I never imagined how much thought could go into Halloween! Andre and I debated over what Emilie would be for Halloween, and Andre decided that he would get to choose her costume this year, and I could make next years choice. Andre's decision: a strawberry. It was a nice fleece costume, so we knew Emilie would be warm.
Finally the day arrived, and Carrie and I got Emilie and Josh together for a little photo shoot in their costumes with their pumpkins.
First came Emilie and her pumpkin:
You want me to look where?
At the pumpkin?
You?
Then came Josh:
This is what I think of this whole thing.
Is it time for us to go home yet Mom?
And finally Emilie and Josh:
Emilie: Josh isn't this fun? Josh: Whatever
It's a bird, it's a plane, it's....we don't know we're babies!
It's amazing how much more you look forward to holidays when you have a child. Holidays that you normally wouldn't even think about now warrant weeks of thought and planning. One example of this was picking a pumpkin for Halloween.
Normally Andre and I would just pick up a pumpkin and call it a day, but now it could be another photo op, so it deserved much more thought. I did some research on different Pumpkin Patches (farms) in the area, but in the end we decided that since Emilie is so young this year we would just visit a little farm not too far from our house and pick up a Pumpkin, and get some pictures. So off to Bennett's we went!
Emilie had a great time looking at all the pumpkins, so much so she didn't want to look at the camera!
Yet another first holiday has come and gone. This time it was Thanksgiving!
We had big plans for the weekend, mainly church on Sunday morning (if your nap time worked out) followed by some play time with Mama and Papa at home then dinner at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Everything was working out great that day. The weather was beautiful! You even decided to get up a little earlier than usual that morning, but that was okay because that meant you would be up from your morning nap in time to go to church.
You lasted up in the church service for about 20 minutes and then Papa took you down to the nursery so you could play with a couple other little babies for the rest of the service. You had such a good time playing with Papa that morning. We noticed around this time that your nose was running just a little bit. We figured it was just teething since you were due for another tooth or two anytime. We went home after church and you had your lunch and went down for your nap. Your nose was now running alot more. We knew we were in for it...you had caught your Papa's cold.
Since your Nana and Grandpa Frank weren't feeling well themselves and they were going to miss Thanksgiving dinner with the rest of us, we decided that we would make a little Thanksgiving video for them and your Great Uncle Blake in Fort Lauderdale.
We also got some pictures of you in all your cute glory:
We should have known with all that chewing you were teething...
A drooly, runny nosed smile.
I apologize for the funky colour in the video, I had been playing with settings, and forgot to change them back to auto before we took the video. That's why the entire thing has a purplish hue.
Just around dinner time you were super tired, but decided that you'd rather have a huge meltdown instead. So we sent Papa over to Grandma's house with the food I had made, and you finally caved and had a tiny little nap.
After you got up and had dinner yourself you were a little bit happier so we headed over to Grandma and Grandpas house. You were immediately swept away by your Aunts and Uncles and Mama got some time to herself to have something to eat, and a little bit of wine too. Everyone tired you out so much that you were exhausted, but your cold had started in earnest so you were not a happy camper at all. You had a really rough night up every half hour until 11pm, then up every two hours all through the night. Thankfully Papa had Monday off work so he was able to help with the middle of the night wake ups.
Thanksgiving Monday we were a little worried that you could have an ear infection, so we made a Doctors appointment, and you were a little angel for the Doctor. She told us that you just had a cold so we went home knowing we could be in for another rough night.
The weather was so great that day, after your nap you went outside to play with Papa, and I snapped some pictures:
In the end it wasn't the best Thanksgiving ever, but it definitely wasn't one that we will forget anytime soon! Especially since during the week that followed you cut three teeth! We still haven't decided if what you were feeling was all cold, teeth and cold, or just teeth. I guess we'll never know!
Oh my goodness this last month was a crazy month! You just went through an explosion of activity and developments over the last month! It first started off with your hatred of being on your tummy. You hate being on your tummy, always have. Tummy time was screaming time in our house. We put you on your tummy because the doctors and books told us to, not because you liked it. I was actually worried that you would never crawl, because crawling meant you had to be on your tummy. I was so worried that I mentioned it to your doctor at your 6 month appointment. She assured me that it was normal, and that a lot of babies hate being on their tummy, so I shouldn't worry.
