Ugh! This is so frustrating! Poor Emma is still getting sick from last week. We kept her home from daycare today because she got sick once yesterday after having a really good Sunday. She was happy as a clam all day, playing and laughing and talking, everything. So much, that we were convinced that she already knew how to work her parents to keep her home from "school" haha.

Well, that changed again tonight when she got sick out of nowhere again right before bedtime! Hopefully, we can get in to the doctor's early tomorrow and it's nothing big.

My poor baby...

The Many Faces of Emma...

I know! Three posts in one day! That's crazy talk! Emma is in bed, kitchen is clean, taxes are filed and there isn't anything good on TV until 24! So, as a result...it's a posting kind-of night!

When Emma was feeling better on Sunday afternoon, she was being pretty dramatic, so I had to grab my camera and try to catch a few of her "standard" expressions.

This is the "I'm gonna get you Shamie!" look...

This is the "Oh wait, that thing over there looks more interesting." look...

This is the "No Mommy, I wasn't trying to pull Shamie's ears." look...

This is the "OH MY GOSH! I AM SO EXCITED I AM STIFF AS A BOARD!!" look....

This is the "If I flash Mommy my baby blues, she will give me a new toy." look...

This is the "Hey Mommy! Take a picture of me! I'm over here!" look...

This is the "MOM!" look...

This is the "When I learn to crawl, your camera is mine Mommy!" look...

This is the "Hey...when did that kitty get here?" look...

Busted!!!!

I have officially been busted big time by my niece, so here is my apology!!!! In the post below talking about the famous apples at Mimi's house, I said they have been a big hit since "the birth of the first grandchild 10 years ago..."

I stand corrected...it was 11 years ago.

:::insert me falling off my chair when I realize exactly how big she is getting:::

Sorry Bean!!!!

Dreaded Stomach Virus Has Attacked!

Ugh!! What a crazy few days it has been since last Wednesday! My poor little baby had her first official run in with the dreaded stomach virus and it was a doozy! We have been incredibly lucky in the fact that Emma has yet to get one ear infection, but she sure has had her dose of other illnesses, including H1N1, RSV and this stomach virus.

I picked Emma up from daycare last Wednesday and everything seemed pretty normal that evening. She wasn't too interested in dinner that night, but that wasn't such a big deal because she is teething and (at that point) was working on cutting one of her front teeth. We went on a walk with Daddy and Shamus and kept our evening routine of a bath and bedtime around 7:00PM. She went right to bed without a fuss, and Wes and I continued our evening like normal. We woke up to her choking at about 11:45 that night. It's amazing how you can go from being in a deep sleep, to sprinting across the hallway in about 0.5 seconds flat. We sat her up and she seemed to be okay. Crossing our fingers that it was an isolated incident, we changed her and her sheets and went back to bed. Insert sprint across the house number two, about 15 minutes later. Then again about 30 minutes later, and again about 45 minutes later. I finally gave up around throw up number 5 or 6 at 4:15 in the morning, so we headed downstairs to start the "day". Poor Emma was miserable, she was white as a ghost and just wanted to snuggle and sleep in my arms. We tried a little formula for breakfast since she seemed hungry and that made another appearance at 6:30 that morning. So needless to say, Mommy stayed home and kept up the clear liquids and laundry all day.

Thursday night was a little different, in the fact that we only had to sprint across the hall twice that night, but again didn't get much sleep. Emma was still pretty miserable on Friday and not having many wet diapers (which is one of the first signs of dehydration) so first thing in the morning we were off to the Pediatricians office. Emma's regular doctor wasn't in the office so we saw Dr. K who is the Pediatrician for some of our friend's children. To make a long story short, she ruled out any ear infections and tested Emma for a urinary track infection. Because throwing up for two days straight, feeling miserable, cutting teeth and having a stranger look in her ears and throat weren't enough, my poor Tiny got a catheter. I really don't think they should ask the parents to hold down the child because I think both Wes and I were practically in tears after that visit.

Well, with no real answer, we headed home to keep up the liquids and watch her overnight. Finally, we made it through one night with no more vomiting! She was still pretty miserable all weekend, but there was a glimpse of our happy little baby on Sunday, thank goodness! That was until today when I got a call from daycare that she had thrown up all over one of her teachers, Ms. Holly! So we haven't quite kicked this virus yet, but hopefully we are on the mend.

So, even though I was out of work since Thursday, the weekend went by incredibly fast since we spent all of it in the house, cleaning, doing laundry and trying to comfort Emma. To top it all off, her first top tooth popped through on Thursday!! I think she is working on her other one now!! We skipped Emma's last swim lesson since she still wasn't feeling well on Saturday, but hopefully they will let us make it up.

