But the best part of this outfit is that it was free! Thanks to cousin Olivia, Emma is stylish and thrifty. Who would guess this outfit is 6 years old?!
Friday, September 29, 2006
Fashion Friday: Seconds Please!
Is Emma ready for Fall in this outfit or what? That hat is perfect for playing outside! And, of course, it's totally cute!
But the best part of this outfit is that it was free! Thanks to cousin Olivia, Emma is stylish and thrifty. Who would guess this outfit is 6 years old?!
But the best part of this outfit is that it was free! Thanks to cousin Olivia, Emma is stylish and thrifty. Who would guess this outfit is 6 years old?!
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Ouch!
It was gorgeous today, so Emma and I went to the park, hoping to have an experience like this. It started out that way -- Emma was so excited when we got there, she practically jumped out of her stroller. She enjoyed the swing, but absolutely LOVED the slide ... all 500 times we went up and down it. Unfortunately, it wasn't long before she discovered the bark, which meant digging, eating, and well, more eating.
Then she decided to venture out onto the sidewalk and whoops -- she took a tumble. But my toughie little girl literally rolled out of the fall and brushed it off. There is too much to do, ya know!
But then came tumble No.2 -- a face-plant right onto the cement. The tears came quick and so did the (gasp!) blood. My first experience with a bloody boo-boo, and of course, I was totally unprepared. That meant tears and blood all over my shirt, but it didn't matter. I felt so horrible, like I should have been holding her hand or something. I knew there was a step up onto the sidewalk, but it seemed like she had it under control. Sorry, baby!
The end result was several cuts on her lip, a few scratches on her chin and a little scrape inside her nose. She was pretty traumatized, but got over it during our stroller ride home. I, however, am still recovering. I got her to suck on an ice cube when we got home, so I'm hoping there's no fat lip. I guess we'll see what the morning brings!
BTW, her ears seem to be fine now. We'll be finished with the antibiotics on Thursday... yeah!! :o)
**UPDATE: Emma's face looks as pretty as ever this morning. Not a whole lot of damage done. So no photos necessary. Is it sick that I'm a little disappointed?? :o) **
Then she decided to venture out onto the sidewalk and whoops -- she took a tumble. But my toughie little girl literally rolled out of the fall and brushed it off. There is too much to do, ya know!
But then came tumble No.2 -- a face-plant right onto the cement. The tears came quick and so did the (gasp!) blood. My first experience with a bloody boo-boo, and of course, I was totally unprepared. That meant tears and blood all over my shirt, but it didn't matter. I felt so horrible, like I should have been holding her hand or something. I knew there was a step up onto the sidewalk, but it seemed like she had it under control. Sorry, baby!
The end result was several cuts on her lip, a few scratches on her chin and a little scrape inside her nose. She was pretty traumatized, but got over it during our stroller ride home. I, however, am still recovering. I got her to suck on an ice cube when we got home, so I'm hoping there's no fat lip. I guess we'll see what the morning brings!
BTW, her ears seem to be fine now. We'll be finished with the antibiotics on Thursday... yeah!! :o)
**UPDATE: Emma's face looks as pretty as ever this morning. Not a whole lot of damage done. So no photos necessary. Is it sick that I'm a little disappointed?? :o) **
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Fashion Friday: Flashback!
With the week Emma's had, she's understandably in no mood for modeling. So I thought this would be the perfect time for a fashion flashback. (Yes, the alliterations just keep coming!)
So here she is in her first "real" outfit purchased by her stylish Auntie Jenni. She is a mere 3 weeks old. I can't believe she was ever that tiny!!!
So here she is in her first "real" outfit purchased by her stylish Auntie Jenni. She is a mere 3 weeks old. I can't believe she was ever that tiny!!!
I Needed This!
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
It Was Bound to Happen...
Our 13-month milestone: The princess has her first ear infection. And in true Emma style, it's a double infection. Nothing in moderation with this girl.
It started on Monday morning with a fever. She woke up with one, which is never a good sign, but I was optimistic that it was another tooth. By 10am it was 102.6 degrees, a clear indication this was no tooth issue. Tylenol attempted to save the day, but managed to only get the temp down to 100.5. Still, no major boogies or otherwise obvious problems. Just one crabby, crabby baby who wanted to be held ALL.DAY.LONG. My first instinct was ear infection, but she wasn't pulling on her ears and was eating and drinking just fine. Naps went okay. So I was hopeful.
Then came nighttime. She went down an hour early, but I had to wake her up around 7pm to give her Motrin. I'm not a big meds person, but when temps go above 102, I get a little nervous. Little did I know that I was about to hear from Miss Emma every hour, on the hour ALL.NIGHT.LONG.
The saddest part of it all was that she started to have minor "convulsions" around 9pm that didn't go away for around 3 hours. So while she's crying on my shoulder, trying desperately to find a way to sleep comfortably, her body was jerking for no reason. My poor, poor baby -- it totally broke my heart and scared me to death. After some late-night (early-morning?) reading, I concluded the jerking was from the fever and decided to skip work and bring her in to the doctor first thing in the morning. I'm glad I did.
The doc confirmed the ear infections and said they were "just starting," so it was good that we caught them now. He also said the convulsions were from the fever and not to worry about them. Fine with me. I'm all about putting those completely out of my mind.
So Emma is officially on her first dose of antibiotics. I'm not crazy about this, but she's exhausted and in pain, so that's a no-brainer for me -- I'm not messing with her ears. I just can't wait for the meds to kick in. Today was another crabby, clingy day, but with lots more crying. So far tonight, she's been awake about 3 times. I have a feeling it's going to be a long, long night... say a prayer for us?!
*UPDATE: Funny how I am constantly saying, "I'm not a meds person," yet I mention three in this post AND the girl is on Prevacid. Maybe I'm more of a meds person than I thought. Although, I guess that's another post all together...*
**UPDATE #2: Emma did okay last night, but still struggled with pain. She still woke up every hour, but did sleep a 3-hour stretch, which gave me and Dada some sleep. The good news is she was MUCH happier this morning and is napping now, so we'll see how the day goes. Thanks for your concern. Blogging friends rock!**
It started on Monday morning with a fever. She woke up with one, which is never a good sign, but I was optimistic that it was another tooth. By 10am it was 102.6 degrees, a clear indication this was no tooth issue. Tylenol attempted to save the day, but managed to only get the temp down to 100.5. Still, no major boogies or otherwise obvious problems. Just one crabby, crabby baby who wanted to be held ALL.DAY.LONG. My first instinct was ear infection, but she wasn't pulling on her ears and was eating and drinking just fine. Naps went okay. So I was hopeful.
Then came nighttime. She went down an hour early, but I had to wake her up around 7pm to give her Motrin. I'm not a big meds person, but when temps go above 102, I get a little nervous. Little did I know that I was about to hear from Miss Emma every hour, on the hour ALL.NIGHT.LONG.
The saddest part of it all was that she started to have minor "convulsions" around 9pm that didn't go away for around 3 hours. So while she's crying on my shoulder, trying desperately to find a way to sleep comfortably, her body was jerking for no reason. My poor, poor baby -- it totally broke my heart and scared me to death. After some late-night (early-morning?) reading, I concluded the jerking was from the fever and decided to skip work and bring her in to the doctor first thing in the morning. I'm glad I did.
The doc confirmed the ear infections and said they were "just starting," so it was good that we caught them now. He also said the convulsions were from the fever and not to worry about them. Fine with me. I'm all about putting those completely out of my mind.
So Emma is officially on her first dose of antibiotics. I'm not crazy about this, but she's exhausted and in pain, so that's a no-brainer for me -- I'm not messing with her ears. I just can't wait for the meds to kick in. Today was another crabby, clingy day, but with lots more crying. So far tonight, she's been awake about 3 times. I have a feeling it's going to be a long, long night... say a prayer for us?!
*UPDATE: Funny how I am constantly saying, "I'm not a meds person," yet I mention three in this post AND the girl is on Prevacid. Maybe I'm more of a meds person than I thought. Although, I guess that's another post all together...*
**UPDATE #2: Emma did okay last night, but still struggled with pain. She still woke up every hour, but did sleep a 3-hour stretch, which gave me and Dada some sleep. The good news is she was MUCH happier this morning and is napping now, so we'll see how the day goes. Thanks for your concern. Blogging friends rock!**
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Better Late than Never!
