Blowing Out the Candles

Emma Sings To Lauren

 

Emma started singing to Lauren almost from the start.  On the eighth day, we caught it on video.  Have you ever seen something so adorable?

Baby Boy or Girl?

Emma's got something pretty special that she'd like to share with you! She'll have a little sister in late April! (Emma was overjoyed to find her pink bath duck in the baby bag, but the actual color didn't phase her. So much for our creative announcement!)

Making Cookies

The three of us whipped up some chocolate chip cookies one Sunday afternoon. Emma did a great job of pouring in the ingredients and stirring. Here is a video of her in action. My next blog post will include photos of the entire baking process. Emma enjoyed this activity so much that she's asked to make cookies several more times since then. We had a second go just last weekend.

Babes in the Bath

We've been packing in preparation for our big move in less than a month. While gathering items for Scott to take to our storage unit, Emma reunited with her long lost baby bathtub. We were in the process of dressing her for the the day when she noticed the tub and just had to stop and climb in with her friends. Here she is reminiscing on those days with Beth, Amy, Emily, and Pup-Pup. Listen for when she tells her dolls to "sit down" and "sit up." Sweet, funny Emma!

Emma's ABCs

Thanks to Leapfrog's The Letter Factory, Emma has nearly mastered the sounds of her alphabet! Our friend Heather S. tipped us off to this miraculous video. We couldn't believe how quickly Emma picked up on it! She can work on teaching Mommy her ABCs. Did you notice that I skipped the letter G?

Santa's Snack

Santa ate ALL of Emma's Christmas Eve cookies and drank ALL of the hot chocolate. Emma was amazed to see the empty plate and mug!

Christmas Morning

Santa and his reindeer left Emma some wonderful presents this year! When she woke up on Christmas morning and walked down the stairs, Emma spied her stocking with Abby and Grover stuffed animals peering from the opening and said, "Abby!" We opened a few presents, ate breakfast, and opened a few more. Emma had a little time to investigate her new things before we cleaned up and hit the road to visit family up North.

Cookies for Santa

Ooooh! There's a snowman on this cookie!

Santa will like this one!

Sneaking a nibble for herself . . . yum!

Can you see the one Emma took a bite out of!

Sharing a bite with the Santa on the plate!
Munch, munch, munch!

Counting the cookies . . 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8!
There are enough for Santa and Mrs. Claus!

On Christmas Eve, Emma made a plate of cookies and hot chocolate for Santa. Luckily, her Grandpa Mike had baked a few tins of goodies, because Scott and I had not. (As Emma gets older, we'll surely bake Christmas treats together. At this age, it's a challenge to keep a little one away from the oven.) Emma was so sweet holding the cookies to the mouth of the Santa on the ceramic plate and making munching sounds. She also stole a few bites here and there. These pictures and video will make you smile!

Whippin' Ribbon

Emma had a great time with the bags, tissue paper, wrapping paper, and bows. In the days before Christmas as presents began gathering under the tree, she investigated the pretty packages. She was gentle with them and rarely bothered the tree. However, a few gifts showed evidence of tampering. It's funny how none of her own were touched. Here she is attacking a bow from one of Daddy's presents. We had been using this one during our Christmas photo shoot.

Waking Up Is Hard To Do

When I arrived home from work one day, I found Scott in the kitchen washing dishes and Emma asleep on her Super Girl pillow in the family room. This tired tike had decided to skip her nap and was too tuckered out to keep her eyes open at 5:00 P.M. Since it was time for dinner and we wanted her to go to bed and sleep through the night, we decided to end her cat nap.

Look Who's Walking and Talking!

Emma loves to walk . . . and run . . . and bounce . . . and climb . . . and talk . . . and read . . . and play. Puzzles and books are her favorites. She is learning animal sounds and can say quack, baaa, and neigh quite clearly. Other fun words include hi, bye-bye, more, nigh-night, up, puppy, elbow, Elmo, and her own name. Grandma Connie taught her how to blow kisses, too. Emma is a mover and a shaker! Here she is chasing Scott around the room as he attempts to take a video.

Emma, Rex, and Carlee

Scott and Emma took a trip to Beardstown for a few days while I worked in my classroom. Though she was initially fearful of Ross and Connie's dogs, Emma gradually warmed up to the pups. Rex and Carlee followed Emma from room to room. She liked their shaggy fur and sloppy kisses.

Birthday Videos

There was so much video footage of Emma's birthday events that we've just now loaded them for you to view! It took Scott several hours to watch the various clips and pick three to post on our site. The first video is of Emma exploring her birthday presents after waking up from her nap on her actual birthday. The second video shows her excitement upon opening her Radio Flyer wagon at Grandma and Grandpa's house. In the third video, we sing Emmy "Happy Birthday," and she investigates her birthday cake with hesitation. Happy viewing!

Mommy's Spa

After her evening bath, Emma is treated to several minutes at Mommy's Spa. She enjoys a full "lotion commotion" body massage, gentle ear swab, and sleek hair styling. The pampering ends with a towel frolic and cozy jammies. It's a gigglin' good time!

Da-da and Mum-mum

While she's been babbling for over two months with da, guh, buh, and other sounds we haven't identified, now Emma routinely says Da-da and Mum-mum. She began saying "Mum" the week before Mother's Day. What a gift! All of the baby literature tells us that she is just beginning to associate a word with a person/object/action, and it will be many months until she'll truly understand the connection. It's still mighty cute to us!

Into Everything

Everyone told us that once Emma learned to crawl, she'd be into everything. We've put away many items and added safety features around the family room and kitchen. However, she still manages to find trouble now and again. Sometimes Emma thinks she's being a little rebel, like in his video. In reality, we thought this was one instance in which her curiosity was cute and safe.

Mum-Mum Are Yum-Yum!

We introduced Mum-Mum rice rusks to Emma this weekend. Kristen's parents gave them to her and Chad as babies. She likes the crunch!

Here Comes Emma!

Today Emma was playing nicely with her stackable links, tapping them against the dishwasher. Elated at her content independent play, Scott watched from a distance. Every so often, Emma peeked her head around the corner to check and make sure Scott was there. When he attempted to quietly capture this moment on video, Emma bolted for him and the camera!

Easter Basket Exploration

Emma opened her Easter baskets from her grandparents a few days before Easter, but we're just now getting around to downloading the video. Here's Emma exploring some gifts from Grammy Jill and Grandpa Mike.