Zoo Toy

Being Emma's first Christmas this past year, she received a lot of toys.  Something my mom said she used to do with me and my brothers was to keep a few toys aside then bring them out very few weeks or so.  Michael and I decided to do the same thing since we had so many toys!  This is one of her Christmas gifts, a musical zoo toy.

 

 

Emma staring at the toy wondering what will happen next.

 

Taking a closer look at the toy.

 

Getting a little bored by this thing.

 

Hey, what popped up here!

 

 

And there's some lights here too!

 

What kind of animal are you?

 

Oh no, where did that animal go?

 

Emma gained an audience.

 

 

Cali coming in for a closer look to make sure it is safe for Emma to play with.

 

Just making sure it will hold her.

 

Cali is observing from a safe distance away; allowing Emma time to play with her toy.

 

 

Oh my gosh, what is this animal up here?

 

Cal Cal keeping a watch on her sister (Emma).

Another Shower For Kelly

Emma and I made the long adventure down to the boot heel of Missouri for another shower for a dear friend, Kelly.  We wouldn't want to miss this special time in her life so we packed up and headed out.  Before long, Emma was fast asleep and I enjoyed just driving, listening to the radio, letting my mind wander to many different things.  At one point, we had to stop at a store because I realized that I didn't pack shoes along for Emma.  After a quick detour, we hit the road again and were at the place in no time.  Kelly had a lot of family and friends here with her today to celebrate with her.  She is soon going to have one of the most important days of her life to celebrate, her wedding day!

 

 

Emma looking around the room.

 

Not one of her better pictures.

 

Kelly opening some of her gifts.

 

Up close and personal with Emma.

 

 

Emma crawling up to Kelly's mom.

 

Emma spotted another little girl to play with.

 

 

Emma tried to play with this little girl, but every time Emma got close this girl walked away (something Emma hasn't learned to do yet, walk).

 

 

Emma fast asleep after a fun day with the girls at Kelly's shower.

 

I wasn't sure if we would make it back to town before Isabella's birthday party was over, but it was worth the shot.  After Kelly's shower, we made our best attempt to get to Chris and Jess' house.  When we arrived, most everyone was already gone, but Emma and I were still able to visit with the kiddos for a little bit.

 

 

Isabella, who is on the phone?

 

 

Emma trying to give Chase a hug.

 

The balloon went up, up, up!

 

Chandler playing with Isabella's play cell phone.

 

Emma showing Chandler how the phone really works.

Walking Toy

For Christmas, Emma received this walking toy from her Godmother, Ashley.  We didn't really know when a good time would be to introduce this toy to her, but she has shown an interest in pulling herself up on furniture.  So we thought, what the heck, lets give it a try!

 

 

Walking around with the toy.

 

Stopping to play a bit.

 

 

An attempt to go from the toy to the couch.

 

And fail, but at least Emma is trying.

 

Emma got what she was looking for in the first place.

 

And she's buzzing around now!

Meet Olivia Grace

This past year has been a busy year for having babies.  My cousin had a little girl, then we had a little girl, and now another cousin had a little girl...meet Olivia!  Olivia was born on January 7th in Dallas, so this was the first time we got to meet her.  Emma was interested in the baby only briefly, as she soon wanted to get back to playing with the toys.

 

 

Baby Olivia

 

Meeting her for the first time.

 

Herbie meeting another one of his great grandchildren, the third great granddaughter born in a years time.

 

Then Herbie taking a break to play on the floor with Emma.

Emma's First Try with a Sippy Cup

While visiting at my parent's house, we decided to introduce Emma to a sippy cup.  At first, Emma was more interested in playing with the cup rather than drinking from it.  With time and practice (or whenever she gets thirsty), our little lady will be using a big girl cup in no time!

 

 

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh! I love trying new things! 

This is the new sippy cup?

 

 Guys, this is a bowl, not a cup. Geesh!

 



 

Oh, this is the sippy cup you were talking about. Why is it just hitting my lips? 



 



 

 I will figure you out cup! I'm watching you... I will get a drink from you!

 

 I'm getting a little ticked off at this new cup!

 

 Forget the cup, I will try to drink out of this bowl. I saw Cal Cal and Lex Lex drink just like this.

 

Maybe I should use my hands. Why can't that sippy thing be this easy?

Another Milestone Achieved

Michael and I were playing with Emma on the floor this evening when we both noticed she was really interested in the pups dog food. So we took that and ran with it... We were encouraging her by shaking the dog food in the bowl and Emma was intrigued by the sound of it. After about 10 minutes, Emma finally got the concept down of crawling. It might not have been the prettiest, but with a little bit of practice, she will be a pro at it!


Ready, set...


GO!


"Oh wait, how did I end up back here?"


"Here I go again..."


Cali making sure her food is not going to go to Emma.


Almost reached the dog food.


Lunging forward.


"Ok I give up now!"


Ready to try crawling again.


Michael was trying to get Emma to crawl towards the dog food, but Cali was a little unsure about the whole process.


Time for these girls to take a break.


Looks like a painful splits.


Michael videotaping Emma crawling while also encouraging her with some puppy food.