A Favorite Spot

Spencer, Madilyn and I fly out to LA in exactally 2 weeks from today! We are super excited about going! We can hardly wait to see all our family and friends! However, even with how excited we are, it is still so hard to think about leaving! As I go through my daily activities, I've realized how much I am going to miss all the things around here! I've really tried to slow down and enjoy the last few weeks. Yes, I know we are coming back, but 3 months is a LONG time! There are lots of things that I am going to miss (mostly our ward and friends), but I have to say that the thing I like best about living here is the TREES!!! It really is an incredibly gorgeous area! Each place we've lived has their things that I've missed after moving away, and here it will definitely be the beautiful, green trees! The whole East coast is amazing! Our trip down to North Carolina was breath taking, as I am sure our trip next week up to New York, Boston, and New Hampshire will be.

This particular spot is right behind our townhouse. On the way home from our daily walks, Madi and I usually stop here to relax, take a drink, and hang out before returning home.

Fun with Video!!

I finally learned how to post video! It's actually VERY easy! We've had our camera for 3 years now and I never knew about the video setting! Silly me! :) This whole time I was trying to upload video from our actual video recorder. A week or two ago, one of my good friends took the time to show me how my own camera works (thanks Melissa)! With that said, I've been having a lot of fun lately trying to capture the cute things Madi does. Now I realize, that as her parent, I am going to get MUCH more excited about all the new things she is doing than most other people will. I tried to pick a few videos that a simple picture just can't explain.

In this first one, Madi is showing what she does when she's finished eating. She closes her eyes and looks down. I kept trying to give her another drink and more food because the face cracks me up. The other way she lets me know that she's done eating (when I'm not forcing more food on her) is by wiping her hands back and forth across her highchair tray- clearing off all the food.



I apologize up front that this next video is sideways. I totally forgot how Melissa instructed me NOT to turn my camera when taping! I have such a bad memory these days! Anyway, Madi has been pulling herself up for a few days now. But I never seem to be able to get it on tape. I'll put her next to the bathtub and get the camera ready, but once she sees the camera, she won't do anything! She really has a mind of her own. This morning I sat Madi up in her crib, facing the wall (so she couldn't see the camera) and she did it- only I taped it sideways!



So then, I sat her back down to do it again. She popped up so quick that I couldn't get my camera ready fast enough to get her on the way up.



The past couple of weeks Madi has been completely obsessed with fans. All of our upstairs rooms have ceiling fans and she LOVES watching them. So we started asking her, "Madi, where's the fan?" and she'll proceed to look up and point at the fan. Seeing that she knew the fan, we figured she should know who mama and daddy are. So I started asking, "Madi, where's daddy?" and she'd point at Spencer. Then just recently she started pointing at me when asked, "where's mama?" It's a great feeling to have her finally acknowledge me as her mother! She also points at the window when asked, "where are the birds?" It's fun to now KNOW that she understands what we're saying and asking her.

Again, because the camera is on, Madi gets a little nervous in this video to show her newly gained knowledge.



So there you have it- my first attempts of blogging video! We hope you enjoyed "watching" a little of Madi!

10 Months

Madilyn is 10 months old today!! She's getting to be such a big girl-always growing and changing! It's fun to watch all the new things that she learns to do each month. Just a few of my personal favorites include:

Eating completely on her own. After quiting nursing at the first of the month, Madi decided to become VERY independent with eating. She decided that she didn't enjoy being fed anymore, but preferred to feed herself. I was completely ok with this, as it saves a lot of time and allows me to enjoy my meal while she enjoys her! Yes, all the food must be cut up into bite size pieces, which sometimes ends up taking longer than it does for her to devour what has been placed in front of her!

Some of Madi's favorite foods for the time being include: green beans, cheese, banana muffins, eggs, sausage, and waffles (the last 3 shown below).


Then washed down with a drink from her favorite sippy cup (thanks Marbell)!


