Ahh, I love spring so much! Warmer days and lots of sunshine always make me so much happier.
Madelyn is now 8 and a half months old. She is a spunky, feisty, and happy (almost) mobile girl! I cannot even begin to express the joy that she brings to my life every day. She is a human rolling pin. If she wants something that is out of reach, she simply tucks and rolls. She sits up from the laying position and has started pulling up on anything and everything. She talks non-stop... not just talks, but yells! Haha. Josh and I are not very loud people ourselves so I have no idea where she has gotten this yelling from. She is getting to be a pro at baby signing, which is awesome. She gets so excited when she actually gets what she wants from signing... and it makes my life a whoooole lot easier. Anyone with a baby or a baby on the way, I highly recommend looking into baby signs. Lets see, what else? She gives kisses! Most of the time she slips some tongue into it... she's a very loving little lady ;) She also makes different animal noises (obviously not perfectly clear). She clucks at the chickens, cock-a-doodles at the rooster, meows at her grandparents cats, and woofs at any dog she sees. She shakes her head yes and no... usually we get a "no" for everything, of course, lol. She has mastered the art of dropping things and saying, "uh-oh", just to get a response. She definitely keeps us busy and on our toes now. She is so close to crawling! She gets up on her hands and knees, rocks back and forth as if to get momentum, then just lays down. She's going to just take off one of these days.
Now that spring is here we have been spending tons of time outside. She loves her new wagon and swing. She cannot get enough of them. She is definitely an outdoors kind of baby. I have a feeling I'm going to be fighting her to come inside this summer. Here's a few pics of her in her new swing and wagon...
My baby isn't such a little baby anymore. In 4 short months she will be a year old! This has been the scariest yet best year of my life. I have no idea what life was like before her now. That's all for now, update wise. Hopefully I will post again before she turns the big 1 :)
I decided the other day that I wanted to write a letter to Madelyn that I can give to her in the future, telling her exactly I am feeling at this stage in her life. I sat down today (since my mother in law was nice enough to take her for the afternoon) and wrote it out. I hope that when she grows up she cherishes my letter to her and doesn't think I was just being a "lame" mom by writing it, haha.
My dearest MadiBear,
Since the second I laid eyes on you, I knew that my life would be changed forever. I had never loved another being as much as I loved you. You opened your little eyes and looked into mine, and in that instant my heart grew and became full with an overwhelming love that was created just for you. You have brought so much joy into my life that I never even knew I had been lacking. As the days go by and you continue to grow, I pray for the woman that you will one day become. Don’t ever let anyone tell you that something is impossible. I pray you grow to be an independent, confident, and beautiful woman. I know that you will be just as beautiful on the inside as you are on the outside. I pray that you will always follow your heart and have the courage to face your fears. You, my baby, are capable of doing great things! When you stumble in life, and you will, I will always be at your side helping you back up. I pray that you never look back on your life with regret. Even when you fail, I pray that you learn from it and use it to better yourself. When you become a teenager and eventually an adult, I hope that you can still continue to be my “baby”. I know that we won’t always see eye to eye, trust me, I know. But know this, even on our hardest and most trying days, I will still have more love for you than you can imagine. I will sit back on those hard days and try my best to let you learn through your own experiences. Know this as well, when the time comes that you decide you need your mommas shoulders to either catch your tears or be your support, I will be right here. Madelyn, the day that I became your momma was the day that my life became complete. You, my sweet baby girl, are the best thing I’ve ever done in my life. I’m so thankful God blessed me with you as my daughter. You have already taught me so much about myself. You’ve shown me a strength I never saw in myself before you came along. I promise you that I will always be the best mom that I can possibly be. I’m so excited to watch you grow and to see all that life has to offer you. The world better watch out for Miss Madelyn Noelle Hill! I am so proud to call you my daughter.