Since Emma has been having a rough week, I decided to get started on her first Easter Basket. I still have a couple of little things that I want to pick up for her but here is what we have so far. The plastic eggs have yet to be filled with goodies!

Full of some of her favorite fruits....


A Hello Kitty-Bunny, new movie and toothbrush (to replace the toothbrush that was tainted by the stomach virus, ewwww...)

And a little piggy bath toy...

Just Like Daddy!

There are several ways that Emma is just like her Daddy and we came across another one last night. She tried white rice for the first time and absolutely loved it!!! Wes is a big fan of white rice (which doesn't go well with trying to shake those last few baby lbs) and apparently his daughter is no different.

Here are some of the other ways Emma is just like Daddy...

• Her personality. She is extremely laid back and easy going, but the very few times she does get mad...watch out!
• Her eyelashes. Wes would make any female jealous with his LONG eyelashes. Well, Emma was lucky enough to get those too.
• She wants to do things her own way. The other day during breakfast, Emma was eating some banana with her eggs and toast. She did not want Mommy to break it up for her, nor did she want Mommy to hold the banana while she took bites. She wanted to hold it all by herself! Needless to say, we required a bath after that breakfast.
• She loves her Shamus.
• And of course, her extreme love of all things that are full of carbohydrates (white rice, bread, etc).

Busy Weekend!!

What a weekend! The weather was going to be absolutely beautiful all weekend here so I decided to take the day off on Friday to spend it with my baby! The original plan was to head to the zoo with Emma's Mimi but it had just opened and there was still some damage from all the snow this winter. So instead, we decided to just relax and head to the park! Our plans were somewhat changed because our washing machine broke earlier that week so Emma and I headed to Mimi's house after a nice relaxing morning to start some laundry (and then head to the park). We just relaxed at Mimi's house for a little while and Emma got to play a bit before heading out.

There are a couple of toys that are infamous at Mimi's house, and two of them are pictured below. From the birth of the first grandchild 10 years ago, these apples and car toys have been the absolute favorites. Emma agreed....





By the time we got to Mimi's house and got a load of laundry rolling it was lunch time so we decided to head to Panera Bread before the park. We found out that Emma LOVES Panera Bread and ate Mimi's entire piece of bread that came with her meal! She was so funny in her highchair just looking around and trying to talk to everyone that walked by haha! Then it was off to the park! We didn't stay long because it was pretty sunny and Emma was getting pretty tired so we just walked around and tried out swinging for the first time. Tiny wasn't a fan of being in the swing by herself but loved it when either me or Mimi swung with her. After that, we *attempted* to put Emma down for a nap at Mimi's house and she wasn't having it one bit! We then heading back to our house where Mimi and Pop had some dinner and Pop figured out why our washing machine wasn't working. Luckily, it was an easy fix at a total cost of about $11.98 (SHEW!).




Saturday morning was Emma's next-to-last swim class and her boyfriend Mr. Zach was on vacation, so Ms. Erin was her teacher this week (and will be next week too). Although Emma is totally in love with Mr. Zach, she was super excited to meet someone new and decided to show off all class. She was splashing and kicking and jumping around like never before!! She even dunked her face in the water several times on purpose! She is definitely ending up to be out little water bug! After swim class, a quick nap and some lunch, we headed out with Daddy to go find a new TV stand since the little one is getting more and more mobile by the day. She still can't crawl forwards but between rolling and moving backwards, you would be surprised how much ground she can cover!!

Sunday was going to be another beautiful day so we headed out with Mimi and Nanny (my grandmother and where Emma got her middle name from) to do some shopping at the outlets! Needless to say, Emma had the most luck out of everyone, and I scored a new pair of jeans.

We also had a big weekend with some new foods! We tried some scrambled eggs (yolks only which we aren't too much a fan of), pancakes (which we absolutely love), and some meat in a jar (sounds delish huh?). So Emma is getting a bigger and bigger food selection everyday! Here is what we have mastered so far (I put a * by some of her favorites).

• Pears*
• Peaches
• Bananas*
• Blueberries
• Peach Cobbler
• Apples*
• Eggs (Yolks Only)
• Pancakes*
• Cinnamon Toast*
• Bread
• Sweet Potatoes*
• Carrots*
• Peas
• Green Beans
• Squash
• Broccoli (NOT A FAN)
• Cereal (Oatmeal)
• Fruit Combos (Like banana fruit medley, etc)
• Chicken Dinners (Like chicken and apples, etc)
• Ice Cream (so far, not a big fan)

Things next up on the list include:

• Snap Peas
• Avocado
• Pasta
• Meats

I very well may be forgetting some, but those are at least the staples!!

A Few Pictures!

Well, since my last post didn't have any pictures, and because I am finding myself carrying my camera around more often now, I figured I would post a few now! Nothing fancy...just a few snap shots from the weekend and today.

