51 Weeks Young!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yikes!!!!!  How is my baby almost one year old already?!?!?!?!

51 weeks young.  Technically, since I'm late in posting this, she's actually 51.5 weeks!  Just a few more days until the big O-N-E.  Eeeeeeep!

She crawls, she walks, she dances, and as of the past week she is a non-stop babbler too!

Emily started her 51st week making “ga-ga” noises all day.  She then moved on to “Dada”  {woohoo!!  milestone photo op!}  and in case there was any doubt in my mind from earlier in the week, she definitely said “oof oof” when we saw a dog -- so that’s also an official word now!

Walking and talking.  My newborn infant has turned into a toddler and I simply don't understand where the time has gone!!!  ;)

We've been blessed with some really nice spring weather, so we've been spending more time outside.  Emily is getting slightly more warmed-up to the grass, even venturing to touch it voluntarily!

The weekend was fun-filled with firsts!  Emily visited Long Island {where I grew up!} for the first time, and attended her first birthday party!  A childhood friend of mine had a baby boy just 3 weeks before I gave birth to Emily, so we went out to meet the adorable little Trevor and help celebrate his birthday!  We also got to see some of my extended family members after the party, and then celebrated our first Mother's Day as a family together the following day at home!

On Monday, I took Emily to a waddler gym class for the first time, where she experienced a ball pit, tunnel crawl, swinging rings, a balance beam, a trampoline, and a bunch of exercises and other activities.  She wasn't very impressed with the ball pit or tunnel crawl, though she did finally go through one little tunnel after a lot of prompting by me.  :)

   

She looooooved the rings -- it probably felt to her like she was a human swing!  The smile on her face was just pure joy.

Emily's appetite for solid foods is improving, and she is getting very good at feeding herself some finger foods!  She used to gag when presented with "chunky" foods, but this week she scarfed down an entire 6 oz jar of chicken with pasta stars PLUS 2 clementines for dinner in one night!  The following night she ate an entire banana following her 4 oz jar of puree!  She's a growing girl, for sure!  Here's a little video of Emily eating some grapes:

The way she moves her little fingers to her mouth, and purses her lips when she chews just cracks me up.  I love watching her feeding skills improve over time -- it's been such a remarkable difference in a relatively short amount of time!

Well, that's about it for Week 51!  We have one B-I-G birthday milestone coming up in just a few days!!!!!!!!!!!!

10 Months Young!!!!!!!!!!

Double digits!!  Look at my big girl!

All About Emily:

• 20.5+ lbs weight, over 29” long, 44.5 cm head size
• Wearing size 4 diapers, size 9 month clothes and size 9 month footie pjs {which are getting VERY snug on her!}
• Has 6 teeth {3 on the top and 3 on the bottom}
• Takes multiple steps regularly now, especially when she's not paying attention to what she's doing.  However, we haven’t seen her take 4 or more consecutive steps, which is what we’re waiting to count as officially “walking”. :)
• Has recently started making the “g” sound, in addition to the "m" sound that she's now pretty good at ("ma ma"!).
• Eats 3 “solid” meals a day: 1.5 oz oatmeal for breakfast, 4 oz veggie/fruit puree for lunch, and 4 oz protein puree for dinner.  She's tried a bunch of table and finger fruits and veggies, though isn’t yet a huge fan of “real” solids.  Emily dislikes chunky purees but still loves her smooth purees, and has mastered puffs and teething wafers.
• Drinks milk and water out of a sippy cup.
• Crawls fast as lightning, and does a funny shuffle that includes inching forward with one leg while kneeling on her other knee.  Shep calls this her Russian Jig.

• Enjoys getting into the pantry/recycling bin/garbage can/laundry basket/dishwasher, licking the windows/dishwasher/oven, and unplugging her nightlight from the wall.

 

• Fascinated by looking out the window

• Laughs out loud when being tickled on her feet or tossed in the air.
• Holds her arm and hand outspread like she’s yelling “hey!” to you from across the street while keeping a calm face.
• Recently found interest in her feet again.
• Pulls on and strokes her hair to fall asleep.

