Way Behind!!!

So the Kaisers are still back in July and can't believe that Madi is going to be a year old on Friday and that Christmas is on Saturday and 2011 will be here the following week. What in the world?!?! Where have we been? I guess between Rick's night shifts, my day shifts, Madi, trying to keep the house in a semi-orderly state, and keeping up with church responsibilities and life in general life has rushed past and we are still back in July. Well, actually more like March. But I will try and get some pictures off our camera to post on here because we have lots for you to see and Madi has grow up tons. But for now the only one I have is from Halloween. We were able to go up to Renfrew Park in Pennsylvania with Rick's family and had a fun filled day of pumpkins and homemade soup and cider.


I promise, more pictures will follow shortly. We have had lots of adventures with Madi and she has had lots of little discoveries. So check back after Christmas for more updates....

Summer Vacation in Utah...Continued

We had to see the T-Rex before we left Thanksgiving Point.

After the Dinosaur Museum Rick took the boys to Cabela's. They saw all sorts of things from the fish tanks to all the animals on the rocks. It was so much fun to be able to see Kathy and her boys. We miss them so much and wish that we could have spent more time with them.

Next we headed up to Mendon to see the Gudmundson family. We spent a whole day shopping the first day. It was a lot of fun...for the girls anyways. But Rick was a very good sport. After a day of shopping, Rick needed something manly to do. So him and Jenni spent some time putting together a potato canon. It took them a while to do plus a trip into town to the hardware store but it was a success. We shot the potatoes straight up into the air and they went so high we had a hard time seeing where they were coming down.

The next day was Pioneer Day and Mendon Day. There was lots of things to do. In the morning there was a 5K that my dad and sisters did. Then there was a book sale, a parade, a cooking contest and loads of other things. Then that night after a game of human battleship there was a huge waterfight between the cousins. Needless to say, Rick's team won. Hands down, dispite what rumors you may hear from Shawn and Jason. After the waterfight there was a fireworks display. We were concerned about Madi and her ears because the fireworks were being shot off about two blocks away. But Madi loves them! She was in awe over them and didn't even flinch when they would go off.

While we were there Jenni had her birthday. Since we were going to be flying out on her actual birthday we decided to celebrate it a few days early. There was a little pie fight between Jenni, mom and dad. (No idea how that happened) And no, I didn't push Jenni's head in the pie when she wasn't looking...or maybe I did. But at least dad got the pie in the face because she thought it was him. Madi also enjoyed trying pie. I think it's a new favorite.

Monday we went up to Tony Grove for some fishing. If you look really close at the back ground you will see the thunderstorm moving in. Rick and I got caught out on the lake during that. It was a down pour and we almost got rained out. But after a while it eased up and Rick and Sarah had so much success fishing afterwards.

It's a good thing we stayed for more fishing after the storm.

The Gudmundson tradition: Kong cones at Macey's.

We took Madi to Willow Zoo while were in Logan. She loved all the animals!

But the birds were by far her favorite.

We had a lot of fun while we were in Utah. That was our first real vacation in over two years and it was wonderful to be able to finally do it. While we were out there Madi had lots of firsts. She had her first plane ride, she got her first two teeth, she started crawling on all fours, she pulled herself into a standing position, she started saying mama and dada and associated the words with me and Rick. We are happy to be home but sad we had to leave everyone. We look forward to the next time we can go out and visit. We miss you and love you all!

Summer Vacation in Utah

It was a blast! We did so much while we were out there and took so many pictures. I will probably have to do this in two posts so I can get it all on there. I will try and make it as short as I can but it is still going to be long. We flew into Salt Lake on the 18th. Madi was a jewel on the plane. He ears didn't bother her one bit and she either played or slept most of the time. It was a huge blessing for her and for us. One of the first things we did was spend a few days with Rick's sister Kathy and her family. Her boys wanted us to play baseball with them because there baseball season had just ended. And let me tell ya, those boys are hardcore. Tyler and Luke both struck their uncle Rick out. Good Job! Here is a picture of Rick being struck out. You can see the ball right behind him as he tried for a grand slam. Better luck next time Rick.

The boys had so much fun playing with their uncle Rick. I even ran a few races with them but with all the energy those kids have it was hard to keep up after a while.

Madi loved being with her cousins. Her favorite part was being outside watching them run around.

The next morning we went to Deer Creek. We didn't have tons of success but Rick was able to pull in a bass before we left.

After fishing we stopped into Macey's for their famous Kong cones. The kid's eyes were so big when they saw the size of their ice cream cone.

That night Rick and I had dinner with some of our friends. It was so good to see them after two years.

The next morning Kathy took us to the Payson Pool. It was Madi's first time at the pool so she was a little nervous at first, but it didn't take long before she didn't want to leave the water. She splashed every kid that went by and when she got splashed she would just start doing raspberries and then start laughing.

It was so much fun to go swimming. We were all worn out by the time we were done, but it was worth it. Madi fell asleep pretty fast after all the fun in the sun. She made it to the towels for a bottle and didn't even get very many sips in before she was out.

