Thompson Family

All I Want for Christmas...

2011-12-09T14:13:00.001-06:00

Last week we went to the Gingerbread Bash at the Children's Museum. It was such a fun night and the girls really enjoyed themselves. At the end of the evening, the girls had their picture taken with Santa. I didn't hear what Olivia asked for, but I think I know. On Sunday afternoon, I noticed that Olivia had gotten her two front lower teeth! I had just checked the day before, so I know that they came in after her time with Santa. She must have asked for them in her very sweet way to receive them so quickly!

Here are some of Olivia's school pictures. She is 6 1/2 months old in them. Her teacher told me that Olivia smiled and laughed through the whole thing. She is the happiest baby I have ever seen!

Something I Never Thought I would Do

2011-10-20T12:05:00.001-05:00

A few weeks ago, as I picked up Emma from school, her teacher told me that she had just gone potty because she had a lot of water that afternoon. Emma had been potty-trained for a while, so I didn't worry too much about it. As we headed to the car, I asked her if she needed to go again and she said she didn't. We made the drive to Pearland to pick Olivia up from daycare in about 30 minutes. I asked Emma before we went to Olivia's room if she needed to go and she said no again. We got Olivia's things together, and as soon as I got her buckled in her car seat Emma said that she needed to go potty. We went to the restroom that is closest to the front of the school but had to wait because someone was already in there. Emma started bouncing around saying she really needed to go, but by that time I thought it would be faster to wait than to walk to one of the other restrooms. Little did I know how long the woman that was in there would take. Emma kept telling me that it was urgent and I showed her how to cross her legs hoping that would help... but it didn't. About 15 seconds before the woman opened the door, Emma started to whimper and I knew it was too late. I still hurried into the restroom, but by that time her pants and shoes were soaked. She sat on the potty and went some more so she really did have a lot of water in her. I felt so bad that she had to put the wet clothes back on, pick up Olivia, and walk to the car. We keep a bag with an extra set of Emma's clothes in the car, but naturally on this day I didn't have it. So I stripped her down and buckled her into the car seat with just her shirt on... Now onto the funny part of the story.

We had planned to meet Matt to eat out for dinner that night. I was debating going home to get clean clothes for her or buying something for her to wear at Target since it is right next to the Chili's where we planned to eat. When I called Matt, he said he was almost to Pearland, so I decided to wait for him in the Target parking lot and he could stay with the girls while I ran in to get something for Emma. Now remember that Emma is naked from the waist down. I unbuckle her so she can stand up in the back seat. After a minute or two, she says that she needs to go potty. I look through the car, but I don't even have a coat or blanket that I can wrap her in to take her into the store. As I look back and forth from her to Olivia she says she really needs to go and I tell her to just wait for a few more minutes. As I try to distract her, she tells me that "The pee pee is coming!" I say just hold it and she starts bouncing and repeats, "I can't! The pee pee is coming!" So now what do I do? Do I let her stand in the car and pee all over the back seat? Not something that I want to clean up. Do I try to get Olivia out of the car and get both girls into the restroom without exposing the fact that Emma doesn't have any clothes on? That would take too long. Or do I let Emma go in the Target parking lot? I can't believe that I am even considering that. Can I really let her do that??? When nothing brilliant comes to mind, I decide that is my only option. I open my door and hers and set her on the ground between them. Then I tell her to go. She looks at me like I have gone crazy when I spread her legs and tell her to squat down a little bit. Then she starts - and she pees a river. As she keeps going and going, I am looking around hoping that no one walks by to see my shame. How can I let my precious little girl do this? As soon as she finishes, I quickly put her in the car and close our doors so that I can deny any part in the large puddle on the ground by our car. Matt pulls up just about then and I run into the store to buy Emma a cute little dress because I feel so bad about what I just made her do. We get her dressed and head to dinner. I am still in shock about what just happened, and Emma is happy to be in her new dress and forgotten the events that led to her getting the new dress.

So I learned a good lesson: there might come a time when you are forced to do something that you had previously thought was impossible. And survive the event with nothing to show for it but a new dress. :)

It's Started Already ~or~ Matt's in Trouble

2011-10-12T08:50:00.001-05:00

Here is a conversation that Emma and I had as we drove in to work/school yesterday morning...

Emma: sniffing because of a runny nose

Me: Emma, do you need a tissue?

Emma: No... I need money.

Me: Silent while trying to determine if she really asked for money.

Emma: Mommy, do you have any money?

Now I am just trying to determine what she wanted the money for. Did she want to pick up a few more books at the school's book fair? Or did she want to do some shopping at Rice Village on her lunch break? Maybe one of her friends has a better lunch than her and she was thinking about trying to buy it? Or could there there be an underground poker club at her school?

