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Its official. The holidays are over. Spence is back at work and I am back to our routine. Though I don't mind the routine, I am sad for it all to be over.

Madelyn had been asking for and anticipating a "Cindewella pwesent", and when she opened her dress ups with "glass slippas" she was in heaven. It showed by the fact that she wore her sleeping beauty dress for three days in a row. We had lots of tea parties with her new tea set, and one special tea party that Grandma Loveless put on for all the little girl cousins.

Visiting Temple square was an especially fun night for me. I had been looking forward to it all season and we finally made it the Monday after Christmas. It wasn't too crowded or too cold. I just loved being there with my family.

Every year there is an assortment of homemade gifts (my sister-in-law Meghan makes some of the best). Spencer's family draws names and we make a gift for the person we draw. Spence got two pair of mittens, one daddy size and one little baby boy size. (We were very inpressed with our brother-in-law's, beau, ability to knit.) Now he and the boy (who we still don't have a name for) can be matchy matchy. And from my sister-in-law Mandy, I recieved a "quiet book" to help with the kiddos in church. I love the homemade gifts, and next year I would love to do more.

The thing I will miss very most of all is having Daddy home. I loved not having a schedule (most days). I loved being the mom and having Spence by my side being the dad.The best times were in the mornings when Spence would get up with Madelyn before I was awake and I would come down to them playing on the computer together, watching a movie, or Spence making his girls breakfast.

And the below video is my favorite of all the season. We made my mom and dad a little "i love you" video and Madelyn recorded this for them. You should watch it, it is pretty darn cute.

"Do you like my turkey?"

"Do you like my turkey?" is what Madelyn asks every time she notices her paper turkey hanging on the fridge. She was one happy little girl when she got to make her own thanksgiving turkey. She couldn't wait to show her dad when he got home from work, and the next morning when she woke up the first thing she said, in that sleepy barely awake voice, was, "I want my turkey". So every time she asks, "Do you like my turkey?" we of course respond with various comments about just how amazing her paper turkey is.

I am especially enjoying this holiday season with Madelyn. She gets so excited about the little things (like homemade paper turkeys). Watching her play with her cousins on Thanksgiving made me so happy. Between jumping on grandma's bed, playing dress up and bouncing around on Grandpa's knee I think she had a fabulous thanksgiving, which made made me enjoy it just that much more.

Oh, did I mention...

...baby number 2 is on the way!

23 weeks and counting

Its a BOY!!

I should have known it was a boy based on the massive appetite I have had

During his ultrasound I couldn't stop smiling - that day was a really great day

Madelyn wants to name him Emily

I am already in love with the little guy and wish that we had a name for him

I decided I like being the mother of two

A Really REALLY Fantastic Idea

What is the idea you ask? Its a dinner group.

My neighbor, and good friend, decided it would make her life a whole lot easier if she invited three other families to be in a dinner group where we would each take one night every week and make dinner for all four families, and then deliver that dinner to each family. Which means that three nights a week I would have dinner delivered to me and I would only have to cook once a week. Sounded great to me....and turns out that it is great!

We have been doing it for about three months now and I seriously can't say enough good things about it. Like I said, I only have to cook once a week! The four families are all within a few houses of mine, and each family is similar in size. We had an initial meeting where we discussed foods that family members wouldn't eat, and other than broccoli, onions, mayonnaise and pineapple (yes, pineapple...isn't that weird) we make whatever we want.

The meals have been really good. And the best part is the variety of food we are getting and the quality. Because we each only have to cook once a week it is a lot easier to make a nice and delicious meal with sides that actually go with the main dish.

Another great benefit is that our monthly grocery expenses have decreased. I do not have to buy as many ingredients where we won't be able to use the entire package, and because we have good left overs Spencer goes out to lunch less and we eat more left overs on the weekend instead of eating out or making new food (though we still enjoy eating out.)

Each family purchased some disposable Tupperware which we use to transfer food for a lot of our meals. And when I am not home in time for dinner, my fantastic friends deliver dinner to my fridge so it is ready for us when we do get home.

I meant to take a picture of my massive pot of home made Mac 'n Cheese (not my most sophisticated meal, but very yummy), but I forgot because sometimes cooking for four families can be a little crazy, but I would say that it is definitely worth it. And after doing this for a few months I am getting better at cookie larger quantities.

My dinner for tonight should be here any time. We are having spiced citrus chicken, and tomorrow we are having stroganoff. Sounds good to me.

So there you have it, being in a dinner group is a really fantastic idea.

Ode To The Dum Dum

Since Madelyn is not yet the poet she hopes to be one day she asked if she could show her Ode instead of write it.

