she's a-movin!

Yep, folks... she's mobile! EmJ has been toying with moving around for the past few months and has been learning to scoot and do what she can to get around. Well, it's happened - and a lot all at once! EmJ started "crawling" a couple weeks ago. I say "crawling" because it's definitely not the traditional all fours crawl, it's more of an army crawl, but she gets where she wants to go and she loves it!

Now that she's got that down, she's really starting to pull herself up on the furniture and cruise around. Just this afternoon she would pull herself up on the couch and then sit down and pull herself up again and sit down... she cracks me up! It's so cute to see her learn all these new things and be so proud of herself! :o) So, needless to say, long gone are the days of putting her in one spot and her still being there 3 minutes later!

EmJ's love for reading also continues! She loves to sit and look at books on her own forever... but the fun thing for me is that she loves to be read to. It amazes me how long she'll sit and listen to books - she absolutely loves it! Also, when she's reading to herself if she ever picks a book up that is upside-down, she immediately turns it the right way. I thought this was a fluke when I first noticed it, but nope - she knows which way they go! Too cute!!

We got to dedicate EmJ at church on Mother's Day - it was pretty cool to know that we have all that support (plus much more from all of you!) in raising EmJ in a Jesus-lovin' home!

Less than one week until EmJ turns 1... we can't believe how fast it's gone, but we're excited to see what God has in store next. Birthday blog soon to come!!!

arizona!!!

We got to take our first family vacation the end of April to ARIZONA! It was crazy hot, but tons of fun. We went for Chad and Sarah's fabulous wedding and also got to see Grandpa Reg and Grandma Tracey (Jeff's dad) and Uncle Drew and Aunt Keli (Maren's brother) and Cadence and McKenna. We had a blast and EmJ loved seeing all these fantastic people! Here are some fun pictures - just a glimpse of all the fun we had!

Chad and Sarah's Wedding

Grandpa Reg and Grandma Tracey's

Uncle Drew and Aunt Keli's

As you can tell, we had a great time! There is much more to blog about with EmJ - she's almost 1 (ahh!!!!), she's becoming more moblie everyday and would MUCH rather be walking (with help still) than doing anything else, she's gets more amazing every single day... I'll try to be better about blogging more often! Have a great week, everyone!

it's a zoo out there!

That's right... we made our very first trip to the zoo this week! EmJ and I went to the zoo with EmJ's Auntie Amy and cousins Janae and Jonah and we had a blast!

We got to see all kinds of animals including monkeys, flamingos, polar bears, penguins... well, you get the idea! :o)

EmJ had a fabulous time at the zoo! If the animals were close enough or moving enough, she'd watch them and was totally intrigued. But even when the animals were just laying around, she was very entertained by all the people around - Janae and Jonah included, of course! EmJ just loves her cousins - they make her laugh pretty much all the time!

There was a very cool drum that EmJ and Jonah got to play together. They both thought it was pretty cool!

As you can see, we also got a picture showing how tall EmJ is compared to a polar bear! :o) She pretty much comes up to his knee... not too shabby!

EmJ rode in the stroller most of the time, but you aren't allowed to bring a stroller to the Bird House or to Tropical Discovery, so we carried her through those. She was pretty interested in what was going on, especially when she was being carried

and could see things a little closer. Jonah was super great in the Tropical Discovery area - he held my hand while we looked at all the snakes! For those of you who know me, you know this is no joke - I do NOT like snakes at all!

We had quite a fun day at the zoo and couldn't have had better company for EmJ's first zoo trip. We'll definitely be doing that again...!

:o)

Stay tuned for some fun park and outside blogs - we FINALLY got a camera that takes good outside pictures! Yea!!!

hmm...wonder where she got that?!

"Hi!" This has been quite the week for EmJ. She was sick - for the first time in her little life - this past weekend. We'll spare you the details, but I will say it was no fun! Even though she wasn't feeling well, EmJ did pretty well - considering. She just sat in our laps and hung out, not wanting to do much of anything. Jeff got this picture that captured perfectly how EmJ was feeling... Sad, I know! Anyway... EmJ is much better now! We've been doing all kinds of fun things since she's been feeling better. We played with flour the other day - which was hilarious! EmJ enjoyed kicking her feet around in it more than playing in it with her hands, but she definitely enjoyed herself! Colorado weather has been beautiful, so we've been outside as much as possible lately. We've gone to the park a couple times and EmJ LOVES to swing, we've gone on some walks, and we even hung out outside last night while Jeff grilled some dinner. EmJ really likes to be outside - hmm, wonder where she got that?! Probably her parents!

As I always say, EmJ is learning new things everyday. She's saying a few words now! Some sound just like the word and anyone could tell what she's saying, while others may sound like baby babbles, but we know what she's saying! She says hi, da-da, mom or mama, nana, papa, more, all done, and is learning bye-bye. She even says "hiiii da-da" when she sees Jeff - SO cute!!! She signs more and all done like a pro and has recently been actually saying the words when she signs them. Those words sound sort of random, but she says them the exact same way each time she signs, so we know that is definitely what she's saying. She's also learning to eat more and more things - and is doing quite well with new foods. It's funny because she's much more apt to try new foods when she's not in her highchair. Stubborn kid - hmm, wonder where she got that?! Her dad, I think! HA! :o)

EmJ's most favorite thing to do right now is read. It may sound funny, but she's most happy when we're sitting with her and reading her books! She stays interested for a long time - and she already has favorite books that she'll listen to over and over and over! Once again - hmm, wonder where she got that?! Her mom, duh!!! :o) If she was reading Golf magazines, I'd say Jeff... but it's books she likes!

