Speechless

Emma had her 15 month appointment and shots today. She weighed 23 lbs. and is 30.5 inches. She is about 50th percentile of both. I'm wondering if they use a chart based on breastfeeding or formula feeding. There is a difference I have heard and that they are trying to have doctors use specific ones for each situation. I'll have to ask next time.

Of course, she didn't show off any of her new speech abilities. She did kiss the air in Dr. Greek's direction when I said she blows kisses. ha! He got a kick out of that. She wouldn't even wave or say bye bye. She just wanted to sit in our laps and snuggle with us. This is not what she does at home but she was in a pretty unfamiliar place. Oh well.

Her language is coming along. She is really working on it. I suppose she has mastered a lot of the physical things now she is concentrating on talking. She says Emma, Emmitt, bih-ee (itsy bitsy), meh (milk, along with the sign), dada, mama, mommy, saw (sock), bu (bunny, book, Bob the tomato, belly button), mmmm (tomatoes-her favorite food), bye bye, tee (teeth), ma (mouth), knee, neigh neigh (horse), woof woof (puppy), something that sounds like "flee" (pretty or flower or pretty flower), and probably others that I can't think of. But she tries to say things and wants us to repeat words and she will look at our mouths to see how it is said. She also walks around jibber jabbering. I love it...so cute.

She still walks/runs all over. Climbs stairs-up and down. Plays with the dog. Likes to be chased. Likes to feed Emmitt sometimes. Enjoys the church nursery - no fussing when left, no goodbye either!

Loves. Loves. Loves. Books. I catch her reading all. the. time. She really looks at the books and points at really detailed parts of pictures.

She amazes us. We thank God that He has entrusted us with her.

Spinning and Kissing

A few things Emma has mastered before 14 months (I know I am forgetting things):

Spins around. Sometimes mid-spin she will start spinning the other direction. Then we are there to make sure she doesn't hurt herself because she is dizzy.

Kisses. Blows kisses. Kisses stuffed animals, real animals, and pictures of animals. Kisses the air when she sees animals on TV.

Walks backwards.

Drinks from a regular cup, a sippy cup, and a straw. She also likes to spill, pour, and watch the water flow.

Understands when we say many things, some are...milk, strawberries, eat, drink, water, shoes, socks, come here, puppy, book, more, all done, pajamas, nigh nigh, bye bye, go for a ride, go on a trip, bunny, phone, music, dance, itsy bitsy, do you want to brush your teeth, nose, ear, hot, blow your nose (she sometimes grabs a kleenex and does this herself), ...and we are still learning no, let's go, and just a minute. :)

Emma is enjoying a wooden rocking chair from my grandma that my grandpa had refurnished. She will grab part of the newspaper or a book and her remote control and sometimes her sippy cup or stuffed animal and sit in it. Sometimes I think she is trying to copy her dada.

Emma will point and say eh? when she wants to know what it is or to show us something or when she wants something. Signing has helped with a few of these things.

She is trying to say more words: puppy (I can't even attempt to write how she says it), (what does a puppy say? or hears the dog bark) woof, dada, hi dada, mom (very rare), buh (bunny), bah for a lot of animals or ball, bye, mih (milk), baba and mmmmaaa (baby Emma) 

She still is persevering in getting up on the couch. She struggles but tries her hardest. Most of the time she can get up there but sometimes she just wants our help. I wonder if it is that she is short or that it is hard to get on a leather couch since there is no cloth to grab onto or both. Her face gets all red like she is working really hard. But the happiness on her face when she makes it! Priceless!

Emma loves eating strawberries and tomatoes. Those are two things I can count on her not feeding to the dog. Pretty much any fruit or vegetable and she is happy. She likes lots of flavor. Maybe due to being able to taste the flavor of everything I ate through the breastmilk?! She is not a real picky eater. Just a generous giver to the dog if she is done sometimes!

We are trying to see if she has a sensitivity to dairy like me so she is pretty much off of it and I am really limiting my intake. I'm glad for rice milk.

One story of one of my favorite special times with her. I will be nursing her to sleep in the dark in the chair in her bedroom. She will nurse on one side. Then when she is done she will sit up on her knees facing me, give me a kiss, eat on the other side, and fall asleep. That kiss won't last forever. Such a fleeting moment...

A little over a year

Taken on her 1 -year birthday

"A little over a year" is what Blake likes to tell people when they ask how old Emma is right now. I say 13 months. Both are right.

I kick myself for not updating when she turned a year but I think it will be ok. I think part of it is that Emma has just become a part of every day life. That her walking isn't as big of a deal to us or her climbing stairs. It is more the little things that I get to notice every day.

