Back at it

In my last post, I wrote about how we were out of the groove because of two-hour delays and school closings. Now, we are back to the 8-10 hour workdays and full five-day weeks. This past week was hard adjusting to a regular schedule again. It was the first full week since Christmas break, and whew, I was feeling it by Friday evening! Emmy must have been feeling tired too, because for the first time, she dozed off in her high chair during lunch on Saturday. (Shortly after this photo, I moved her to her crib!) 

Mostly, Emmy is alert and excited for meal time, so it was pretty unusual that she would fall asleep in her high chair. She continues to love apples, Cheerios, and most of the baby food pouches. She is on a banana kick right now and also loves grilled cheese. We are struggling to find ways to get meat into her diet; we just don't always have meals with protein that she can easily digest. She loved the lasagna at Grammy's house last week, and she would eat the pieces of hamburger, no problem. She also loves Grammy's chicken pot pie. We've tried some of the pouches that are 'complete meals' like 'Harvest Vegetables and Turkey" and "Chicken and Brown Rice" - yum! (ha ha) After a few skeptical swallows, she generally won't eat any more of it, and we end up throwing those pouches away. Some days, she will eat deli meat (either turkey, ham, or rotisserie chicken), but other days she will put the small shredded pieces into her mouth and then let them fall down her chin. At daycare, the children have their snacks and lunch around a low table, with each child sitting in a small chair. It is hard to imagine her doing this, when at home we still have her in a high chair (and will continue to do so for quite a long time!) They have been allowing the children to play and experiment with spoons and have asked that we reinforce that at home. We are still feeding Emmy for now, but then when the meal is over, I will give her the spoon to hold. She likes lifting it up to her mouth and licking off anything that is left. 

One night this past week, Daddy had to work late, and we fit in a stroll downtown. The weather was in the 60s, and it was so nice to be outside for a bit. 

That night, I was solo for bath time, and Emmy was very cooperative. It seems we have turned a new leaf and that she now likes bath time again. Yay! We went through a phase where she would start to cry even just entering the bathroom. When he is home, Boomer usually takes the lead with bath - he is so careful to find just the right temperature, and he will let Emmy splash and play, unlike Mommy who is always in a rush to get things done. I tried to be more like Daddy that night, but we both missed him, as we always do when he has to stay at school late. 

Emmy is still standing a lot and practicing her walking. 

We've had to find creative ways to keep her still during diaper changes. She is very wiggly and squirmy most of the time. 

We are all trying to stay healthy, but there is certainly a lot of germs and sickness going around. The flu has been especially bad this year, and with Emmy in daycare, I have been so worried that she will pick it up from one of the other kids. Like a typical overprotective mom of a first child, I have been taking her temperature for no reason at all, just to make sure it is normal. We have also been careful to wash hands and wipe down anything that Emmy puts into her mouth. Last Sunday, Mom and I visited Grandpa at the hospital. He was taken there on Saturday after a fall, and just to take precautions, they were monitoring him for a stroke and also a gastro-intestinal virus. With the flu already hitting the Houston household and with Dad recovering from his knee replacement surgery, Mom and I may have looked silly, but we didn't want to risk catching anything! 

Emmy's newest trick is playing peek-a-boo! She plays with Daddy, either hiding behind clothing during a diaper change or using a toy to cover her face. Last night, after dinner while she was still in her high chair and completely unprompted, she covered her eyes and started playing peek-a-boo with Grammy and me. It was so cute! I want to teach her how to blow kisses...hopefully just in time for Valentine's Day!

This week, Boomer has several more late nights. Zack is also out of town for work, so Meg and I were solo this evening with the kiddos. We met up for dinner at Chick-Fil-A, and after getting stuffed full of nuggets and waffle fries, the three cousins played in the helicopter. Zander and Maddox showed Emmy how to spin the steering wheel, but as you can see, she was much happier when she had the helicopter all to herself. She is such a ham!

