10/31

From teacher Angela: Happy Halloween! Madeline was excited to practice balance today. She spent a lot of time walking up and down the rams and stopping in the middle where her feet were inclined. She danced during music with Wendy (one of the music teachers). She liked the "animal on her head" song.

10/30

From teacher Angela: This morning on the porch we played the game "Little Red Caboose," and followed each other in a line. Madeline clapped and bounced as everyone walked around her. When we went back inside, the other children were dancing. Maddie ran over in all of her (outdoor) gear and flapped her whole body (as if she were dancing the chicken dance) in excitement.

10/28

From teacher Angela: Madeline had fun on the field trip today. (Madeline's class went to a local orchard where they picked out pumpkins from the patch, saw chickens, cows, goats, and emus up close, and road a tractor!) We went to the animal area and Madeline went right to the sheep. One stuck its head through the fence and Madeline walked over to wave "hi." The sheep sneezed right in front of her and Madeline jumped back in surprise and giggling.

From Mom: Tonight Madeline and I attended the All Saints Day part at Church. We helped pack bags for the food pantry, fed apples into the cider press, and made an art project. But what I think she enjoyed most of all was just running around the parish hall with the "big" kids. The others especially enjoyed her lion costume.

10/27

From teacher Angela: Madeline sate at the art table and practiced sticking tape to paper. She chose mostly black pieces and pressed them down, occasionally stopping to scrunch the tape into a ball. In the gym Madeline sat near the lego basket and clicked the pieces together.

10/24

From teacher Angela: Madeline had so much fun at our beach party today! We looked through the summer items and Maddie held up a grass skirt. She wore it all through choice time! Madeline also tried on flippers and was able to walk slowly in them without falling. She would lean over and spread her grass skirt to show them off and get a good look at them.

10/23

From teacher Angela: Madeline was the first one over to the arts table today. I gave her a black marker and she loved making dots all over on section of the paper. Outside the mail lady stopped to wave - Madeline stood on a milk crate to wave hello back. During outdoor playtime this afternoon many of the other children wanted to hold Madeline's had but as soon as she stepped off of the porch she went straight to Bem (another little boy in her class). They held hands for about 45 minutes while Bem pulled her all around the playground.

From Mom: Madeline is now able to jump with both feet! No more simple knee bends - both feet are now leaving the ground!

10/22

From teacher Angela: Madeline went to the porch this morning with (teacher) Gretchen. When she came back in, Madeline was a little fussy from the cold. I gave her a hug and asked her if she wanted to dance at gathering. Madeline lit up and nodded and went over to see what was happening.

10/21

From teacher Gretchen: Madeline seemed very excited to hear the chicken dance song at gathering time! She happily danced and motioned to the song. Maddie also visited the gym today! While there she ran up and down the incline mats.

10/20

From teacher Gretchen: This morning Maddie painted a picture using watercolors and shaving cream. She laughed as she ran the brush across the paper. She was very interested in watching Lily (another child in her class) get her nebulizer treatment this morning.

From Mom: I had to smile at Gretchen's note from school today. The nebulizer machine delivers medicine through a face mask and a tube and it looks a lot like a CPAP machine that Adam uses to help him sleep at night. No wonder Madeline was so interested. Tonight Madeline requested that we read a Peter Rabbit book before bedtime. On the page where Mr. McGregor is hunting for Peter in the garden there is a small picture of Peter hiding in a watering can. You can just see his bunny ears sticking out of the top. I asked Madeline "Where is the rabbit?" She squealed with delight when realized where he was hiding.

10/17

From teacher Angela: Madeline is getting much better at using a spoon lately. Today she was scooping up her yogurt during AM snack and getting most of it in her mouth. Sometimes she would forget and use her hand, but would return to spoon use with reminders.

10/16

From teacher Angela: Madeline did great for class photos today. He brought out a puppet to get the laughs out. He made Mickey on his head, kissing the camera, etc. Hopefully it is really cute! Wendy (the music teacher) came and sang to us today. Madeline laid on the floor with everyone and pretended to be a spider with her legs in the air.

10/15

From teacher Angela: Crystal (one of the preschool teachers) brought her dog Jake into visit today. Madeline was thrilled and spent a lot of time patting his back and following him around the yard. On the porch Maddie had her own bubble want to practice blowing-into. She walked around with two of them! P.S. Maddie went PP on the potty :)!

