The Byrd Nest

Christmas 2011

2012-01-09T20:48:00.002-05:00

I know its a bit late to be posting Christmas pics but I finally downloading from my camera & I had to share.

We had Christmas Eve with Chris's family at our house & Christmas Day with mine at my Mom's house, which seems to work really well.

We did our best to scale back on the number of toys/things we got the girls for Christmas but it still seems like we are wall to wall with new things. Emma main things she requested from Santa was dress up clothes, ice cream play dough & Barbie & of course he delivered + a few more things we wanted her to have. Avery only got 1 light up tambourine toy, fish aquarium for her crib & a mattress (not a very fun gift but totally necessary).

Christmas Eve before the festivities began

Playing with Minnie Boutique toys from Grammy & Paw Paw

Avery & her big Puppy from Grammy & Paw Paw

Our family of four (pour Avery just couldn't hang anymore)

Playing dress up

Cheer

Princess

Playing with Avery's tambourine

Purple Princess

Play dough

Candy Land (her 1st board game)

Sister Barbies

Christmas Day after church at Nana's

Thanksgiving

2011-12-15T20:08:00.000-05:00

Yes, I know this is a bit late seeing how Christmas is next weekend, but I still want to share. We are especially thankful this year at Thanksgiving to finally be a family of 4 & to all be home together.

It was a great Thanksgiving. We had lunch with Chris' family & dinner with my family. It makes for a lot of eating but we really enjoy spending time with everyone.

Granny Ruth (Chris' grandmother) holding Avery for the 1st time.

Riding her trike at Grammy & Paw Paw's

Playing in Grammy & Paw Paw's backyard

Gram (my grandmother) holding Avery (her 17th great grand) for the first time

Uncle Bob & Avery

Cousin Morgan feeding Avery

Avery's 1 week old check-up

2011-10-31T23:14:00.000-04:00

This morning we took Avery to the Peds Clinic at the hospital for her 1 wk old check & she is doing great. She weighs 8 lbs, 7.4 oz which means she gained 7.1 oz since discharged on Friday. The dr did ask us how much we have been feeding her & we said 2-3 oz & she was a bit shocked. He said little ones this young really shouldn't be eating 3 oz yet & that we were over feeding her. Little does he know what we have dealt with having Emma, the heart baby/non eater so, if Avery said she was still hungry we would feed her more. So he told us to slow her down so her tummy & brain can learn when she is full instead of just sucking the bottle down. We will see how this works for Avery.

I also asked the dr to look at this knot on the back of Avery's head & he seems to think its just skin & tissue but to have our pedi at home to watch it. It really reminds me of the staf infection my niece, Morgan had when she was 2 wks old so that is why I wanted him to look at it.

He also said her jonduice looked a lot better & that she is free to fly home whenever we get permission.

Sick in Hawaii

2011-10-31T01:08:00.000-04:00

I really can't think of anything worse right now that being away from home, in paradise with a 6 day old & sick. Tomorrow Avery goes for her 1 week old newborn check-up & after that we plan to find me a doctor. I have some kind of upper respiratory crud which I assume was caused by the combination of airplane germs, lack of sleep, jet lag & hospital germs. Lucky me.

I have been trying to keep my distance from Avery but its so hard. She is getting to know us & if she is awake she really wants to be held. I just try not to cough or breathe on her too much & put her down once she doses off. Hopefully I can get some meds tomorrow so will not spread this crud to her & be free to hold/cuddle her all I want.

Chris has been awesome & did all the feedings last night once we realized how sick I had become & has taken care of her & me most the day. He went out several times today to get me more drugs & some white hot chocolate, YUM. He always spoils me when I'm sick.

She's here

2011-10-29T23:19:00.002-04:00

Little Avery Elizabeth was born Monday, october 24th @ 1:54am via c section. We didn't get to see her until tuesday due to our huge delay in the Atlanta airport. We were suppose to land in Honolulu @ 2:40pm but actually got there @ 12:15am after tech problems with our plane & waiting on a new crew.

Avery weighted 8 lbs, 0.1oz, 20 in long. I never would have guessed that length, she looks short & chubby. In fact she was only 3 oz more than Emma & 1 in longer. She had a hard delivery with low heart rate with each contraction & was sent to the nicu for breathing difficulties. She hard time eating too but started figuring it out late Wednesday afternoon.

She stayed in the nicu until Thursday evening & was then moved to the step down unit & was discharged friday about 1pm. So far she is a very sweet & good baby. She only cries when she is dirty or hungry. She of course likes to be or swaddled. I think she looks a lot like my niece Morgan, which is funny. She has light brown hair & deep blue eyes that I think will probably turn brown.

We will not be posting any pics publically of Avery until we get home & our family gets to meet her, sorry. Hopefully we will be able to leave in 7 days but it may be as many as 14 depending paperwork & adoption laws.

She's coming

2011-10-24T09:14:00.002-04:00

The text came in yesterday @ 9:44am that Rachel was in early labor & at the hospital. I ran outside between bible class & worship to give her a call to find out they were admitting her + she was only 1.5 cm. The baby's heart rate was was very elevated but then started dropping during contractions, so they started her on meds to speed things along.

Their plan to speed up the delivery didn't really work. She is contracting but not dilating. It's been almost 24 hrs sine the first text & she still isn't here. The we heard was 6 hrs ago she was @ 5 cm. Hopefully our new little one will be here soon so Rachel can rest.

Patterson Farm 2011

2011-10-16T21:01:00.000-04:00

Yesterday we took Emma to Patterson Farm & she had a great time. Grammy & Paw Paw went too, but could only stay for a little while. We fed some farm animals, went on a wagon/hayride (with no hay), pick pumpkins, ate a picnic lunch, played on the playground, rode trackers. tricycles & the cow train, had duck races, milked a fake cow & took a lot of pics. The only thing Emma would not do was get in the corn pit, which she wouldn't do last year either. She didn't ride the ponies or horses either, but thats because we didn't pay for it this year. She didn't miss it though, she had a blast.

Looks like she is having a chat with the goats.

Emma & Paw Paw hanging with the goats.

Heavy

Chris & Emma on the cow train

Trying out the tractors

Now lets try the tricycles

Driving the playground tractor

Horse swing

Crawling through the tire tunnel

Duck racing with Daddy

Milking the fake cow

"Say moo cow"

She did very little smiling for pics while we were there.

This is the same face we got all day, but its still a precious one.

Officially Well

2011-10-05T21:42:00.000-04:00

So this morning Emma went to her pedi for her 2nd follow-up appointment to check her white cells, red cells & platetlet counts & they were all back to normal. She is officially well. Now the trick is how long can we keep her that way.

While there, Dr. K suggested she get her flu vaccine since they had plenty in stock so Emma got her 1st flu mist. In the past she has only gotten the shot but since they had already stuck her to draw labs we thought we would try the mist. Plus Dr. K said studies now show the mist is more effective on children & the shot is more effective for adults. We will see how it goes.

Chris & I plan on getting our within the next week as part of prepping for the arrival of the baby. Here's to hoping for a flu-free household this winter.

Sick Baby

2011-10-01T07:51:00.001-04:00

So Emma started with a fever last Tuesday afternoon, just low grade at first & continued with a fever for the next few days but much higher at 103 - 103.5. So I called the dr to see if they wanted to see her & they said their rule is if they have run a fever for more than 3 days to bring her in & that is just what I did.

