Life, Really Blog

I’m not quite sure what to write in this update, because things in Emma’s world are pretty similar to what I wrote in her 16-month post. She still loves playing with rocks and water. Loves being outside. Doesn’t say any words, except maybe daddy and doggies. Loves making messes, especially with towels (?!?) and tearing paper apart.

Emma wouldn’t let a little rain deter her from playing outside.

But she was a little unhappy about it.

She has started to show more personality quirks by tilting her head and looking at me sideways, or looking back and forth between something and me several times (most likely deciding whether to obey…). When she gets excited, she also swings her arms back while she squats and then “jumps” up (she doesn’t actually jump) with her hands above her head. It’s really cute. She’s started carrying buckets around in the crook of her arm like a purse.

She hasn’t fully recovered sleep-wise from our San Francisco trip a week ago. She’s been falling asleep in her highchair during snacks or lunch (even when it’s an hour before naptime), and can stay awake for only about 4-4.5 hours between naps instead of her usual 5.

Poor girl. Yesterday she took a 3.5 hour nap and was still ready for bed early. While it was fairly easy for her to adjust to Pacific time (because we just kept her up later), she’s having a hard time getting back to Central Time – though I kind of like it. She’s been waking up more around 7:30-8:00 and going to bed around that time too, which I feel is a lot more normal schedule for her than waking up and going to bed at 6:30. I’d still like to get up around then, though, to do some stuff before she gets up. Hasn’t happened yet, but I’m trying…

I’ve kind of decided that I’m not going to rush Emma to wean off her nighttime bottle. I don’t mind the work of bottles (they really aren’t that much more work than sippy cups) and she loves her bottle. We brush her teeth before putting her down and I just don’t think it’s that big of an issue. 

Something that did happen this month is that Emma got her first and second haircuts! Travis and I trimmed her bangs one night, but since Emma was going to be in a wedding, I figured she should have a professional haircut. Well, I was very underwhelmed by the pro haircut (we went to Great Clips), but Emma did great sitting in the chair. 

Emma had been playing with a wrapped granola bar in the car on the way to the store, but apparently chewed through the wrapper, because when I got to the store, there was granola and chocolate everywhere.

And I’ll close with some pictures from our San Francisco trip, since that was a main highlight of this month:

Emma throwing a tantrum in the airport on the way home from San Francisco.

She just wanted to play with the camera.

A ledge just her size!

Gimme that!

In the engine room of the SS Jeremiah O’Brien, a WWII ship

At Fisherman’s Wharf

Checking out the flowers at the Conservatory in Golden Gate Park with cousin Jensen

Tags: 17 months, baby, Emma, toddler

We’ve had a very fun month! 

We went down to my parents’ cabin for a day and enjoyed the lake (and the kiddie pool, since they don’t really have a beach).

We went to the Safari North zoo in Brainerd, where we fed farm animals and parakeets. We saw turkeys, grizzly bears, giraffes, deer, monkeys — all kinds of animals! After some stroller time, Emma enjoyed walking around on her own (no pictures because we were keeping track of her!)

We also went to the Antique Tractor Show in Park Rapids. Emma liked sitting on the tractor and trying to play with all the knobs and levers. There was also a small petting zoo there and she liked seeing the animals more than she ever has.

We’ve had a couple of playdates with my good friend from college and her daughter, and another couple with people we’ve met in Brainerd. Emma and I also went to our first MOPS meetup last Monday, which was really great. The ladies were super welcoming and friendly, and I think we’ll enjoy getting to know that group. Emma was the youngest (seems like she always is!) but that’s ok. I’m looking forward to when Emma can play on a playground more independently though.

Emma is officially down to one nap a day except for the rare day she wakes up early and needs 2. She usually goes to bed at 6:30 and wakes up around 6:15/6:30. She takes her one nap at 11 am and usually wakes up between 12:30 and 1. 

With the 3 new teeth that she got this month, Emma now has all of her teeth (minus her 2-year molars)! Happy to be almost done with that stage. 

Most days, Emma only drinks one bottle right before bed. She gets milk in a sippy cup for breakfast and a morning snack before her nap. Every once in a while, I’ll crack and give her a bottle during the day, but the transition has gone pretty well for the most part. I think I was holding on to it more than she was! I’m hoping to wean her off the nighttime bottle by 18 months.

Emma still loves fruit, most notably grapes, clementines and peaches. She still doesn’t like meat and likes only a handful of vegetables. She will eat stirfry veggies so we eat stirfry fairly often. She also loves pizza, and I’ve started making dough from scratch, so we eat pizza a lot too. And she loves green smoothies.

Emma still doesn’t have any words. There are times when it seems like she definitely understands what we’re saying (like if I ask her to put a toy in a bin and she does), but there are other times when it seems like she doesn’t have a clue (like if I ask her to do patty cake and she does peekaboo, or nothing at all). She still doesn’t like books at all, except for chewing on and occasionally paging through.

I think she got her daddy’s engineering brain because she LOVES figuring out how things work, and is extremely detail-oriented. She has learned how to screw and unscrew water bottle caps, turn lights and fans on and off, unplug power cords (not something we want her to know!), open fingernail clippers, and replace the bathtub drain stopper. She also knows that the dog leashes get hooked to the dogs’ collars, and that socks and shoes go on her feet.

Things Emma enjoys:

• Playing with rocks, and carrying them around in various containers
• Playing in water with cups (and using them to drink it!)
• Moving things from here to there, and back again – especially towels, tupperware and office supplies
• Emptying wallets
• Hugs and kisses – I love it!!
• The dogs – she absolutely LOVES Katy and will try to cuddle with her all the time 
• Climbing onto our couches via her Baby Einstein table
• Being outside

Emma is still in her rear-facing infant carseat but we are going to make the switch in the next week or two. I had said that I was going to wait until she started walking, and then it just seemed so sad to give up the ability to bring her into the house while sleeping. But I think she’ll enjoy being in the car more when she’s facing forward. I don’t know – I keep waffling. We’ll see if/when I get ambitious.

I also got some really good deals on toddler stuff at garage sales this month. I bought a little outdoor slide, a small table with 2 chairs, a potty, a toddler bed, a kitchen playset (sans food) and a Little Tikes trike for a grand total of $15. LOVE finding good deals! 

Well, that’s about it for this month!

Tags: 16 months, baby, Emma, toddler