I'm a little behind on a few posts because I swear everything came at once in August -- our vacation, Emma's birthday letter, her party, etc. Lots of good material if you're a daily blogger, but as you all know, I'm not quite that organized.
So I guess I'll tell you about our vacation to Michigan now...over a month later. After all, it was our first official family vacation!
For many, many years, it has been Jeff's family tradition to go to Holland, Michigan every summer for about a week. I'm not sure when it started, but in the 10 years I've been a part of the family, we've gone every year. We used to all squeeze into a condo Jeff's parents rented, until we expanded and added another condo. Finally, we decided we needed a house to fit all of us, but even that got too small. So instead of renting an entire hotel, we opted to divide up this summer. Sad, yes, but we did get a weekend where all 11 of us were together. Jeff's parents and sister stayed for one week and then we took the next week, with Brian, Alicia & their 3 kids. That way all the kids could be together.
And Emma totally loved it. Seeing her cousins every morning was so much fun for her. They truly love her so much. Even with a baby brother of their own, Livi and Jax gave Emma tons of attention. Evan was also very tolerant of Emma's constant "loving," which sometimes involved kisses and other times meant a bop on the head!
She napped surprisingly well all week and went to bed on time almost every night. My biggest accomplishment was letting her stay up until 9pm one night when we met some cousins for ice cream and a bonfire. It took major effort for me not to go into freak out mode about Emma not getting her rest, but I survived. And so did she. It was a good lesson in "letting go," so I can officially check that off the list and quickly go back to my old over-protective, first-time mom ways.
Emma loved splashing around in the extremely cold lake water and really enjoyed playing (a.k.a. eating) the sand. That was probably the hardest part about this trip. She was old enough to want to experience everything, but not old enough to know when to just chill. Where do you put a baby when she wants to walk around and you're surrounded by miles and miles of sand that she thinks belongs in her mouth, eyes, and hair? On a blanket? Um, sure, if you can get her to sit still...NOT happening. So, the beach was not so fun for mommy. And the house wasn't exactly baby-proofed, which also made my usual bodyguard job that much more intensive. Still, it was nice for Emma to enjoy new surroundings and explore every nook and cranny. She also got some major lovin' from her Auntie Sha and Uncle Bri, who are happy to give her whatever she wants!
In fact, our families got along so well that I could have stayed another week. We always have gotten along with my brother-in-law and sister-in-law -- Jeff and his bro are truly each other's best friends -- but I expected some friction living in such close quarters with four kids. But there was none. It was true, Beaver Cleaver bliss in our little Michigan house. Too bad real life called and made us come back to stuff like work, laundry, and well, laundry.
Of course, my post wouldn't be complete without a boatload of photos, so here ya go. I'll keep 'em small since there are more than a few. Are you sick of all these photos yet? Man, someone take the camera away from this woman!
Flower Power
Emma checks out the flowers and other "pretties" in our new backyard.
Do these fit, Mom?
Emma gets her first pair of wooden shoes! And, yes, we got her ones that actually fit.
The kids!
Adorable... I know! (L to R: Evan, Jax, Livi and Emma)
Sand... yummy!!
Best photo of the trip... hands down!
I just wish it wasn't so dark!
Family Photos
Us...
Them...Aren't they gorgeous. Makes you want to puke, huh?! :-)
So I guess I'll tell you about our vacation to Michigan now...over a month later. After all, it was our first official family vacation!
For many, many years, it has been Jeff's family tradition to go to Holland, Michigan every summer for about a week. I'm not sure when it started, but in the 10 years I've been a part of the family, we've gone every year. We used to all squeeze into a condo Jeff's parents rented, until we expanded and added another condo. Finally, we decided we needed a house to fit all of us, but even that got too small. So instead of renting an entire hotel, we opted to divide up this summer. Sad, yes, but we did get a weekend where all 11 of us were together. Jeff's parents and sister stayed for one week and then we took the next week, with Brian, Alicia & their 3 kids. That way all the kids could be together.
And Emma totally loved it. Seeing her cousins every morning was so much fun for her. They truly love her so much. Even with a baby brother of their own, Livi and Jax gave Emma tons of attention. Evan was also very tolerant of Emma's constant "loving," which sometimes involved kisses and other times meant a bop on the head!
She napped surprisingly well all week and went to bed on time almost every night. My biggest accomplishment was letting her stay up until 9pm one night when we met some cousins for ice cream and a bonfire. It took major effort for me not to go into freak out mode about Emma not getting her rest, but I survived. And so did she. It was a good lesson in "letting go," so I can officially check that off the list and quickly go back to my old over-protective, first-time mom ways.
Emma loved splashing around in the extremely cold lake water and really enjoyed playing (a.k.a. eating) the sand. That was probably the hardest part about this trip. She was old enough to want to experience everything, but not old enough to know when to just chill. Where do you put a baby when she wants to walk around and you're surrounded by miles and miles of sand that she thinks belongs in her mouth, eyes, and hair? On a blanket? Um, sure, if you can get her to sit still...NOT happening. So, the beach was not so fun for mommy. And the house wasn't exactly baby-proofed, which also made my usual bodyguard job that much more intensive. Still, it was nice for Emma to enjoy new surroundings and explore every nook and cranny. She also got some major lovin' from her Auntie Sha and Uncle Bri, who are happy to give her whatever she wants!
In fact, our families got along so well that I could have stayed another week. We always have gotten along with my brother-in-law and sister-in-law -- Jeff and his bro are truly each other's best friends -- but I expected some friction living in such close quarters with four kids. But there was none. It was true, Beaver Cleaver bliss in our little Michigan house. Too bad real life called and made us come back to stuff like work, laundry, and well, laundry.
Of course, my post wouldn't be complete without a boatload of photos, so here ya go. I'll keep 'em small since there are more than a few. Are you sick of all these photos yet? Man, someone take the camera away from this woman!
Flower Power
Emma checks out the flowers and other "pretties" in our new backyard.
Do these fit, Mom?
Emma gets her first pair of wooden shoes! And, yes, we got her ones that actually fit.
The kids!
Adorable... I know! (L to R: Evan, Jax, Livi and Emma)
Sand... yummy!!
Best photo of the trip... hands down!
I just wish it wasn't so dark!
Family Photos
Us...
Them...Aren't they gorgeous. Makes you want to puke, huh?! :-)
Friday, September 08, 2006
Fashion Friday: Going Gaucho
Okay, so Emma and I jumped on the gaucho bandwagon F.A.S.T.!! They are the next best thing to draw-string jammie pants. Attractive? Who cares!?! They are comfy and in style, so we wear them happily -- as fast as I can wash them. Hopefully they'll still be around when God decides to give Emma a sibling!
On Location: Michigan
On Location: Michigan
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
The Belly, Books, and The Baby
All is going pretty darn good in Emmaland these days. There were more than a few days the last 2 weeks when I thought the nap fairy was going to rob me of Emma's morning snooze, but alas, it remains...at least for now. I ended up just moving her two naps up a half hour later, and we are now back on track.
Another factor may have been her medicine. At her 12-month well baby appointment (when she was actually sick, but that's another story), we decided to finish up her Prevacid and take her off of it to see if that magic 1-year reflux button shut off. The first few days were promising, but then I started noticing the old signs I had started to forget ever existed -- the "urping," the random choking, the hiccups, the uncomfortable squirming when I try to put her down for a nap (and inability to fall asleep), and the whole binkie in and out of the mouth thing during soothing. Plus, she was very spastic, just like when she was a baby -- her legs constantly swinging and her need to grab onto everything and anything that might provide comfort -- including my skin.
It's strange because she has never really cried about the reflux; she just always seems uncomfortable. It's almost as if she doesn't understand that it's not normal to have acid burning her throat. That she has a right to be upset about it. And that she doesn't have to tough it out. But she tries to deal with it, which just breaks my heart.
So Jeff and I made the executive decision to put her back on the medicine, but only once a day (instead of twice a day) It seems to be going well so far. We figure we'll slowly get her body used to being without the medicine instead of just cutting it off cold turkey. And while I am NOT a medicine person, I can't stand the thought of her hurting.