She hugs stuffed animals and Emmitt often. She looks at us to notice her being "kind" and "gentle."

Emma weighed 22 lb 10 oz (75th) and was 28 inches long (25th) at her 1 year old appointment. We've got a shorty! Dr. Greek was quite impressed by her (walking since 10 months, signing, etc.). He is not concerned about her language at all. He said she is communicating as he saw her signing. She pretty much only said "dada" and "hay" for hi at the time. In the past week she has tried saying "pup" for puppy and "buh" for book and "mom". So it'll come.

Emma is pretty independent. She doesn't sit for long. She loves looking at books and reading with us. She'll read to the dog some. He doesn't appreciate being "given" the book very much though. Sometimes she'll lay on her belly and look at a book.

She still likes to put her hands over the sides of the highchair to "show"/give food to the dog. If she really likes something she doesn't always think of giving him any. This week she has really enjoyed spaghetti with meat sauce. A little messy, but yummy.

She usually wakes up only once to eat at night. Other than a couple colds/teething issues lately she sleeps pretty good. She doesn't really get sleepy very early in the evening. I can tell she tries to keep herself awake too. She keeps moving and fidgets even while nursing. Sometimes it takes her awhile to wind down but nursing helps with that.

Breastfeeding...we are still going strong. I'm so glad that we made it a year. My plan has been to try to wean between a year and a year and a half. Her personality is such that that might not happen but 2 years is my max I think. It is a very special thing and it will be a bittersweet time. We haven't given her cows milk yet due to my sensitivity to dairy and she has had some runny nose/colds issues recently. She is almost well so almost time to try. She eats yogurt and cheese on a regular basis so it will be interesting to see her taste milk. This may change her breastfeeding amount. We'll see. Dr. Greek was encouraging about breastfeeding up to 2 years.


Emma and I went to the base in July and went to the toddler and parent time at the gym indoor pool with my sister April. It was just us 3 and the lifeguards. Emma was tentative. She didn't like when I would bounce in the deeper water. Eventually she glided her hand in the water. Then we went to the shallower end and she played with some of the toys.

I know I am her mother and supposed to love her but I can't get over how much I do. She amazes me every day. Frustrates me too but that is all part of her personality. Now what do we do to gear it all toward good choices?!

Yesterday we went to the lake with Blake and his co-workers and clients. We didn't bring her swimsuit but she loved the sand. She grabbed it, flung it, and kept working her hands in it. She giggled and smiled while doing this. I put her down in the water and she wanted to sit in it so she did. As other times she has been in a pool she is fine with it but doesn't want to stay long.

Oh yeah! She has been laughing since her first birthday party where the grandmas were laughing and she wanted to join in. It sounded pretty fake for awhile but she gets some real giggles in there. One of the most sweet sounds in the world!

At the lake she was waving to everyone. She is very friendly after she warms up for a few minutes and checks her surroundings. It really doesn't take her long which I think is quite the opposite of me when I was young. Emma was center of attention quite a bit. She hams it up with her facial expressions too.

There were 2 other ones around her age there too. Both boys. I think she was the more aggressive or assertive of the three! I keep saying she is going to be the bully but I should stop. I don't want her to live up to that. Even in my belly I called her "fiesty".

Emma kept pointing to the dog there but was cautious when around it. It shocked us because she pokes and climbs all over Emmitt. We are glad she differentiated and was cautious. I had to get over my "cautiousness" and show her it was ok to pet this one too. Then she did a little bit.

Emma loves being outside. Our front yard is slanted so it makes it a little unstable for her to walk but she's gotten used to it now. We walk on the sidewalk a lot. She sometimes fusses for about 30 seconds if we come in before she is ready. She's getting better about that. Level of tiredness determines how long she fusses.

I can't end on that note! ha! Umm...food. We pretty much have given Emma most foods since she turned one. Of course no fish, honey, etc. She likes seasoned food. No plain noodles or hamburger for this girl. I wonder if craving tacos for a lot of the pregnancy had anything to do with it. Plus, she tastes whatever I eat in the breastmilk and I like spicy and seasoned food. I think if she had a choice she would eat fruits and vegetables all day though.

I love to see Emma and Blake together. They have such a bond, closeness. I love that she has that especially since I didn't with my own dad. They have spent a lot of time together since the beginning: diapering, snuggling, bathing, giggling, clothing, playing, reading, feeding, etc. I've noticed that she will go to him when she gets hurt or something too. Not just me. And she calms down with him. So doesn't always need mama which is good. They have some good times together when I am gone shopping or for Pampered Chef shows.