After the pool and a little nap, Rick wanted to take the boys to Redmond Lake for some pike fishing. We didn't catch any pike, but he did catch this pretty big cat fish. We weren't able to stay as long as we had hoped because there was a pretty crazy lightening storm.

The next morning the boys showed us their skills on their dirt bikes. I am scared of motorcycles and dirt bikes but these boys showed no fear. We didn't get a chance to see them ride on the track but they do all the crazy jumps and turns and stuff. They are very good with those bikes so it was a treat to be able to see them ride.

Then we headed up to Thanksgiving Point to the Dinosaur Museum. Uncle Rick bought the boys a fossil to carve out of the rock and here they are proudly displaying their newly carved fish fossil.

Ready for a Break

This next week Rick and I are headed out to Utah to visit family. It has been two years since we have been back there so we are definately looking forward to it. It will be the first time Madi has met any of her Aunts from the Gudmundson side. We are excited to show her off and I know there will be lots of competition for the position of the favorite aunt. But I am sure she will love them all. We are in desperate need of a break from life so this is a very welcomed opportunity. The only part we are concerned about it Madi on the airplane since it is a 4 and a half hour flight. And of course the past two weeks she has refused to sleep in our arms. She wants to be sprawled out on the floor with her blanket. I just hope everyone on the plane will be patient with her if she can't sleep during the flight. We are looking forward to our trip and we will have lots to post when we get back. Happy Summer Break!

Milestones

This past week Madi has reach two milestones. She can sit up on her own and she started crawling. The crawling isn't her favorite method of transportation yet because rolling around is much faster for her. But she is getting the hang of it. We have had to make several adjustments as far as babyproofing some things. We still have a long ways to go, but hopefully we can keep up with her.

I love this picture of Madi! She is already trying to fill daddy's shoes.

Madi showing off her crawling skills! She is concentrating so hard.

Rick is getting her all ready to be his fishing buddy. He found her a pink lucky fishing hat and he has already started eyeing up the pink fishing poles.

Madi always is so excited when daddy comes home from work. They are best buddies!

Rick and I enjoy going to the baseball diamond at the park to drive RCs. It is fun to see how much dirt we can kick up. Sometimes we can't even see to the other side of the field because of all the dirt. Here I am displying my new decal for my car. It's an Iron Cross with 'Kaiser' written across the middle. I found someone online that did custom decals because Rick had been looking everywhere for them without much success. I got one for my truck and one for Rick's truck.

Father's Day

Rick got a nice gift for Father's Day, he was the only one who wasn't sick. But unfotunately that meant he was the only one that went to church for Father's Day too. But even though Madi and I were sick we still surprised him Sunday morning. Here is Madi sporting her Father's Day attire. We woke daddy up so that's why he still has bed head. And that's before I cut his hair too.

For Father's Day we went to the park to play with Rick's RC plane. It was really neat to watch him do barrel rolls and loops. He is getting really good at flying it. He was even attacked a few times by a bird but still managed to keep it flying. Doesn't he looks so handsome in this picture?!?! We have worked really hard the past several months to get back into shape after we both gained the baby weight. Rick has lost about 32 pounds and I have lost 21. We feel so good!

I had to throw in this picture. I think it is so funny! Anytime one of the cats walks by, Madi gets all excited and starts laughing. They will normally come right up to her but last night Tink was having a stare down with Madi because Madi had pulled out some of her fur. Tink loves Madi but wasn't too excited about getting close enought to be touched again. At least not until her skin healed where the fur was pulled out.

The Many Faces of a Baby

Madi has been trying out lots of new faces the past several weeks. Her favorite is the nose wrinkle. She will either wrinkle her nose and laugh or she will wrinkle her nose and breath in and out really fast. She has even snorted a few times when she has done this. She also inhales really deeply making herself squeek. It is hilarious and sometimes she gets her squeek so high that the cats run out of the room. I think it hurts their ears.

Here she is giving me the "I didn't do anything mom. I'm innocent" look. She is already practicing for when she is a teenager. She is also starting to look away and "ignore" us when we try and talk to her. But even though she is looking away she is sitting there smiling trying not to seem interested in us. But then she gives in a gives us a big hug. She is so sweet.

I love this picture! It reminds me of the line from the Wizard of Oz "I'll get you my pretty!!" We love our baby girl. She is so entertaining.

Memorial Day Weekend

We took a much needed trip up to Pennsylvania to celebrate Memorial Day. While we were up there Madi was given some dolls that Rick's pappy wanted her to have that belonged to grandma. Madi loved the dolls! Raggedie Ann and Andy became her crib buddies and she plays with them everyday. Yesterday I found her asleep on the living room floor with her arm around Andy's neck. She loves to just sit and talk to them. It is so sweet!

We went to a hunting/fishing club that we are members of to do a little fishing. We decided to take Madi and break her in for fishing as early as possible. Even with an umbrella and shade we still managed to get sunburned, even Madi. But she was a trooper and stayed out with us for quite a while. It was a lot of fun. We even had some success. We caught sunfish, bass, and perch.