From Mom: This morning I found an old pair of sunglasses on the living room floor that had been stepped on and broken. I picked them up and said "Oh shoot" without even thinking. Before I knew it Madeline was walking around the room saying "shooooo ... shoooo." Yikes! It's begun.

10/14

From teacher Angela: On the porch Madeline and Charlie (another child in her class) spent time together washing the windows with soapy window. Madeline liked pressing the red sponge against her lips. In the gym Gretchen (a teacher in her class) put the big climber together. Over and over, Madeline would climb the platforms and go down the slide. She loved it!

10/13

From teacher Angela: Today at gathering time we listened to “Fun Dog Sun Dog.” Madeline stood and bounced up and down to the intro music then spun in a circle. Outside she and Arthur (another child in her class) played in the (play) house behind the swings. She loves pushing the buttons on the phone that is on the wall in there.

From Mom: Madeline has started to initiate the “good byes” when I drop her off in the morning. She sits at the table eating breakfast and while I’m chatting with her teachers and the other parents, she interrupts to wave “bye bye” or to blow me a kiss. This morning, when I came close to give her a kiss goodbye. She gave me a quick brush on my cheek and then pushed me away as if to say “Enough now, Mom. Get outta here so I can play with my friends!” She’s certainly progressed far from the little girl who screamed upon seeing the front door of the school. Tonight during bath time Madeline used dental floss for the first time. I had to keep a close eye on her (so that she wouldn't swallow the floss) but she seemed to know what to do. She stretched the floss across her tongue, behind her lower incisors, and shook her head back and forth.

10/10

From Mom: Madeline is starting to make specific verbal requests to nurse. Saying: "I want mama's milk," which sounds something like "I WAH MAMA MIWK" and involves pulling on my blouse. Now if I can just get her to say "please" like she does at school...

10/9

From teacher Angela: Madeline is starting to join the older children in their activities a little. Rather than running around on her own outside, Madeline followed some friends as they went on a worm hunt this morning. Inside she was excited to listen to books on tape. She danced to the background music of (the story) “Five Monkeys Bake a Birthday Cake.”

From Mom: Madeline had her 15 month well-baby check-up with our favorite doctor, Dr. Beth. She cried a bit during the exam but was happy to play and as soon as she nursed a bit, was ready to chat and play with the doctor. She laid down on the table for her shots and though she did cry out, she quickly recovered and upon standing up, immediately gave the nurse a high five and smiled! What a brave little girl we have.

10/8

Madeline had a blast at the gym today. She spent a lot of time spinning in circles, always in a counterclockwise direction. She got so dizzy that she fell over! Madeline also played with the firefighter prop box. She saw herself in the mirror wearing the hat and laughed!

10/7

From teacher Angela: Madeline was so excited during Tammy Holley (the music and movement teacher) today. We danced with scarves and Maddie bounced up and down, shaking her pink one. She also liked using the parachute. Her favorite part seemed to be sitting under it watching the colors move down and touch her face.

From Mom: Madeline wasn’t happy about having to sit still with her mouth open for the dentist. However, she did like the toothbrushes! Madeline has not dental decay and normal oral/tooth development. As of this visit, she has 12 teeth. They are her first molars, top and bottom, and all eight incisors. On the walk home from the dentist, we stopped and watched the UM marching band practice. Madeline ran back and forth trying to decide between the drum line (at one end of the field) and the winds (at the other). She stopped plenty to dance and spin as well.

10/6

From teacher Angela: This morning Madeline and Charlie (another child in her class) made a “gathering time” request. We have been doing the “Grizzly Bear” chant a lot lately, which involved lying on the ground. In the middle of gathering, Madeline laid down and looked at Kellie (a teacher), as if to say “I’m ready!”

10/3

From Mom: This morning Madeline pointed to herself and said "baby" and then pointed to me and said "Mommy". I think this is the first week she has been calling me "Mommy", as opposed to just "mama," which, was far as I can tell, is a request to nurse.

10/2

From teacher Angela: Madeline had a good day. She was quite the dancer today. We turned on "Stand Up" at gathering this morning and Madeline began bouncing up and down, pointing her fingers straight out in front of her. In the sensory table we squeezed orange jello. Madeline loved the taste of it!

10/1

From teacher Angela: Madeline was excited to touch the shaving cream in the sensory table today. She put her hand right in and began swishing it back and forth. Madeline also enjoyed music today. Wendy (one of the music teachers) gave Madeline a lamb to hold and she smiled so big!