Now this was Friday & her fever had come down some to 101.9 but I wanted to take her to make sure it wasn't an ear infection or something. Dr. K checked her over & couldn't find anything right off but she wanted to run labs to see if she could find the cause of her continued fever. It is very rare for Emma to ran a continuous fever & one that is high.

They stuck poor Emma twice to double check the results that showed her white blood cell & platelet counts were very lows. Dr. K was hoping this was just a bad virus but she said she couldn't send Emma home in good conscience without knowing for sure. We always have to be careful that her fevers are not related to an infection in her blood stream or her heart so Emma was admitted to the hospital. I felt so bad for her, she was so tired (little to no nap) & now we had to go to the hospital on a weekend of all times.

They started doing labs not long after we got there & I must admit, I had to leave the room to get backup. The backup wasn't for Emma but for myself. I do not handle medical things well at all & had already endured 2 sticks at the dr office, this one was more than I could handle. I didn't want them to have to deal with a fainting mother on the floor so I had to excuse myself. Thankfully my sister, Karen took over & stayed with Emma for the 30+ minutes it took them to get what they needed.

The lab results came back & they were the same as Dr. K did, low white cells, red cells, & platelets. They also did a urine sample which never showed anything. Their first impression was that it was just a virus too, but they also wanted to rule out any blood/heart infections.

The next day they ran labs again & it went very well, Chris went with Emma & it only took 5 minutes or less not 30 like the night before. When we got the lab results back Saturday afternoon, they were not what we had hoped for, her numbers had gone down a lot. They warned us this was possible since we didn't know if they were done declining or not. So they scheduled more labs for the next morning, Sunday.

They came to get Emma about 8:15am & these labs didn't go well either. They had to stick her several times & had to call in a PICU nurse to try. It took about 30 minutes for them to get it & Emma is so hard to get blood from, tiny veins. We got the labs back very soon & her white count had quadrupled & they decided it was safe to send us home.

Their diagnosis was still the same as when she was admitted, just a bad virus which they see a lot in little ones. They did give Emma some antibiotics while we were there but thankfully didn't need to take any home with us. Our only orders upon discharge was to follow-up with Dr. K in the next 24-48 hrs & we did so on Monday.

Little did we know Dr. K would have a little different plan. She called right before we left the house Monday morning for Emma's appointment to check on her & then found out once we arrived at the office she wanted us to wait until later in the week to run more labs to give her counts a little more time to come up. She went ahead & did labs anyway since we were there & her white count went back down again but at least her red count & platelets went back up. So she sent us on our way & asked me to bring her back next week. Emma will go back Wed. morning for more labs & we are all hoping her counts are back to normal. If they are not Dr. K plans to send Emma to a specialist to so a consult.

County Fair 2011

2011-09-29T16:14:00.000-04:00

So I am a bit behind on blogging due to the arrival of our new addition coming soon & Emma being sick & hospitalized but we will discuss that one later.

We took Emma to the county fair again this year & even though it was chilly & rainy we all had a great time. We ran out of tickets before Emma got to ride all that she wanted but we actually found some & Aunt Beverly shared hers too. I think Emma's favorite was the helicopters & the carousel but the batteries on our camera died so we didn't get as many pics as we would have liked. Here are the best ones.

Emma once again was not a fan of feeding animals at the petting zoo unless it was out of a cup, but she did like seeing them. She apparently doesn't like being licked by them.

This is a very cool sand sculpture that was on display from the back side.

Talking to the goats.

Yes, I still have my black eye.

Feeding the goats from a cup.

Attempting again to feed a sheep from her hand & she didn't not like it at all.

Look at this sweet llama face.

In the helicopters with Chris.

Uncle Bob & cousin Morgan on the trucks.

Blurring Chris, Emma & Uncle Bob on the trucks.

Morgan climbing. (Did you notice how Emma & Morgan are dressed the same, pure accident)

On the roller coaster

Morgan getting on the motorcycles.

We Are Expecting...

2011-09-18T17:15:00.000-04:00

a baby girl thru adoption & are over joyed. We have waited so long to be matched with a birthmother & it officially happened on Thursday evening. Rachel. the birth mother, is living in Hawaii where she is mobilized working in the Army Reserves PT & a Respiratory Therapist at a local hospital. She had a long list of preferences for the adoptive family she wanted & we met every single one, including active members of the Church of Christ & a stay-at-home mom. She is due Oct 27th so we only have 5.5 weeks till the big day, so we have lots to do. I have already washed all the newborn & 0-3 months baby clothes, blankets, bibs, burb clothes... now all we need to do is prepare her room. We went & looked at furniture Friday night & picked some out. We also need to move Chris a desk into our room which will require us purchasing a new one & tearing down our current office. So as you can see, we will be very busy the next few weeks.

Emma at first wasn't too keen on the idea until we told her she can feed her, help rock her to sleep, give her a pacie & then she started to like the whole "big sister" idea. She has never liked being around "real" babies but loves her baby dolls so we will see how this really play out once we bring her home.

A Morning at the Park

2011-09-17T15:54:00.000-04:00

Tuesday was my youngest niece Morgan's actual birthday & Karen wanted to do something a little special for her, so we took the girls to the park. I must say, they had a great time. It is so funny how different these to are especially when it comes to confidence & strength. Emma is so timid at the park & rarely will go down the slides without assistance & Morgan just goes from one to another freely. Morgan tries to encourage her to help her along & sometimes that work. Thanks Morgan for being her big cousin (not really, they are only 8 wks apart), when she needs it. I think they had the most fun running through the grass and looking for acorns than playing on the playground but that is fine too.

Coming back from a brief run in the grass

Emma & Karen on the tire swing

Morgan searching for acorns.

Emma came to help & stored them in a boat she found in the playground.

Emma on the curvy slide which she would only sit or climb on, not slide down.

Morgan on the tunnel slide

One last slide for Morgan

First Black Eye

2011-09-15T16:51:00.000-04:00

Sunday night after church Emma & Morgan were playing with Uncle Bob & the girls had a collision. During said collision, Morgan's head met Emma's face giving Emma a black eye almost instantly. I am not sure which child cried more Emma who was the wounded one or Morgan who got scared while Emma was crying, it was almost comical, almost.

So as most bruises do, it has got black & blueir each day but doesn't seem to bother her, but it did look pretty bad. Her eye is still swollen but starting to turn a bit green, so I think I getting better. It always makes us, as parents, feel bad to go out in public when Emma has a major wound. Do people wonder, what in the world happen to that little girl? Weren't her parents watching her? Well kids will be kids & unfortunately they get hurt & hopefully those on the outside looking in will remember that.

The night of the collision with Morgan's head

The next day

Two days later

Morgan's 3rd birthday

2011-09-13T19:09:00.000-04:00

Saturday we celebrated Morgan's birthday + Karen & Michael's birthday which were in August. Morgan was one excited little girl. She totally into princesses right now & that was the theme of her birthday.

Emma helping pass out presents

The present Morgan opened a little early that Emma gave her, oops.

The cousins

Uncle Michael & Morgan coloring

Cousin Caroline put Emma's hair up & here is a close-up. Wish her eyes weren't closed

Opening the guitar

Uncle Bob showing Morgan how to hold the guitar & Emma is helping too.

Jam Morgan

I think she's a natural

Uncle Bob's turn to jam

Uncle Michael & the little girls

Gram

Dancing in her dress up shoes

Emma is trying it out too.

