We have a walker

Yes, I am way way late on posting this. I kept meaning to post the video to YouTube so that I could then put it on here... but I kept forgetting. So here it is:

Emma had been taking some small steps for a while. Like "Step Step Fall." Then she got up to "Step Step Step Fall." We were all excited when we got up to "Step Step Step Step....Step Fall." HAHAH

But then the magical day of May 23rd happened. She was playing in the kitchen. Just standing and playing with my dish towels. Suddenly I looked and she was walking. And still walking. And then walking some more! She walked from our kitchen to the living room without stopping!! I consider that to be the day she really started walking. Because that is the day our lives really changed. Now we have to be on uber-alert because she is on the MOVE!

So here you go. Here is some fun video of the day Emma became an official and bona fide walker!

My Mother's Day!

I'm just a few days late with this. Pretty good if you ask me!

Anyways, Mother's Day started off in the most memorable of ways. The night before I just could NOT get Emma to go to sleep. We went down around 10 and at 10:30 Emma was up screaming. I changed her diaper and tried everything I could think of. Nothing worked. After 2 hours (yes TWO HOURS!) of trying to get her to sleep to no avail, we finally figure out a new "technique" to get her to sleep. She slept great the rest of the night; Daddy & I--not so much! haha

It seemed like just minutes later her daddy was waking me up saying he had to go meet his dad so I needed to get up with the baby. I was scared it was already like 8am because we had a full day ahead of us and I needed every minute to get ready for the day. I hopped up and that's when I realized something was "off." He had this huge grin on his face and was leading me to the kitchen. There, sitting on our counter, was a huge stack of pancakes and my iced tea just the way I like it!!!
   **Side Story: Every Sunday I have tried to make pancakes for us as a family and it never happens. Either her daddy has to help someone out, or we don't have syrup...SOMETHING! 
But this time, this time I got to have my Sunday pancakes!! And they were delicious! Everything was perfect. I even had a dozen yellow roses and a B&N gift card. My "daughter" already knows me so well!! haha

After that I had to get Emma ready for her busy day. Diaper bag packed. Car loaded up. Emma dressed up. Me dressed up. Extra "nice clothes" for both of us for when Emma decided she no longer liked what we were wearing (aka: spilled something on herself or me, spit up on me, wiped guk on me, etc). Mother's Day bags ready for Mamaw (my mom) & Nonna (her dad's mom). Then we made our rounds! haha

We had brunch at a really nice place... a golf course. The food was really good. I ate way too much sausage gravy & biscuits and bacon! Emma even enjoyed he eggs, biscuits & gravy, hashbrowns... my girl can EAT! After brunch we went to hang out with Nonna and her family for a while.

Towards the end of the night we went to Mamaw's for dinner. We were celebrating my mom's birthday that night too. It was a lot of fun! Emma entertained everyone. We had rotisserie chicken my stepdad made, salad I made, and my sister's "famous" ranch potatoes. It got really late on us pretty fast though. Not sure if that was due to the lack of sleep or if Emma just was wore out from her busy day! Either way, we were home and asleep by 9pm! haha

I must say. Mother's Day was as perfect as it could have been. I had the best wake up. Got to enjoy both of my families. And I got to share my Emma with people who love her. There's nothing a mother could ask for than to see her baby receive so much love. That might have been the best gift of all!

Catching Up

I know it's been awhile. The thing is, it's getting harder and harder to find the energy to up-date this blog as often. Not just because I am constantly chasing after my toddling 10 month old (YIKES!). No, mostly it's because one of my biggest reasons for keep this blog was so my Pappy could stay up-to-date on Emma. He and my Grammy lived so far away and couldn't get out here much, so I thought having this blog would allow them to keep up with her fun stories and new activities. Now that he's gone, a huge gust of wind has blown my sail right over, toppling me, making me struggle to even view this blog. When I open up my internet, I have 5 "home pages" automatically pop up. This is one of them. Each time is a reminder Pappy isn't here for me to share my stories with anymore. I'd have the whole post mentally prepped out in my mind of what I'm going to write, open the internet, see that tab at the top, and stop. I couldn't force myself to actually click on it to start the post.

Today, when I feel the worst I have felt in as long as I can remember (fever, migraine, sore throat, dizzy, whole body feels like it is shutting down), today is the day I decide to actually bring everyone up to date! haha So here are some fun new moments with Emma.

