Maddie wearing Daddy

Side note: Take a closer look at Maddie's (my) t-shirt. It could possibly be one of the coolest shirts ever made, at least for a child of the eighties. If you take a close look, here are the 'vehicles': Transformer's Optimus Prime, E.T.'s spaceship, A-Team Van, General Lee, Back to the Future's DeLorean, KITT from Knight Rider, Airwolf, Blues Brothers Cop Car, Tron, Ecto1 from the Ghostbusters, and Magnum P.I.'s Ferrari.

Pre-Walking...

Maddie is beginning the transition into walking. We bought her a little push scooter so she can walk behind and learn to walk. The video below is after 1.5 weeks of practice. She is getting better and better everyday. She also shows you how well she is able to stand up without holding on to anything in the video as well. (Disregard the mess Maddie made after Alaina spent her valuable time folding clothes, Maddie follows her up by pulling clothes off the table)

The morning ritual in the Webster-Stoppel house, Alaina eats her cereal while being stalked for the milk.

Columbia, District of: Day 3

Jon had classes again Saturday morning, so as on Friday, Maddie and I were up bright and early, wandering the streets in search of food. (I like melodrama. I think it adds a certain, special something to my posts.) Having slept until a normal waking hour and also having just mastered waving, Maddie proceeded to greet each. and. every. single. person. we. met. In fact, in the coffee shop, there were too many people to wave at, so she sat in her stroller with both arms stretched over her head, smiling like a maniac. It was seriously adorable and probably number one on my Top 5 list for D.C. We took our breakfast to the pier again, shared the muffin, played in the sand for the first time (and with a sculpture for the first time, for that matter), and headed back to the hotel for a little pool time before her morning nap.

Following her nap and the return of Daddy, the three of us took a water taxi over to Alexandria, VA where we were supposed to catch a 2:30 p.m. river tour to Georgetown. While Maddie and I played in a square, Jon went in search of lunch, which we ate while waiting at what we thought was our dock. It was not. So, we missed the boat we were scheduled to be on and had to take the 3:30 tour.

Once on the boat, we thought Maddie might enjoy sitting in the bow where she could see the water, feel the wind, etc. There was a voice in the background going on about splashing or something, but we were sure it would just be minor spray. (Also, we had elected to play Russian Roulette with Maddie's nap that afternoon. We thought she might nap in her stroller, but we also knew that without a quiet room and a crib, there was a very good chance she might not take her nap.) A note to fellow travelers: Always listen to the voice in the background talking about "splashing", do not interpret "splashing" as "spray", and remove your already tired and cranky baby from a splash zone that would make Sea World jealous. About 15 minutes into the trip, a HUGE wave washed over the bow (okay, it was probably just a large-ish splash, but again, I love melodrama), soaking both Maddie and me. Being covered in dirty, smelly Potomac water, she, of course, began to wail, which is exactly what I wanted to do, but sadly, we were in public, and I had to act like an adult. (Acting like an adult means complaining about it to Jon for the remainder of the boat ride.) We took her back into the covered, dry portion of the boat, and Jon and I proceeded to play another grueling round of Pass-the-Baby. This was the intermediate level in which the baby is wet and angry and the parents are hot and frustrated. (To be completely honest, I was also pretty wet and angry having taken the time to straighten my hair which now had to be pulled back into a less than attractive knot after being combed with a baby comb...) Finally, on the trip back, Maddie nursed and then fell asleep for about 30 minutes.

Thank God for that because at 5 p.m., we were supposed to meet Larry, Nancy, and Chris at the Chart House for dinner. As we staggered in late (because our return boat didn't leave on time), bedraggled, and tired, I think all three of us were in less than pleasant moods, but Maddie cheered everyone up by being completely silly through most of the meal, and dinner ended up being fine.

After dinner, Maddie went back to the hotel with Nana and Pa, and Jon, Chris and I walked around oldtown Alexandria in search of a few souvenirs and a good beer. We ended up at Murphy's, an Irish pub complete with a man performing traditional Irish drinking songs. (He was wearing a tropical print shirt, but we decided to ignore that little atmospheric faux-pas.) After a few rounds of the previously sought after libation, Jon and I headed back to Maryland to sleep for a few hours before waking up to pack, pick up our daughter, and get ready for the trip home.

Here are a few pictures from Day 3. For the complete pictures from our trip, check out the link at the bottom of Columbia, District of: Day 1.

Maddie, playing in the sand and with a sculpture titled "The Awakening"

Maddie in a square in oldtown Alexandria

Wet, cranky Maddie on the boat, post Potomac baptism

Columbia, District of: Day 2

Friday began bright and early. Well, actually, I think it was just early, so early, in fact, that it may not have been so bright. Maddie woke up at 5:30 a.m EST, which would be 4:30 a.m. CST, which is the time zone we were trying to keep her in. Since Jon had classes to attend, it became my job to keep her up until 10 a.m., which would be 9 a.m. at home, until it was time for her first nap. So, at 7 a.m., my already sleepy daughter and I were roaming the still quiet streets of National Harbor in search of coffee and a little breakfast for Mommy. Having found a decent latte and a blueberry scone, we sat on the pier, and I shared my scone with Maddie and a rather persistent Potomac-dwelling duck. (Seriously, this duck almost flew up and took a piece of scone out of my hand. I'm not kidding.)

Following the walk, several other baby-distracting activities, and a nap, Maddie was in a much better mood. Jon and I dropped her off with Nana and took a shuttle into D.C. for a whirlwind tour of the mall, which unfortunately for me did not include sunscreen... We saw the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, and the WWII, Vietnam, and Korean War memorials. Then, because I was starting to turn really red, we hit up the Museum of American History for some, well, history and air conditioning.

We then spent 40+ minutes waiting for our shuttle before calling a cab so we could get back to National Harbor and clean up for Larry's ACOE retirement reception. Maddie decided that the speechifying portion of the reception would be a good time to practice screeching, so I took her out in the hall where she played with a very nice little boy named Ryan and fell off a chair. (Yes, I am taking nominations for mother-of-the-year.) She then returned to the party to chew on her shoes, wave at people, and eat most of a baguette. There were at least three people feeding her small bits of bread. I have no idea how much she ate...

Following the reception, Maddie and I went back to the hotel where she was awake for a whole half an hour before crashing for the night. I watched more Harry Potter and waited for Jon to bring me Mexican takeout at 11 p.m. So hungry... Maddie slept through the night again, and Saturday, she woke up at the perfectly acceptable hour of 6:15 a.m. (5:15 CST).

Here are a few pictures of our time on the mall. For a link to all of the pictures from our trip, see Columbia, District of: Day 1.

The Whitehouse, home of President Obama and family

Lincoln Memorial and reflecting pool

World War II Memorial

Jon and I at the Kansas portion of the World War II Memorial

World War II Memorial with the Washington Monument in the background (and the Capitol, if you squint really hard)