On the way home yesterday she did say she wanted to go to the store. I asked her what she wanted to buy and she said eggs and coffee cream. But isn't that what every two year old wants to buy? I think she says that she wants to go to the store or out to eat almost every day. She is already turning into a social butterfly like her mommy and is happy to just be going anywhere. It is so cute when she says, "I want to go out to eat. I don't want to eat at home." or "I want to go to the store." in her cute little voice.

When we were on our way to my family reunion in July, one of our many potty stops (we had just started potty training Emma) was at a Buc-ee's type gas station so it had some random stuff for sale inside. As we were leaving, Emma was looking at all of the wonderful things at her eye level and she looked at me and said "I want to shop Mommy." When I told her that we needed to get back on the road her response was, "But I want to buy something." This is terribly cute at two, but I wonder if it will have the same effect when she is sixteen. Guess we will have to wait to find out.

Wait up guys!

2011-10-05T15:19:00.000-05:00

We have been raising our Emma and now Olivia to be little world travelers. So far, we haven't made it farther than Hawaii, but they are experts when it comes to West Texas and the Texas Panhandle. At 6 months old, Olivia has already flown to Midland and Lubbock and she can't wait to go somewhere even more exciting than Hawaii so Emma can't rub that in anymore. Last weekend we flew to Lubbock for the baby showers of our precious baby girl niece that is due to arrive in November. (On a side note, we can't wait for the newest Thompson to get here!) We have learned that it is a bit more of a challenge to fly with two girls, two car seats, and all the items that are required to care for and entertain the same two girls. Thankfully, Emma, as always, is a big helper. She has decided that she can roll one of the suitcases all by herself. And I am not talking about a child-size suitcase - she has to roll one of our suitcases - all by herself. As we were going from baggage claim to our car, she took off with one of the bags that probably weighs almost as much as she does. Every little bit, she would stop to change hands and say "Wait up guys!" It was so cute. If we dared to ask if she needed help, she would get that independent look in her eyes and tell us "I got it!" Most of the time, it is so cute to see this self-reliant streak in her. Sometimes it drives me up the wall because she won't do what I need her to do. Or it makes me sad because she is growing up so fast. Either way, it is so amazing to see her grow into her own personality. I just wish it would go a little slower. Have you have seen the commercial with the dad talking to the little girl in the driver seat of the car about being a safe driver? Then they show the girl again and she is a teenager that is about to go for a drive by herself. I am not even sure what the commercial is for, but I feel like that is going to be me. Right now, 16 seems like it is forever away, but I also know that Emma will be 3 years old next month and it feels like yesterday that she was a newborn baby cuddled in my arms. And Olivia is not slowing down either - it doesn't seem possible that she is 6 months and 1 day old. I don't see any way to slow them down, so if you have any tips, let me know. :)

I Smack You!

2011-09-27T10:41:00.000-05:00

Last night we were reminded that we have a parrot in the house. Olivia was eating carrots for the first time, and we were taking awhile. Matt had finished eating and Emma was eating some strawberries for desert. In between feeding Olivia bites, I started nibbling on a wonton. Matt looks at me with a completely innocent face, and says that I must be hungry. In shock, I ask him what he means because it sounds like he just called me a pig. He smiles and says again that I must be hungry. Hmmmph. So, my natural mature response is "You better watch out or I will smack you!" A second later, Emma smiles, looks at her dad, and says "I smack you!" Ooops! So now I am apologizing to Matt and Emma saying that wasn't a nice thing for me to say and that we shouldn't ever say that to anyone. The fact that I am having to bite me toungue to keep from laughing isn't helping things at all. Matt enjoyed the entire experience and my backtracking to convince Emma that it wasn't a nice thing to say entirely too much.

Now I am just hoping that Emma doesn't start telling her friends at school that she will smack them. Definitely don't want to have to explain that one to the teachers.

Lesson Learned

2011-07-03T11:24:00.001-05:00

We are on our way home from my family reunion in Cleburne. This was my first time to go and we had a great time visiting with our Spelce family. Emma met her cousin Logan for the first time. They are almost the same age and they had a great time playing with each other. I will post some pictures after I load them onto the computer.

Now about the lesson learned... Yesterday afternoon we went to the hotel pool with Pa Spelce. I remembered Emma's swimsuit, but I didn't bring a swim diaper. Emma is potty training, so I didn't even think about needing something for the pool. I decided to put a Pull-up on her at the last minute. While we were at the pool, I noticed it was taking on A LOT of water. When we got back to the room, Matt started getting Emma ready for her shower while I drool care of Olivia. After a few minutes, he shouted "We are not doing this again!" I walked in to find Emma's suit half way down and she was covered in the gel that is supposed to be on the inside of the Pull-up. I can't believe how much of that stuff ther was - it was everywhere! Emma was a good sport while we worked to get it off of her and her swimsuit.