Out of the Groove

Ever since Christmas break, we haven't really had a 'normal week' back at school. With the cold temperatures and the threat of snow, there have been several delays, early releases, and optional teacher workdays. We are certainly enjoying the extra time at home and indoors, but it has made getting back into a routine so hard. This morning was a regular morning: 5:15AM wake-up for me, 6:00AM wake-up for Emmy, and out the door with Daddy by 6:30AM. Emmy put up a fight getting dressed, and then once I got her dressed, she was fussy going into her high chair for breakfast. Between every bite, she let out a squawk, just to ensure that I knew she was unhappy. While I never want to complain about having a child that likes to sleep, it is not fun waking a sleeping baby while it is still dark outside. It just seems like we are all more pleasant when we get to sleep in! I am hoping that as the days get longer and we move the clocks forward, the early mornings will get a little easier on all of us. We enjoyed the three-day MLK weekend at home just for that reason: sleeping in! On weekends, Emmy will usually sleep until around 7:30AM. We will spy on her from the video monitor, and she will typically play in her crib for awhile after waking up. She doesn't cry out, but we don't test it for too long. Usually after a few minutes, we go in to get her. I get quite a different greeting than when it is a school day! She usually jumps up and down with the biggest smile on her face. Breakfast is more leisurely, and we have more time to play together. Emmy loves finding new hiding spots, including behind Daddy's recliner.  

We have been so lucky to receive hand-me-downs from friends and family. This weekend, my sister's friend Anna gave us two more bags of clothes. With the other things Anna has given us, Emmy has had clothes from newborn now through 3T! It's like Christmas going through the bags and looking at the cute clothes. The clothes are starting to resemble grown-up clothes, with a lot less onesies and zip-up sleepers. I will miss when she stops wearing these things, but I know she is going to look so cute in the two piece pajamas, summer dresses, and leggings! My sister also passed along the potty she no longer needs for her boys. Potty training is still several months off, but we are prepared! Emmy was curious when I brought it home and put it in the bathroom. 

 On Saturday night, we got together at the Houston's for a pizza dinner. This was a make-up date from our New Year's Eve plans. Maddox had Hand-Foot-and-Mouth then, and now he is fighting the flu -- poor guy! We are hoping that everyone can get through the rest of the winter with as little sickness as possible. 

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

My title is a bit inaccurate...we haven't actually had any snow, but Emmy took a few more steps this past weekend during some of the coldest temperatures on record. It seems she is starting to buy in to the whole walking thing! With temps in the low teens and a dangerously cold wind chill, we spent most of this past weekend inside, with extra time to practice walking. Boomer gets the credit for coaxing her to take a few steps. Instead of putting her with her back against something, he would stand her up until she found her balance and then hold out his hands for her to walk to him. She would take a few steps toward him and then fall into his arms. We were sure to make a big fuss with lots of clapping and cheering. We haven't progressed past about two or three steps, but she is definitely getting the hang of it. We have continued to practice in the evenings after daycare, and she is getting more brave about standing and letting go of the furniture. I also think moving up to the 1-year-old class will bring about walking. Emmy is the youngest in her class right now, and most of the other kids are already walking. Perhaps peer pressure will get her to walk even more.

With the cold temps and the threat of freezing rain, we have enjoyed some delays and early dismissals over the last two weeks. This morning, Boomer and I both had delays (mine actually turned into a closing!) With the extra hours in the morning, we got breakfast at Fitz on Main and enjoyed some time with our little girl. She is still adjusting to the new class, plus I think she may be coming down with a cold, so it was nice to have some family time. We will take it whenever we can get it!

New Year, New Tricks

2018 is here, and we are getting ourselves back in the routine of early morning wake-ups, daycare drop-offs, and short evenings before bedtime. The break was so wonderful! It ended with a few relaxing days at home as we celebrated the new year. Boomer and I had the opportunity to go to the Wake vs. Texas A&M bowl game in Charlotte on Friday, the 29th. It was a fun day date for Boomer and me, with Emmy staying in Kernersville with Grammy and Grandpa. Initially the forecast was calling for snow, which made me have second thoughts about going! Even though the temps were still pretty low, luckily we didn't have any precipitation. We bundled up in lots of layers and were pretty comfortable until the 4th Quarter when the sun went behind the stadium. Without the sun to warm us, it got chilly! The game was very exciting with both teams putting up high scores. Wake came out on top, winning 55-52. Go Deacs! The game went a little later than expected, so Emmy spent the night for the first time at Grammy and Grandpa's. She did great, and Grammy and Grandpa enjoyed her company as Grandpa continues to recover from his knee replacement surgery. With no rush to get home, Boomer and I drug out the evening with a nice dinner before making our way back to Kernersville.  

