Emily is 2!

Well, this is only a month late. Mother of the year right here. The holidays really caught up with us this year and I can't believe 2011 is almost over. I will not be sad to see it go. This was a hard year for me personally, but that is a whole other story and not what this post is about.

EMILY IS TWO!!!! Or in Emmy's words "I gonna be 2" said while desperately trying to hold only two fingers up. She is such a sweetheart. We had her party on the Saturday before her birthday and she was surrounded by lots of family and friends. next year we will for sure tone it down a bit and take her and some of her friends to more of a play place, but I think all the kids that made it had a fun time. I forgot my camera (I tell you mother of the year) but thankfully Papa Robert was able to capture some moments for us.

About the Party
I don't have any pictures of the details, but it was a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse theme. Here is the invite.



We had snack type appetizers including "Plutos Punch" (sherbet punch), Minnie's Mac n' Cheese, Goofy's Grapes, Mickey's jiggly jello, Donald's vegetable garden (veggie tray), Daisy's Daises (cheese slices cut into flower shapes, and of course hot dogs. My mom and I made cupcakes and put on large oreo and two minis to form a Mickey head on top. They turned out great. The party was a lot of fun. Emmy was definitely spoiled that is for sure! She is one lucky girl to have so many people in this world who love her.

About Emily
Emmy totally blows my mind. Her vocabulary doubles nearly every day and she is amazing at using her words to communicate. She says the silliest things and always keeps us laughing. She is such a happy little girl. We truly are so blessed to have such a well behaved child. Don't get me wrong, we have our moments and lately our share of serious tantrums. She is definitely testing her limits these days and it is so hard for Zig and I not to give in, but in the long run, us being a little bit more strict now will pay off down the road.

We had Em's 2 year check up and she is still on the same curve she was at her last check up and the doctor was really happy with how she was developing both physically and mentally. She said she is still small (25lbs 33 1/4 inches long, 10-25th percentile overall) but that's ok. As far as gross and fine motor skills she is a little ahead of the curve, and vocabulary wise she is doing awesome. She says full sentences, and is pretty easy to understand to most people. Zig and I pretty much understand everything she says clear as day, but there are some things she says that we have to translate.

Here are just some little fun facts:
-Emmy still loves her "buddies" and they have multiplied to over a dozen over the last few months. We had to make a special shelf in her room for them to sit at night so they all don't end up in her bed (more on her big girl room to come).
-She loves to give kisses, especially on the cheek and makes the sweetest little smacking sound when she does it. She is also the best hug giver.
-She sleeps amazing in her big girl bed. Seriously, that may have been the easiest transition yet. She quickly blew off the baby room and traded up for the big girl room no problems. I don't blame her. Her new room is pretty awesome. Christmas threw her schedule off a little bit and we are having some issues with naps and bed time but we are working through them. She likes for me to lay down and sing to her till she falls asleep and honestly, I can't complain. She is not going to let me do that forever, so for now, we just do what works.
-She loves all her family. She talks about them all the time. Noni, Papa, Papa, Grandma, all the aunts and uncles. You name it!
-She wears 18-24 month pants and 2 t shirts. She has a long upper body and a teenie tiny waist. She does have quite the belly though so it has been tough to find pants that accommodate that and aren't super long. She is still in size 4 diapers and between a 4 and 5 shoe.
-I love the way she says mommy and daddy. She will also tell people that my name is Michele and daddy's name is Sean (said almost with a Jersey accent). She will also tell people her full name, although her pronunciation of her last name is a little off. I don't blame her, it's tough to pronounce clearly.
-She is very much into Princesses and dress up. She loves Tinkerbell.
-She loves to sing, although I am quite positive she has no future on American Idol. Her favorites to sing are her ABC's, Jingle Bells, and Santa Clause is coming to town!!!!.
-She is getting good about sitting on the potty and we have had quite a few successes, but we have a long way to go. I think once we stay consistent, she is going to be a breeze to potty train. For now, with the holidays and us moving her to her big girl room, we didn't want to throw too much at her at once. We started putting panties on over her diaper so she can get comfortable pulling them on and off and I will probably take a long weekend in January to try and get the ball rolling. In the mean time, Steph changes her diaper in the bathroom and she sits on the potty with each diaper change. I would love to have her trained before the baby, and fully expect some set backs after the baby arrives, but I won't push her if she is not ready.

