More??

We had an awesome Thanksgiving. Frank, Emma and I were able to stay in Austin and my parents visited for the holiday. We had a wonderful turkey dinner with family and friends and we were happy to spend four days together.

I learned a few things from Emma too. Apparently she knows some sign language and I wasn't aware. Thank you Brenda! She signed MORE to me more than once in the last few days. What a treat!

And today the new favorite is Ring Around the Rosie! Fain and Emma are all about falling down!

Happy Holiday Season!!

Emma Says

Emma said her first sentence today!! I dropped Emma off this morning for her day with Brenda and as Jenn was leaving the house she said to the kids "Have a good day" and Emma replied "Have a good day".

She has quite a vocabulary now and can communicate well....shoes, milk, walk, dog, cat, food. But today was the day she gave us a sentence.

Yeah Emma!

Happy Halloween!!

We had such a fun weekend! We started off celebrating Colson's bday yesterday with my family. We had a great time at Seven Acre Wood - petting animals, sliding, playing in the sand, eating cake and playing putt putt. It was Emma's first time with a golf club in her hand and she Frank had a ball.

Today after a long drive home, we quickly got into costume to make our rounds and after seeing Cassie we made our way over to the Berra's and the Mollo's. Emma and Fain had some fun. We were all enjoying giving out candy and seeing all the crazy costumes.

Emma got to trick or treat and enjoyed her very first lollipop...thanks to Ellie Berra. What a fun day for Minnie Mouse!!

Can you believe it is almost November????

I can't believe Halloween is next weekend and we are already making plans for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Emma is 22 months old now and is really fun and she seems to be enjoying herself.

She really wants to do as much for herself as possible and objects loudly when you try to help. This includes feeding herself. Gone are the days of a clean kitchen and she has master using the spoon but not quite enough for me. She has ditched the high chair and is now in a booster at the dining room table. It is incredible what a little person she is. She has a new favorite food..peanut butter. I may have already said that but she REALLY likes it. (she licks the plate and I am not kidding)

She LOVES after bath time and evading putting her pj's on. She seems to have finally taken to having a stuffed animal around, particularly for sleeping. She likes this little lamb that plays music and I think Frank has convinced her it is really nice to have a friend when sleeping.

She says kit kat when you say meow and she repeats most words she hears.

We spend lots of time outside lately and enjoy playing at the park. Emma officially slides down the big slide by herself. She would like to slide down the REALLY big slide but -- after protesting she can! do it alone - she sits on my lap and we make our way down.

Sweet Berry Farm

Last weekend we took Emma for a visit to Sweet Berry Farm. We had such a good time! The first thing Emma picked up was this cute little gourd and she dragged it around the entire farm. We got to do lots of fun things:

We picked out our pumpkin and saw scarecrows.
There were horses to ride, we just watched this year though.
There were goats to feed and pet.
We went on our first hayride too!

There were mazes and flowers and face painting! Thanks Michelle for a great idea and for getting us all together. Emma had fun with Fain and Erica and we will look forward to going back in the spring to pick berries!!

More Swimming

Check out these two videos. The first one is near the end of her swimming lessons and is of her swimming to the side. The second is here at home practicing. She LOVES the pool!! We are sad that the summer is winding down and pool weather will be gone soon.

One of the best things we have done so far is the swimming program. She would spend all afternoon in the pool if we let her. She walks around on the steps, lays on the float, swims and and plays with the fountain. She was playing last weekend and her foot slipped and she slid in the water and just started floating. No panic just hanging out until I rescued her. I have to say it is a huge load off my shoulders that she is so comfortable in the water.

Catching Up....

What is Emma up to....she is a very busy, very happy, very opinionated 20 month old. We have moved into the "tantrum" phase. I am crossing my fingers that we have waded through the worst of it and moved on to just loudly objecting when she doesn't want to do something.

She runs to the door when you say let's go....
She loves petting and chasing Nickie beagle around....and the shrieks prove it
When it is time to go ..... she says bye bye..... and blows you a kiss (this also happens a bedtime)

She loves going to gymboree and she loves spending her days with Fain. They are so cute together, especially when they pass food to share.

