Growing up with Emily

I’m not quite talking. Not English anyways.  I love to jabber, and sometimes I manage to say some things.  I can say nanga which means “grandma” and i can say mama or mommy, usually only when I’m crying.  I also say “key” which ofcourse means “kitty”.  Today I had a great conversation with Mommy though, it went like this:

Me: “mommy”

Mommy: “What, Emily?”

Me: “I wub wa”  (I love you)

Mommy: “Awww, I love you too, Sweetie”

Daddy and Mommy were shocked and thought it was really cute.  I’ll have to try it on Grandma sometime!

I learned a cool new trick!  I spin around in circles till I lose my balance, then, when I fall over, everything is still spinning.  It is so much fun.  Mommy thinks I’m very silly when I do it.  I do it while dancing to music sometimes too!  Mommy caught me on video spinning, then I see the kitty, Padme.  I don’t know if the sound will work but I actually say “Padme” when I see her.  I’m getting closer to talking and making sense everyday!  I try my hardest to communicate, even if it is just pointing.  Also on the video, you see me exploring something I just discovered.  I’m not sure what it is yet, but I’ll figure it out.

Not much has happened this last week, we stayed home ALL week.  It was Mommy’s birthday but she got food poisoning so Mommy and Daddy couldn’t go anywhere and do anything.  I was teething all week so I ate almost nothing for a few days which made Mommy very concerned, but yesterday I ate like I normally do, so Mommy isn’t worried anymore.  I now have four teeth!  Two on top, one is to my left and the other is (which just came in) is the left front one.  Then I have my bottom two front teeth.

I walk around really well now, i rarely fall.  I even run and dance more!  I have so much fun carrying things that are really big, bigger than me!  I also love being the center of attention.  Yesterday at church, i kept lifting my dress over my head so i showed everyone my belly and chest and legs and it made all the primary kids in Mommy and Daddy’s class scream!  I think now that it was too much of a distraction because Daddy was trying to teach a lesson.  Mommy and Daddy were talking about seeing if nursery would take me early.

After church I got to go see the Mitchell’s!  I missed them all alot, especially Grandma!  I played outside mostly.  They have a ping-pong table and everyone was playing that while I ran around in my wagon.  Daddy also showed me the little toddler slide, and I loved it so much that he took me on the big one.  I couldn’t stop giggling it was so much fun! Mommy took me in the swing also, and it wasn’t scary this time, it was fun too!  I was enjoying it all so much!  I didn’t take a nap all day so i was getting very tired by dinner time.  Grandma put me in the highchair to feed me yogurt and after just a few bites i fell asleep!  After a couple hours Daddy and Grandma woke me up, and we had cake and icecream for Mommy’s birthday.  It was good but i was so tired i was so grouchy!  Usually when Uncle Brady or Daddy picks on me I don’t mind, but I cried everytime someone picked on me.  I think I made Uncle Brady feel really bad when he hit a paper out of my hands because I started to really scream.  I forgive him though!

Another thing, on the way from church to Grandma’s house I started giving lots and lots of kisses!  I finally fell asleep though, and when I woke up, Daddy was telling everyone about me giving kisses in my sleep.  He thought it was cute.  I was embarrassed!  The first picture below is of me giving my kisses in the car.

My ravioli mess I made when Mommy made it for dinner! It’s also a good shot of my teeth!  You can’t see the one coming in (this was the last thing i actually ate before i decided to starve myself for a few days) very well but its on the top next to the other one in the front (kinda).

