SUMMER 2016-BEFORE KINDERGARTEN Disneyland Trip!

The summer before kindergarten, my family surprised me with a weekend trip to Disneyland! My parents blindfolded me and took me on a scavenger hunt and we ended up at Disneyland. We had the best time. I got a Princess Anna Dress and rode Space Mountain for the first time. My family loves Disneyland.

SUMMER 2016- BEFORE KINDERGARTEN- Cierra Sleepover!

Maddie had her friend Cierra Olsen come from Clinton to stay for a slumber party 2 nights this summer. The girls had a blast! Movies, sleeping in the Living Room on an air mattress and staying up late watching Disney movies, playing on the jump house and running through the sprinklers, McDonalds Happy Meals, Cherry Berry, Splash pad, snow cones, dollar store toys, IKEA ball pit, riding bike and playing at the park, making cookies and painting nails. FUN TIMES!

Pre-School Graduation

Maddie graduated from Miss Amy's Pre-school this spring! What a fun night! Maddie loves Miss Amy and she learned so much to help prepare her for kindergarten.

Fathers Day 2016

Maddie loves her daddy. He plays games with her and spends time with her. Makes her laugh, but her favorite is cuddling up next to daddy to watch TV, read a book or to hear him sing her lullabies. This Father's Day, Lance took Madison on a family scavenger hunt. Maddie loves her daddy and daddy loves his Maddie. 

My cousin Alex-Summer 2016

This summer was so sad for our family. My 18 year old cousin Alex passed away in a car accident. My family flew on an airplane to be with family and attend his farewell. Maddie will miss cousin Alex's beautiful blue eyes! Maddie helped at a car wash the friends at Alex's High School sponsored to raise money for the families of the kids that died in the car crash. I sang "You are My Sunshine" at Alex's farewell. This was his mom's favorite song to sing to Alex.

Fun with Xan and Jade in SC!

Went to South Carolina in June 2016 for cousin Alex's funeral. Maddie spent time having fun with cousins Xan and Jade. She loves these girls!

Fun with Cousins in Las Vegas!

Summer 2016 on our trip back from SC to get our vehicle Maddie stopped to spend time with cousin Lily, Gabe, Noah and Gideon in Las Vegas. She had a blast! Maddie loves her cousins! Maddie and Lily really do enjoy each other even tho the picture Lily is leaning the other way. Grandma says Aunt Jill was the same way when she was little- not a fan of pictures or hugs.

FIRST BUBBLE! SUMMER 2016! (5 years old)

First bubble ever! She did it in the pediatricians office in front of Dr Bosworth, mommy and her friend Cierra. First bubble ever! She's so proud. I can just see that little grin behind the bubble. Way to go Maddie! You're awesome!

Maddie had her first ballet dance recital. Grandma and Grandpa Mortensen came up from Wyoming for it. She was excited to carry around a bouquet of flowers like a little princess afterwards and pose for grandpa's pictures. Dairy queen after was fun too.

Daddy made breakfast for mommy on Mother's Day and for me too, the baby doll mama.

Maddie says "I brought my phone in case anyone texts me." Daddy said "Oh that reminds me I left my phone in the car."  Maddie answered, "You can use my phone." She's so awesome!

Maddie was in heaven today. She got to hold a real newborn baby.

Today Maddie learned how to pin. She is already an excited pinterest user. She wants to plan her own birthday with ideas she finds.

Conference Sunday breakfast it was Madison's idea that we all put oranges in and smile. We took a picture and sent it to Grandma and Grandpa Mortensen. They sent us a picture with apple smiles. Fun!

Maddie helped herself to a pan of brownies. Without knowing, she went for the best piece-the middle.

Easter Weekend Maddie went to see baby animals and the Easter Bunny. She wore her new Easter dress to church Sunday.

Maddie loves her baby dolls. She dresses them, feeds them bathes them and takes them in baby carriers and pushes them in a stroller each time we leave the house. She loves to make up her own baby food recipes. Her current specialty is bubble soup.

This week Mommy and Daddy went to a Republican Caucus meeting. Maddie went too. On the way over we talked about the candidates up for election. Madison wanted to know what we would do. We told her we were going to vote for the best possible candidate to run our country. She said she wanted to vote too. We explained that she had to be older to vote, but who would she vote for if she got to vote. She said, "I'd vote for President Monson"

This morning Madison found her daddy's passport and asked what it was. Daddy explained it was to travel out of the country. Later that day, she told her mother, "Mommy, if Trump wins President, Daddy's getting me one of these... pointing at daddy's passport."

I can't express how much Madison is into baby dolls. She loves to bathe them throughout the day, pretend to feed them, hold them and give them walks. Either she didn't want to leave anyone out and she has a lot of baby's or she knows how to use up space well. Love this!

Madison and her daddy and her uncle Lane went to a sportsman expo in Salt Lake City yesterday. Maddie got to hold a real live teddy bear. Maddie was cute telling mommy all about the experience. She said, "I can still feel his arm pits on my hands".

Maddie's favorite spot. Next to daddy.

Maddie loves dance.