When she sees Frank she runs up to him, hugs his legs and says Da!

Emma is swimming!

Emma is finishing up a six week swimming class and I am so excited I had to share this. I enrolled her in ISR (infant swimming resource) which is for six weeks, ten minutes a day. I know it sounds crazy but it is an incredible program and I highly recommend it for any moms with little ones.

Emma can jump in the water, come to a float on her back and then turn over and swim. This may sound weird but the last few days, the instructor has the kiddos in the water in full clothes. Yesterday was summer wear and today was full winter clothes. Check out this awesome video! Emma is floating with long sleeves, pants, socks, shoes, winter coat and a regular diaper (can you say five lbs of water weight!)

Felix the super beagle!

Felix was my first baby! I still remember bringing him home the first night and he was as big as my hand. He had the best temperament and loved to give special kisses. He's been with me for a long time, he tolerated Nickie beagle and then called her sister. He welcomed Frank to our family and called him dad. He had to leave us last week after 14 years. We are sad and we miss him but we know we had a wonderful life together and he was loved.

A Visit with Grandma

It has been a busy month for us and a lot has been going on since our last post. Most fun was our visit to Madison, WI to see Frank's family and celebrate our nephew Alex's graduation. We made it through many inches of rain and the threat of tornadoes....and Emma enjoyed every minute. She had so much fun playing with Lily (grandma's dog) and visiting with her Aunties.

The fun came to a quick halt when a 630am flight (yes waking a toddler at 5am on purpose) started the day being delayed six hours! Needless to say it was not a very fun day. But we stuck it out and Emma did great!! Thanks to Finding Nemo.....

18 months old

We had our 18 month well checkup yesterday and Emma is doing great!

Ht - 32 1/2 inches (75% percentile)
Wt - 25 lbs 8 oz (65% percentile)

She continues to eat well and enjoys trying new things. She has added green beans to her acceptable foods list lately but eating them depends on her mood. Still top of the list are blueberries and cantaloupe.

We are looking forward to visiting the Eaves side of the family this coming week, we just need to survive the travel including the three hour layover in Chicago!

Firsts and Favorites!

Emma is growing and changing like crazy. All of a sudden she is a little girl and not a baby! Today we went to our friend Tally's 2nd birthday party and had a couple of firsts....

1. First time in a bouncy castle... she really enjoyed it after she made it through the opening (thanks to Annabelle!!)
2. First time to pet a donkey and a goat
3. First sno-cone!

Needless to say there was quite a bit of crying when it was time to leave!

Other updates about Emma....she now has 10 teeth including two molars. She knows what "cheese" means and will now smile for the camera. She is very into books and we read every night but she is now into choosing the book. She is very interested in how things turn on and off and practices any chance she gets.

Breaking news....she knows how to turn the know and open the door. Not good! :)

This week coming up is our 18 month checkup and new pictures. The week after that we are off to WI to visit grandma and aunts, uncles and cousins!

Our Little Lounger

We are really enjoying the summer and the pool weather! The first time we took Emma in the water she would not get in the float or even let go of me. The next time she was a lot more relaxed and enjoyed floating and in particular likes the waterfall and putting her hand through to the other side.

Now...a few weeks later....she is jumping in from the side. Our next stop is swim lessons....

Check out Emma in her after swim attire!

Happy Father's Day!!

We had a terrific day yesterday celebrating our wonderful daddy! Emma and I made pancakes for Frank to kick off a great fun day. The end of the day was spent in the pool and Emma is definitely enjoying herself. By the end of the summer she will probably be jumping in....

Happy Father's Day to my dad, Frank and all the wonderful dads we are lucky to know!

And our first fat lip!

Smile :)

Faucet Fun!

Enjoying her bathtime!

An excellent weekend!!!

Three Cousins
Two Saturday outings - The Austin Zoo and The Children's Museum
One excellent weekend!

