Wednesday, July 30, 2008

New Van..


By the way...we ended up getting a lovely Odyssey about 3 weeks ago, and sold our Vue to a nice family on Monday.  Hallelujah!  So nice to be back to 2 vehicles in the driveway.  I'm wondering why we waited so long to get this van...it's fabulous!  I'll attach a pic of the one we got...picture me in the driver's seat with my papparazzi sunglasses, rocking out to my ipod (okay, to children's songs), and cruising down the road with the kid in the backseat.  I know, I know...it's an image that's too cool to conjure up.  

Thanks to Nana & Papaw Stouder




Last week, our daycare was closed all week for our provider's summer vacation.  This is the peril of having an in-home daycare with one provider...they've gotta have a break every now and again.  So, I worked from home Monday, and Keith did on Tuesday...then Nana flew in from Florida Tuesday night to spend the rest of the week with Emmy.  They both had a blast!  Nana made sure they called Papaw everyday on the phone to chat, and Emmy eventually started saying "apaw" into the receiver.  (so cute!)  The DC Stouder crew drove down for a visit this weekend, and Emmy really enjoyed hanging out with her older cousin Abby (and learned to say her name too!).  On Sunday night, once Judy got back to Florida, we Skyped with them so they could talk with Emmy.  She sat on my lap, saw Papaw on the monitor and started pointing/laughing/saying Apaw!  We really appreciate their flexibility in helping us out last week!

Emmy is starting to recognize objects & remember words.  When we look at books or pictures she's able to identify several items.  We saw a cow on a block, and when I asked her what it was, she said "Moo!".  Today, I pointed to our computer monitor, which has a large photo of her for a background, and asked who that was...she pointed and said "Emmy!". *stunned Momma* She's a smart cookie, this wee one.

We decided to make a run to the local park on Sunday, then go to one of our favorite spots for ice cream.  Emmy was literally jumping in her carseat when we pulled into the park.  She loves to swing, and it's very hard to pry her away when it's time to go.  Ice cream seemed to help.  She was very intent on eating it herself, and kept saying "i-ceam" over and over.  I got some photos while she was eating.

It's amazing how much her language is expanding, and her capacity for watching & soaking everything in is becoming.  It's rather scary, really, when you realize there is a human sponge watching your every move...waiting to repeat what you say or do what you do.  Hmmm... 

Monday, July 14, 2008

Embarrassing Moments, Thanks to Your Kid


You know, there are certain events that would never happen if you didn't have kids.  For instance, Keith and I would never have had the memorable experience of sitting in a restaurant, putting a little plastic coffee creamer in our mouth, biting it, hearing a loud POP(!!), and then looking over at the woman sitting next to us, covered with creamer and a rather surprised expression.  Life would be so boring without this child.  (By the way, Em was covered in creamer and had a rather surprised expression as well!)  At least the woman was gracious as she left, and said she was okay since it wasn't ketchup!

You Know It's Summer...


when the sweet corn hits the table!  Emmy's even gnawed on a cob and gives it 2 thumbs up.

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Hoosier Holiday






We took a whirlwind trip to Indiana over the 4th of July weekend.  There's a single airline now that does a non-stop flight between Raleigh and Indianapolis, and we took advantage of that with a 16 month old.  Boy, are we glad we did!  The flight up was about an hour and 40 minutes...just long enough to make Emmy restless.  We rented a car and spent Thursday night at Keith's grandparents.  It was so nice to visit with them, and see some of Keith's extended family.  Bill & Della Mae hadn't seen Emmy (in person) since she was 3 months old....she's changed a bit!  We spent most of the 4th at a family gathering in Lucerne, Indiana.  My Aunt Carolyn & Uncle Mike have an annual get together, and it was great fun to see lots of my family!  Emmy was the entertainment for all, and she did great with the crowd.  The weather was perfect for an outside gathering, and we had a really good time.  We stayed 2 nights with my Dad, and were able to have Josh come over for a visit too.  I'm not sure how we could have packed more into our trip, and we all needed a day of rest when we returned.  Unfortunately, there were thunderstorms when we flew home, and we had to circle around Raleigh for over 30 minutes...much to Emmy's dismay.  She threw a full-blown tantrum in the air, and then passed out for about 40 minutes.  Thank God for small favors, because I was almost ready to ask the flight attendant to stow her in the luggage compartment.  Luckily, we weren't the only parents blessed with screaming kids on the plane, so we weren't a TOTAL spectacle.  Got lots of good pics from the trip that I'll share.