If she could write an ode it would probably start out something like, "Oh how I love you yellow dum dum. You have made my day complete."

Our first "incident"

I really wondered when it would be. I figured we couldn't get through Madelyn's toddlarhood without her coloring on something.

It wasn't that big of deal because it was just chalk, but it was Madelyn's response that made me want to remember this "incident".

I was coming down the stairs from getting ready to go to my cousin's bridal shower and I heard Madelyn say in a very loud voice, "Color, pitty". I knew that meant she had colored on something, and since she wasn't at the table I was very curious to know where she had just colored and with what. Turns out it was the sides of the Island in the kitchen with the already mentioned tool, chalk.

I started with, "Oh no, Madelyn". That hurt her feelings. She put a pouty face on and looked at me from under her drooping head and furrowed eyebrows. She wasn't responding the way I wanted so I changed my approach to, "Madelyn, It is very pretty, but we are only supposed to use chalk outside." I could see the light bulb go on. her face lightened when she realized that it wasn't the art work that I didn't like...just the chosen location of the art work. She grabbed the dish towel hanging a few feet away and began to wipe off the chalk. I was pretty proud of her for understanding...and completely relieved it was just chalk.

(The North end of the Island)

(The South end of the Island where I found Madelyn)

Life Is Good...

... and busy (this could possibly be a very long post.) This summer Madelyn and I have been spending a couple of days each week babysitting these three kiddos while their mama goes to nursing school. Darius, Peyton and Maya. They have kept me busy and Madelyn completely entertained. I have really enjoyed spending time with my nieces and nephew, (and loved getting to know their little personalities). When I have not been busy babysitting it seems like I have plenty of cleaning and yard work to fill my time. (Speaking of yard work, we have been doing A WHOLE lot of it and I am excited to post the end of summer result. Give us another month or so.)
So between the above mentioned activities and other summer activities like weekend family trips, and other such things, my time has been pretty filled.

The below picture is up at Spencer's cabin in Paradise, Ut. This was taken after a day of boating. After we ate dinner we came to the stream to throw rocks. It was probably Madelyn's favorite activity, that and spotting cows as we drove through town. When she would see one she would say, "Anada one, cow!"

So, I didn't want to miss documenting Madelyn's 2nd birthday. She turned two on June 29th(Yes, this deserves a post in and of itself, but I really have been busy. ) We partied at grandma and grandpa Stephenson's house (we would have had the party at our huse, but we had just laid sod and didn't want to mess it up). She got to have her cousins and two of her little friends, Lukie and Elaina from the neighborhood, come. Among many other gifts, Madelyn got a bike that she was very exctied about. She is still pretty excited about it. She was constantly saying that she wanted to ride the neighbors bikes so we thought it was about time she got her own. And check out the cake. I thought it turned out pretty cute for no before hand planning.

This is Lukie, Madelyn and Elaina. M plays with these two kiddos the most. They are her best little friends in the neighborhood. I really won't be surprised if we are looking back at this picture when these kids are graduating high school.

Madelyn turned two and now she is growing up before my eyes. She is much more independent these days (as independent as a two year old gets.) She will play be herself more often than she used to and she is getting pretty good at make believe play.

I took the below picture after Madelyn had yelled to me, "Mommy, I show you." She was pretty proud of her tower of blocks.

Have I mentioned how absolutely girly this child is becoming. Lately she wants Cinderella, "seeping boody", and the "princess show" (which is Enchented). She loves putting on her dresses. If there is something specific that we want her to wear, and she doesn't necessarily want to put it on, we just have to tell her how cute it is and then she wants to wear it.

The other day we were watching Princess and the Frog and it was near the end where they get married. Madelyn said to Spence, "Daddy, they got ma-yeed," she paused then said, "I wan get ma-yeed".

Many a morning Madelyn will say "a paint a toe nails". She wants her toenails painted as often as we will do it. Spencer is the one the paints them the most often. Isn't that cute?

This is right after a bath and before she had her hair done for church.

Mom did the hair while Daddy did the toenails and then they moved on to the fingernails.

I love that she is girly. It is really fun for me. This morning I had on flip flops and Madelyn said to me, "No flip flops, these shoes". I looked over to see her pointing to a pair of heels, which I wore around the house until it was time to go to the store.

There you go, there is the last couple of weeks in a nutshell.

Now how is that for a hodgepodge post?

Happy 4th

We BBQed.

We played.We watched fireworks.
And we sparklered. Happy 4th Everyone!!!

