2 Feet Tall!

We had Emily's pediatrician appointment today and we are proud to say she is 2 feet tall! :) She weighed 12 lbs 8oz, so she's about to double her birth weight within probably the next week or so. And I was so excited to see her length improve- she went from the 5th percentile at her 2 month shot to the 25th percentile today. Thank goodness! I was getting worried for my short little muffin.

She had 3 injected vaccinations today and the oral rotateq as well, and hardly even cried. What a big girl! I was so proud of her.

Laughter IS The Best Medicine!

I caught Emily in a great mood tonight and she laughed up a storm! Sorry she is not in the center of the screen- you'll see at the end of the video that she stopped laughing as soon as she saw the camera! Click in the lower left side of the video below and enjoy!

3 Months Old!

Where does the time go? Miss Emily is now 3 months old and she is such a funny, happy baby. Paul and I marvel at her all the time. She's incredible! Here is a list of the things she can do:

- Focus on a face
- Respond to noises by quieting or startling
- Vocalize (she coos, gurgles a little, and sighs)
- Holds her head steady with very minimal assistance (really just when walking with her)
- Smiles in response to smiling or compliments (she loves compliments!)
- On her stomach, can lift her head 90 degrees
- On her stomach, she's beginning to raise her chest using her arms
- Grasp and hold toys briefly
- Say Please and Thank you (kidding!)
- Brings both hands together
- Can track an object with her eyes up, down, left, right, and in a circle
- Turns when her name is called
- Hold weight on her legs when standing up (supported)
- Is beginning to keep her head level with her body when sitting
- Sleep UNswaddled
- Sleep for up to 6 hours at a time (unfortunately, not on a regular basis!)
- Bats repeatedly at objects hung above her head
- Rides in her stroller like a big girl (in the stroller part, not the car seat)
- Added 2/3/07-- LAUGH! :)


Can you believe all these developments? It seems like just yesterday we brought that cuddly baby home who just wanted to look around, eat, or sleep.

We don't have an appointment this month, so I attempted to weigh her and measure her length. The approximate measurements are 23 inches long (thank heavens- I was getting worried!) and roughly 12 pounds. She's a growing girl!

Big Girl!

Emily is so much fun! I am loving staying home with her and all the things we do during the day and watching her grow. We had a few unseasonably warm days (70 degrees!) so she got to ride in her stroller like a big girl-- in the actual stroller, not in her car seat on top. I think she loved having the wind on her face and getting to see everything. Plus, she looked adorable in her sunhat! She also had her first play date with my neighbor's little girl, Martha. Martha is 7 months old today so they are very different right now, but it was hilarious watching them interact. She was so smiley with Martha, and Martha just wanted to eat Em's Bumbo seat. They spent a lot of time staring at each other...too cute!

The other night we were watching her play with her puppy gym and she was batting at the toys like crazy. Then she lifted her knees up to her chest....3 different times! This is great- she's exercising her ab muscles and, one day down the road, doing this will help her to find her little feet and toes!

She is "talking" so much to us. She talks a lot to herself, too, if no one is paying attention--it's so funny! She has a really cute voice and I love listening. I've gotten a couple videos of it but the files are too big to put up here- I'll work on finding a way to shrink them so you can hear her- it's adorable!

Tonight Paul was on call so we had a "photo shoot" in Em's room. I put the same pink polka dot hairbow in her hair (she wore it briefly in the hospital but we took it off because it was HUGE) and guess what...it's still too big! Maybe by her 6 month pics?

New Developments!

OK, we had some major developments here yesterday. Check in Emily's newest album for pics of her doing the most successful tummy time yet!

She is also blowing spit bubbles and is holding her head up incredibly well on her mat. She gets increasingly cuter by the day, and is smiling so much!

She abandoned the infant sling in her bathtub the other night as well. Paul had the idea to let her sit in it without the sling and I don't think we'll ever get her to go back. She loves being able to sit up and see her feet in the water. I put a rubber ducky in there last night and she liked watching him float around, too. She even smacked the water, although I don't think it was necessarily on purpose.

Today or tomorrow her Bumbo seat should arrive- I can't wait to sit her in it and let her experience sitting up without a lap!

Merry 1st Christmas, Emily!

Hello! We just celebrated Emily's first Christmas! She had a wonderful time (actually, she slept through a lot of it!) but she received tons of nice gifts which we appreciated very much. She certainly is a lucky girl! We remarked several times at how odd it felt to be in the "parent role" instead of the "kid role"- but we are so happy and so in love with our little girl, we couldn't imagine it any other way.

Emily turned 2 months old on December 21. Where does the time go? She is grasping objects and likes to self-soothe a little by sucking on her fist. She's even found her thumb a few times! She also "unfolded" herself and stretches out a lot now, making her look more like a big girl and less like our little baby. She is so alert and follows people and objects left, right, up and down. Also, she is being a bit more generous with the smiles, although the best time to get them is still when she first wakes up. They are so beautiful. I am continually trying to get one on camera, so keep checking back- it's bound to happen one of these days!


Merry Christmas, everyone!

Almost 8 weeks Old!

Hi everyone!
Sorry for the lapse in updates- things are busy busy busy here! Emily is fantastic- she has mastered the smile and it literally melts hearts and lights up rooms when she graces us with one. We are so proud of her! She is holding her head up well when she's on her tummy, and when she's being held straight up she has almost full control of it. She's working on making different sounds and is experimenting every day.

I suppose the biggest news in our house is the decision that we made for me to stay home with Emily, and not return to teaching this year. It was the result of lots of hours of discussion and many reasons- but we both really feel that this is what's best for us all at this time. I will miss my kids at school but am truly excited to spend these precious months with Em and watching her grow up...which she's doing FAR TOO quickly, I might add! Every day she is doing something new--it makes me wish there was a way to freeze her in this age so she'd be my baby forever.

We are super excited for our first holiday season with our princess. We're visiting Paul's family near Christmas and my family will be joining us on Christmas day. Christmas Eve will be spent just the 3 of us and we are going to start our own family traditions...it still seems so amazing that we have become parents and have a little one to celebrate the holidays with this year. I wonder what Santa will bring?

We've got a pediatrician appointment on Tuesday for her 2 month checkup (see what I mean about time going too quickly?) The visit includes some vaccinations so I told Paul he HAS to attend, to console both of his girls. =) I'll post an update on how much our little piggie weighs after the appt.

PS- Lots of people have asked what Emily "needs" for Christmas-- the answer is she doesn't "need" anything! However, I opened a wish list for her on amazon.com and picked out a ton of wonderful children's literature. Little Em is read to every day, so a book would make a fantastic gift. You can use this link to get to the list: http://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/P309FHQLMGEY Thanks for thinking of our little princess!