Emma is still 1! It is amazing to watch firsthand the growth and development of my little girl. God has surely blessed us. We are thankful that she is healthy and developing well.
She is talking away. So many new words every day I can't write them here. She says new words throughout the day - during meals, while we are reading books, during everyday conversation. She recognizes most of the letters of the alphabet and several numbers too. It is fun to see her interests. She also says 3-4 word phrases/sentences. She got a blister on her ankle and one day after her nap I saw she had picked at it and made it bleed all over her sheet. Now before bed and when she gets up she says "no pick owie". She also is saying words more correctly. Instead of 'feeta" she says something closer to elephant. She has started saying the 'k' sound as in cow and cat. Communication is so awesome!
Emma loves the park. When I ask her what she likes about the park she says "running". She also has taken a liking to slides and playing in the rocks. She isn't too keen on swinging yet. She sometimes likes going on the merry-go-round a little bit. I get quite dizzy though!
She still loves dogs. She is still cautious around most dogs, but has become braver and will go right up to some. Usually the owners are pretty good about knowing their pet and knowing how to handle her with them.
We went to the farm for a day and visited my grandma. She has a cat who came out from hiding but didn't get too near. Emma loved to see it go here and there. It was great visiting Grandma Nina (with a long 'i'). Emma took to saying Nina really well. She still says "Namma" for grandma.
Emma's favorite foods I would say are goldfish crackers, chicken, watermelon, yogurt, most fruits. She will eat pretty much anything - eggs, pizza, hamburgers, frozen veggies, etc. She asks for fresh spinach and lettuce when I am eating it and takes a bite but usually doesn't eat it. Of course she likes cookies really well! She calls anything sweet 'cookie'. She is nursing 1-3 times per day. I can tell it is very important to her emotionally. I am feeling like I want to be done but I don't want to stop too soon before she is ready.
She is learning how to pretend with her baby dolls. She will feed them 'applesauce' or 'beans' with the dolly bowl and spoon. She LOVES babies. Real babies. There is a real baby in the nursery on Sundays at church. When we ask her about the nursery she always says 'baby', 'hi baby' with a squeal. She was almost obsessed for awhile. She has been very gentle with the baby.
She also likes to color and watch us color. Most restaurants give color crayons and a paper menu so that has occupied her for a little bit.
Her hair has grown and grown curly. It is a bit unruly. I'm not a person who loves to spend much time or money on hair or hair products so I might have to learn a bit on what to do with naturally curly hair if it continues. She wears a pink baseball cap "hat" whenever we go outside or to the park. That helps her head not get sunburned. I don't really want to slather sunscreen on her head because her hair is still thin enough for her head to get sunburned. A result of the hat is that nobody can see the unruly hair, but it also causes 'hat hair'. Oh well. She's still cute.
And that is what so many people say when we are shopping, etc. They look at her and say 'she's so cute' or 'aren't you a cutie". It is fun and interesting what people do and say around little ones. Most little ones are cute!
She also has grown taller. I'm not sure how much but she's pretty much in mostly 24 month clothing. Just a month ago she was in 18-24 months. She sleeps well at night and naps for about 2 hours in the afternoon. I still appreciate that she sleeps in until 9 most mornings!
Emma listens pretty well but she also has her own mind which is good and challenging. I will ask her to get her shoes so we can go somewhere. She will get them but then goof off and move her foot when I try to put them on. I then ask her if she wants to go the park. Her: "Yes". Me: "Then let's get your shoes on". Her: "Yes" and then proceeds to move her foot away again even though we are going somewhere she wants to go. Oh the joy!
If you ask her about the library she will say "big fish". They have an aquarium with fish that she likes to see. We've gone to storytime a few times and it is fun to see her watch the other kids. She hasn't joined in the actions during the songs too much yet. We have checked out mostly board books and that is fun for her to enjoy some new books for awhile.
Emma loves reading. Not only us reading to her but she likes reading the books to us and to herself. She can't get enough. She is usually carrying 5-10 books at a time from one room to another. One book is about big and little. Each page has 2 of the same type of object - one big, one little. She 'reads' that book to us with great accuracy. She was playing with Blake yesterday and brought him 2 balls. She said "big ball, little ball." And she was right. It is so fun seeing her apply things that she learned in books to things in her everyday life. I have been told by friends that she is a "student". Maybe, but I think most kids her age usually are.