All dressed up as a princess

Labor Day Weekend

2011-09-10T14:28:00.000-04:00

Last weekend we went to the beach & had a great time. The weather was perfect, not to hot, no rain & breezy. I think Emma is getting braver ever time we go. She kept venturing off to the ocean all by herself. She especially loves the "surf board" (aka boogie board) & just sitting in the shallow waves.

Our little surfer girl.

Emma & cousin Kaylee

Helping cousin Caroline & her cousin Zackery dig a big hole.

Time to try out this hole. Can you see the top of Emma's head in the center of the pic?

I think I need help getting out of here

Can I play bouchee too?

I got a ball now, whose team am I on?

My turn

Hanging out in the waves

Look at that smile, this little girl loves the beach

Lazy 5 Ranch

2011-08-25T17:33:00.006-04:00

Over the weekend we took Emma to the Lazy 5 Ranch & had a great time. We did have a hard time finding it with Chris's Google map iPhone app so we finally had to use our actual GPS. So a trip that should have taken 30 minutes took over an hour & a lot of driving in circles. This is NOT a place you stumble across, it is in the middle of nowhere & has NO signs to help you find it. At least now we know where it is & the correct route.

For those who are not familiar with Lazy 5 its more like a small zoo or sorts than a ranch. There are no cowboys on horses, although that would be neat (we only saw a few horses on our way in & out. They have a petting zoo of sorts & trail you can ride on either by car or horse drawn wagon to feed the animals.

African coned crane

camels

napping porcupines

Sweet baby goat

This goat was trying to eat my shoes, the stinker

Mama & baby zebra

White deer

Emma hiding from the lhama, they licked her earlier & she was not happy with them

Cow/steer with very large horns we were not allowed to feed

Water buffalo asking for a bite

Say ah, here it comes

Bison watching us leave, doesn't he look mad

GIRAFFES!!!

Emma & Chris feeding the giraffes

Shy deer that would let you feed them.

They only been at the ranch 1 yr & are not used to all the people quite yet.

Some kind of ram, don't remember what???

Swinging, I think this was her favorite part.

1st Backyard Picnic

2011-08-23T11:44:00.000-04:00

I have been dying to get Emma a kids picnic table & they finally went on sale a few weeks ago so we got her one. She loves it. Her aunt Karen has one at their house which her & Morgan eat on & play at often so I knew it would fit right in at our house.

Last week we had our 1st picnic outside so she could use her new table & she had a blast. Now of course she didn't eat very much but she had fun.

A happy little girl with her new picnic table

Talking with her mouth full

Puzzles

2011-08-22T17:21:00.000-04:00

One day last week I was trying to get Emma to help me clean up the toys before her nap. I asked her to clean up her puzzles & she came up with a very creative way to do so, which is so Emma, thinking outside the box. As you will notice the pics, we didn't much cleaning done in this attempt but her idea was quite funny.

She put her Mickey character figures in the places where the puzzles pieces should go.

This is her attempt in cleaning up the puzzle.

The actual puzzle pieces

I asked if I could take her picture with the puzzle & these were the best I could get.

Model Search

2011-08-14T20:27:00.000-04:00

I have entered Emma into another model search & is hoping for a lot more votes this time. This one is thru Children's Place (one of my favorite places to shop for Emma) and there are a lot more children for her to compete against this time, so we need your help. It only takes a few minutes and you can vote once every day so place take advantage of this opportunity and help us out. Here is her id#174212 which will make it easier to vote without digging thru all the other entries. Thanks again for your help.

http://childrensplace.promo.eprize.com/model/:b=ie9/gallery

Vacation Bible School 2011

2011-08-11T19:34:00.000-04:00

We just finished VBS on Saturday & Emma had great time. She wasn't real sure of all the songs at first "too noisy" but by the second night she started doing some of the hand motions. I think her favorites were "Roll the Gospel Chariot", "Wise Man", "I'm in the Lord's Army"& "This Little Light of Mine" (which she already knew). She is still walking doing all the hand motions with random song lyrics.

On Saturday night at the end VBS we had a cookout to wrap things up. Emma & I made cupcakes for the event & she had a blast. I think I may have a little cooker on my hands. She loves helping me in the kitchen.

Mixing the strawberry cupcakes

Placing the cupcake "wrappers" in the pan

Adding sprinkles

Our finished product & a proud little girl

Typical 2.5 yr old

2011-07-25T16:46:00.000-04:00

So that hasn't been that much going on around here lately except Emma discovering new things, new songs & of course saying new words/phrases. She sings all the time which isn't new at all put she has learned some new songs. Chris taught her "Rock A-Bye Baby", "Yankee Doodle" & she picked up "London's Bridge" somewhere along the way. Her new favorite shows & toys are My Little Pony & Strawberry Shortcake. I found 2 My Little Ponies at a yard sale which she loves, but we don't any Strawberry Shortcake figures but cousin Morgan had one in church on Sunday, Emma was stoked.

Now this doesn't mean she has left Mickey or his pals behind, they are still high on her list, its just her list has grown. She is totally into her kitchen, making pretend meals, feeding her babies/stuffed animals/characters & playing doctor with her Elmo dr kit. She loves all her puzzles, Mrs. Potato Head & of course her books. I must say she is busier than ever talking, dancing, singing & playing non-stop. I guess she is the typical 2.5 yr old, what more could we ask for.

First Movie

2011-07-17T16:47:00.001-04:00

We took Emma to her see her first movie at the theater yesterday, Winnie the Pooh & she really liked it. We kept telling her about it the night before & when she got up Saturday morning, but she didn't quite understand why we were leaving to go see the movie. She did not like the previews, too loud & was a bit wiggly but it went very well. She was probably one of the youngest kids there, a few under 2 & crying but not many. I guess I never imagined how different it would be going to see a kids movie than an adult one, the audience was a little louder but nothing outrageous. Emma also tried popcorn for the first time & wasn't a fan. I look forward to the next time we can take her back, maybe the new Muppet Movie.

First Cake

2011-07-10T20:35:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I told Emma I need to make a cake for lunch at church & she asked if she could help, so I figured we would give it a try. She was so excited about "stirring" the cake. We actually started it right before she went to bed so she didn't get to help me add the marshmallows or icing but I showed her the finished product this morning & of course gave her a tasting after lunch. It was a Mississippi Mud Cake & she loved it. Unfortunately I forgot to take a pic of the completed cake & its almost gone, but I see much more baking in our future.

All the ingredients are in the bowl, let the stirring begin.

Look at that serious face

She was quite proud of herself, can't you tell.

July 4th 2011

2011-07-10T16:42:00.006-04:00

So we headed to the beach for the July 4th weekend & had a great time, even though the whole family wasn't there. I think Emma & Morgan had the most fun with each other they have ever had. They are really starting to play very well together & learning to share/take turns. They even pulled each other on the boggy board (aka surf board) which was just precious.

This was a bird sitting right by our car as we were leaving which we thought was very pretty but very upset that we stopped to snap a pic.

Morgan sitting in the lego box at the beach house.

Yes, Emma still fits in her baby float & she still loves it.

I brought her a big girl floaty suit but I forgot to blow it up (require a pump - oops).

Beverly & Morgan back floating

Emma attempting to float too. (Not sure why she had to do it spread eagle???)

She is turing into such a Daddy's girl.