So lesson learned - never use a Pull-up in a pool!

Picture Time!

2011-06-29T23:29:00.000-05:00

I haven't been doing a very good job of blogging so far, but I have been trying to keep new pictures in my Picasa gallery. Check out all the new ones that I added tonight.

I am going back to work next week, so I should have more time in front of a computer to catch up on the blog. And of course I am only talking about my lunch break... :)

Six weeks = Six hours

2011-05-17T12:47:00.001-05:00

I can't believe that Olivia is already six weeks old - and she is growing so fast. I really treasure the time I am getting to spend with her right now. I am reminded daily of how blessed we are with our two precious little girls. Emma reminds me everyday of what a big girl she is. A few days ago she spilled a little bit of apple juice on her chair, so we took the cover off and washed it. I didn't get the chair put back together until yesterday while she was at school. When she came home she looked at her chair and said "My chair is all better. No more apple juice." It was so cute. And Olivia is getting much more alert. She will look at me when I talk to her and she will smile at me sometimes. I don't care what anyone says - it isn't just gas. :)

We are finally making some progress in the sleep department. She normally goes 2-3 hours between feedings at night - even though she goes 3-5 hours during the day. Well, about 3 nights ago, she decided to wait 6 hours between eating. I am not sure if it will last, but it is great timing since I was sick. Emma was sick on my birthday last week and I thought the rest of the family had escaped, but I started feeling bad on Saturday night. So Matt has been taking all the night feedings. I am better today, but I hope Olivia keeps up with the 6 hours. :)

Emma sporting her new cool shades - even upside down!

Precious peanut

6 weeks old

Birthday Freebies

2011-05-09T22:08:00.000-05:00

This is a bit of a random post for me, but I just had to share some of my recent research. A few weeks ago, I was inspired by Extreme Couponing to try to find free things that I could get for my birthday. Here are the best sites that I found with lists of store and restaurant freebies. I want to give them all the credit for the work that they have done. :)

Hey! It's Free!
This site seems to be updated frequently.

The Frugal Girls
This site also has good non-birthday deals posted daily.

Good luck and let me know if you get any great deals!

Hospital pictures

2011-04-15T16:49:00.000-05:00

These are the pictures that we had taken by the photographer in the hospital. When someone wants to sell you pictures of your newborn baby, it is hard to say no. Olivia was not in a good mood, so I am impressed that she was able to get some good pictures.

More pictures

2011-04-09T22:18:00.000-05:00

I uploaded more pictures to Picasa. And here is one of my favorites.

Introducing Olivia Grace Thompson!

2011-04-05T13:56:00.000-05:00

Matt and I are proud to anounce the birth of Olivia Grace Thompson!
Born April 4, 2011 at 1:09 pm
Weight 6 lbs 12 oz
Height 19.4 in

We are all doing great. I added some pictures to Picasa and will add more as soon as I can.

Right now, it is just Olivia and I in our room. It is quiet and peaceful, so I am just sitting here listening to her make newborn squeeking noises and feeling how extremely blessed I am. Thank you to everyone for your love, prayers, and support during this pregnancy.

We love you all,
Matt, J-J, Emma Ruth, & Olivia Grace

Emma's new best friends

2011-03-28T17:37:00.000-05:00

Melissa came down last week so that we could meet her beautiful twin daughters. Madison and Rheagan were born February 3rd, which is the day that I went into the hospital and began my bed rest, so I had only seen them in pictures. They are precious! Emma enjoyed meeting her new friends and was very sweet and gentle with them. It was also good preparation for meeting her new baby sister next week. :)

Outside Fun

2011-03-27T14:08:00.002-05:00

Emma loves being outside. Whether she is riding her bike to the park, playing with her sand, blowing bubbles, or helping Daddy, it is her favorite place to be. Here are a few pictures from this week. I uploaded more to my Picasa gallery.

Movin' on up!

2011-01-04T11:09:00.001-06:00

Our big girl is growing up. Today was Emma's first day in the Two Year Old Room at her school, also known as the red room. She was excited to be going back to school after the Christmas break, but she wasn't very excited about Mommy taking her picture.

One thing she was excited about was her new lunch bags and backpack. In fact, she was so excited that she wanted to take all three to school with her. I was relieved that we didn't have a fight when it was time to leave and she only took one lunch bag with her. She is so precious and such a sweet little girl, but she definitely has a mind of her own. I don't know where she got that from. :)

Happy Halloween!