We love her and who she is. We pray that she will be a woman after God's own heart and will fulfill His purpose for her. May He be glorified.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Monday, May 9, 2011
22 months
Life goes on...
Emma is beginning to be more of a kid and not a baby anymore. I love it and it saddens me. Mostly it is fun to see the process of developing language, learning skills, etc. She also has grown taller. She has unruly fine, curly dusty blond/brown hair with a tint of red sometimes. No need for a real haircut yet. One day...
She talks a lot. Some understandable, some not. She is starting to say some sentences: I want that book. Thank you mommy (daddooo=thank you). Bye ____. Hockey. Monkey. Rocky. dgill (Jill), Anna (Hannah), Namma (Grandma), Papa, Emmy (Emmitt), Apple (April), Dampa (Grandpa), I want ______, What's that?, be=bird, bug, or bee. She says cookie really well. Ice for icee pop or popsicle. Pizza. Fee=pretty, flowers, fork/spoon. Peas, beans, cheese, keys. Bathroom words-pee, potty, poopy, panties, diaper, wipe.
On the couch or chair or steps she pats the seat beside her and said something that sounds like "sit". Ernie, Elmo, puppy, kitty (t instead of k), neigh neigh, moo, baa, bayee (bear), chicken, Ernie (pepperoni or any other lunch meat). Beeta (blanket), feet/foot, monna (more), all done/all gone (without the 'n'). She likes to pretend she is reading a book/magazine/coupons, etc. It is mostly nonsense, but she will include things she sees in the pictures. Blah, blah, blah, Elmo, blah, blah, baby, blah, etc.
Last night she pushed the cooler into the living room, stood on top of it and started quietly, sweetly singing. Nothing we could understand but we could tell she was singing. Interesting at this age she wanted to be on 'stage'!
We are surprised by how much she knows sometimes. We will ask her to do something we don't know that she understands or knows how to do and she'll do it. She also likes to keep things tidy. She will pick up after herself quite often. Hopefully that will stay in her personality. Don't get me wrong, she is still a messy toddler. heh But she will pick up without us asking her to. Or she will throw trash away without us asking her to. She can be very helpful. She even likes to help me in the kitchen. While I'm cooking I'll ask her to throw something away. Or she will help stir something. Sometimes she just likes to watch what I'm doing while snitching a snack.
When neighborhood kids are outside and the window is open Emma likes to yell nonsense back to them. Emma loves being outside. She has become very interested in birds and rocks. We have rocks under our steps in the backyard so we've been researching those.
She has become interested in interacting with Emmitt again. He's not quite sure if he is liking this new found attention again. She loves to hug him. Lately she really wants him to let her kiss him right on his wet nose or put a hat on him or have him talk on the phone. She tried reading him a book the other day. That was ok. They were sitting next to each other on the recliner.
She sleeps pretty good at night. 9:30ish - 9am. A couple times a week she might wake up and call for me. To minimize night nursing Blake goes in there. She nurses about 4 times a day: morning, before nap, after nap, before bed. She doesn't seem ready to be done yet. I was hoping to be done around her 2nd birthday. We will see.
I was also hoping she would potty train sooner than later too but she doesn't seem quite ready for that either. She has lost interest. And I'm not sure she is physically ready.
And with weaning and potty training, the more I push her the more she pushes back and resists. So, we'll let her be for a little longer. I want her to feel we trust her independence level and give her time. And we don't want either to be too traumatic. Being that I am home with her all the time we have the freedom to do this. It is all temporary.
Oh my word! Emma loves babies! She is obsessed with the little 2/3 month old baby girl in the church nursery. She is very gentle. Lots of kisses and pats. She wasn't jealous when I held her either. But she talked about her for days. Emma would pat my shoulder where I held the baby and say "baby, cold". Yes, I held the baby and she didn't have any socks and had a short sleeve shirt so I had a blanket on her because she was cold.
Emma also was obsessed with "mommy, ba(ll). I ate a gumball and she just couldn't get that out of her head. Must have been a crazy thing for mommy to do! She has started to say ball different. Was "ba", now "bowel". Not great in appropriateness but getting closer! ha! I love it.
We love her. And enjoy that others love and enjoy her.
Emma is beginning to be more of a kid and not a baby anymore. I love it and it saddens me. Mostly it is fun to see the process of developing language, learning skills, etc. She also has grown taller. She has unruly fine, curly dusty blond/brown hair with a tint of red sometimes. No need for a real haircut yet. One day...
