Auntie Wendy and Nate visit =)

My little sister, Wendy, and her boyfriend, Nate, came to visit Madeleine for the first time this past week-end! Hopefully, we didn't scare them TOO much and they'll be returning soon as we had a lot of fun and they live nearby, in gorgeous Lake Tahoe.

I think (hope!) that the littlest Sharklette is having her 6 week growth spurt because she's been rather fussy lately (don't know where she gets that from! hehe...)
Leave it to my brave sister to tackle (successfully!) a Baby Monster!! =)



...and Wendy was so good at soothing her that they both enjoyed it in the end! :)





Of course, Bobby was glad to get some attention, too! :P



While Wendy & Nate were visiting, Madeleine discovered the animals above her swing for the first time!



...while Big Sister Bobby & I kept a close eye on the Little Swinger. ;>



Of course, no visit by Wendy and Nate is complete without a little bocce in Dolores Park...



...even with Baby! =)


Unfortunately for us, Sharkey and Nate's PLAYING was as good as Wendy, Maddie, and I LOOKED playing, HEHE!!! :P



Hopefully with this early exposure, Madeleine will grow up to be an all-around bocce player: both looking good AND playing 'good'! :P

Handmade Gifts! =)

In addition to her parents, many others have been excited about Madeleine's birth... lots have sent really thoughtful presents for her (Thank you again!!) and some have even MADE things for this lucky girl! =)
Of course, she loves them all! :-)


Her Aunt Rebecca made Madeleine a super-soft sweater ~ which obviously she can't wait to grow into! =) As soon as she does, it will be getting a LOT of use here in San Francisco!




Many people know my love of quilts and blankets, and Madeleine was fortunate to receive several! :)

Maura Jones, a teacher at Selby Lane, gave Maddie a beautiful quilt!! One side is an extremely soft pink material, and the quilted squares are in an antique fabric style ~ too cute AND cozy!!! =)



... and if you look really closely, you can see where Maura embroidered "Welcome Baby Sharklette" on one edge! ;>




My friend since birth, Amy Mahar, visited me just before Maddie was born...


And her mother, Roberta Mahar, sent this super soft yellow quilt. =) Madeleine loves snuggling with this blanket in the stroller on cold SF days!





I'm not sure WHEN she found time, but my Vice-Principal, Schrene Whitmore, made this incredibly soft pink blanket for Madeleine, which amazingly, keeps getting softer the more I wash it!! =) This is Maddie's favorite naptime blanket. :)



Maddie's Big Sister Bobby loves the super-soft blankie, too!!




Also not sure when she found the time (given how much time Sharkey spends on work stuff!), but one of his coworkers, Melissa , made this great blanket for our lucky girl!




Again, thank you so much! I'm sure Madeleine will treasure these amazingly thoughtful & beautiful gifts!! =)

Madeleine is 1 month old!

It has been brought to my attention that in most of the pics I've posted, the littlest Sharklette is hard to see... (Thank you, Dad!)
So, here are some random close up shots from Madeleine's first month. :-)

A little fussy baby!



Naked Baby!
(At least now Madeleine will have a reason to be upset with me when she hits those teenage years, lol!)



And here she is on her change table with clothes on. ;>



Maddie is definitely a "Mommy Milky" girl! ;P



Sleeping with Big Sister Bobby watching over her. =)



Given that she's only 4 weeks old (& sleeps a good part of the day!), I can't believe how many faces the munchkin makes!
Was able to capture some...

Peaceful Baby


Sleepy Baby


Poopy-Face Baby


Happy Baby


Sourpuss Baby


Innocent Baby (Oh, is it really 2am?!)


You're Not The Boss Of Me!


Hungry Baby!
The face that strikes fear into hearts of newly nursing mothers!!! :-O



This is the face that's going to get me Anything I Want From Daddy!


...And I love the Little Baby Feet & Hands!




That's all for now! =)

Rose and Bill (AKA Grandma and Granddad Sharkey!) visit

Madeleine and I were THRILLED when Rose and Bill arrived! =)
We did SO MANY things...

We showed Sharkey that he CAN take his girls out to dinner.

He was worried about Maddie's restaurant behavior, but true to a Nevins, if she's fed, she's happy! :)


And Rose, never one to sit around on her bum (so unlike the rest of us, hehe!), got SO much done!

She painted our new foundation ~ all the way around the house!!!


Rose and Bill even sanded, cleaned, AND repainted our deck, so now it looks brand new! =)


Rose even managed to squeeze in time to paint our front gate (how white!) AND do a bit of gardening!!!


Of course, it wasn't ALL work and no play (just MOSTLY work, lol!)...
Maddie and I took Rose & Bill to lunch to show our appreciation for all their hard work. :D



Sharkey and Bill discovered it's fun to BBQ with a Baby! (I wasn't so sure about that!!) :-O




Rose discovered Madeleine LOVES the outdoors; whenever she was fussy, Rose would take her outside, and Maddie would settle down immediately!


I am DEFINITELY concerned about this early love of the outdoors! Perhaps I'll take her to the mall more, LOL!!

We also took Madeleine to the beach for the first time.

However, getting her & her stroller down to the beach was an event on its own, lol! ;>





All in all, another fun and PRODUCTIVE visit from Rose & Bill! THANK YOU SO MUCH! =)
...Madeleine was exhausted just watching it all! :P
(Good girl, posing just like Mommy! :P


But Madeleine is looking forward to their next visit in June for more cuddling (and hand-holding)! ;>