Things are great - EmJ is fabulous as always! She continually keeps us on our toes, teaches us new things, and never fails to make us laugh!!! We are blessed beyond measure...

9 months?!

That's right.... EmJ is now 9 months old! I can't believe it! :o) She is so fabulous and so much fun right now. We really enjoy watching her learn and grow and be so stinkin' cute!

EmJ has been giving kisses for a long time now - and she's so cute about it! Just ask her for a kiss, and she'll lean in (open-mouth and all) and give you a kiss. She also kisses when we say, "What does Mommy need?" or "What does Daddy need?" Thanks to Daddy for teaching her that and to Kimmi for the idea! :o) She also kisses when you tell her you love her, which is pretty much her way of saying "I love you too!" LOVE IT!!!
She's been doing the "So Big!" thing now when we ask her how big she is - it's pretty cute. Here's a picture of "so big" - she's great! She also waves at anyone and anything. She'll wave hi and bye-bye and she's pretty good at it. It's one of her favorite things to do right now. She's over her stranger anxiety totally now (we're still getting over the separation anxiety with mom) and she loves to wave at everyone. If someone waves at her or talks to her she gets a huge grin, but once they turn away she usually loudly tries to get their attention again. It's pretty funny!

Some other fun things she does now - she's been clapping for awhile and has recently figured out how to clap with her hands open all the time. When you say, "Yea, EmJ!" she squeals and claps and grins! She also signs "more" like a pro - and is so good about doing it when you ask her to. She just recently learned to sign "all done" too. We're working on "please" and "thank you" now. Another fun thing - she can pick up her own food and feed herself now - woo-hoo!!! She's also drinking from a sippy cup on her own - she sometimes needs help lifting it up enough, but she's doing awesome.

She's still not crawling, but she's definitely getting more curious about it. We just got back from Oklahoma to visit our best friends and Chloe is a crawling queen - and I think EmJ watched enough to want to do that! She's really funny because when she's done playing with her toys, she'll throw them out of her reach. Then she makes me laugh even more because when she wants a toy she'll reach and reach to get it. I got a couple of funny pictures - so many times I think she's going to flop over (and she sometimes does!), but often she keeps her balance. She's hilarious! She's also just started to get very interested in pulling herself up. She's been doing it for a long time with us when we put our fingers out for her to hold and tell her to "stand up!" But now, when you're near, she'll grab your fingers, your shirt, anything she can, and stand up on her own. It's fabulous!

I think that brings you all up to date on EmJ... she's pretty much the cutest and most fantastic baby ever! :o)

bath-time!

EmJ definitely loves bath time! She was sitting in her little bath until recently - I just hadn't thought about switching her to the big bath. We did finally switch her and she loves it! It makes me laugh how much she enjoys taking a bath. She doesn't even mind water on her face... she just closes her eyes and waits for it to be over, then flashes that super cute grin. Of course she loves the wash cloth (as you can see) and always wants to be chewing on it. This makes for some difficulty when it's time to be washed cause she just wants to grab at it! :o) It is just so fun to watch her learn and discover all these new things! The other day Jeff was holding the washcloth and letting the water drip in front of EmJ. It was so funny to watch her try to grab the water... I could almost hear her, "Why can't I hold this?!" She's the greatest!

I know it's been awhile since I posted a blog - you all know how crazy life can get! But, pictures are downloaded, so I'll be posting another one soon!

just growin'!

EmJ is getting so big! Just the other day, Jeff and I were looking at her playing and were just shocked at how big she's getting! On one hand, I love seeing her discover new things everyday and all the smiles that come with her new discoveries... but on the other hand, I wish she could just stay her little baby-self forever! She is super curious about everything and will grab and anything within her reach (including the camera, as you can see!)

Of course, EmJ is super stylish also! Her hair is long enough now to be put up (a little)... We put it up the other day and it was so cute cause she had a couple little curls just sticking straight up! I tried to get a picture that would show it, which wasn't too easy... this is the best we could do!

EmJ is really starting to get her own little personality and it is so fun to watch! However, she has quite the stubborn streak, and definitely knows what she wants. Which ends up making for some frustration on both

our parts cause she knows what she wants, but can't tell us... she's just so darn cute though, and just smiles at you and you forget the whole thing! She does this new thing now where if she's done playing with a toy, she'll throw it out of her reach and then get mad about it. It's pretty funny, if you ask me!

She's not crawling yet, but has mastered reaching as far as her little body will let her while she's sitting up... I'm thinking crawling is right around the corner... we'll keep you posted!

So here she is... getting bigger and more adorable with each passing moment!

go jayhawks!

EmJ is definitely a Kansas Jayhawks fan... and here are some pictures to prove it!

She loves to play with this basketball, when daddy shares it with her! :o) She also does her fair share of cheering for the Jayhawks - as seen in this picture. Even though Jeff and I don't really agree when it comes to football, we definitely do when it comes to basketball - and EmJ is right there with us... lovin' those Jayhawks!

ROCK CHALK JAYHAWK... GO KU!!!