Madilyn loves sharing!! At every meal she makes sure to offer Spencer and I a piece of what she is eating. Sometimes she likes to trick us, pulling back her hand as we go into eat it- giving her a good laugh!



Madi shares everything from food, to toys, to things she picks outside.



Madi points at everything now. It's fun to see the things she get excited about as she points, and squeals!


Counting her fingers: one, two, three, four, five- yep, all there!



Madi's a girl after my own heart with a love for the outdoors! Sometimes I just throw out a blanket and relax in the sun, while Madi sits in the shade and explores....



But we always have to stop by the park. Madilyn enjoys playing on the equipment, going down the slide and swinging. Most of the time she just sits and stares, pointing at the trees, birds, clouds, etc.



As for crawling, she is a very subborn girl and likes to move on her own time and at her own pace. She hates being forced to get on her knees and "practice". Although sometimes I am able to bribe her a little!



Mmmmmm.....strawberry shortcake!



At the end of the day, when we go into her bathroom, I can never get Madi's clothes off fast enough as she pulls herself up and hangs onto the side of the tub, usually leaning in to grab at her toys, letting me know that she is VERY ready for bath time!




My final favorite for the month is that Madi now waves (an open and closed hand wave vs. an entire arm wave which she'd been doing for awhile) and says, "bye, bye". It's fun to walk outside when the neighborhood kids are coming home from school. Madi gets super excited to see all the kids and waves frantically. She also enjoys smiling and waving at everyone we pass in the store. It'd make you think that she wasn't sacred of strangers. Well, at least until they actually get close and try to touch her. That's when she let's them know how she really feels! What a fun month, and to think- there is LOTS more fun ahead!!

The ZOO

The one thing I wanted to do for my birthday this year was go to the DC ZOO! We have lived here for almost 9 months and haven't been yet. It's a super nice ZOO and FREE admission! Gotta take advantage of that! So yesterday morning, we headed out on the Metro for some birthday fun!



It was a beautiful day to go too- high 70's with slightly overcast skies! Nice and warm with a cool breeze!


One of Madi and I's favorite stops was to see the Flamingos.


We liked watching them sleep, standing up, on ONE leg!! Pretty impressive if you ask me!!


Madi had a great time checking out the elephants with daddy.


Some other favorites include: the lion......


and tiger.....


and......... Orangutan! This guy gave us a GREAT show, swinging from the cables, and really showing off!!


Overall, I had a great birthday! I got some time in the sun, a lot of walking, and an evening with Spencer (all things I love)! Spencer made me a delicious strawberry-blueberry pie and we were able to go shopping last night (thanks to good friends who volunteered to take Madi for us). Unlike most trips to find new clothes, this one was a success! I guess it was my birthday luck!!

April 25th- A Day of Births

Today is a very important day! It's actually an important day for 3 very special people! Yes, I am one of those special people! :) I officially turn 28 today! I don't know about the rest of you, but I actually get VERY excited for my birthday! It's one day out of the year that I get to claim as MY day!! However, 4 years ago, I was welcomed into the Jenkins' family and found out that I now get to share this very special day with another special person! Spencer's sister Lindsay was also born on April 25th, just 3 years earlier. Since this was her day before it was mine, I decided I'd be ok with sharing it with her! :) Happy Birthday Lindsay!! We love you!!



Then last year, my sister was pregnant with a due date of April 26th. However, the morning of my birthday, I got a call saying that she had gone into labor! Anneke Calhoun was born on April 25th as well! I feel VERY lucky to share my birthday with another VERY special person! Happy Birthday Ani! We love you and hope you have the BEST 1st birthday ever!!

Feeding the Ducks

Spencer took a break away from his studying today to join Madi and I for a walk around the Rio. We brought along some bread so that Madi could feed the ducks and geese. She didn't really understand the concept of feeding the birds though. Instead, when I'd hand her a piece of bread, she'd take it and put it into her mouth! Oh well, at least SHE enjoyed it!


Boy does that water look nice! Oh how I'd like to go for a swim right about now!