• She is talking, like a lot! I can never remember what I've already said so here is a list of her vocabulary to date: Mama (more often than not I get called "Mum" though!), Dada, no, uh-oh, again, more, mamaw & nonna, baba, num-num. 
• She knows who people are. She knows I am "Mum," her daddy is "dada," my mom is "mamaw" and her daddy's mom is "nonna." On Easter, her daddy came into her room to get her from her crib. She was playing happily in her crib when she looked up at him and said "OH! Hi Da!" She puts actual sentences together!!
• When I ask if she is hungry she will smack her lips together or start chanting "Num num. Num num." She also knows when the microwave goes off, it more than likely is her bottle and she starts flapping her arms and shrieking.
• She is a speed demon crawler. She can get anywhere now and wants to get there quickly!
• She climbs the stairs. Remind me to thank whomever taught her to do that. Sheesh!
• She is trying to walk. The most she has taken is two consecutive steps. Then she freezes because we are all excited and holding our breath. She gets nervous, plops down, laughs, and then starts crawling to wherever it was she wanted to go. The only bad thing about this whole "trying to walk" thing is she is constantly falling down and bumping her butt on things. She is a little daredevil though and doesn't seem to care. Sometimes she cries, but only because she thinks we will pick her up.
• She throws the ball to where she wants it to go. She picks it up, aims, and throws. Like to a person. Today for example, she aimed right for me and hit me 4 out of 5 times. (The time she missed was because we were all laughing so hard, she started laughing and when she went to throw it her other hand hit it.) I think it was John Cusak in the movie Martian Child where he said "The Professional Baseball players just have to hit 3 out of 10. And if they do just a little better, just a tiny bit better, than they are superstars." Well, I guess my girl is a SUPERSTAR!!! 
• She is such a girly girl. She loves her doll. See, before Christmas, her Nonna and I were at my favorite store and walking down the toy aisle. Emma has NEVER before (and never since) actively reached for a toy I hadn't put in front of her. But that day she saw this little dolly and she was freaking out. So of course we got it for her. She has gotten a few other dolls since then, but she always wants this doll. She goes looking for it in her toy bins in the living room.  
• She also loves stuffed animals. She has a little seahorse that stays in her crib overnight. The other morning, I got her out of her crib and she was clutching her seahorse. I changed her diaper and then went to take her downstairs to play. She still had the seahorse! She gets in these "moods" kind of where she wants a specific toy and that's it.
• Sophia the First. That is her favorite thing right now. I can't believe it since she is only 10 months old, but this girl has chosen Princess Sophia as her favorite thing right now. She has a little doll, some jammies, all kinds of things. I even went ahead and bought her a Princess Sophia Halloween basket. It's really a little Easter basket, but it was on sale for $3 in the after-Easter clearance. 
• She hides things now. We have to be super careful about what we put down and where because she will "clean up" for us. She has hidden her daddy's cell phone in her bouncy ball dino game. She has also hidden his PS4 remotes in there! Then there are our TV and other remotes. She plays with those and then "puts them away" but she doesn't put them away where they are easy to find!! She is a lot like me in that she likes to "clean up." 
• We recently got a shelving system with plastic tubs for her toys. Now she is able to see almost all her toys and decide for herself what she wants to play with. We also have the rubber floor puzzle pieces as a playmat in the living room. So now she will go, grab a toy, and take it back to the mat to play with it! I have taught her well!!!
• She shakes her head No. 
• She waves hi and bye on command. Her doctor told me she is actually really advanced in that regard. They told me usually babies wave just because they have learned how. They don't normally understand "bye bye" and wave on command until almost 15 months.
• She dances!! When she learned to stand on her own, she also learned she could dance!! She kind of looks like a mix between Elvis and a bird! She pulls her shoulders back, cocks her elbows, pulls her arms back and bounces. Sometimes she puts one arm above her head and bounces. Sometimes she squats a little, sticks one leg in front of her, and bounces that way. 
• She loves the Talking Tomcat app. Every time I  click on it, she smiles really big and starts laughing. She is such a whiz with the phone in general!

Okay, that is it for now. Maybe I'll get back into this sooner rather than later. But it really is hard. It's hard to know these stories aren't going to be read by so many people who loved us and waited so long to meet Emma. People who wanted her as much as I did. I'll get better. I know it. It's just a LOT harder than I thought it would be.

Emma's 9 Month Pics

Emma's 9 Month/ Easter/ Spring pictures. She was such a good girl. Such a BIG girl!! It was such a hassle dealing with the company we went through, but at least we have some cute pictures to take away with us. I think that has more to do with my adorable daughter than the skill level of the photographer, but oh well!!

 

Milestones--they just keep coming!

Emma is doing so much now. I can't believe we are about to hit 9 months tomorrow.  NINE MONTHS?!?!? There's no way. But there it is.

Her vocabulary is getting so big!! She now says: "Mama", "Dada", "num-num", "Ba" (bottle), "Uh-oh", "Moh" (more), and "Whoa!" Her favorite right now is "Whoa!" She says it when she pulls herself up, when she gets her toy, when she plops on her butt after standing on her own for a while.

Not only does she *say* Mama and Dada, but I think she honestly knows what they mean. For instance, every morning I hear "Mama. Mama." coming from her monitor. That's because I am usually the one to go get her from her crib. But when she wants to play it's "Dada. Dada" because he gets to play with her more. Last night she was "walking" (holding onto the couch as she went back and forth) between me and her daddy. When she got to him, she'd say "Dada" and he would pick her up and play. Then she'd try to crawl over him, he'd set her down, she'd walk over to me, and say "Mama" until I picked her up. So I think she gets it.