2010-11-06T09:08:00.001-05:00

The story behind the peacock.Last Spring, I found this peacock costume online. I instantly fell in love with it and decided that is what Emma would be for Halloween this year. It was out of stock, so I put it on my wish list and would check on it from time to time. I eventually signed up for email notices on three different websites to let me know when it came in stock. Move ahead six months... I am checking the websites almost daily even though I haven't received an email - and it is in stock in Emma's size! I ordered it immediately. When it was delivered a few days later, I was pleased to see that it was as cute in person as online. I showed it to Emma and she declared it to be "pretty". Then I tried to get her to try it on and received an adament "NO" followed by some crying. I decided to give it a few days and tried again with the same result. Finally, Matt and I decided that we just needed to get it on her and she would see that it wasn't that bad. So we put on the pretty peacock costume and Emma wailed the entire time that it was on.It was sad and funny at the same time to see Emma so upset while in this precious peacock costume. Every few days I would show Emma the costume and she continued to say it was pretty but refuse to try it on. Finally with Halloween only days away, I was beginning to accept that Emma might be wearing her skeleton pajamas. Then while out shopping one day, I found a precious Alice in Wonderland dress that was half price at the Disney store. That would be much cuter than the skeleton pajamas if I couldn't have a peacock.
For Emma's school party, I took the dress and the skeleton and told them that she could wear either. She chose the skeleton. The Fall Festival at church was the same night, so we just kept the pajamas on for comfort.The icing is the best part!
Daddy can't catch me!
Then Halloween arrives and Matt wants to try the peacock. We put it on with a few tears, but she calmed down quickly. Emma was ready to go Trick or Treating for the first time. She loved walking from house to house and said "Thank you" to everyone that gave her candy.
I am so happy that she ended up wearing the peacock and that we all had such a fun Halloween! I did learn a valuable lesson about falling in love with a costume for Emma - don't do it!
I have more pictures in our picasa gallery, so be sure to check those out using the link on the right side of the page.

Emma's Artistic Side

2010-07-21T08:58:00.006-05:00

So, I have been chastised for my lack of posting... I guess I have just been too busy living life with Emma (and Matt) to blog about the joy of life with Emma. I will try to catch up on what we have been doing recently in the next week. I am also uploading new photos to our Picasa web albums.

The Craft Table
Emma needed a place to express her creative side (instead of sitting on the floor), so we got a craft table for her. We found one that is big enough for Matt and I to sit with her, and we all love it. She enjoys using it to color, eat her snacks, and just hang out. The first day we had it, I asked her if she wanted to eat breakfast at her table. She instantly ran to the table and sat on one of the chairs. When she wants us to color with her, she points at one of the empty chairs and says "Down." Who can resist that? And I must say that washable crayons/markers/paint are some of the best inventions ever!

Little Stinker

2010-06-08T16:09:00.006-05:00

So Emma said Mama before Dada. She would point to me and say Mama, so she knows what the word means. But recently she became very stingy with the use of Mama. Most of the time if I ask her who I am, her response is either "No" or she will point at Matt and say "Daddy". I'm not letting it bother me because I know she likes me better than Matt (I just want to see if he reads this.)

But this weekend while we were eating dinner at Chick-fil-A she pulled a new one on me. Emma was eating her fruit and I was eating my milk shake. (Good example of do as I say and not as I do. Heehee.) She looks up at me with her sweetest face and says "mama... Mama... MAMA" as she reaches for my milk shake. Such an inappropriate use of her cuteness. I held out and made her finish her fruit before she got a few bites of my ice cream. I was very proud of myself. I wonder how long she will keep this up.

Emma loves the Astros!

2010-06-05T22:30:00.003-05:00

We went to an Astros game last night with a large group from church. Emma Ruth had fun cheering her favorite team to a great victory against the Cubs. Every win the Astros get this year is something to cheer about. :) Sitting in a chair like a big girl
Go Astros!

Emma Loves Popsicles

2010-05-28T12:38:00.003-05:00

We had a picnic after church this week - complete with popsicles. This was the first time that we gave her one of these frozen treats and she enjoyed every bite.
Let me try some of that.
That's cold, but I like it.
All gone.
Bummer... Can I have another?

The Cutest Gardener Ever!

2010-05-26T11:54:00.005-05:00

Emma loves being outside. The first thing she does when we get home in the afternoon is go to the backdoor and try to open it. I split my time outside between playing with her and getting the patio ready for Summer. This weekend she decided that she wanted to help me water the plants. Notice that she is completely soaked - she had also decided that she wanted to play in the water while I was trying to water the plants. The only bad part about our time outside is getting Emma to come inside. :)

I am going to try something new with my pictures. I am still going to paste a few of my favorite pictures, but I am going to try to keep up links to Picasa albums on the right side of the page with more pictures for those of you that just can't get enough Emma. :)

Sweet smile
These need a little more water.
I don't want to go inside!

Emma's first trip to Aggieland!