I love this one with both girls in motion.

They totally look like they are up to something.

I so love this little face!

This is a video of Morgan pulling Emma on the boggy board thru the water. They had the best time. Warning. its a bit long.

Let's Play

2011-06-29T14:29:00.001-04:00

We seem to spend a lot of time outside these days, even though its SO HOT, Emma loves it. You can find us in the back yard in the mornings before lunch or in the evening after dinner watching Emma play with her sand/water table or in her giraffe pool (her 2 favs right now).

Riding her tricycle at Grammy & Paw Paw's. Her feet finally reach the petals.

Pool time

Playing with her sand/water table

Notice the red patches on her face in this pic & the next one. This is some mysterious allergic rash that showed up about 2 weeks ago & we still haven't found the cause. Thankfully it doesn't itch or bother her, it just looks bad & flares up randomly.

Another little angel

2011-06-21T16:02:00.000-04:00

I just saw that one of the blogs I follow of a fellow heart baby lost her battle on Friday, June 17 & went to be with Jesus. Little Lindsay Dean was 3 years old. Please keep this family in your prayers.

Feel free to read more about little Lindsay http://lindsaysheart.blogspot.com/

Annual Cardio Appointment

2011-06-10T20:54:00.000-04:00

On Monday we took Emma for her annual cardio check-up & I must say she was scared from the moment we walked in the door & the receptionist spoke to her. The poor thing knows that place all to well but she did okay considering how scared she was.

They did an EKG, then Dr. O came in to listen to her & then he told us he was hearing something different + seeing something on her EKG, so he definitely wanted to do an echo. She of course wasn't happy to go in the echo room once she saw the table she is suppose to lay on so the tech said I could hold her & they played "Elmos Goes to Grouchland" for her to watch during the echo. Of course they always let her watch a video of some kind but this one of her favs which helped a lot.

After the echo Dr. O came in to review the images & at this point I am always very nervous. He told us he saw some leakage in her tricuspid valve which concerned him. Now she has always had some leakage but it has gotten a little worse since the last echo she had. He also found a tiny leak on one of her patches which is not a big deal right now, but he will continue to watch it. But with the leaky valve he wants to see her back in 6 months to take another look to see if there is any change. Depending on what he finds in Dec he may order a sedated echo or echo scope to get better images.

Now of course this was not the news we were hoping for & I started crying immediately. I really thought/hoped we were done with bad news about Emma's heart, but hers in such a rare case you just never know. Dr. O did continue to tell us that its not huge leak but more than he would like to see so he wants to keep a watch on her. Gotta love Dr. O & how he takes care of our Emma. He also told us that worst case is she would need surgery to repair her valve but we are no where near that, he was just keeping us informed.

May 2011 Beach Trips

2011-06-04T17:13:00.000-04:00

Yes, there were 2 beach trips in May, actually 2 weekends in a row. Emma now thinks we are suppose to go to the beach every week. She is so confused now & keeps asking to go back.

We had a great time Memorial Day weekend & the weekend before. Our first trip with just me, Emma & my mom Emma was quite scared & wouldn't get near the ocean. But when we went back Memorial Day she was scared at first & then she wanted to play in the ocean the entire time, as long as someone was holding her. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of that, especially since she played in the ocean with cousin Caroline. But I guess we can't pictures of everything, maybe next time.

Emma sitting on the small concrete deck support at the beach house.

Her tiny bottom actually fits.

Emma helping Nana hammer the nails back into the deck at the beach house.

Chris's sidewalk chalk creation

Playing bubbles with Daddy

Playing with cousin Caroline

Riverbanks Zoo

2011-05-14T20:55:00.001-04:00

Today we took Emma to the Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia, SC & had a great day. It actually rained on us most of the way there but when we arrived the clouds cleared up & the sun came out. As soon as we got on the interstate to come home, it started raining again, so we timed it perfect.

We ate lunch as soon as we got there (Emma didn't eat much = a few bites of her pb&j & few bites of apples) at the picnic tables & then we were off to see the animals. Emma wanted to feed, pet & ride/hold all of them until it came time to actually feed them. She wasn't fond of feeding the goats, especially the one who nearly jumped the fence to get the feed. I was really hoping to feed the giraffes but they ran out of feed by the time we got there so I just took a lot of pictures. They are just so cool. Emma's favorite were all the monkeys.

She did really good especially since she walked almost the entire time we were there but she started to melt about 1:30pm while we were at the elephant exhibit. We gave her a snack & some milk which helped but we knew so was close to being done. She starting saying, "somebody's tired" which is what we say to her all the time & asking to go "night night with yellow pacie" so we knew our day was done.

We let her pick out a small animal at the gift shop & she picked a really cute giraffe (named baby G), although she probably would have picked a monkey but she has a ton of them already so I tried to discourage another one. We all had a great time & we can't wait to take her back again soon.

The baboons were so funny, especially the baby

(which is on the shoulders of the large one)

The male lion decided it was time for the female to go away &

they started fighting as soon as we walked up.

As you can see, he won & she got down.

Monkeys swinging, they did all kinds of tricks for us.

On the carousel with Daddy

The aggressive goat that Emma would not feed.

My favorite, the giraffes

The babies were so cute.

Elephant exhibit

Meerkat

Odd little monkey

Orangish/yellow kangaroo

An owl from the Carolina Rapture Center in Charlotte

The flamingos were cool too. They were more orange than pink & quite noisey.

Emma on a lizard

Emma on a turtle

Lazy kangaroo

Mother's Day 2011

2011-05-09T20:55:00.000-04:00

This year Mother's Day was a bit comical for me because Emma kept telling me it was my birthday. She knew I was getting presents/cards & so was Karen, Gram, Beverly, Grammy, Nana... and she kept saying, "its probably your birthday Karen, Beverly, Nana ________ (fill in the blank). She thought it was all our birthdays. It didn't help matters that the night before we celebrated Kaylee's 15th birthday, so she still had birthdays on the brain.

We went to church with Gram, my mother's mom & then all went to lunch, except Chris who went to the Wells Fargo golf tournament after church. But before Chris left, we made some much needed pictures under the tree at Archdale.

So tonight Chris took me to supper for a post Mother's Day dinner. I picked O'Charley's & must say I was less than satisfied. Not that my food wasn't good, it just ended up not being what I really wanted once I started eating it. Now the plan is to go to Lowes later in the week & pick out some plants for our front yard. Chris got me azaleas last Mother's Day but they all died. I think we have serious problems with our soil. In fact most of our flowering plants are dead except my lilies which I think will live forever. So wish us luck as we attempt to plant more.

This is the best we could get of all 4 cousins.

Who knew it would be so hard for 2 teenagers & 2 toddlers to all look at the camera & smile.

Emma was so over taking pictures. Note the folded arms

(something she does often but I think this is the 1st pic we have of it)

I had to tickle her to get this smile

My sister Beverly & her daughter Morgan

2 1/2 yrs old

2011-05-09T17:23:00.005-04:00

Saturday Emma turned 2 1/2 yrs old & it still blows my mind how fast she is growing up. Everyone continues to tell us how fast it goes & man are they right.

Her newest accomplishment, if you can call it that, is being able to turn door knobs to open doors. Which means she is no longer confined to her room for naps or bedtime, she can open the door & come out & she does just that, a lot. This morning she walked in our room at 7:15 am saying "Mommy, I'm awake, I open my door" & I wasn't even awake yet. Its rare that she wakes up before me, I normally get up 7 - 7:30 but I guess I was extra tired. So I guess we have moved into another new phase, her comes Emma, ready or not.

