The Almers Family

Long time...

Wow, so much has happened. So much time has past! Maddie is now 2 years and 2 months old. Can you believe it?

Maddie's vocabulary has really taken off over the last month. She like to repeat what she has heard now which, in most cases, is great! She is very independent and like to do things on her own and before others do it! She is now completely potty trained. She has been using the potty for over 2 months as been very successful with it.

We visited the family in Maryland in Early August. Maddie really enjoyed her time with Granna and Papa. She liked petting the horses and swimming in the river. It is always sad when we leave, but even more now that we have Maddie. I wish her Granna and Papa were closer!

We recently got back from Canada visiting my family. We drove the 14 hour trip in 2 days. Maddie did amazingly well handling the drive itself. She loved playing with her little cousin Landon who we stayed with while we were there. We went to the local zoo, water park by the marina, and Maddie had her first gocart ride with her daddy. She loved it and looked adorable in her safety helmet. We played putt putt and had a cook out with more of the fam'! Over all it was great and sad to leave them as well!

Maddie went for her 2 year check up today. All is well. She has actually lost weight for the first time since still being in the hospital as a new born. She got her finger pricked and didn't even make a face.

Jay and I are doing very well. We did not sell our house like we had intended. The contract fell through with the buyers so we are now back to the beginning with that but hoping for a speedy sell. Jay is not only a UNC employee but also now a UNC student. He is very excited and I am very proud and happy for him. I am taking 2 classes through the local community college hoping to get my 2 year degree in Early Childhood Education.

Overall, we have been busy but great. Maddie continues to amaze us. I am sooooo very proud of all her accomplishments! She is now in the big kid class at her school and loving it!

We will keep you all updated as we can. Take care...

Maddie turned 2!!!

Maddie officialy turned 2 years old at noon yesterday. We had a great birthday party at a local Ruritan Club. Lots of family and friends came to wish her a Happy Birthday. She had a great time running around, showing everyone (seriously, everyone) her pretty dress she was wearing, blowing out her candle, licking the frosting off her cupcake, and opening her presents.

We went home after the party for a good nap and went back to the Ruritan Club for her cousin Sydney's 12th bday party. We had a DJ and lots of decorations so Maddie felt right at home to dance allllll night! The day was very long, but very fun!

Potty news....Maddie has been going peepee and poopy everyday, multiple times a day for well over a month now. She managed to stay "dry" all day yesterday except for one poop in her pull up. She is now using the grown up potty instead of her little potty. She insists! I guess its time to get a "on the go" potty seat!

Thanks to everyone who came to her party and gave her gifts as well. We appreciate it all!!

Pictures will come soon!

Some cool news...

First, there are some new pictures posted from May so , ENJOY!!!

The best news we have is...Maddie is potty training! She has been showing alot of interest in the potty for aver a month now, so we got a little potty seat and .....she has been going pee every night after bath!!! We decided we would actively ask her through out the day. Sometime she does it, sometimes she doesn't. We aren't pushing it on her, but she is taking to it quite well. She definitely knows what a potty is for and uses it accordingly!! She actually went poop in the potty 2x at school on thursday and tonight at home as well. She has become such a little lady!!!

She is doing wonderfully at school. I no longer get a hug on most mornings when I leave. I get a quick "bye" and then she's off to play! Its great!! She has made friends and apparently one little boy says her name all the time even at home!!!

We will be moving into our new home the middle of July. We are excited but it has also been such a headache for us. We hope you all are doing well!!

More later...

Its baaaaccckkkk!

Maddie has another ear infection. Not as bad as previously though! She has a cough and some nasal drainage so the doc' thinks its allergies. She will be taking antibiotics AGAIN for her ear and we will pray for the best.

Maddie continues to thrive at school. She recently said "ello olli" to her friend Olive which translates to, "Hello Olive"! She is also saying cup but continues not to repeat these things on command. I'm sure some people think she doesn't speak at all..ha, we can assure other wise!

We had fun today at the lake celebrating Maddie's Aunt McKenzie's 12th birthday! Maddie was a hit with the fam' for sure!

We hope to get some May pictures up before long. More later.....