Emma still really loves music. I will ask her if she wants to hear music and she will position herself in front of the tv (we have some music channels) and gets ready to dance and clap. Sometimes me singing is the only way she will lay down for a diaper change without flipping herself over to try to get away. She enjoyed playing piano with April at the farm and at her house on base.

We have realized that Emma understands more than what we think. I say we are going for a ride she points to the stroller. I ask if she wants something to eat, she signs eat. I say we are going on a trip, she gets her shoes. I say it is time for a nap or nigh nigh and she lays down in my lap.

I mentioned to Blake's co-workers at the lake that Emma likes to pair things up. She will pair her shoes, carry two flowers, two butterflies, two socks, two blocks together. I said that I think she is either OCD or smart. They think she is "brilliant". I liked that! ha!

One Year

July 4th we celebrated Emma turning a year old by having a little get together with family at our house. Blake's parents, my parents, Jonathan, April, and Dave came. Janice came too.

We grilled hotdogs and hamburgers. We also had coleslaw, baked beans, and a veggie tray. I made a daisy cupcake cake and daisy cupcakes. She dug into the cake right away, but I had to put her fingers in her mouth to taste it. Then she was very interested in eating it!

She opened gifts before having cake. I didn't take many pictures but others took more. Blake videoed. Emma received 3 bibs (pink one above) from Rachael and Rob in the mail. Emma also received books, money, clothes, toys, and a bean bag.

After a nap and some more visiting James, Blake, Emma, and I went to fireworks. She pointed when we pointed and then didn't really care about them. There were lots of mosquitoes too.

We celebrated our one-year-old.

Emma's birth story

http://bundleofemmajoy.blogspot.com/2009/09/it-was-all-worth-it.html

11 months old

So, Emma has been walking for a month now. She hardly crawls anymore. She was getting quick at it too. But she is quite stable as she walks. She even tries to climb some. Plus, after a few days of looking at the stairs she climbs them like she has been doing it forever. Ugghh. Where did my little baby go?! Too fast...too fast!





She follows Emmitt everywhere. He can't get a minute of peace when she's awake. She'll pet him nicely sometimes. Other times she'll lay on him or by him. Poke at him. Steal his rawhide. He is such a good dog with her. So patient and gentle. She likes to play in and dump his water dish too. She tried drinking out of it by being like him - on her knees trying to slurp the water. Funny but gross! She is observant and a quick learner.




Emma loves to stand at the door window and watch Emmitt outside. She'll copy me talking sternly to the dog like if he is eating something he shouldn't eat outside. It's funny.

She loves being outside and feeling the wind. She doesn't mind the grass and watches the trees and wants to touch the flowers. The other day there were a couple birds in our yard and she was on the grass. The birds were chirping and she 'talked' back to them as she watched them.




Emma still says 'dada' quite a bit. She'll said 'hi dada' some. She's taken a hiatus from saying 'mama' or anything else. She doesn't sign for milk anymore. She just likes to bash her head into me.

She continues to dance to music. We realized that some of her movements were like when I would do movements for "Itsy Bitsy Spider". So cute especially the "washed the spider out" part. She waves her arm sideways.

She sometimes likes to be still. We find her 'reading' books quite often lately. She points to things in the books like we do.






She continues to wave goodbye and will wave first when she sees Blake at the door leaving for work.

Emma loves to shop and ride in the shopping cart. So many things and people to see and try to touch.

She's got 7 teeth. I think she looks like a chipmunk with her big front teeth with a gap and she scrunches her nose. We think she has grown taller too. We need to lift her higher to put her in her crib. She is almost as long as her changing table pad. Of course, her clothes fit differently too.


She is eating more finger foods. She has always been real good at picking things up. Cheerios, Gerber puffs (banana or sweet potato), chicken, cheese, melons, apple made her choke, banana, carrots, potatoes, fries. She even likes to pick up her yogurt that I thicken with oatmeal or rice cereal. What a mess!

She likes to share her Cheerios with Emmitt.

We are enjoying our little girl at this stage. We can tell she understands a lot of what we say too. Of course we think she is so smart, so cute, and so strong. And so curious, so independent, and such a busy little bee.

10 months going on 10 years

Wow, time flies! I just reread her 9 month old post. Those things she was doing then seem part of every day life now.

She not only crawls quickly, but she stands and has taken up to 6 steps by herself. She looks so proud of herself and almost amazed at what she can do. It is a whole new world. Plus, I think she has grown in length.

Sometimes Emma will know that we are probably going to take something away from her that she shouldn't have so she tries to crawl away quickly. It is kind of cute now but this defiance will not be cute when she is older. We are trying different ways of doing things like having her hand us the piece of garbage or trading something.