What's that you say?? I can feed the ducks? Alright!!

So I just throw the bread in? I'll see what I can do!!

Storytime

Yesterday I sat down to read stories with Madi, but got a little distracted when the phone rang. I sat Madi down on the floor with 2 books and walked out of the room. A few minutes later, after a quick phone conversation, I realized that it had gotten very quiet in Madi's room. I freaked out, thinking that she was probably crinkling or tearing pages in the books. I went to the door to peak in on her and found this....





She had pulled more books down off her chair and was quietly pointing to the pictures in one of her books and talking, like she was really reading! After looking at one book she'd grab another and continue reading!



A minute or two later, she noticed that I was in the door watching.



At first I got a nice big smile, but then she got a little embarrassed, burying her face in the book- letting me know that she wanted to get back to reading!



Today she sat on the couch reading her books while Spencer read a magazine. Instead of taking pictures I was smart and grabbed the video camera. Five full minutes of Madi reading, oblivious to my taping! Unfortunately, I have yet to learn how to post video. Hopefully I'll learn soon!

Summer Plans

If you were to have asked me last year at this time if I was excited about moving to the East coast, I would NOT have been jumping for joy. I was very nervous about the big move, being so far away from family, and everything comfortable/familiar to me. However, it's funny how after living in the DC area for less than a year, it feels like home! I have been anxiously looking forward to the warm sun and hanging out at the pool with Madi. Of course, Spencer's summer plans are the determinative factor though. He has the whole summer off and has been considering numerous options. Being in DC, he initially planned to work for one of the many government agencies in the area, like the Dept of Justice. Not only are there lots of summer externship opportunities here in DC, but not having to leave our home for the summer is a BIG plus!! However, after some research and lots of thought, the opportunities available didn't seem as appealing. On top of that, since nearly every summer job available to first year law students is non-paid, that means more debt!! While Spencer was mulling over the opportunities available here in DC, the law firm he worked at in LA made him an offer to come back and work for the summer. There are obvious pluses and minuses!

The bad first. We will be gone for almost 3 months!! I'm a home-body. I love my own space, my own things, my own bed, my elliptical etc. Who doesn't? Not having my stuff can really throw a wrench in my routine. If anyone knows me-I'm all about routine! On top of that, I love living out here and I was looking forward to enjoying the DC summer-trips to the zoo, the museums, the parks, the pool, hanging out with friends, working with the young women in our ward, etc.

Now for the pluses. The biggest one: NO MORE EXTRA DEBT (at least for the summer). Spencer will get paid and we will live at his parent's home in Camarillo. Ya, we are keeping our place here in DC which means rent, but at least we will have some income and not have to borrow more just to live for the summer! While we won't be in our own home, in the grand scheme of things, 3 months isn't so long. Plus, we're really glad that Madi will get to know her grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. Since my parents live in the Bay area, I will get to split the time between Spencer's parents' place and my parent's place. Another big plus: we get to live in Camarillo for a couple of months. Who can complain about that? Glorious weather. Minutes from the beach. And...NO humidity!! No problem with that. For Spencer, working at his old firm provides awesome legal experience (its a litigation firm and that's what Spencer wants to do) that most law students never get the summer after their first year!! Plus, he loved working there and is excited to get back into the action! On top of all these "pluses", we already had to fly out west for my high school reunion (in Boise) and the Rudd family reunion (at Bear Lake) in August. So in other words, we're just going a little bit further west and leaving a few months earlier!

So, after lots of thought and prayer, California here we come!! We found $99 tickets from DC to LA on Virgin America-this airline is the best!! We flew with them when we went to Cali for Christmas and their planes are amazing! After we officially made the decision, I'm getting more excited about going. Although those sad feelings of leaving linger, we both feel like this is the right decision. On the bright side, we will potentially have two more summers here in DC if Spencer gets a summer associate position with a DC firm. And if that's the case, we could have many DC summers to come!!