She talks a lot. Some understandable, some not. She is starting to say some sentences: I want that book. Thank you mommy (daddooo=thank you). Bye ____. Hockey. Monkey. Rocky. dgill (Jill), Anna (Hannah), Namma (Grandma), Papa, Emmy (Emmitt), Apple (April), Dampa (Grandpa), I want ______, What's that?, be=bird, bug, or bee. She says cookie really well. Ice for icee pop or popsicle. Pizza. Fee=pretty, flowers, fork/spoon. Peas, beans, cheese, keys. Bathroom words-pee, potty, poopy, panties, diaper, wipe.
On the couch or chair or steps she pats the seat beside her and said something that sounds like "sit". Ernie, Elmo, puppy, kitty (t instead of k), neigh neigh, moo, baa, bayee (bear), chicken, Ernie (pepperoni or any other lunch meat). Beeta (blanket), feet/foot, monna (more), all done/all gone (without the 'n'). She likes to pretend she is reading a book/magazine/coupons, etc. It is mostly nonsense, but she will include things she sees in the pictures. Blah, blah, blah, Elmo, blah, blah, baby, blah, etc.
Last night she pushed the cooler into the living room, stood on top of it and started quietly, sweetly singing. Nothing we could understand but we could tell she was singing. Interesting at this age she wanted to be on 'stage'!
We are surprised by how much she knows sometimes. We will ask her to do something we don't know that she understands or knows how to do and she'll do it. She also likes to keep things tidy. She will pick up after herself quite often. Hopefully that will stay in her personality. Don't get me wrong, she is still a messy toddler. heh But she will pick up without us asking her to. Or she will throw trash away without us asking her to. She can be very helpful. She even likes to help me in the kitchen. While I'm cooking I'll ask her to throw something away. Or she will help stir something. Sometimes she just likes to watch what I'm doing while snitching a snack.
When neighborhood kids are outside and the window is open Emma likes to yell nonsense back to them. Emma loves being outside. She has become very interested in birds and rocks. We have rocks under our steps in the backyard so we've been researching those.
She has become interested in interacting with Emmitt again. He's not quite sure if he is liking this new found attention again. She loves to hug him. Lately she really wants him to let her kiss him right on his wet nose or put a hat on him or have him talk on the phone. She tried reading him a book the other day. That was ok. They were sitting next to each other on the recliner.
She sleeps pretty good at night. 9:30ish - 9am. A couple times a week she might wake up and call for me. To minimize night nursing Blake goes in there. She nurses about 4 times a day: morning, before nap, after nap, before bed. She doesn't seem ready to be done yet. I was hoping to be done around her 2nd birthday. We will see.
I was also hoping she would potty train sooner than later too but she doesn't seem quite ready for that either. She has lost interest. And I'm not sure she is physically ready.
And with weaning and potty training, the more I push her the more she pushes back and resists. So, we'll let her be for a little longer. I want her to feel we trust her independence level and give her time. And we don't want either to be too traumatic. Being that I am home with her all the time we have the freedom to do this. It is all temporary.
Oh my word! Emma loves babies! She is obsessed with the little 2/3 month old baby girl in the church nursery. She is very gentle. Lots of kisses and pats. She wasn't jealous when I held her either. But she talked about her for days. Emma would pat my shoulder where I held the baby and say "baby, cold". Yes, I held the baby and she didn't have any socks and had a short sleeve shirt so I had a blanket on her because she was cold.
Emma also was obsessed with "mommy, ba(ll). I ate a gumball and she just couldn't get that out of her head. Must have been a crazy thing for mommy to do! She has started to say ball different. Was "ba", now "bowel". Not great in appropriateness but getting closer! ha! I love it.
We love her. And enjoy that others love and enjoy her.
Friday, February 11, 2011
19 months
I better write before I get too far behind. Emma has done lots of things in the past 4 months. Now I just need to remember them. Hmmm.
In November, we had a visit from her Auntie Rachael and 3 yo Caden. Interesting age differences. Fun to see interact some too.
In December, Emma met her other cousins and Auntie Jill and Uncle Kevin who were overseas as missionaries. They got to spend some quality time while they stayed with us and while we were in their parents' for Bestamor's funeral and in January to celebrate Christmas.
She kind of took a hiatus from reading in December. Must have been all the people and busyness. Plus, she learned how to climb the kitchen chairs. At least she isn't climbing onto the table anymore. She is back to loving books again too.