Her imagination is starting to shine. She plays with her Sesame Street, Mickey Mouse or Little People toys & acts all kinds of things, even episodes of shows she has just watched. I love watching her little mind in action.

She sings & dances all the time. Her favorite songs right now, Ring Around the Rosie, B-I-B-L-E, Jesus Loves the Little Children, Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star with ABC's mixed in.

She is constantly asking, "what does that/this says" translation - what is this/that? We are not real sure why she asks it like that, but she does.

Playing with her sand table & just talking away

Smelling a flower, although its fake to use in her sand table

Springtime fun

2011-04-27T16:32:00.000-04:00

We have been spending a lot time outside lately since the weather has been so nice. Emma will ask me as she is still eating breakfast, "go outside now". She loves playing outside especially since she has some new toys to enjoy. She still loves her golf clubs from Daddy & Friday before we went to the beach Grammy & Paw Paw brought her a sand/water table. We haven't added any water yet since she is really enjoying just playing in the sand & she can't seem to keep the sand on the proper side. We may add water later. She also got a chance to write/draw with her new sidewalk chalk from the Easter bunny before we packed up the car & headed home from the beach.

Playing golf

"I go under"

"This blue one is for you Mommie"

"I do it myself"

New butterfly shaped sidewalk chalk

Cousin Morgan shared hers too.

Add in some beach toys

My new sand/water table

Easter 2011

2011-04-26T20:37:00.003-04:00

The little girls were really excited about the Easter Bunny coming & their baskets full of goodies on Easter morning. I must admit the Easter Bunny do go little over board on Emma but most of her things were $1 or less (you gotta love Target $1 bins & using coupons on candy). I think her favorite thing has been her new mini Easter Barbie, Mickey bubbles & sidewalk chalk.

Emma's Easter Basket of goodies

She loved these carrots filled with Reese's Pieces & Abby Cadabby socks.

Pictures after morning services @ Myrtle Beach CofC

Picking dandalions, which she later ate while we were in the car.

Love this one

Emma & the big girls, Kaylee & Caroline

Easter at the beach

2011-04-26T20:04:00.000-04:00

As usual we headed to Mama's beach house for Easter & had a great time. Thankfully nobody got a stomach virus this time, but I came down a bad case of allergies & an upper respiratory infection. I was really hoping being at the beach would help my allergies, but no such luck. I headed to the dr on Monday & hope to have it cleared out soon w/the meds he gave me.

The water was really cold, from what I was told, I never put even a toe in but it was great to look at. We were actually on the beach for several hours & of course I got burnt as usual even with spf 50 but I will survive.

The big girls, Kaylee & Caroline in the ocean

Yes, that is me in the bkgrd wrapped up in a towel.

It was a bit chilly until the sun came out.

Cousin Morgan

Morgan watering the seaweed & Emma getting more water.

Emma trying out Morgan's surf board, that is what they kept calling it.

Morgan pouring water on Kaylee's head.

Playing in the hole Kaylee & Caroline made.

Easter Egg Dying 2011

2011-04-26T16:55:00.000-04:00

So I thought it would be great to let Emma & Morgan dye Easter eggs while we were at the beach so I brought a kit with us. Much to our surprise there was very little spillage & they loved it. I only wish we had more eggs for them (several of them cracked while boiling), one dozen didn't seem to be enough. I guess they will have to wait till next yr to do more.

Neither of the girls eat boiled eggs so we ended up throwing them away after they went to bed while the Easter Bunny was preparing his baskets of goodies.

Emma of course choose pink for her 1st egg.

Morgan wanted blue

"My finger is dirty", she is such a girl.

Priceless reaction, but totally Morgan.

Admiring the finished products.

Singing at Supper Tonight

2011-04-15T19:05:00.000-04:00

FORE!!!

2011-04-14T16:26:00.000-04:00

Chris has always talked about teaching his kids to play golf some day. He was even planning it out before Emma was even conceived or born. Over the weekend he decided it was time & headed to Wal-mart to get Emma her own toddler clubs. Needless to say they were both very excited to start this adventure.

The 1st lesson

"Try it myself"

She hits it between her legs for some reason but its quite cute.

Next lesson

Hair

2011-04-04T14:05:00.001-04:00

I am having a lot of fun these days with Emma's hair & trying new things. We have tried pigtails, ponytails, braids (which Emma doesn't care for at all & with her baby fine hair is quite difficult) but I just love it. But her hair was starting to look fuzzy all the time so I had to make myself take her for her 1st hair cut. Yes you heard that correctly, her 1st hair cut & she is almost 2.5 yrs old. I love her long hair so much & I was afraid they would cut too much off. Of course I know it will always grow back, but will it look the same???

Much to my surprise it looks really good & they cut off less than an inch & most people can't even tell. She did great too. I really thought she would cry, although there was some hesitation on Emma's part, but Kim cut it so fast it was over before Emma could really get too upset. I think there was a total of 5-6 snips & Kim was done. Now her hair is almost all one length & looks great. I haven't taken any pics since it got cut since it doesn't look much different but her are some of the many new hairstyles she has been wearing.

Her ponytails require barretts too

Silly smile

Yes, I know she is wearing the same green shirt again, but I love this shirt.

I love this one, except for the crocked pigtails.

She was actually running towards me while I was taking the picture

Weight Check

2011-03-31T16:19:00.000-04:00

I took Emma in for her post Pediasure weight check on Monday & Dr. K wasn't very happy. Emma has only gained 6 oz since coming off Pediasure & before that she had gained 2 lbs from Nov - Jan while still on it. Of course I am not real sure how much she should have gained or what she wants Emma to weigh, but there was a definite drop off post Pediasure.

So Dr. K didn't want to do anything too harsh, like immediately put her back on it so we are still on a trial period. She opted not to have me bring Emma back in a few months but for us to weigh Emma at home monthly & if she doesn't start gaining or starts losing we have to take her in to discuss our options. Emma's eating has dropped off a lot too, so that may also be a factor. All she wants to do is play & I am definitely not going to force her into her chair at mealtime if she would rather play. She will eat when she is hungry & thankfully Dr. K agreed with me.

My new ride

2011-03-23T14:44:00.000-04:00

So Emma got a new ride, Barbie Jeep, a hand-me-down from her big cousins, Kaylee & Caroline. The jeep is 10-12 yrs old & we haven't got a new battery for it yet, but she still loves playing in it. She is still a bit young to be able to drive it herself so we may still hold off on getting the battery for a while. She really wants us to push her around the yard in her new jeep, which Chris did in the beginning, but its quite hard so I leave that to him. We are so grateful to have big cousins in the fam to give us their hand-me-downs, we probably would have never bought her one of these, they are just too pricey!

Look it has a phone too.

Swinging in Spring

2011-03-22T15:48:00.002-04:00

That is pretty much how we spend most of our time outside these days is pushing Emma in her swing or playing ball. She has a new favorite thing which I will post next, so stay tuned.

Chris & Emma have this game of kicking the ball while she is swinging & I tried to get shots to show the progression of the game.

Another one of Emma's new favorite things to do is water the grass with Daddy.

"Picking flowers with Spencer" its actually Braddford Pear blooms

Last spring she would not play with this popper, she said it was too noisey.