"Bes Fwend"

Last week Spence and I met at the elementary school to vote. I of course brought Madelyn with me. We voted and then headed back to the parking lot to get in our separate cars to go home. because Spence was enjoying playing with Madelyn after a day of work he took the time to walk us to my car. He got Madelyn in her car seat, told her he would see her at home, shut the door and started toward his own car. She looked out the window and pointed enthusiastically at her daddy and said, "Daddy, bes fwend". I felt like she knew exactly what she was saying. It was way cute to hear that come out of her almost two year old mouth.

I have mentioned before, little kids love Spence. I guess his own will be no exception.

SanDiego

Our trip to San Diego was the first "Loveless Family Trip" in years where everyone actually made it (with the exception of one sister-in-law who is currently battling morning sickness).

It was so relaxing. I love the trips where you just stay in one place and there is plenty to do whether you go sightseeing or just hangout at the Condo.

The below pictures are taken at the beach in front of the condo we stayed in, which was located in Oceanside.

Initially Madelyn wasn't too impressed with the beach. The first thing she said was, "I wan go home, I dirty". She quickly forgot about how dirty she was and dug right in.This is in La Jolla where we went to see tide pools and sea lions. We mostly just entertained Madelyn. Her Daddy was the star of the show. She thought he was tons of fun. You may notice that there is a picture in the bottom right of Spence with something that looks like bird poop on his head. It is bird poop. Seconds before the bird pooped on his head he mentioned that he was sure that someone (we were with my entire family) was going to get pooped on by one of the dozens of seagulls flying around. It was him.

And we don't know the dude in the top left corner, but I thought that, though the picture doesn't do it justice, it was still worthy of posting. This guy had a friend and they did some pretty cool tricks. Disneyland. It was great. I want to go back. It was a pretty low key day for Spence and I. We didn't try to do too many rides with Madelyn. We just enjoyed the food and the things we did do...like Toon Town, which was Madelyn's favorite. Oh, and we ate a whole lot of suckers...the entire trip.We did a few other things like tour the USS Midway, which is a giant battle ship the carries airplanes.
We watched movies, played games, painted toe nails, sat in the hot tub...It was great. Total there were 17 grand kids, 2 grandparents, 11 parents, and one little brother and a girl friend (I didn't get pictures of everyone). I loved watching all the little kids run around together. You can tell they all love each other. I can't wait until the next family trip when we are all together. Who knows when it will be.

Spring Is Finally Here...

...and I hope it is here to stay.

Mommy's Day

I would love it if Madelyn had to explain to her friends how I was such an amazing mom...

Truly, I hope you all have a wonderful mothers day.

Happy Spring...

...from the snowman on my front deck.

Oh So Sassy

I wanted to tell you about the Oh So Sassy, Etsy shop (if you don't already know about it). I made Madelyn this darling little dress. It was $18 including shipping. Yes, you can probably find a cheaper dress on sale somewhere, but if you are in the mood to make something for your little one this is a great choice. The instructions were very easy to follow. I love the material, and there are more so cute options.
And now I have a little Easter dress for her to wear. So fun.

This morning...

...I started to do the ironing while Madelyn ate her breakfast. It wasn't too long before this little girl had followed me, with her oatmeal, into the laundry room (where I had been standing literally 10 feet away from her). As you can see, she made a little table for herself with the laundry basket.
The other day, while Madelyn was eating her "cakes", or pancakes, I went upstairs to grab something. About 20 seconds after entering my bedroom in walked Madelyn with her plate of syrupy pancakes. She had gotten that plate of pancakes all the way up the stairs. I immediately wondered how much syrup had gotten on the carpet, though I wasn't able to see any (oh well, I guess we'll just get the carpets cleaned at some point).

She follows me everywhere. I must just be a really wonderful mom (that, or she doesn't know any better). What ever the case may be, she is a fun little pal.

For a Sweet Treat...

...go here to the Sister's Cafe. Yummy yummy.

Tuesday Shannon and I made the Oreo truffles featured below. So easy. It was a great time hanging out as sisters and making Valentines treats.

This yummy thing was for Valentine's dessert on Sunday. Look under Strawberries on the right side bar of the above link.
Love new recipes. So fun.

"I Help"

A couple of weeks ago I started sitting Madelyn in the kitchen window seal while I made dinner. One alternative would have been to hold her on my hip with one arm wrapped around her while attempting to cook with my free hand. before the "window seal days" Madelyn would push herself between me and the cupboard and say, "hold you, hold you" while slightly bouncing up and down and reaching up to me as far as she could.

Sometimes while I made dinner she would briefly play with her toys or have a snack at the table, but for the most part Madelyn just wanted to be where her mommy was, doing what her mommy was doing.