Yesterday our stake had a pioneer days celebration at a park at the stake center.  It was great fun.  Will and Kaytie came along and played with me.  At the activity, we had a picnic, everyone was supposed to bring their own food so we brought some KFC popcorn chicken.  Someone went around and offered potato salad to everyone so i ate some of that too.  After eating, there was a play about some pioneers that I watched.  It was very interesting.  I tried to make friends with a girl in front of me.  I walked up to her and looked up at her and she seemed friendly, so i put my hand on her shoulder, but she scooted away from me.  I went back to mommy and then decided to try again, so I went up to her again and started to play with her hair.  She seemed annoyed so I started to hit her on the head so Mommy grabbed me and took me into the field to walk around.  After that there were games and dancing and watermelon and homemade icecream and sweet breads!  I loved the banana bread and the icecream.  And I had my first taste of watermelon!  It was good!  The music started playing a funny song that made everyone start flapping thier arms like chickens, and I wanted to dance to so I walked up to them and tried to dance.  There was a boy a year or so older than me that started dancing around me and it was fun.  Mommy helped me dance the hokey pokey and I had fun with that too!  After the dancing was over, we went home and Will and Kaytie visited for some time, while Daddy pulled me around in the wagon.  I ended up going to bed late and without a bath, so first thing this morning after breakfast I got a bath to be all fresh and clean for church.

At church today I got to take the bread and water just like everyone else for the first time.  I don’t understand why it is done but I felt a reverance from it that stayed with me throughout the whole day.  The rest of sacrament meeting I stayed sitting on the bench or in mommy or daddy’s lap and sat reverently reading my books or eating my crackers.  I did play with the young woman sitting behind me named Britney a little bit though, she is so pretty! (No wonder Uncle Brady likes her)  I was quiet during the lesson Mommy and Daddy taught and sat in Taryn and Sabrina’s lap, and then during Sharing Time I helped participate in the lesson by pulling the things off the bulletin so the teacher could re-tape them up higher in the order she was supposed to put them in.  Now I’m exhausted and need a nap.

Thats me devouring my birthday cake.  The next video is of me unwrapping my presents.  I also got a big red wagon that was brought in a little later, so there is pictures of me with that.

Today is my birthday!  I am now one years old!  Mommy is getting ready for a huge party!  I’m gonna eat lots of cake and icecream and open presents!  I am so excited today, I cant help it, I just keep running around the house (literally running) with a huge grin on my face and giggling randomly.  Mommy and Daddy will video the party for those of you who are going to miss it, then I will blog it tomorrow!

I’m finally back from Vacation.  I had lots of fun and handled it well.  Early sunday morning, as soon as daddy got home from work, we left to go to Pocatello, ID. I enjoyed the ride at first and even took a small nap, but after a couple hours I started to get antsy and needed a diaper change, so we stopped at the $10,000 dollar silver mountain gift shop.  We looked around a little bit and changed my diaper, then we headed out again.  We traveled another couple hours and I just played in my seat reading my books and playing with toys.  Then we stopped in Missoula to eat at taco time. I ate an orange daddy brought in, and also helped daddy eat a platter of food that had rice, and pork quisidilla and other things.  I ate the guacamole because daddy doesnt like it and I love it!  Another diaper change and we were off again.  I took a long nap after lunch, and when I woke up I was upset to still be traveling.  We stopped at a rest stop about an hour away from Rexburg, ID to walk around a bit, then we left again.  Once we slowed down onto a smaller highway passing Rexburg to go to St. Anthony to visit my Aunt and Uncle, I got really upset and started screaming.  Finally we reached St. Anthony and I got to see Aunt Maran and Uncle Devin!  I was really excited to see them, and also glad to be out of that car seat!  I kept crawling outside and getting really really dirty so daddy gave me a bath after they fed is dinner there.  I also explored Maran’s purse.  After my bath, we headed back onto the road AGAIN!  But it was only an hour and a half (thanks to construction) till we finally reached Pocatello and I got to see my Great-Grandma and Grandpa Stewart.  I explored and made some messes and got some energy out, then we went to bed.

Monday morning when I woke up, we went upstairs to have a delicious breakfast!  It was pancakes with eggs and sausage and I ate it like it was my last meal!  I loved it!  Then I played with Great-Grandma for most of the day.  She pulled out some toys for me to play with that Mommy says she used to play with when she was little and would visit her.  There was also a little dog (shih tzu) named Buffy, that I loved to chase around and give hugs to and pet.  After a while I got tired and we went downstairs to watch a movie and take a nap.  When I woke up, my mom’s cousin Becky was there and I got to meet her.  A little after she left, the rest of Becky’s family came to visit and we followed them out to a Ranch.  I got to see some cows and some dogs.  One dog could even smile!  I played outside in the grass and soaked up the sun.  I loved it!  Then we went back to Great-Grandma’s and had spaghetti for dinner.  I learned how to eat with a fork and spoon and did really well.  After dinner we went and found a wal-mart to buy a few things (ice-cream for root beer floats, and stuff to fix the A/C cuz it went out on the trip there).  I fell asleep on the way home so I missed out on the root-beer floats.