5 Years Old

Madison is still as cute as ever. She is growing up and getting smarter and more beautiful every day. I can hardly believe Madison is now 5 and 1/2. She will be starting kindergarten in the fall. She has been attending pre-school this year and is doing an online preschool course through the Utah Upstart that is helping her get prepared for kindergarten. She's doing a wonderful job learning her A,B,C's and her numbers 1-20. She is a fast learner and is showing an interest in learning new things. She has been in ballet dance class over the last couple years since she was 3 years old and shows a love for dancing and singing and recently she's been asking about playing the violin. She has taken swim lessons the past 2 summers and isn't real interested in swimming without her water wings or life vest, but loves the water nonetheless. She loves baby dolls and barbies and stuffed animals and cuddling up with her little Chihuahua/min pin Olaf and watching a disney movie, full house or watching baby alive youtube videos. She loves sugar like any kid and still loves spaghetti, pizza and a good bowl of mac and cheese. Vanilla flavored ice cream is her favorite and her favorite color is still Purple. She loves to make up songs and dances at the first sound of music. She is everyone's friend and the popular house on the block when she comes out to play. She loves her daddy as much as ever. She loves it when grandma comes and still loves tea parties. She's a good friend, has a caring nature and is a quick wit. She loves to laugh and is a generally happy girl. She loves primary and loves her Heavenly Father. She has been so clever and fun to listen to as she comes up with reasons things happen or how they work. I will be a better journal taker so we don't miss the fun stories as she discovers the world around her. We love, love, love our sweet, cute Madison.

July 7, 2013

Madison is 32 months old or 2 yrs and 8 months. We can hardly believe that it has almost been 3 years. Time flies and every day is a new adventure. Maddie is really fun and is really funny too. She has said and done some really cute things recently. The other night while trying to get her down for bed, daddy showed Maddie how to use her bottle as a microphone and to rock out. Daddy would demonstrate, and Maddie would do it exactly. Only it was so funny when she did cause one she's just so cute and second, we didn't know if she would do it. She held the bottle to her open mouth, tilted back her head and screamed loudly "I wanna ROck!". The other day we were at a store and Madison picked up a bottle of bubbles and said " Bubbles make me happy". She's so cute. The other day when mommy was trying to get Madison to eat dinner, she said, "All I NEED is snacks". Snack girl didn't get any treats till she could prove she could eat a meal too. She's a riot. The other day Maddie had a couple accidents in her training pants, and daddy wasn't very happy because he was home alone and had clean up duty and Madison has proven over the last 2 months that she is pretty much potty trained. Madison knew daddy wasn't very happy with her so she said, "Daddy tickle me, it'll make you happy" Last night we went to the BEES baseball game and MADDIE was looked with surprise when everyone knew her new song she had learned, "Take me out to the ball game" she chimed right in and loved it. Madison went to her first 4th of July parade and loved it! She waved her little flag as each float prominaded down the street, she was so caught up in what was going on that she even forgot to go to the bathroom when she needed. she started crying and we looked down with her as she tinkled down her leg into the curb. That was memorable. Later that night we laid on a blanket and watched the sky fill up with fireworks, she loved everyone,especially the green ones, her favorite color.

June 28, 2013

Madison is such a little cutie and is starting to say big sentences now that just amaze us. It surprises us how much she understands and what a quick study she is. She also has such a funny little sense of humor already that she shares with us. Recently, Madison woke up with a wet spot next to her in bed beside where an empty bottle lay. When asked why there was a wet spot she replied, "My snow man melted". That made us laugh. She loves snow men and often sings the frosty the snowman song. Daddy was playing peek a boo with Madison one night and she looked at him and said,"Daddy so silly, make me happy" that was probably one of the sweetest thing our ears have ever heard,and certainly it warmed daddy's heart. Another night,Maddie was chasing daddy down the hall and as she did she said," fee-fi-fo." We thought wow she must have picked that up from story time at daycare. She's so funny. Mommy took maddie to the neighbors house and while there she had to go potty, while in their bathroom maddie petted the toilet seat cover and said,"That's pretty, that's nice". She says some really cute things. The other nite mommy, daddy and maddie were laying down relaxing in front of tv and mom had the remote control in hand trying to find a channel. Maddie grabbed the remote out of moms hand and passed it to daddy and said, "Daddy do it". Already, she has figured out dad knows how to operate the remote like a pro. There's so many stories to catch up on. Maddies music song list keeps growing she now knows the first verse to " I am a child of God" and she sings the chorus perfect but she puts a special twist (according to mom) when she sings the verse. Maddie's version goes like this,"I am a child of my mom". This is mommys favorite version. We've decided Madison is truly a princess. One night her "this" (a.k.a. a mostly white cloth diaper) was wet and daddy suggested we throw it in the dryer. When he finally convinced her to release it from her strong grasp in the dryer it went and when she found out how nice and warm and cozy it was she thought from there on each night before bed a "warmed this" would be nice. So, most nights before bed she'll stand beside the dryer waiting for her warm "this". Maddie loves to see trains and buses. Anytime we drive by a bus she says "I ride the bus", hoping well take her for a bus ride. Recently, daddy bought a ticket to ride the front runner from slc to Layton just so maddie could ride the train. She loved it! Everyday when mommy picks maddie up from daycare she says,"I go to playground" Maddie would stay at the playground all day if she could. She loves the slide and the swing. She climbs up to the slide by herself with no fear. She also loves to be pushed "higher, higher" on the big swing. She does a good job holding on tight. In the past 8 weeks maddie has been potty training;B.M's took a little longer to get use to and maddie has her own name for it. Often her diaper BM's came in shape of balls, and we once called it "poop balls" and it caught on and ever since she refers to it that way. She'll say "I'm making poop balls in the toilet! " she gets really excited about it cause its an accomplishment that was at first scary to her. Recently,when daddy was using a spray bottle to do Maddie's hair before daycare maddie said "I shoot Taegan with the spray bottle". Taegan is a little girl Maddie hangs around with in daycare. Most days Madison tells us,"Taegan hit me in the head". Not knowing maddie packed the water bottle daddy got to daycare, and she pulled it out and had it aimed at Taegan. We couldn't believe she carried this through. We thought on one hand that was a complex thing for a little 2 yr old to carry and idea out and follow thru, but also we thought "woo" we need to keep an eye on this little smartie. Maddie continues to bring so much love and joy into our home. We absolutely adore her and love her so much.