Beth, Colson and Caleb came for a visit this weekend and we had lots of fun!
Emma loves being chased and her cousin Caleb certainly indulged her. Lots of games of tag were played! On Saturday we got up and headed to the Austin zoo. It really isn't a zoo so much as an animal sanctuary but we saw tigers, lions and even a bear so it was well worth it. Caleb enjoyed feeding the goats and llamas and we took a train ride too.

Peek a boo

What has Emma been up to lately? Well she is turning into a little girl before our eyes. She runs, swims and definitely has an opinion on most things. I think Fain taught her how to shake her head no. I promise I saw him do it first (jk Jen!)

She has added a word to her vocabulary...kick. She knows what it means and how to say kick and ball. It is very cute to watch her run across the room and kick the ball.

She really cracks herself up with peek a boo too! Check out the pics from one night at dinner this week.

Say Cheese

She's putting on a show!!

I am so very behind but I wanted to share a video and post a couple of pictures. The world of Emma lately consists of talking, walking and running. She is also venturing into the world of letting you know when she doesn't like something.

In the video you can see her crazy little self running around, she has begun to run and dive on to the dog's bed and thinks that is hysterical.

The best thing she has learned lately is that she knows what a hug is and there is nothing better than her walking up to you with her arms outstretched!

Here she comes

More walking from Emma! And of course she has some paperwork to file too!

Ahhhhh......

It has been a few weeks since my last update and even though we have had a lot going on I wanted to post this super sweet video of Emma. Lately she has started to say Ahhhhhh after she takes a long drink. So cute!

I will post a separate video of Emma walking too but she is really getting the hang of it. She had such a fun time this last weekend, Grandma was visiting and helped us set up a sandbox and plant lots of pretty flowers.

More blog posts plus pictures to come soon!

Walking Emma

Last weekend I was finally able to get her on video taking a few steps. Since then she has "stepped" it up and is walking all around. I must admit I am happy the time has come but I sure did enjoy that she didn't walk until 14 months old. Now on to the major baby proofing......

Happy Birthday to Fain

Today was Fain's first birthday party! We are all very sad we didn't get to join in the celebrattion but Emma has had a cold for a few days so our focus is getting better. Thank you to Jennifer for the fun goodie bag though, Emma made a very happy flower this afternoon so I thought I would share.
Happy Spring!

Emma is officially walking....

Frank and I have yet to see her or get it on video but Brenda assures me she was walking all around yesterday afternoon. I will get proof and post it soon!!

One step at a time

Last week at Fain's when I came to pick up Emma Wednesday, Brenda tells me Emma took a step. Fain had taken something from her and she stepped toward him to take it back before she fell. Nice! but I missed it. She is cruising everywhere and holds her weight but she is a cautious little girl and it is easier to sit and crawl than to take that chance.

This weekend though, Emma met her match in Aunt Beth. Emma and I went to visit my family and lucky me she did it again. This time two steps from Beth to me - yeah! If only I could have gotten it on video to show daddy! We are on our way!!

my buddy Luke

Bye Bye Bye

Yesterday morning, Emma put the wave together with the bye bye! (Lucky Jennifer!)

We persuaded her to record it tonight....it doesn't matter that she was eating pizza at the same time and not really going anywhere!!

Laughter is contagious

This is too funny not to share. I hope you get a giggle from it just like we did.

Snow Day

When Frank and I picked Emma up today from Fain's house, she was sitting quietly in the chair thinking. We scooped her up and all went home to check out the snow. We are having a crazy winter for Texas and for us we had a remarkable snow today - steady most of the day and the snowflakes were huge.

We took Emma out on the back deck and she smiled up at the snowflakes but when you gave her the chance to touch it, she wasn't entirely sure nor inquisitive. She pretty much said, thanks for showing me but I am cold can we please go back inside :)

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.....

We hope you enjoyed your dinner as much as Emma did!

Happy Valentine's Day

I decided it’s about time I write something for the blog and after a day like today - it had to be today.

As we all know, Valentine's Day comes with plenty of preconceived notions of what today is supposed to mean. Needless to say, those notions change as you get older. Today is a perfect example as my day started with strawberries and homemade pancakes which Emma just devours making “yum yum” sounds with every bite she takes. Then I was able to fit in a nap.

