Pinkerific

When I found out Maggie was a girl, I swore that pink would not be a main color in my house.  I have never liked pink.  If I had to pick between pink and any other color, I would choose the other color.  Of coarse, Maggie's favorite color is pink.  Imagine how much fun I had planning her Pinkalicous Birthday Party.  Yep, - FUN!!  

In case you don't know the story of the book, she eats too many pink cupcakes and in order to return to her normal color, she has to eat a steady diet of green food.  She chooses not to and instead eats another pink cupcake and turns red.  This makes her unhappy so she eats the steady diet of green food and changed back to her normal self.  So everything today was either pink, red or green.

Maggie in front of the food table.  We had pink pasta (with green Alfredo sauce), strawberries, raspberries, red jello, pink covered pretzels, pink gogurts and pink lemonade punch mixed with lime sherbet.  The green food consisted of cucumbers, pickles, applesauce, grapes and kiwi.

All the kids eating.  We had 15 kids total.  (While they were eating, I read to them the Pinkalicious Story.)

After eating, we played Pinko (bingo).  I spent hours making each of the 16 boards different so that the boards weren't all matching.  (We didn't get a picture of that.  Sorry.  If you are interested in the boards, let me know and I can e-mail them to you.)

After Pinko we played pin the candle on the cupcake.  Here is the birthday girl.

Here is Adrianna getting ready.

Here is the birthday girl who couldn't really focus because she was so excited.

I just had to throw this one in there.  She looks so happy here.

Cupcakes!!!

Next was cupcakes.  She picked pink lemonade and (the very best) lemon buttercream frosting.  Oh, so good!!

Here is Sassy Junior enjoying her cupcake!  (Again, too cute)

We had to burn off some of the sugar, so we jumped on the tramp.  Our poor tramp hasn't had that many kids on at one time ever.  

Present time - this was especially fun for me to watch because besides Christmas, Maggie hasn't ever really had a big opening presents thing.  She was ripping paper everywhere.

Presents were paused while everyone attacked Aaron and tickled him.  He didn't like that part very much.

This was the kids favorite part.  Pinata time!!  That thing weighed so much.  But the kids loved it.  Check out the next few pictures.

Everyone going crazy.  So funny to watch.

Here are the kids with all their loot.  Happy kids.

This was the goody bag.  There was the steady diet of green food, pink crown sucker, watermelon sucker, pencil with phone number notebook, pink chocolate coin, tootsie roll (pink), birthday/cupcake sticker sheet, pink gooey putty, crown bubbles, and hand sanitizer.  Not picture but included in the bag is a bookmark that I made with a quote from the Pinkalicious book (If you would like this file, let me know and I can e-mail it to you).  

Maggie was in Heaven the whole time.  I am so thankful she has been able to find her niche here in San Diego and surrounds herself with people she enjoys being with.  Now - that's it until April of 2015!!  Hooray!

2 years...WOW!!

Can you believe it?  It's been 2 years since sweet crazy little Maggie was born.  

We haven't stopped moving since.  When I get to the point where I want to lock her in her room and never let her out, I just remember how I felt when we thought she had a whole in her heart and it helps.  (Kinda!)  Anyway, Here's a few things about Maggie, with a few pictures mixed in.  Some of my favorites!!

She is a Sassy little thing.  (I don't take that lightly!)

She is completly adored by her brothers. (Most of the time!)

She has her daddy wrapped so many times around her little finger!

She has her Grandpa Burnside wrapped around her other little finger! (Not enough to get him to change a diaper though!  :)

She has recently decided she needs to shed her clothing (including diaper) several times a day!

She loves anything pink, princess or doll related!

She has more clothes than her mother!

This is my FAVORITE picture of her.  So innocent!

She weighs 28.4 pounds 

She loves to watch her Pony Movie! (My little ponies!)

She adores playing with Addison!  

She is doing well in Nursery.

I could probably potty train her tomorrow.  (However, I think it's fundamentally wrong to have her potty train before Nate, so I refuse to do it.)

