Over the River and Through the Woods....

My new favorite picture of Mattie:

Tonight Mattie and I escaped out into my parents backyard, which happens to be some picturesque woods. We had to make a little pit stop to the doghouse, because its a perfect sized playhouse for Mattie (don't worry, none of the dogs like it or use it). It was Mattie's first trip into the woods, and she is at that stage now where she loves trees, birds and anything new. She has grasped the "Grab everything as quickly as I can and shove it into my mouth" concept and she made it quite tricky to get in some cute shots, but I did manage to get a few. She loved the pine cones and the crunchy leaves, but didn't like that annoying thing that kept on taking pictures of her. You would think by now that me snapping pictures every other minute, well, she would just go with the flow. Oh no... now she is getting to the point where she is like "Listen here, I will smile or look up whenever I feel like it and no stupid squeaky noise that you make to get me to do it will work, so save your breath" Yet... I still try. One day she will either thank me or hate me for taking so many pictures.
I am looking forward to this spring and summer to take a lot more outdoor shots of her. The woods in the backyard make really nice shots as the sun goes down. Tonight was a perfect night, chilly enough to keep the bugs away but warm enough to enjoy some fresh air after dinner. I get my pictures while I can, because as soon as she is mobile, there will be no controlling where she sits and stays for a picture.

A walk in the sun

Yesterday the weather was gorgeous. We would have been crazy to waste one minute of the 79 degree weather, so we headed down to Nikole's house to go for a walk with Ryan and Chloe. I got a double umbrella stroller from Freecycle.org, which came into great use. It's not the newest thing, but it did the job. It gave Nikole and I both a taste of what it would be like to have twins. Lordy Be... I don't think I could do it, and the girls were really good. There just aren't enough arms to hold onto two children at once. It's nice to have Nikole in town with the kids. It gives me the opportunity to have an adult conversation while Mattie gets to have playtime with the other children. It's going to be a fun summer with them around. Although Mattie has a quite peeved look upon her face, she really did have a lot of fun. Her and Chloe had a good time babbling, while Ryan got a chance to ride solo with Mommy for the walk. Can you count the rolls on Mattie's legs? I joked with everyone yesterday and said I have finally found what she has inherited from her mom, my legs.

Mattie's 9 Month Check-Up

Today was Mattie's 9-month check-up. I was fearful of what the doctor would say about her weight, because to me, comparing her to the other babies she is around (and yes, I know you should never compare children because they all grow at their own pace) she is huge. Walking to the scales with her in her little homemade Mattie-Moo onesie felt like it was a long walk down the plank. We sat her on the scales, which is a milestone in itself, because she is now sturdy and strong enough to sit like a big girl to get her stats taken. I was figuring on her being about 22 lbs, at least. I was wrong, she was 19 lbs, 12 oz. So that made me feel a bit better. Then the height came, and she was 28 inches. My little girl is a giant. :) She is a long girl and when you go to measure her, she points her toes downwards, almost like she wants to squeeze every centimeter out that she can. It's cute.

Mattie was a good girl. She sat on the table and was just in love with the sanitary paper they put on it. It was a riot to watch her crumple it up. When Rita came in to do her exam, she basically had to yell over the noise of her playing with it. She said to Mattie "You really like that paper don't you?" and then Mattie got quiet and smiled, then continued on with the destruction. As I suspected, Mattie had yet another ear infection. That brings us up to a total of 3 so far. Mattie is a trooper. I have been giving her Tylenol, because I have heard that most ear infections go away on their own. But she still wasn't feeling good with her cold, and things were leaking green (sorry if that is too much info) and she was tossing and turning in her sleep while pulling on her ear. Enough was enough, and that is when we called to bump up her 9-month exam to today, and kill 2 birds with one stone. My motherly instincts were right, her ears were bad enough that she needs some Ammoxicilan, which I hate to give her, but Rita said it really needed to be given, especially with the green stuff draining. My friend Lisa (http://www.lisaszone.blogspot.com/) is so good at using homeopathic remedies, and suggested that every time Mattie goes on an antibiotic, to give her a probiotic. I really think that sounds like a great idea. I asked Rita about it, and she doesn't suggest giving them to babies under one, but she said that you can give her yogurt that has a natural probiotic in it already. Good news for me, because that means not having to drive an extra 30 minutes to the heath food store, and Mattie loves yogurt. So we will try that this time, hopefully she won't get a yeast infection from the antibiotic this time.