She is talking more. In December all she would say to people was 'woof woof''. Now when people say hi she says 'puppy'. She knows that people understand her. Then she starts looking around for the puppy even if we are shopping or something. Funny girl!
She says 'mommy' like a pro now. It is nicer to wake up to that instead of crying. But she's quite repetitive!
We communicate pretty well with each other. It takes observation to realize what she is saying. Since I'm with her all the time we do well. She doesn't sign much anymore other than sometimes 'all done' which she also says.
What other words has she added since 15 months? Hmmm. She is saying cow and moo. Pig. She sounded like she was hocking a loogie when she was snorting like a pig! She says 'be" for boot. She still says 'buh' for quite a few things.
She decided that she wanted to fall asleep with her Corduroy bear. She says a quick 'byee' instead of bear. It is nice that she started falling to sleep on her own (with bear). Instead of nursing to sleep like she always has she nurses and then I lay her down and she goes to sleep on her own. Sometimes we hear her talking or singing 'Bible' (Jesus Loves Me....Bible tells me so...) on the monitor while she is falling asleep.
January she got to meet her Grampy. Lots of first meetings these past few months! He stayed with us for about a week. She took to him pretty quick. He even got to babysit the evening after he arrived for us to go to Blake's work Christmas party. She still asks for him when she looks in the guest bedroom. "Dampy" It was a good visit. Emma had a fever the day he flew in and was sick the whole time he was here. Other than wanting to nurse more and needed more comfort she did well. My dad came in on a Wednesday and we took her to the doctor the next Tuesday. She had at least one ear infected. She fought the doctor so he couldn't see the other ear. So, she started amoxicillin (sp?). Poor girl. Her 2nd ear infection. One last January. One this January. They are all cleared up now. I am pretty convinced that she has a similar dairy sensitivity as I do that is causing stuffy noses and ear aches. Plus, at her follow up appointment she got a Hep. A shot. She calmed down pretty quick. I picked her up, pulled her pants up, and she stopped crying. She stared at Kari, the nurse, like "I'm going to remember that!" She doesn't get any more shots til she's 5!
We just (2 days ago) moved her into a booster chair by the table. She likes it. We'll see how it goes. It is helpful that while my dad was here we started training Emmitt to stay out of the kitchen while we are eating. He's still a work in progress but doing well without a barrier now.
Emma tries to take her clothes off and tries to put them on. The other day she woke up from her nap and I opened the door so she could see me while I put clothes away in our bedroom. She threw everything out of her crib - blankets, stuffed animals, etc. After I hung a few shirts up I looked at her and she had her socks off, pants down to her ankles, and her shirt behind her head with her short sleeves still on. What a sight! ha! She hasn't tried doing that too often so let's hope the diaper stays on!
Speaking of diapers. A few months ago Blake told me that while I was talking on the phone that Emma went and leaned against the toilet and messed her diaper. So we thought that maybe we should start some potty training while she is connecting things and has some interest. So, we bought a seat to set on the toilet upstairs and a potty chair for the main level. We have taken it slow since she is still pretty young and we want it to be lead by her at this point. She will say 'poopy' when she is messing her diaper. Usually she is done by the time we get to the bathroom but it is a start. Usually she sits on her 'toilet' and doesn't do anything but read books and play with blocks and baby dolls (she got 4 for Christmas!). But yesterday she said ''pee pee" and I left her in the bathroom and she wanted to shut the door. She came out and loves running around naked or from us. But she had peed in her potty chair! Whoo! I think we are ready to go a little more hard core training. We'll see. It will be nice for her to be out of diapers.
She still naps about 2 hours. She's sleeping from 10pm til 5 or 7 or 9am without waking me us up. Usually we get up about 9 or 9:30am.
She says 'yeah' and 'no'. She can say her name really well. She's gone from saying 'daddy' to 'daa-eey'. I guess it is quicker without the second 'd' sound! She did the same with Emmitt - Emmy.
I'm not sure what else. I'll have to write as I remember.
Just this month when I say 'smile' when I'm taking a picture she sometimes smiles.
In November, we had a visit from her Auntie Rachael and 3 yo Caden. Interesting age differences. Fun to see interact some too.
In December, Emma met her other cousins and Auntie Jill and Uncle Kevin who were overseas as missionaries. They got to spend some quality time while they stayed with us and while we were in their parents' for Bestamor's funeral and in January to celebrate Christmas.