Back from the mountains

I just got back from another one of my trips to the mountains. The place that my climbing buddy and I always go was on fire recently and the rangers burned an additional 1200 acres as a preemptive strike. It wouldn't have been so bad except for the fact that Linville Gorge and Tablerock are both covered in wild Rhododendrons. Apparently when Rhodies are burned they produce toxic smoke. I am not sure how true that is but I really didn't want to try and disprove it in person. So, with the fire(s) leaving us scratching our heads, we decided to try out a different place called Crowders Mountain. It is about 30 miles west of Charlotte in the Gastonia area. We had a great time and will likely go again but probably only in the cooler months. The climbing areas were nice but were southern-facing which meant that in addition to the 80 degree days, we also had direct sun all day long. It was HOT! I didn't get too many pictures while we were there. I did get a few of the area from the top of one of the climbs and several of some friends that came with us. They had never climbed before and they got to experience REAL ROCK for their first time. Not only did they do their first climbs, but they also did their first rappels too. All-in-all, not too shabby for the "noobs" (a.k.a. "newbies").

Click here for photos from our trip

No more ear infection...

Okay, after 2 rounds of antibiotics, her double ear infection is gone. Thank goodness. I was preparing for the "I'm not comfortable with her having meds for 30 days" conversation if she ended up having them still!!

Maddie has had a great week at school and home. We are working with her on developing more language but it is a slow sorta thing. Today had been difficult for me at work and Maddie has been a "pickle", not to mention Jay is now out of town with the guys, but it is Friday so....!

Maddie has a playdate with her best friend Miliah planned for Sunday morning. She loves children but also craves adult interaction. She is shaping up to be a very good mix of Jay and I.

More later...

New Pictures...

I have put up Easter pictures as well as April pictures. Enjoy.....

Our big girl...

Maddie went in for her post ear infection check up on Monday only to learn that she still has a double ear infection. They are "better" but not "normal" according to the doctor. So, she will take her antibiotics for another 10 days and we will pray for cured ears on May 2nd!

Maddie has done amazingly well at school since returning from her "yuckies"!! She has been upset when having to say good bye to me in the morning but soon gets over it until someone walks in the door apparently. Yesterday she did not cry at all when I left or through out her day at school...go Maddie! I guess she has settled in nicely and I know she loves it there. She loves the painting, gluing, messy play, and outside time that is offered daily. She has been sleeping close to 2 hour naps again even though she still naps for much longer at home. I think she just makes up for it all on the weekends!

She is certainly our big girl, growing up so fast.....

Sick again!

Yes, its true...Maddie has a double ear infection again. This is the fourth time in her little life. The doctor says that we are getting close to having to have "tubes" put in. It looks like it could be by the end of the year! So, needless to say she hasn't been at school at all this week. She actually has only gone to school for 3 days so far due to illness. She is staying with her gammie and grandaddy for the rest of the week so I can go back to work. Hopefully she will go back to school Monday with a bit of a fresh start!

More later...

Maddie's First day...

Maddie started school on Tuesday and it went very well. I gave her a hug, kiss, and said goodbye and she didn't even cry for me. From what I heard, she started to cry shortly after I left but almost immediately got interested in something else. I was worried that she would fall asleep on the floor but she managed to stay busy until nap time came. She hasn't slept as much as she is used to this week, but I'm sure she will get more and more adjusted as the days go on. She really seems to be having fun playing with the other kids, playing outside, and doing art activities. I'm so proud of her. She's my little girl...growing up too fast!!

More later....

Easter Weekend!

Jay, Maddie, and I gladly spent Easter weekend at Holden Beach with our friends Smyrna, David, and Maddie's best friend Miliah. We had a great time. Maddie and Miliah had fun finding eggs filled with lip gloss rings, money, stretchy bunnies, stickers, etc. We spent two days letting the girls play on the beach. The weather was warm but windy. It didn't stop the girls from getting wet. Maddie ran in head first! Luckily we had a change of clothes near by!! Maddie really seemed to have alot of fun having Miliah there to play with. Thanks so much to my long time friend Smyrna for the invite!!!!

