Summer and 15 months

   

     Emily is SO busy!  Miss Priss has been feeling GREAT since her adenoid removal in May.  No ear infections, no runny nose, no colds or coughs- I'm not quite sure what to think!  She has been such a happy baby and is changing and learning new things everyday.  We have been going places this summer and spent time at the beach, the lake, and the pool.  Emily isn't too crazy about sand on her but she still loves the water and has NO fear.  I finally found a life jacket she likes and she now loves to ride on the boat.  Every boat that passes us gets a wave from Emily while she said bye bye.  She has learned quite a few new words and her pronunciations are so funny (please= "bees", Thank you= "Da-do").  She also definitely has a southern drawl...  My favorites that she knows now are yummy, beep beep, hot dog, night night, whoa, and MOMMY!  She likes to tell random people hey when we go shopping and if you are in her way, you might even get told beep beep.  She is getting sassier by the day and SO much fun to watch.  She knows where her tongue, her nose, her belly, her hands, and her feet/shoes are.  And she tries to do the hand motions to her favorite song- Itsy Bitsy Spider.  At her 15 month check up, she is in the 50% for weight, 40% for height, and 90% for her head (and actually we used to be off the charts for head circumference so this is an improvement!)  She is eating well now that she finally has more teeth (8 and counting...) and likes to try and use a fork by herself.  We are STILL working on liking milk, but at least she loves yogurt.   And we have found out that Emily is allergic to mosquitoes, just like her mommy!  When she gets a bite, it blisters and scars.  Poor baby got one on her cheek which you will see below.  Here are some pictures from adventures over the past couple of weeks...  there are quite a few! 

 

Reading with Pa

 

Pigtail Emily!

 

Riding in the shopping cart...

 

Helping Dad open up his gift!  She gave him a movie, a wallet, and some socks! 

 

Reading with Aunt Ali

 

Likes to walk Ace herself...

 

At the Lake

 

Pretty Blue Eyes!

 

My sister caught this sweet expression on camera!!!

 

Watching all the boats on the lake

 

Giving Mommy a RARE kiss!

 

Chillin out in the Inlet Ocean Water

 

LOVE Aunt Ree!

 

Reading a book to herself, with leftover cookie on her face.  

She reads like this... "Daba Dobby Dobby Daba Dobby...."  

It is SO funny and cute to watch!

Water Baby

     Emily LOVES the water!  After having fun with a baby pool over Memorial Day weekend in the backyard, we headed to Isle of Palms this past weekend with Stephen's family.  Emily experienced the beach for the first time and after staring out at the ocean, she headed straight for it.  Back at the pool, she wasn't crazy about her pool float but would have stepped right off the edge into the water if she was allowed.  She even started sitting on the side of the pool and jumping into your arms!  Don't worry, I didn't let her head go under the water!  It was a GREAT weekend, not to mention...  Allison and David are ENGAGED!!!  We are so excited for them and love both of them very much.  We cannot wait for all of the fun parties and times together that lay ahead!  Pictures below!

Memorial Day Weekend

First look at the Ocean

And loves the Water!

Getting Ready to Jump In

Daddy and Em

Remind you of anyone you know?  Loves to drag a "blanket" around behind her...

Mommy and Em

The Future Caldwells!

Our Surgery Patient

 

     Emily did SO good yesterday morning!  They had to stick her 3 times for her IV since her little baby hands are so chubby, but other than those bruises and a slight odor to her breath, you cannot really tell today that she even had surgery done yesterday!  She slept A LOT yesterday (as did I) and I think that this helped with her recovery for today.  She will still cry a little when she sneezes or coughs, but otherwise she doesn't seem to be in a lot of pain.  The doctor said her adenoid tissue was the size of a 6-7 year old it was so swollen with infection, and it also broke apart when touched.  We are so glad that we made the decision to have this procedure and hope that her ear infections and overall cold symptoms in general will decrease.  I didn't even realize until last night, when she was sleeping QUIETLY, how labored her breathing used to be before her surgery.  Thank you for the prayers, phone calls, and thank you to her Grandma and Grandpa for her ginormous balloon!

Walking the Dog

     Emily got a "poodle" which she appropriately named "Dog" for her birthday from her friends Stephanie and Emily.  She decided that she wanted to walk her dog tonight...  Couldn't resist posting some pictures of my silly child!

Decided the Dog wanted to go for a ride in her wagon...

All in a day's work!

Adenoidectomy, here we come!

     As of now, Emily has had 4 ear infections since the placement of her ear tubes in March plus a CONTINUOUS runny nose.  I truly don't think daycare is to blame, I don't lay her down to sleep EVER with a bottle, and I don't think me breastfeeding longer would have made a difference either-- but thank you everyone for your input.  I think it is just Emily!  However, the onset of the fourth ear infection (or shall we say one huge infection that just won't go away?), has brought us to the next level- an adenoidectomy.  Emily will be having her adenoids (lymph tissue located where the nose meets the throat) removed on May 26th-  please say TONS of prayers for her as she undergoes this more invasive procedure where she will have to not only get an IV but also be intubated!  I truly hope, pray, and cross my fingers that this surgery will be successful in clearing her ears and sinuses.
     Thankfully, I do not think the constant ear infections has affected her hearing too much since she is babbling up a storm and learning new words every day!  She knows too many words to list all of them, but the newest to date are baby, flowers, blue, choo choo, bubble, apple, and Aiken.  She loves "B" words the most and even calls my Mom "baba" for Grandma.  She is such a sassy, fun girl and there is never a dull moment with her.
     On a side note, my family seems to be healing slowly, each in their own way, from the loss of my Grandpa.  You never know when memories of him are going to arise, and I know I will continue to grieve in moments when they do.  At my friend Margaret's wedding, they played a song called a reverse anniversary dance.  I shed a few tears watching the older couples dancing, remembering how my grandparents danced at my sister's wedding just this past January.  The DJ played a song just for them, and it was wonderful to see the love between them. Please continue to pray for my family and my Grandma for strength and healing.      
     Enjoy the pictures below (small mix of Emily's birthday with my family, Easter, and Mother's Day) and I'll be sure to post an update once the surgery is over!

Easter 2011

Cousins

GG reading the great-grands a book!

Easter Basket Fun

The Easter Bunny brought some puffs!

Too much birthday fun...

Em and Mommy

LOVES her new chair!

Sisters

Mother's Day Pink Toes!

Having fun with GG's tupperware

One Year Photo Shoot

We had pictures as a family on Sunday, April 17th by Brooke Turner Photography. I have not had "professional" pictures of Emily since she was a week old. She was a disaster child that day- grumpy, stubborn, and very uncooperative... but Brooke managed to get wonderful pictures of her still! Here are my favorites... :)  Thank you so much Brooke!!!