Emily Sings to Madison

Some nights when Sondra is rocking Madison to sleep, Emily come in and sings "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" to help her fall asleep.

Even when Emily was in her ultra-defiant phase, she would sometimes sneak into Maddy's room when she thought we weren't looking, stand on her stool at the crib rail, look over and sing to Maddy as she lay there.

Twinkle is significant because it is the very first song Emily ever sang. I have a short video of her singing it to herself when she was about 2. If you can picture Emily laying on the floor with a musical book laying over her face, pressing the button that played the music over and over so she could keep singing - you can picture the video.

Hugs and Kisses in the Morning - YAH!

The days of "no hugs and kisses" are behind us. She gives me hugs and kisses every morning before I leave.

Tonight after throwing a major tantrum minutes before beditme, she still wanted hugs and kisses from me.

Emily Dresses Herself

To encourage decision making, we let Emily pick her outfit every day. Some days she puts on shirts and pants that have no business being worn together. I can't wait for her to see pictures of these outfits when she's a finicky teen.

Maddy Demonstrates

Maddy loves to pick up items around the house and demonstrate how they are used. Today she scooted across the carpet, gabbed the phone from the floor, held it to her ear and said, "HI."

Maddy Calls Me "Ma-Ma"

"Ma-Ma" has become her generic word for parent. Sondra is "MA-MA" and I am "ma-ma."

Maddy Eats Suds

If the bath is full of suds, Maddy likes to get a scoop in her hand and chow down. Then she'll pick up the bath toys and lick the suds off of them. Yummy.

Maddy Knows Her Body Parts

She'll point to most of them when you ask her where they are. When you ask her where her eye is she'll point and say "eye." It is the clearest word she says consistently aside from "ma ma."

Maddy Loves a Good Nose Dive

Walking? No.

Falling forward, making a nose dive into your chest laughing the entire way down - that's Maddy's style.

It's funny to watch because she makes no attempt to walk. She just throws her arms out in front of herself and smiles.

Special Features

Emily likes to watch the special features on DVDs. She is currently hooked on an alternate ending to The Little Mermaid. She calls it "Eric Drowning" and we watch it every night before bedtime. Mind you this it not a completed cartoon but a series of penciled storyboards put to music.

Asleep at the Wedding

Emily's bedtime story must include a part when she marries Eric the Prince. Tonight she was especially tired...

Emily - "I think I fell asleep at the wedding."
Papa - "You fell asleep at your wedding?"
Emily - "Ya, they better save me some cake."

Priceless.

Maddy Plays Games

Some mornings when Maddy is sitting next to me in bed I pull the comforter over my, head and pretend to hide. Maddy likes to pull the sheet off of my head a giggle because she found me.

This morning before hiding I would say, "Bye Maddy" and she waived bye-bye to me as I pulled up the blanket. The when she uncovered me, instead of giggling, she would lean down and give me a kiss.

We played this game over 10 times because I just couldn't get enough! :)