In case you missed it: Yes. Emma is trying to walk now! She easily lifts herself up by pulling herself using couches or tables. Then she holds onto them and walks around. Or she will hold our hands and walk that way. I am in awe every time I see her do this. Mainly because the "most recent" reference I have is when we went to her dad's great-granny's birthday back in January. There was a one year old there who was just starting to do these things. So it seems like Emma is a whole 3 months ahead of schedule!!!

I can't believe  how big my baby is getting. She is such a little girl. She loves girly-princess things. She likes to dance and "sing." She loves Luke Bryan & Elvis, too!!

We took Spring/Easter/9 Month pics yesterday. I'll post some of those next.

Seriously God? Just stop now

I'm done. I can't take anymore losses. In Emma's VERY short life, she has lost so many people already. At two and a half months she lost 2 great-grandmas. My Mamaw Pearl and her Daddy's stepdad's mom. This past January she lost her great-grandpa Stan. And today she lost her great-grandpa: my Pappy.

This morning started out so good too! That's what is surreal. I mean, we woke up. I made her Daddy a full breakfast of oatmeal and eggs; normally he gets oatmeal and a protein shake because we are strapped for time. I packed his lunch. Then we got to sit and talk for about 20 minutes before he left. Right as he was about to leave, Emma woke up. I brought her down and she saw her Daddy and started flailing her arms and laughing, and had the biggest smile ever. She gave him the biggest hug and laid her head on his chest. When I went to take her so he could leave, she started bawling and clutching at him. It was the cutest sight ever.

Anyways, fast forward 45 minutes. I get a text from my dad telling me to call him ASAP. Honestly, I know when I saw "Text Message: Dad" pop up on the screen. I prayed I was wrong, but I knew. Then I called... and he could barely choke out the words. I broke down immediately. I just kept saying "But I talked to him two days ago. I talked to him two days ago!"

See, Wednesday night I was getting dinner and called my Grammy and talked to her. At the end of the call she said my Pappy wanted to talk to me. He asked when we were going to come see him. I told him with my new job I was going to have to work out the schedule with my boss and Emma's daddy was going to have to take his vacation days, but we were planning on going to see them next month--when the weather got nicer. He said that would be nice. Then he told  me a few stories (he was such a story-teller) and we ended the call. I went home that night and told Emma's Daddy we needed to start thinking about taking that trip next month.

Too Late.
Always too late.

I'm so mad. I can't help it. I'm mad at God for taking all these people away from my daughter. With all the terrible, horrible, good for nothings out there---WHY TAKE THESE PEOPLE???? These were good people. People who loved their families. People who made us laugh and smile and want to go see them again.

I'm so MAD!! I'm mad that Emma will NEVER get to make memories with these people. Am I sad for myself? Of course. I'm human and selfish. BUT. I am so sad and mad and frustrated for my daughter. She will NEVER EVER have memories with these amazing people. At least I have memories with them. Why take that chance away from her???


***
If there is one good thing to be taken from this, it's: At least Emma got to spend some time with each of these people before they left us. She saw each of them once. Only once. But at least I will have the memories of each of those visits. Memories and stories to share with her as she grows.

"Dada," "Mama," and so much more

When Emma was born, everyone always said how fast time would fly and how she would be doing this or that before I knew it. At first that wasn't really the case. I mean, she rolled from belly to back pretty fast, but I honestly feel like I was able to savor all those moments with her. They were spread out pretty well. Now though, it's like we hit a new milestone everyday!

• She's Talking! Her first word was "Dada." Of course this was after a very long night where Mommy was up with her the entire night. haha Now she not only babbles and "gaga's" but she will throw in real words. She even said her first sentence: "Mama...numnum." Hungry? haha

• She has this little "trick" that she learned. At first we would put our hands over our mouths and make the "Whoo-whoo" sound like little Indians. This cracked her up. Then her Daddy showed her she could do it herself. She is so proud of herself whenever she does it. And she will just randomly start doing it and will keep on for EVER!

• She is crawling up a storm! She started crawling one day right after I started working. Now she is a monster ARMY crawler. She is fast and determined.

  

• She is eating "big people" food. She loves when we go to Target and get a pretzel to split. She gets a scrambled egg for breakfast. She gets a little "baby bagel" sometimes. She gets softened/cooked carrots, chicken, tortillas.... We are trying her out on everything a little at a time.
• I mentioned that Emma is crawling. I guess I should also mention she is trying to WALK!! One day I was at home with her and we were playing around. She had received a Sit-To-Stand Walker for Christmas, so I stood her up and put her hands on it. She stood there just upright and like a big girl for a while. Then she tried to take a step and fell. (I caught her; it's ok! lol) That same night, her Daddy did the same thing. Only this time she started walking no problem!! 

After that, she learned that she can pull herself up with the couch.  Now she can "walk" around the couch while holding on. I kind of always figured she wouldn't be much of a crawler and go right to walking. Looks like I was right!

I think that's about it for now. I kept meaning to finish this post but there's just always something going on nowadays. With work and Emma and everything else, our days are full!! Anyways. Time to wrap this up! Have a great day!