Christmas Pictures...

We tried the other day to take Madi's Christmas pictures. We did them off and on throughout the day trying to get the perfect picture. I took 145 pictures and although there are several that I think are so cute, we only got about 5 that she is looking at the camera and smiling. Here are some that I like...

She was mesmorized by the tree. She stared at it for along time. Then she started kicking it and she heard the bells jingle and would get so excited. Then, she tried to eat it. :)

I gave her one of her presents to see what she would do. As I expected, she tried to eat that too.

This is one of my FAVORITE! I think she is so cute! As soon as I get our Christmas card ready I will post it so you can see the winning picture!

Milestones...

Madi is making new discoveries every day. Her personality shows more and more and I love this time. She is becoming more independant which a great but a little sad for her mom who just wants to cuddle with her all day. :) She LOVES her toys and playing with them. She has learned to pick them up and they go straight to the mouth. It is so cute to watch her. Last night we were Christmas shopping at Toys 'R' Us and we were walking slowly down the baby aisle of toys and one side was pink and the other blue. She looked at the pink and giggled as we walked by toy after toy. I was so shocked that at her age she would do that. It was so fun to hear her as she looked at each toy. She is such a chatter box. If you coo or gurgle at her, she will do it back. It makes me beam each time she does. The most recent thing and one that I LOVE so much is that she has started giving kisses. This little girl just melts my heart and I am so grateful and honored to be her mom!

So thankful...

Since this is a week is all about giving thanks I want to share with all the MANY things that I am thankful for.

First, I am thankful for my Savior who is there for me when I need Him. In times when I have struggled or felt alone He was just a prayer away. He has given me great amounts of love, comfort and peace over the last several years and I am so thankful that I know Him and have the gospel in my life.

Second, I am thankful for the most wonderful husband a girl could ever dream of. He has been there for me and stuck with me in the many trials we have had over the last eight years. He is a wonderful example to me of offering service to his family and loved ones. He has been so supportive and willing to do anything to be able to let me be home with our beautiful daughter. I am so blessed to have him as my eternal companion.

Third, I am grateful for my precious daughter, Madi. The only thing I wanted to do my whole life was grow up, get married, have babies and stay home with my kids. Heavenly Father must have known that for me to truly appreciate motherhood I was gonna have to wait a few years. :) I feel like I am living a dream. Madi is such a sweet baby and I will forever be thankful to her birthmom, Mindy, for choosing us to be her parents.

Fourth, I am grateful for our home. We have a warm place to live and food on the table. We have such a great ward and are blessed to be here.

Fifth, I am grateful for my parents and Derrick's parents. They have taught us so much and sacrificed for many years on our behalf. I am so glad that we are able to be close to mom and dad Hawkins and wish my mom was closer (or that we were rich and could fly to Texas whenever we wanted :D).

Sixth, I am grateful for brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews, aunts and uncles, grandparents, friends and all the other loved ones that have taught me and influenced my life in so many ways.

My list could go on forever but I will stop at these. I hope that as the week continues that everyone can take a minute to think of all they have been blessed with and thank our Heavenly Father for the many blessings we all have. I hope you have a happy, safe holiday!

My Little Lady...

I have been really bad at keeping up on this since we were sick! Here is a weeks worth of pictures. I know there are a lot but when your girl is this cute how do you pick which ones to leave out??? :) (This is actually only a small portion)This toy has been a life saver lately. Madi is starting to get teeth and has been really good until she gets tired and then there is no consoling her. The only thing other than medicine that has been able to make her stop crying is her little friend. So, when nothing else works, Mr. Octopus gets her to sleep. :)
Getting ready for the big snow storm.... These were taken Saturday. Derrick and I were asked to be on an adoptive parent pannel for the adoption classes and were, of course, thrilled to tell our story. Right on the front row was a guy that I had dated a few times when I lived in WA. How weird is that???When we went to Yellowstone in June we wanted to get something for our baby. We looked around and decided on these jammies. They will probably be the most expensive pajamas Madi ever owns! They were $24.00 but over pricing stuff is what tourism is all about, right? Anyhow, we put them on her and she looks so cute! I took TONS of pictures of her in them. This was last night. I started watching my friends little girl yesterday, Taylor, and Madi did great! She was happy all day until about 4 and then was fussy until almost 6. I finally got her asleep and thought she looked so cute that I couldn't pass up on a picture. :)
This morning Madi found a new fun toy. The poodle jiggles and rattles when you pull it down. She thought it was great!

Such a sweet little girl!

Miss Madi...

It feels like it has been forever since I took pictures of Madi. Since we have both been sick I haven't taken any so I thought I would today. She is not a fan of taking pictures. When the camera is up she starts to fuss, I put it down and she grins as big as she can! She's still so cute though! Typical Madi... She LOVES, LOVES, LOVES her tongue. She plays with it, sticks it out, rolls it and twists it every way you can imagine. She has done it since the day she was born. :)

She is starting to want to sit and see everything. Last week she started sitting in her high chair. I need to take a picture of that. She looks SO cute! She is growing up so fast.

It is hard to take a picture of her while she is on her tummy. I put her on her tummy and before I can snap a shot she has rolled over. Silly Madi... She has such beautiful blue eyes! Madi is such an angel. Even though she has been sick she is still mostly happy and cheerful. She has really started to jabber a lot more and it is so fun to hear her. She goes to bed GREAT! We can put her in her crib and she will go right to sleep. If she isn't tired, she talks for a little bit and then falls asleep. We couldn't have asked for a more perfect baby! We love her so much and she makes every day more perfect.

A sigh of relief and a busy boy...

We had our primary program yesterday which I was in charge of and it went GREAT! I can finally breath a sigh of relief. The kids were all reverent and did their parts wonderfully and they sang so well. The spirit was very strong and the kids received so many comments of praise.

Derrick was called and set apart yesterday to be the second counselor in the elders quorum. They didn't waste any time putting him to work. He had a meeting yesterday, two throughout the week and a baptism on Saturday. We are grateful for the opportunity to serve and look forward to the spiritual growth it will bring to our family.

A couple of sickies...

Since Madi was born we have only been to two family gatherings and we got sick from both of them. :( Poor Madi threw up on Tuesday and had the runs yesterday. She still has her cough from September and has had a goopy nose too. She has been waking up more during the night but at least she is still happy for the most part! I have a head cold or a sinus infection and a fever. Derrick just started last night with a stomach ache and said his chest felt tight. He is ready to call family parties quits for the winter but I'm sure that isn't going to happen. :)

Halloween Fun...

We had a busy but wonderful halloween. We went to see mom and dad and Madi was awake so she was able to play with Grandma and Grandpa. We didn't put her tutu back on but we did dress her for the occassion. What a cutie!Lookin' pretty chunky!!!baby blue eyesAfterwards, we headed to Lehi for soup and family at Jalene's. It was great because we were able to go there and everyone came to her house so we were able to spend time with lots of our loved ones. Here's our family picture.We love our Madi!!! Madi and daddy

Madi and Auntie Bekka

Bekka shared her ring pop with Madi until mom said that she had had enough. When Bekka took it away Madi kept trying to get more. Bekka told her that mommy said no and Madi started crying. Bekka gave Madi her binki instead and she spit it right out. She was definately a fan of her halloween treat! :)