• Enjoys resting her legs and feet up on the wall when getting her diaper changed, up on our shoulders when we’re rocking her to sleep, and up on the chair arm when I’m nursing her.
• Understands “No”, though in her mind it just means turn and smile shyly before continuing to do what she’s not supposed to, or move slower in the hope that Mommy/Daddy won’t notice...
• Likes to smirk and wrinkle her nose while breathing fast when she's in a silly mood.

Here are some of my favorite photos from the past month!

 

40 Weeks Young!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy 40th, Em!!!  This week has been a busy one for you!

On Friday, you attended a baby music class for the first time!  It was entertaining to watch you listen to the music and look at all the other babies.  There is one song where the music instructor incorporates all of the babies' names into a song, and each of the babies faces lit up when they heard their names being sung.  You looked a little confused as to how this stranger knew your name.  You were crawling all over the place, playing with all the different musical instruments and tried to take the teacher’s bag and papers!  You did have fun singing and dancing though.  :)

On Saturday you took what might have been your first standing step!!  You were on your play mat and Daddy was sitting on the couch.  He said you might have took a step to get closer to him, but I only saw you out of the corner of my eye so I can’t say for sure. ;)

On Sunday you turned 9 months old!  To celebrate the momentous occasion, you tried stage 3 purees for the first time -- chicken with stars!  It didn't seem like you loved the little chunks, but you tolerated them and ate it up!

On Monday, you finally cut your first top tooth!  We've been waiting for that bugger to come out for a while.  You also possibly took 3 steps towards me -- or maybe just fell/fumbled, I couldn't tell -- while I was sitting on the floor in the living playing with you!!  You took a 1 hour & 2 minute nap in your crib on Monday morning!!!  {Mommy & Daddy were both shocked!}  Also on Monday, you tried pasta (plain rotini) for the first time!  You put it into your mouth and chewed it, but didn't really seem too impressed. Monday marked 39 weeks & 4 days since you're birth, so you've officially been out in the world longer than you were cooking in Mommy's tummy!

You tried pureed beef for the first time on Wednesday, and also tried a stage 3 chicken casserole puree on Tuesday!  You didn't love the beef, but I was able to water it down with some winter squash for you.  The chicken casserole was a no-go....you don't want the thicker/textured purees yet, and that's okay -- at least you tried it!  :)  

You've been making a lot of "ma" sounds this week.

You played with your stuffed monkey instead of crying when you woke up on Thursday morning!

All in all it was a fun-filled week!!!

33 Weeks Young!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Look at me, I'm Thirty THREE {weeks old} !!!

Mommy tries to use her cute little sign with me to commemorate my weekly birthdays, but I keep trying to grab it!  So, she had to get creative and I got mad I couldn't reach it.

Here I am, happy again, because I forgot all about the sign and I love standing up on the couch!!!

This was a big week for me!

• I transitioned out of my newborn tub into a bigger infant ducky tub where I can sit up on my own while I'm bathing!  I'm not quite sure what to make of it yet, but I'm keeping an open mind.  ;)
• On 1/2, I decided to try out my new year's resolution.... I fell asleep at 8pm and slept until 1:40am!  When Daddy couldn't get me back to sleep, Mommy fed me at around 2am and afterward I fell back to sleep and she slept until 8:06am!  Woohoo!!!  A 5:41 stretch followed by a 5:24 stretch -- best sleep in a loooong time!  Mommy & Daddy are considering throwing me a party to celebrate! ;)
• I spent my first few days at daycare, and so far -- knock on wood -- everyone is surviving!
• I tried pureed mangos {bleck!} and also graduated to Stage 2 purees!  My first one was a squash, peas & pears combo, and I loved it {yum}!
• I went grocery shopping with Mommy & Daddy and sat in a cart like a big girl!

• Got my second flu shot, and barely cried!  The nurse had that needle in and out and my band-aid almost on before I even realized it!  I let out a little 1-second groan after I realized what happened, but by the time Mommy picked me up off the table I was fine!  I measured:  18 lbs 7 oz (with clothes & diaper on, 75th percentile), 28.5” long (97th percentile!), and 43.5 cm head circumference (62nd percentile)