To the Dads in my life

My husband - Ryan is an amazing dad to Madelyn. He has always been a hands on dad. Whether it be getting up at 2:00am to change a dirty diaper when she was an infant or taking her to doctor's appointment and t-ball practices. He stays home with Madelyn whenever school is out and the two of them are inseparable. Madelyn and her daddy have a very close bond and I know that when it comes time for her to find her life partner she will have a hard time finding a fellow that fills those shoes.


My Dad - He is an amazing dad who always showed unconditional love. He left huge shoes to fill, but he is the reason I picked such a great husband. He was an awesome example to follow. My dad is also a wonderful Paw Paw to my daughter. Madelyn adores him as much as I do.


My Father-in-Law - Bob is a fun loving, silly and humorous man. Ryan often says that he and I are a lot a like, probably because we both enjoy being the center of attention. Bob always makes me laugh! I'm thankful that he raised an amazing son. Madelyn thinks the world of her Papa Muhlig.

Random Stuff

5 Year Well Child (or what I call physical)
Madelyn had her 5 year check up this week. She actually went in because we thought she may have an ear infection from all the swimming over vacation, so while she was there we had her physical completed. Madelyn has a tendency to get swimmer's ear during the summer months. She did indeed have a slight ear infection so was put on antibiotic drops. Besides the ear infection Madelyn's check up went well. She is 46 inches tall, which is in the 96 percentile, and weighed in at 49 1/2lbs, which is in the 91 percentile for her age. She is a big girl. The doctor made sure to explain to Madelyn that she may be taller than most of the kids in her kindergarten class. I'm not sure that was necessary.
Madelyn was very pleased that she didn't have to have any shots this year. All the shots she needed to get for kindergarten she received at her 4 year check up last year.

Pumpkin Farmers and Turtle Ranchers
Since Ryan and Madelyn have a little extra time on their hands during the summer they have decided to try some new things. One thing they accomplished was planting a pumpkin patch at the pasture. They actually had a patch last year too but this year they planted the jumbo pumpkins. We may just have a record pumpkin come October.
They also decided to become turtle ranchers. However, that has proven to be unsuccessful thus far. We stopped along the highway the other night and picked up the very first turtle for the ranch. It then went in Madelyn's sand box, which is to be converted into "The Ranch." The turtle earned the name "Flipper" after Madelyn watched him try to crawl out in which he quickly flipped over onto his back. Flipper made it two days at the ranch before he plotted his escape and was gone. However, I'm sure there will be many other turtles that will come and go at the ranch in the future.

Summer Vacation 2008

This year we decided to take a vacation with my family. It had been six years since the last Sill Family trip. Our destination was Table Rock lake. My mom and dad, sister, brother-in-law, two nieces and the three of us stayed in a 3 bedroom 2 bath cottage for 6 days.

This was the view from our cabin.


The Happy Campers


I probably gained at least 5lbs this week because of all the fantastic food we ate. My favorite would be Lambert's which is known for throwing homemade rolls. Not only is it a fun atmosphere but the food is fantastic! We also continued the tradition and ate at the Bearded Clam one evening. Ryan and Terry enjoyed the beer!

Kaitlyn trying out one of the rolls.

Of course we couldn't go to Missouri without going to the Bass Pro Shop. This was actually Madelyn's second visit, the first time she was only 5 weeks old.


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We went to Branson almost every day. Madelyn loved the boat rides and go carts. I, of course, loved the outlet malls. We also went to a show, The Baldnobbers, it was a new and interesting experience for us.



We rented a pontoon boat for 1/2 a day and the girls enjoyed tubing. I enjoyed drinking a few beers and chowing on junk food. The resort also had a pool and hot tub that Madelyn was in at least once a day.


Madelyn showing off


We went to Silver Dollar City for a few hours on two different days. Madelyn loved the rides, especially the water rides. She rode every ride she was tall enough to ride. However, she wasn't real fond of the rides that went in dark caves.









The last day we went to the Hatchery where Madelyn fed the trout. That evening we took mom and dad to eat at Joe's Crab Shack at the Branson Landing. We all enjoyed the tons of seafood. I'm glad mom and dad put on their bibs.








We headed for home on Friday so I could have two days at home before I head back to work. We stopped at the Discovery Center in Springfield, Mo on our way home.

It was a really fun trip and we all are still on speaking terms so I would say that it was a success! However, I did manage to drink 2 bottles of wine and a few beers which did assist with my coping skills.

Fabulous Fifth!

Five years ago, on May 29, 2003 at 12:14am (the morning of our 4th anniversary) I was jolted from bed with my first "real" contraction. Fourteen hours of hard labor and 2-1/2 hours of pushing we had the best anniversary gift ever, a 6lb 14oz precious baby girl! It is still hard to believe that our "baby" is now 5 years old. We made sure Madelyn felt extra special on her big day.