2010-05-17T22:25:00.004-05:00

Last month, Emma and I went up to College Station for her first trip to Texas A&M. Becca and Taylor organized a reunion with a lot of our college friends. I think we had 8 kids in the group, so it was a little different than the last time we were all together. We were such party animals - on Friday night, we drank wine and played dominoes, Whoonu, and Snorta. If you have ever played Snorta, you know how much fun we were having. (Thanks for that Becky!)

We had so much fun taking Emma all over campus and taking pictures of her. Taking a nice long nap in the APO office. (I did that several times while I was in college... most likely while I should have been in class.) I got some really cute pictures of her under the Century Tree and under a lovely bike rack. In the Academic building and walking on the Drill Field. Such great memories.

Making lovely decorations for the APO officeKevin J Lueb! Whoop!!
Emma under the Century Tree
Is that a big seal or a little baby?
Simpson Drill Field

Emma was completely spoiled by her Aggie Aunties! It is crazy to see how much the campus and the city have changed when I was in school. It doesn't seem like the same town anymore - there are so many restaurants and shops that are new. We all decided that it is a good thing they weren't there before or we would have all been broke. Or at least more broke than we already were as college students.

It was a great time with great friends and I hope that we can make it a annual gathering. Becca and Taylor - Thanks so much for taking the time to plan and get us all together! The Whole Group

Emma Loves Dinner!

2010-05-16T21:18:00.002-05:00

Surprise!

2010-05-06T07:27:00.007-05:00

Last weekend we flew up to Dallas to surprise Matt's family. His parents and Greg and Melissa were in Dallas staying with family friends, the Sealocks. When we found out they were all going to be there, I called Debbie to see what she thought about having three more guests invade her home. She was excited and help us keep the secret from everyone else. The Sealocks are more family than friends, so it was a perfect opportunity for all of us to get together. It was such a fun trip. Emma got to meet a new friend, a precious little girl named Taryn. I don't know that Taryn thought much of Emma right now, since she is only 6 months old, but I am sure that they will be great friends the next time they get together. Here are a few pictures to show what a fabulous time we all had.

The Thompson Family
Melissa showing Emma the birdhouses
The Grown-Ups
The Kids
Ready to go!
Who's having more fun? Grandmas or Granddaughters?
The girls
The boys
Girls just having fun
On a side note, if you ever order pictures from Walgreens, they have a free 8x10 collage print thru Saturday, May 8th. I love their collage prints - they are easy to make and so adorable. Even if you haven't ever used Walgreens to order pictures, you should check it out. The coupon code is GOODTHOUGHTS.

Vocabulary

2010-04-30T08:40:00.008-05:00

Emma Ruth is adding more words to her vocabulary, so I thought I would share some of her words. I am even including pronunciations for your amusement. She isn't the best about putting the consonants on the ends of words, but she is definitely making progress. Of course, she will still carry on an entire conversation in her own language. Maybe her toys and stuffed animals understand what she is saying, because she doesn't seem to mind that I don't.

All gone - pronounced Awe Gawn while waving both her hands at her side
Bag - pronounced Baah
Book - pronounced Buh
Dada - pronounced Dada
Dog - pronounced Daw-guh or Daw
Mama - pronounced Mama
Milk - pronounced Mi
More - pronounced Muhr
No - pronounced No
Nose - pronounced No
Uh-oh - pronounced Uh-oh

I have discovered that this expansion can have its downside. We are out of milk, so this morning I gave Emma some juice with her breakfast. She brought it back to me and said Mi Mi. Made me feel a little worse that I knew she wanted milk and we didn't have any. Note to self - buy milk on the way home. :)

Pretty Girls in Pretty Flowers

2010-04-21T22:26:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago we went to Chappell Hill with the Williams family on an adventure to find some bluebonnets. We ended up finding a large field of beautiful yellow wild flowers and some lovely bluebonnets next to a white wood fence. It was a fun day - even if we never did get Emma and Zoe to smile at the same time. Emma was not happy while we were in the yellow flowers. Then we changed her clothes and shoes to take pictures in the bluebonnets - and I learned a secret to making her smile. Her red shoes have squeakers in them. And she loves the squeakers. So from now on if you see a picture of her and she is wearing red sandals that don't match her clothes, you will know why. :) So without further ado, here are the long promised bluebonnet pictures... with some yellow flowers thrown in for diversity. I have to paste some of my favorites, but I am also attaching a slide show with even more.