April 14, 2013

It's only been a couple months since our last journal entry and it seems like so many fun things have happened. Maddie just amazes us everyday with how much she is learning and she is really starting to put words together. Sometimes, she really says some funny things. We just enjoy her and lover her so much.

March 1, 2013

Maddie is so cute and such a good girl. She loves to learn especially new songs. Her most recent new song is " do as I'm doing". When she hears a new song shell say "again". She'll have you sing it over and over never tiring of hearing it. She loves changing shoes too she'll change them several times a day. She loves wearing her red cow girl boots. She often will put them on first thing in the morning and wear them around with her pj's. Maddie has always loved bubbles. She was recently introduced to bubble baths and she loves to gather all the bubbles and rub them all over mommy's arm while mommy sits outside the tub watching. Maddie is finally off pediature and hasn't dropped in weight. But she still loves her milk bottle every night before bed and when she wakes up in the morning. maddie loves to sing frosty the snowman the abc song jingle bells winnie the pooh theme song and really anything you'll sing with her. Her diet still consists of milk chicken ,mostly chicken nuggets Mac and cheese and either grapes mandarin oranges or strawberries bananas and yogurt and the marshmallows out of lucky charms. She sleeps in her big queen size bed mostly every night straight thru without waking up she still loves to cuddle and be held she loves to play with mommys hair. She is a sweet girl and vey good we adore her more than life itself.madison surprises mommy and daddy everyday with something new she knows how to say or do. She often talks ups storm to a stuffed animal or baby doll while we drive around in the car. So she either talking or singing all the time. She also has an obsession with band aids. Anytime she has chap skin or a little scratch she is insistant she have a bandaid and of course a kiss from mommy or daddy on the boo boo and then all is well. If she wants you to pick her up she still says " I hold you". She has been really missing daddy during busy season. Daddy got home at1am and she woke up as she must have heard him. No sooner did lance get in the bed that we heard these little feet running in the hall she showed up at daddy's side with 2 blankets in hand her teddy bear and her "this" aka cloth diaper wanting to be put up in the bed so she could snuggle and giggle with daddy, so cute.

January 29, 2013

Maddie didn't want to do anything to get ready for daycare.She fought with daddy on everything. She actually got put in timeout because she kept telling daddy "no". Daddy felt bad because she started crying but she stayed a full 2 minutes. and then she said she wanted "buddy' and she went into her closet and pulled out Lances pittsburgh steeler football guy and hugged on to him. So then daddy felt bad and as they went downstairs, Maddie said she wanted to cook buddy breakfast and have a tea party. Daddy is such a sucker for his little girl. He was late again today.

January 28, 2013

Today I picked up Maddie from daycare and asked, "Want to go see the jazz bear tonight?" , she screamed "Yeah!" She ran to the door without her coat waving to her teacher over her head as she ran. When we got inside the car, she saw the jazz tickets in the cupholder and she pointed at them and with excitement, said "game, game. "

January 27, 2013

Tonight we went to some friends for dinner and while lance and I were in the kitchen playing games, the kids were in the living room watching a movie. From the living room, we heard, "no". It sounded like Maddie's voice. Evidently the other 2 children, siblings, were fighting and Maddie was playing peace-maker. Trying to get them to stop. Earlier that morning we were leaving the church building back to the car and it started to rain lightly. Maddie kept smiling and laughing. It was such a reminder to enjoy all of God's creations and all seasons. She was just happy enjoying something new. She's so precious.

January 26, 2013

Mommy went to dress Maddie this morning and as mommy grabbed the pair of pants she laid out for her, Maddie screamed, "No Elmos pants.". Mommy wasn't sure what that meant so she continued to dress Maddie and as we opened up the pants to put her legs in there stuffed down in one of the pant legs was Elmo. Maddie had put the pants on Elmo to wear. She is so funny.

February 6, 2013

Maddie got her first pet today! Two goldfish. When asked what we should name or call them, she said, "fishies". spoken like a two year old.

February 6, 2013

January 26, 2013

This weekend Grandma and Grandpa Mortensen have been visiting. Madison has been so cute. She's been an advocate for family togetherness. anytime anyone left the room she'd call for that person till they returned. When she was downstairs and a couple of us were upstairs ,I heard her say, "Everybody come. " she amazes us every day with how well she is starting to understand words and how to put them together. She is so smart. Today while we were driving in the car she started counting on her own, 1-10. and already she is singing the abc song. she's a little unsure how the l, m, n. o, p part goes, but she is so smart. And, music is something that she loves still and if something is being taught thru music it just sticks and sticks, quick. She is also getting a handle of the command of the language especially when it comes to commanding others, "sit down, read this, everybody come, " are just a few of the commands we here often these days.

January 24, 2013

One of the things daddy loves and looks forward to every day is his morning time with his little girl. He and Maddie are like two peas in a pod. They love to hang out together and they love to play. This morning they watched frosty the snow man. In the movie when frosty gets his magical hat, he comes to life and says, 'happy birthday to frosty'. Daddy got a kick out of Maddie, when after the movie, maddie came up on her own to sing "Happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear frosty, happy birthday to you.' Daddy loved it. What a clever girl.

January 23, 2103

Mommy loves the end of the work day when she gets to pick up Maddie from daycare. It warms mommy's heart every time mom first walks in the door to see Maddie and she runs over to mommy with big wide open arms and grabs mommy's legs and says, "Hold you" wanting mommy to pick her up so she can give a big hug. Another thing that makes mommy smile is when Maddie loves runs over to the water fountain and climbs up to the sink to wash her hands. She loves to show off that she knows how to wash her own hands and get water by herself. Mommy can tell she's proud because the whole time she's doing it, she's looking over just grinning ear to ear. She's getting to be such a big girl every day.