She wants to do anything that the boys are doing.

She has a stubborn streak like nobody's business!

She is very shy of most people.

She loves to jump on the neighbors trampoline.

And ride her bike.

She isn't scared of the jets taking off and flying close.  (We live in between the end of 2 air strips.  F-22's taking off at all times of the day.  Literally!)

She has even gotten to where she will take her nap even with them flying over all the time.

She is trying to stop taking naps.

She doesn't realize that mom is too stubborn to let her stop taking naps.

She butts heads with her mother constantly!

She likes ice cream and mac & cheese.  Her two favorite things.

She says so many words, I can't even write them.

As you can see, she is spoiled!  Happy Birthday Maggie.  We love you.  Pictures of the party will come, but I just wanted to share a bit with you now.

We Love you Maggie!!

Maggie's Hair

I really struggle with Maggie's hair.  She won't keep a head band in place and her hair isn't really long enough to do anything else with it.  So, I decided to put a clip in it.  Here is what she looked like.

Isn't she adorable?  More updates on her later!

Maggie's Growing Up!

**I added a few pictures from the original post!

Maggie has decided that she is a "IG" girl. (Big girl.) Walking down the stairs is the only way she will go down. Um, problem! We have 2 full flights of stairs. One leading from the main floor up to the bedrooms and one from the main floor down to the basement (toy room). So, she spends A LOT of time going up and down the stairs now. Oh, and she is obsessed with her tutu! THe only thing missing is her purse (she has 2 of them) or her baby doll (she has too many)!

I left the dishwasher open, and when I walked back into the kitchen, Maggie had unloaded all the plates and stacked them and handed them to me. And, she refused to sit in her high chair. She had to sit at the big table with Nate! So cute!!

18 month photos

So, I finally got around to doing these. Not overjoyed about how they turned out, but they are done none-the-less!

18 months

Lots of posts today, make sure you scroll down to see them all!

Maggie turned 18 months on the 4th, sorry this is late, but things have been crazy and I have had 3 sick kids (I am sick too).

Here are 18 things about Maggie at 18 months!

1. Her smile just melts my heart! The way she cocks her head to the side and looks at you with those innocent eyes just kill me!

2. She is SO adored by her 3 brothers.

3. She loves to give hugs! The boys get kinda sick of her hugging. (Again?)

4. She is obsessed with her baby's. She folds them in a blanket and "rockabye"s them!

5. She LOVES the color pink. She will wear pink every day of the week if I let her.

6. Is obsessed with shoes. She carries them around the house, brings everyone their shoes, and points out the shoes in every store we go into! It starts early, I guess.

7. Loves Mac n cheese.

8. Loves to "help" mom cook!

9. Likes to sing and does a great Twinkle Twinkle Little Star!

10. Knows what her hana and mimi are (Japanese for Nose and Ears and also knows english). She can also point out her belly, bottom, toes, fingers, chin, hair, eyes, mouth, cheeks.

11. Has a mullet

12. Loves to dance to any kind of music we have on. She also enjoys playing the piano!

13. Still enjoys pushing Nate's buttons. So funny to watch during the day!

14. Is talking up a storm. I can't list all the words, but one of my favorite is still Costco!

15. Loves her Grandpas! She "talks" to them on the phone all day long! When she sees both on the computer, she gets so excited!

16. Loves to draw on the Magna Doodle. (She is right handed even with the treadmill accident!)

17. LOVES LOVES LOVES her daddy. She will walk around the house all day saying, "Daeee, R U?" So cute. When he walks in the door, most of the time she will hear him and start running.

18. Is so cute when running toward me with her arms out just to hug me! Melts my heart!!

She is truly a gift. She is sure loved around this house! She has come a long way this year. We have been through a lot with her and I am grateful that she is happy and healthy!!

Small Update

Kennie – He is doing well in school but is daily upset by the "fun" homework Justin has and his homework is so boring. He complains daily about being the oldest, but usually just accepts that he can't change it. He likes to pretend he is the boss.

