Archives for June 2006

Whoever said that college kids are self-centered hasn’t met my brother Johnny and his girlfriend Stefanie. These two have been in love with Emma since the first day she was born and have stopped at nothing to show her (and me!) just how much they care. Between EXTREMELY generous gifts and visits every time they possibly could manage it, these two are absolutely amazing.

Now, this is not to say that other aunties, uncles, and grandparents haven’t been just as amazing, because they have been. We are more than blessed with how much love this little girl receives on a daily basis…

However, this post is devoted to Johnny and Stef because this time they out-did themselves. While visiting for THEIR college graduation, they gave me the most precious Mother’s Day gift. In the midst of finals, packing, and everything else they needed to before graduating, they put together the sweetest video slideshow of our little Emma. Hopefully you are all able to view it okay. It is truly one of the most thoughtful gifts I have ever received. Enjoy — and get out the Kleenex!

(If you can’t play the below window, try clicking here )

As I’m sure you’ve all guessed (and read on this blog MANY times), Emma is a busy little girl — constantly moving and wiggling since day one. Well, lately it seems she’s getting sick of this crawling thing and is ready for bigger and better things. All you people aren’t on all fours, so why should she be?

No, she’s not walking…not yet at least. Trust me, I don’t want to rush things, but she is really going for those steps lately. She can barely stand without holding on to something, but I think a lot of that is because she won’t take the two seconds to stand still and catch her balance! :o) She took FIVE STEPS to Jeff the other day. And they were good and sturdy. We know it was a fluke, but since then she has been getting more and more brave. If I’m close enough, she’ll no longer lunge at me or get down and crawl — no, now she takes a step or two.

She’s really cruising along the furniture now and jumps from one piece to the next. I sat in awe this morning as I watched her walk from the start of our kitchen table to the farthest wall of our kitchen. Her tactic: Crawl up on the table leg; hold on to the top of the table long enough to grab the chair; use the chair to move to her high chair; move along the high chair to the next table leg; cruise from that leg to the next chair, which safely got her to the green wall. All of this so she could try and reach for this blue cross I have hanging from the mirror that is hung way up high on the green wall. Phew… I’m tired just describing this all. Anyway, the point is SHE IS DETERMINED.

She is very proud of herself these days and claps at everything. Her bottle signing is also getting very good, as is her “air eating.” Now that Cheerios are her snack of choice, she thinks she is always hungry and pretends to eat them out of thin air. Okay, Emma, I get the point. I swear she is like a human garbage disposal lately!

Peas passed the test, and we just finished pears. Next on the menu: green beans, avocado, and applesauce, although I haven’t decided which order yet. BTW, did you know whole peas are a choking hazard? I thought I was all smart buying such a nutritious finger food, only to find out that they need to be either cut in half or crushed…. Boy, I stop reading my books for ONE second, and I become lethal to my child! Yes, an exaggeration, but it is scary to realize that your instincts CAN be wrong sometimes. Thanks to Carrie for letting me know!!!

Okay, ‘nuf for now. We’re off to watch Uncle Johnny and Auntie Stef graduate college this weekend. Emma is so proud of them — and me too! She’s (aka: I’m) also excited to wear her pretty Easter dress again! :o) I’m sure we’ll be back with lots of photos of Johnny and Stef’s big day. Have a great weekend everyone!