New Tricks

Last night at dinner, Boomer and I were talking about just how fast Emmy is picking up on new skills. As we ate, Emmy sat in her high chair and very easily moved food from her tray to her mouth, pinching the food between her fingers and then using her teeth to chew. When we first introduced this skill, it seemed she would often gnaw on her fingers by accident or she would miss her mouth, sending the food tumbling down her belly. Now, picking up food is very easy; it's just one of the many daily skills she can do now. Boomer and I ate for a few moments in silence as we watched her doin' her thang. A few weeks ago, we celebrated each bite that made it to her mouth, but now we eat along with her, adding food to her tray as we talk about the day. When did we stop cheering after each bite? I guess we've just been distracted as we look ahead to the next skill: drinking from a straw, standing unassisted, holding (and not chewing) a book. Certainly it is easy to focus on what is ahead, but there is still so much to celebrate as our little girl continues to develop new skills each day. One thing that I can't capture in a photo is the way that she rolls her tongue. All throughout the day, she trills her tongue so that almost every 'ooh' and 'ahh' comes out with a Latina flavor. Even when she is crying, she will still roll her tongue! We think she must get this trait from me, since Boomer can't roll his tongue. I often talk back in this little language of hers, while Boomer tries to mimic the sound with his lips. Over the last few weeks, other new tricks have included turning out the lights...

...climbing in the refrigerator...

...opening doors and surprising Mommy and Daddy in the bathroom...

...riding on her cousins' toy puppy...

...splashing in the bath and pulling out the drainer...

...'sorting' cards....

...and giving Mommy the 'side eye.'

I still laugh when I look at that picture! We were out to dinner at Chipotle for a school fundraiser, and Meg snapped this photo of our group. It is just too funny the look that Emmy is giving me. Boomer quickly turned it into a meme and texted it out to all of our family.  

In addition to being a month of new skills, October has also been a month of birthdays. We kicked off October with Boomer's birthday; then this past weekend, we had triple the celebrations with a party for Luke and Laurel on Saturday morning and then a party for Maddox in the afternoon. Yesterday, on 28th, Great Gma Harriet turned 80. She and Great Gpa Bill are visiting from Florida, and they are spending the next few days here in NC. Here are some photos from the birthday celebrations!

Can you spot the difference between these two photos? :)

13.1!

Even as I am writing this, I can't believe we really did it!  Yesterday, Meg and I ran another half-marathon together, but this time, we finally broke the 2-hour mark! It was such an exciting moment, and I still get chills thinking of crossing the finish line. 

Meg and I have been running races together for a few years now. We started back in 2009, and even through weddings and babies, we've managed to run a half-marathon each year. We've trained in the heat of summer and in the sub-freezing temps of winter. It's not just about the running, but spending time together as sisters. Our conversations during these runs bounce back-and-forth about work, husbands, babies, and schedules. It was even before one of these runs that I told Megan that I was pregnant and that she was going to be an aunt! Certainly it has not always been easy to drag ourselves out of bed on Saturday mornings, leaving behind our little families for a few hours of pounding the pavement or the trails at Salem Lake, but we have found that the precious time we spend together is good for the body and for the soul. My mom earlier this week said laughing "I don't know why you girls do this!" And truly I don't know why we do either! Except that it has become such a special time of bonding as sisters. 

On race day, our times have fluctuated over the years. While we've celebrated the accomplishment and not so much the pace, we also have always wanted to finish a sub-2 half marathon. Meg finally did it running solo back in May. During our training this summer and early fall, I, too, wanted to reach this goal. We had had some good training runs, but knowing the physical toil of having a baby and still nursing a baby, I was realistic when it came to race day. At the same time, there was a thought in my head "If I've gone through labor, surely I can do this!" 

