Well...we have a kindergartner!

Yep. Hard to believe, but Madison is now a Kindergartner. Who knew that 5 1/2 years could pass by so quickly! It seems like just yesterday that I held her tiny little body in my arms being 100% dependent upon me for EVERYTHING! Now, my little girl is growing up, and she's not so dependent upon me! She was SO excited to go to kindergarten, but at the same time, nervous and apprehensive.

Our school preparations began on Sunday afternoon where we did some final back to school shopping, and then back home to bathe and get into bed early for a good night's rest. Monday morning came so fast and my little girl who loves to sleep in was up and rearing to go at 7:00. We picked out her dress, ate some yummy pancakes, prepared her lunch and then placed her "homework" (that was given to her at "Back to School Night" the Thursday before) in her backpack and of we went!

We arrived and were happy to see Madison's BFF in the courtyard. They were definitely two giddy little school girls. We are so happy that the girls are able to be in the same class. I'm sure that knowing that her friend would be in class with her helped her with any fears that she had. As the morning bell rang, the children lined up and marched into class. All of the kids sat nicely on the carpet at the front of the class, while the teacher read a wonderful story about a raccoon that was also attending his first day of school. It was so sweet!

The kids were each given a sticker to put on the back of their hand, and then one for the parents. It was a reminder that mommy and daddy's love would always be with them. At that point it was time for the goodbye. Madison came up to Daniel, Samantha and I, and proudly said goodbye. At this point my eyes welled up with tears and I realized that my little girl is REALLY growing up. She is so independent, and I couldn't be more proud. So, we walked out the door and away the three of us went. Full day kindergarten is quite a big step for a little girl, so at many points during the day I checked (and re-checked) my phone just to make sure that the school hadn't called to tell me that there was a break down, and that I needed to go and pick her up. Proudly she made it through the day, and I couldn't wait ti pick her up at 3:30. So I drove up parked the car and found my princess waiting for me with all of the other kids. I was met with the comment that EVERY parent wants to hear on the first day of school..."MOM...why are you hear already! I want to stay and play with my friends!" On one hand I was disappointed becuase she wasn't ready to see me, but on the other hand, I was so glad that she wanted to stay and was having a good day - or so I thought!  As we walked away from the kids, she broke down.  She informed me that one of the little girls from her old preschool didn't recognize her on the playground AND she was STARVING!  Thankfully I had lots of love and hugs to give her for her "broken heart" and snaks and water for her hungry tummy.  The hungry tummy was easy to fix but the "broken heart" needed a little work.  I explained to Madison that her friend might not recognize her because in the year and 3 months since they saw each other, Madson got glasses and her hair cut.  By the time that we got home, the tears were dry, the heart mended and the tummy full.  So all in all, she had a wonderful day and enjoyed her first day of kindergarten, and couldn't wait to go back again.  So here we are anticipating a wonderful year at Valley Christian!
~JRM~

Near Year, New Blog

So maybe it's not an official new year, but it's a new school year and I've decided that I really am going to get on the bandwagon for this blog thing. So to all my friends and family, I'm gonna leave it up to you to ping me when I haven't posted in a while and you want to see/hear what's going on with us.

Love to you all!!!
~JRM~

Getting back on the Saddle (so to speak)

Well, to say that my last blog was a long time ago is quite an understatement. So much has happened since then - but for most people, a lot DOES happen in almost two years, so I guess I better start.

When I last left off, Madison had just begun preschool, we had just purchased our home in Tahoe and had an addition to our family - Ollie.

Let's see...what's happened in two years? Well, we added another member to the Miller Family - Samantha Noelle. She was born March 5, 2009. You would never know by the picture above, but she weighed in at a whopping 5 lbs 13 ozs and she was 19 in. in length. She dropped weight, as most babies do. At her lowest, she was 5 lbs 1 oz. She was SO TINY! She was actually the size of Madison's baby dolls! She is such a blessing. She absolutely makes our family complete! The first six weeks of her life were a bit trying. She was tongue tied at birth, so her first few days of life, she was fed with a syringe. After her tongue was fixed, she didn't take to nursing very well. Thankfully I knew from experience that the first few weeks are trying to say the least. She finally did figure out the nursing thing, and we're going strong at 4 1/2 months. For about the first six weeks of her life she slept on my chest, and I slept on the couch. She definitely had her days and nights mixed up. Then (just like her big sister) the night before she turned six weeks old she slept from 12 am to 6 am. I thought that I was in HEAVEN! Who knew that almost six hours of uninterrupted sleep could feel so good? Thankfully she never looked back! Now she sleeps from about 10 pm until about 7 am. Its wonderful! She's also about doubled her weight. At her 4 month appointment she weighed 11 lbs 2 ozs and she was 23 inches in length. She's still quite a peanut! She recently (about 5 weeks ago) graduated from newborn clothes to 0-3 months clothes. I'm definitely not complaining. It's much easier to carry around an 11 pound baby than a 15-16 pound baby! As much as the last 4 1/2 months have seemed to drag on, they also seem to have flown by. My precious little baby is now playing in her exersaucer

and interacting with her big sister. Sami absolutely ADORES Madi! I think that they're going to be great friends! Having two little girls is WONDERFUL (remind me of this in 14 years when they're 18 and 14!

As for Madison here I sit 5 weeks from the beginning of her last year of preschool. In a prior blog I was hesitant for school to start - now fast forward 2 years, and I can't wait for school to start! Madison still attends Los Altos Christian Preschool. She absolutely loves it. She has asked several times this summer about her teachers, and friends. She's very excited to start another year, but she doesn't like the fact that she will have to give up her weekly play dates. She is such a social butterfly. She makes friends wherever she goes - and it's no lie - TRUST ME (maybe she is a lot like me - HAHA!) So for Madison, not too much has changed in the past two years. She is one of those kids that wakes up every morning asking what we are doing for that particular day (i.e., what fun thing are we doing today mommy?) She is in gymnastics and ballet, and she enjoys both of them. Here is a picture of my little ballerina:

She is quite the smart little cookie.