I took this right before Rick hooked a fish, but he lost it because he was trying to smile for the camera. But not soon after he caught another one.

This is my catch of the day. It is little but I finally caught it. I was losing worms right, left, and center all day. The fish would snatch it off and I would miss them. But I finally got one.

Madi had a good day but was a little unsure about the whole fish thing. She couldn't quite figure out what it was and what the point of it was. She wanted to touch it but in the end decided she didn't want it any closer then arm's length. Maybe in a little while she will be pulling in fish of her own. It was a great weekend and very relaxing. Rick's dad even reached a goal. He shot his very first turkey. Congrates to everyone and their successful hunting/fishing weekend. We look forward to some more fishing this summer.

5 Months Already!?!?!

Madi is five months this week and we can't believe how fast time as flown. We have enjoyed having a little girl around the house and it just keeps getting better and better. This week Madi learned how to hug. She has been hugging me and Rick non-stop. And anytime we are out and someone it saying hi to her she will turn like she is all embarrassed and hug us. Rick came home from work the other night and Madi kept hugging him over and over and over. She sure loves her daddy.

Madi knows that she is the center of attention and she loves every minute of it. It will be interesting when a brother or sister comes along (in the very distant future) and she has to share mommy and daddy. But for now, she is loving every minunte of being an only child. She has been practicing her sitting skills and she is getting really good at it. Anytime we put her in her car seat or bouncer she will do crunches to pull herself into a sitting position. I wish my abs were as good as hers.

I love this picture! This is Madi welcoming daddy home from work. Look at that smile. She is a daddy's girl through and through.

Eventful Month

Since I can't seem to keep up with everything at home, my blog has also suffered from my lack of time and energy. If I thought I was busy before I had Madi I have since realized life was a breeze. Even though we are busy and Madi keeps us hopping we are very blessed. Everytime I look in to my daughter's face and she gives me that gummy grin I realize that nothing else matters. No matter how high the stack of dishes in the sink gets or if there are more clean clothes on the floor in the bedroom then in the dresser or the closet combined. I love my little girl and I am so grateful Heavenly Father thought I was worthy and ready to be her mom. Since my last post lots has happened. Here Madi is displaying her Easter attire. We found these ears at the store and she fell in love with them the first time we put them on her. I think it's because they are fuzzy. She loves anything fuzzy, even the cats.

My mom and dad came out the end of March for Madi's blessing. It was so good to see them and spend time with them. And Madi loved getting to know her grandma and grandpa Gudmundson.

Here Madi is displaying her blessing dress my mom made for her. Madi had lots of special things for her blessing. My mom made her dress, Rick's mom made her a blanket, and my sister Heidi made her some white booties to wear. It was a very special event since Madi was named after my grandmother and Rick's grandmother. The spirit there was so strong and Rick did a really great job. We were also able to invite our non-member friend Mandel to her blessing.

Starting Solids! Well, it went better then we thought it would. For several weeks before she had been watching us eat and would sometimes cry because she wanted some of our dinner. So we decided to start giving her solids. After a few spoonfuls she was a pro. Everytime she eats, after every bite she will say "yummm". It is so cute! And if she really likes something, like bananas, then she will laugh and inhale really loud.

We are blessed with the fact that Madi doesn't seem to be a picking eater. She will eat just about anything you give her from peas to ice cream. Not that ice cream is hard to turn down. The only thing that she doesn't care for is sweet potatoes. She let us know pretty quick that sweet potatoes aren't a repeat food. And I can't blame her because I have to admit, they aren't my favorite either.One thing that Rick and I love to do after work is to go to the park and drive RC cars. The past year or so Rick has let me drive one of his monster trucks each time we would go to the park. I was having a lot of fun with it but it didn't really go that fast. So I decided to upgrade and buy one of my own. I never thought I would but when I found out that I could give mine a custom paint job and paint it pink I was sold! Here is my new Pink Slash 4x4 racing truck. I love it! It is so much fun to drive.

Rick has a Slash too so we like to go to the baseball diamond at the park and have races around the dirt. We kick up a lot of dust but it is so much fun!

Probably some of the most exciting news this month is Madi has curly hair! We didn't think that she had the curls and I have to admit I was pretty bummed but her hair has grown out and it is curly! I love playing with it after her bath and making it stick up so I can see the curls better. They are so cute!

Happy Mother's Day!

Last week Rick and I got some very difficult news. Rick's pappy pasted away. It happened very suddenly and unexpectedly. He was in very good health and never had any major health problems. We think he may have died from a massive heart attack which took him instantly while he was in his home. He was a good man and a big part of our lives and we will miss him dearly. He had a very long and fulfilling life and touched many people. His wife was a member of the church but he had never gotten baptized even though he claimed he was Mormon. About a month ago Rick and him where fishing and Rick asked him if he could do his temple work for him. Every time this has been brought up in the past not a whole lot would come of it. But this time he said that he wanted it done and he would do it now if there was a way to do it without going under the water to be baptized. We are so grateful for the gospel in our lives and for the blessings of the temple. We will miss pappy dearly but we look forward to the time when we will be reunited as a family again. We love you Pappy!