The conditions on Saturday were just perfect. Mid 60's, overcast, comfortable for short sleeves and shorts. The race was called the Cannon Ball, and it was mostly on a greenway in Greensboro. Just like with most races, I had the normal jitters in the morning and even throughout the first few miles. I could feel my heart beating faster than usual and my breathing more labored. Right at the start, we cranked out a few miles at an 8:30 pace, and then with some hills, our time inched up to 9 minute miles. Meg and I decided ahead of time that we would limit our talking, unlike other races when we have mostly talked throughout the entire run. Our communication consisted of one or two words: "Water?" meaning "Do you want to get water at this water station?" and "Feeling okay?" meaning "Are you okay after that hill?" or "I'm here" meaning "I'm just behind you, still feeling good, I'll catch up." Our cheering crew was stationed right around mile 6, just after one of the hills along the route. It was such a boost to see all of them there cheering: Mom, Dad, Boomer, Emmy, Zack, Zander, and Maddox. Even Emmy was clapping! The route was a there-and-back, so we saw them again around mile 8. It gave us one last surge, and then it was on to the finish. 

Meg and I were each wearing GPS watches, and toward the middle of the race, they weren't in sync with the mile markers. Both of our watches would go off a minute or two before we would actually pass the marker. It made calculating our projected overall time a little difficult. As we passed mile marker 12, I could tell it would be close. Also, the 2:00 pacers (runners that carry signs throughout the race to help less-experienced runners reach certain goals) passed us. It was hard not to give up! Both of the pacers said that they were just a little bit ahead, running right at a 9:00 pace, when a 9:08 pace would still come in just under 2:00. It was about this time that we also came to the final hill, a hill that would continue to the finish. I could hear the music so I knew we were close. Meg said "Let's go!" and I put my head down to hopefully grind out the last of the race. I caught a glimpse of my mom yelling just ahead. As I caught up to her, she pushed Maddox in a stroller alongside of us for the last few yards. Meg kept cheering me on to "Push, Push!" Boomer was coaching, too. He said he had his eyes on the clock and knew that I could do it! Zander came in to finish out the race with us, and we crossed just under 2:00, with not much time to spare. It was the most thrilling of runner's highs that I have ever experienced! 

After the finish, sweaty and sore, Meg and I posed for photos with our crew. It is definitely a group effort pulling off this accomplishment! My dad, the cameraman and also the navigator, always scopes out the route and find spots to post up to cheer us on. My mom faithfully brings the signs to each race and then corrals the grandchildren, keeping them occupied and entertained aside from the few seconds when we run by. And then Zack and Boomer, who have pulled shifts every Saturday morning watching the kiddos so we could train. It certainly takes a village! They, too, deserve medals!

For now, Meg and I plan to enjoy the upcoming weekends with birthday parties, holidays, and other fun activities. No more long runs...until 2018! :)

11th months!

This week, it seemed like I was running low on everything: time, sleep, gas, groceries, energy. I was late to a meeting at Central Office, with my gas light on the whole drive there; I went to the grocery store on Saturday, only to start another list that same evening. But even so, it was a good week; one of those busy but productive, tiring but fulfilling, exhausting but energizing weeks. For all those reasons, I am a few days behind on posting Emmy's 11 month photos. She turned 11 months old on Tuesday! The morning was too rushed to take her photos before daycare and work, so I tried to fit them in after I picked her up that afternoon. Boomer had to work late, and I was solo for the evening and not very optimistic about the outcome of the photos. There was just the smallest window of time from picking her up from daycare and then the perfectly choreographed routine of bath and bedtime, so I hurriedly dressed Emmy in the 11-month onesie, snapped a bow in her hair, and started clicking with my camera. The blurriness shows just how active our girl is; the standing up shows the inquisitiveness and independence of a little girl exploring her world; the tears at the end show a unhappy baby that wants to be held after being at daycare for 10 hours. I thought about trying again another night...perhaps I could get better smiles? Maybe it would be clearer with Boomer's newer phone? But the fact that I have kept up with the monthly photos at all is an accomplishment to be celebrated. They couldn't be more perfect to me!

As you can see in the photos (not the crying one!), Emmy is very mobile. She can pull herself up on almost any surface. She has gotten confident enough to only use one hand to steady herself; it seems that she is very close to taking that first step. She has gotten pretty quick on all fours, and she loves making laps around the downstairs; she is most fascinated with trying to grab the flowers on the coffee table in the living room. She hasn't quite discovered the stairs yet, and for that, I am very grateful. We have protectors in most of the electrical outlets and have removed the white rubber pieces on the springy door stops, both of which she likes to play.

