She Walked! A visit with Michelle & Tony!

Today Emily, Jim's Mom & I went up to visit Michelle, Tony & Laura!



It was great because Aunt JoAnn was there too! We haven't seen her since Emily's Baptism.

Emily officially walked to Tony! She took a good number of steps and remained on her feet!


Anyway, we all had so much fun! It was nice for Emily to play with Laura! She was so excited, she didn't nap; but she sure did on the way home!

Emily is 14 Months!

Today Emily turned 14 months! We cannot believe how fast time went!

Today we went to Jason & Ellen's house for a housewarming picnic. We had a lot of fun and everyone commented on how beautiful Emily was!

She is also getting better with walking. She is taking more & more steps on her own. Sometimes she gets a little shaky and either falls, grabs onto something or sits down. Before we know it, she'll be running around the house driving Bonita nuts!

Adventure Aquarium

Today Jim took off and we all went to the Adventure Aquarium!

We had so much fun! There were seals, penguins, hippos, birds, fish, a sloth, crocodile, sharks, stingrays, sea turtles and so much more.

Emily's favorite was the PENGUINS!!! I swear I had nothing to do with this!

Hog & Hick Show....err....NJ State Fair!

Jim took off of work and we all went to the NJ State Fair! Emily had so much fun!

She saw a lot of animals including a water buffalo, ponies, goats, sheep, elephant, camel, llamas (or as Jim would say Bahamas!) and even a kangaroo! We bought Emily a Strawberry Shortcake mirror which has her name on it.

We didn't stay too long because it was as hot as Hades! Who would get the bright idea to have a fair in AUGUST?! Its about 100 degrees out. I've complained about this for years, but yet I still go and have a good time.

Two small baby steps...

Today while we were playing in Emily's play area, she let go of her Winnie the Pooh Tree and *walked* the two steps towards me!

She was a little shaky, but getting better and I caught her! Soon I will have to chase her around the house!

One small baby step...

Yep! That's all Emily took! She realized what she was doing and promptly fell on her behind! Then, she laughed! She's going to be dangerous pretty soon!

I'm Still Standing....

I think Emily's finally figuring out what standing is. She has been able to stand for short periods of time unassisted, but today she was standing alone for a while.

If she doesn't think about it, she can stand a lot longer. When she does think about it, she has to grab onto her gate or something or she'll fall.

Pretty soon she'll be walking and driving Bonita crazy!

We're home....

Wow! Time flew. We all had a really good time at the shore!

Although, we are also a little glad to be home. Bonita was really happy to see us. When Jim picked her up at the Puppy Spa (kennel!) she had a pretty bandana on.

LBI...Day 6

Today, we all went to the beach for a couple of hours...but it was HOT!!!

Jim actually went into the water today. We all just relaxed on the beach and then went back to order dinner. After dinner, we all went to The Show Place for ice cream. I was super excited...I had been looking forward to this part of the vacation!

We all had a good time (Jim had never been there!) and my Mom got picked on! I was just glad it wasn't me!

When we got home, my parents watched Emily for a little bit while we walked down to the ocean. When we got home, we started packing.

I can't believe vacation is over already.

LBI...Day 5

Today it was rainy, so Jim, Emily & I just went to Bay Village. My parents went to Atlantic City for the day.

Even though it was raining we had a good time and then we picked up dinner at The Rack Shack and went home to relax.

Finally...the beach!

Today, we all went to the beach for Emily's 1st time! Jim put her in the sand and she didn't like it at first, then started smiling & clapping!

It was kinda chilly and windy so we only stayed a couple of hours. Before we left, Jim brought Emily to the water...she's still not too sure of it!

We went out for a nice dinner and then it started to rain. We went to Bay Village for a little shopping and then just went home to relax!

LBI...Day 4

Well...I was sick again, so Jim stayed home with Emily & I while my parents went to the beach. When they got home, Jim & Emily joined them to go out for dinner while I stayed home and rested.

Hopefully, I start to feel better soon! I'm missing my vacation!

Vacation...Day 3

Today, I just wanted to take it easy so Jim and my parents went to the beach. I was in a little bit of pain and my tetanus shot location was hurting. Emily stayed home with me to keep me company. But really, I wanted to be there at Emily's first day on the beach! After everyone got back, we all got ready to go out for dinner. Then, we just came home and relaxed.

My visit to the ER...

Today, I woke up not feeling well and decided to go to the Emergency Room. Ironically, I have been in this ER before, so I knew where it was. So, we left Emily with my parents and headed out.

When we got to the ER, it was pretty crowded and it took a while to be seen. When they took me back my fears were confirmed. I had an abscess. Now, its an easy fix, but its going to hurt! I'll leave the gory details out, but it was worse than childbirth!

Finally, it was done and they gave me percocet. Bad move. I went to stand up and everything got fuzzy. I got really nauseous and it seemed like I was under water. It was horrible! Jim went to get the nurse, but Jim came back and informed me it was normal.

When we were finally able to leave, I was feeling great but I was tired. So, I went to lay down and we just took it easy for the rest of the night.

Vacation is here...finally!

Today, we all got ready for our first vacation! We were meeting my parents in Long Beach Island. We all are very excited!

We had a long drive in traffic. After we got there and unpacked, we went up to look at the ocean. We were so excited to see Emily's first impression of it and...she was not impressed! We then went for dinner and came home to relax.

Blood Work....Round 2

Okay, since I'm stupid...Emily had to go get blood drawn AGAIN. I felt so bad for her. And we wanted to get it done since we were leaving for the shore soon.

Anyway, the pediatrician handed me 2 forms for blood work and I forgot to hand the person BOTH forms. So she had to get another vial of blood drawn. The good news is that she only got stuck in one arm. Again...all over...all smiles!

Emily Gets Bloodwork Done

Since I can't handle bloodwork really well, Jim took off work and went with Emily & I to get her bloodwork done.

She was not happy and cried A LOT...it didn't help when they had to stick her in both arms.

We took her out to breakfast to make up for it.

Of course, right after the blood draw she was all smiles!

Emily's First Birthday Party!

Today we had Emily's birthday party! It poured!!

Jim & I had a bad feeling about that and rented a huge tent! It was nice to see friends & family! We had about 40 people sharing this special day with us! She got such wonderful gifts and we all had a great time!

No More Bottles!

Although I had been giving Emily a sippy cup for all feedings, she would still get a bottle at bedtime.

Today is the first bottle-free day! She is doing soooo good with the sippy cup!

She's One!

I can't believe how fast the past year went! It seems like just yesterday she was born.

We met Jim at work then went to the Doctor. She had to get a few shots and found out she'll have to get blood work...this really does NOT make me happy! Then, we dropped Jim back at work and to make up for the shots, we went shopping at Babies R Us!