Seasons Are a Changin'...

Well, as Autumn is upon us, we are finding all of our jackets and jeans and dusting them off so we can get outdoors. Something we've learning living in Erie, PA is that you don't stay inside if it's above 32 degrees outside. You just don't. Because there are plenty of days that will be BELOW freezing that we'll get lots of indoor activities in.

Madilyn found out what a tire swing is, thanks to her great friends Pierce and Autumn. This was definitely the high-light of that playdate! :)

Fall fun at the Erie Zoo! Madilyn loves to look in the "barn" and see the chickens inside!

In contradiction to everything I just said, we went to the Children's Museum this morning. My mom bought us a pass (thanks, Mom!) this year so we can go as often as we like. Normally this would be saved for a snowy day, but today was chilly, rainy and windy so we decided to pull out an indoor activity :)

Madilyn gives a fabulous puppet show.

She loves the grocery store, and she tells all the kids "Thank you for coming," when she is the cashier.

The princess found her castle.

Here the face painting station. She LOVES it! I think she loves it so much because she sees me doing makeup in the mornings. She's very creative!

But her all time favorite station at the Erie Children's Museum is the boats and ducks in the water. She can literally play in it for an hour. Loves it.

There are many more adventures for us this Fall as we change seasons and prepare for the Winter ahead. More pics soon...I promise! :)

Being Green and Saving Money!

Well, as those of you who know me already know, I'm not totally into "being green." I see the benefits of being responsible and good stewards of what God has given us, but I'm not overboard...but I DO LIKE SAVING MONEY!!! :)

This morning, we had a playdate at the park...

So, I skipped driving to the gym for a workout. Instead, I grabbed the stroller, my grocery list, a letter to mail, and a prescription to drop off and headed out for our playdate at the park. Whew! Honestly, though...it felt good to not spend extra gas on all of those things... and I got my workout in for the day! Yay! So we jogged 1.6 miles to the park to play and then walked to Walgreens, the post office and the grocery store before heading home (thankfully, they're within a few blocks of each other).

Madilyn brought Kitty of course. She had so much fun playing in the big tree tunnel with Olivia!

And, the swings were the hit of the day! Madilyn thought Kitty needed to swing, too. All in all, such a fun morning... and very productive! :)

Our big 3 year old!

Well, Madilyn is officially 3 years old!!! I absolutely cannot believe it, and I have cried a few times in the last couple of days because she's just growing up so fast! Three years old just seems so "kid-ish". She's not a baby and not even a toddler. She's a "pre-schooler." I'm so proud of her and the little lady she's becoming.

Some things I really love about this stage: She's learning to be a good friend. I see moments where she's starting to reach out to others when they're sad or if they don't want to play what she's playing. Granted, she's not perfect (as none of us are!), but she's such an amazing little girl. I'm overwhelmed by the destiny that God has planted in her little heart and the good things that are in her future! There is absolutely no better job than being a mom in my book (Hands Down!). What an honor!

She's really funny! Madilyn is starting to crack jokes and play with us like never before... and she's got a great sense of humor. And her laugher and her smile... they melt hearts (even in the grocery store we get stopped sometimes because people just love her little voice and the cuteness of the sparkle in her eyes and her smile, Oh her smile!). On a side note, a couple of days ago, I asked her what her favorite part of the day was. She said, "Playing with you, Mommy. That was my favorite!" Oh... melted me like butter.

She's got a sweet heart. She's tender. She's kind. She's loving... and she's starting to grasp the beginning of who God is and His plan for her. Oh, this excites me most of all! She has memorized her first memory verse: Genesis 1:1 "In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth." She's really good at saying it and telling us about all the things God has made that are around us.

She's three, and I'm so excited to see what the future holds for her and for us! Madilyn's name means "prayerful" and "magnificent", and that's truly just the beginning of who she is. She's amazing, she's incredible, and I'm grateful for all the time we spend together! Wouldn't trade it for the world!

We took Madilyn to Build-A-Bear for her birthday, and she loved it! She picked out her "Madilyn Kitty" and got after it!

They told her to hold onto the kitty's heart, put it against her own heart and close her eyes and make a wish! She was VERY into it. :)

She got to give Kitty a bath before picking out her clothes.

Kitty ended up getting Sketchers Twinkle Toes shoes, just like Madilyn has.

She gave up her paci on her 3rd birthday in exchange for her new kitty. And, she did great and slept all night! As I type, she's sleeping without a paci, holding Kitty and taking a nap! She's getting the hang of growing up quite well, I think! :)