Sea World

Living in San Antonio has its perks. Like the fact that Sea World is just twenty minutes away and getting a yearly pass costs just a bit more than going for a day. So guess where we'll be most of the summer? Yesterday we went with our good friends Ben and Vanessa, and met up with a few other couples there as well. Best. Park. Ever. I'm pretty much hooked.

Maddi and her little buddy Boston loved watching the dolphins.

"Hi dolphins!"

We watched a waterskiing show on the lake that was unbelievable (think flips off ramps, switching between boats, "skiing" barefoot, cabaret lifts...) How's that for a job? Lucky ducks.

Madison was very impressed. This is her applauding wildly and saying "yay!" although it sounds more like "lay!" which is why her tongue is sticking out...

This production featured the sea lions. Yes, that's a sea lion behind the desk. He's the gumshoe and she's the heartthrob in distress (cue Roger Rabbit theme music). A must-see!

The dads manning the strollers. Except for Ben, whose pretending to push a stroller because their baby's due in August. You can be part of the club soon, Ben!

But my favorite part of the whole day was definitely this little number:

There's so much more... more than we could squeeze in before naptime. Good thing we can go back any time we want!

The local wildlife.

At least the lizards stay outside...

this little girl

makes me happier than just about anything.

It's so hard to believe she's 18 months old this week. Where did the time go?

Madison has so much personality. She is extremely curious, a little rambunctious, sometimes devious, and usually adorably sweet. She loves to run into my arms and yell, "HUG!" She laughs all day long (she tries to tickle herself and then lets out a big fake laugh). She also sings all day long (gets that from her dad), and knows snippets and phrases from several songs: "up above the..." "bus round round," "I look popcorn," "lead me, guide me," "pa pa pa poka face" (this version by Idina Menzel and Lea Michele, NOT Lady Gaga's. I promise I'm a good parent.)

Currently, Maddi's favorite things to do are dancing, coloring, and looking for bugs.

Madison is one of the chattiest little kids I've ever met. She wakes up in the morning and starts labeling things. Often I will hear, "puppy, blanket, chair, stories, light!" from her room, and when I get her out of her crib she runs around the house labeling everything else she knows. Micah and I were curious how many words she says, so we made a list (in excel, of course). We stopped at 182...
Some of our favorites are: "an moos (animals)," "pockle (popcicle)," "keeno (clean up)," "bess oo (bless you)," "gee koo (thank you)," and "Jeesha (Jesus)."

She is fascinated by animals. She knows the name and/or sound of every animal in every book on her shelf. She can spot a picture of an animal ANYWHERE. The other day we were in the hardware section of Walmart and Maddi yelled, "PUPPY! Roof roof!" Sure enough, there was a tiny picture of a dog on an upside down bag of dog food in a passing cart. I already know the location of every Panda Express in town, because Maddi sees the signs and hollers "Bear!" from the back seat of the car.

Madison brings so much joy into our lives, and I can't fathom my world without her. I'm so lucky to get to spend every day with her. She makes me laugh, makes me happy, makes me want to tear out my hair sometimes, but then makes me feel like the most special person in the world. I love her so much!

*PS: the dress is from Dana's pattern at MADE.

His Day.

We kind of love this guy.

For a whole lot of reasons, but today we love him for being such a good dad. Micah can make Madison laugh harder than anyone else can. He can make her fall asleep when no one else can. He can get her to eat almost anything. He takes every opportunity he can to sneak lessons about shapes, colors, numbers, etc. into playtime. He can throw her around and get her all riled up, then cuddle her close and sing lullabies until she's nearly asleep. If she wakes after he's left for work, she walks the house saying, "mah daddy?" Each time my phone rings, she squeals, "Daddy!" He's the best jungle gym, her favorite story-reader, and the most fun to tickle.

But he's more than all that. He's the one who keeps me sane when she's been a pill all day. He's the one who gets up with her at night when I'm too exhausted. He's the one who keeps her quiet in church. He's the one who isn't afraid to discipline (kindly, but consistently) when I'm too much of a pushover. He's the one who's an example of a patient, devoted, doting parent. And, oh, do I love him for it!

Just what he wanted. Money to go golfing, since he's a real working man now. Plus, some themed cupcakes (because I'm a little addicted to my Williams Sonoma Mechanical Froster). But what dad doesn't love hole-in-one cupcakes? Although I think Madison may have enjoyed them more than he did.

And from Maddi, a little something to put on his desk at work so he can brag about her.

Happy Father's Day, Dear!

God Gave Me You.

I kind of lost it last night. I guess I've been trying to put on a brave face through all this change, but it's been wearing on me- and I finally cracked. Don't get me wrong, everything is just fine. It's much better than fine, actually. We couldn't be in a better situation. We have a job in this economy, for crying out loud. That alone is a wonderful blessing. We live in a beautiful place and we already have built-in friends (Nineteen other graduates from Micah's program at BYU were hired by USAA, and four of those couples live in our complex. The apartment managers here call us the "Utah Group" and know us all by name. It's like we moved and brought a bunch of friends with us. Pretty sweet deal if you ask me.).
But.
Moving is hard.
Moving is especially hard with a toddler.
Moving away from a place you love is sad.
Moving away from all your family is especially sad.
And combine that with all the daily challenges of being a stay-at-home mom (i.e. crayon on the walls, EATING of the crayons, spaghetti sauce on the couch, milk on the carpet, a dishwasher that makes your dishes dirtier- really- and a dryer that won't dry your clothes, a budget that still won't work even with twice the income...)
Well, like I said, it wears on you. And if you're like me, you pretend you don't really feel any of these things and try to be cheerful and positive until one day all the frustration comes crashing down.
On your husband (poor guy).
And of course he is wonderful and understanding and wants to know what he can do to help. And when you tell him you don't know what you need, he just holds you and lets you cry. And then you realize- that's what you needed.

Thanks, Love.

I’ve been a walking heartache
I’ve made a mess of me
The person that I’ve been lately
Ain’t who I wanna be

But you stay here right beside me
Watch as the storm goes through
And I need you

God gave me you for the ups and downs
God gave me you for the days of doubt
For when I think I’ve lost my way
There are no words here left to say, it’s true
God gave me you
-Dave Barnes (this video is worth watching)

Maestro...

It seems we have a little Prima Donna on our hands.
I'm very proud I was finally able to capture this on film. Madison loves to open a book--
it started with church hymnals, but lately any book will do-- and sing at the top of her lungs.
She honestly does it all day long unless she sees me with the camera.
(The best part is the "oh, you saw that?" face at the end.)

Enjoy!