Once she was back on the medicine, her naps were suddenly back to "normal," although this was also the same time I tried the whole 30 min later thing, so who knows. The other symptoms have diminished as well, so I feel good about our decision. Hopefully the reflux button will turn itself off soon so no meds are necessary, and she can finally eat some more yummy foods!
The doctor appt. also revealed that our peanut is about 25th percentile in weight and 75th in height. I'm okay with the weight thing because I KNOW this girl eats enough. I was concerned about protein, but we just added turkey to her diet and I plan to try eggs next week. That might add a few pounds in the next few months, but I have a feeling that our Emma is going to be on the small side because a.) she never stops moving; b.) she never stops moving, and c.) she never stops moving. I think she was just born with a fast metabolism.
As far as height, I think she's more in the 50th percentile because I swear the measuring tactics they use are about as inaccurate as you can get. At her 9-mo, they said she was 31 inches, which put her in like the billionth percentile. Emma then decided to, uh, shrink down to 28.5 for her 12-mo measuring. Noticing something was wrong here, the doctor re-measured and Emma had managed to grow to 30 inches again in a matter of 20 minutes. Amazing, huh?! My guess is that she's more like 29.5 inches, but hey, I'm just the mom.
We are sticking to her hypoallergenic formula until 15 months, and then we will try soy milk. The doctor suggested we wait until 2 years to introduce dairy, and I agree. We haven't tried soy anything yet, but I'll get there eventually. I'm just slowly expanding her diet. It took about 4 days to get her body used to turkey, so I'm not rushing into anything. If we get past eggs, I'll be happy!
On a more fun note, Emma is really starting to become a little person. She loves to dance any time music comes on and has a few new dance moves. Her knee bouncing has now turned into head swaying, turning around in circles, and clasping her hands together and rapidly moving them up and down. Sometimes she does all three moves at once, and sometimes it's just a simple head bop during lunch. As long as music is playing, she is always ready to rock.
She also just started to stack blocks, as opposed to just knocking them down. She brings me books constantly and plops on my lap so I can read them to her. The current fav is Five Little Ladybugs. Thanks to Grandma's fun interpretation of this lovely story -- which involves hand movements and silly voices to match -- I now get to read the book 20 times a day. And refusal is just not an option. Distraction, perhaps, but refusal, forget it. I think this book might have to go into hiding in the next couple of days while mama regains a little sanity... :o)
Oh, and the Itty Bitty baby. She LOVES her baby to no end. I don't know what's normal for 1-year-olds, but she kisses and loves on that baby as if it was her own. She may be a busy, active little lady, but she has such a soft, sweet side to her that it makes my heart just melt. There is nothing more gratifying than watching your child express love. I know she will be a wonderful, caring sibling some day.
Now that the rain has finally stopped, Emma really enjoys playing outside in her new car and empty sand box. Yes, I said empty. We're waiting until next year to add the sand -- I guess I'm just not ready to add that to her diet yet... The house she received has yet to be put together because a certain Dada thinks we should wait until next year, while a certain Mama disagrees. Stay tuned for who wins that one...
I'll close with a few pix of Emma with her baby and comfy Elmo couch, another favorite toy. And did I mention she was climbing???
"Wherever she goes, I go..."
Yes, I gave in and put in a Baby Einstein DVD so we could eat dinner in peace, but of course we just stared at her the whole time...she's just too dang cute!
Busted!
Another factor may have been her medicine. At her 12-month well baby appointment (when she was actually sick, but that's another story), we decided to finish up her Prevacid and take her off of it to see if that magic 1-year reflux button shut off. The first few days were promising, but then I started noticing the old signs I had started to forget ever existed -- the "urping," the random choking, the hiccups, the uncomfortable squirming when I try to put her down for a nap (and inability to fall asleep), and the whole binkie in and out of the mouth thing during soothing. Plus, she was very spastic, just like when she was a baby -- her legs constantly swinging and her need to grab onto everything and anything that might provide comfort -- including my skin.
It's strange because she has never really cried about the reflux; she just always seems uncomfortable. It's almost as if she doesn't understand that it's not normal to have acid burning her throat. That she has a right to be upset about it. And that she doesn't have to tough it out. But she tries to deal with it, which just breaks my heart.
So Jeff and I made the executive decision to put her back on the medicine, but only once a day (instead of twice a day) It seems to be going well so far. We figure we'll slowly get her body used to being without the medicine instead of just cutting it off cold turkey. And while I am NOT a medicine person, I can't stand the thought of her hurting.
Once she was back on the medicine, her naps were suddenly back to "normal," although this was also the same time I tried the whole 30 min later thing, so who knows. The other symptoms have diminished as well, so I feel good about our decision. Hopefully the reflux button will turn itself off soon so no meds are necessary, and she can finally eat some more yummy foods!
The doctor appt. also revealed that our peanut is about 25th percentile in weight and 75th in height. I'm okay with the weight thing because I KNOW this girl eats enough. I was concerned about protein, but we just added turkey to her diet and I plan to try eggs next week. That might add a few pounds in the next few months, but I have a feeling that our Emma is going to be on the small side because a.) she never stops moving; b.) she never stops moving, and c.) she never stops moving. I think she was just born with a fast metabolism.
As far as height, I think she's more in the 50th percentile because I swear the measuring tactics they use are about as inaccurate as you can get. At her 9-mo, they said she was 31 inches, which put her in like the billionth percentile. Emma then decided to, uh, shrink down to 28.5 for her 12-mo measuring. Noticing something was wrong here, the doctor re-measured and Emma had managed to grow to 30 inches again in a matter of 20 minutes. Amazing, huh?! My guess is that she's more like 29.5 inches, but hey, I'm just the mom.
We are sticking to her hypoallergenic formula until 15 months, and then we will try soy milk. The doctor suggested we wait until 2 years to introduce dairy, and I agree. We haven't tried soy anything yet, but I'll get there eventually. I'm just slowly expanding her diet. It took about 4 days to get her body used to turkey, so I'm not rushing into anything. If we get past eggs, I'll be happy!
On a more fun note, Emma is really starting to become a little person. She loves to dance any time music comes on and has a few new dance moves. Her knee bouncing has now turned into head swaying, turning around in circles, and clasping her hands together and rapidly moving them up and down. Sometimes she does all three moves at once, and sometimes it's just a simple head bop during lunch. As long as music is playing, she is always ready to rock.
She also just started to stack blocks, as opposed to just knocking them down. She brings me books constantly and plops on my lap so I can read them to her. The current fav is Five Little Ladybugs. Thanks to Grandma's fun interpretation of this lovely story -- which involves hand movements and silly voices to match -- I now get to read the book 20 times a day. And refusal is just not an option. Distraction, perhaps, but refusal, forget it. I think this book might have to go into hiding in the next couple of days while mama regains a little sanity... :o)
Oh, and the Itty Bitty baby. She LOVES her baby to no end. I don't know what's normal for 1-year-olds, but she kisses and loves on that baby as if it was her own. She may be a busy, active little lady, but she has such a soft, sweet side to her that it makes my heart just melt. There is nothing more gratifying than watching your child express love. I know she will be a wonderful, caring sibling some day.
Now that the rain has finally stopped, Emma really enjoys playing outside in her new car and empty sand box. Yes, I said empty. We're waiting until next year to add the sand -- I guess I'm just not ready to add that to her diet yet... The house she received has yet to be put together because a certain Dada thinks we should wait until next year, while a certain Mama disagrees. Stay tuned for who wins that one...
I'll close with a few pix of Emma with her baby and comfy Elmo couch, another favorite toy. And did I mention she was climbing???
"Wherever she goes, I go..."
Yes, I gave in and put in a Baby Einstein DVD so we could eat dinner in peace, but of course we just stared at her the whole time...she's just too dang cute!
Busted!
Friday, September 01, 2006
Fashion Fridays
"On matters of style, swim with the current; on matters of principle, stand like a rock."
-Thomas Jefferson
Everyone has some clever day when they only post photos on their blog -- Wordless Wednesdays, Foto Fridays, etc. So I decided to bring you Fashion Fridays because frankly, I LOVE dressing Emma. It's so much fun putting her in all these little cute outfits...most of which I wish I had for myself. The best part is that most of them were free (borrowed), which makes the process that much more fun -- no guilt!!
