Bake me a cake as fast as you can......

Obsessed with "Patty Cake." Me and little nugget baby. It's one of our most recent fave games......I think it's hilarious because as soon as I grab her hands and start the "Patty cake, patty cake" song she smiles so big and says "aaahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Everytime. Hilarious.

This evening we were all piled on the bed and I told Jason to play patty cake with her. This is what I heard:

"Patty cake, patty cake bakers man..." (I thought to myself, WOW! He knows it)!
.."bake me a cake as fast as you can!" (My heart smiled hearing daddy sing to baby).
..."uh....squish it down, throw it around, smash down the dough, then cook it in the oven on high temp and LOOK maddy! You got the best yummiest cake!"

I peed my pants. Someone call Pampers and tell them to make a bigger size.

I need a bigger heart for all this Love.

Despite days of exhaustion, frustration, days of being pooped on and screamed at, days of where baby wants to be held ALL THE TIME, and basically living out the hardest profession ever (Mommyhood), there come moments that completely wipe all the tiredness away and replace it with more happiness and love than my heart can handle. Moments that remind me that God must love me so much because he gave us the most beautiful and wonderful little girl ever and wants US to be her mommy and daddy. Moments that make me want to be a better person and work harder and play nicer and give more than I have. Moments that make me realize how worthless material things are and that if I had to lose everything I had but could keep this little baby I would do it in a second and not even hesitate or miss the material things.

Last night I went to check on Maddy before I went to bed. The hall light was on so I could see *just a little bit* of her. She was fast asleep but woke up for just a second. She looked up at me- half asleep- and smiled so big. SO BIG. Then she shut her eyes and was back asleep.

More than worth it. Way more.

America's Next Top Model

As promised, the Gebhardt Family of 3 took Maddy back to the pumpkin patch with Steph's determination to have poop-free Halloween Pics. I had to work on Halloween night, so we collectively decided NOT to dress Maddy up as anything but a pumpkin and this was basically our Halloween celebration. I'm glad I didn't take Halloween off because we had a total of ZERO trick-or-treaters. Even less than our last years total of three. Which means we have 2 huge bags of candy on our table. YES!!!

While there weren't as many pumpkins as our first trip and the ones that did remain were mostly warty, there were tons of cute pics. Tons. Thanks to Aunt Becky's photog skills, we once again have solidified proof that our baby is the cutest pumpkin in the patch.

Get ready for an over-kill moment of pics:

Cheap Entertainment

With the holidays coming up, I've been a loyal customer for "amazon.com" scouring the latest and greatest on baby toys. Let's face it: I am so out of the loop on what is cool in baby land. "Yo Gabba-Gabba," "Dora the Explorer," "Melissa & Doug Toys." Pretty much foreign language. All I've ever heard is Baby Einstein and Fisher Price. I have visions of sugar plums, Santa, and a happy (6 month old mind you!) as she opens her toys and squeals with excitement that Mommy got her the newest and prettiest Shape Sorting Cube.

No need.

Maddy is obsessed with tags.
TAGS I tell you.

No matter what toy, water bottle, book or shirt she is drooling on-she thinks it's mundane except for the tag.

So in this snail-paced improving economy I say this out of love: Save your money. But save your trash. Maddy's Christmas will be rocked if all she is given are pieces of cardboard, newspaper, sales ads and TAGS.

I guarantee she will love the wrapping paper and bows.

A Big Fat Piece of Humble-Pumpkin Pie.

I am anal.
I know this isn't news to anyone, but I usually never consider myself anal until I realize things are not going as planned. Then I realized during my temper tantrum that I am an anal control freak. Being said, when things don't go as planned it is usually due to HUGE blunders...not just tiny bumps in the road.

I COULD NOT WAIT TO GO TO A PUMPKIN PATCH AS A MOMMY.

Pumkin patch visiting with your baby is probably one of THE most cliche things to do for young mommies my age. Cheesey. Unoriginal. Boring. Dorky.