Emma absolutely loves Cheerios. During church she likes to sit on the floor with her cup with the non-spill lid and eat. I think she would continue to eat forever if we let her or the cup didn't empty. We are trying to give her more chunky foods. She still likes the pureed ones. She likes shredded cheese and banana and apple pieces too.

She is trying to laugh more on purpose. She is starting to giggle more too. If only she would put the two together but when we are laughing she tries to copy us.

She still likes to dance but now she can dance and clap her hands while standing. Lots of multi-tasking!

A fifth tooth has broken through. It is to the left of her top teeth. She likes grinding her teeth together sometimes. A funny thing is that she likes to take a bite out of the Cheerio like you would take a bite out of something. Emma girl likes to figure things out.

9 months old

April 8 with Pooh Bear

Easter

This is where she liked to sit for a few days. It was the previous location of the laptop computer.

Ok, so Emma is about 9 1/2 months old by the time I am writing this.

At her 9 month appointment with Dr. Greek on April 12 she weighed 21 lb. 7 oz and was 27 in. So that makes her about 80th percentile in weight and 30th in height.

Emma is now crawling. We weren't sure if she was going to skip crawling because she started walking along the furniture first. But now she does both. She lets go and stands for quite some time and looks at us proudly.

She finally started babbling. Emma says "dada" really well. I also hear "mom" "mama" especially when she is upset.

She absolutely loves cheerios and can pick them up and eat them quite well. Emmitt especially loves the ones she drops!

She has gotten 2 more teeth. The two upper front teeth. They are sharp! They have a gap in between them so I hope that changes a little as she gets more teeth. She will hold a cheerio and bite a piece of it off sometimes. I think she likes her new found ability.

She is enjoying books, especially "5 Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed". She is starting to grab a book and hand it to us to read to her. She will look at them alone too. Quite often she will wake up from a nap and start playing with her stuffed animals in her crib. I will open the door and she is sitting surrounded by them and she gives me a big smile.

She likes to pinch, pull hair, and bite.

Emma experienced her first Easter. Saturday we spent time with my family in town and Blake's parents came for that weekend also. We went out to eat a few times and Emma had her first cantaloupe/honeydew and shredded cheese. She does quite well in restaurants.

We took her to her first Twins baseball game at the new stadium, Target Field, this past weekend. We went to the Friday night game (April 16). She did well. She smiled, scrunched up her face, and waved at people around us. She was very friendly and distracting to those around us! :)

Emma "dances" to any music she hears. She is very aware of any music (commercials, organ at the game, radio in stores). She can't help but move.

8 months old

Emma was working on getting her front upper teeth when she turned 8 months old. I tried two "photo sessions". I couldn't get much better than this. :) She wouldn't leave the bear alone either but that is her. She is active.

Valentine's card from Blake's parents.

Loves standing and walking along couch or anything.

Valentine's card from my parents.

Valentine's Day with Mommy

New musical giraffe from Auntie April!

We weighed Emma and she was about 20 lbs. 7 oz. Emma pulls/pushes herself with her arms and legs. She is getting her knees involved a little. Not crawling as one thinks of crawling. She loves walking along the furniture, etc. She is very brave. At home she is not afraid to do anything. She hasn't ventured from the living room into the kitchen though. That day will come.

Emma tries to clap but doesn't open her hands. She has gotten a little "clap" a couple times. She watches people clap in church and other places. She noticed when people clapped in church at Christmas too. She likes clapping toys together or one hand clapping the toy in her other hand. Okay I guess she likes clapping, banging things together, and noise.

She also is getting pretty skilled at waving goodbye or goodnight. Sometimes we think she waves as a signal to us that she is tired and wants to go to sleep.

Emma slept in her pack and play for a couple weeks. We were given her crib as a hand-me-down. We wanted to lower her crib mattress so she won't launch herself over the railing. I looked up directions and there weren't any. I found that the crib was recalled. There were not any deaths or injuries but I ordered the free parts to "fix" it. Finally, she slept in her crib last night again. How nice! She did well in her pack and play though. It is just low to put her in and pick her up. Sometimes I found her sitting up playing with her stuffed animals. Cute!

Emma Joy is still in love with ripping and eating newspaper and kleenexes.

She is giggling more but it still takes a lot to get her to laugh.

She likes books but mostly ones with things she can feel or flaps.

Blake has started rolling/throwing a small ball back and forth to Emma. She tries throwing it back and gets very excited while flapping her arms. So sweet!

We gave her some broken up cheerios and she just played with them. She puts everything in her mouth but not cheerios! After a couple days of playing with them she decided to try and now she does very well picking cheerio pieces up and putting them in her mouth.