So here is the first installment of Fashion Fridays. Check back every Friday for a new look, but the same cute face. Plus, it gives me an excuse to use a whole bunch of cheesy alliterations (writer geek, I know). Anyway, enjoy!
Sporty Spice
-Thomas Jefferson
Everyone has some clever day when they only post photos on their blog -- Wordless Wednesdays, Foto Fridays, etc. So I decided to bring you Fashion Fridays because frankly, I LOVE dressing Emma. It's so much fun putting her in all these little cute outfits...most of which I wish I had for myself. The best part is that most of them were free (borrowed), which makes the process that much more fun -- no guilt!!
So here is the first installment of Fashion Fridays. Check back every Friday for a new look, but the same cute face. Plus, it gives me an excuse to use a whole bunch of cheesy alliterations (writer geek, I know). Anyway, enjoy!
Sporty Spice
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
The Emmas - Take 2
Last week we had the chance to visit Emma's Great Great Grandma, Emma. For those of you who don't know, we currently have five generations of women alive right now, which is just about the coolest thing ever.
I swear I tell everyone I meet, especially when they ask Emma's name. I'm so proud that she is named after such a wonderful, faithful, intelligent woman. I was given her middle name, so it was perfect that Emma got her first name. My sister and I had a pact -- whoever had the first baby girl HAD to name their baby Emma, no hard feelings.
My Great Grandma was "tickled pink" (as she would say) to see our little peanut. She said she had hoped Emma would be a spitfire like her grandma, who was also named Emma (got all that?). Well, as we all know, her wish came true. Emma did not hold still for one second during our visit and took no time getting used to the place. She tried to sweep the kitchen floor, climbed all over my Great Grandma's walker, barged in on the caretaker several times, and located a mouse trap that was hidden behind the TV. She did let Great Grandma feed her a bottle though, which was sweet. She also pointed to her nose and gave her two kisses goodbye, adorable images etched perfectly in my mind.
This wasn't the first time we've visited since Emma was born, but for some reason, I always forget my camera. Well, this time I didn't!! Here's a few shots I managed to snap before Emma ran in the other direction!
I love you Great Great Grandma!!
Hungry belly, sleeping eyes...
Just chillin' with my Gram!
Hmmm, what can I get into next?
I swear I tell everyone I meet, especially when they ask Emma's name. I'm so proud that she is named after such a wonderful, faithful, intelligent woman. I was given her middle name, so it was perfect that Emma got her first name. My sister and I had a pact -- whoever had the first baby girl HAD to name their baby Emma, no hard feelings.
My Great Grandma was "tickled pink" (as she would say) to see our little peanut. She said she had hoped Emma would be a spitfire like her grandma, who was also named Emma (got all that?). Well, as we all know, her wish came true. Emma did not hold still for one second during our visit and took no time getting used to the place. She tried to sweep the kitchen floor, climbed all over my Great Grandma's walker, barged in on the caretaker several times, and located a mouse trap that was hidden behind the TV. She did let Great Grandma feed her a bottle though, which was sweet. She also pointed to her nose and gave her two kisses goodbye, adorable images etched perfectly in my mind.
This wasn't the first time we've visited since Emma was born, but for some reason, I always forget my camera. Well, this time I didn't!! Here's a few shots I managed to snap before Emma ran in the other direction!
I love you Great Great Grandma!!
Hungry belly, sleeping eyes...
Just chillin' with my Gram!
Hmmm, what can I get into next?
Sunday, August 27, 2006
The Party
Sorry this has taken me so long to post, but you know the life of a mama! :o)
Well, Emma's first birthday party went great. She did surprisingly well, even while still trying to beat her cold. Besides getting mad while I wiped her nose every two seconds, she was pretty darn content. When people first started arriving, she did the whole shy thing, hiding behind my leg, but it wasn't long before she was walking around with her little strut and blabbing loudly to anyone who would listen. She was quite the little hostess.
It ended up being a nice day. It was cloudy, but it didn't rain, which was my main concern. My mom and dad's place is nice and roomy, so I felt like everyone fit comfortably. After Emma's baptism, I decided against trying to squeeze everyone in our townhome. It was nice having everyone see our place, but I do realize people like to do things like breathe at parties.
Even with all of the craziness, Emma ate her dinner all gone, with room to spare for cake (we'll get to that later…)
She did start to get tired pretty early and almost approached meltdown phase during presents, but then again, so did I. It was pretty overwhelming. First of all, this girl got a gazillion presents—and they were all huge! She was MORE than spoiled. Let's see, she got an American Girl Bitty Baby, a car, a house, a sandbox, a couch, a shopping cart full of food, the cutest books ever, and an adorable fall wardrobe… As my sister put, she pretty much won the Showcase Showdown!
(Um, Emma, sorry: Mommy and Daddy only got you the pretty dress you are wearing—yeah, the one with the bows that are totally annoying you—but look at all these nice people we invited to Grandma's house who buy you really cool stuff!)
Seriously, as usual, our family and friends were EXTREMELY generous. I hope it goes without saying how very thankful I am for every one of you. It's obvious how much you all love Emma, and that is truly the best gift. Emma WILL grow up knowing how blessed she is because of the PEOPLE in her life, not the things. Thank you all so very, very much!!
I would say opening the gifts was probably the most exhausting part of the day. With about 4 little kids trying to "help" Emma open her gifts, I had to find every ounce of patience within me. I wanted Emma to tear paper and all that stuff, but I quickly learned that she had no interest in doing any sort of sitting still with all these people and toys around. You can picture the scene: So-and-so child asking me to open this gift, while another child says, "No, that gift," while another is already opening a different gift. Meanwhile, Emma is falling on top of all of them, trying to escape my grasp as I read her a card that she has already torn in half. BUT, once I pulled Jeff out from behind the video camera, it got better. He (sorta) kept Emma content while the rest of us opened gifts. In the end, it was one of those moments when you just have to laugh. (And admit to yourself that you will not have 4 or 5 kids…ever.)
Okay, on to the Great Cake Debate: We all know about Emma's "allergy issues," so giving her a birthday cake was, of course, a source of total stress for me. Do I try to find an "acceptable" cake to make even though I have no idea how to bake? Do I let it go and let her dig in and pray that she doesn't suffer? Or do I skip it all together?
Well, against God's obvious message that baking is NOT one of my gifts, option 1 was the winner. Thankfully, I went through a trial run the day of her actual birthday. That was perhaps the best decision ever, seeing as I would have completely embarrassed myself otherwise. Here's why:
Check out the recipes for the dairy-free cake and dairy-free frosting. Easy enough, right? Well, first note the oven temperature listed: 165 degrees. Yeah, I thought that seemed a bit strange, but then again, I don't bake. (Let's also forget for a second that I write about appliances for a living, because obviously I did.) So I preheat the oven to…wait, my knob only goes down to 200 degrees. NO PROBLEM. It does turn past that, so I simply "guess" where 165 should be. I'm sure professional ovens offer ultra-low temperatures for people who do things like bake on a weekly basis.
Next, mix the ingredients. Step one, "Beat egg whites until stiff but not dry." Huh? I'm just proud that I actually separated the eggs! (By the way, it takes about a dozen eggs to make 1-½ cups of egg whites!!!) Okay, so I start to manually beat the eggs, and I notice that they are just getting soupier, not stiffer (whatever that means), so I stop and naturally add the other ingredients.
Not knowing anything was wrong, I continued on and baked what ended up taking the shape of a cake. Sure, when Jeff flipped the cake stand over onto Emma's high chair, "it" looked like a glob of oatmeal, but hey, what do you expect with a dairy-free cake? (Note: I didn't make the dairy-free frosting because I didn't have the ingredients yet.) Emma seemed to enjoy it…well, for the most part. You be the judge:
So, the night before the party, I reread the directions and realized my mistakes: Did you notice the "C" next to 165?". Well, I didn't. I was supposed to bake this thing at 325 F. And for any of you that know baking (or have an ounce of common sense), you beat egg whites with an automatic beater for like 10 minutes, when they will transform into a whole other substance similar to meringue.
Needless to say, cake number 2 turned out much better! Emma enjoyed it much more, although she wouldn't get messy. She methodically fed herself frosting and pieces of cake, but didn't start getting gooey until she wasn't hungry anymore and started playing with the cake. It wasn't that bad, but scraping dried oats off of her skin wasn't that fun either. Although you're never too young to start exfoliating!!