January 22, 2013

This morning after getting ready for the day Maddie did what she always does and ran into mommy and daddy's room to wake up daddy and climb in bed to snuggle with him till he gets up to get ready for work. This morning she told daddy, "lets hide". She wanted daddy to pull the blanket up over both of them . When daddy asked , "Who are we hiding from?" Madison said, " from mommy". Mommy loves her silly little girl. She's so fun.

January 19, 2013

Madison is always surprising us with new sentences and concepts she comes up with. Today she climbed up on daddy's lap and put her hand out and said "I need money now". We got her started several months ago learning to put coins in a bank and now that she has this little purse, she needs to fill it up too. What a funny girl.

January 2, 2013

Madison has been very demanding with her new words. She tells mom and dad, "Sit here, Read this, Lay down here..." We are told at day care that she is quite the "firecracker" and that for "such a little thing she knows what she wants" After all the holiday travels, Madison moved from mommy and daddy's room into her own room. The first time sleeping in there since she was very little.Daddy set up a queen size mattress for her. It is low enough to the ground that she can climb on and off the bed herself. She got to pick out her own sheets and pillows and it's her special bed. The funny thing is that now she gets mom and dad to come lay down with her to get her down at night then a couple times thru the night when she wakes up still wanting a bottle she has one of us laying in there for her. So we may have moved her out of our room, but now she's moved us into her room. So really all we did was switch rooms.

December 25, 2012

Today we spent christmas in Green River, WY with grandma and grandpa and aunt julie and cousins kyle and Emily. It was great fun playing with charley the dog and chasing kyle around the house. There were so may presents maddie got tired half way thru opening them all. She also got great use out of her new shopping cart by going around and shopping thru everyones piles of gifts and filling her cart. Madison had a fun time. It was a nice christmas. Grandma Mortensen always makes sure there's plenty of fun.

December 8, 2012

Today was our last day in SC and was Uncle Denis's farewell. Maddie wont get to know uncle Denis. But, he did record a page in her frosty the snowman book, and mommy says he was a terrific brother and served a lot of people and was a wonderful father and husband and son.

December 4, 2012

Today was a very sad day for mommy. Her youngest brother, Uncle Denis passed away. Maddie was such a comfort to mommy. She flew to Sc to play with cousins and comfort mommy during this difficult time. It's been tough to be away from daddy. But, grandma and grandpa really loved seeing how much Maddie had grown and how cute she is.

November 28, 2012

Tonight we went to JcPenny's to have Maddie's 2 yr old picture taken our annual family picture Christmas picture. Madison really is such a pretty little girl. She really has grown up so much over the past year. It's amazing to see how she really does look a lot older than she did last year. The girls taking the pictures couldn't get a single smile out of her. Good thing daddy came to the rescue, he can always get his little girl to smile.

November 23, 2012

Madison has really become much more loving. It's very often that she'll run over to both mommy and daddy with wide open arms and say " I lub U" . We eat it up every time. She repeats a lot of things we say she amazes us every day with a new word we didn't know she knew. We tell her how smart she is. She is quick to learn. Madison's favorite thing at the park is the slide. There is one in her classroom at school. Everyday when mommy picks her up she has to show how she can go down the slide. Another thing she loves is to play in the water fountain. Any time she sees one and she HAS to have a drink from it. She comes home almost daily with a new shirt on than what she left wearing because of playing in the fountain.

November 10, 2012

Today Madison had a great time! We celebrated her two year birthday with friends at one of her favorite places. We sent invitations of Maddie wearing her Minnie mouse dress that mommy made for her. Her friends, Graycee Preece, Nathan Antzak , and Emery and Ashton Keyes met us down at the dinasour park at city creek and they all had a great time playing and then we had a pizza party and minnie mouse cupcakes and open fun gifts. She got a Rapunzel doll with a brush she could comb her hair with, and a seseme street music book with records, and a homemade ballerina that Adrianna made, a large mickey mouse doll and a little computer that she could practice her abc's on. she also got her first purse. Then at night she had another party with grandma and grandpa mortensen. They decorated their hotel room with a banner and balloons, mommy brought cupcakes and grandma and grandpa gave her a whole bunch of fun presents. Maddie had a great time playing bounce the balloon with grandma. What a fun weekend! Grandpa kept asking Madison if she was a "party animal" and she'd say "yes" and that made us all laugh.

October 4, 2012

This month Maddie started a new day care, Young Explorers. It only took 2 days before she was walking right in and not even clinging to us or remembering we were dropping her off. she was still crying every day , 8 months later at the last place we went to. I know she's a little older but, it's amazing when you have found the right place, the right people to try to take your place during the day... it makes a HUGE difference. Madison is so little they as us every day, "are you sure she is 2 yrs old. She is so tiny." Two of the days they teach preschool and already Madison is showing an interest in wanting to recite her abc's. What an exciting thing to see her want to learn and to feel her excitement. At a young age she already knows the importance of repetition. After reading a book with her, or singing a song or singing the abc's, she'll say "again!". She loves to learn and she wants to learn. This month Madison is sleeping out of our bed, not quite out of our room just yet, but our little plan to help with her transition worked! She loves to be near mom and dad. She now has her own little bed in our room; It's actually her crib matteress that has been made up for her on the floor of our room, but she'll sleep there all night. She is still waking up 2 to 3 times thru the night for a bottle so we need to figure out how to get more in her belly so she is more full.

September 2, 2012

Madison says some funny things. One of her favorite things is to call either me or lance "mamma-daddy. She'll say "Hi mamma daddy." , she is also always looking for or carrying around what she calls her "this" which is really a cloth diaper she has gotten attached to. Luckily, its a generic item and we have about 10 of them on hand at all times so we don't have to worry about loosing it. Madison is always reaching up for one of us to hold her and says "hold you.." . She is now 22 months old, we can hardly believe that in 2 months she will be 2 years old.