I COULD NOT WAIT.
Even being pregnant I would think about how Maddy would be at the pumpkin patch..still itty bitty baby but not NEWBORN. This was going to be one of those 'so-proud of my kid' moments for me. Like her first trip to Disney or something.

My parents were here this past weekend and pumpkin patches have been popping up at every church on every corner...not to mention the weather has been gorge. What an ideal time to take baby to her first pumpkin patch. I was so excited.

Here comes the embarrassing part: NO JOKE I went to THREE stores to find Maddy the perfect "Baby's 1st Halloween" Onsie. I know. Lame. LAME. At least I recognize my lameness. But what can I say-I wanted this day to be perfect. A lady at work made Maddy the CUTEST pumpkin hat with black ruffle pants...to go perfect with her Halloween onsie. I was ready.

Excitement in the air, I waited til just before we left the house to put Maddy in her outfit...excited but terrified at the same time. You see, I know Maddy's bowel schedule like the back of my hand. I can almost time her poops. And this particular day it was 1 pm and SHE HAD NOT POOPED YET. This only means one thing. It will be a blow out.

We arrive. The pumpkin patch is ADORABLE. I am almost giddy with dorky, cheesy excitement. I pick up Maddy out of her carseat and we begin to enter. And then. I feel it. On the front of her shirt.

SHE HAD POOPED EVERYWHERE. IT WAS ALL OVER MY SWEATER. IT WAS IN MY HAIR. IT WAS ON MY UNDERSHIRT. IT WAS ALL OVER HER PERFECTLY PLANNED COSTUME. EVERY WHERE.

I almost cried. Not even one stinkin picture. My dream had been destroyed by a 4 month old's poop. Jason lovingly changed her in the back of the jeep while I stripped down to my ratty undershirt (still covered in poop) and moped. Dang.

We took pics anyways. Maddy TOTALLY not matching but it was still adorable. And fun. And I guess I have to look at the bright side and tell myself what I tell my patients when they have an accident. "Hey--at least we know your intestines work."

Basically, I learned Mommy Lesson # 47. Things Never Go As Planned. But hey, if you first don't succeed, try try again. So- Stand by for round # 2 pumpkin patch. Oh yes, we're ganna make it happen. Get ready.

A Dual Purpose Blog: Shout out and Bragging.

Most importantly, I would like to propose a shout out to Sarah O. F. Peters. Without her, my parenting style would most definately be crap. And what little sanity I have left would be gone. And Maddy most DEFINATELY would not have gotten her "liquid gold nourishment" for as long as she has been. Sarie, you've made it to my blog. Middle and maiden initials and all. Can't wait for our little girls to be BFFAEAEAEAE's. just like their mamma's =).

BRAG TIME:

Maddy totally goes down in her crib on her own and puts herself to sleep. It took 1 day. Sure, it's not 100% effective yet. Sometimes it takes a couple of "putting paci back in her mouth" tries, but it works. I am obsessed. Greatest idea EVER. Why the H did I spend 30 minutes EVERY NAP TIME rocking that fighter to sleep?!!

That's pretty much my update. We're going on 2 weeks of this and it's been bliss.

Sarie: The blanket Gray gave maddy? Totally her "teddy bear" when falling asleep. She's like Linus w/ that blanket.




BABIES!

Love = Forgiveness.

I will publically admit it.
I gained 38 pounds when pregnant with Maddy.
I totally lied in the delivery room.

The nurse gave me a form ( a form?!) with "pre-preggo weight" and "current weight" spots. WHAT?! Seriously, what American-bred (vain) woman is going to answer the honest truth on either one of those lines?! So, what did I do? I lied for both of them. I made myself skinnier before I got pregnant, and attempted to make myself skinnier at the current time. So sue me. You're still getting paid. And you probably won't look at my answers. So shut up. It's making me feel better as this almost 8 pound baby is pressing against my cervix. She's the size of a watermelon, so I can put whatever the h*ll weight I want on that form. On MY floor we actually WEIGH the patients. You slackers.

