Getting Bigger Every Day

Had a visit with the Pediatrician. Emery is weighing in at 12lb 6oz and has grown to 24 inches! She had 5 vaccines and took it like a champ. I should mention that John held her down while I watched from the corner cringing. It would have been easier to take the vaccines myself. Despite the Tylenol, Emery is starting to fuss and I can tell she's uncomfortable. A little pain now is a lot better than diphtheria later.

Sleeping on the Job

Emery is over 9 weeks old now and getting to be a lot of fun. I took her outside to water the yard. She started off really excited. This was the first time she was facing forward in her carrier (Usually she stares at my neck. Now she's strong enough to face forward). She quickly fell asleep on the job and we went inside for a quality nap...which is why I am able to make this post.

Everyone asks, "Is she sleeping through the night?" The answer is, "Sort of." We think she is because she goes to bed around 10-11 pm and wakes up around 4-5 am. It could be a lot worse.

She's a talkative girl, full of smiles, squeals, whines and gurgles. She doesn't spend a lot of time crying unless she's strapped in the car. She likes bath time but hates "tummy time." This tummy time poses a problem since she can't build strong arms without a little practice being on her stomach. I avoid pushing the issue because it puts her in such a bad mood. Chances are she'll have a flat head and won't win the competitive crawling event at the next baby Olympics. oh well, I've failed as a mother. On the other hand she could get a gold metal in standing and a bronze for sitting. I've heard you can skip crawling and go straight to walking. If she could do this I would feel a lot less guilty.

We have plans to put Emery in a small daycare up the road (So close I could roll the stroller there...but I won't. Who has time for that?). If you don't have kids you might not realize that evenings are not a child's finest time. There is a lot of whining and fussing that ensue. They're so sleepy, but they seem to fight the remedy for their misery. It seems unfair to me that working parents miss all the happy morning smiles and return home to get the worst of their child. You're so excited to be home with your kid that you forget they'll be in a bad mood. It's like seeing someone without their dentures on, it's a shock every time. Needless to say, I'm not very excited to start the school year. I'll just have to enjoy the next couple of weeks...this picture is Emery staring up at the trees, oblivious to the mosquitoes attacking her and the threat of the next door neighbor's dog breaking through the fence threatening to snatching her away. Oh, to be so young.

More Video and Pictures

Here are some of the best pictures and video from June/July.









JULY 2009 PICTURES



JUNE 2009 PICTURES

Emery Plays (The First of Many)

She seems to be enjoying the attention, but I'm pretty sure this is what waterboarding is like.

The Many Faces Of Emery

These are usually followed by a dirty diaper, but it's worth it.

4 Weeks Old Already!

It's hard to believe that the time has flown by so fast. We've had a ton of visitors and Emery is changing so much! A few things about Emery at 4 weeks...

The top half of her hair is falling out, giving her the look of a distinguished older gentleman. Overall she is a good little girl. If she's crying it usually has a very definite purpose "Change me," "Feed me," and "I'm so tired it hurts," are her favorite cries. She sleeps great during the night, however her "night" is around 1:30am-10am. I take care of the normal feedings, but John steps in when she just wants to sit up and be fussy for 2 hours at a time. She loves the sound of water. Good thing, it allows me to take a shower on a regular basis-something I enjoy. In the afternoon she gets fussy and tired. When all else fails I can put her in the BabyBjorn carrier and go outside. That, plus a pacifier, will settle her down and sometimes put her to sleep. Keep in mind that it is about 100 degrees outside but she is SO happy and sweaty. I spend this time putzing around the yard and hand watering. San Antonio is in a severe drought and we can barely water our lawn. They will however allow us to hand water as much as we want.

In a few days we will be leaving for a 2 week trip in the Robbins' camper. As of now we are scheduled to head straight to Tennessee to see Randy's family, then to Atlanta to see Susan's family and John's sister Christina. While there John & Christina will run in the famous Peachtree Road Race. The rest of us will wait somewhere near the finish line with the half a million other people supporting their friends. The race is a crazy event, not your normal race. It is guaranteed to be a sweaty Hotlanta good time. Hopefully we'll get some good pictures. After the race we will spend a few days in Savannah looking at old houses, spending time on the beach and hopefully hitting up Paula Deen's Restaurant "The Lady and Sons." I know John is looking forward to spending time with Emery and I'm excited to get out of the house. I'm sure we'll make plenty of updates along the way.

The first month has been a steep learning curve but pretty wonderful (that Mommy amnesia is starting to kick in). Emery is healthy and happy and we're enamored with her. It seems like we can talk of nothing but Emery and that's just fine with us. John is amazing with her, above and beyond what I every imagined. It is a joy to take this family adventure with him. I never thought we would laugh so much over a dirty diaper or worry over ridiculous small things like hangnails. Part of me can't wait until there are no more night feedings but then she won't be a baby anymore! How can I look forward to that? Rhonda always says there is nothing like your first child and how they change your life. I think we're starting to understand what she means.

Here's another picture. This is John feeding Emery her first bottle.

Happy Father's Day!

John and Emery spent their first Father's Day together with a little quality napping. Meanwhile April was in town so I escaped from the house for a few hours.

Milk Drunk

Just a little thrashing around as Emery tries fruitlessly to assume the controls.

Friday Night Hiccups

Emery had a lot of hiccups in the womb so it's no surprise that she has them a lot as a baby. Here's a short video of nothing but her having hiccups.

One Week Down

Everything has been going pretty smooth so far and we are very thankful for that. We made it home on Friday around noon and have just been enjoying everything since. There has been an obvious lack of sleep, but beyond that Emery has just been a great kid. She has yet to break anything, so I guess that means she is taking after her mom so far.

It's a big help to have both sets of parents on hand to spell us when needed. It has allowed us to be as hands on as possible and really dive into the work of being parents ourselves. The first few days were hectic with so many people wanting to meet Emery and check in on us and we are looking forward to things settling into a routine this summer. As always the camera is getting a full workout with the latest batch of pictures going up today at http://www.kodakgallery.com/robbins/main/emery_s_first_week_at_home.