August 21, 2012

Five days later Madison is finally being released from Primary Children's hospital. It was not the norm for children to stay that long for the simple procedure she had done, but some don't progress and eat and drink right away. It was better to make sure she didn't become dehydrated but once we convinced the doctors she is a bigger bottle drinker than a solid food eater, they finally released us once she was drinking a certain amount of fluids. Even though it was a tough stay, Madison sure enjoyed the wagon rides, the visits from volunteer doggies, free books and trips to the children's art room. Madison had to have an IV put in 3x while she was in the hospital.One replacement was after she stuck her hand in a bowl of spaghetios, the nurse worried it may have gotten contaminated. We argued the need since she was drinking on her own at this point, and because it took the iv team 3 tries before they were able to get the last one in. It was hospital policy in case of emergency so she had to be stuck again. When the same nurse that came previous we said she wasn't allowed to try and she just assisted. Her coworker got it in on the first try. The next day we went home. For a week Madison ate nothing but ice chips and otter pops and let her bottle drip down her throat. It took 18 days before she ate her first solid food and unfortuantely her experience in the hospital gave her an aversion to loratab and also to medicine syrynges. She has an absolute fit if one is headed her way. Luckily, the experience as dreadful as it was, was totally worth her not having sleep apnea or trouble swalling food. She has more energy now and is sleeping better. Eating better too even though to mom and dad it still seems she doesn't eat enough to get by. But she is still a bottle lover.

August 18th, 2012

This month Madison did something so cute I had to record it. She has Learned many farm animal sounds. One of her favorites is a kitty cat because she has associated the sound with the animal. Our neighbor across the street has a cat and a couple days ago Madison stood out on the front porch, put her hands on her hips and called "MEOW, MEOW" thinking the kitty would come. It was cute. She since has learned kitty comes better when you say, "kitty, kitty" but it was so fun I had to make a record.

August 18th, 2012

Maddie is on second day of recovery and still at Primarys Children's Hospital. Dr's feel she needs to stay over night again as she isn't drinking much, and she needs iv again to prevent dehydration. It's taking a little longer than most to be released from the hospital for removal of tonsils, adnoids and the installation of ear tubes, but we just want Maddie to be better and ready. She refuses to eat and she isn't really drinking much. She's now on oxygen and an iv again, but she has gone from the narcotic meds to tylenol so hopefully, this will mean her throat is feeling a little better so with more fluids she can be ready to prove she is strong enough and feeling good enough to eat and leave the hospital. So many are praying for you sweetheart. You are our little fighter. You have been from the beginning. We love you!

August 16th, 2012

Madison's tonsilectomy has been moved up to today. This has been very nerve wracking for mom and dad. So many are friends and family are praying for our little Madison. Last night daddy and Brandon gave Maddie a blessing we know Heavenly Father will help Maddie thru this experience and on to a speedy recovery.

We started early, 5am to get over to Primary's children. Madison seemed excited about all the kid cars and toys and wagons. The morning was off to a good start the meds they gave her before surgery relaxed her to a state of silliness. She kept saying "wow, Wow". It was pretty funny. Surgery only took 45minutes. Recovery room was tough for mommy to see her sweet little girl in so much pain. Daddy was getting very anxious and concerned because it took so long to move into the overnight post op room. Maddie needed an additional dose of pain meds so it took a little longer. It was a tough first night. Dr Grimmer , Maddie's Surgeon felt Maddie wasn't ready to leave just yet as swallowing was too difficult so the iv stayed in till we were admitted to the hospital for an additional stay.

August 2nd, 2012

Madison brought over to daddy an Ensign Magazine and pointed to the picture and said "Jesus". Wow! Out of the mouth of babes.

August 1, 2012

Every day Maddie brings the plant watering can into the kitchen to be filled. She loves to go outside.

July 28th, 2012

Took Madison to water park today and swam around the lazy river. Maddie said "wee" . She loved it!

July 25, 2012

Went to an Ear Nose Throat dr this month after talking to pediatrician about Madison's lack of appetite the past 2 months, her recent development of sleep apnea and her recent loss of weight (1.5 lbs in 2 wks)and her 6 ear infections over last year. ENT said Madison had enlarged tonsils that needed to come out. Tonsilectomy has been set for August 30th at Primary Children's Hospital. Mommy and Daddy are having a difficult time accepting the need for this surgery.

July 23, 2012

For the first time after dinner, Madison handed mommy her plate to show that she was done eating rather than throwing her food on the floor. YEAH Maddie Mommy is so happy about this.

July 16, 2012

Madison is starting to selectively repeat words we say. And, say them in correct context. She is so smart.

July 14, 2012

Today Madison said "I love you" to daddy after he said it to her. It was the cutest.

July 11, 2012

Madison played with side walk chalk today. She loved it! She loves to use different colors with each stroke. Each time we go outside now, she heads for her bucket of chalk so she can create another colorful masterpiece.

June 12, 2012

Madison still shows a love for music. She has learned new words because of song lyrx to a few songs she has grown fond of such as "Itsy Bitsy Spider", "Head shoulders knees and toes", "Wheels on the bus", "Twinkle Twinkle little star", "Old McDonald", "Jesus wants me for a Sunbeam". Also, her head bobbing to music is now accompanied by bouncing and wiggling her hips. She grows more fun everyday. We just love her so much.

June 10, 2012

Today was Madison's first day of Nursery at church.

June 4, 2012

Madison stood up and walked to mommy at daycare today. She's walking more and more and has great balance. It's so awesome to see her getting more and more confident about her walking.