Pretty Girls in More Pretty Flowers

2010-04-21T21:05:00.011-05:00

Another Bad Hair Day

2010-04-20T15:40:00.009-05:00

I know that Emma just wouldn't approve of me sharing all these pictures when her hair is less than perfect, but I just can't help myself because she is so cute! Caryn and I went up to the Woodlands a few weeks ago to take some bluebonnet pictures... so of course Emma's hair was a disaster when I picked her up from daycare. This picture is after trying both water and mom spit to get it to stay down. Nothing worked. As soon as I got my phone out to take a picture, Emma started scowling at me. Clearly she wasn't pleased with me taking a picture to share the beauty of her hairstyle. Luckily, I had a cute hat in her bag, so the bluebonnet pictures are adorable and the trip to the Woodlands wasn't a waste. Emma actually cooperated by keeping the hat on - which I think is further proof that she didn't want a record of this particular hairstyle.

Now I think I need to share a picture of Emma being her normal precious self. This was on the afternoon of Easter Sunday. She loved this ball and was having so much fun carrying it around. I will be sharing more pictures from Easter and bluebonnets soon. I took so many that I am having trouble sorting through them all. I am having so much fun taking pictures of her. The only problem is that as I am learning more about how to use my camera, I am taking hundreds of pictures. Literally. I can't imagine having a baby before digital cameras. I would be spending a fortune on developing the film.

Shameless plug for Relay for Life :)

2010-04-05T20:59:00.006-05:00

I am walking in Relay for Life benefiting the American Cancer Society this weekend. The money I raise will help the American Cancer Society fund groundbreaking cancer research, provide up-to-date cancer information, advocate for all people to have access to screening and treatment, and offer free programs and services to improve the quality of life for people facing cancer.

Can you help me in my fight against cancer? Just go to my website http://main.acsevents.org/goto/jjbst and click the "donate" button.

First Easter Egg Hunt

2010-04-02T10:33:00.002-05:00

Last weekend, Emma went to her first Easter egg hunt with her friend Zoe. The girls had so much fun. Emma didn't need any instruction on what to do when the hunt started. Not that she really cared what the eggs contained. In fact, they are still unopened in her basket on the dining table. Guess I should enjoy her not caring about candy while it lasts.

Bad Hair Day

2010-04-02T07:30:00.005-05:00

They say a picture is worth a thousand words,so here's a few from Emma...
My mom did this to me...
It's past my bedtime...
And when you're this cute, who cares what your hair looks like?

First Time in Mama's Makeup

2010-03-27T21:29:00.005-05:00

I am still surprised how far Emma can reach onto a counter. I don't think anything is safe from her anymore. This afternoon, she was able to get a makeup bag off the bathroom counter. The bag was zipped up tight, but my powder brush was on top of it, so it all ended up on the floor. Emma picked up the brush and immediately started brushing her face with it. She knew exactly what to do. She was even using a circular pattern. It was so cute.

Learning Curve

2010-03-26T12:13:00.004-05:00

For a while, Matt and I have been sitting Emma Ruth on the toilet before she takes her bath. We just want her to get used to it - not that we are actually expecting her to get why she is on there at 16 months - even though I often hear that Matt was potty trained completely at 18 months... While Grama and Granddad Thompson were here last week, they bought Emma a little princess potty. Now we sit her on her little potty. Last night when I set her on there, she tinkled just a little bit. I told her good job and we moved onto the bath. This morning when I was getting her ready for school, I noticed her diaper was completely dry. I decided to set her on the potty again. She was not having any of that. She has never resisted sitting on the potty, but I didn't want to force her. Don't want to start a dislike to the potty. After I gave up and she was standing, without clothes, in the middle of the bathroom, she looked up at me. Then she pointed at the potty, maded a little "uuh" noise, and proceeded to tinkle all over herself and the floor. At least she acknowledged that she should have gone on the potty, right? :)

A purse and phone of her very own.

2010-02-26T09:09:00.009-06:00

Emma Ruth is definitely my child. She has always had a thing for paper shopping or gift bags. When she got a gift for her birthday or Christmas that was in a paper bag, she would put her gift back in the bag and walk around adding other things to the bag like she was shopping. That's my girl!
Now I have been cleaning out the closet in preparation for a garage sale. I was putting clothes and some purses in a big box. I continued to look through my closet when I noticed Emma sorting through the purses. She looks at them all until she finds one that she approves of. Then she puts in on her shoulder and starts walking around the room. So adorable. The next thing she decided is that she needs something to go in the purse. I gave her some paper and some of her links, but that just wan't enough. She has always like our cell phones, so I was trying to think of something similar that I wouldn't mind being broken or lost. I remembered that I still have my old cell phone somewhere. So I found it, charged it up, and now she has a "real" phone to play with. She has some really interesting conversations with her friends on the other end of the line. I love watching her walk around with her purse on one shoulder and her cell phone up to her ear. Such a big girl.
Now here are just a couple pictures of Emma in a really cute dress that her Grama and Granddad Thompson gave her.

