Maddie, the Dog Whisperer....or squeeler

Miss Maddie has discovered she can communicate with dogs. I can't guarantee they are very receptive, but it does not stop her. It's been so fun to watch her become more cognizant and now befriend the dogs....especially Allie. Maddie reaches for, smiles at and squeels at the dogs. Behold the evidence (it's about 2 minutes long with random squeeling throughout and of course commentary by Max and me):

Bridal Shower - Britni

Last weekend, we went down to Georgetown for a bridal shower honoring my friend from High School, Britni. We also got some good family time with my mom and Poppy Shannon.

The blusing bride!
Madison meets Rory (in Lacey's belly)

This was right before we left and she was so conked out from the party festivities. A perfect cuddly opportunity.

Daddy, what silly voices you make....

We've been reading to Maddie since day 1. We read baby books, big people books and educational books with LOTS of BIG words (we've heard that the more words a baby hears in the first year, the better off they are educationally.....broader vocabulary, smarter, etc...and of course we'll do what we can to stimulate this mental development).

ANYWAYS - the reason I took this photo is because of this new thing Maddie does when you are reading to her. She'll sit in your lap and look at the book with you, then every ten seconds or so she'll jerk her head up and look at you. I don't know if it is because she wants to be reassured that it is us she hears, that we are still there or what. But it is one of my current favorite personality flares she has right now.

Reese the Protector

Handsome Black Bear, Reese, loves Maddie. In fact all the dogs do! I captured a few pictures of Reese sitting near Maddie while she played. We are crossing our fingers that the love is still there when she gets old enough to tug, ride and poke the dogs.

Happy Halloween!

Maddie's first Halloween, yay! She was not really cognizant of the outfit, the kids, etc., but we had a good time and I think she looked just 'beeeeeeee-autiful!'.

Our neighborhood is filled with kids and our neighbors have taken us under their wing. We spent the evening trick-or-treating with them and their kids......plus 10 other kids and their parents. It was fun and I forgot how fast little kids can run when motivated by candy!

We also got a sweet Halloween card from Grandmother (dad's mom). It had a Halloween ruler and a $1 bill. Maddie was so thrilled, she decided to put it in her piggy bank (okay, I did because I want to start practicing how I will teach her the value of saving.....a lesson I learned too late). :)

Tuckered out!