Daniel is doing well and working away - that's one thing that hasn't changed in the past two years :) Well, I guess since I've written a ton, it's time to get back to the real world. The dirty kitchen and laundry are calling my name!
~JRM~

So many things

It's been a while since I've blogged and I'm feeling a bit guilty. I wanted this blog to be an easier form of journaling, since it's hard for me to find the time to sit down and physically write what's going on in my daily life. I thought that it would be much easier to type my all of my thoughts and feelings down. I guess I was wrong. Oh well. Here goes try #2. Since my last blog, my daughter has grown in more ways then I can even count. She had her first day of school. Here's the picture of her on her very first day of school. I can't believe that the little girl that I gave birth to less than three years ago is going to school. I know that I'm a little bit biased, but I think that she's the cutest preschooler ever. She had a blast on her first day. She didn't even want to leave. The second day (the first day that I left) was a different story. She cried. I sobbed. I think that she cried less than I did (which is probably a good thing) but it was hard to leave her. I don't think that it was the fact that I was leaving her in the care of someone else, but the fact that my little girl is growing up. She will always be my baby girl, but she's now a preschooler - not even a toddler. She's now beginning to form opinions that are all her own. Thankfully it only took her three days of me leaving her before she stopped crying. She now loves to go to school and even asks to go on the weekends or days that we don't go. She loves her teachers, her friends and everything about school. She is so proud when she brings home a project. I'm so glad that she loves school. I know that the days are going to come when she doesn't even want to go, so I'm thankful that at least for now, I don't have to force her to go.

Another thing that has happened is that we got a new puppy. His name is Ollie. He's a red toy poodle. He can be a bit of a bruiser, thankfully he's so adorable, that you look past that. He loves to antagonize Mikie. I feel so bad. Mikie was just beginning to get along with Madison. Madi pulled on his hair and ears when she was a baby and toddler, and now that Madi's older, she finally understood that she couldn't pull Mikie's hair or ears. They were beginning to get along, and life was good, and now Mikie is having his ears bit and chased after by Ollie. I think that the two of them have a love/hate relationship. They love playing with each other, but as soon as one of them gets in the other's way - forget about it. It's DogWar 3 here at our house. Hopefully soon things will be back to normal around here.

And if that isn't enough, Lovee and I decided that we would take the plunge and buy a new house in Lake Tahoe. I love this house! It's so beautiful. God is so good. He has blessed us beyond measure. I can't believe it. We just got back from our first decorating adventure. We took the in laws and let me say they were a huge help. We got so much done. All of the furniture (with the exception of two twin mattresses, one nightstand and sectional couch) has been delivered and is in place. The kitchen is about 95% furnished, and we just need to purchase some more linens, some window treatments, and do a little bit of decorating, and it will be ready to rent out. I am so nervous that we won't be able to rent it out. But thankfully God knew about all of that when He gave us the opportunity to purchase it. I can't wait to go up and be able to ski the beautiful mountains and enjoy the house. I can't wait!

So, that's the happenings of this mommy in the last few months. Hopefully I'll get more thoughts down on paper and I can continue my journaling goal.

~JRM

Does it Ever Stop?

I'm wondering if life ever slows down? I can't believe how fast the summer has gone. Lovee's nephews were here all summer, we had a great time with them, and Madi had an awesome summer. She found her love of roller coasters, the beach, and she has really developed into her own person. In the midst of the summer, we finally finished our kitchen. Now we're working on whole house audio/visual stuff. I can't believe that one week from tonight I will be getting my little princess ready for her first day of preschool. It seems like just yesterday I was talking to the registrar at her school and thinking that this day would never get here...now it's less than a month away. Why do I get the feeling that i'm gonna blink and she's going to be going to kindergarten,then first grade, then junior high, high school and then college? I pray that it slows down a little big so that I can enjoy her more.

Contentment

After a long week that took us from a 36 hour trip in Las Vegas to meetings, dinner and an overnight stay at Santana Row, to watching our nephews for a few days, I am so glad to be at home with just my husband and daughter. No inlaws, family or friends (not that I don't love them all dearly - I do). It is just nice to be at home with out any one else around. Last night was glorious. Daniel made dinner on the grill, then we put Madi to bed, and enjoyed the quiet of our own family room watching Flip That House. We then took a late night dip in the jacuzzi that was absolutely incredible. Today has been just as relaxing, I just did some laundry and enjoyed being with my daughter. This is what bliss truly is!

Fourth of July Celebration

My fourth of July celebration was great! I am so thankful to live in a country where we have the freedoms that we do. We all know about them, so I don't need to repeat them, but I think that so often we forget that we live in a great country. Take away all of the politics, and drama that's going on right now, and get down to the point. We live in a phenomenal country that was founded on the very best principle's. I was overcome with joy at just participating in a neighborhood parade, seeing sheer excitement on my daughter's face as she waved her flag as it passed in front of us and spendidng quality time with my husband and daughter. I do have to say that I wish that my pap was still alive and could have been there at the parade. He loved parades....everything about them from the grandeour to the simplicity. From the floats to the kids laughing and waving. From the bands playing to the cheerleaders cheering. I miss him every day, but I know that he's watching me and my family, and some day I will get to see him again. And no matter what, I will carry on the tradition of watching or participating in a parade just to honor his memory.

JRM