I swear you were listening closely at that appointment, and decided to make me a liar, because the very next day you rolled onto your tummy and didn't start to scream. In fact you continued to play with your toys on your tummy for five whole minutes before you started to fuss and let me know you had enough. Five whole minutes! I didn't know whether that was a fluke or not, so Papa and I just let you be when you went on your tummy and it wasn't a fluke! You now didn't mind being on your tummy so much. You're such a sneaky little girl sometimes! Now you play on your tummy all the time, your newest trick is trying to get your knees underneath you. I predict by 8 months you will be crawling. Then Mama and Papa are in trouble!!
You sit all by yourself now too! It started last month, and now you can sit without any help at all from papa and I now. You play with all your toys in the blanket, and on the nice days you love to move your feet in the grass. You love being outside so much. You love to look at the trees, and listen to the sounds of the wind through the leaves. Most babies would hate the feel of the cold grass under their feet and legs, but not you, you love it. I've even had to treat grass stains on your socks because of this!
You said your "first word" this month too! You say "ma ma ma" and "mum". I know that you don't really associate the words with me yet, but I still think it's a big deal that your first word wasn't "da da da". You talk all the time to Papa and I, and really anyone else that will listen. You smile at everyone who says hi to you (if you're in a good mood at least), and you like to flirt now. You flirt with your Papa, your Grandpa, and your Uncle Andrew and Uncle Darren too.
You're getting to be so big. Everyday your Papa and I are amazed at all the new things that you can do, but at the same time it makes us sad. Our little baby girl is leaving us, and now we have this amazing, happy, vocal little big girl instead. You haven't quite mastered the art of a hug or a kiss yet, but you put your arms around our shoulders when we carry you, and you get so happy to see us when we get home from work that you open your mouth wide and "kiss" our cheek. This is getting to be a bit tricky now since you got your first tooth! We've been waiting and waiting for the bottom teeth to come in, but instead your top left arrived first!
We can't wait to see what new and exciting things are on their way for next month!
It seems like just yesterday you were so tiny, and now you're our little big girl!
You had two doctors appointments this month, the first was with the Family Doctor for your 6 month well-baby visit, and your needles. You hate needles, but you did so well this month. I think it helped that you only had one needle, so less poking and prodding. Your second appointment was with the Pediatrician to check on your murmur. She could still hear it, but it is fading. Your next appointment with her is in December, around the same time you're due for your next appointment with the family doctor too!
Here are your stats from your September appointments:
Height: 26cm long
Weight: 15.5lbs
According to the doctor that puts you around the 50th percentile for both height and weight. In other words, you're normal!
You do so much now! You're eating food now. We started you off with sweet potatoes and you really liked them. We've discovered that you love your veggies, fruits are a different story, they have to be disguised in rice or oat cereal so you will eat them. After some trial and error we discovered you don't like their texture.
You babble, and coo all the time now, and you sit all.by.yourself! You can't sit for a long time by yourself, but you can for shorter periods with the nursing pillow, or someone behind you. Still no teeth yet, we're still waiting on those!
How does 6 months pass by in the blink of an eye? I'm sitting here at the computer while you play with spoons and bowls after dinner in your highchair. You just finished your dinner. I was always amazed looking at the children of friends how many changes happen in the first year. First that baby was just this little thing that did little else but sleep, eat, and fill a diaper. Then on their first birthday they were this person, laughing, playing, walking too most of the time.
Now as I look at you, my little big girl, it makes it seem even more amazing. Everyday that goes by I am reminded of how much of a miracle you truly are to your Papa and me. Every day your are changing and growing right before our eyes. You are discovering something new and exciting about the world around you. This month you got to go swimming for the first time. It didn't last long since you decided you were ready for a nap, but you went swimming! You got to meet more family at your cousin's baby shower, and they all loved you. Your Mama and Papa even remembered the Jolly Jumper you had in your closet and we put that up for you. You love it! You bounce and bounce as long as we'll let you stay in there everyday.
You even tried food for the first time this month. You loved it and Papa and I loved it too since it would fill up your tummy enough that you would sleep through the night again!
Your teething troubles continued again this month with still no sign of teeth. This is driving all of us crazy. It's so hard to see you in pain with not much we can do. We've discovered some homeopathic medication, as well as an amber teething necklace. This has helped us manage the pain along with some good old fashioned Advil on standby for the really bad days.
Your Mama and Papa can't wait to see what is in store for the next six months.
Happy Half Birthday Emilie!
Love, Your Mama and Papa
With your Mama, 16 days old.
(Copyright Julian Dean Photography)
With your Papa, 16 days old.
(Copyright Julian Dean Photography)
