Emma the Snow Toddler

OK, so I've been lazy (or just happy to let Mary do all the posting) and have yet to post here, but I'm finally getting around to it. In future posts, I'll put up some fancy-schmancy photos of Little Miss Trouble, but for today, I'm going to keep it simple.

First, a refresher.

Almost exactly 50 weeks ago, during a February snow-dump, we had the bright idea to take our then-7-week-old daughter out to pose for a picture next to the snowman we had built (why did we build the snowman? because the snow was there). Yeah, luckily DCFS wasn't in the neighborhood, and we got this photo of Emma really "enjoying herself" in the snow.

Well, today the weathermorons got the forecast right: we got 5-6 inches of powdery white stuff (the kind that Lindsay Lohan doesn't snort). So we took our precious, delicate little flower outside... and this time, there were no screams, just laughter. Video below (warning: cuteness may cause dizziness and/or headache!)

11 Months Old

Wow, where has the time gone? Is it possible that Emma will be a year old in 30 days? I can't really believe it. One year ago I was huge, enjoying the feeling of my baby girl growing inside of me and washing all her teeny-tiny clothing and today, I'm watching her walk around and talk to me, and putting her teeny-tiny clothing away in storage.

We weighed her naked this morning on the Wii, and she's a little over 19 1/2 pounds. She'll be 20 pounds by her one year mark, I'm sure. She's at or above 30 inches, and we went up to the next size car seat. Her old one is now in the basement crawl space, awaiting the next (if any) child.

She's walking with ease, doing some running, and very stable unless she's tired. She's eating more solids and her poo is more solid too. :) And she's "talking" more -- she's definitely said "Mommy" and "Dadda," "Kitty," and we've recently heard "Delilah" and "Hello." Daycare says that she'll say "All Done" and sign "all done" when she's finished eating. A few days ago she slept for 5 hours in a row at night without rousing -- hasn't done it since, but I expect we might once her first-year molars are through. She keeps working her back gums with her teethers, so likely anytime now.

Here's some pictures of Emma playing with the couch-cushion fort we built yesterday. Happy 11 months old, my baby girl!

10 Months Old!

When did my baby turn 10 months old? How did she get that big?!


*She's about 19 1/2 pounds now, and likely at 30 inches. We have to get a new car seat ASAP.

*She's walking.... we have to do better babyproofing ASAP!! :) She can walk across a room very steadily and carries things with her.

*She eats pretty much anything unless it's a choking or allergy hazard. She loves turkey bits, sweet and sour meatballs were a hit this past week, and she loves Great-Grandma's apple butter on pumpkin pancakes.

*She isn't talking much yet, just saying "kitteh" and "Daddy" and occasionally "Mommy" (but not necessarily to us, still randomly).

*She's drinking from a cup more and more; we're thinking of transitioning fully from the bottle to a cup very soon.

Here's a few videos from the last few weeks to share when she was still 9 months. :)

A Whole Lotta Walking

At one day before the 10-month mark!

Walking ... Wow!

Just a few days ago, Emma took her first unassisted step. We were down in the basement, having our play time, and she let go of what she was holding on and took one step, and then decided she wanted to go on her knees and crawl. We were VERY excited! I've been predicting that she'll walk by Halloween for a while now.

Today when I picked her up from daycare, the caregiver said that she had walked from the door to the wall all by herself -- something like 5-6 feet! What?! Really?! I didn't believe it, but ok... maybe she did?

Well, tonight while we were in the basement, she took 6 unassisted steps in a row before deciding being on her knees was faster. I ran upstairs to get the camera and tried to capture it, but she wouldn't perform on command. :) Then the batteries died, and when Joe went upstairs to get new batteries, she did it again!! And then wouldn't do it again while the camera was on.

But it's very true... in the span of 4 days, little Miss Trouble has gone from just taking one step to taking multiple steps all by herself. She's growing up in front of our eyes. She's eating more and more solids, babbling more, making more solid poos, and her hair is growing long enough that it's curling around her ears and touching the lower part of her neck. Instead of a baby, I look at her and almost see a toddler.

Hopefully I'll get some pictures this weekend. We're heading out to go pick out pumpkins on Saturday, and then on Sunday we're all participating in the suicide prevention walk. OH-- and THANK YOU Cousin Debbie for the wonderful Halloween package that arrived in the mail yesterday! Emma had a great time opening everything (and trying to eat the paper).

More Fun Videos

Grandma and Grandpa Lewis brought Emma this fun walker that converts into a scooter. Last night we took it into the basement where there's more room, and this is what Emma did.