Justin – Thoroughly enjoys school. He is excited about his homework and doing very well with his handwriting skills. He is enjoying reading and is very close to reading chapter books. His favorite part of school is being able to check out a library book and read it home for us to read together. He has brought home books about Snakes, Whales and this week brought home one about an elephant and his 11^th birthday party. He started his allergy shots today and isn't very thrilled about it.

Nate – Well, it's Nate. What more can I say about Nate? He is as destructive as ever and doesn't seem to want to take a break from that. He does his best to keep up with the other boys. He even likes to "read" during their reading time after school. He will occasionally tell me he needs to go potty, but I haven't pushed it at all. I am not ready for that fight. Once he is potty trained, I am thinking about doing a home-school preschool group with a couple other gals in the ward. There would be 3-4 kids so I would only have to teach about one week a month. Totally do-able.

Maggie – Oh boy! She sure is cute!! But, she is in to as many things as Nate is. Always wanting to do what he does. She is talking like crazy. Her favorite words right now are: Costco (love this one), airplane, Mama, Daee, Nennie (Kennie), up, down, stuck and all done. She has learned the signs for help, please, more, all done and thank you. Having a girl is so foreign to me! I tell ya, it's crazy!

Aaron – he is alive! He just finished a week of nights and is trying to recover. Work is very demanding on his time and what he has left is spent on his demanding crazy wife! (Did I just say that out loud? This is Sassy – byw!)

Sassy – Well, I am alive. I have lost 16.5 pounds and have 13.5 left to go. I am so psyched. It has been a tough road, and I have earned every pound, but it feels so good. Once it is all over, I will bask in my glory and MAYBE have a Mountain Dew. That's a big Maybe!!

We are looking forward to the visit of Aaron's parents next week. We are trying to figure out some fun things to do in Alaska in October. We've heard that March and October are the worst months to visit Alaska. Hmmm….what to do? Any suggestions? Oh, and I am going to give myself props for the excellent photograph at the top of this post. Do you know how difficult it is to get all 4 kids to smile at the same time? I DID IT!!! I believe this maybe the first time EVER!! Anyway, off to figure out dinner! Ciao from Alaska!

A girl and her daddy….

I am not sure weather I had this growing up or not, because all I can remember of my dad when I was younger was he was at work. (Sorry Dad, I know you had to do and I love you for it!!) But it has been really fun watching the relationship between Aaron and Maggie grow. She his her daddy wrapped around her tiny little finger. For example, a few nights ago, Maggie had a really bad diaper rash. (She get's these all the time….) Aaron couldn't stand to hear her cry, so he took her upstairs and gave her a "luke warm" bath to wash away the stuff on her bum. When she cries (even a whimper) he jumps up. He has never heard our kids during the night, but he sure hears her. So funny. She knows it too. All she has to say is Daey….and he responds. He doesn't do that for the rest of us. I guess we are just sloppy seconds.

Aaron and Maggie – September 24^th

To my dad:

I am very grateful for my you. When I was ready to walk away from the church for a boy, I respected you enough to really get my answer that the church wasn't true so I could walk away. Let's just say that 7 days later I was broken up with that boy and moved out of state. I fully expected my answer to be the church wasn't true and him and I could ride off into the sunset (on the bus because he didn't have a car….what was I thinking?) I hope you know dad how much I love you. 12 years later, I am married to a wonderful man, have 4 wonderful (most of the time) children, have lived in 3 states and have made more friends than I could have ever imagined. Your powerful example and testimony based on action is what made me realize all that I could have. As much as you missed, I wouldn't trade a minute of it. The example you set is the one that I needed. All that I have is because of you!

XXOXO,

Your Daughter aka "Sassy Pants"

Maggie turns 1

I know this is way late, but my parents computer won't recognize my camera card, so I have to use the pictures that my mom gets on her camera. Here is a little teaser. Maggie loved her cake.