The Power of Mama

2010-02-23T16:08:00.003-06:00

So, Emma is still pretty stingy with her words. Her favorite thing to say right now is "Dog-uh" with a cute little emphasis on the "uh". But she has started saying Mama more. Only not always when she is referring to me. One morning last week as Matt and I were getting ready for work, we heard Emma making a little noise over the baby monitor. She sounded happy, so we were just leaving her alone while we tried to finish getting ready. Then she softly said "Mama.... Mama.... Mama" and how do you ignore that? So I ended up getting Emma dressed and feeding her some breakfast - then I tried to finish getting ready. A few days later, Emma was eating a snack and had finished everything on her plate. Does she say "More"? Nope. She says "Mama". And it is the same if Matt is feeding her or if she is feeding herself. And if she wants to be picked up, a different toy to play with, or simply more attention focused on her? Saying "Mama" is what gets it done. It sure didn't take her long to learn how well that worked!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2010-02-14T22:06:00.004-06:00

Emma had a big Valentine's Day. We went to church this morning and then she ate spaghetti for lunch without getting it all over herself. :) After she got home and took a nap, she went for a ride on her pony. She has to get a lot of riding time in to prepare for the rodeo. What an adorable little cowgirl...

Then she got to open her Valentine's day present from her Grama and Granddad while they watched on the web-cam. (I highly recommend web-cams to anyone that is separated from their friends and family.) To top off the day her friend Zoe came over to hang out for a little while. It is so fun to see Emma playing with a friend. There's not much cuter than two little girls running around and giggling. Emma loves playing with Zoe and Zoe is pretty good with Emma - even with the almost two year age difference. I tried to get a cute picture of them, but I waited too late and the little ladies didn't want to cooperate. Maybe next time.

All better at last!

2010-02-09T12:46:00.004-06:00

Emma has been fighting an ear infection since before Christmas. We weren't sure if it was the same one or if she was getting better between different infections. We have tried several antibiotics without improvement. To make it worse, Emma had an allergic reaction to one of them. :( Her doctor had told us that we would have to take Emma to a specialist if this last one didn't work. She had her checkup this morning, and I was really hoping that she would be better. When the doctor was checking her ears, I was holding my breath waiting for her diagnosis.... and her ears look better! They still have a tiny amount of clear fluid, but the doctor said that was to be expected since they had been infected for so long.
After we made it through that, Emma had to get her iron levels checked because it was low at her 12 month well baby visit. They have to draw blood to check her levels and that is typically the most painful part of going to the doctor. Emma is typically a slow bleeder, so it takes a while for them to get enough blood. She normally wails the entire time they are working on her and I can't stand it. I was bracing myself for Emma's pain as they pricked her finger - and Emma didn't react beyond gently trying to pull her arm away. She set and watched the entire process without crying at all. I think the worst part of it for her was when they put the band-aid on and she couldn't get it off. Over all it was a great visit to the doctor!

Bath Time

2010-02-04T22:03:00.004-06:00

Emma has loved taking a bath since her very first time after we brought her home from the hospital. Even if she is fussy, when you stick her in the water she turns into a giggling, happy baby. It is an interesting transformation. She has taken several bubble baths, but she is still amazed when she gets bubbles in her hands. She will hold up her hand and look closely at the bubbles. Then she will close her hand and watch the bubbles squish out. Then when she opens her hand she has to examine it to see where the bubbles disappeared to. It is so precious. She is also fascinated by pouring water. Tonight during her bath, she kept handing me her purple octopus toy. It has three small holes in it so water drains slowly out of it. I would fill it with water and hold it up so she could watch the three streams of water run out. She would move her hands underneath the water then try to catch it in her little fist. I had Matt bring me my camera, but I just couldn't catch the expression of wonder on her face. She still looks pretty cute though!

Light meter, shutter speed, and f/stops - oh my!

2010-01-10T16:51:00.008-06:00

My dad gave me a great Digital SLR camera for Christmas. I am so excited to have it and am determined to learn to use it to the best of its abilities. I have already taken some good pictures with it in the auto mode, but I want to do more. So Tracy and I took a basic photography class yesterday. It was really good with lots of information that I am trying to keep straight in my head. Naturally, I am in a hurry to start practicing before I forget what I just learned, so I decided to take some pictures of Emma today after church. She was wearing a precious dress that her Uncle Greg and Aunt Melissa gave her for Christmas. It is still cold here, so I decided to take some inside. I quickly learned that Emma moves too fast for the lighting conditions that I was trying to use. All of the pictures were either too dark - even though my light meter was balanced - or they were blurry. I finally gave up and used the auto feature and got some cute pictures. I will continue to work on my skills - they can only get better. I wonder if you will be able to tell which pictures I took manually and which ones I used the auto feature...
After church we went to lunch with a big group of our friends. Emma drank out of a kiddie cup with a straw like a big girl. This was her first time to drink from a straw and it only took her a few minutes to get the hang of it. It is funny how amazing all these little things are when you see your baby do them for the first time. Everyday she seems to learn something new.