April 25, 2012

Maddie took her first steps today! So exciting!

April 20, 2012

Maddie's verbal skills are really beginning to develop and she is really trying to communicate more. She will often point to things she wants or things she is looking at. Madison will often repeat a word we say and it sounds so clear. She Loves to Say "Up" "Hi" and "Eye".
Recently, when she was climbing the stairs she pointed in front of her and said "UP". She's really quick to catch on. She is so funny... She loves to watch Disney's movie 'Tangled' and has proved that even at a very early age you can be a movie line quoter. Right before Flinn Rider replies to Rapunzels question of "How did you find me?" Flinn's response to Rapunzel is "I don't know how I came to find you or who you are but can I just say.. "Hi"." Maddie will say, right before Flinn or at the very same time, "Hi", using the same tone Flinn Rider does. It's so funny. We often rewind that part over and over just to hear her again and again. We get such a kick out of it.
Maddie loves to show us where her eyes are so she can say "eye". She can also show you where her nose and ears are too. She is trying with a squint to close her eyes during prayer now too, it's pretty cute. She's probably just copying mom who is peeking to see if Maddies eyes are closed.
Music-Madison still shows a great love for music. Whenever she hears it her bobbing up and down has progressed into swaying of her arms and shrugging of her shoulders. We'll definately have to put her into dance. She loves to move to the music.
Maddie started daycare in March and has finally started to adjust. Mom and dad haven't adjusted to all the colds she keeps catching and bringing home to share. But, she seems to enjoy all the toys and kids. She definately has a social spirit and loves to be around others especially little children.
Next weekend Maddie and Mom will fly to SC to visit Grandma and Grandpa Barksdale and all of her cousins. It should be a fun time!
Next month Mom and Dad look forward to taking Maddie to experience Disneyland for the first time! Maddie may not remember this trip, but mom and dad look forward to seeing her excitement over the characters.

February 2, 2012

Madison gets cuter and more beautiful every day. Her personality continues to develop as she explores the world around her. Her hair is really starting to grow too; little pigtails sure are cute on her. Her favorite things are bath time, crawling and most recently, climbing the stairs. She has traded in her favorite little bell for books and magazines-She loves to turn pages and tear paper. She now has 4 teeth with 3 others that have been slowly coming in. She really loves playing with Emery and Ashton during the day. And she loves mom and dad so much she doesn't want to even leave their side at bed time-sleeping in her own bed is not her favorite thing. We have recently found Maddie sitting up in bed and a couple times standing when we come to get her out. Eating vegetables not in a baby food jar has been a little challenging so mommy has introduced Maddie to the green smoothie which Madison gets very excited about. She is a green smoothie lover. This makes mommy happy! Weekends we look forward to spending time together. One of Maddies favorite things is to go visit the ducks at Sugar House Pond. Maddie is so fun! We love her.

January 8, 2012

Our little Madison is crawling! She's so awesome!
It's so fun to see the progression. She's so proud of herself. After a couple movements forward she'll look up at us just beaming with a smile.

We just adore this sweet little girl.
Love you Maddie.
Mommy & Daddy

November 11, 2011

Maddie's 1 yr dr visit went well. She weighed 18lbs 10.6 oz and was 28 inches long. After Maddie was pricked on the finger for her iron level, we found her sucking on the finger that was pricked. We found her chewing something and realized she had her bandaid in her mouth.
Daddy and Mommy thought we should journal one of Madison's favorite things to do at this age. She LOVES paper. She loves to tear it into tiny pieces and if she can get away with it, she loves to chew on it.

November 8th, 2011

Happy Birthday sweet baby Madison! You are truely our little princess.
It's amazing to think that 1 yr ago today you graced the world and our lives with your presence. You came in such a tiny frame weighing only 3lbs 7 oz, but you touched our lives in such a huge way. You have been such a light and a joy. Mommy and Daddy know of God's love because he gave us you. We love you so much!

November 7th, 2011

Madison is ever changing. She does some of the cutest things. Her new thing is shaking her head 'no'. I don't think she knows what it means yet. But she must like to move her head from side to side, and well sometimes in a circle because that gets in there too.
She is getting more and more hair. It's long enough now that it touches the back of her neck. She has fluffy hair and it stands up on end very easily. She wakes up with some really crazy hair dos. But, they're all cute on her.
We think Madison said "Hi" the other night. It wasn't in context of a greeting but it sure sounded like "Hi". She's so fun.
Her diet is now including formula, baby food veggies and fruits, and we've discovered that she LOVES cheerios and graham crackers for a treat as well as baby yogurt. She has also moved into babyfood meals and seems to eat those okay. She's got her 2 bottom front teeth and her top right tooth has broke thru the skin. Her little nose is runny and stuffy again and she's drooling so we think her left top tooth might be trying to make its way thru now too.
Madison is now rolling over on her own and this weekend, she took her first lunge forward towards crawling and both daddy and mommy jumped for joy. It was exciting to see!
It's hard to believe that our little Madison is turning the Big "1" tomorrow. It's been such a joy this past year and we've loved every minute of it. Spending time with our little sweetheart is mommy and daddy's favorite thing in the world to do.

October 19, 2011

We can hardly believe that in a few short weeks our little princess will be turning one. We will be going to Grandma& Grandpa Mortensen's for a princess party and to see her dig into her first Birthday cake. We are looking forward to that. Then 2 weeks later we'll be going to SC to Grandma &Grandpa Barksdale's house to celebrate again and then have Thanksgiving. It'll be the first time Mommy's brothers get to meet her, with the exception of Uncle Carter who drove out to Utah to see her after she got out of the hospital. Madison has so many little cousins that are super excited to see her. It'll be fun to see them all interact with one another.
Last weekend Madison learned to clap her hands. And for 2 days after she spent most of the day clapping to show off her new skill. Mommy and Daddy can't get enough of their little girl. She just brings so much joy. We love her so much.