A few things about Maggie at 12 months:

• She walks/runs everywhere
• She is getting very good and waving goodbye & hello
• The words she can say are: hello, more, all done, mom, dad, grandma, up, grandpa
• She loves to "talk" on the phone. She will grab a phone (or remote or whatever is close) and hold it up to her ear and walk around while talking on her phone.
• She is allergic to milk (not tested) but has a bad reaction to milk, so she drinks soy milk.
• She wears size 12-18 month clothes, size 3-4 diaper and size 3-4 shoe.
• She is strictly a sippy girl. But, she can't live with out her sippy.
• She will eat just about everything you put on her plate/tray. She LOVES Mac & Cheese and flavored applesauce.
• Has
• Is very well traveled. She has been in Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania, Canada, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming, Utah and Idaho. In the next 2 weeks, we will add Alaska, California and Nevada to that list.
• Loves to read
• Is really good at going up & down stairs, seriously, she is awesome
• loves to scream
• crinkles her nose so cute (we got pictures yesterday, so you can see it soon.)
• Still loves her mama, but is equally obsessed with her Grandpa Burnside.
• Loves her brothers. She loves to torment Nate (so funny to watch).
• Still has the biggest brown eyes ever seen and we get comments on them every time we go anywhere. I love her eyelashes. She is going to love them as she gets older!!

Happy Birthday my sweet girl! We love you!!

Maggie is 11 months

How can you resist this face??

It's hard to believe that she is already 11 months. Here are 11 fun things about Maggie.

1. She is getting better at walking. She loves to just take off. She also loves the praise when we clap and Kennie, Justin & Nate get so excited!
2. She learned how to wave and will wave at Aaron when he is coming home from work. (Bye-bye is a different wave.)
   
3. She is now sportin' 3 teeth (2 bottom and 1 top) and is working on the other top one.
4. She is obsessed with the phone. She loves to put it up to hr ear and talk on it.
5. She likes to dance when she hears music (It's so funny to watch!)
6. She is wearing 12 month cloths and size 4 diaper.
7. She likes to play in the bathroom. Her favorite toy there is the toilet brush. I think I might invest in those throw away scrubbers. It is so gross to see her with one.
8. She loves to be put in her chair to eat, only she won't eat baby food. We are trying to figure out things that she will eat. She won't eat it if she can't pick it up with her fingers.
9. Her new face is her toungue hanging out of her mouth. It's pretty funny.
10. She is getting really good at the stairs. Still not so great about coming down, but we are working on that.
11. I love that she loves to give me kisses!!
    

I LOVE YOU MAGGIE!! The next one is 1 year! Then, the next day, we leave to Utah. Crazy times. I will be glad when we are settled in our home and routine in Alaska!!

The 2 pictures attached to this post are courtesy of Jenny & Kayla (their babysitters for the adult session of conference.) They had a DQ blizzard and left some of it in the cup on the end table next to the couch. Maggie discovered it Sunday morning while I was reading the paper and Daddy was watching the Goofy movie. This is the results.

This girl!!

How can you not fall in love with that face? She is adorable. This picture was taken at an Easter Egg hunt a few days ago. This adorable face is 10 months old today! She is getting cuter by the day. Here are 10 of my favorite things about her.

1. She is starting to sleep better at night. Most nights she only gets up once. When you put her in bed, she usually goes right to sleep with no fussing. We have come such a long way from the rocking until she was dead asleep stage. Hooray!
2. Her signature face (see the post with her 9 month pictures and it is picture #2). I love it when she pulls this. You can't help but laugh.
3. Her face lights up when she sees her brothers. She adores them and loves to play with them. Her new skill is to kiss them. She can't get enough! They get sick of it real fast, but she doesn't want to stop.
4. She has learned to say bye-bye while waving her arm goodbye. It is adorable.
5. She loves her daddy! He comes home from work and she smiles, kicks her feet and starts to squeal. Her eyes light up. She definitely has him wrapped around her little finger!!
6. The way she cuddles under my chin at just the right moment. She seems to know when I need a little bit of lovin'. She also gives me the greatest kisses.
7. She is wearing 6-9 and 12 month size. She has the cutest wardrobe for the Spring/Summer. There will be a lot of pictures over the next few months. Adorable.
8. She is cruzin everywhere. Any day now I expect her to take of walking! She can get herself where she wants to go (for the most part) and doesn't hurt herself too bad.
9. She has discovered the stairs. This is good and bad. She is pretty good about going up when someone is behind her. However, she is really good at falling as well, which is not so fun. She has had a couple of bruises because of this.
10. She will sit and play with toys (either downstairs or upstairs) for quite a long time now. Especially upstairs in the toy room. She loves her Baby Einstein table and the walker toy. I can't wait until I can understand what she is saying to me. She loves to talk to me!