Mattie was great up until the time she had to get the shot. That is where Scott steps up to be the big dad, and I step back and try not to think about the sharp poke that my baby is about to get. To my surprise, Mattie didn't scream as much as she did last time. Phewwwwww. We have to go to the lab to make sure she is getting enough iron and to test her for lead, so I am sure I will have to do that one by myself, and I am dreading that.

Rita was very please with Mattie Amelia's progress, she is in the 75 percentile in both height and weight. She gave us some good CPR tips, since now Mattie is starting table foods, and picking up anything that is within her reach. I really enjoy bringing Mattie to Rita, she is the best "doctor" that we have brought Mattie to. She is attentive, proactive and a great listener. She puts us first-time parents at ease, and lets us know that there are no stupid questions when it comes to your baby. It's about time that we found someone in the medical field that calms us instead of stresses us out.

This shirt sums it up!

Not that you should poke fun of a really terrible thing, but the T-Shirt the baby is wearing sums up my week. Mattie and I have both been sick, so we have been on eachother's nerves like crazy. She is so clingy and really grumpy, and I have been trying to give her a break. Gosh... it's been a long week. I am glad that the weekend is here and she can get a little clingy with Scott. :)

To Dye For!

We had some family friends over tonight to dye some Easter Eggs for the Easter Bunny. Mattie had lots of fun making lots of messes. She liked the way the dye felt in between her fingers. It was a sight to see. Lisa, Jason, Chloe and Chassy came over to help dye them. Chassy just liked to suck on the egg. You have to laugh at her, even though her mouth was yellow afterwards. This will be both Chassity and Mattie's first Easter, so let them be little and enjoy themselves.

1st Easter

So, we did get stuck with some snow for Easter, but all in all, it was a great day. Mattie and I headed out to church, because we just had to show off her cutest little pink dress with overcoat, and her pink little shoes. I really was torn on which church to attend, the one where we got married and Mattie was baptised, or to attend the very last Easter Sunday Service at the church where I grew up in our town. I ended up going to my old church. I remember how many Easter's mom my and all of us girls got all dressed up, went to church, and then took our pictures afterwards. It makes me sad that the church where I gained so many memories, is closing its doors this summer. There aren't enough in the congregation to keep it going, yet when you walk in the doors, it seems like everyone in town is there. It's a place where every week you could here about the local prayer requests, causes for celebration, and updates on people out of town. Yesterday, Bobby Galpin, who was a couple years behind me, was on the prayer request list. His mom told the congregation that he was injured over in Iraq, and others in his infantry were killed. His mom came to tears speaking about how grateful she was that he was alive, knowing she was scared to death that in the next couple of days he would be put back in active duty. This will be another memory, along with the sight of Mattie in my arms, or blowing big slobbery kisses on my cheek during the sermon, that this church has provided me.
When we got home from church, I started the preparation for our meal. It was nice to have my sisters and Bill there along with my family. Even though Mom, Dad and Zayne were in Myrtle Beach, we still had a nice family gathering. We called Dad and put him on speaker phone so he could lead us in "Grace", and it made me cry a little, yet it made us all feel like we were all together for Easter.
Dad called us right back, and he asked to be put on speaker so he could sing Happy Birthday to Shanelle. Not only was yesterday Easter, it was also her Birthday. So it was a great day all around. Mattie got to eat some ham, got lots of cool gifts, like a cool pair of shades that she loves, and she even got some Birthday cake. Does it get any better? Well, it could have if we had ice cream, but we didn't, so we will have to make up for that tonight.

Could Mattie's Day Get Any Better?

Wow, what a day Miss Mattie had.

First Mommy and Mattie went to the Banford School Book Fair and bought 5 new books. She eyeballed them all very carefully, but Mommy had to make the final decisions. Then she had her very own kiddie ice cream at Dairy Queen. This was her first time there, and she loved it! She gobbled up the cone, flirted with the boys as they came in, and at every drop of ice cream that she could get.

When we got home, Mattie was asleep in the carseat from so much excitement, but her nap was short lived once she heard a noise come out of a box we had waiting for us on the steps. Grammy Sheila sent her an Easter Goodie box that was full, and I mean full, of great presents for Mattie (and some for Mommy and Daddy too!). She got two cute outfits, lots of candy, her favorite cookies that Grammy makes, some bubbles (that's her new favorite toy), some furry rabbit ears, a rabbit from Great Grandma and Great Grandpa, and Grammy sent a talking bunny and 4 really cool books. Mattie's eyes were huge once we got it all out on the floor. She loves Easter grass, made a mess out of it, but hey, you only get to feel Easter grass for the 1st time one time!

Thanks for all the presents Grammy!