September 9, 2011

Already Maddie is showing signs of being a part of a digital generation. Yesterday she reached out for Adrianna’s phone while we were talking and somehow found her daddy's phone number and was dialing it. Had his voicemail not come on it would have been interesting to see what she may have said in response. She loves her daddy.

August 22, 2011

Madison continues to change so much each week. It's fun to see her develop.
She is such a people person. She seems stimulated and energized being around others. We think she'll be an extrovert. It's not uncommon for her to reach out and softly touch the face of someone new she meets, especially if she senses that they are someone close to mommy and daddy. She also loves to JUMP in her jumper. Each week she does something new. She recently started grunting and pointing to a toy that is too far for her reach. Yesterday she started squinting really hard when she smiles. She's so cute. We can't get enough of her. She's so adorable.

August 3, 2011

It's amazing how much little Madison changes in only a couple weeks. She has been sitting up on her own for a while, but yesterday was the first day she ever rode in the seat of a grocery cart. And, she loved it! She also went in the swimming pool for the fist time this month and she had a smile on her face the whole time. She LOVES to kick her legs and splash the water.
Maddie is a daddy's girl. She is always poking daddy's arm for attention whenever he is around. She loves it when daddy plays and sings to her.
Maddie loves her tongue. She has it sticking out often and she likes to smile with her tongue hanging out. She's a happy baby and is so fun to have around. She has really taken a liking to holding onto little toys. She really loves toys. Especially,ones that make noise. When she see's them she smiles and reaches out for them.
Madison's first tooth has finally broken through the skin! It's so fun to see her progress and grow.

JULY 11, 2011

It's been a while since Mommy and Daddy have made a posting. So... we'll try to give an abridgement of the last 7 weeks....
Little Maddison is growing and getting MORE HAIR every day! She just turned 8 months old and her cute personality is starting to really show. She is such a sweetheart. She still loves to cuddle, which Mommy and daddy love. No teeth just yet, but she's definately teething so any time now we expect we'll see some little baby teeth popping up. Madison loves to be entertained... She loves to watch little children, she loves to bounce and often giggles when she does. She loves to play with mobiles and loves toys that make sounds, she reaches out for toys and wants to try to pick things up and holds them for a pretty long time. She's getting to be so strong. She LOVES the movie theater. Her first movie was Kung Fu Panda2 and her eyes were glued the whole time. We were amazed at her attention span. Must have been the big movie screen. We love Maddies smile. There's a twinkle in her eye and that smile is so warm and adorable. She often sticks out her tongue while smiling too. She is full of love and joy. We love the sweetness that she brings to our life. Daddy and Mommy never knew life could be so sweet just by having sweet Maddie come to their life. She is such a blessing.
We're blessed to have 2 really wonderful friends who watch Madison during the day and Maddie loves to see their children each week. In fact, Adrianna has created a daily blog which we are so thrilled about. If you'd like to become a follower the blog website is as follows:
www.littlesistermaddie.blogspot.com/

MAY 20th 2011

It's hard for us to believe Madison is already 6 months old. She is doing really great. She's now a little over 12lbs and a very happy baby. She smiles all the time now.

Easter weekend Grandma & Grandpa Barksdale, and all of Daddy's family came out for Madison's baby blessing and many friends also acompanied this event as well as our family's sealing in the Oquirhh Mountain Temple. It was a very special weekend-one we will never forget.

Madison is so fun. She LOVES bathtime. We are sure she's going to love swimming. She also loves to see mickey mouse on the tv or daddy's phone or IPAD. It's been fun to introduce disney to her. A place we will definately visit when she is older.

Madison is is still working on learning to turn over and sit up on her own, but she is almost there. She has recently been introduced to rice cereal banannas and avocados. She seems to enjoy trying new foods. She especially seemed to enjoy the bannanas as she grabbed the spoon and tried to get it in her mouth quicker than she was being fed. That was pretty funny to watch. She's a sweetheart and now that she's here,Mommy and Daddy can't imagine life without their sweet Madison.

March 20th 2011

It's been a few months since our last update and so much has happened. Madison is healthy and growing like a weed. She is now 4 months old and 10 pounds. She is so alert and always moving. We love her energy! She is always moving her arms and legs. She's like a little bird flapping its wings. We think she might skip crawling and go straight to running or maybe flying. Her little personality is really starting to develop and she is so sweet and such a cutie. Every morning when we get her out of her crib she gives us a big smile-It just warms mommy and daddy's heart to see that sweet smile. She is starting to giggle now and we can tell already she's going to be a talker. She loves to hear her voice.
Grandma Barksdale left the first of February, and we miss her. Grandma Mortensen is here now to stay with Maddie till RSV season is over. It's been fun for her to bond with her granddaughter, and fun for Maddie to have her grandma play with her and sing to her and tell her stories during the day. We're certain by the time Grandma Mortensen leaves, Maddie will know how to blow a rasberry.
Maddie experienced her first Jazz game. Daddy's work reserved a suite at the Energy Solutions building. Madison fit right in with her Jazz bib, and even though she slept through the entire game, it was an exciting win for the Jazz that night!
Next month is a big month for our family. Madison will be getting blessed and we will be sealed as a family. So much to look forward to.