Just a few other things, she is finally wearing size 3 diapers. She says ba-ba for her bottle and bye-bye (mentioned above.) We are working on Da-da. She just laughs and her eyes light up when I try to get her to say that. She sure lights up our lives!!

Maggie's 9 month pictures

I had Maggie's 9 month pictures taken. Let me know what you think!! If you are interested, it's Nicole Barker Photography. She did a GREAT job. There is a link to her blog under the business blog lists. Aaron and I disagree on our favorite, so we are taking a vote. Which is your favorite picture? Leave a comment and vote for your favorite!!

Picture #1

Picture #2

Picture #3

Picture #4

Picture #5

Maggie at 9 months

Hooray! We made it to 9 months! She is 9 months old today. We had her 9 month check up yesterday. She weighs 16 pounds 9 ounces which is in the 25%. YEA!!! She jumped from the 4% to the 25% in 6 weeks. She is 27 inches (that's 2 inches more than 6 weeks ago). The doctor was quite impressed by some of the things she is doing. She was doing some of the things from the 12 month list!

At 9 months Maggie is:

• Pulling up on EVERYTHING
• Cruising along the furniture when she stands up on it
• Eating everything she can get her hands on
• is in size 3 diapers (She should wear 2, but I bought a huge box of size 3 and they work!)
• Still wears size 3-6 month pants but can wear a 6-12 month shirt/dress.
• Is sleeping better at night
• Takes 2 good naps a day
• Still has 0 teeth
• Is a speed crawler everywhere (and has been for about 2 months)
• Acts like a dog! She always has her tongue hanging out of her mouth
• Loves taking her baths (with her brothers)
• Won't eat sweet potatoes, mixed vegetables or peas
• Still has very little hair
• Is starting to warm up to people other than mom
• Is so happy when she wakes up! It's crazy!
• Holds her bottle (She's only been a bottle baby for 2 weeks now and is doing super good!)
• Loves to stand up on the laundry baskets and bounce around (with her tongue hanging out, it's totally funny!)
  

I am sure there is more, but I can't think of them off the top of my head. I need more sleep. I don't sleep well when Aaron has to stay at the hospital all night. You would think I would be used to it by now!! Not so!

8 month Maggie Update

Maggie is 8 months old (Yesterday!). Here is my FAVORITE shot of her. I love it!!

Here are some things about Maggie at 8 months

• She is everywhere. I call her the little inch worm. She hasn't totally figured out how to move her arms (although she is close).
• She still has big eyes!
• She loves her mama! (Even more since her procedure)
• She weighs 14 lbs. (below the 5%)
• She LOVES bread. She will eat several slices in one sitting
• She usually takes 2 good naps (1-2 hours) per day
• She still gets up way to much at night
• she can still fit in 0-3 month clothes at her waist but needs the 9-12 months for her length. I bought her 6 month capri's for the summer and the fall right off her waist.
• She wears size 2 diapers (HOORAY!)
• She loves her bath
• She loves Justin
• She gets excited when dad gets home from work!
• Loves to say "BA!"
• Screams like crazy! (Thanks Sol)
• puts everything in her mouth (if you put something in her mouth, she has to take it out and put it back in. Totally funny!)
• Loves to play peek-a-boo - she is REALLY quick to pull something off her head.
• Loves to stand up
• Loves to sit in her high chair and eat the baby puffs and anything we put on her tray!