This post could go on all day if I let it. For now, I will just leave you with some pictures of Emily from her party day!

Bumpdate

I realize I am seriously behind on this. The last month and a half has been insane! I have been super busy with work deadlines, I went on a cruise for my cousin Breanna's wedding, I planned a 2 year olds birthday and big girl bedroom, and I moved offices at work. Busy really is an understatment. I have been SWAMPED and I can't believe the entire month of November and have of December have passed me by!!

I have pictures, for the most part. I didn't get pictures of week 23 because I was on the cruise, and I didn't get week 27 because we spent the entire weekend prepping for Emmy's big girl room, but considering how busy we were, I think we did pretty good.

Instead of doing the survey, I will just give a recap of the last several weeks because I am sure you don't want me to post the longest blog post in the world anyway. I have been feeling great. I am starting to get tired, mainly because I haven't been sleeping great. No so much because I am comfortable, I just wake up in the middle of the night and am wide awake. I think I remember that happening with Emily too. I went to the doctor 2 weeks ago and I am up 10 lbs. (5 of which I accumulated over my cruise and Thanksgiving! oops) but my doctor is very happy with my progress and not concerned by my gain at all. I feel very large. People tell me I am still small, but I think they are just humoring me. We don't have a name yet, but we are talking about. Hopefully something will come to us soon. We both have names we really like, unfortunately we have none of those names in common. We aren't rushing into it, but I think we are narrowing our lists down a bit. No new stretch marks to speak of, thankfully. I passed my glucose test, but I am anemic again this go round. I am going to try and increase my iron naturally, because last time I had to stop taking the supplements because they made me so sick. I am going to be all Popeye with the spinach if I have too. :) Chicken still grosses me out, but I am semi ok with beef. I can't wait till my love of cooking comes back again and doesn't repulse me so we start eating a little better overall. Zig has been amazing these last few months and has completly taken over the meal planning and I love him for it!

Anyway, here are some pictures!! Here you can find weeks 23, 24, 25, I skipped 26 last go round, 27, and 28 from my pregnancy with Emily. I promise to be better about posting. Seriously. I can't believe I am already in my third trimester!!

Week 24



Week 25



Week 26



Week 28

Happy Birthday Emmy!

This is a quick fly by post to wish my sweet little Emily the happiest of birthdays. You have no idea the impact you have had on your daddy or my life.. You are amazing. You are independent and caring and so super smart. The things you say keep us laughing all the time. Thank you for everything you have done to truly complete our lives. We love you with all our hearts, more than anything in the world. What an amazing experience these last 2 years have been! We cannot wait to continue to watch you grow! I love you so much my sweet angel!

So blogger is now blocked at my work which is why I am typing this from my phone. And partially why I have been so bad about blogging. I will post some birthday party pictures and baby #2 update here soon. Promise!

Emily is 23 months!

Dude. That's all I can say is dude. I can't believe the holidays are just around the corner. We are in party planning mode right now for Emily's big 2 birthday. We are going with a Mickey Mouse theme since she is pretty much obsessed. I am excited, but feel very behind in my planning already!

I don't know if any of this is "new," but this is what she is up too...

*She loves to sing. She sings a lot of songs we understand, and a million we don't but her voice is so so sweet.

*She can sing her ABC's and make all the letter sounds. She loves the Letter Factory by Leap Frog. It has been a great learning tool for her. She runs around telling us all the sounds the letters make.

*She is very independent. She says "Emmy do it" to pretty much everything. She loves putting her shoes on, or anyone's shoes on really. She is pretty good at it. Not always the right foot, but a good effort.

*She is a girly girl. She LOVES to dress up. And she loves heels. She is really good at walking in them too. She has been putting my heels on for months now, but she wears little princess dress up shoes at school a lot and can literally run in them. That's my girl!





*Howie, Lamby and Sophie are all her best friends. Really, not sure if that will ever change. Zig took a video of her last night putting them all to sleep in her bed. I will have to upload it.

*She seems so much bigger to me these days, but I think she is still probably a peanut. Especially when I found clothes that she wore last winter are still fitting her! She wears 18 month pants that are giant on her waist, 18-24 month shirts, size 4 diapers, and between 4 and 5 shoes.