This is what I like to call "proof that Mommy and Daddy need a new entertainment center with doors". Emma found all the goodies this weekend and decided that it was her new favorite place to explore. Despite what the photo shows....I do not let her play Grand Theft Auto. :)

"No honey, Team America World Police is not appropriate for you either."

I think even Daddy was convinced we need a new entertainment center when he found out Emma knows how to turn on his PlayStation!

I couldn't resist snapping this picture. By the time we are ready to leave for daycare in the mornings, Emma is getting sleepy again because she is used to falling asleep during the car ride. So needless to say, she is pretty subdued in the mornings normally. When we are all done getting dressed, we come downstairs and Emma watches a few minutes of TV to let Mommy and Daddy get their breakfast and lunch together (this was during the Imagination Movers). She just looked too cute in her jeans and t-shirt this morning, baby doll and all.

"Best Friends"

We had a minor emergency this afternoon...Shamus got a hold of "Quakers" and we aren't sure if he is going to pull through or not. This is how I found him...poor little Quakers.

Emma couldn't bare to watch Quakers get thrown in the laundry...

And yes...she now has a matching scratch on her face under her right eye. What a bruiser!

Big Updates!!! What a Weekend!!!

Wow, what a weekend Emma had!! Wes and I were expecting a LONG weekend because Emma's two front teeth are about to pop through any day now, which basically means she hasn't been very happy lately. We were hoping that they would pop through this weekend, but no such luck. We did however have several big things happen this weekend!

On Friday night, Wes was having a friend over to the house, so Emma and I thought it would be a great time to go visit her great grandmother Nanny (Kathryn - where Emma got her middle name from). She did really well for having an early bed time and had a great time playing at Nanny's. She even (finally) ate a good dinner which she had been fighting all week because of her teeth. Emma has been very interested and very determined to learn how to crawl this past week. As opposed to being content sitting and playing with toys, as soon as you sit her down, she leans forward over her left leg, puts her hands on the ground, and her right leg shoots out backwards so she can push off. Until Friday, she had never been able to get over that front leg to get into the crawling position. Well, as Nanny and I were eating dinner and Emma was playing at our feet, she again got into this position but got just enough "umpfh" to get over that front leg! Of course she went face first right into the carpet and didn't appreciate that at all, but that was our first milestone of the weekend!! Going from sitting up, to on her tummy all on her own!

The next morning was Emma's fourth swim class with her boyfriend Mr. Zach (who is going on vacation for two weeks so we won't see him unless we sign up for another class - I think Emma is already saving up her money so we can go again haha)! Emma slept in on Saturday morning until about 6:15 (THANK THE LORD) and took about a 45 minute nap before we even left for swimming. So needless to say, she was nice and rested and babbling the whole way in the car, where she normally falls asleep. Normally, the babbling consists of "va va va va va..." or "ba ba ba ba ba..." or "ma ma ma ma ma...". So I kept asking Emma if she could say "Mama". After a few responses that sounded like "mmappahme ameeev v vav amappap" she clearly said "mama"!! Now did she know what it meant, probably not, but that still counts in my book!! Needless to say, Wes doesn't think it counts but I sure do, so it's going in the baby book as her first word at 8 Months, 2 Weeks and 2 Days old!!

Later on Saturday we were at home playing and Emma was once again trying to figure out this whole crawling thing. Well, she got a lot closer! She realized that she had knees and could use them while she was on her tummy!! Haha! So she can now get up on her hands and knees and rocks back and forth!! Life is about to get a lot more complicated haha! Needless to say, we started to baby proof this weekend a bit.

It doesn't even stop there! I think it was on Sunday, when the next big thing happened! After a bottle, I put Emma down on the floor and she immediately went onto her hands and knees and instead of rocking back and forth, she decided that where I put her was a good spot I guess, and she just tucked those little knees under her and sat right up on her rear end!!

So we can now (kind of) go from sitting to on her hands and knees, and then go in reverse from our hands and knees back to sitting! This on top of rocking back and forth getting ready to crawl and her first word made a rainy and gloomy weekend, pretty darn bright!

Flower Power!

I was feeling crafty the night before spring pictures at school, so I tried my hand at making Emma a headband! We weren't going to be able to use any of the cute hair clips we got from Emma's baby shower (you know...due to the whole no-hair thing haha) so we figured why not! After some inspiration from the internet and a quick trip to Michael's, this is the finished product!

We also wanted to try out one of the new rolls of seamless paper I recently got for pictures! This is at night time using just a lightscoop so the lighting isn't great, but you get the idea!

I can't decide whether she looks ridiculous with the headband...or completely adorable.

Broccoli = Fail

Emma = One Point, Broccoli = Zero

We started out doing pretty good. "Yum...something new to eat!"