Procrastation

2011-03-22T15:10:00.000-04:00

I am so behind on download photos from my camera & on the blog or fb so beware there is many to come. With the weather being so nice recently its hard not to take pictures of Emma playing outside. Man does she have Spring Fever. She won't even slow down to eat, she is so busy & happy. Breakfast is about the only meal I have been able to consistently get her to eat each day. As for lunch, she has probably only sat down at the table once in the last week or so & at supper she just picks at her food & continually asks if she can go back outside to play.

Bye Bye Crib

2011-03-01T21:05:00.005-05:00

Yes, today was the day I have been hearing about from other moms that would happen & it finally did. Emma tried to climb out of her crib, once this morning but I caught her in the act & then again at nap time but she hit the floor with a big thud. As soon as I heard the thud I knew what it was & came running. I think she was still in shock, she wasn't even crying yet until I asked her if she was okay. I never found any bumps or bruises on her but she was terrified. She was sweating like crazy, crying so hard she couldn't catch her breath (on the brink of vomiting) & pale as a ghost. After she calmed down she didn't want to get back in her bed so I rocked her until she was almost alseep & then laid her down.

Then when she got up I told her Daddy was going to make her a "big girl bed" so she wouldn't fall down & go boom & she cried. She just didn't want to talk about it, just thinking about it scared her. Even telling Chris the whole story over supper brought her to tears. She kept saying "stop mommy" & would start crying again. Every time we mentioned her bed she would cry, we weren't sure she would even sleep in it at all tonight. Could she be that traumatized? After supper we took her upstairs to show her the new "big girl bed" & she just cried, "Emma fall down & go boom" over & over. We kept assuring her it was fine now & she would not fall again, finally she agreed to try getting in the bed by herself. She loved it. The first thing she grabbed of course, her pacie.

Now the test will be if she stays in it too sleep? Will we find her in the floor in the middle of the night? Thankfully she hasn't figured out how to work doorknobs yet, so at least she will be confined to her room, but so are some of her toys. As if we don't have enough trouble getting Emma to sleep no we have to keep her in the "big girl bed." Yes, we have entered another new phase of parenting, hold on it might be bumpy.

Last pic of the crib

"Big girl bed" aka toddler bed

Her pacie & comforter (only at bedtime)

This is the only smile I could get, she wouldn't look at me.

"Ta Da"

She then proceeds to pull all her stuff animals she sleeps with out of the bed & was so proud of herself.

She could finally reach them without help.

First night in her new "big girl bed"

Spring in February

2011-02-27T15:34:00.000-05:00

That is exactly what it has felt like the past week or to in NC & we are loving it. I can't tell you how many times this winter Emma has asked to go outside to swing or ride her trike & now we can. We are so ready for warm weather.

I love her hair in this pic, it was very windy.

sweet smile

She will sometimes slide by herself & this was one of those days.

This is classic Emma, walking & talking (not real sure what she was saying).

Her tiny soccer ball. We are prepping her to play next spring on a pee-wee team.

She will be too young to play this fall.

This was last weekend. Emma decided she wanted to go for a walk (she actually ran) about a mile thru our neighborhood but she wanted to be carried back home.

CHD Facts

2011-02-06T15:41:00.000-05:00

February 7-14, 2011 is Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week. Below you will find several interesting facts you may or may not already know about these life-threatening and life-altering defects. (I borrowed these from a fellow heart mom's blog.)

Congenital heart defects (CHDs) occur when a baby's heart fails to form properly during early pregnancy. In most cases, the cause is unknown, although scientists feel both genetic and environmental factors play a role.Some environmental factors that increase the risk of CHDs include the mother’s use of cocaine, alcohol or certain medications while pregnant. Some maternal medical conditions – such as diabetes – may also increase risk.

CHDs are the most common birth defect – and the leading cause of birth defect-related deaths.

CHDs occur more often than Spina Bifida, Down Syndrome or hearing loss – and kill twice as many children as childhood cancer.

It is estimated that 40,000 babies with CHDs are born in the United States each year – that’s one in every 100 babies.

Although some babies will be diagnosed at birth, newborns are not routinely screened for CHDs – and pregnant women are not routinely tested for CHDs.

There are approximately 35 different types of congenital heart defects.

Some CHDs may be treated with surgery, medicine and/or devices, such as artificial valves and pacemakers. In the last 25 years, advances in the treatment of heart defects have enabled half a million U.S. children with serious CHDs to survive into adulthood.

Many cases of sudden cardiac death in young athletes are caused by undiagnosed CHDs and childhood-onset heart disease.

Early detection is critical to the successful treatment of CHDs. Some heart defects can be detected by a routine ultrasound – but the most effective prenatal test is an echocardiogram performed by a Pediatric Cardiologist.

CHD Awareness Week

2011-02-05T17:16:00.000-05:00

It starts tomorrow & wanted to remind everyone that Congetital Heart Defects are the #1 cause of death of babies (sad but true). Luckily Emma's was found in utero & many are but there are also many that go undected until its too late. Please keep all of those families you may know who have been affected by CHD in your thoughts & prayers this week.

Look at this precious picture I found on the internet. I love it & just had to share.

Sunny Days

2011-01-29T21:18:00.001-05:00

Yesterday & today we have had great weather, sunny & high 50s - low 60s (although it didn't feel that warm) the sunshine was great. We took Emma to the park this afternoon after her nap & I was really hoping being outside today would make me feel better, but no such luck. I still feel pretty crappy & will most likely go to Urgent Care after church tomorrow. I have been on amoxicillin for 4 days & I see very little improvement. Emma keeps asking, "Mama you all better?" Sweet little thing, I wish I was. I sound better, not as hoarse, but still feel pretty bad. All I want is for this crud to go away so I can feel like myself again. I am such a groach because I feel so bad & I am tired of feeling bad. 1.5 weeks is enough for me, pls someone, anyone make it stop. We need Sunny Days in our house.

The Crud

2011-01-25T20:34:00.000-05:00

It is definitely making the rounds in our family. Now I am not just talking about our household but both of my sister's houses too, who live locally. My youngest niece, Morgan has been sick for several weeks & is finally getting better. My sister Beverly (Morgan's mom) has been sick since the last round of sicknesses, Thanksgiving & finally went to the dr last week to find out she has bronchitis, ear infection & sinus infection but is only feeling a little better. Emma had a bad cold last week & unfortunately shared it with me & now I have bronchitis & a major sore throat (went to the dr today). Plus my oldest niece Kaylee has a bad cough. So I guess you could say we share the love & germs in our family & hopefully the sharing of germs with come to an end soon. Bring on Spring.

Another Angel

2011-01-25T19:29:00.002-05:00

Another sweet baby lost his battle with HLHS yesterday. We didn't know baby Wyatt but I learned about him from another heart mom's blog I follow. I just can not imagine the pain of losing a baby. You can read their story on the link provided below. Please keep this family in your prayers.

http://mybabyhashlhs.blogspot.com/

Little Helper

2011-01-24T12:27:00.000-05:00

Emma is all into helping around the house these days. She has always loved helping fold laundry but she has moved on to bigger/better things. Much to my surprise she wanted to help me sweep a week or so ago, which she used to be scared of & I gladly let her give it a try. Now of course she made a bigger mess than there already was by walking in my pile of dirt but she is learning & had a great time.

She is also into having her picture taken, although most of the time she will give you a silly cheesy smile.