*Sleeping in her bed is going great! She has only gotten out of bed once since we made the move. She opened the door and yelled down to Zig and I "I go down stairs now, Ok mommy!" It was really cute.

*Want to know what happens when your daughter silently wakes up from a nap and plays in her room for who knows how long...


I walked in to find her laundry basket EXPLODED all over the room and she was sporting this little get up. Hysterical.

*She loves to read books. She will ALWAYS ask for another one before bed.

*She loves pink and princesses.

*She especially loves to have her nails painted.

*She says the funniest things. She always has us laughing. This truly may be my favorite age. She is a riot.

We did take her "trick or treating" on Monday. I use the term loosely because we only went to Noni's house and to see Papa (Grandma was out of town.) She loved her little outfit. I personally am not a big Halloween fan, but I will play along with the kids. I really wanted her to re wear her tutu from my sisters wedding, so I paired it with some leopard ears and a tail and she was a little cat. According to my brother, she was not a leopard, since her body was sans spots, but whatever. She was more of a hybrid panther/leopard, but it was still adorable and she loved it.

Weeks 21 and 22!

Another few weeks past. I saw the doctor on Monday and everything is looking good. Little girl is really active, which I really do love, and measuring right on track. I feel great. Better than I have ever felt actually. I don't remember 2nd tri with Em as much, but my energy seems to be back for the most part, food is amazing, other than chicken. I can't get enough water. I just feel good. Other than that there really isn't a lot to update. We are trying to sell our bedroom set so we can get Emmy's big girl room done. And we are in the midst of planning a birthday party for our sweet little girl. ::TEARS::. #Areyoufreakingkiddingmethatmylittleangelisgoingtobe2!!

Anyway, here is a little update
Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: 21 and 22 weeks
Size of baby: According to the Bump, at 21 weeks the size of a banana. And month 5 which is weeks 22-24 she is the size of a papaya. So I guess it goes by months from here on out. Boring.
Total Weight Gain/Loss:up 8 lbs total. Could be worse. I expected worse with the amount of pumpkin bars and junk I have been consuming these days.
Maternity Clothes: Yep
Movement: Lots of movement. Swoon...
Sleep:Still not bad. I really can't complain
What I miss: I can't really think of anything? I miss my sister I guess. Not really pregnancy related, but true
Cravings: Food in general. I can't get enough. Same as last week. I really just want to eat all the time. Nothing specific though.
Symptoms: Um, giant belly? No other "symptoms" per say.
Best moment this week:I would say that over the last few weeks, I have really enjoyed spending time with family. Emmy is such a blast these days!

You can find belly pics from week 21 and 22 from my last pregnancy here!

Week 21-Baby #2


Week 22-Baby #2

Weeks 19 and 20!

I cannot believe we are more than halfway through! These last few months have flown by! Everything is going great! I am super busy with work, which is not a bad thing. I just haven't had time to post as much as I would like. I am really trying to soak up my alone time with Emily, since in a few short months I will go from being a mother of 1 to a mother of 2. I want to cherish these days with just Emmy and watch her really transition from my baby girl to my amazing big girl. She keeps us on our toes, and we love it. Anyway, as expected, there are no pictures from week 19, but here are some from week 20. This post is super late, since technically I am pretty much 21 weeks, but who is counting!

Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: 19 and 20 weeks
Size of baby: According to the Bump, the size of an mango and a canteloup! REALLY?? A canteloup?? That seems much bigger than a mango...meh
Total Weight Gain/Loss:I am not sure, but I am sure it's probably a lot because I am hungry all.the.time.
Maternity Clothes: Pretty much still pants, and some tops. My belly is growing everyday though
Movement: Yep. Lots of sweet little thumps. I love it! Mostly at night when I am just starting to relax.
Sleep:Not too bad. I use a pillow to help prop me on my side, which allows me to sleep a little more on my stomach, so I am sleeping pretty good.
What I miss: I am too busy to really miss anything, but I really do miss a nice glass of red wine.
Cravings: Food in general. I can't get enough. I really do need to start watching what I eat though.
Symptoms: Other than feeling the baby move, and eating a ton, nothing really. My headaches seem to have subsided. ::knock on wood:: Maybe the chiropractor really worked!
Best moment this week:Finding out it's another girl! And planning out Emmy's room!

