Summer is Here!!!

Finally :)
It's official - I worked my tail off to get all of my files turned in Tuesday so that I could officially claim Wednesday as the first day of summer vacation! So now, Madigan and I are set to relax and have fun... and I'll try to do a better job about blogging about it for those loyal fans who wait desperately for a new blog entry (Gee Gee and Grandi). But first, I need to "catch up" on some of the things I've gotten pictures/video of the last few weeks but haven't had time to blog about.

What's in a name?

Yes, the cat finally has a name. Thanks to all of you who offered suggestions after the last blog. We were considering them all, but Madigan decided she would take matters into her own hands. One night, we read Peter Pan for her bedtime story. After that, we went to get her in her pajamas and she started chattering about Tinkerbell (although it actually sounds like "Tinklebear" when she says it). Then she said, "Kitty cat" and I responded with, "we need to give the cat a name". She looked at me and said "Kitty cat name - Tinkerbell". I figured she would forget about it, but the next morning Ted asked her what the cat's name was and sure enough - Tinkerbell. So, meet Tinkerbell...
Tinkerbell has been a pretty good cat so far, but is VERY active. This was actually a picture of her all tangled up in one of my work bags...after she had knocked all of the papers that were on top of it to the floor. Madigan still loves playing with her, but has also gotten good at saying "Tinkerbell, no!". So bossy!

Good Friends and Ice Cream

A few weeks ago, some of our friends loaned us their kiddos while they went out for their anniversary. Madigan had a blast playing with the older kids. Her favorite part of the evening, however, was eating ice cream on the back porch.

Say cheese, ice cream face!This takes a lot of concentration...Thanks for coming to play with us, Emma and Garrett!

Summer Buddies

The past two summers, I've kept a little girl named Hadyn while her mom and dad work. This summer, she'll be staying with us again, plus we get a bonus - her new baby brother Harrison! Madigan is in love with them both - she does her best to keep us with Hadyn and loves to cuddle with "Baby Harrisis" They came to visit the week before last and here are a few pictures I snapped of the fun.

Dressed up in the princess dresses
What's a princess without her cell phone?Time for a costume change...
Everyone say cheese!
Here are a few pictures of Madigan and Harrison. She'll just sit and smile at him and then say "Hi Baby!!" It's really cute!

Some Other Random Things

Here are a few pictures and videos that I've taken the last few weeks and wanted to share.

Memorial Day outfit

Lounging in her chair eating cookie dough off of a beater :)What a life!

Madigan has quite a variety of "faces" she makes on command. However, she won't do it when anyone is around. So, we caught some on video...

And this is something Ted and I are very proud of.

We're trying to get this ingrained in her mind before she goes to see Gee Gee this weekend and gets brainwashed into thinking the New York Yankees are a good team! :)


That should be enough for now! I'm going to do my best to stay up on blogging again. Have a great rest of the week!!