Seems crazy that in 4 months, my baby will be 1!

We're Home

We are home and Maggie is doing great. She is a bit clingy and wants only mama, but she is doing well. She was the perfect patient and we LOVED the doctor. We are truly blessed! Maggie will need to have an Echo in May to make sure all looks fine, but we anticipate no problems and no follow-up after that.

Thank you all for your love and concern. We appreciate all the prayers in our behalf.

Aaron & Sassy

Media Free Week Results

This week was so nice and for a couple of reasons. #1 - it was a doctor free week! We didn't go to a single doctors appointment!! Now, I did talk for quite some time on a couple of occasions to doctors regarding Maggie's procedure on Tuesday, but I didn't have to sit in a waiting room. That always makes for a great week!

The media thing couldn't have gone much better. The boys actually played with their toys and each other all week. There was less fighting, less crying and less tension. They finally realized on Tuesday that they really didn't get to play the Wii and moved on with life instead of asking me ever 10 minutes. We had enjoyable dinners instead of the boys inhaling their food so they can play the Wii. If you want some good family time, try doing this for a couple of days. The TV stayed of for most of the night and we played as a family. SO FUN!

So, what happens next? We make it through this week. We head to Cincy tomorrow and should be back Tuesday night. Please pray for us. My emotions have some-what kicked in and could really use the prayers right about now! After this week, the boys will have to earn the Wii time. We will have a new job chart and a daily behaviour system where they can earn media time and extra snacks. I haven't gotten that all put together yet, but when I do, it will be FAB!! I will try and post Tuesday after Maggie is feeling better. Thank you all for your love and concern. We really appreciate it!

Aaron & Sassy

Fast & Prayers for Maggie

We interrupt this media free week (which is going VERY well) to bring you breaking news!! Haha! Maggie's procedure has been scheduled. We will head to Cincinnati the afternoon of the 26th for her appointment with the Cardiac Cath Clinic. We will stay in Cincinnati that evening and she will have her procedure done the morning of the 27th. (This is all in January, FYI.) Her Pediatric GI appointment for Celiac's Disease is scheduled for the 29th of January.

A few have express interest in fasting for Maggie, so if you would like to join us in fasting her her, we will be fasting Sunday (January 25th.) If you can not fast (pregnant, nursing, medication reasons or any other reason), please don't feel an obligation to fast with us. (I can't fast! I'm nursing.) We are thankful for all of your thoughts, prayers and concerns for us during this time. We are overwhelmed by the love and support we feel and are so Thankful to our Heavenly Father for surrounding us with so many loving and caring people. It is more clear to me each day that He knows each one of us and our needs and will provide for our needs if we have Faith in Him! Thank you again for your thoughts, prayers and concern. We will for sure let you know how things go!

Another Maggie Update

We meet with the pediatric cardiologist tomorrow morning for a more detailed echo. She should have her "procedure" done hopefully by the end of January at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. I will post again when we have more info!

Update on Maggie

We went to the Pediatric Cardiologist today and most of our fears were put to rest. I was originally told she might have a hole in her heart. She does not. Thankfully! However, she was diagnosed with PDA (Not public display of affection). I have found what PDA is for those of who you would like to read up more. You can read at the end of the post. We won't know for a few days when or if we will be doing surgery, but I will keep you updated. The last few days have been very taxing on me. I wasn't sure what was going to happen and it's been very emotionally taxing on me. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers on our families behalf!

Patent ductus arteriosus
The ductus arteriosus is a blood vessel in a fetus that connects the pulmonary artery, which carries blood to the lungs, and the aorta, which carries blood to the body, so that blood flow bypasses the lungs. Normally, this blood vessel closes shortly after birth; when it does not, it is known as a patent (open) ductus arteriosus.
A patent ductus arteriosus allows some oxygen-rich blood to flow from the aorta back into the pulmonary artery and to the lungs instead of to the rest of the body. Because some of the blood intended for the body returns to the lungs, the left side of the heart has to pump harder to get enough blood to the body. This can enlarge and weaken the heart.

