02-20T18:56:00.005-06:00

We have finally finished Maddy's playroom. After many grand ideas about what to do, some of which included a painted mural on the wall, we kept it simple.....some curtains, some pictures and of course, many many toys! The only stipulation that Joe placed on the decoration of this room was that it was not covered with the color pink, flowers, and what he called girly decor. These rules were put into place in the future hopes that maybe in a couple of years a baby boy would be playing in there too. This space is particularly important to us because it means there are not toys in every other room in the house. This room was one of the main reasons we bought the house we did. I specifically wanted a room off the family room solely for this purpose. Maddy spends a lot of time in there cooking in her huge kitchen, playing with her dolls, and reading lots of books. You can catch a glimpse of it by checking out the pictures!