She kind of took a hiatus from reading in December. Must have been all the people and busyness. Plus, she learned how to climb the kitchen chairs. At least she isn't climbing onto the table anymore. She is back to loving books again too.
She is talking more. In December all she would say to people was 'woof woof''. Now when people say hi she says 'puppy'. She knows that people understand her. Then she starts looking around for the puppy even if we are shopping or something. Funny girl!
She says 'mommy' like a pro now. It is nicer to wake up to that instead of crying. But she's quite repetitive!
We communicate pretty well with each other. It takes observation to realize what she is saying. Since I'm with her all the time we do well. She doesn't sign much anymore other than sometimes 'all done' which she also says.
What other words has she added since 15 months? Hmmm. She is saying cow and moo. Pig. She sounded like she was hocking a loogie when she was snorting like a pig! She says 'be" for boot. She still says 'buh' for quite a few things.
She decided that she wanted to fall asleep with her Corduroy bear. She says a quick 'byee' instead of bear. It is nice that she started falling to sleep on her own (with bear). Instead of nursing to sleep like she always has she nurses and then I lay her down and she goes to sleep on her own. Sometimes we hear her talking or singing 'Bible' (Jesus Loves Me....Bible tells me so...) on the monitor while she is falling asleep.
January she got to meet her Grampy. Lots of first meetings these past few months! He stayed with us for about a week. She took to him pretty quick. He even got to babysit the evening after he arrived for us to go to Blake's work Christmas party. She still asks for him when she looks in the guest bedroom. "Dampy" It was a good visit. Emma had a fever the day he flew in and was sick the whole time he was here. Other than wanting to nurse more and needed more comfort she did well. My dad came in on a Wednesday and we took her to the doctor the next Tuesday. She had at least one ear infected. She fought the doctor so he couldn't see the other ear. So, she started amoxicillin (sp?). Poor girl. Her 2nd ear infection. One last January. One this January. They are all cleared up now. I am pretty convinced that she has a similar dairy sensitivity as I do that is causing stuffy noses and ear aches. Plus, at her follow up appointment she got a Hep. A shot. She calmed down pretty quick. I picked her up, pulled her pants up, and she stopped crying. She stared at Kari, the nurse, like "I'm going to remember that!" She doesn't get any more shots til she's 5!
We just (2 days ago) moved her into a booster chair by the table. She likes it. We'll see how it goes. It is helpful that while my dad was here we started training Emmitt to stay out of the kitchen while we are eating. He's still a work in progress but doing well without a barrier now.
Emma tries to take her clothes off and tries to put them on. The other day she woke up from her nap and I opened the door so she could see me while I put clothes away in our bedroom. She threw everything out of her crib - blankets, stuffed animals, etc. After I hung a few shirts up I looked at her and she had her socks off, pants down to her ankles, and her shirt behind her head with her short sleeves still on. What a sight! ha! She hasn't tried doing that too often so let's hope the diaper stays on!
Speaking of diapers. A few months ago Blake told me that while I was talking on the phone that Emma went and leaned against the toilet and messed her diaper. So we thought that maybe we should start some potty training while she is connecting things and has some interest. So, we bought a seat to set on the toilet upstairs and a potty chair for the main level. We have taken it slow since she is still pretty young and we want it to be lead by her at this point. She will say 'poopy' when she is messing her diaper. Usually she is done by the time we get to the bathroom but it is a start. Usually she sits on her 'toilet' and doesn't do anything but read books and play with blocks and baby dolls (she got 4 for Christmas!). But yesterday she said ''pee pee" and I left her in the bathroom and she wanted to shut the door. She came out and loves running around naked or from us. But she had peed in her potty chair! Whoo! I think we are ready to go a little more hard core training. We'll see. It will be nice for her to be out of diapers.
She still naps about 2 hours. She's sleeping from 10pm til 5 or 7 or 9am without waking me us up. Usually we get up about 9 or 9:30am.
She says 'yeah' and 'no'. She can say her name really well. She's gone from saying 'daddy' to 'daa-eey'. I guess it is quicker without the second 'd' sound! She did the same with Emmitt - Emmy.
I'm not sure what else. I'll have to write as I remember.
Just this month when I say 'smile' when I'm taking a picture she sometimes smiles.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
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.
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.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
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...
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...
Friday, August 20, 2010
A little over a year
Taken on her 1 -year birthday
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!
Saturday, July 24, 2010
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.
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