nine months

i'm about three weeks late on this so i'm thankful that i've jotted down some notes to jog my memory.  you're actually almost ten months old now but we'll pretend you're not yet.  please?  nine whole months.  em, you've now been out in the world as long as you were in my belly.  it's a little unbelievable.  here's an update on life with an emmie bear.

this little heart skirt is one of my favorite items of clothing you own

one week into april you had 3 tiny teeth.  they were mostly nubbins, precious little crooked nubbins.  i think this is one of those 'oh crap you're growing up' things for me.  teeth?  itty bitties don't have teeth.  sigh.

you love to raise your hands high above your head.  i think you're grandparents taught you the game 'so big' and you are a big fan.  one of my favorite things about littles is that their little arms hardly reach above their heads.  baby proportions - perfection.

you can reach over your crib now.  you kind of jump on your bed when i come to pick you up in the morning or after naps, all smiley.  you also teeth up a storm unfortunately and your face gets covered in paint.  i figure it can't be that good for you but i also figure you can't be the only baby doing it - so you're prob ok.

over spring break you started having fake laugh battles with your poppa.  you have no idea how much this verifies that you belong in our family.  baby giggles make the world go 'round i'm pretty sure.  i tried to video you all playing because i'd like to bottle it up forever but you hate to perform, nearly impossible to film.  i try not to miss a single second of it.

just recently you started 'playing' more, initiating & participating when we play with you.  when benny nuzzles and kisses, he makes you giggle, then you'll lean away for a second and then come back for more.  oh my gosh melt my heart that you can actually play with us.  nothing but fun from here on out.

you love to mimic and imitate.  you imitate noises mostly and hand motions, facial expressions etc.  you even raise your eyebrows back and forth with us. 

no donuts were harmed in the making of this picture

you've tried a little bit of plain rice, crackers & the food in the pouches.  we love introducing you to new food.  there is literally nothing that she has turned down.  love that you're not picky.  it is going to be really fun to learn how to feed you.  i'm hoping that it helps our family to eat better & try new things as you do.

this month you had your first family vacation.  it was a beach trip and you were awesome & precious.  it wasn't the world's most relaxing or exciting beach trip but it was certainly sweet.  i would trade the long car ride but never seeing you in a ruffly bathing suit.  you are just too adorable.

baby bean,

you bring so much joy to me and your poppa.  something i especially love about you is your ability to make people smile.  even strangers notice how sweet you are & they smile ear to ear.  even when you have your stoic face on, the cheeks still do the trick.  you can say momma and da.  that warms our hearts.  we're yours.  you're sweet & a little sassy.  your personality is growing and growing as well as your tiny little body - you're soooo tall.  i like to squeeze your pudgy little twinkle toes and sing to you before you go to bed.  we're so blessed to have you as our daughter & we pray daily that God will help us love you well & teach us how to show you Jesus.

sweetest bean i've ever seen

week of firsts

It seems like little em has had quite a few 'firsts' the first week of may and I was worried if I didn't go ahead and jot them down I may never remember the newness of this exciting week. (Assuming you find baby milestones exciting haha!)

On derby day little emmie collins stood all by herself. she did the halfway stand leaning over granna stephanie's legs and then took the full upright stance with no hands. Her arms were straight ip in the air and i think she may have been on her tip toes a little. out whole family was staring at her so our gasps and squeals scared her a little. she quickly sat back down but for a few moments...yes ma'am she certainly had her legs under her. She's getting really strong, more balanced and less timid as she moves from crutch to crutch. I don't think it will be much longer before standing alone is no big thing and walking will be on the horizon I'm sure.

She started eating lots of table food. The dr said she was good to go so we're going for it. LOTS of fruit, veggies, toast, etc. we love to watch her try new things and especially love seeing her learn how to use her pudgy little fingers & coordinating those little movements with her mouth. Things we never think about for ourselves are nearly a phenomenon when a baby does it.

Em started on formula for the first time. I think if we're blessed with more babies I'll be more open to using formula even if it is just for me to pump & build up supply in the future. I wasn't 'anti' formula necessarily but if I didn't have milk stored I would make an extra time I pump at night, I never had a break where it wasn't out of complete necessity and I think that made nursing a little less enjoyable for me. Em has taken right to a bottle and formula. Grandma carol feed emmie her first formula bottle and all my momma nerves proved to be ridiculous and unneeded. She was a pro from the start.

When I change emmie's diaper she sometimes is unruly, to put it mildly. I started making her kick her little legs while she's on her back and I tell her 'hi ya!' When she kicks. This week she said 'hi ya!' herself. Ahhhhh so awesome! Little karate kid. My bean.

This week we started brushing her baby teeth. We should have started before we did but since it wasn't in our bedtime routine before I've struggled to add it in, I gotta get better to protect those pearly whites!