The silly cheese face

Sweet silly face

My sweet little girl

Trying out the small one

Bye Bye Pediasure

2011-01-18T16:29:00.003-05:00

Although Pediasure did its job (gave her the nutrients & extra pounds she needed) over the last year we are glad to finally have Emma off it. She is now drinking 100% whole milk, YAY!!! We have been slowly weaning her off for the past few months & Sunday was her first day completely Pediasure free. She will have to go in for a weight check with the pedi in a month or so to make sure she doesn't backslide, but I think she will be just fine.

Now if we could just get her our of diaper we would be doing really good.

Mrs Potato Head

2011-01-16T16:56:00.003-05:00

With the snow & cold weather we have had this week, we haven't gotten out much so Emma & her Daddy have gotten pretty creative during playtime. One of Emma latest things is to dress us up like Mrs. Potato Head. Here is her playing with Daddy.

Mommie its your turn

Emma Randomness

2011-01-06T19:00:00.009-05:00

Things have finally gotten back to normal in our house with the holidays over & Chris back at work from his vacation home with us. Emma plays with her kitchen & Mickey characters everyday. I have even heard her acting out Mickey Mouse Clubhouse with her characters & it just makes me smile to hear her using her imagination.

I thought we had kicked the non-sleeping habit but at nap time yesterday, there was no nap. Now she doesn't cry out or scream to get out of her bed, she just lays there & plays or sings. Most of the time we end up taking away her toys, which usually works but this time she just laid there & every time I thought she was out she would start talking again.

So during supper last night I noticed her starting to nod off & sure enough when I turned my back, she was out. I wasn't sure what to do, she has never done this before. It was only 5:45 pm & she was asleep. The first thing I did was take pictures of course & then I cleaned her up (which woke her up) & she was not happy, then she got in the bathtub. She played for 30 minutes until her bath water was cold, lips purple & shivering. As soon as I put her jammas on & carried her downstairs she was asking for some milk, pacie & to go night-night. She kept asking to "go night-night" & we had her in bed before 7:45pm, not sure if that has ever happened.

In other Emma news, she is cracking us up with all her new phrases. She adds, "probably" to everything she says. "Probably need to go night-night." Probably read a book... Get the idea. She has also started saying "let me see" & "hmmm" when she is pondering something, "Emma do it by myself" (I have been waiting for that one). She sings all the time, especially "B-I-B-L-E", Jesus Loves Me & ABC's. She even mixes them all together into one song. She can count to 10, knows her ABC's, knows her colors & shapes now we just need to work on recognizing her letters & numbers.

She doesn't really have any new foods she likes but unfortunately I think she may be dropping some. She doesn't seem as crazy about broccoli, green beans or peas anymore. She does really like pizza & pasta now. Hotdogs are still her number one fav & the gogurt (yogurt sticks) thanks to aunt Karen. Now Emma can eat yogurt without making a huge mess, especially if you freeze them. She still doesn't use her fork or spoon well at all & mostly eats with her hands.

All in all she is still one of the sweetest things ever, even when she is sleepless. She still will not whisper in church, says "Peez" instead of yes & calls her cousin Morgan, "MaaMaa", although she can say stethoscope, go figure.

Riding in my new car I got from Nana for Christmas.

"Emma did it by myself"

This is the first time she has climbed into the recliner & made it up.

Trying it again

Almost there

Asleep in her highchair last night at supper (no nap = tired Emma)

A New Year

2011-01-04T16:54:00.004-05:00

I have decided I am not going to make "resolutions" per say this year, which I always break, but goals. Last year:

• I didn't read the Bible in a year

• Tried to stay organized

• Didn't make any money but, saved some money w/couponing

• Lost weight, but as always, gained it all back

So this year I am going to tackle some of the same goals.

1. I definitely want to attempt reading the Bible in a year again, although I haven't started it yet but hopefully I will tonight.

2. I want to be more organized. I have been working on several different projects already & continue to tweak them. With the strong possibility of a new baby being adding to our family this year I want to make room for him/her. My biggest task is going to be the office which is where the new baby's room will be. I have been setting aside an afternoon every few weeks to sort/purge/organize. Its really hard to believe some how all that stuff will have to come out & go either in our room or in storage.

3. My biggest & most exciting goal is to save more money. I have decided to make a spreadsheet to track my couponing/spending habits. I know I saved us money last year but I am positive I can do better. If this goal is not accomplished I will most likely have to go back into the workforce, which none of us want. Let the extreme couponing begin.

Christmas Snow 2010

2010-12-26T16:56:00.006-05:00

This was our 1st major snow of the winter & we are not quite sure whether Emma liked it or not. She kept wanting to go out & play in it but once we were out there, she said very little other than "hold you." She did like our homemade sled and playing on her swingset but that was about it. She wouldn't walk in the snow. It could have been her snow suite, boots or the thick snow, who knows, she wasn't telling.

Our dog Spencer had a great time playing in it as long as we were out there with him. Chris said he look like a deer running through the snow. Chris did have to make him a place to go potty because if he can't find/smell the grass, he will not go. When the ground is frosty it causes the same problem. We had to send Spencer in the house once we noticed he was limping. He had so much snow matted in his fur is was hurting his legs + he was shivering, poor thing. I had to melt it off with a hair dryer. I now know why my Mom always had sweaters for our Poodles when we were kids. I might have to invest in one for future use, even though I don't like dogs in clothes.

Our backyard

Emma was not happy when she saw all this snow of her swing set, "get it off Mommie".

Spencer's potty path in the backyard

Riding in her homemade sled

Playing in the snow. Can you see it caked up on his fur???

Emma's first snowman, Daddy actually did all the work

Ah, her swing

Emma decided she wanted to go for a walk

This is the only place she would walk, the shallow snow on the sidewalk.

Christmas Day 2010

2010-12-26T16:02:00.006-05:00

What a joy it is to see your child's expression on Christmas morning. The first thing Emma said when I got her out of her crib was, "did Santa eat my cookies & drink milk." I told her we had to go see. Then she noticed as we walked down the stairs that there was stuff in her stocking. She was very excited to see Santa ate the cookies & drank the milk. She said he needed more.

The large Minnie & Pluto were the first things Emma saw under the tree from Santa. "Santa brought Emma a big Minnie & Buto". We actually had Emma's kitchen on the opposite side on the tree so she would have to walk around to find it. She loves it & keeps calling it her "table with a microwave & frigerator." We had to coax her into open her stocking & other presents. Santa could have just brought her those 3 items & I think Emma would have been just fine. As she open her puzzles, videos and books she noticed her small Minnie & Daisy that were not wrapped, then her morning was complete. This past week she started asking for a Daisy & thankfully Santa picked one up on a killer sale.

We headed to my Mom's for lunch & to open presents with my family. Emma was very excited & kept trying to open gifts before it was time. Emma got a red car to ride outside from Nana, a shopping cart from aunt Beverly, play food & dishes from aunt Karen & Uncle Bob and a gift card from Michael. She crashed soon after presents but it was too late for a nap she see spent the rest of the evening watching a new Mickey video & playing in the bath with her Mickey bath toys from Grammy & PawPaw. That was a great way to end the Christmas festivities.

Her kitchen

She carried her new Disney characters around all morning, including the Mickey she got for her birthday which never leaves her side.

