Can't believe this little sweetie pie has been outside in the real world almost as long as she was inside my belly!
Shep pointed out an interesting excerpt from our 38 week pregnancy update that I linked to last week, which I wanted to share here:
Shockingly, baby is still very active and moving around a lot, despite the fact that it must be cramped quarters in there! I'm glad this little one is still having a jolly good time in my belly; I just hope s/he keeps its head down! I'm really curious to see how squirmy and squigly this baby is outside of the womb, and whether the "real world" activity level will be the same or totally different than in utero!
I think we ALL know the answer to that one! ;)
Thinking back on those last weeks of my pregnancy is surreal. It seems like it was just yesterday, yet at the same time it is so hard to imagine life before I got to hold my dear sweet Emily in my arms every day. In those last couple weeks I was scared.... terrified even!.... of labor and delivery and even moreso for being responsible for keeping another fragile and helpless human alive. It seems so silly to me now that I worried over such things. I also remember the anticipation. Wondering whether we'd be blessed with a little bundle of pink or blue, what name we'd settle on, and how it would feel to hold MY newborn baby and walk back into our home as a family of three after leaving for the hospital as a couple. There were just so many emotions floating around in those days, and I wish I could have bottled them all up and stored them in my memory box. It's wacky to me to think I'll never again know what it will be like to have my first baby. To become an actual mother for the first time, instead of just mentally preparing for it. I recently came across a post on Scary Mommy that struck a couple familiar chords in my nostalgic heart and accurately summed up a lot of the feelings I experienced during the end of my own pregnancy:
http://www.scarymommy.com/the-end-of-pregnancy/
I will focus less on the aches and pains, the fear of the impending labor and delivery, and the worry that that crippling sensation might actually be you trying to punch your way out of me. Instead, I will close my eyes and feel you — really FEEL you — living a whole little life inside of me. I will imagine what you look like, wonder what you are dreaming about in there and whether you know it’s my hand meeting yours on the other end of those countless tiny blows. No one else on this Earth has felt you the way I have, and this otherworldly connection between us will come to an abrupt end before we know it. Though one day soon I’ll no longer be able to feel your kicks, I know the days will come when I will instead feel you wrap your arms around my neck and nuzzle your head into my shoulder, feel you slip your warm hand into mine to know you are safe, feel you twirl my hair in your tiny fingers as you drift off to sleep in my arms.
The seasons are changing in our hearts and home as we prepare for your arrival, Baby. With the pressure of so much still to do before you get here, it’s been easy to forget how fleeting and extraordinary our pregnancy together has been. .... It’s been a privilege to carry you, and I can’t wait to look into your eyes and tell you how much I already love you.
***
Just as pregnancy flew by, 39 weeks of Emily's life have passed by in the blink of an eye.
This week Emily tried for the first time pureed broccoli {separately mixed first with apples and then with carrots} and pureed chicken risotto with portabella mushrooms {she's so fancy!}, and loved them both! A girl after my own tummy. ;) She's a rockstar with her morning oatmeal and purees -- fruits, veggies and proteins -- but doesn't really seem to love any "table food" solids yet. She can adeptly feed herself puffs, and they are growing on her. She wasn't a fan of them at first, and would make a face that looked like I was making her chew rubber, but this week at daycare she ate a bunch of them and had some after dinner a couple nights too. It is soooooo cute to see her pick the little puffs up with her adorably chubby fingers and navigate them into her mouth. Her little jaw/tooth chewing action is equally entertaining to watch. I could just eat this little munchkin up.... I adore her every move and am so proud of everything she can do, despite the fact that I feel like she's growing up waaaaaay too quickly!
Speaking of food, guess who ate in a big girl high chair for the first time at the mall with Mommy & Daddy!
I can't take those dangling tootsies!!!
Emily also celebrated her very first Valentine's Day! It's safe to say that she had several valentines pining after her affection, which I'm sure is not going to change any time soon!!
We had a little pre-V-day photo shoot last week so that Emily could send some love notes out to her favorite kiddies, which resulted in a bunch of great bloopers. Warning for those of you sensitive to sugar -- sweetness overload ahead!!!
Emily is getting into all kinds of fun! Last Sunday she grabbed the remote control off the couch and started laughing maniacally like a super villain about it! Good thing the camera was nearby, because this is too funny to miss:
