a little of this, a little of that

You never know what to expect in Ohio, and thank goodness I'm not talking politics....I'm talking WEATHER. I think it's quite possible to have (on occasion) every season in a matter of a week, but I was so happy we had the most beautiful autumn weekend. We loved being outside, and spending time with family.

I would post more pictures, but it took me forever just to load one...this is all I have the patience for right now!

halloween

We had a very happy halloween this year. Emma was the cutest little duck around. She only went to a handful of houses for trick or treating, but she was loving it. 

We also went to the stoddard avenue pumpkin glow, this was our first time going to the pumpkin glow, and it was amazing...over 700 jack-o-lanterns on a hill. There were so many amazing pumpkins, I wanted to take pictures of them all..and I may have tried, if my phone did not die on me!

sweet summertime

July has been one crazy month for us, and we are only 8 days in! While we didn't have any plans for the fourth of July, we were certainly hoping to make it a fun, midweek holiday, but our AC broke! Of course we have been breaking records with this crazy heat wave, so needless to say...it was HOT! We tried to make the most of it for the day (not wanting to pay extra holiday rates)...so we got frozen yogurt, went to the bookstore, sat in front of fans, but before too long, our house was pushing 90 degrees and that's just not cool...especially with a baby! Emma and I went to grammy and papa's house for the night, and we could not have been happier to have some friendly temperatures, but poor Ryan sweated it out. Thankfully, we were back up and running the next day, but it still took a little while for the house to cool down.

We have been wanting to go to the art museum, and today turned out to be a perfect time...it is too hot to do anything outside. We had such a nice time, it was busy but it's always nice to go and appreciate the exhibits and although Emma may be too young to fully appreciate it now, I hope it will become a frequent place to visit and inspire her creativity. On our way home, I told Ryan I wish the weekend would never end and it could somehow turn into groundhogs day so we could just keep this on repeat. Oh sigh, I'm pretty sure Monday will come, but I suppose it does make our weekends all the more sweet.

life lately

We are loving the summer and even though we wish we had a vacation in the works, we are still enjoying every minute. Emma is our little busy body now, crawling all over the place and wishing she could walk (but standing and 'cruising' on everything she can). Every single night Ryan and I talk about how awesome she is, and how much fun we are having with her, and as our family of three...(well, four including Riley).

the small things

Last week was rather exhausting to say the least...things have been busy and the nights have been long! On Tuesday, I discovered that Emma was finally cutting her first tooth! It was so exciting...her first tooth - this is big kid stuff! We did a little dance around the kitchen to celebrate and it seemed like only hours later that the celebration turned into "oh crap....she's really teething" - she then quickly came down with that ever typical teething cold and all the pain that comes along with it. Poor baby would wake up in the night and just cry. This lasted a few nights in a row, and on Saturday I saw another tooth coming through, both of her bottom teeth are making their debut! I hate to jinx it, but I think we might be through this round of teething pain. She seems to have turned a corner and is back to her happy little self...although she hasn't quite kicked the congestion (hopefully soon though).

Although we were lacking in the sleep department, we did have some fun. Emma is non-stop on the "dada" talk, it is so cute I don't even care that it isn't "mama" - and of course Ryan is eating it up! We also got to try the playground swings for the first time and she was loving it. I can't wait to go again, and it makes me look forward to all the new things we'll get to try...bubbles, swimming, bike rides, wheeeeeee! It really is the small things...

10 things

Never mind the fact that I haven't posted in ages...I go back and forth with how much (or little) I want to post, but I think I've settled on the idea that I don't mind blogging. Either way, my girl is growing - and growing fast! Emma is now 7 months, woah!  I've learned so much about being a mother, and I'm learning new things every day, but I've found these reoccurring things...

1. no matter how 'light' or fast I may try to walk, every floor board in our house will squeak 2. elmo has super powers 3. riley likes emma much more when she has puffs 4. no matter how much I plug "mama" it is looking like she is going to say "dada" more 5. i will do pretty much anything for giggles 6. water is way more fun to drink out of mom or dad's cup 7. naps are necessary, even for a nosey baby 8. there is no such thing as too many pictures 9. nothing is better than peeking in a room and seeing your husband and daughter playing together 10. it's the best job. ever.

tiny pony

Last night, Ryan and I watched a movie in bed and Emma had fallen asleep between the two of us...there are many times where we just stop doing whatever we are doing and stand in awe of her; our daughter, this beautiful baby that is ours (!!). We were sidetracked from the movie and Ryan said something about how he doesn't think this constant amazement will ever go away, how we will always take a minute and soak in a feeling that is bigger than us. I got to thinking about a blog post I read from Frank Chimero, when he went into an apple store and there was a tiny pony in the store, only no one was paying any attention to it...he couldn't get over the fact that there was a TINY PONY in the store and no one was looking or making any reference to it. He later began using the phrase 'tiny pony' with his friend about how "it is a thing that is exceptional that no one, for whatever reason, notices. Or, conversely, it is an exceptional thing that everyone notices, but quickly grows acclimated to despite the brilliance of it all." He talks about how maybe this is how we get by, otherwise none of us might get anything done if we were constantly enamored by something...sure, this isn't directly related to a child, but what I'm saying is, I don't ever think we should lose that moment of thankfulness, of feeling blessed to have a child, of feeling so full of love you don't even know what to do with yourself. I know there are going to be good days and bad, but no matter what there is love and it is amazing....

4 months

Hard to believe Emma is 4 months, well really, it's more like 4.5 months...can anyone else believe it's already mid-January? While I'm not a huge fan of Ohio winters, it is far less painful when you have a sweet baby girl to stay warm and cuddle with - makes everything better!

