7 Months Old

You read it right; Emma is 7 months old today. It is hard to believe that another month has already passed by. At 7 months, Emma still only has two teeth but we think she is working on more as you will note from our post earlier this week. Unfortunately Brad thinks that the teeth may have gone back up and will not be breaking through soon. Let's hope that this is not the case. The big thing that is happening at 7 months is that Emma is starting to sit up on her own. She needs to be placed in a sitting position but once there, Emma can go for several minutes before toppling over. Emma really seems to like the new perspective that sitting provides (also makes her a better model for daddy). She is getting stronger every day. In the meantime, she continues to be the rolling queen and is working on those crawling muscles. Her favorite method of scooting forward, which cracks us up is to lie on her back and assume the bridge pose (all you yoga fanatics will get that reference; which basically involves her bending the knees and lifting the hips) and then shove back with the legs. We really need to get this method on video before she stops. Even without crawling, Emma can get pretty much anyplace she wants to go. Doesn't seem so long ago that we could lay her on a blanket and expect her to stay there. Emma also loves to try to climb up you when she is being held and jump as evidenced from her jumperoo video. She has been making Brad and the women at her daycare laugh this week when she is in the exersaucer. Even though it doesn't bounce, she is bound and determined to make it so she will get in there and try to jump. Brad had to explain what she was up to and that she had one at home that bounces. Happy 7 months Emma!

Wordless Wednesday

What do I want to play with now?

Teething - Part 2

Brad and I both read independently that teething is supposed to get easier after the first two. I am here to say that whoever wrote that was suffering some sort of delusion. For us, it has only gotten worse. Our little baby bear has turned into a roaring grizzly bear the last two mornings. Nothing seems to help; not even the jumperoo! Emma is waking up way too early so by the time that I leave, she is already starting to go downhill and quickly from what I understand. Yesterday morning she cried from about the time I left and was pretty much inconsolable until about 1pm yesterday. It seems like this morning didn't go any better. Emma is supposed to have her photo taken today at daycare but Brad said not to expect any good pictures today. We are just hoping and praying that these teeth decide to break the surface soon so our little bear can have some relief.

Emma and the Shoe

Emma is into everything these days and has especially developed a love of shoes. If she happens to spot a shoe lying around, she is on it. If I remember correctly, Mary Beth's girls had the same shoe obsession when I visited last year. While she does try to put the shoes into her mouth like everything else (this behavior is discouraged), she also likes to turn them over and investigate from every angle. The laces are of particular interest. Emma was so proud of herself the other night as she was holding my sneaker as you can see from the pictures. You would think it was the greatest feat of her little life to date!

My What Big Feet You Have, Mommy!

So Proud of Herself!

Emma's Week

Emma was sick earlier this week with a stomach bug that was apparently running rampant at her daycare. Fortunately Grandma and Grandpa were able to jump in the car and head down to help with Emma so Brad and I could go to work. Emma had three great days being spoiled by her Grandma and Grandpa. She was always a happy little girl when mommy and daddy got home from work. Emma enjoyed showing off her new tricks and having Grandma and Grandpa's undivided attention. She especially made Grandpa laugh whenever she was eating and those little legs would get to kicking because she was so excited. We were very thankful that they were able to come down on such short notice to help us out and we all enjoyed having them here this week.

Some Emma Loving for Grandpa

Say Cheese

Look at my Blue Block, Grandma!

Do You Have to Go Back Home?

Wordless Wednesday

Happy Father's Day!

It's Brad's first Father's Day! Wishing all the dad's in our lives a very happy Father's Day! We took the opportunity to get some photos with Brad and his little girl. They had to sport their Cardinals gear for a few and then had to get a little more dressy and show off daddy's little girly girl.

Happy Feet

Emma gave the jumperoo quite a workout last night and showed off her natural rhythm (she must be related to Grandpa Jimbo!). Emma has always like the jumperoo but I think that she finally got big enough that her feet could reach the ground allowing her to jump until her little heart was content or until we took her out, which was the case last night. You sure can't tell from the video that Emma was a little under the weather.

Wordless Wednesday

Happy Birthday!

Emma and I just wanted to wish our favorite daddy and husband a very happy birthday. We love you!

Testing Her Vocal Chords

Emma's new favorite sound is the sound of herself screeching. It is this high-pitched, not from this world, glass shattering sound. I think that she could get all the dogs in the neighborhood barking if she were outside. When she first started this last week, Brad thought it was so cute while I wasn't quite so fond of it. After church yesterday morning when Emma was pitching in to help with the sermon, Brad didn't think it was quite as cute and the screeching has definitely lost its appeal this morning when Emma was up and ready to play at 5am. I will be glad when this phase is over and we can move on to some ba, da, ma, etc.

Take Me to the River

This morning Emma had her first trip to the river so we could test out our new jogging stroller. As she likes to do, Emma just sat back and took everything in. Every now and then we would get a little sigh of contentment or excitement. Emma's faithful friend Froggy came along for the ride and was totally ignored because she had so much to see.

Emma Loves Prunes

I'm not sure you got it all!

I am so happy to be so messy!

No more pictures please!

Who Knew?

Emma tried prunes for the first time last night and to our surprise, they were as big a hit as the bananas were. For whatever reason, I had it in my head that prunes would not go over well even though both Brad and I like prunes. Well, our little bird would open her mouth as wide as it could go the second the spoon hit the bowl and if I didn't move fast enough, she would bang the tray of the high chair. After we had finished the initial bowl, I continued to feed her from the original package leaving the bowl on the tray. She picked up the bowl and put it to her mouth like she was going to lick the remaining prunes out of it. On another note, prunes have also probably been the messiest food to date. By the time she was done, Emma had prunes everywhere including in her hair. I will have to post a picture later. Somehow I also ended up with prunes all over my hands and some on my face; not sure how that happened. Most of the mess comes from the fact that Emma is so helpful when it comes to eating but I guess that is part of learning how to use her spoon.

Congratulations Grandpa!

This past weekend we headed up to Missouri so Emma could help her Grandpa celebrate his retirement after 45 years of teaching. Wow! Grandpa knew something was going on but didn't know the scope of the party or that all of his kids and grandchildren would be home for the weekend. He was surprised Friday afternoon to drive up and see Emma, Brad and I sitting on the porch. It was a great party and great way to celebrate a remarkable teacher.

Emma with Garret, Grandpa & Thomas

Emma did really good with the trip although the days of her sleeping through the six hour drive seem to be gone. On the way up Friday, Emma took a total of two 1/2 hour naps. Needless to say, a nap was in store once we hit Cole Camp that afternoon. The drive back was a bit better with a 2 hour nap and another nap of about 40 minutes. She was terrific in the car otherwise; just playing and watching the world go by, so we can't complain.

Emma had a great weekend with her aunts, uncles, cousins, Grandma, and Grandpa. She was much more interested in Bailey, Aunt Lesa's dog, than she was the last time we were in Missouri. Before long, she is going to be chasing/tormenting that poor dog. Emma found that she really likes peaches. We were having peaches Friday night so Brad let Emma gum around on a slice. She loved it and sucked the juice completely out of the peach slice. She was not too happy when Brad took it away from her. She is definitely starting to express her likes/dislikes a bit more. Emma also got to meet Elliot who is the son of Brad's friend Jeff and about 7 weeks older than Emma. They were really cute after church yesterday morning looking at each other. Elliot was really interested in Emma and trying to touch her. She is not quite as coordinated so just had some general sweeps of the arms in his direction. At one point, they were holding hands a little bit. Too bad we didn't have the camcorder with us. It will be fun to see them play together once they get a little bigger.