Christmas Cookies

Not realizing the truly disastrous effects on our kitchen, we decided to bake and decorate Christmas cookies with Maddie this year. Even with the cookie dough being pre-made the kitchen looked like a sprinkle explosion.

Gingerbread House

We made a gingerbread house together this Christmas. Here is the finished product out of the decorating hands of Maddie (with some help from Mommy and Daddy)

Drum Set

We bought Maddie a small drum set with some Christmas money that she got a little early. She absolutely loves playing on that thing. Luckily it is small and not too loud. Here is a short video of her playing it.

Trimming our Christmas Tree

We set up our Christmas tree last night and Maddie was so excited she could barely contain herself. Christmas is definitely going to be a blast this year. 3 and a half year olds are so much fun. We had a great idea for Maddie to put the Santa at the top of the tree..however she wanted nothing to do with it after Steve started lifting her up to the top..too high for her liking, I guess.

Bass Pro

We went to Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World a couple of weeks ago to check out the huge Christmas display that they had. We were really impressed..it was beautiful and they had a lot for kids to do. Maddie had a blast sliding down the "ice" slide, which she probably did about 50 times, riding on the train, and trying to shoot a crossbow (with suction darts!). She is still a little wary of Santa Claus..so I don't know if we will get a picture with her on his lap this year. So far every year has been unsuccessful. Her biggest fear has always been people in masks and costumes. If she can see their face she is usually fine, but if it is at all covered up she gets scared. Oh well, maybe next year we can finally start the tradition of getting a picture on Santa's lap!

Guitar Hero

Steve recently bought Guitar Hero for the Playstation 3. Maddie likes "playing" it as much as he does. She especially likes playing the song "Living on a Pear" by Bon Jovi. :)

Trick or treat 2009

Our neighbors had a Halloween party this year and it was a lot of fun. Afterwards the kids all went trick or treating around the neighborhood. Maddie did such a great job of going up to the houses all by herself to get the candy..until someone with a huge skeleton mask on scared her. Then she refused to go up by herself and wanted to be carried everywhere. Oh well, it was good while it lasted.


Maddie in her Tinkerbell costume at the party

Maddie and Daddy built a popsicle stick boat together and sailed it down a nearby river. It did pretty well until it hit some rapids. Hopefully the next one they do together will last longer in the water. Maddie had fun collecting some shells to add to her collection as well.






I don't know why she is making this face, but this is what her faces are looking like lately whenever I take her picture.

Trick or Treat at school

Maddie recently got to wear her Tinkerbell costume to preschool (she goes to preschool at the college I teach at). They went trick or treating to all of the buildings on campus. She had so much fun seeing her friends in their costumes and showing off hers to her friends and her teachers.

Dress up shoes and pajamas..which are Maddie's favorite wardrobe choice lately.

Wacky World

We spent a rainy Saturday morning at Wacky World. Maddie didn't want to go in the big inflatables by herself, but she loved going through them with Mommy and Daddy.

Maddie the artist

Maddie got an art easel as one of her birthday presents this year. It has a chalkboard and a dry erase side to it. But she especially loves to paint on it. We are just glad that there is no carpet in her playroom!

Conservation Center

We recently visited the Springfield Nature Conservation Center to take a walk on the trails and try to spot some wildlife. We didn't see much except a turkey and some squirrels, however we managed to see some frogs in the wetland area. Maddie is very much a dawdler when it comes to walking. She has to stop and look at EVERYTHING. It definitely takes a lot of patience to take a walk with her and it was a challenge to keep her ON the trails. She loves to be outside, though, so it was a great little visit. We look forward to going back during fall when all the trees are different colors.

Maddie's massive playroom

We both think Maddie has way too many toys!

Jordan Valley Park fountains

We recently went to Jordan Valley Park in Springfield to play in the fountains. Maddie was a little wary of them at first but after 15 minutes or so she really got into it and ended up having a blast. We plan on taking a picnic lunch there the next time. It really is a beautiful park.

Maddie turns 3!!!

Well, I can hardly believe that another year has gone by and that Maddie is 3 years old now. No longer a toddler, she is on her way to becoming a little girl. We had her party at a pizza place in Ozark, MO. We had our own party room and there was a game room for the kids to play in. The theme for her party was Dora..her current obsession. She had a great time with all her friends and liked eating the cake and pulling the strings on the pinata and of course, getting the candy. She received many nice gifts with most of it being Dora or Barbie related.
This year has been truly a year of major milestones for Maddie and she has grown and changed so much over the past year. This past year she:
1. has moved into a big girl bed
2. potty trained herself
3. has developed the most astounding vocabulary for a little kid. Seriously..is scrutinize a normal part of a 2 year old's vocabulary?
4. draws pictures with much more detail than before. She can draw stick people, suns, and various other pictures.
5. learned how to pedal a tricycle and now has a big girl bike with training wheels
6. has really developed an impressive imagination and really creates some involved scenarios when she plays
7. has continued to be an all-around good mannered kid. She has her moments but so far no age of hers has been "terrible". I hope this continues because we sure have gotten lucky with her.

This year will prove to be a year of change too as she will be starting preschool at the college where I teach. I am sure she will learn even more this year!