Howdy, Longhorns

On Labor Day we took a fun little roadtrip to the Fort Worth Stockyards. The Stockyards preseve Fort Worth's roots as a cattle town, with shops, museums, and a "real" cattle drive down the main street. We had a lovely time seeing the cows (and then eating some later that night!).

I think Emma liked the fake cows the best.

"The Wells Fargo wagon is a-comin' down the street..."

Dave and Emma befriend the locals.

Isn't this the cutest cowgirl you've ever seen?

Another pretty cowgirl.

Maddie was promoted to sitting up in the big stroller, and she was a happy camper all day long!

Emma demonstrating her long horns.

Here they come!

A close up. I love the one with the curly horns!



We got into a bit of trouble while we were there...but don't worry. Our friend who took the picture is a public defender and got us off. :)

Madeline: 4 Months

Miss Maddie turned 4 months old a couple of weeks ago. Here are her latest stats from the doctor:

Weight: 10.8 lbs (4th percentile--yes, you read that correctly)
Height: 25 inches (78th percentile)
Head: 15 inches (1st precentile)

Did you read those closely? Basically my baby has the physique of an anorexic supermodel. Rest assured, however, that she is on a growth curve (albeit a lightweight one) and is growing fine, proportionally. She is long and lean, her father's child for sure. When you compare it to last time, she shot up 2 inches in as many months, which may explain why her percentile went down in weight.

*Madeline continues to be a mellow second child. She goes with the flow for just about everything, as long as she is well fed. (I assure you, she does eat!)
*Maddie is beginning to sleep through the night (hallelujah)! She does still wake up maybe once a night but usually puts herself back to sleep within 5 minutes. She still eats in the middle of the night maybe once a week.
*Her sense of humor is growing and we love discovering new ways to make her laugh. A current favorite game: when I pretend to eat her toes or fingers.
*We recently promoted Maddie to the sitting position in the stroller and she loved it!
*Since she rolled over a few weeks ago, Madeline has become a mover and a shaker. It is no longer safe to lay her down on the couch, and if I put her on a bed it has to be in the very middle. With rolling and pivoting, my wiggly girl can move at least a foot in all directions.
*With her new mobility, her favorite place to spend time is on the floor where she can experiment. She will be happy there for almost an hour sometimes!
*She is beginning to show an interest in real food. The other night at dinner she even sucked on some asparagus (roasted with garlic and parmesan cheese, no less!) However, I'm going to hold back on solids for a little while since she is such a lightwight.
*Maddie has discovered her feet with vigor lately, and she can often be found holding them in her hands. They have made it into her mouth a few times, but I have yet to get a picture.

What's up with all the pictures?

This is how we usually find her--with something in her mouth!

Rollin', Rollin', Rollin'...

Two weeks ago (on August 11th, when she was approximately 3 1/2 months old), Madeline rolled over for the first time. I caught the second time on video:

(Excuse the fly. It is summer in Texas, after all.) Since then Maddie has become a rollin' queen. Which is both good and bad. She used to play contentedly on her gym mat, swatting at the rattles hanging above her. Now she spends most of her time rolling over! Sometimes she still gets her arms stuck and gets upset, but more and more she is enjoying being on her tummy. The other morning she even managed to roll over in her crib while still fully swaddled. Here is another video, taken today, of her improved skill:

Play that Patriotic Music, White Girl

I found this little gem while uploading things from the video camera. Emma sure enjoys a 4th of July parade!

Madeline's Blessing

A month ago we were in California with most of Dave's family. While we were there, we blessed Madeline and took some family pictures.

Us with Dave's parents, his brother, grandfather, and uncle

I think this might be the first picture with all of us since Madeline was born...

Dave blessed Maddie, with the help of his father, grandfather, and Uncle Gordon

Of course, Emma wanted her picture taken too. With Grandpoppy and Great-grandpoppy.

Emma and Grandmacita spent some quality time playing the piano and singing Primary songs.

Madeline: 3 Months

While we were in vacation in California, Maddie turned 3 months old. Of course, we had to wait until we were home with our props to do a photo shoot.

She is definitely NOT a newborn anymore. Here is a snapshot of Madeline at 3 months:
--She has become quite the smiley girl. She smiles most often at me, Mom (after all, I am her food source). Second most often she smiles at her big sister.
--Madeline will snuggle when she's tired, but for the most part she hates facing towards me when she's being held. She loves facing forward and looking at the world. We recently switched her to forward facing in the baby Bjorn carrier, and she is so busy looking at things I don't hear a peep from her.
--She will have an entire conversation (in "coos") with you when you get close and look into her eyes.
--Madeline learned how to deliberately find her fingers, which she often uses as a replacement for the pacifier.
--Maddie loves playing with her toys. She will often grab the toys that hang above her on her little gym and pull them to her mouth so she can lick them.
--She has started laughing. She especially likes the Miss Maddie song.
--She is getting really good at tummy time and is often enjoying it well past the timer that I set.
--Madeline has proven to be an excellent traveler. She sleeps almost the entire flight on planes, and is happy being lugged around San Fransisco (evidence of this to come soon).
--Like the other girls in our family, Madeline is a fan of books--especially when Emma shares them with her.

Emma Sings: The Wheels on the Bus