The first night of window seal sitting worked out rather well. Madelyn sat contently in the window seal and I gave her a snack and talked with her. She was happy being near me and I was happy having a little cooking pal. i loved that I was cooking with my little daughter.

Slowly she started to explore the window seal area. She now knows that the crackers and cereal are located slightly to her right in the cupboard that she can open because there are no child safety latches. She knows that she can get the canister of wheat open if she just holds onto the latch and shakes it, and that if she pokes hard enough in the candle her little finger will make a dent. From the window seal she can reach the hand sanitizer and soap and says, "hands, hands" while holding her hand under the dispenser and waiting for me to dispense some soap into her chubby, squishy, little hand. She then washes that chubby, squishy, little hand and proceeds to turn the water on and off, and on and off, and then trickle and full blast, and then on and off. You get the idea.

Last night she says, "I help". She squatted down by the half mixed biscuit dough and with a measuring spoon in hand she spooned flour onto the floor and counter while attempting to get it back in the bowl. She then got a chunk of the actual dough in her spoon and it flew with a plop onto the floor. I briefly got her to stop "helping" by reverting her attention back to the yummy cheerios that I had originally placed in the window seal. I hurried as fast as I could to get the biscuits into the oven so that there was nothing left to "help" with (good thing they were drop biscuits).

And so goes my life, one little mommy and one little "helper" right by her side.

Ohia Love

Well, it wasn't really Ohio that we loved. Other than the Airport, Wal-Mart and the local Costco we didn't see much of Ohio (from what I hear there really isn't much to see). What we did see was Ty (my brother), Meghan (my sister-in-law), Mckinlay (my darling niece), and one of the newest Loveless cousins, Eliza (another darling niece). We spent about a week running around with three little girls doing things like, playing with plastic food, watching my little pony movies and getting naps in when necessary. The trip was just fabulous. We were all a little sleep deprived (you know how it is trying to travel with a little child), but I really didn't mind. It was just so great to see Ty's family.

We made lots of good food which included an amazing meal for Ty's 30th birthday that was complete with an Ina Garten cheese cake without a single crack on the top. I was impressed with Ty and Meg's great food. I came home with four new recipes that i am so excited to make. (Maybe I'll share in another post... they are good.)

Meghan and I made matching Valentine outfits for the girls. I must say that my sister Meghan is one crafty woman. We were at the fabric store buying material to make blankets (which we also did while in Ohio) when Meghan suggested we make matching Valentines outfits for the girls. By that evening we had three little skirts with matching shirts. How fun and cute.
I loved hearing about Ty's day when he got home from work. I loved getting to know Meghan and my little nieces better. I loved that Madelyn got to make cookies with Mckinlay and Grandma. I can't wait to see them all again.

Thanks again for a wonderful trip. See you in May!

As of Late

As of late Madelyn will sometime insist on reading books herself as opposed to sitting on my lap and being read to. She just wants me to stand by her and replenish her book supply when she is finished with her current stack of books.

I do my house work in increments of minutes. Yesterday I was trying to sweep and wash the kitchen floor and it took me about three times as long as it would have if I didn't have a little helper who had one hand on the broom while I swept. Per Madelyn's instructions, we would sweep for a few seconds and then sweep the dirt into the dust pan and empty it into the trash...literally every few seconds. After sweeping Madelyn was done cleaning. No washing the floor for her. We then played kitchen and I would sneak away to try to finish washing the floor whenever she wasn't looking, but she would soon catch me and pull me back into the make believe world of plastic food and little plastic utensils.

A few days ago I put Madelyn at the table with some saltine crackers. I went upstairs for a few minutes to check something on the computer. when I was finished, I came down to crackers crunched all over the table and floor. The below picture doesn't do it justice. But the little angel helped clean up the mess. I don't mind her messes. She doesn't make that many (the below mess is a rare occurrence), and I love it when she will help me clean up when I ask her to.

We got to go to the aquarium with our cousins. Kylan (in the picture below) is a couple months older than Madelyn. I love these pictures of them together. I want her to be close with her cousins, so I love when we get to do things with them.

And last, but definitely not least are these pictures of daddy and Madelyn. Last Saturday morning Madelyn woke up earlier than usual. I went in to check on her and see if I could get her to go back to sleep. I was rocking her when we both heard her daddy come out of our bedroom. I heard him sit down at the top of the stairs and knew that he was waiting to see if Madelyn would go back to sleep or if he would get to hold her. Madelyn was looking at me as if to say, "So can I go get daddy or what?" I set her down and she went straight to her daddy who was waiting at the top of the stairs. I was happy that the camera was just a few feet away so I could grab this picture. These two love each other a lot.