3 Months Young!!!

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As of Friday, our favorite little cutie pie is no longer a newborn! At 3 months "young", Emily has officially graduated to infant status!  She survived her first 3 months with a set of rookie parents in charge, and we've learned a lot during that time!

Since Emily's birth, Shep and I have changed over 1,300 diapers, I've fed her 1130 times for a total of over 277 hours and she's slept over 1,150 hours {which is a total of 48 days}!  I guess it's true what they say -- time really does fly when you're changing diapers having fun.  ;)  I'm not exactly sure how many hugs and kisses I've given her {our handy app doesn't track those stats}, but if I had to guess I'd say it's somewhere in the neighborhood of 1 million, give or take....

One thing that hasn't changed now that Emily's graduated into infancy from newborn-ness -- she's still as adorable as ever.  And Shep and I fall more and more in love with her with each passing day.

She makes us laugh on a regular basis, and we can definitely see her own little personality developing as time passes.  She smiles frequently, is very alert, can be very determined, and enjoys snuggles too.  She's smart, lovable, strong, funny and beautiful!

Emily is sooooooo close to being able to roll from her back to her tummy.  She bends her knees to lift her legs in the air and then swings her body to the side.  The only thing stopping her from a full roll onto her tummy is those knees, so as soon as she figures that out and straightens her legs once she's in motion, she'll be on her tummy!  It's the cutest thing to watch her though -- she has such determination!

All About Emily

• Loves to grab my hair with her little hands, and she grabs my shirt sometimes when I'm putting her down, too.  Let me tell you; those fingers may be cute but that grip is STRONG!
• Wraps her legs around our arms like a money hanging from a tree when we're changing her diaper or dressing her, and knows she's funny when she's doing it.
• Blows little spit bubbles and went through a phase where she would stick her tongue out a lot.
• Holds her head up for longer periods of time, and isn't as shaky when doing it.  She can also hold her head up super high during tummy time -- those muscles are getting stronger every day!
• LOVES playing on her piano mat and her gym -- she talks and laughs to herself while she plays and swings her arms and legs so much!
• LOVES looking at herself in mirrors, and sometimes even laughs at herself!
• Smiles a big gummy grin when she sees Mommy or Daddy.
• Likes being read to and sang to.  "Head, Shoulders, Knees & Toes" and "Hokey Pokey" are still favored over "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and "Mary Had a Little Lamb".
• Loves looking straight up at the sky when taken out for walks, and still loves the wind!  :)
• Babbles all the time, with new sounds weekly.  She also has a little "yell" sound when she gets mad or impatient, which is so cute.
• Her skin feels like velvet . . . I could hold and smooch her all day long!
• Has shown some signs of early teething -- poor baby!!  She tries to shove her entire fist into her mouth and sometimes gags herself with her little fingers.
• Can bear her full weight on her little feet and moves her legs like she's walking if held upright on a flat surface.
• Can pull herself up from laying to sitting position by holding onto our hands.
• Has the start of a cute little dimple in her left cheek.
• Slept 7-8 hours overnight about 4 times over the past month!  She still needs to be nursed or held/swayed/bounced to sleep though for naps and at night, but on days where we get her to nap frequently enough she doesn't fight sleep as much.
• Has just recently over the past week started to take decently-long naps in her crib.
• Is wearing pajamas in 6 month sizes, and other clothing in sizes 3 months or 6 months!
• Eats on average every 2-3 hours, sometimes more frequently if fussy or sleepy.
• Currently weighs 13 pounds, 7 ounces and is 24 inches long!

3 Months

Three months have passed since I heard my doctor inform me that I was miscarrying.  I have now officially been "un-pregnant" for longer than I was pregnant.  It's weird, because in some ways it seems like just yesterday that my husband and I were hopping around our bedroom taking photos and staring excitedly at a simple blue plastic stick, yet it also seems like forever ago.

Emotionally, I am doing a lot better than I started out.  In June, I cried nearly every single day.  In July, I still cried quite often {probably too often for my husband's liking}, and there were many days where I felt that would always be the case.  In August I began to turn a corner, and although there were definitely still tears, hidden away in my pillow, typing at my computer, or while alone in the shower, there were on average more positive days than painful ones.  It's now September, and I am doing my best to keep moving forward... trying my best to remain grateful for the blessings I do have in my life, positive about our future, and hopeful that this month, or some month very soon, we'll be lucky enough to get pregnant again.

"We cannot change yesterday, we can only make the most of today, and look with hope toward tomorrow." - Unknown

I'm so very grateful for all the support I've received over the past few months; from my loving husband, my golden-hearted BFF, and my many online group chat board comrades out there on the world wide web.  I don't think I could've made it through this experience {mostly} unscathed without you.