Emma pooped out around 7pm and was fast asleep by 7:30pm. She never even woke up during the transfer from my parent's house to our house. This party girl was done for the night.
So there you have it. Probably more party details than you wanted, but wait, there's more! Pictures!!! Don't worry, I only picked a few. Enjoy and thanks again to everyone who made it to the party!
Welcome to the Party!
No, this is NOT the cake I made. This one is courtesy of Sam's Club.
This is… uh, yum!!
All done!
Some Party-goers!
A bow and a baby… exactly what I wanted!!
Well, Emma's first birthday party went great. She did surprisingly well, even while still trying to beat her cold. Besides getting mad while I wiped her nose every two seconds, she was pretty darn content. When people first started arriving, she did the whole shy thing, hiding behind my leg, but it wasn't long before she was walking around with her little strut and blabbing loudly to anyone who would listen. She was quite the little hostess.
It ended up being a nice day. It was cloudy, but it didn't rain, which was my main concern. My mom and dad's place is nice and roomy, so I felt like everyone fit comfortably. After Emma's baptism, I decided against trying to squeeze everyone in our townhome. It was nice having everyone see our place, but I do realize people like to do things like breathe at parties.
Even with all of the craziness, Emma ate her dinner all gone, with room to spare for cake (we'll get to that later…)
She did start to get tired pretty early and almost approached meltdown phase during presents, but then again, so did I. It was pretty overwhelming. First of all, this girl got a gazillion presents—and they were all huge! She was MORE than spoiled. Let's see, she got an American Girl Bitty Baby, a car, a house, a sandbox, a couch, a shopping cart full of food, the cutest books ever, and an adorable fall wardrobe… As my sister put, she pretty much won the Showcase Showdown!
(Um, Emma, sorry: Mommy and Daddy only got you the pretty dress you are wearing—yeah, the one with the bows that are totally annoying you—but look at all these nice people we invited to Grandma's house who buy you really cool stuff!)
Seriously, as usual, our family and friends were EXTREMELY generous. I hope it goes without saying how very thankful I am for every one of you. It's obvious how much you all love Emma, and that is truly the best gift. Emma WILL grow up knowing how blessed she is because of the PEOPLE in her life, not the things. Thank you all so very, very much!!
I would say opening the gifts was probably the most exhausting part of the day. With about 4 little kids trying to "help" Emma open her gifts, I had to find every ounce of patience within me. I wanted Emma to tear paper and all that stuff, but I quickly learned that she had no interest in doing any sort of sitting still with all these people and toys around. You can picture the scene: So-and-so child asking me to open this gift, while another child says, "No, that gift," while another is already opening a different gift. Meanwhile, Emma is falling on top of all of them, trying to escape my grasp as I read her a card that she has already torn in half. BUT, once I pulled Jeff out from behind the video camera, it got better. He (sorta) kept Emma content while the rest of us opened gifts. In the end, it was one of those moments when you just have to laugh. (And admit to yourself that you will not have 4 or 5 kids…ever.)
Okay, on to the Great Cake Debate: We all know about Emma's "allergy issues," so giving her a birthday cake was, of course, a source of total stress for me. Do I try to find an "acceptable" cake to make even though I have no idea how to bake? Do I let it go and let her dig in and pray that she doesn't suffer? Or do I skip it all together?
Well, against God's obvious message that baking is NOT one of my gifts, option 1 was the winner. Thankfully, I went through a trial run the day of her actual birthday. That was perhaps the best decision ever, seeing as I would have completely embarrassed myself otherwise. Here's why:
Check out the recipes for the dairy-free cake and dairy-free frosting. Easy enough, right? Well, first note the oven temperature listed: 165 degrees. Yeah, I thought that seemed a bit strange, but then again, I don't bake. (Let's also forget for a second that I write about appliances for a living, because obviously I did.) So I preheat the oven to…wait, my knob only goes down to 200 degrees. NO PROBLEM. It does turn past that, so I simply "guess" where 165 should be. I'm sure professional ovens offer ultra-low temperatures for people who do things like bake on a weekly basis.
Next, mix the ingredients. Step one, "Beat egg whites until stiff but not dry." Huh? I'm just proud that I actually separated the eggs! (By the way, it takes about a dozen eggs to make 1-½ cups of egg whites!!!) Okay, so I start to manually beat the eggs, and I notice that they are just getting soupier, not stiffer (whatever that means), so I stop and naturally add the other ingredients.
Not knowing anything was wrong, I continued on and baked what ended up taking the shape of a cake. Sure, when Jeff flipped the cake stand over onto Emma's high chair, "it" looked like a glob of oatmeal, but hey, what do you expect with a dairy-free cake? (Note: I didn't make the dairy-free frosting because I didn't have the ingredients yet.) Emma seemed to enjoy it…well, for the most part. You be the judge:
So, the night before the party, I reread the directions and realized my mistakes: Did you notice the "C" next to 165?". Well, I didn't. I was supposed to bake this thing at 325 F. And for any of you that know baking (or have an ounce of common sense), you beat egg whites with an automatic beater for like 10 minutes, when they will transform into a whole other substance similar to meringue.
Needless to say, cake number 2 turned out much better! Emma enjoyed it much more, although she wouldn't get messy. She methodically fed herself frosting and pieces of cake, but didn't start getting gooey until she wasn't hungry anymore and started playing with the cake. It wasn't that bad, but scraping dried oats off of her skin wasn't that fun either. Although you're never too young to start exfoliating!!
Emma pooped out around 7pm and was fast asleep by 7:30pm. She never even woke up during the transfer from my parent's house to our house. This party girl was done for the night.
So there you have it. Probably more party details than you wanted, but wait, there's more! Pictures!!! Don't worry, I only picked a few. Enjoy and thanks again to everyone who made it to the party!
Welcome to the Party!
No, this is NOT the cake I made. This one is courtesy of Sam's Club.
This is… uh, yum!!
All done!
Some Party-goers!
A bow and a baby… exactly what I wanted!!
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
The Dress
Need to finish a work project, so no time for details, but at long last, here is Miss Emma in THE party dress. All of the shots I got of her smiling are blurry since she was attacking me and the camera, so you'll have to settle for her more serious (and perhaps a bit irritated) modeling poses. The dress ended up being a little big, but this mama thinks her peanut couldn't look more adorable! Party details and cake shots to come soon -- promise!
Get this stupid thing off me!
That's right, I'm one now. What's it to ya?
Get this stupid thing off me!
That's right, I'm one now. What's it to ya?
Sunday, August 20, 2006
A Little Irritated
Okay, so yes I will post pictures of Emma in her dress and all the party details, but first I need to get something off my chest.
The other day I was reading a fairly popular blog. It's a blog I probably shouldn't read because it's pretty negative, but unfortunately, it's become a guilty pleasure. Anyway, the author -- who I do have to say is a pretty good writer and fairly funny most of the time -- decided to briefly poke fun at mommy blogs and their "love letters" to their children. Now, yes, I admit that initially the author's comment made me giggle since I am obviously guilty of this, especially within that very week.
But then the insecurity set in, and I found myself clicking over to my blog and re-reading my letter to Emma. And for a split second I was embarrassed of what I had written. It was cheesy. It was mushy. It wasn't all funny and clever. It was, well, a love letter.
But as soon as those thoughts came, they left. Yes, IT.IS.A.LOVE.LETTER. To my child. What the heck is it supposed to say? Oh, am I supposed to drop an F bomb in there to make it funny, or make Emma feel bad about all the "trouble" she's caused just so that I am "keeping it real"? Give me a break.
For those of you who "blog," you know what I am talking about. There are those blogs out there -- and unfortunately, these are the ones with 100+ comments -- that act like you have to whine about every little thing and rip on every single person in order to offer something valuable.
Well guess what: I have a feeling THIS blog is going to mean a heck of a lot more to Emma than some child who searches the Internet some day to find out that his or her mom/dad did nothing but complain about how horrible their life was -- before AND after children. No thank you. Sure we all need to vent, but I choose to leave most of my ugly thoughts between me and God. My child's mind is going to be filled with enough negative garbage, profanity and disappointment in the years to come. I am NOT going to contribute to that.
At the end of the day, I want Emma to learn that there is still room for good old-fashioned, mushy love in this world. Because that, my friends, is what gets you through those days when all you want to do is whine.