Although some babies do not experience symptoms from a patent ductus arteriosus, this abnormality often causes a variety of symptoms, such as poor feeding and shortness of breath. Eventually, if the patent ductus is not closed, a baby may develop an infection of the heart's inner lining (infective endocarditis) or heart failure. The severity of the symptoms and whether complications develop depend on how much blood flows through the ductus.
Treatment for a patent ductus arteriosus may include medication or surgery. Surgery usually is not attempted until a baby is at least 6 months of age, unless serious problems develop before that time.

Maggie's 7 month check up

Even though Maggie is 7 months old, we just got her 6 month check up and shots. I will say this is the worst doctors appointment I have ever had. I am going to with-hold some information until I get test results back, but for now, I can tell you a few things.

• Maggie is 13 lbs 4 ounces. I was so excited to see this. That is a 1 lb and 4 ounce gain from the 6 month weight check. Only to find out that she has fallen from the 6% to the 1%. Thankfully Troy (Dr. Baker) thinks it's just Mags and that she has Aaron's genes. I will express my thanks to my Heavenly Father again that Maggie's pediatrician is in our ward and knows that I am doing all I can to help her grow and develop.We are going to try to fatten her up a bit by feeding her oatmeal with everything, even her formula. I think she is just going to be skinny!
• She doesn't like shots. We haven't had a good experience with her and shots but today it got even worse. She kicked the shot lady right in the groin. There were tears in her eyes and she had to sit down. I couldn't help but laugh. Maggie cried for about 25 minutes before I was able to calm her down so I could head for home.
• Maggie had her 1st EKG. She has a slight murmur so Troy wanted to make sure everything looked good. I won't get the results back for a couple of days, but this was extremely hard. The worst part is I had to take the SUPER sticky leads off Maggie and then clean her torso off. She screamed the whole time and Sol was in break down mode because he hadn't had a nap.

A big super thanks to Cynthia and Deborah for watching Kennie, Justin and Nate so I didn't have to deal with them on top of everything else. I am ready for a nap. Too bad I won't get one.

It's amazing to me that Maggie is 7 months old. She is so cute and I am so lucky that she came to our family. She continues to stop the show where ever we go. It is inevitable that every person we encounter will comment on her huge eyes and she has the most perfect timing. She always makes her eyes bigger when someone comments on how big they are. Here is a few things she is doing.

1. She is so close to crawling. She can now get herself up in the position and has the legs down, but is still working on how to move her hands. She will scoot herself across the room and then roll herself back!
2. She is getting better at laying on the floor and playing with toys. She is at the stage where she puts everything in her mouth and is still pretty puky so most everything in our hosue is covered in throw-up.
3. She is almost sitting by herself. She can tripod really good. She is so skinny that it is hard for her to strengthen her stomach muscles, but she is really close.
4. She LOVES her brothers. She laughs and talks to them and gets so excited to see them. (I think she thinks that Sol is one of her brothers because it is the same with him.)
5. She is probably teething. She has a constant string of drool hanging from her mouth. (Really attractive, huh?)
6. Is doing so much better with sleeping. For the most part, she gets up once a night. She sleeps until about 7:30ish in the morning and is asleep by 8:30ish at night. She mostly takes 2 good naps a day. This has saved my behind! When she wasn't sleeping, I was having a difficult time functioning.
7. Still loves her mama! She has a hard time being away from me, but has gotten to a point where (if mom isn't in the room) she is happy with daddy! She sometimes is okay with Mrs. Shelby, but sometimes is not. She smiles at Cynthia more and a few others at church, but is still pretty reserved about strangers.
8. Is still wearing size 3-6 (or 0-3) month clothes. She is in a size 1 diaper during the day, but needs a size 2 diaper at night. (I can't believe it!! The boys were in at least a size 4 by now.)