Dance & Gymnastics

We recently enrolled Madelyn in a combo dance/gymnastics class. She has always been our little monkey, but lately has shown great interest in both singing and dancing. We thought it was a good time to let her give it a try.

With the start of preschool just about 5 months away (oh my goodness), we also thought this would provide a good opportunity for her to start to socialize with other kids her age.

This particular combo class is great. She learns ballet one week (for 30 minutes) and then does 30 minutes of gymnastics. The next week she learnes tap for 30 minutes followed by 30 more minutes of gymnastics.

Teacher Cassi is really good with the girls. She makes them wait their turn, which is so good for Madelyn. She is always anxious to be the first (Pick me! Pick me!), so it's good to see her practice her patience. :)

Below is a video montage of her first two weeks. There's a little bit of ballet, tap, and of course, gymnastics all wrapped into a 7-minute video.

Disclaimer: Some of you have heard Chris and I talk about day two at gymnastics, and how Madelyn had some trouble figuring out exactly how to do a summersault down a declined mat. I apologize for the shaky camera work. We were laughing really hard (I know... back on the naughty list we go). I will say that the following week she mastered her summersaults and now does them every chance she gets! :)

Click here to watch the video.
 

Chair Update

Every year we take a picture of Madelyn in the same chair to show how much she's grown. We are always amazed at the difference between these pictures. When I look at the close ups side-by-side, Madelyn still looks like a baby when she was two, but I could swear I thought she looked so grown up then. I must have blinked somewhere along the way.

Click an image to see a larger version.

First Visit to the Dentist

I feel like it's been a while since I've posted a "first" of something for Madelyn. Today was her first visit to the dentist.

After some deliberation, we decided to bring her to my dentist, Dr. Jeff Alexander, instead of a "pediatric" dentist. After talking with one of my besties, Zona, I realized it probably wasn't that big of a deal. Once she told me how much her daughters LOVED going to see Dr. Alexander, I was in. I mean, really. Who LOVES going to the dentist?

For some reason, when I made the appointment six months ago, I was under the impression that this appointment would pretty much be a "meet-n-greet." But, as it turned out, she had a full cleaning today, and I was quite impressed with how well she did.

After we got signed in, they took Madelyn back for x-rays all by her big girl self. She didn't even turn around to see what I was doing. So, here I am, thinking to myself, "Wait a minute. How am I supposed to document this event if I can't see or hear what's going on?" Then I got a little sad because it hit me that there were likely to be many more of these events as she gets older. All in all, I decided it was a blessing that she didn't care too much that I wasn't by her side. I'd rather have that than a screaming kid who can't do it alone. Then I was proud. :)

The dental hygenist said she did a perfect job helping to get the x-rays. YAY! Then they went to the check-up room, where apparently Madelyn asked if her Mommy would be coming. YAY! ;) The hygentist was kind enough to come and get me, and I sat and watched as Madelyn got her teeth cleaned... the whole works... the scaler, the electric toothbrush, the "squirt gun" and "thirsty straw" (my favorite). They even flossed her teeth! And she sat still, and even smiled when they told her how perfect she was.

Unfortunately, today was one of the rare days that I didn't have my phone, which means I didn't have a camera. Fortunately, the gals were kind enough to take a snapshot for me, and email it right away. I was a little embarrssed to ask, but they reassured me that some parents actually bring a video camera. I felt better knowing there are people just like me. :)

 

Birthday Celebration

We had great ideas for Madelyn's third birthday. Here's the plan:

#1- Help Grammy with birthday desserts. Check.

Thursday night Madelyn helped Grammy put the finishing touches on her birthday cake and cupcakes. (Yes, Zona, that was a Kitchen Aid mixer in the kitchen that you saw in a previous post... Who does that, right? Grammy does! She brought it all the way out from Phoenix so she could finish the birthday treats!)

#2- Decorate the condo to surprise Madelyn. Check.

Mommy, Daddy, & Grammy all stayed up late to decorate the condo with balloons and streamers, and we even set the breakfast table with monkey-themed plates and napkins. Chris and I were so impressed with the employees at the resort who helped us get helium into all the balloons we brought. We were worried that we might not be able to find a place late at night to do it, so they saved that day!

#3- Have a special birthday breakfast and then open presents. Check.

We made Madelyn's favorite breakfast... scrambled eggs, turkey bacon, and toast. Everyone enjoyed sitting at the decorated table together. Then we spent some time opening the gifts that Madelyn didn't sucker us into opening previously in the week. (Fortunately, there were still a couple left.)

#4- Go see Gnomeo & Juliet. Check.

Although we were disappointed that it was in 3-D, we got to see Gnomeo & Juliet on opening day. We told Madelyn she was one of the few kids who got to see the very first showing of this movie. I don't think she really got what that meant, but she was excited nonetheless. :) The last 3-D movie we saw (Tangled) didn't really work out too well, so we were worried that Madelyn would only make it half way through again. But, not this time! She watched the whole movie from beginning to end, although she wasn't acting quite herself, and tried to nod off a couple times. This had us a little worried.

#5- Go to Norte's for lunch by the beach. No check. :(

By the time the movie was over, Madelyn was feeling a little warm, and could hardly keep her eyes open. We certainly weren't going to bring her to lunch until she had a nap. She has been going nonstop all week, and her poor little body was starting to wear out. She fought it for a little bit because she really wanted to be by the beach, but after about two minutes in the car, she was out like a light. We took a detour back to the condo and got her down for nap.

#6-Go to the beach. No check. :(

Once Madelyn woke up from her nap, she was still feeling warm. We gave her some Tylenol and hoped it would help reduce the fever and perk her back up. She was so sad because she had been looking forward to playing on the beach all week, and today was finally a day warm enough to go. We promised her we'd be back again and we'd make time for the beach.

#7- Have cake and ice cream. Check (well, mostly check.)

We ended up ordering in from Norte, and had a delicious Mexican dinner. Then, to Madelyn's delight, we had cake (minus the ice cream)! Our intention was to pick up some ice cream while we were out to lunch, but that didn't happen. And, quite honestly, NO ONE wanted to spend 30 minutes making it with Madelyn's new ice cream maker. ;) So cake and cupcakes it was all around. And as usual, it was all delicious!

 

Happy Birthday, Peanut!

We can't believe Madelyn is three! It seems like just yesterday that she was learning to walk. Time sure does fly, and it flies faster with each passing year. We continue to feel blessed, even amongst all the tantrums, that we have the most amazing daughter who fills every day with love and laughter.

We love you Miss Madelyn!

Here are some pictures we had taken during our visit in California. This is the first time we went to JCPenny, but it was the perfect plan because we ended up having the best photographer! Of course, Madelyn is quite the "ham" and doesn't make it very difficult to get a great shot (or three).

A special thank you goes out to Grammy for this adorable birthday outfit! Madelyn absolutely loves her "twirly whirly" skirt!