Here is a picture from week 20. You can find my belly pics from week 19 and 20 with Emily here and here. I would say I am definitely bigger this go round :)

The difference of just one year!

Today Emmy and I went on a field trip with her class to McCall's Pumpkin Patch. It is amazing to me how much she has changed in the last year!! Check out the difference!!

2010


and 2011


It's totally crazy to me how much she has changed, yet how much has stayed the same. She still has the same silly grin, she is just bigger, has longer hair, and a heck of a lot more teeth. I didn't realize how much the gap between her two front teeth had closed. Here are a couple more pictures from our day. We had the best time! Ate lots of food, pet lots of animals, slide down the slide with Mr. Mike, and picked out a teenie tiny Emmy sized pumpkin.

PS getting my child to smile for the camera is next to impossible.



Checking out the bunnies



Checking out all the animals. The girls loved this!

"Hehe, he "yicked" me mommy!"


I just love their little shadows!

Sliding with Mr. Mike

Rocking out to the awesome band!


Yeah, I would say she had a good time. Can't wait for next year!

My kid is like Rockstar Amazing!

Seriously. She is the easiest kid in the world. I know I say this from a very biased perspective, but honestly she has been so go with the flow, not a worry in the world, "Mom you want me to stop drinking from a bottle, done", "You want me to give up my paci, no problem," "You want me to sleep in a big girl bed, EASY." That's right, easy. She transitioned like she had been sleeping in a big girl bed her whole life. She whined for a minute, but quickly settled in for both bed time and naps. Naps these days have been a bit of a struggle on the weekends because she would rather play, but now, no big deal. She will still cry for a second, but it is more to see if we will give in than anything. Not a real cry. Just a whine.

So we made the move last Friday night. In preparation for the big change, and the new baby, we invested in a new video monitor that allows us to have 2 cameras, one for each girls room. In addition to that, the new camera allows us to pan around the room, which is helpful for if and when Emmy decides to get out of bed, we can scan the room and see what she is doing. So back to Friday, we never purchased the toddler rail for her bed, so after work we went to Babies 'R Us, to pick up a universal one. I had seen some online for like $20 bucks and thought perfect. Little did I know, their stock of these did not exist. Instead, you had to purchase a wood one that was $70. No that still is not a ton of money, but our plan was to transition Em to a bed, and then make a huge deal to move her to a big girl room, since we are going to put the baby in her room. I didn't want to pay $70 for a couple weeks of use and then have to store the thing in the closet for the next 2 years. Anyway, long story short, Zig and I made the decision to forgo the rail. Don't judge. Her bed literally sits on the floor. So we headed home, took off the front of the crib and Em was pumped! She jumped on the bed for a good 15 minutes before we put her in her jammies and got her ready for bed. We made a big deal about what a big girl she was, and she was so incredibly proud (and so were we!). I sat with her for a minute after reading her a dozen books, and finally kissed her good night and left. She sat up, cried for about 2 minutes, then laid down and passed out. We didn't hear a peep from her until the next morning. Me being the paranoid (and pregnant lady who has to pee about 10 times a night) mom that I am, I woke up and checked the monitor a few times. At one point I noticed she was sleeping on the floor next to her bed, so I assume she rolled out but she never woke up. I checked again at my next pee break and she had climbed back in. It has been smooth sailing ever since. She is actually easier to put to bed now than she has been in months.


So now we begin the shopping for the big girl furniture. I have asked her a couple of times what she wants her big girl room to look like, and her only request is that it be pink. Once we get the guest room furniture sold, we will start on her room. I think I am more excited than she is. I have always liked her nursery, but now I am excited to go all out on her room because now I think she will really appreciate it.


That being said, since baby # is a girl, we will likely just keep the same bedding and decorations for the new baby. Sounds lame, but once again, we will make a big deal about her big girl room when she is ready and I think it will be more worth it to go all out when she can appreciate it too.


Anyway, long story short. I love my little Emmy. I just pray that we are as lucky with this next little girl and she is at least have as easy as Em.

Sorry this one is a little blurry. She was jumping around like a maniac at this point.