Tuesday morning started with another great breakfast that i devoured. Then we went to Idaho Falls.  First we stopped at the Idaho Falls Temple and saw the newly remodeled visitors center.  There were lots of TV screens with lots of videos to watch about the church and about Christ.  There was also a giant statue of Jesus, that you can go up to and touch.  I was kind of afraid of it because it was so big, but I felt the spirit and knew we were in a special place.  After visiting the visitors center, we walked around the temple.  There were LOTS of pretty flowers there.  It was also closed down for cleaning and it was getting some new carpets so there was some construction going on there.  After the temple, we went to some mormon stores like Deseret Book and D.I.  Mommy and Daddy bought me some of my birthday presents there.  After that, we ate lunch then headed to the mall.  At the mall, there was a little red car/stroller that you can rent and I got to go in that.  I loved pretending to drive around (daddy was pushing me) and watch all the people.  Everyone thought I was really cute!

At the mall, we looked through some stores, and Mommy bought some new clothes for herself.

After that, we headed back to Pocatello and went to my Great-Aunt Vickie’s to have dinner and games.  She runs a daycare so there were LOTS of toys for me to play with.  They also had a little dog that I loved to watch.  He kept playing fetch with a ball.  Daddy and Mommy and Mommy’s cousin and Aunt and Uncle all played a game called “Scum” while I sat it in the middle of the table helping with the cards.  Then I got really tired so we went back to Great-Grandma’s and went to bed.

Wednesday started with another great breakfast and then we left to go to Rexburg to see that Temple.  At the temple Aunt Maran and Aunt Becky showed up.  I was happy to see them!  We all walked around the temple and then waited for Uncle Devin to come meet us.  We then headed to a zoo in Idaho Falls.  I LOVED looking at all the animals.  We watched penguins be fed, and we saw alot of really big cats called tigers and lions.  We also followed a peacock, saw some really big tortoises, and went into this place that had monkeys.  There was these monkeys that just sat there hanging from a branch with thier arms and stared at me.  Then they climbed really high really fast and it was so cool to watch!  There were some lemurs and when I turned around and stopped looking at me it jumped towards me but the glass stopped it.  It scared mommy!  I clicked my tongue at the animals I liked because I wanted to pet them, but none would come like my kitty’s at home do.  There was one animal in a little petting zoo section that was a goat.  It came right up to the fence and stuck its nose out so I could pet it.  I didnt mind at first bet then I got scared so we moved on.  After the zoo, we went to a park and sat in some shade and I played with my Aunts and watched people play in this fountain getting all wet.  It was a high-powered fountain that would hurt and drown me so mommy wouldnt let me play in it.  After we played in the park for a while, I said goodbye to Maran and Devin and Becky and we went back to Great-Grandma’s for dinner, and spent more time with them.  I really enjoyed spending time with all my family.

Thursday morning, we packed up and left right after a quick and easy breakfast.  I wasn’t as happy to be back on the road, but I tolerated it.  We stopped at walmart to get a few things to make the trip more tolerable on the way home, and then we left.  I fell back asleep at first because I was really tired.  Daddy had to wake me for us to leave before, even though I had slept in a couple hours longer than I normally do.   I was exhausted from all the new experiences. We made just as many stops on the way home as we did on Sunday, minus visiting Maran and Devin.  When I tried waking from my nap after lunch, i was still so sleepy but I was in a good mood.  Mommy would look back at me so I would smile at her, but I couldnt keep my eyes open.  Mommy said it was the cutest thing I have ever done.  I kept smiling but was half asleep and trying to wake up, and it was such a sweet smile.  I kept sticking my tongue out while smiling too.  After I was really awake I got really fussy, but I was satisfied with animal crackers and I even got to eat an oreo.  The oreo made a mess of my face and hands and feet, but it was sticky goodness and fun.