The evening prior I took her to t-ball practice and Ryan put together her new pool. When she got home she was not allowed in the back yard because we wanted the pool to be a surprise. We woke her up Thursday morning before I went to work so I could be there when she saw the pool. We lured her outside and when she finally discovered the pool she said yahoo one time and said something like this "are there more presents?" Seriously?!?! Ryan and I were a bit disappointed with her reaction but I guess we set ourselves up for that. She then came into the house and opened the other couple of gifts that just happened to be clothes and some pool toys. I left for work and she spent the day with Ryan. She played in her pool even though it was freezing cold, then they went out to lunch and to the spillway to play. We took her to Red Robin for dinner where she had a free dinner and dessert and the waiters sang Happy Birthday to her. Then it was off to Lux Nail Salon for some mother/daughter pampering. Madelyn had her first pedi/mani and I had a pedi too. We had a really fun time. I see more mother/daughter pampering in the future.


The new pool

She told me she was acting embarrassed when the waiters were singing to her.

Red Robin Fun

She was a little too short to sit in the massage chair and let her feet soak so for a while she just stood in the foot bath.


She was so relaxed!



Oh, and for our anniversary I think we said Happy Anniversary and talked about how Madelyn was the best anniversary gift ever! We will celebrate nine years of marriage by going on a shopping spree at the Branson Outlet malls next week. We are getting up bright and early tomorrow morning and heading to Tablerock Lake for an entire week with my family. We are all staying under the same roof so please pray that we all come back alive. I'll type all about the trip when we return. Have a great week!

A Hillbilly Time

Madelyn's birthday party with all the family was Sunday evening. It was held in a pasture that Ryan and his buddy caretake. We grilled hamburgers and hotdogs and had all the fixings. There were mini bikes and a 4 wheeler to ride, fishing if you chose and a huge bonefire that scared away half the county animals. Soon after dinner the kids decided it was time to take a swim in the pond. The highlight of the swim was when Papa Muhlig was attempting to get his fearful dog into the water. Just as he was shoving her in and was about two steps into the water, someone shouted watch out there is a drop off. Too late because papa had already discovered the drop off and was drenched from head to toe. After removing his soaked cell phone, cigs, and glasses he took a couple more dives in and enjoyed splashing around with the kids. We finally forced the kids out of the pond for cake and opening presents.
The evening started out beautifully without a cloud in the sky and a nice breeze in the shade. There were seven tents set up for camping that night. As we were enjoying some smores by the fire that night we we keeping updated on the weather by my BILs cell phone (thank goodness for technology). We knew the storms were headed our way but were hopeful that we could wait them out. Around 11:30pm the storm hit with a vengeance. We made a mad dash to the SUV. We soon heard over the radio that there was a tornado warning in our area, so we made sure everyone got in their vehicles and headed to our house. In route to our house we had to stop to remove a huge limb in the road and go around 2 large trees that had blown over. It was definitely an adrenaline rush for everyone involved. When we arrived home the worst of the storm was over but we decided to crash at our house rather than go back to the campsite. I believe a good time was had by all and the storm just added excitement to our evening.
Madelyn driving the four wheeler.

The girls after 4 wheeling - Madelyn's shirt started out white.

Papa Muhlig on the mini bike.


Papa and the kids swimming in the pond.

That mini bike was sure fun

Aunt Bun-Bun on the mini bike. Don't you love that hat?

Aunt Shelly didn't have much luck with fishing once the kids got in the pond.

The Birthday Girl

It's summer time!

Which means that Madelyn and Ryan get to hang out all summer long. Ryan had his last day of school on Monday and that was also Madelyn's last day of daycare. So, on Tuesday when I was up at 5:00am for my morning run and then got ready to go to work Ryan and Madelyn were still all snuggly in bed. It takes me awhile each summer to not be bitter about this arrangement. Ryan always tells me I could have chosen to be a teacher. So true, but, the only time I want to be a teacher is during the summer breaks. I must say though I am very blessed that Ryan is able and willing to stay home with Madelyn each and every school break. There aren't a lot of men that would choose to do that. Not only does he take care of Madelyn in the summer but he also does a majority of the house work (inside and out) and often times will have supper started by the time I get home. When I arrived home on Tuesday afternoon the house was spotless and the tons of laundry had been washed, dried and folded and supper was almost ready. Often times I take for granted how lucky I am to have married such a great guy who is also an awesome daddy.

Girls, Girls, Girls

Yesterday Madelyn had her friend birthday party. We rented a moon walk and had the slip and slide going and had a little craft for the girls to create and take home. Madelyn chose Hello Kitty for the theme this year. She had a Hello Kitty cupcake cake (bought with love from Wal-Mart). Seven little girls (and one boy) arrived and giggled and screamed for two hours. I think two hours was a little long for 4-5 year olds. After bouncing and sliding for an hour they were looking for other things to do. So, we set up the sprinkler for a while, then got out the side walk chalk. We made sure they were entertained outside because we sure didn't want them terrorizing the inside of our house. It was quite obvious when Madelyn was ready for them all to leave because she started going off by herself to play. That must be an only child thing, she enjoys her time by herself that is for sure.
The three of us were exhausted when they left but we had a college graduation party to attend so had no time to rest. However, we arrived home by 7:30pm from the party and I was crashed out shortly after 8:00pm. Madelyn and Ryan soon followed.

Look closely you can see the cowgirl next to her castle.

I couldn't get them all in the picture because they weren't willing to move.