Maddie is learning so many more things these days. She responds when asked questions, especially if its..." go get you shoes, do you want to go outside, etc! She has really been trying to put her shoes on herself. Maybe now with the warm weather coming she will have shoes that will be easier for her. She also loves to get out her "stool" so she can see what mama and dada are doing on the kitchen counter. We bought her a new stool at the beach but she is staying faithful to the other one for the most part!!

Maddie will be starting school on Tuesday......wow! We are excited, anxious, and a little sad too because Maddie wont be seeing her Gammie and Grandaddy everyday! We all know that she will have so much fun though and really enjoy being there!

Our house has been up for sale for 29 days now and we have had lots of interest but no offers as of today. We are having an Open House tomorrow and then we will be meeting with a local builder about a house that he has already started but that really sparks our interest! Wish us luck!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter weekend! Take care and more pictures are to come.....

Goooo Maddie!

Last night Maddie sat on the potty after her bath and pee pee'd!!!! Gooo Maddie! For awhile now she has been peeing shortly after getting out of the bath if we don't put on a diaper quickly, so I decided Wednesday night that Id put her on the toilet right after her bath. She sat for about a minute but nothing happened. We tried again last night, and she did it! I don't really think she is quite ready for potty training but I think we could at least continue to put her on the toilet after her bath since that is a time we know she typically goes pee.

Wish us luck!!!

More Photos...

Well, last time I uploaded photos for the site, I wrote down how it was done, so...I was able to add 3 new folders of pictures for your viewing pleasure!

Maddie is so super smart! Of course I think that because I am her mother but, she really is learning so many new things. Her newest thing lately is that she grabs our hand and leads us wherever she wants to go whenever she wants to. Its so cute! She also says, uh huh when asked questions. I guess thats her way of saying yes!! She also shakes her head "no" when she doesn't want something! She is very interested in the parts of the face...nose, eyes, etc and always points at them on me and Jay! She continues to love looking at books and listening to the stories with me and Jay. She is no longer the shy baby she once was. She loves visiting family and friends and mommy at KIN! She sleeps like a log and smiles for days!!!

She will be starting school on April first and we are very excited about it. It will be bitter sweet though because that means she will no longer be with her gammie and granddaddy but, she will do wonderful and have such a great time playing with the other kids.

Jay started his new job working for the UNC School of Journalism and is absolutely loves it! He has only been there 2 weeks but comes home with great things to say about it each day! I am very happy for him.

We have put our house on the market to sell. We hope to sell soon, but you just never know, really! We plan on having an Open House next Sunday to help give some attention to the house! We haven't found a replacement house yet but hope too by the time we sell ours! Wish us luck!

More to come....

February update!

So...this year has been wonderful so far. This will be a very busy year though. Jay is changing jobs, we plan on selling our house, and maybe, just maybe we will get pregnant this year too!

Maddie, however, has gotten another double ear infection but she took the last of her meds' today and is feeling much much better! She has grown into such a lovely little girl. She isn't a baby anymore. She is actually going to be starting "school" in April instead of August which is very exciting. She will miss her gammie and granddaddy so very much and I know they will miss her everyday, but Maddie will also love having other children to play with. I took her to the school ( the school I work at but another building ) this morning to play. She had a great time and was shy for about a minute before running off to play and hug her new teacher who she has never met before this morning. She also had her hair pulled for the first time today. A little buy just grabbed it and held on for dear life. Maddie was quite at first but as soon as I came over, she melted down. I managed to get the kids fingers opened and Maddie was off to play again. She didn't want to leave.

We plan on going to the beach with our friends, Smyrna, Miliah, and David for Easter weekend. They were great enough to invite us to stay with them...woo hoo!

My personal things.....I decided that 2008 was going to be a healthier year for me so I bought a treadmill that I use often and so far Ive lost 9 pounds since Jan. 1st!!! Its not easy but something I want so badly. Send best wishes and I know I will succeed. BTW...my mom jumped on this health wagon with me and is looking good having lost more than me already!!! Go, mom!!!

Anyway, all is well around here. Maddie continues to be the center of my life and the love of my life. We will keep you posted with more news and pictures very soon!

Finally!!!!

New pictures have arrived! We have decided to make the albums by the month instead of her age. We thought everyone could figure that part out! It has been a while sine we put new pictures up so there may be a couple that aren't in the right spot!

Enjoy!!!!!