Once we got home, I was so happy!  My kitty, Boba, came right up to me and started rubbing against me and wouldnt leave me alone.  I snuggled with him alot, and played with all my toys.

The next morning, mommy got me up and we went to Grandma and Grandpa Mitchell’s house.  I missed them so much!  Daddy was there too (busses were on holiday schedule so he couldnt go home from work so just bicycled there instead).  I spent most of my 4th of July there in the backyard playing in the wagon.  I climbed in and out and everyone gave me rides in it.  I love being outside!  We had a barbeque and I showed everyone how I can eat my baked beans with a spoon by myself.  After dinner everyone played croquet, and I played in the wagon.  I kept hopping out though and walking around and stealing everyone’s balls.  I walk really good now.  It’s alot more smooth and I can go long distances.  I rarely crawl anymore.  Mommy and Daddy are really proud of me!

Last night I had a dream that I was walking, climbing down the stairs, and standing up without pulling myself up onto anything. It all seemed to be pretty easy so I studied hard at how I did it in my dream and got right to work this morning. As soon as I woke up and mommy let me off the bed I walked away. I made it all the way out of her bedroom and down the hall to my bedroom without falling or sitting down! Thats more than 20 steps! I also realized that from crawling I can just put my feet under me so I’m squatting and then just stand from that without grabbing anything to pull myself up. I’ve been doing it all day! My last surprise was climbing down the stairs. Mommy and Daddy have been trying to teach me how to do it since I learned how to climb up it. I HATED IT! I wanted to be carried down! I refused to even TRY to learn. About a week ago, Daddy left in a major hurry and was kinda mad and he ended up knocking down the baby gate at the top of the stairs in his hurry. Mommy hasn’t put it up yet and didn’t worry because I’m rarely upstairs unless Mommy or Daddy is with me, and I’m afraid of going down the stairs because of the few times (when someone besides mommy was watching me) I have fallen down them. So I avoid the stairs when I am upstairs. Not this morning though. I saw Boba playing and eating and wanted to play with him. Mommy heard me playing at the top of the stairs and ran to watch me. When she saw that I was climbing down them, she grabbed the camera of course! Then in the video, I get distracted by Daddy walking in the door from work, so thats what I’m looking at when I reach the bottom.

Sorry about not posting for so long, my week has been busy spending time with Aunt Becky.  She came to visit me all the way from Provo!  I have been practically living at Grandma Mitchell’s house, I even spent the night there Saturday night and went to church with them on Sunday.  I have another tooth!  This one is on the top, it looks a little weird at the moment because its above my gums, not sure if that is normal or not.  I’m also walking here and there, just a few steps at a time.  I also got to see my new cousin Damian!! He is adorable!  I can’t wait till he grows up a little bit so I can play with him!  He definitely looks like his parents.

I am getting into alot now, mommy caught me completely stuck in my toy chest.  She has no clue how I got in there but thought it was hilarious so she snapped a couple photos.

Also, I love to play computer games (as well as blog obviously) So mommy took a picture of me on the computer at Grandma Mitchell’s house.

And of course, some more pictures of my curly hair that is getting so long!

And here is a picture of me looking out the window resting my head on the back of the couch.

Guess what!?!?! I’m officially a walker! Mother’s day was a bit of a spoof, just a suprise for mommy. Now, I’m officially walking. It started with Monday. On Monday, Aunt Becky came to visit! I was so happy to see her! She is so much fun. Mommy said that when Becky comes, I can start walking. So when Grandpa was playing with me, I decided to take a couple steps. Grandma wasn’t around though, so we didn’t say anything. Then yesterday, after my bath. I walked back and forth between Grandma and Grandpa several times till I was too tired to do it anymore. I even got it on video! Also there are pictures of me taking a bath, of my kitty Boba, and a video of me with Boba and a video of me giving kisses. Enjoy!

This last picture is of me after my bath with how curly my hair gets.