The other day I was reading a fairly popular blog. It's a blog I probably shouldn't read because it's pretty negative, but unfortunately, it's become a guilty pleasure. Anyway, the author -- who I do have to say is a pretty good writer and fairly funny most of the time -- decided to briefly poke fun at mommy blogs and their "love letters" to their children. Now, yes, I admit that initially the author's comment made me giggle since I am obviously guilty of this, especially within that very week.
But then the insecurity set in, and I found myself clicking over to my blog and re-reading my letter to Emma. And for a split second I was embarrassed of what I had written. It was cheesy. It was mushy. It wasn't all funny and clever. It was, well, a love letter.
But as soon as those thoughts came, they left. Yes, IT.IS.A.LOVE.LETTER. To my child. What the heck is it supposed to say? Oh, am I supposed to drop an F bomb in there to make it funny, or make Emma feel bad about all the "trouble" she's caused just so that I am "keeping it real"? Give me a break.
For those of you who "blog," you know what I am talking about. There are those blogs out there -- and unfortunately, these are the ones with 100+ comments -- that act like you have to whine about every little thing and rip on every single person in order to offer something valuable.
Well guess what: I have a feeling THIS blog is going to mean a heck of a lot more to Emma than some child who searches the Internet some day to find out that his or her mom/dad did nothing but complain about how horrible their life was -- before AND after children. No thank you. Sure we all need to vent, but I choose to leave most of my ugly thoughts between me and God. My child's mind is going to be filled with enough negative garbage, profanity and disappointment in the years to come. I am NOT going to contribute to that.
At the end of the day, I want Emma to learn that there is still room for good old-fashioned, mushy love in this world. Because that, my friends, is what gets you through those days when all you want to do is whine.
Monday, August 14, 2006
12 Months
Our Sweet Little Emma,
Happy 1st Brithday! How do I begin to put into words what this last year has meant to your Daddy and me? We have felt emotions so deep we never knew they existed until you came along…
A LOVE so pure and strong that a simple glance at your precious face makes our hearts warm and ache at the same time. We wish so much for you, yet we want so badly to hold you in our arms and freeze time so we can always fit your tiny hands safely in ours. We love you enough to let you explore on your own, even if it means you will probably get a few bumps and bruises along the way. But we will always be there to comfort you—to kiss your owies, to wipe away the tears, to shush away the cries.
A JOY we haven't felt since we were children ourselves. We look at flowers and trains and puppy dogs through your eyes, and we see the beauty and wonder of everything God created for us. Your curiosity teaches us to admire every little detail—the peaceful look on an elderly woman's face that makes you smile or the touch of sand on your feet that makes you want to kick and dance and roll around. The simple breeze running through your hair that makes you scrunch up your nose and giggle. All things we take for granted; yet you teach us to stop and notice. To stop and enjoy.
A WORRY that never seems to go away. Since the day we knew you were growing inside of me, we were afraid of what might happen. A loss of control that required a whole lot of faith in God, a lesson we are constantly learning. Whether it was your cries of pain at night or your uncomfortable wiggles throughout the day, we prayed and cried and trusted. We had to. As much as we want to believe we can protect you, there is only so much we can do. In the end, you are in His hands. And trust me, with your determined spirit, we will be keeping that promise in our pockets for many, many years to come.
A PRIDE that wells up in our eyes and practically bursts out of our ears. Your first smile at 6 weeks. Your first word at 7 months. Your first step at 10 months. Giant leaps that overwhelm us with feelings of satisfaction that our own accomplishments could never provide. Watching you move from our arms to the floor to your feet all happened way too fast, but we are so proud of your sense of adventure that we wouldn't change any of it for the world. We eagerly anticipate your next developments, but we remind ourselves to treasure the joys of today. We have found that time has a way of stealing away moments before we realize they are gone.
We watch in total AWE as you discover all that life has to offer: You thoughtfully page through your books, talking to the pictures in your own little language. You carry your doggie and baby around with you, stopping to kiss them every once in a while to let them know how much you love them. You listen when I ask you to sit while we have a snack, even though you are sooooo very hungry. You snuggle with your blankie and binkie, your two most favorite things in the world that put you to sleep in an instant. You giggle at our silly jokes, love to chase us around, and even enjoy wrestling with us. You quietly ride in your car seat as we drive from here to there, looking out the window, soaking it all in. You are always in motion, but always make time for a quick kiss or cuddle, instants we've learned to savor so that we always remember.
A sense of true CONTENTMENT. We now feel complete in a way we never knew was possible. Of course, that's because we never had a child, or all that comes along with that blessing. You have made life more complicated, yes, but also more fulfilling than anything this world can give.
It is no coincidence that we called you Heaven Sent from the beginning. God has truly revealed himself to us through you. Your eyes show an innocence He always intended for us. Your heart overflows with a love and trust that teach us how we should live every day.
We now understand how hard it is to love from afar, but realize that it is necessary so that you can become the unique person God created.
Yes, Emma, because of you, we know unconditional love in its purest form; a glimpse of how much God loves us. Unfathomable love in just 12 short months.
What a wonderful gift the next few years will be as God reveals more and more to us. But for now, we thank Him for the last year. That is more than enough.
All our love,
Mommy and Daddy
Happy 1st Brithday! How do I begin to put into words what this last year has meant to your Daddy and me? We have felt emotions so deep we never knew they existed until you came along…
A LOVE so pure and strong that a simple glance at your precious face makes our hearts warm and ache at the same time. We wish so much for you, yet we want so badly to hold you in our arms and freeze time so we can always fit your tiny hands safely in ours. We love you enough to let you explore on your own, even if it means you will probably get a few bumps and bruises along the way. But we will always be there to comfort you—to kiss your owies, to wipe away the tears, to shush away the cries.
A JOY we haven't felt since we were children ourselves. We look at flowers and trains and puppy dogs through your eyes, and we see the beauty and wonder of everything God created for us. Your curiosity teaches us to admire every little detail—the peaceful look on an elderly woman's face that makes you smile or the touch of sand on your feet that makes you want to kick and dance and roll around. The simple breeze running through your hair that makes you scrunch up your nose and giggle. All things we take for granted; yet you teach us to stop and notice. To stop and enjoy.
A WORRY that never seems to go away. Since the day we knew you were growing inside of me, we were afraid of what might happen. A loss of control that required a whole lot of faith in God, a lesson we are constantly learning. Whether it was your cries of pain at night or your uncomfortable wiggles throughout the day, we prayed and cried and trusted. We had to. As much as we want to believe we can protect you, there is only so much we can do. In the end, you are in His hands. And trust me, with your determined spirit, we will be keeping that promise in our pockets for many, many years to come.
A PRIDE that wells up in our eyes and practically bursts out of our ears. Your first smile at 6 weeks. Your first word at 7 months. Your first step at 10 months. Giant leaps that overwhelm us with feelings of satisfaction that our own accomplishments could never provide. Watching you move from our arms to the floor to your feet all happened way too fast, but we are so proud of your sense of adventure that we wouldn't change any of it for the world. We eagerly anticipate your next developments, but we remind ourselves to treasure the joys of today. We have found that time has a way of stealing away moments before we realize they are gone.
We watch in total AWE as you discover all that life has to offer: You thoughtfully page through your books, talking to the pictures in your own little language. You carry your doggie and baby around with you, stopping to kiss them every once in a while to let them know how much you love them. You listen when I ask you to sit while we have a snack, even though you are sooooo very hungry. You snuggle with your blankie and binkie, your two most favorite things in the world that put you to sleep in an instant. You giggle at our silly jokes, love to chase us around, and even enjoy wrestling with us. You quietly ride in your car seat as we drive from here to there, looking out the window, soaking it all in. You are always in motion, but always make time for a quick kiss or cuddle, instants we've learned to savor so that we always remember.
A sense of true CONTENTMENT. We now feel complete in a way we never knew was possible. Of course, that's because we never had a child, or all that comes along with that blessing. You have made life more complicated, yes, but also more fulfilling than anything this world can give.
It is no coincidence that we called you Heaven Sent from the beginning. God has truly revealed himself to us through you. Your eyes show an innocence He always intended for us. Your heart overflows with a love and trust that teach us how we should live every day.