This afternoon we played in the ball pit downstairs and I got to watch Emma help Mommy by folding her laundry (Emma just LOVES playing with laundry). Then we watched Snow White on DVD and Emma curled up on my lap in the recliner holding my hand with both of hers.

Dinner was one of my favorite Czech meals of pork roast and dumplings, and once again listening to Emma say “yum yum” with every bite (of dumpling, she didn't really like the pork).

We finished off the day giving Emma a bath, which consists of about 2 minutes of washing and 28 minutes of playing, then putting her to bed.

I’ve read a lot of Hallmark cards in my years and none can come close to expressing the love and joy of a Valentine’s Day like today.

To my wonderful wife and daughter, I love you both very much and thank you for a wonderful Valentine’s Day! XOX
Frank

Super Bowl Sunday

and Emma convinced Frank to watch Ice Age for a few minutes. I don't know about you but I think daddy is wrapped around her little finger....

A fish chip off the old block

Today for lunch I introduced Emma to fishsticks. First of all, she loved them (as she does most new foods) - yeah! Second, and more importantly, she likes my dipping sauce.

This is particularly nostalgic for me because one of my early memories is of watching Friday night TV with my mom in my parents bed and having fishsticks....dipped in a mix of mustard and mayo. Yummy! And special mom time...love you nana!

Measuring Up

Earlier this week Emma went for her one year checkup. Dr. Jones was happy to hear she is cruising around, clapping her hands and saying mama! She also asked what types of foods Emma is eating. We went through the extensive (and quite impressive) list which includes pancakes, fruits, pizza and more. Her shock came only when she realized Emma has broken through only one tooth!!

Her report card:
Height 29" (50% percentile)
Weight 20 lbs 12 ozs (45% percentile)

She also handled her shots very well and thankfully, we don't go back until 18 months. Emma is happy to hear that....

Happy Birthday!!

Thanks to our family and friends for helping Emma celebrate her first birthday! She certainly enjoyed eating cake!

A future model?

Today we went to have Emma's one year pictures made and she did a great job! She even made the wall at the photography studio. They asked us to to sign a release for their display so if you live in Austin and you find yourself in Barton Creek mall, check her out at the Picture People. The rest of the pictures turned out just as great and I will post them to flickr soon but I wanted to share the one that just might make her famous. :)

Taking a walk with my buddy Fain!

Jennifer snapped this photo of Emma and Fain about to go for a walk yesterday!

Ch..Ch..Ch...Changes

This video is from September but it is the very first time that Emma crawled so I wanted to share it. Crawling is on my mind lately as she has started pulling herself up to standing and is working towards cruising and walking. On Thursday at Fain's house (where she plays during the day while mommy is at work), she crawled over to the chair, climbed in and sat down. Just sat there... like a little girl. To get down she leaned forward onto her hands and just crawled down head first. I wish I could have seen her! She is growing up so fast!

Another new thing this week - her first tooth has broken through. I will post a picture as soon as it will show up in a snap, maybe it will make it in time for her first birthday!

Finally!

I will be honest and admit that starting this blog was on our "five year goals" list...in 2003! Before we were married, Frank and I made our list of goals, and setting up a blog to communicate about our life together was one of them. Most of that first set of goals we completed or we at least made some progress. This one not so much.

In July 2008 when that first five year block was coming to an end we reviewed our goal list. Realizing the blog just wasn't going to happen on time, we reset the goal. This time it would be easy.... we were pregnant with Emma and we needed to have something in place BEFORE she was born, we would surely make it. Well, um....not so much.

So now here we are staring down her first birthday and I can't believe how fast the time has gone by. She is not a baby anymore but turning into a beautiful little girl right before our eyes. She is crawling but not walking. She is eating just about anything you give her but doing so without any teeth. She is talking like crazy and we are pretty sure she knows mama AND says it on purpose. She loves dogs (especially the beagles) and laughs whenever she hears a bark.

My new goal is to update with a post at least once a week. I think I can do it! Hopefully the saying is true....better late than never!
Love,
Nikki