January 8th Update

Madison is doing great! She is growing big. She still looks like a little doll baby, but she is almost twice the size she was at birth. Mommy and daddy are learning each day Maddie's likes and dislikes. Different from the baby in the NICU who fell asleep in the middle of her feedings, this cute baby now tells us, like clockwork, when it's time to eat. Madison also loves to soak in a warm bath-she loves the water. She is definitely going to be a swimmer! Daddy can't wait to teach her how to swim. Madison is such a good baby. She hardly cries and she is good natured and so sweet. We just love her more and more every day.
A highlight of the past couple weeks was having Grandpa Barksdale visit from SC. This was his first time seeing little Maddie and he just loved her and kept saying what a pretty little girl and what a sweet little girl. Maddie loves grandpa too. She felt comfortable and fell asleep in his arms.
Also, posted on todays blog is a picture of Maddie with Grandma Barksdale who has been staying with mommy and daddy to help with Maddie. Grandma is always able to get Maddie to sleep. Grandma has been a life savor as she gets the 2am and sometimes the 5am feedings. Maddie loves her grandma, and loves it when grandma rocks her to sleep. Mommy and daddy have been so grateful for Grandma Barksdale's help. We're beginning to think that baby Madison might be the only one in the house getting any sleep, but we just think shes so cute and we just love her.

December 25th Update

Madison made it home in time for Christmas. It was definitely mommy & daddy's best Christmas ever. She was our little Christmas miracle. We are so thrilled to have this sweet little spirit in our home. It's amazing how our home feels complete in a way we never knew it could. We were missing our sweet little Maddie. We've updated our pictures with some of the highlights of our Christmas. A family picture on Christmas Eve of a very tired mommy and daddy and a growing little Maddie. She is now twice her birth weight. She's growing every day. The highlight of our Christmas was that Uncle Carter and Auntie Amber drove all the way from SC to see little Maddie and give her a special gift. They remodeled her bedroom and made it a room fit for a princess. She is so loved by her family. Also, we've posted some little gifts from Mommy and Daddy. Some apparel baring daddy's favorite sports teams, that's right Maddie is a Steeler and Jazz fan and she doesnt even realize it yet. Maddie also received her first Disney book Im sure she will be excited when she is old enough to hear all of these fun stories.

December 17 Update

Hey all! Maddie has been home for 3 1/2 days now and all is well for the most part. Daddy and Mommy are trying to get on her schedule as she is determined to continue to want to snack every hour or so. Mommy and Daddy are trying to be stringent and make sure she is feeding every 3 hours, but Maddie seems to counter with taking a half a bottle and then falling asleep. After scratching her head, rubbing her chin, and moving the bottle around in her mouth she occasionally will finish the bottle but it takes her an average of 45-50 mins to complete the process.

Sometimes she will surprise us and take more than her minimum. And so it seems to average out. Daddy and Mommy think she is just a prankster and is trying to play jokes on us. Anyway we are happy to have her home, even though she is keeping us on our toes.

We hope all of you enjoy the new pictures we posted. These were taken as she was being discharged. We will continue to try to post every few days or so, so those of you that have been following the blog will be able to keep up on how she is doing.

December 14th Update

Madison was discharged today from the NICU! She ate good through the night, but didn't gain as much weight as they would have liked so she had to stay for another couple of feedings and then weigh in again, now weighing 5 lbs 10.8 ounces, we finally got the green light to go home!! We were so thrilled. We felt like little kids on Christmas day-so much excitement. Daddy brought his video camera and recorded the whole event of Maddie leaving the hospital, getting into the car and being brought across the thresh hold of her new home. We couldn't stop watching her sleep when we brought her to her new bed. And,we practically drew straws to see who would get to feed her first. We knew the straw game would probably not be so appealing when the middle of the night came though. However, we were so thrilled our sweet daughter was finally home!

Now that the NICU journey has come to an end we will probably drop the entries to bi-weekly so that family and friends can still get an update on how sweet Maddie is doing. We will notify everyone when we choose a calendar date her baby blessing.

If you'd like to check out some pictures that were taken of Maddie with Mommy & Daddy at the hospital yesterday view the following website:
http://www.our365.com/NewbornPortraits/BabyDetail.aspx?birthid=42459e4b-e92d-4541-a33c-69ae8342b74d
password: 727301345630241

December 13th Update

Maddie is coming home! We get to bring our little bundle of joy home either tomorrow or Wednesday. We find out tomorrow morning! We are so excited we can hardly stand it. She's been off the feeding tube for 48 hours now and although her feedings are still slightly slow and sluggish, the doctor may release her tomorrow. We know it'll be a lot of work but we have been waiting for this day for a long time and we are up for the challenge and are so grateful for the opportunity and the sweet blessing.
Our hearts are full of gratitude at this time to so many who have given us support, encouragement and love during Maddie's journey. We are so blessed with so many wonderful friends and family. We will keep you posted as we learn more.

December 12th Update

Madison is such a sweetie. Daddy fed his sweet baby girl tonight. He's the "finisher"-kinda like in baseball. Mommy starts the feeding, and then when Maddie starts to fall asleep, daddy comes in and finishes it off. It works like a charm; however, it's not an ideal set up for the middle of the night feedings. Mommy and the nurses had fun dressing cute princess Madison up in fun Christmas outfits and taking a couple fun pictures tonight while her bottle was warming. Daddy thinks she'll love Mommy for those pictures when she's older.
This morning Madison's feeding tube was taken out. She has taken the bottle for 24 hours and she has gained more weight. She is now at 5 lbs 8.3 ounces. Maddie tuckered out again this evening with one of her feedings. Her nurse was threatening the tube again,but said she'd wait a couple more feedings to see how she does. We hate the thought of her having that tube being put in again, but we want to make sure she is eating. She's definitely gaining weight. So she seems to be doing good. Hopefully, a little more rest will give her the stamina she needs to finish her next bottle. Tomorrow Madison is at her 37 week mark. This is a common point that baby's seem to be stronger and get to go home. We are hoping that is the case for Maddie. We are anxious to have our sweet baby home.