We now understand how hard it is to love from afar, but realize that it is necessary so that you can become the unique person God created.
Yes, Emma, because of you, we know unconditional love in its purest form; a glimpse of how much God loves us. Unfathomable love in just 12 short months.
What a wonderful gift the next few years will be as God reveals more and more to us. But for now, we thank Him for the last year. That is more than enough.
All our love,
Mommy and Daddy
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Check us out!
Yes, I found me some Wi-Fi on vacation, but I won't be a total geek and spend too much time on the Mac instead of in the sun. STILL, I wanted you guys to check us out on Urban Baby Runway. I wrote the review, Emma styled the shirt! Click here to see for yourself!
Friday, August 04, 2006
Trusting our Gut
So we got the allergy tests back and of course they are all negative. I know we should be all elated and stuff, but I can honestly say I feel no different than I did before we did the testing. I know that RAST tests are rarely accurate, especially when performing them on a child Emma's age. Still, we did them just in case (and because our doctor suggested it).
Does this convince me she's not allergic to anything? Nope. I don't care if I sound like a Hypochondriac or not -- I KNOW her tummy does not like certain foods and for that reason, we're going to steer clear of a few things. Milk, eggs and peanuts will have to wait for now, and we're avoiding acidic, citrus fruits because they seem to irritate her acid reflux. I'm also skipping the chocolate on her birthday. That was one thing she definitely couldn't tolerate when I was nursing, and I don't want her to suffer on her big day.
HOWEVER, we are moving forward with meats and other veggies. I'm also going to continue to slowly introduce foods into her diet, but not the 7-day procedure we used before. I'll probably do more like 3 days, just to make sure.
I have to admit that Jeff and I were a little hesitant to tell everyone about the test results because it's amazing how many people think they know the answer to Emma's issues when they really have no idea what we've gone through. Trust me, we've thought of and tried everything. I know people are just trying to help, but how come they always end up making us feel like we're overreacting? Maybe it's our own insecurity as parents... I don't know.
Anyway, thanks to my new blogging friend Lori , I was encouraged to share with ya'll and stand firm on what my instincts are telling me. After all, that's how we found Emma's thrush and reflux and eventually, her milk intolerance/allergy. It was hard being a first-time mom and convincing people "something wasn't right," but in the end, the best decision was trusting my gut.
That doesn't mean I don't believe Emma will grow out of all of this. And, sure, maybe the RAST test indicates that. But there's no reason why we need to rush into anything if Jeff and I aren't comfortable yet. We may get brave and try soy yogurt in a few weeks, but for now, I want to get some meat (protein) in her.
Was that a rant or what? Let's make this a bit lighter with some photos. I'm going to post quite a few so a few family members can get what they call their "Emma fix" while we're gone a vacation this coming week. Hopefully this holds ya'll over!!!
Cheese!
Does this convince me she's not allergic to anything? Nope. I don't care if I sound like a Hypochondriac or not -- I KNOW her tummy does not like certain foods and for that reason, we're going to steer clear of a few things. Milk, eggs and peanuts will have to wait for now, and we're avoiding acidic, citrus fruits because they seem to irritate her acid reflux. I'm also skipping the chocolate on her birthday. That was one thing she definitely couldn't tolerate when I was nursing, and I don't want her to suffer on her big day.
HOWEVER, we are moving forward with meats and other veggies. I'm also going to continue to slowly introduce foods into her diet, but not the 7-day procedure we used before. I'll probably do more like 3 days, just to make sure.
I have to admit that Jeff and I were a little hesitant to tell everyone about the test results because it's amazing how many people think they know the answer to Emma's issues when they really have no idea what we've gone through. Trust me, we've thought of and tried everything. I know people are just trying to help, but how come they always end up making us feel like we're overreacting? Maybe it's our own insecurity as parents... I don't know.
Anyway, thanks to my new blogging friend Lori , I was encouraged to share with ya'll and stand firm on what my instincts are telling me. After all, that's how we found Emma's thrush and reflux and eventually, her milk intolerance/allergy. It was hard being a first-time mom and convincing people "something wasn't right," but in the end, the best decision was trusting my gut.
That doesn't mean I don't believe Emma will grow out of all of this. And, sure, maybe the RAST test indicates that. But there's no reason why we need to rush into anything if Jeff and I aren't comfortable yet. We may get brave and try soy yogurt in a few weeks, but for now, I want to get some meat (protein) in her.
Was that a rant or what? Let's make this a bit lighter with some photos. I'm going to post quite a few so a few family members can get what they call their "Emma fix" while we're gone a vacation this coming week. Hopefully this holds ya'll over!!!
Cheese!
Sooooo Big!
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMAH!
Lovin' her "dady"...
Yeah for me!
Mix it up DJ Emma! 
Monday, July 31, 2006
A Day in the Life...
Over the last 11 months, this blog has kinda turned into Emma's baby book. Yes, I plan to fill out her actual baby book one of these days, but for now, this works really well and forces me to stay up-to-date.
As my peanut nears the 1-year mark (sniff, sniff), I wanted to get a few logistical items in here before I write her letter, which I want to be more poetic than informational. I'll try to stay away from too many bullet points so I don't bore you to death, but I also want Emma to know as much detail as possible.
One of the hardest things for me to figure out the first few months of Emma's life was the whole "schedule" thing. I tried to find a happy medium between my anal retentive self and throwing caution to the wind, but Emma wasn't really adjusting to my "plan" so well. That meant many frustrated meltdowns and calls to my mom, but also many lessons learned. Everyone kept telling me, "Read your baby, Lisa. Forget the books." Yes, yes, I know, but how the heck am I supposed to know what she is saying? It's not like she's talking people!
But as the days and weeks turned into months, I started to get it and POW! We arrived at a schedule. It was so great. I was in heaven... for a week, until the next "schedule" kicked in. Always keeping me on my toes, Emma knew exactly when my mommy ego was getting a bit too big and quickly put me in my place with a minor change here and there. Eventually, I got used to that too and was excited to see how she was developing in everything from sleep habits (thank God!!) to eating.
Right now, I have to say we have a pretty good thing going. I try not to be a hyper scheduler, but honestly, Emma responds to schedules really well and seems to be happier when we are organized.
So here is a normal day in the life of Emma (at least for now):
6am: Wakes up in her crib, chatting to herself and her stuffed animals until she finally lets out a "num num" for her bottle. Sometimes I can get her to cuddle in bed with me for a few minutes, but not for very long.
6:30am: First dose of Prevacid (1 oz) and a 6-oz bottle
8:00am: Breakfast time! Some organic oatmeal and fruit (either chunks of banana or a jar of pears). If she's still hungry, some Cheerios.
8:45am: Morning nap (usually 1hr and 15 min, although once in a while it's only 45 min)
10:00am: Wake up chatting again and greets me with a huge grin.
11:30am: Lunch time! Some veggies (either a jar of squash, sweet potatoes, peas & rice or grn beans & rice -or- the same foods cooked and cut up), some carbs (pieces of whole wheat bread or organic pasta), and a 5- or 6-oz bottle, depending on how hungry she is. Once in a while she gets some fruit too, but I usually save that for dinner.
12:45pm: Afternoon nap (usually about 2 hrs)
3:00pm: Snack (watered down pear juice and some Gerber sweet potato veggie puffs or Cheerios)
4:30pm: Second dose of Prevacid
5:00pm: Dinner time! Same as lunch, but usually a fruit too. We save the bottle for a little later.
6:00pm: 7-oz bottle
6:30pm: bath time, books and singing
7:00pm: bed time
As my peanut nears the 1-year mark (sniff, sniff), I wanted to get a few logistical items in here before I write her letter, which I want to be more poetic than informational. I'll try to stay away from too many bullet points so I don't bore you to death, but I also want Emma to know as much detail as possible.
One of the hardest things for me to figure out the first few months of Emma's life was the whole "schedule" thing. I tried to find a happy medium between my anal retentive self and throwing caution to the wind, but Emma wasn't really adjusting to my "plan" so well. That meant many frustrated meltdowns and calls to my mom, but also many lessons learned. Everyone kept telling me, "Read your baby, Lisa. Forget the books." Yes, yes, I know, but how the heck am I supposed to know what she is saying? It's not like she's talking people!