Next week Emma gets to meet her Uncle Kevin for the first time - we are looking forward to seeing him and celebrating his 30th birthday!

Here are some of my favorite pictures of the past week:

oh wednesday

Oh Wednesday, you're such a tease....you feel so close to the weekend, yet so far! We do love our weekends, here's a taste of our typical weekend

new year, new things

Well it's back to reality...back to work, but the time off was so nice and of course it went too quick. In the past few weeks we have had many new things happening - Emma now drools buckets, constantly! We go through so many bibs each day - she's the cutest little drooling machine.

She has rolled over a few times, she laughs and she is turning into a little chatty cathy, oh I love her and watching her learn new things each day.

I also got a new phone (insert screams of joy here!) - I discovered the droid was SO not for me, maybe I just had a bit of bad luck but I am so happy to be an owner of an iphone again...Emma was happy for me too because she gave me some great smiles when I was trying out my camera for the first time.

christmas!

We had a wonderful Christmas - it went by so fast, and we crashed Christmas night, but we couldn't have asked for more! I would say Emma's first Christmas was a huge success and she has been having the best time with all her new toys - it has made tummy time much more tolerable to have new entertainment. Emma still does not care for the camera, but she is constantly smiling and making my day.

here's looking at you, kid

I love vacation. This holiday week is shaping up to be quite lovely - we have been staying at home, making good food and hanging out....who could ask for more? The rest of the week is going to be busy, but we are looking forward to seeing family, friends and Emma's first Christmas!

More smiles and playtime are on the agenda...

my sunshine

I love this little lady! Even rainy days like today are so much brighter with this sweet face! My vacation starts tomorrow and I can't wait to spend more time playing with my baby. We are going to try and get some Christmas shopping done...so much to do on that front!

some holiday cheer

I've made it a goal of mine this past week to start putting together all the video we've taken since Emma was born. I've tried really hard to capture as many fun moments as possible: her first bath, her first bottle, halloween, first wedding she attended (shout out to Bethany and Reid!), Christmas decorating and more...enjoy!

another baby!

No...I'm NOT pregnant but our family has grown again! On Friday, my sister welcomed a beautiful baby girl into this world and Emma now has an instant friend (her age) to grow up with!

Baby Ava was born at 11:11 and weighed in at 7 pounds 12 ounces

Baby Ava

Emma seems like a giant next to Ava and she's only 3 months! It is amazing how much they grow in a few short months.

Ma, Ava, Emma and me :)

There is nothing better than family and knowing Emma gets to have so much love and support around her, and from all sides... it is the best feeling! It seems like yesterday that we were bringing Emma home and now she has a baby cousin.

You can tell she just loves the camera...not so much!

We can't wait to see Ava again, along with Ava's big sister, Maddie - she's going to be such a good big sister because she's already proven to be such a caring cousin to Emma...the picture doesn't do her sweetness justice but it does her silliness :)

All the excitement wore my little one out for the ride home!

12 weeks!!

Emma is 12 weeks today - it has been the best 12 weeks and it just keeps getting better. I took a picture of her yesterday before I got her out of her carseat, and I realized that I had taken the same picture, in the same outfit shortly after she was born...she has grown so much!

Some of her favorite things: her thumb (she really wants to be a thumb sucker but we're trying to avoid that habit), her bunny - she loves that it's fuzzy and likes to grab it, being wrapped up in a blanket when she's tired, getting to snuggle with mommy and daddy, her little birds that sit over her bouncer...she is in love with these little guys, moving her little feet around and kicking things.

I swear she knows exactly what a camera is - she could be smiling ear to ear and as soon as I get the camera out she stares at me like 'did you really think you could fool me?' - oh I love her!

just sitting around

Who is that baby sitting up like a big girl? Last week I was able to sneak in some vacation time and I pulled out the ol' bumbo chair, and wouldn't you know my little lady can sit up like a pro.

yay for the holidays

I am so happy that we have our sweet baby to enjoy all of the holidays. I feel like I have so much more holiday spirit than normal - a lot of it has to do with actually taking the time and slowing down to enjoy things, but more importantly sharing it with my little family. We have so much to be thankful for this year.

Here is her first halloween picture

We attempted to take some Christmas themed pictures yesterday but it turned out to be unsuccessful - not for the lack of a cute subject though! I did end up and get some cute pictures in our regular get-up 

two months

Emma turned 8 weeks on Wednesday and I'm not even sure where the time went - I can't believe my baby is two months old.

It is amazing to watch her little personality develop and see her discover new things each day. I am looking forward to the holiday season, although I'm really not quite ready for cold or snow.

Here are some pictures off my cell phone from October. I need to upload all the photos from my camera, especially the adorable halloween pictures!

one month update

Emma is five and a half weeks old, but I am just now getting to her official one month update...time is flying! Her doctor's appointment went well - my little girl is growing, her height is 21.5 inches and she weighed in at 9 pounds 11.5 ounces - the doctor joked and said she certainly isn't missing any of her meals. She is in the 55th percentile for both height and weight so she is proportionate except she got her mommy and daddy's slightly larger head.

Ryan had his first full week back at work and Emma and I have been on our own during the day - I love being with my little baby - she is so good and I love seeing her personality develop more and more. It is amazing how one little smile can make you feel like a million bucks.

At night, she is like clockwork and has been waking up pretty consistently every three to four hours to nurse (and a diaper change) and then she typically goes right back to sleep. I really can't complain about the night schedule although generally, I am not a happy camper without a lot of sleep, but I think I am managing surprisingly well (I think, but Ryan may have a different story). It probably helps that I go to bed obnoxiously early and I currently have the luxury of sleeping in too.

I am down to a little over two weeks left of maternity leave and I am going to soak up every minute of the relaxed life with my baby girl.