Emily 22 months

My sweet, sweet little Emily.So I have had this post written for a week, but I didn't have picutes uploaded to add to it, so it has been sitting lonely in my pending posts for a week! I think you will all forgive me when you see the cuteness that is my sweet Emmy below.

Her vocabulary and ability to put together crazy sentences continues to amaze me. She is an AMAZING communicator and continues to learn everyday.

-She eats great at school. Not so great at home for dinner. We are working on it. It has been really tough with my food aversions to offer her what we are eating, because honestly we are eating like crap. She eats a lot of peanut butter and jelly, which she really doesn't seem to mind, when she actually feels like eating dinner that is.
-She is obsessed with cheetos and cinnamon toast waffles. (She gets the reduced fat Trader Joe's cheese puffs and whole grain waffles) Shewould live on that if we let her.
-Sleep. Oh sleep. She has been going through these crazy sleep changes where she sleeps awesome and then sleeps terrible. Right now she sleeps great, she just doesn't want to go to sleep right away, which usually results in about 10 mins of tears before she settles down. We are planning to take off the front of her crib next weekend to start the big transition. We got a great new monitor that allows us to move the camera all around the room, which I think will be great when we make the big move. :)I think she is ready.
-She is getting 2 new molars, which leaves her with only 2 more teeth to go. This could also play a part in why her sleep and eating habits have been off.
-She has a new found love for Sophie the giraffe again this month. Her buddies now include Sophie, Howie and Lamby. They go everywhere together.
-She loves to read, but thinks board books are for babies. She likes big girl books and actually takes really good care of them. We read several books each night before bed. It's actually pretty fun to put her down for bed because she is so snuggly. That is until it is time to actually lay her down for the night. That's not so fun.
-She loves Crocs and hates socks. She actually slept in a pair of her crocs the other night.
-Any time she gets hurt, she insists we "siss" it. Everyone in the room must kiss her owie.
-She loves to take your nose, but hates to give it back. She is so funny because she will take it and then run and put it on the wall. You have to beg for her to give it back, and when she finally gives in, she will retrieve your nose from the wall and return it. If you try and hold her nose hostage, well you are just playing with fire.
-She refers to all cats as "Charlie". Charlie is Miss Stephanie's cat. She loves him. She has memorized the book "Brown Bear, Brown Bear." If you name the color, she knows what animal is next. When you get to the purple cat, she will tell you it is a purple Charlie. It's pretty cute.
-She is making progress on the potty, but we are still not pushing it. If she asks to go, we take her. Sometimes she goes, sometimes she doesn't, but she ALWAYS wipes and flushes. We will probably really start trying in December. I am planning on moving her into her new room in November and don't want to push to much on her too quickly. I think once we actually committ to it, she will pick it up pretty quickly.
-She can count to 10, but she is no show pony. She will do it and many things on her own time and not because you asked. She also knows most of her alphabet, but sometimes you have to chime in to keep her going. We are working on the sounds the letters make now. We have been watching the Leap Frog Letter factory and she is really picking up on the sounds, which is fun.
-She loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Loves it.
-She can tell you the sound of every letter of the alpahbet and will tell you her name if you ask.

And here are a million pictures. You.Are.Welcome. :)

We took Emmy to the Balloon Fiesta earlier this month. She loved it. She kept telling us, "Boon FLYING NOW." There was a shark balloon that she thinks was Baby Beluga (have I mentioned that she LOVES Baaby Belgua. I mean LOVES. She asks to hear the song a million times in our 10 minute car ride to school) Anyway, She yelled "Baby Beluga, FLYING NOW." For days after. Clearly she is obsessed with baloons too. Look at the picture below. She could not stop starting at them.


Emmy and her new buddy Sophia.
Getting her to smile at was impossible.
Fun at Greek Fest!
Having fun with Auntie Becca while we are out of town. Check out the jammies Aunt Koley gave her. They glow in the dark. Awesome.
Seriously Chic.
Emmy and her buddies. Lamby, Howie and Sophie. They go every where together. Everywhere.
This was after a night where she didn't want to sleep. She woke up at 3 am, but was in the best mood ever. Till she was down for the count after lunch.

Cheese ball
Reading about "Baby Beluga"
Love this face
Bath time is always fun with Auntie Becca!
Fun at school
They went on a field trip to the mountains. She looks like an old lady. lol
Giving Max a bath