Checkups

Yesterday both kids had a milestone doctors appointment. (Madison 's three year and Noah's nine month) This is the first time that both kids have hit a checkup point at the same time, so I didn't know what to expect. The appointment started with two nurses. One was updating all the database information, and the other was taking Madison's vitals. It made the routine part of the appointment go very fast. I was so proud of Madison when she went with the nurse to get her weight and height all by herself. Both kids are very healthy. The doctor said no more middle of the night feedings for Noah, however we do need to make sure he goes to bed with a full tummy. I had been trying that for the three nights leading up to the appointment, and he had slept through the night. I hope this keeps up. Only Madison needed a shot, and I was so proud of her because she didn't even cry. So, here is where the kids stack up:

Madison is 31 lbs (54%) and 37.5" (55%). She is perfectly proportional and very average size. She has gained 4.5 lbs and grew 3" in the last year. It was funny to read the "Normal Development" sheets they gave us, because they describe her to a T. I guess she is a normal three year old :)

Noah is 22 lbs 3 oz (76%) and 28.25" (52%). His percentages have actually gone down since his 6 month appointment, which means he might actually be slowing down in the growth department. He has gained 2.5 lbs and grew 1.5" in the last 3 months.

It is so funny to think the kids are within ten pounds and ten inches of each other. Hopefully, we won't be taking another trip to the doctor until Noah is one!

Madison's 3rd Birthday Party with Milwaukee Friends

We decided to have Madison's 3rd Birthday party with our friends from Milwaukee actually in Milwaukee at the new Holiday Inn's Puddle Jumper Lagoon. We knew it was a water playground, but we didn't really know what to expect. The location ended up being perfect for the age of kids we have. They had a one story water slide that the 3 and 4 year old kids could go down by themselves. The slide just had a stopper at the end, so the kids didn't shoot out into a pool of water. Even Noah loved going down the slide with Daddy. The pool was split in two. One half had a big piece of playground equipment with the typical water shooting out from everywhere and the other half of the pool was deep with two basketball hoops. The two halves of the pool were separated with a wall. In the area with the playground structure, the pool got as shallow as 0.5", so all the babies could easily crawl around without being underwater. All of the kids loved it and had such a great time. Madison was on a dead run the entire time, and Noah just kept trying to crawl over to the water slide. (We think he was hinting that he wanted to go down). Here are some of our favorite pictures from the day:

Madison plays in one of the water squirters.

Noah enjoys the bubbling water.

Madison goes down the slide.

We take time out from the water to sing "Happy Birthday" and have cake.

Madison receives a new gymnastics leotard.

Madison's 3rd Birthday Party with Family

We celebrated Madison's 3rd Birthday with all the family at our house with a big itallian dinner. After dinner, we had a pink pricess cake and opened presents.

Family Music Time!

Last Sunday, we had a big snow storm, so we didn't go anywhere all day. One of our activities to pass the day was play music. Madison has always loved music. Noah has been observing Madison play all the instruments, and then he tries them himself. He has figured out how to play the cymbals, moraccas, and sticks. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the day:

Here is Madison playing sticks. Later in the week, Noah picked up the sticks and started playing them exactly the same way.

Here is Madison showing Noah how to play the clapper.
Here is Dad multitasking... playing sticks with Noah and taking a picture!

Monkey Man Noah!

Since Noah started crawling, there has been no stopping him. He goes everywhere... Madison's bedroom, the office, the dining room, the kitchen. Everywhere that is except where he should be playing (the living room). Not only does he crawl everywhere, he also tries to climb everything. He has mastered climbing our counter chairs after one scrape and bump. One of the most exciting occurrences to me was when he was cruising along the couch and he turned and reached out for the coffee table. He was able to grab the table with one hand and walk over to it. Then he started cruising around the coffee table. Another exciting occurrence to me was when I stood him up pushing an infant walker, and he pushed it across the floor. When he sat down, he gave Mike and I the biggest grin and this look like "look what I can do."

Noah is crawling!

For the past two weeks, Noah has been taking one or two crawls forward and then ending up on a his tummy. He does much better crawling backwards. Well yesterday, he decided it was time to start crawling. I forgot what it was like to try to keep track of someone who can move so fast and get into so much stuff. Last night, he crawled over to the treadmill, pulled himself up to standing, and proceeded to try to crawl on top of the treadmill. Since he was trying to crawl up on the plastic part, it was slippery and he wasn't successful, but Mike and I watched in amazement as he tried. This morning Mike watched him as he crawled to a cymbal and then crawled across the room to the get the other cymbal. Once he had both of them, he started playing them. I am sad I missed seeing that one. I told Mike by the end of the day our house will be completely reorganized and "baby proof", since Noah is trying to get into everything!