But as the days and weeks turned into months, I started to get it and POW! We arrived at a schedule. It was so great. I was in heaven... for a week, until the next "schedule" kicked in. Always keeping me on my toes, Emma knew exactly when my mommy ego was getting a bit too big and quickly put me in my place with a minor change here and there. Eventually, I got used to that too and was excited to see how she was developing in everything from sleep habits (thank God!!) to eating.
Right now, I have to say we have a pretty good thing going. I try not to be a hyper scheduler, but honestly, Emma responds to schedules really well and seems to be happier when we are organized.
So here is a normal day in the life of Emma (at least for now):
6am: Wakes up in her crib, chatting to herself and her stuffed animals until she finally lets out a "num num" for her bottle. Sometimes I can get her to cuddle in bed with me for a few minutes, but not for very long.
6:30am: First dose of Prevacid (1 oz) and a 6-oz bottle
8:00am: Breakfast time! Some organic oatmeal and fruit (either chunks of banana or a jar of pears). If she's still hungry, some Cheerios.
8:45am: Morning nap (usually 1hr and 15 min, although once in a while it's only 45 min)
10:00am: Wake up chatting again and greets me with a huge grin.
11:30am: Lunch time! Some veggies (either a jar of squash, sweet potatoes, peas & rice or grn beans & rice -or- the same foods cooked and cut up), some carbs (pieces of whole wheat bread or organic pasta), and a 5- or 6-oz bottle, depending on how hungry she is. Once in a while she gets some fruit too, but I usually save that for dinner.
12:45pm: Afternoon nap (usually about 2 hrs)
3:00pm: Snack (watered down pear juice and some Gerber sweet potato veggie puffs or Cheerios)
4:30pm: Second dose of Prevacid
5:00pm: Dinner time! Same as lunch, but usually a fruit too. We save the bottle for a little later.
6:00pm: 7-oz bottle
6:30pm: bath time, books and singing
7:00pm: bed time
Thursday, July 27, 2006
Needles Schmeedles!
So I took Emma for her allergy blood work yesterday, and I was prepared for the ultimate meltdown. I had two binkies, her blankie, finger foods, and a sippy cup all ready to go in the event of total drama -- I was prepared. I even warned the tech and her helper that Emma is a bit, uh, vocal, so this might be worse than normal. And because the doctor requested they test for 11 allergens, they needed to fill two vials...
Okay, breathe, mom, breathe, here we go...stretchy rubber thing tied around Emma's skinny little arm, tight enough to pinch her skin, strange woman holding her arm in place, another strange woman poking her with a long piece of metal...the needle is in and...
NOTHING. Not a peep. Completely unphased. THE.WHOLE.TIME. I am watching two tubes fill up with my baby's blood and she's acting like they're tickling her arm. No wiggling, no complaining, just the suck, suck of her binkie, which she probably didn't even need. "Oh, is that a needle piercing my skin and sucking out my blood, Mom? I didn't even notice. Now how about that sippy cup?"
I was so proud of her! When I called Jeff, he even admitted that it made him want to cry. So funny what makes you proud -- and how your child can completely surprise you.
I have to remember that Emma is just as complex as any adult -- she doesn't fit any preconceived stereotypes or moulds. No, she is Emma and she is developing her own unique personality every day. Yes, she is a busy little girl that loves to move around, but she also loves to sit and read a book. She isn't afraid of sticking her face in the pool, but is scared to death of her doctor. She will kiss anyone who asks, but doesn't like to be held by anyone but her mama.
I think as parents we are so excited to "figure out" what our child will be like, that we almost want to make them something they really aren't. Every time I try to describe Emma to someone who asks how's she's doing, I end up contradicting myself after every sentence because she really isn't one "type." Will she be anal like her mom, but athletic like her dad? Who the knows! Only time will tell, and that is the most exciting part. I know Emma has many more surprises in store for me. I'm also aware they may not all be as pleasant as this experience. But, heck, I'll take this one!
I'll finish up with some recent photos. I realized I haven't posted any for a while, but the flu kind of interrupted our usual photo sessions. Still, here's a few of Emma enjoying her summer at Grandma and Grandpa's pool!
Okay, breathe, mom, breathe, here we go...stretchy rubber thing tied around Emma's skinny little arm, tight enough to pinch her skin, strange woman holding her arm in place, another strange woman poking her with a long piece of metal...the needle is in and...
NOTHING. Not a peep. Completely unphased. THE.WHOLE.TIME. I am watching two tubes fill up with my baby's blood and she's acting like they're tickling her arm. No wiggling, no complaining, just the suck, suck of her binkie, which she probably didn't even need. "Oh, is that a needle piercing my skin and sucking out my blood, Mom? I didn't even notice. Now how about that sippy cup?"
I was so proud of her! When I called Jeff, he even admitted that it made him want to cry. So funny what makes you proud -- and how your child can completely surprise you.
I have to remember that Emma is just as complex as any adult -- she doesn't fit any preconceived stereotypes or moulds. No, she is Emma and she is developing her own unique personality every day. Yes, she is a busy little girl that loves to move around, but she also loves to sit and read a book. She isn't afraid of sticking her face in the pool, but is scared to death of her doctor. She will kiss anyone who asks, but doesn't like to be held by anyone but her mama.
I think as parents we are so excited to "figure out" what our child will be like, that we almost want to make them something they really aren't. Every time I try to describe Emma to someone who asks how's she's doing, I end up contradicting myself after every sentence because she really isn't one "type." Will she be anal like her mom, but athletic like her dad? Who the knows! Only time will tell, and that is the most exciting part. I know Emma has many more surprises in store for me. I'm also aware they may not all be as pleasant as this experience. But, heck, I'll take this one!
I'll finish up with some recent photos. I realized I haven't posted any for a while, but the flu kind of interrupted our usual photo sessions. Still, here's a few of Emma enjoying her summer at Grandma and Grandpa's pool!
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
She's Worth It!
At least that's my excuse for giving in and buying that dress that you all "tried" to talk me out of... um, thanks! :o) My other excuse is that she will actually get three uses out of it -- she'll wear it for her 1-year photo, wear it on the party day, and hopefully wear it to church the Sunday after her birthday. Oh yeah, and it's our birthday gift to her. What else do you buy a 1 year old who has everything she needs? A personalized birthday dress of course!!!! (And yes, we put "Emma" on the dress!)
Besides, who can deny such a little cutie? She is just too darn adorable -- and pretty smart too. Here are some of the recent developments in Emma Land:
She has officially kicked the flu and is more than making up for any lost ounces -- she LOVES to eat!
She now walks everywhere and can get into the standing position without pulling herself up on something.
She waves hello and goodbye on command and on her own (at the right times).
She is starting to repeat words I say, although they all start with the letter D. She even tried to sing a tune I sang to her: "La, la, la" ("Da, da, da"). There is hope that she has Jeff's singing voice -- she was pretty in tune!
Some of her real words include: Dada, more (mah!), num nums, nye nye, doggie, baby (dady), pretty (ditty -- this is what she calls my earrings) & all done (ah dah).
She dances by bouncing her knees when she hears music or when I sing, "Dancin', Dancin', Dancin'!!"
She rediscovered her love of clapping and is very proud of her accomplishments.
She will kiss you when asked and will sometimes kiss you if you say, "I love you." She blows kisses too, but it's more like a lip smack in the air without the hand throw.
She retrieves her stuffed doggie when asked and then tries to carry it around with her even though it is just as big as she is.
She points to my nose when I ask her to -- a VERY recent development.
Her appetite is ENORMOUS lately, so I am assuming she is going thru a growth spurt.
She is almost done getting her two front top teeth, at least I hope, as it has caused us all to be a bit cranky.
She likes the water and enjoys putting her face in it. Strange, I know...
So there's a quick glimpse into our little pistol's life at 11 months. She sure is fun, but also a bit intense (um, like her father??) and keeps me more than busy. But as those tired, weak, horrible sick days only further proved, I would NEVER want her any other way!
Besides, who can deny such a little cutie? She is just too darn adorable -- and pretty smart too. Here are some of the recent developments in Emma Land:
So there's a quick glimpse into our little pistol's life at 11 months. She sure is fun, but also a bit intense (um, like her father??) and keeps me more than busy. But as those tired, weak, horrible sick days only further proved, I would NEVER want her any other way!
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