Pink rubber duckie from her stocking (she is such a girl & loves pink)

"Making pizza"

"Making coffee"

Alphabet & numbers puzzles

The one moment she laid her characters down in the recliner.

I just thought it made a funny pic

Trying to wait patiently with cousin Morgan to open presents at Nana's house.

Still waiting

Time to open

Showing her the dishes from aunt Karen & uncle Bob.

Do you notice a trend, Emma's hair is always hanging in her face.

The gang is all here opening presents.

Christmas Eve 2010

2010-12-26T15:41:00.003-05:00

Christmas Eve was at our house this year & we spent it with Chris's family opening presents & eating, of course. Emma was very excited to finally be able to open presents. For the last week Emma would say several times a day, "its time to open presents now." I think next year we will get one of those Christmas countdown calendars to help her out.

Christmas Eve morning, wearing Daddy's shoes

Dancing in Daddy's shoes

Standing on her head, an Emma signature move (usually when she is tired)

Chris's family

Opening the legos from Uncle Shawn while wearing her apron from Grammy & PawPaw

Holding her Abby Caddaby doll from Grammy & PawPaw

Playing legos & with her Elmo medical kit from Grammy & PawPaw

Showing PawPaw her new Minnie jammas from Mama & Daddy

(the ones from her birthday are already too short)

Her 1st lego creation = house, complete with a door, flowers & a garage

Christmas Cookie Decorating 2010

2010-12-24T08:00:00.010-05:00

Here is our 1st cookie decorating experience with Emma or at all. Neither Chris or myself have ever done it (that we can remember). Chris had to squeeze the icing on the cookies since it just kills my hands (I must go back to the dr) & Emma did most of the sprinkles. It was a huge mess but we had a great time.

A christmas tree, a heart, Emma blog of green & I don't remember what that red blob is, sorry.

This is suppose to be a cat face. I had trouble with the whiskers.

Our finished products - snowman, snowflake, balloon, kite, star, scripples, smiley face & just sprinkles

Our 1st Gingerbread House

2010-12-18T15:30:00.000-05:00

I call it "our" 1st because we all took part in it. It was too hard on my hands to do the icing so Chris did that part & Emma & I added all the candy. She had a great time & even wanted to do another one. Our kit even included a santa & christmas tree to decorate which are both very sad looking, but we enjoyed the whole experience. We didn't even eat very much of the candy. It was a great day for an indoor project since its cold, rainy, snowy mix outside today.

She actually got one for Christmas last year from the Summerville CofC while she was in the hospital in Charleston but she was too young to do it then so I just saved it. Funny thing is, when I opened it, it was a completed house, not a kit. So since I had already told her we were going to make a gingerbread house, we had to get in the car to go get the one I just saw on sale at Target. Silly me, I thought I wouldn't have to go shopping this weekend, but it wasn't bad at all.

Oops I uploaded my pics backwards again, so sorry. Enjoy.

We finished, for real this time.

This is suppose to be a santa but he looks like he is melting.

A closeup on our sad tree.

She decided it needed a little more icing.

The finished product, not too bad for our 1st time + a 2 yr helped.

Adding on last piece

Taking a quick taste

Thinking real hard where to add the next gumdrop

Intently watching her Daddy add icing details.

She just stuck her finger in the icing & isn't very happy about it.

The completed house Emma got last year & no we don't plan on eating this one.

Christmas Decorating

2010-12-18T14:50:00.002-05:00

This year Emma was able to help decorate the Christmas tree & loved every minute of it. All of the ornaments she put on the tree are on the bottom of course & she would put several on one limb. It took her a while to figure out to put them in different places. She also loves our stockings & the lights we have outside.

She is so into Christmas this year, she even sat on Santa's lap, but we have no pics to show for it, Mama is too cheap to pay $17. Now Santa had to coax her into but, she did it, but she wouldn't really talk to him. He looked to me for what she wanted for Christmas & I mouthed Minnie Mouse & she was just beaming after that. She asks for a big Minnie Mouse almost every day & we tell her she has to wait & see if Santa will bring one.

These pics are posted in the wrong order, actually backwards but I didn't want to start over. So sorry.

The finished project

Our stocking on the stairwell, we don't have a fireplace or a mantel.

Emma's new cheezy smile, which includes throwing her had back.

"jingle bells, jingle bells"

Updated Adoption Profile

2010-12-16T14:23:00.003-05:00

Well we finished the updates for our adoption profile, again. Doesn't seem like we just did it? In fact it was 9 months ago we send them 50 copies & updates for the website but they are running out of profiles which means many birth mothers have seen our profile but nothing yet. Our time will come.

I sent the hard copy to the printer yesterday & hopefully it will be here by the weekend so we can get them ready & send them to Lifetime. I will post a pdf copy of our entire profile just in case anyone is interested or knows of someone who may be considered adoption for their unborn child. Their is a new link on the right side of my blog now if you want to view the website condensed version.

More Thanksgiving

2010-12-04T22:07:00.004-05:00

Actually I totally forgot I took these 2 pictures at Mama's house. We were all so excited to see each other, minus Chris that we were too busy to take many. Plus the kids would not be still. They literally ran & played the entire time. This is all we have to show for Thanksgiving, except a bunch of sick people. Chris had (still has) the shingles, Morgan started with a cold, then Emma + a fever, then me, my sister Beverly, Mama, my sister Karen. We definitely shared the love & germs this Thanksgiving.

Emma with her great grandmother, Gram. Emma is her 15th great grandchild.

Cousins playing. They were actually doing ring around the rosey.

Caroline, Alex, Carson, Morgan & Emma in her tutu, coming to check things out.

Giving Thanks

2010-11-24T21:19:00.005-05:00

Looking back at last Thanksgiving we are even more thankful & grateful for our blessings this year. Emma is a healthy, happy 2 yr old with no heart problems to speak of, she is growing & thriving just as she should. Her left hand looks amazing & she is using it as if nothing was ever done. She still doesn't eat as much as she should but we have gotten used to that part & just roll with it. Hopefully over time her appetite will increase, especially once she is off Pediasure.

For those who may not be aware, Chris has the shingles. I must say he is quite miserable. There is very little chance that he can give chicken pocks to me or Emma but he is still keeping his distance, drs orders. Poor Emma just doesn't understand, but she know Daddy is sick. We are hoping he is about 1/2 way thru even though it wasn't diagnosed until Thanksgiving Eve, he felt bad since the beginning of last week. The drs he has seen have told him it should only last a few weeks, we are hoping only 2. Then to top it all off, today we think he is having reactions to all the meds they gave him. He called the nurse but nobody returned his call, hopefully he will hear something in the morning.

Emma & I headed to the beach (as planned minus Chris) with my Mom, sisters & neices on Friday & had a great time. The car trip to/fro was much better than past trips since I borrowed a tv/vcr for Emma to watch videos. She hardly made a peep. We spent all day Saturday shopping at the outlets & came back home Sunday evening. It was a short trip but we all throughly enjoyed it. The ride home was a little shaky since the vcr decided to eat one of the tapes & would not eject so the last hour or so Emma wasn't too happy but is eager to go back anyway. She is already asking to go back to "Nana's beach house".

Then on the adoption front, we have had several bites on our online profile (which we are thrilled about), but nothing has come from them so far. We know God is in control & things happen in His time, not ours. We can't wait for the day the phone rings & its Lifetime calling to say we have a birthmother for you or better yet a baby. God is good & blesses us everyday.