Then it was all downhill from there. "Wait a minute..."

Then we realized it was broccoli!! "EWWWWWWWW!!"

Not only did we not like in our mouth, we also didn't appreciate it being stuck to our hand!

"Are you serious?"

"I have had enough Mr. Broccoli!!! Take that!"

"Okay...maybe it tastes better after you smash it."

I Confess....

I have a problem. I already have Emma's first birthday party planned out in my head and even I know how ridiculous that sounds since she isn't even 9 months old already.

The picture in my head is complete with her birthday outfit (see below), cake, cupcakes, decorations and her professional one-year pictures that I just scheduled with the amazing Jen Lowe for May 30th!

Of course since we do have about 4 months to go still, the outfit may change...but I couldn't resist this little number to put in the running. If nothing else, she will be sporting this during her pictures with Jen!

The front....

The back....


I think Wes is going to need to lock me in the basement in order to restrain me from future online purchases.

Almost Mobile!!!

Emma has been trying her best to become mobile and really started to get interested over the weekend. Even from Saturday to today, there is a big change! She still goes backwards mostly and love to do the "plank" move, so it's only a matter of time.

This was Emma after a full day of activities on Saturday. Swimming, going for coffee (or milkies in her case) and shopping!

This was tonight. She was going backwards all over the place , but of course as soon as I turned on the camera, she changed her mind!

March for Babies - Round Two!

Wes and I have decided to participate again in the March for Babies with some friends to do our part in heading towards the day when all babies will be born healthy.

The March of Dimes champions the needs of moms and babies in our community and across the nation. The money we raise for March for Babies will help:

• support all-important research offering preventions and solutions for babies born too soon or with birth defects
  
• educate women on things they can do to increase their chances of having a healthy baby
  
• provide comfort and information to families with a newborn in intensive care
  
• push for newborn screening and health insurance for all pregnant women and children

I know that it is hard to donate in these economic times, believe me, I KNOW, but please consider donating to this great cause...even if it is $10!!

http://www.marchforbabies.org/lauraodom

Beautiful Weather!

It was absolutely gorgeous outside this weekend so we wanted to take advantage of it and get out of the house for a little while. We were off bright and early to swimming class Saturday morning and Emma's Mimi came to watch. She did great once again (continued to flirt with Mr. Zach and was in awe of him when he asked her to swim with him on his chest...don't tell Daddy) and after swimming we had a great time grabbing some coffee with Emma's BFF Meredith who is also in her swim class. We grabbed a coffee and a scone and just chatted with Meredith and her Mommy and Grandmother too! Then, Mimi and Emma and I headed to the mall. Emma once again stole the show! I may be biased here, and I know that all babies are cute, but Emma seems to get A LOT of attention whenever we are out. I tend to think she is the cutest baby in the world, but I am her mother. Anytime we go out, we get stopped by several people who comment on how beautiful and happy Emma is. For example, someone actually stopped while driving in the parking lot at Starbucks as we were walking in, then at Costco, we had three different people stop us while walking around and make reference to Emma either being a Gerber Baby or a model when she grows up. Then, in target, another two couples stopped to "talk" to Emma. Again...after target, in the furniture store, we had three salespeople comment on what a good and beautiful baby she is! That was all in the span of two days! So clearly, Regis and Kelly had it all wrong! Anyway...back to our weekend...

After a day of fun with Mimi, we came back home, had some lunch and Emma passed out for a good three hours. We spent the rest of the night just relaxing with Daddy. Today, we wanted to enjoy the weather again, but Wes had to run a lot of errands as well, so I headed out with Emma to take something back to Costco, then off to target and the furniture store. Again, we came back for lunch and Emma took another good nap. It was almost 60 degrees out when she woke up so we went on our first walk with Daddy and Shamus this year! It was so nice to get outside! Emma is now big enough to sit in her stroller without the infant car seat. My baby is growing up way too fast! Here are some pictures of our walk!

All strapped into my "big girl stroller" and ready to go!


At the end of our street, there is a small playground (and I mean small), but Emma had a chance to go down a slide for the first time! She wasn't sure what to think of it at first, but then we got the hang of things!




A quick snapshot during our walk! Emma loved it!

Getting Ready for Spring!

After swim class yesterday, Emma and I headed to the mall with her Mimi! We were in search of an Easter Dress, but couldn't resist getting Emma ready for spring!! Here are a few pictures of some of her new spring/summer outfits. I can't believe I am buying things in 12 month size already! What happened to my itty-bitty baby who could barely fill up a newborn outfit?!?!

Here is a picture of her Easter dress!!


A few outfits for spring!

We couldn't resist this one...

Mimi brought Emma home two sun dresses from Key West!

Emma has her spring school pictures coming up on March 11th, so we will have to pick out a cute outfit!