three months

baby emmie is three months old.  yay itty bitty, you're getting so big!  here's what's going on with your little self.

you are a very happy baby almost all the time.  your smiles are absolutely awesome.  sometimes you have little mischievous grins and sometimes giant, open-mouth, toothless cheeser smiles!  you smile at me and your poppa nearly anytime we come near you or talk to you.  it is so fun to see you respond to things.  you also still smile at your headbands [aka your friends] and when you're pulling on your blankets.  you like people most of the time and smile at your family and honorary aunties and uncles.

i think you're still the most smile-y when i come get you out of your crib.  you've got smiles for days!

you no longer have a witching hour, hallelujah!  you now only have a few crying fits a day right before your naps.  you fight sleep at your naps and that makes momma sad.  you throw a little baby tantrum [arched back, kicking legs].  its a little comical because you'll be dramatically screaming one second and then sound asleep, limp doll the next.

[this is my warning face]

[full blown baby-fit]

you talk a lot now.  lots of ooh's and aah's and squeaks.  you talk the most lying on your changing table and whenever you're around your dad.  you like to mimic what your poppa says - it's awesome.  when you're really on a roll i try and whip out my phone in time to record it and send some love to poppa at work.  we've heard you laugh out loud twice now, instead of just the big gasp.  it was precious and we loved it.  i can't wait until you have a real little giggle and we can spend our days making you laugh.

you try and sit up now.  you use your tiny little ab muscles and work so hard to be upright.  if you hold one finger in each hand you can sit right up.  you're like a tiny person.  well i mean, i know you are a tiny person but it's like you're a mini-adult shrunk into an itty bitty body.  you're doing a great job and holding your head up with much less wobble and sometimes do things to practice your one-day crawl.

you're still working on your rolls and chins [working on = keeping 'em i mean].  sometimes poppa says you have rolls on your rolls.  if i lay you on your back after you're done eating your belly is kind of unreal.

favorite activities include being a blanket monster where i cover you up in blankets and you pull and scrunch it up for large chunks of time.  you try and eat your covers.  you play some version of peek-a-boo by yourself.  

you also love kicking your legs and flailing your arms still.  you get a baby workout.

you like to arch your back now, when you're happy and unhappy.  you still roll from your belly to your back but haven't yet mastered rolling from your back to your belly.  i think you're getting close though.  today i saw you get halfway but then you wussed out and just kicked your legs some more.  you're very curious and love to look around when you hear new noises or hear people talking.  you watch us as we walk around the house.

you're still sleeping like a champ through the night, usually from around 10:30pm until 8am.  i'd like to cut out that last feeding and get you to bed at 8pm or so but just don't do so hot falling asleep right then.  you also sleep in between each feeding for at least 45 minutes.  sometimes more if you'll fall back asleep when you stir.  

i hear at three or four months your naps start getting more consistent and should develop into longer naps.  i'm trying to figure out how to help you do that.  i've been good about getting you in your crib for your first morning nap because you're still so sleepy but i'm not that awesome at it for the rest of the day.  i feel like when i can get you to sleep for those big chunks i'll learn to be much more productive around this place!  ay ay ay stay at home mommy-hood!

the only other things i can think of is that you're trying so hard to suck your thumb but you just cannot figure it out.  you'll get your whole fist up there but your thumb is tucked inside your fist.  i hope you figure it out soon.

last but not least, i've been reading your Jesus storybook bible to you before bed and sometimes before naps.  the fact that you're getting to hear God's word even as a tiny bean gives me such joy.  it's written for littles and it is awesome.  every story points to jesus coming to rescue His people, even from page 1.  it even shows scripture that points to a coming messiah that i had never thought about.  the other night we were reading about noah and the flood.  it's a sad story but at the end it talks about God putting a bow, like a warrior's bow in the sky [a rainbow] as a promise that he'd never do that again - you smiled in your sleep in my arms.  it was so sweet.

baby emmie-

it's cold outside now.  it's your first cold weather!  your first fall!  how fun that this year will be full of many, many first's for you.  i know you can't really understand what lots of those first's are about but it's still fun for us as your parents to see you squirm when you feel wind outside or know that you have a baby pumpkin on the front porch, a mini, just like you.  when it stops raining i'm going to sit you in the gorgeous red and yellow leaves in our front yard and see what happens.  you're beautiful and already have such personality.  we love your little squirmy worm self.  every night i pray that God would form your little heart to know Him deeply and that you'd grow to be a young lady that loves people wholeheartedly with compassion and generosity.

other pictures we love <3 br="br">