happy halloween!

EmJ's First Halloween...

I think we'd all agree that she's the cutest pumpkin around!

And of course being the fashion diva she is, she also had an outfit to wear during the day!


Earlier today we went to Jeff's work to show EmJ off in her costume. Honestly, she wasn't a big fan of the pumpkin costume... but she sure did look awesome!

Later tonight we went to the church for the Halloween party and EmJ slept through most of it... Being so darn cute all the time must get exhausting! :o)

I must say that I think EmJ, aka "The Great Pumpkin," (at least to Jeff, aka Daddy, that is) had a fabulous first Halloween!!!

5 months and lovin' every minute!

That's right... EmJ turned the big 5 months on October 26th and we are all lovin' every minute! Sometimes the love I have for her just overwhelms me - and it's amazing how each day I seem to love her more when yesterday I didn't think that was possible. We are so blessed.

As you can see, EmJ is grabbing at her toes and seems to think they are the most interesting things ever - especially when she's getting her diaper changed! Which does make it a little more difficult, but we manage. :o) She also really enjoys tummy time now. Before she tolerated it because mom made her, but now she likes it and will play on her tummy for a long time. She's also getting the hang of the rolling over thing, so she' ll just go where she wants to go! EmJ is also now eating oatmeal and can't get enough. She "mmmm's" the entire time she's eating and just loves it!

This weekend Jeff's mom, "Grandma Chuck" came out to visit so EmJ had lots and lots of fun with her... and of course was a little (or a lot) spoiled! But hey, that's what grandmas are for, eh?! Grandma Chuck especially enjoyed taking EmJ outside to see the big wide world.

Of course EmJ is already a HUGE KU fan... and she's the cutest KU fan EVER - at least that's what we think! Thanks to Kir and Mike for her awesome outfit! :o)

Being parents has been such an incredible experience so far... and Jeff and I just can't wait to see what else God has in store. It just never fails to amaze me how such a tiny thing can bring so much joy (and sometimes craziness) into our lives.

One of my most favorite things is to watch Jeff and EmJ play together. They are just so adorable and love each other so much! She is definitely a daddy's girl and I love it. When Jeff comes home from work it doesn't matter what EmJ was doing, all she cares about then is seeing her daddy - and of course he loves this and all he wants to do is see her too (and maybe say hi to me)! It just melts my heart to see them together and I love that EmJ gets to have the fantastic father-daughter relationship like I have with my dad. Jeff always gets EmJ ready for bed and plays with her while getting her jammies on. The other night I got to capture some of that fun time so I thought I'd share with you all too. It's things like this that remind me how fabulous my life is... and how I wouldn't trade it for anything.

the everyday joys...

Well... I figured it's been long enough without a new blog for you all... so here we are. EmJ is as incredible as ever and we just can't seem to get enough of her laughs and smiles. I think that's how it's supposed to be. :o) As the title says, the everyday joys are just the best. It's funny how the littlest things make us so excited... As you can see, EmJ experienced her very first snow... today! She was quite a good sport when we bundled her up and took her outside to take pictures. There were a few with her tongue out (for those of you who know her well, you know that's not weird- her tongue is ALWAYS out!), but I think she was trying to catch snowflakes this time!

Some other everyday joys... EmJ got her first taste of rice cereal a couple weeks ago. She did okay with it, but wasn't too keen on the idea as a whole. So, we waited and tried again last night. She LOVED it! It's funny to watch because she opens her mouth for it and almost sucks it right off the spoon, but she's still figuring out how to swallow it, so that tongue always makes an appearance. She definitely likes it though, she was whining when I didn't put it in fast enough!

EmJ has recently figured out how to grab her exersaucer toys and bring them to her mouth. And of course, proceed to chew and suck on them til the break of dawn! She is also mastering the "tri-pod sit" where she spreads her legs and puts her hands down in front of her for balance and sits up! I don't think it will be long until she's just sitting on her own! Sheesh!!! Right now, the boppy is her best friend cause it helps her stay up. She'd be the Leaning Tower of EmJ without it.

This has been a big week for EmJ - getting rice cereal on a regular basis, her first snow, and YES... she's done it... she rolled from her back to her tummy!!! Quite the feat because it takes some abs! Woo-hoo! This just goes back to how funny it is at how excited we get. EmJ and I were just hanging out today and she was laying on her back, just playing. She kept getting up on her side (nothing new, really) and after awhile I thought, "she's gonna do it!" And just a few seconds later... FLOP! You would have thought I won the lottery if you were here... I was clapping and cheering and telling EmJ how great she was! All the while, she was just looking at me wondering how she got on her belly cause she knew I hadn't put her there. We tried to get her to do it again tonight for her daddy. Of course she would come extremely close, but just not quite do it again. She's a teaser... wonder where she got that?! (Probably from her Papa!) It's a little crazy to think she's doing this now because it won't be long at all and she'll be rolling all over!

EmJ got to get all dressed up for church the other day in a very special outfit. She wore this red dress which her Auntie Amy, her mom, and her cousin Janae all wore as little babies. I think EmJ is wearing it much earlier than any of the others... she's well fed! :o) She looked so darn cute and she even got to wear her awesome cowboy boots with it! (Thanks Grandma Chuck and Grandpa Greg!)

It's those everyday joys... gotta love 'em.