Emmy is in 12-month clothes and size 3 diapers. She continues to get a lot of her nutrients from breastmilk. I still nurse her in the mornings, and then she has three 5-oz bottles during the day and an 8-oz bottle at night. She also eats two (sometimes 3!) Step 2 Gerbers each day and one serving of rice cereal, with also small bites of real food and other transitional foods like puffs and veggie crisps. She has a mouth full of teeth, 8.5 to date. She is fairly neat when she eats, although we haven’t really allowed her to play with her food much. Mommy and Daddy still control the spoon, but she is doing great at picking up food from her tray and bringing it to her mouth. We just recently upgraded her portable booster seat to a true high chair. And she seems to like it!

She loves saying "hi", and she is starting to reach for people when she wants to be picked up or held. One of her favorite games is playing hide-and-seek with Daddy. Boomer had jury duty again this week, so he pulled double shifts going between the courthouse and the high school. He still made time for his little girl though, and I captured these sweet photos of the two of them. I love spying on them from the baby monitor.

 

During a family grocery store run, I couldn't pass up a photo op with Emmy driving the cart. (We switched to a regular cart...she's not quite big enough to ride around in this one yet.)

In the next few weeks, I'll be planning a birthday party. It is hard to believe how fast the time has gone! For now, I will do my best to forget the grocery shopping and the laundry, and enjoy snuggles with my not-quite 1-year-old.

Boomer's Birthday Week

On Wednesday, Boomer turned 32, and we have been celebrating him all week! He is so good to his girls, so we were excited to spoil him instead.  

Birthday Part I: We kicked off the birthday week with a date for Mommy and Daddy to the Wake Forest vs. Florida State game. Boomer bought the tickets over the summer and arranged for Grammy and Grandpa to watch our little girl. Up until a few days before, I thought we would be watching the game like we usually do -- in the cheapest seats and then trying to move closer each quarter. But that was not the case for this game. Boomer surprised me with special seats in the Touchdown Club. Unlimited food, drinks, an indoor and outdoor seating area, bar, and tv rooms, plus great seats just behind the endzone. We have never seen a Wake game like this before! It was nice to not worry about someone bouncing us out of their seats! :)  The gates to the stadium opened at 2PM, but the Touchdown Club opened at 1:30PM. So of course, we were there at 1:30PM! It was beautiful weather, and we went back for seconds and thirds of salad, chicken, pork, nachos, popcorn, and dessert. Unfortunately, Wake lost in the very last minute, and we had practically a front-row seat to the heartbreaking FSU touchdown. Even so, it was a fun way to spend time together. It reminded us that we need to continue to make 'dating' a priority. And it also showed us that perhaps we need to make the Touchdown Club an annual tradition! 

Birthday Part II: On Sunday, we celebrated with a family dinner at East Coast Wings. My parents and the Houstons joined us, and even though it was a few days early, we sang 'Happy Birthday' and opened presents: new work shoes, white buttondown shirts, and a Chipotle gift card. If that doesn't sum up my husband, I don't know what does! :) Boomer got to order his wings, instead of sharing chicken tenders with me like usual. We ate our fill of chips and chicken and topped it off with some cheesecake. Emmy enjoyed sitting on Daddy's lap while we sang. It won't be too much longer until she is blowing out her own birthday candles!

Birthday Part III: On the actual day of Boomer's birthday, Boomer had jury duty! Based on my jury duty experience, I told him that it would be an easy day of waiting around with an hour lunch break, perhaps the perfect way to spend his birthday. Boy was I wrong; he got selected to serve on a 4-5 day trial! Not only did he have to stay until 5PM that day, he could only use his electronics during the breaks, AND he has to go back the rest of the week. Since he had to stay at the courthouse until 5PM, it threw off our plans for the evening, but we called an audible and met in Winston-Salem for our annual trip to the Dixie Classic Fair. It's a nice coincidence that the fair is always the week of his birthday so that we can indulge in some fried food and sweet desserts. I had my usual chicken pita, and Boomer got huge deep-fried onion rings and a deep-fried corn dog. We finished off with an Amish donut the size of a frisbee! This was Emmy's first time to the fair, and she loved looking at all the sights. We spent about two hours at the fair and got home around 8PM. Bedtime was pushed back a little later that night, but exceptions have to be made for Daddy's birthday and the fair! Our little girl seemed to enjoy herself!

 

Here is a sweet reminder of last year's trip to the fair! Happy birthday, Boomer! Emmy and I love you SO much!