Dance Class

Today was Maddie's first day of dance class, she had tons of fun!

Getting warmed up...

Maddie did very well taking instructions from her dance teacher.

Maddie and her friend Brianna G dancing together.

Tummy Time

I have been under pressure to post some new pics of the little guy - - these are from a couple days ago - - not from before (or after) the tummy time today though! Today, Dylan is 17 days old, and he already accomplished a major milestone. Shortly after 6PM we decided it was time for a little exercise session, he had been sleeping all day, so we put him on his belly to liven him up. True story - this little guy rolled over! From belly to back. We couldn't believe it, it must have been a fluke right!? So we put him on his belly again, and made sure he was as flat as can be on the floor - - two minutes later, he did it again! There was zero parental assistance to guide him over, it was 100% Dylan. We still can't believe it, time will tell if this guy pulls the same stunt again in the near future.

Maddie in the morning

Maddie still loves her bink when she sleeps - - part of her routine. This was right after Mom got her out of the crib in the morning, wild hairdo and all.




When we were changing Dylan, Maddie asked if she could sit in his crib and help out.

Dylan Update

We haven't taken too many pics of Dylan since we've been back home, this one was from the hospital - - now that things have settled down, we plan on taking some more pics in the near future. So far, things have been going pretty smooth. Mom is doing well, and Dylan has been sleeping in 2-3 hour blocks!

Our little princess is really protective of her younger brother too, she constantly wants to hold him... if you're lucky enough to pass her screening test, she will let you hold him too!

Alphabet Dance

Maddie kept busy in the hospital room during our stay. She did really well - - considering she was confined to this room for 2 to 3 hours at a time. We made sure Maddie had plenty of toys for her entertainment.

Baby Dylan Arrives!

What a day! Dylan was born on 9/4 at 8:24AM. 7lbs. 4oz... the exact same weight as his older sister - - and he is 20in., only a half inch shorter than her too. Everyone is doing great.



Maddie certainly loves her new brother, we have 2 more nights away from our house until we can head back - - but Maddie is really enjoying the company of her Grandma and Uncle Jeremy when she is not visiting at the hospital. I stopped at home tonight to put the Princess down to sleep - - she sent her goodnight wishes to her new bro:

More Summer Fun

We actually had to bundle up a bit this weekend, definitely a nice cool summer for Mommy. Maddie loves the swings and slides at the park - - then we topped off the day with some DQ... Madison requested chocolate ice cream for her late day treat.

These pics were from a couple weeks ago, when the temp topped off at 90. Maddie went in for a cool at the fountains.

Summer Stroll

We decided to bring Maddie's stroller with us for our latest excursion. I must say, it was a hit! Funny thing though, while we were walking by other kids her age - - who were running around carefree - - we noticed that Madison just walked by as if she was too old for that kind of behavior - - she had much larger priorities at the time, making sure her baby was okay in the stroller.

The icing on the cake was when we made it to the park. We were sitting on the bench finishing up a snack from the nearby cafe, and we asked her - - why don't you go play in the park? Her response, "no, I'm just watching the kids". Watching the kids! I thought it was the 30-somethings that were supposed to be "watching the kids".

Maddie's schedule

So Grandma was in town this week, primarily to be with the little princess while we were at work. As usual, we outlined a precise babysitting agenda for Grandma to follow - - all the while having the premonition that each step would not be followed in sequential order, since Madison is very good at dictating her own schedule... when the right opportunity arises.

Minutes after we walked out the door, Maddie had full control and was able to manipulate Grandma into following her new (parent-free) agenda. Fortunately for Grandma, by 2PM, Maddie couldn't even make it to her crib. Maddie has NEVER taken a nap outside her crib - - this was a first, and a picture to boot! So many times I'm saying - I wish I got a picture of that.

A bit more adventurous these days

I'm still working on getting that perfect family photo, in the meantime - - here's Madison scaling up the precipitous cliff side at the park, photo was taken at 5 feet elevation.

She loves her attention

If Maddie's in another room and we don't hear anything for a minute, she's up to something -- and most of the time, she knows it! On this day, Maddie was quietly giggling in the living room until we walked in -- that's when she noticed, that we noticed, her rummaging through her cherished toy box.

Pappa razzi!

While we were at the park this past weekend, Cathy took some candid photos from a distance - - I realized that we're barely in any pictures with Maddie. My goal over the next few months is to take some quality family pics. We'll see if I'm a man of my word....

Birthday Month??

We took another trip back to Buffalo for a quick visit, and to attend another colossal sized birthday party at the C's house -- it was Cailee's big day, two years old! Everyone had a blast, and how couldn't they- - a cake prepared by a personal baker, a bounce house, the smorgasbord of food to choose from, and company that provided hours of entertainment into the late hours of the night -- yes, the C's know how to throw a party.

Maddie had an added surprise as well - the C's invited our family over and had a surprise birthday for Madison too! This event took Madison's birthday celebration into the four week range!

Happy Birthday(s)! Cailee and Maddie quickly dug in...

We took the kids to the play museum in Rochester, tons of stuff to do there - unbelievable. This, by far, was the most fun - watch Maddie's graceful dance moves, I'm not sure who she inherited them from....

Cailee really has a lot of fun dancing, she helped teach Maddie some of her own dance steps.

They had a mini-Wegman's to shop at, the kids loved it! It even had a checkout area to unload the groceries. Maddie loaded up on her usual faves: fruit and popsicles.

Maddie also spent a good portion of time chasing around her favorite cat.... again.

The Sippy Cup

While Maddie was playing in the living room today, we heard her calling for a sippy cup... to our surprise, she was grabbing a vase with two handles on it -- that was the size of her!! Not even I am clever enough to draw a similar correlation, but our little princess never ceases to amaze us. We just started laughing, too funny.

2 Years Old!

Our little princess has enjoyed a long celebration, with plenty of gifts arriving in the mail each day for the past couple of weeks... which was perfect, seeing how this year we limited her gifts to just a few toys - - we ended up getting her a small tricycle that she loves.

She had a small celebration with her Nana, a daycare pizza party, play date with her friends... and next week we are hitting up the zoo.

Madison and Isabella both wanted to go outside after the cake.

Another walk in the park

Maddie, Mom, and Nana went to the park... while I went out for a quick round of golf.

Bath Time

Madison wanted to play with her archaic ipod before the bath on this night. Sometimes she hits the right button and finds her tunes... actually, only once... but I was impressed. I've noticed the songs we download, along with the dvr selection, have slowly morphed into playlists for Maddie. She's learned a few songs too: her abc's, twinkle twinkle little star, happy birthday, old mcdonald. She even uses a common technique her mother and I use... mumbling through lines you don't know, and belting out the parts you remember... impressive.

Oh Princess......

Why do you have to get so big?

Say cheese for the camera......

Two peas in a pod

He thinks its so funny when she sits on him

These two are always up to no good (well she is)

Little Man AJ

Little Bubby!!! He finally got to sit in his bumbo seat. Cailee never lets him sit in it- She thinks everything is hers (well it is)


Little Bubb's big day--