First Steps

We are on the downward slide of January, and we seem to be back in the groove of school and work after our Christmas break. We had an extra day off this weekend with the MLK holiday. Temperatures have been in the 30s and 40s, and we have had to be creative with our activities. On Saturday morning, we decided on an indoor option, and we went bowling. It had been over a year since we last went bowling, so it wasn't too much of a surprise that we were all terrible. Even with the bumpers, we didn't even break a 100. Emmy had a lot of fun pushing the ball down the ramp, and Eli watched on from the stroller. He'll be ready to play next time!

On Sunday evening, while Boomer and I went to our church's First Steps membership class, Emmy and Eli hung out with Aunt Megan and Uncle Zack. Aunt Megan fixed dinner for everyone, and judging on the state of the living room when we arrived to pick them up, the kids had played with every item in the toy box! They had so much fun and didn't want to leave. Boomer and I are almost halfway through the membership class, and in past weeks, my mom has come over to watch the kids. We've enjoyed learning more about our church. An added bonus is the one-on-one time in the car and grabbing dinner just the two of us afterwards. We will be completing the class next month and moving forward with formally joining.  

Today we went to the Science Center. With the weather still pretty chilly, we spent the majority of the time in the aquarium and other indoor exhibits. We ended the evening with a virtual storytime with Princess Ariel. 

I have not written any 'developmental' updates on the kids lately, so I'll mention a few of the new things that they are doing. Emmy's favorite things right now continue to be her dolls, her Skye stuffed animal, her Elsa ring, and her crown dress. In the mornings, she loves to empty her bookshelf and pass out books to all of her stuffed animals while she waits on me to nurse Eli or Boomer to take his shower. She has started to show some independence in dressing herself, although she still will wear the outfits I pick out for her. In her class at school, they are learning the letter N and the number 14. We have completed the re-enrollment paperwork for Emmy to be at the same preschool again next year, and we feel very good about this decision. She loves her classmates and especially her teacher. When she stubbed her toe one night last week, she wanted to wear the Band-Aid to school the next day just to show Mrs. Holly. On Friday, Emmy got to choose a toy from Mrs. Holly's treasure box for her good behavior, and she chose a yo-yo and a bouncy ball. She has funny little sayings like "Turn it bigger" when she wants the volume to be louder or "baby God" when she is referring to Jesus. She loves to put things in her pockets, especially mulch and rocks from the school playground. Some evenings, we go through whiny spells, but those are becoming less frequent and are mostly due to the time of day in between school (tired) and dinner (hungry!) She is a great big sister to Eli and continues to narrate his every move. She has a recent fascination with Valentine's Day, and although she is missing the Christmas music on the radio, she is very excited for this next holiday. 

Eli is now 14 months old, and last week, he took his first steps! I don't know to be proud or terrified. For awhile now, he has been pretty speedy on all fours. It seemed to happen overnight that he found his balance standing and then took those first wobbly steps. Grammy has been practicing with him during the day, and then Boomer and I beckon him back-and-forth between us in the evenings. He gives the biggest smiles and giggles as he lunges for our arms. Unfortunately, he has earned a few bruises along the way. Bumps and bruises haven't stopped him from continuing to explore without fear. Eli is a very enthusiastic eater. We have started to give him some of the same foods that we give Emmy, like peanut butter sandwiches, cereal bars, and Chex Mix. We are transitioning from two naps a day to just one, and poor guy is quite tired when we stretch it to noon. He starts to run out of gas around 11AM, and he will even lay his head down on the floor. But then he'll take a good nap (2 - 2 1/2 hours) while still going to bed around 7:30PM. I am no longer pumping during the day (whoo hooo!), and I am only nursing in the morning and at night. We have cleared out my freezer stash of breastmilk, and my mom has the last of the baggies to be used this week. Eli is taking whole milk from a spout sippy cup. He has been a little slower to the sippy cup than Emmy was. He'd much rather have food than take the time to drink. My favorite time of the day with both kids is just before bedtime after nursing Eli and then reading with Emmy. They both seem to slow down and let me hold them as my little babies. 

"Is it naptime yet?"