The thing I love most about where I work is the familiarity I have with my patients, and that they have with me. As an Oncology *cancer* nurse, I really, really develop relationships with my patients being that they constantly are being hospitalized through out their illness. I had the privilage the other night of caring for a patient I knew WELL before I even got pregnant. I love this man. And he loves me. But it's totally "tough love." We bicker. We fight. But we love each other. =)
Even though he refers to me as "Nurse Ratchet," (from 'One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest') he won't take any other nurse when he knows I'm coming in that night. I've known this guy since BEFORE I was pregnant, in fact TRYING to get pregnant.

This is our TRUE conversation.

HIM: "Hey Steph. Got any new pics of Maddy?"
(**I show him pics).**
ME: "Isn't she so cute and chubby?!! I just love her!"
HIM: "She sure is. She takes after her mother. Hahah! Just kidding."
ME: "Thanks a lot you brat. I'm going to come in on the hour every hour to draw 'blood work.'"
HIM: "Just kidding! How much do you have left to lose? 15 pounds?"
ME: "Ummm...NO. Thanks. 12 pounds."
HIM: "That's practically 15. Remember when you were trying to get super skinny for Hawaii? You only had 5 pounds left to lose."
ME: "Thanks for reminding me. At least I lost it. You didn't think I could lose that last 5 pounds."
HIM: "And I don't think you can lose this last 15."
ME: "WHAT?! How rude. I will lose it. Just wait and see."
HIM: "I discouraged you the whole time before Hawaii, didn't I? And you lost it. Then what happened? You got pregnant and gained 40 pounds."
ME: ****Silence..........**** "Yea, but I've already lost 25. So leave me alone."
HIM: "I'm just saying....Watch out or you might get pregnant again and gain 60 pounds. Plus the extra 15 you're holding on to."

This is a typical relationship with my patients. Is this professional?
Bottom Line:
I love Maddy. Chubby mommy or not. =)

Newest Catholic on the Block

Our Baby Love 'aint no sinner no more. This past Sunday little Maddy Lou was baptized...and her momma was so proud!
It was an interesting day for me at least emotionally....I was more proud of Maddy at that point that I probably had ever been of her. More proud than when people met her for the first time, than when her belly button fell off, than when she smiled for the first time, than when she first rolled over. I was most proud of Maddy on this day and she didn't even know what was going on. And didn't choose to be baptized. But I was still so proud.
My mom made the most beautiful gown for Maddy out of my wedding dress...and ended up including satin from HER wedding dress, so Miss Maddy was wearing a most special and beautiful garment. If that's not the coolest thing you've ever heard than I don't know what is.

Of course, as luck would have it, Maddy was GREAT during church. A perfect little angel. And of course, when it was time to start the baptism she turned into a helliun. FUSSY. DEFIANT. CRANKY. SQUIRMY. TOTALLY EMBARASSING. And of course, we were "sharing" the baptism with a little boy who was adorable and was acting perfectly. Go figure.

HOWEVER....When it was time to be blessed and baptized, Madelyn calmed down as if she knew the moment had arrived and calmly and cutefully became a little Catholic girl. And this mommy's heart swelled and swelled and I was so happy to be holding her for her first sacrament.

We had a fun and great party at our house afterwards and I think Maddy had a good time too....especially when she sh*t EVERYWHERE and it exploded out of her pants, got ALL over the floor, all over Jason's shirt, and exploded all over his pants. Seriously, it was the biggest poop she had ever pooped in her life, and it was covering her grossed-out daddy more than she had ever covered us before. Hilarious. And in front of everyone. But seriously. And practically all who read this blog were there, so you know I'm not exaggerating =)

It was the perfect example of our little girl's attitude and humor. She is a nut, and I love her.
That's it for now...off to play with my 3 month old BFF =)