We spent New Year's Eve at home. We had plans to go over to the Houstons to ring in the New Year, but with Maddox still recovering from Hand-Foot-and-Mouth, we did not want to risk spreading the sickness. I'm afraid that Emmy is the one that gave it to him :(  Although it was a quiet evening for the Kennedys, it was still a good New Year's Eve. We picked up Japanese take-out and watched some football and the countdown shows. Emmy was asleep by 7:30PM. I thought I would make it up until midnight, but I only made it until 11PM. Maybe next year!

I haven't written lately about some of Emmy's newest tricks. With the monthly onesie photo shoots, I was a little better about documenting how she was growing and what she was doing that month. Now that we have passed 13 months, it is hard to believe that month 14 is just around the corner. The clock keeps ticking so fast! Emmy is eating all kinds of food now, and she especially likes her rice cereal, chicken pot-pie, Cheerios, and apples. Puffs and Teddy Grahams are her favorite special treats. She has also gotten very good at holding and drinking from her straw sippy cup. She drinks both milk and water from the sippy cup. One of the funniest things that she does right now is make an "ahhh" sound when she sees Mommy or Daddy drinking something. It took me a day or two to realize what she was doing, but it is quite obvious now that she is mimicking the sound we make when we swallow. Now Boomer and I will exaggerate the sound, and we all go "ahhh" together. It's pretty silly, but also adorable. Emmy also thinks it is so funny when Daddy sneezes or blows his nose. So of course, Daddy will be quite dramatic to get an extra laugh from Emmy. Lately she has been very attached to Daddy. We will play a little game where Boomer is holding her, and then he will shift towards me and ask if she wants to go to Mommy. She'll hold on to Daddy and cling to his neck. It would probably upset me more if she wasn't laughing and giggling. She is certainly a Daddy's girl already. Emmy is not walking yet, although she loves to hobble around on her knees, usually while holding a toy, the butt paste tube, or the Boogie Wipes. 

Although not walking, Emmy took her first steps a few days before Christmas. Caroline was over for dinner that evening, so we had a third-party witness, because of course I didn't have my camera ready. We had put Emmy's back against Boomer's recliner, and she took two small, quick steps before dropping to the ground to crawl. She has been a bit stubborn about doing it again. She seems quite content 'walking' on her knees or reverting back to crawling when she wants to get somewhere a little faster. She continues to use her cruiser and can even adjust it when she runs into the wall or a piece of furniture. In addition to her cruiser, her other favorite toys right now are the Fisher-Price stacking rings and the shape/mega blocks. 

She also likes playing with and ripping up paper. It's usually pretty easy to clean up afterwards, so I let her have at it with old magazines and coupons. She likes to rip the paper up into smaller and smaller pieces, which I figure is good for practicing her dexterity :)

Still wearing Christmas pjs!

In addition to her cruiser and blocks, another favorite toy right now is the big box that her new car seat came in. I had purchased the car seat several weeks ago with my sister's help, and Boomer and I finally installed it in my car last weekend. Normally not very happy about going in her car seat, Emmy surprisingly loved sitting in it while Daddy was reading the directions and adjusting it to her size.  

Our plan is to continue to have her rear facing for a little while longer. The new car seat can be converted to forward facing and even to a booster seat, so we should be set for a while. We are still using the infant car seat in Boomer's car, but it is a tight squeeze to get her in it, especially with the extra layers of winter clothes. Since Boomer does daycare drop-off in the morning and I do pick-up in the afternoon, our plan is to purchase a second convertible car seat this weekend so that we have one in each car. Then, we will officially retire the infant seat. [tear]

The new car seat isn't the only sign that Emmy is getting bigger. At daycare, she moved up to the 1-year-old class. Her teachers had talked to me about the move just before Christmas, but it still came as a surprise when she changed classrooms this week. The 1-year-old class is set up more like a school classroom, with cubbies and open-floor space. There are no cribs, and the children take their naps on mats on the floor. Since napping at daycare has not been a strength of Emmy's, this new stage makes me nervous. We sent a blanket for her, which is different, too. At home, she is still sleeping in a sleep sack, not with a blanket. Lots of changes! Boomer said to me "Just think when she goes to kindergarten!" ...but I'd rather not think about that yet! 

Boomer is at a basketball game this evening. The end of the break means the return of his busy schedule of winter sports. We miss Daddy when he has to work late, but luckily we were able to fit in a quick dinner before he had to be back at the school. Aside from car-seat shopping, we don't have too many other plans for the weekend. We are looking forward to two days of feeling like we are on break again!