Emma Week by Week - the First Year

2010-01-06T21:47:00.004-06:00

It's time to move the week by week picture slide show. I didn't want to take it off the page completely, so I will put it in this post. I am working on a monthly picture slide show to show how much Emma is growing.

Ever left a bathroom with toilet paper on your shoe?

2010-01-02T10:41:00.010-06:00

So Grama Thompson taught Emma a new game while we were in Midland. Maybe it isn't fair to say that Grama taught Emma the game, but she definitely encouraged it. I just had to share some precious pictures that we took of her playing this new game this morning... That was a brand new roll.
Doesn't she look like she is having a great time?
Pesky toilet paper didn't want to let go.
At least she helped her daddy clean up after she had her fun.

Thanks Grama! :)

White Christmas

2009-12-24T22:41:00.006-06:00

We woke up to a white Christmas in Midland this morning! I had no idea that there was a chance of snow, so it was a great surprise. We took Emma outside for a few pictures, but it was too cold to keep her out there for long. Emma is getting very spoiled by her grandparents and great-grandmothers. It has been a wonderful visit so far. Now it's time to go to bed so that Santa can come!

Caught up - on one thing at least :)

2009-12-13T09:07:00.004-06:00

Well, I finally caught up on the week by week slideshow. I can't believe that it was at 33 weeks. I am going to leave it up for a little while, then I will replace it with a month by month. Hopefully I will do a better job of keeping up with that one. I hope you enjoy looking at how much Emma has changed in the last year.

I have been sitting on the floor in the living room with Emma playing by me while I have been working on this. She just crawled over to me, layed her head down on my lap and fell asleep. How precious is that? I am so blessed. Now I need to go get ready for church in a hurry or we are going to be very late.

Look Who's Walking!

2009-11-23T21:10:00.002-06:00

I just had to let everyone know that Emma took her first steps last night. I guess she just wanted to show off for her Gramma and Granddad before they had to go home. Matt tried to catch her in the act on the video camera, but she seems to be camera shy and would sit down as soon as he started recording. We will see if we can get some videos posted on here soon.

Birthday pics

2009-11-23T07:52:00.003-06:00

Here are a few pictures from Emma's birthday and her party. I will post some more pictures and details about all the fun stuff she did soon.

Teaser

2009-11-13T10:37:00.005-06:00

Here are some pics of our little cutie pushing her stroller around after church last Sunday.

Who knew 9 months could go so fast???

2009-08-21T16:24:00.003-05:00

I can’t believe that Emma is already 9 months old. Time is just flying by. We just had a visit from Gramma and Granddad Thompson. They couldn’t believe all the new things that she is doing. She has started eating puffs and bananas in her Baby Safe Mesh Feeder. She really likes chewing on that.

Earlier this week, Emma was playing on her rug in the living room. I headed to the breakfast room to get something. The next thing I knew something was grabbing my leg. I looked down and saw Emma smiling up at me. That was the neatest feeling! She is so precious and she looked so proud of herself.

We are going to busy attempting to baby-proof the house this weekend. The main things that we need to get are gates for the stairs. I am trying to prepare myself to move Emma to her room, but we have to get the gates up first. Once we do that, I don’t know if I will have an excuse to keep her downstairs.

I have a scrapbooking/card-making day planned for next Saturday the 29th, so if you are in the area, come on over. I am getting behind on Emma’s scrapbook and thought his would be good motivation to get some work done on it. I have a lot of pictures from Hawaii that need to find a home.

Something New Every Day

2009-08-11T14:42:00.009-05:00

Emma has been learning so many new things that I don't even know where to start. This Saturday, she got her second tooth - and she wasn't very happy about it at all. She didn't really fuss when she got her first tooth, but she let us know about this one. I guess it might be time to move onto Stage 3 foods.

Emma is already showing signs of loving reading as much as I do. We have a book "What Floats" that I have been reading to her during bath time. This weekend, she started turning the pages for me! She sits with her hands in the bath while I am reading. When I stop, she reaches up and turns the page. It is the cutest thing! Of course, as soon as story time is over, she usually tries to eat the book so that I don't forget that she is still my little baby.

Last week, Emma also started crawling. We moved the coffee table out of the living room and brought the rug down from her room to turn the living room into her play area. That was all she needed to get the motivation to move around. Now that she has lots of room, she moves all over to play with her different toys.

She can also go from laying down to sitting up on her own now. Last week we had her in Sunday School with us. I guess she decided she was tired of being on her tummy, so she wiggled around until she was sitting up. Everyone was impressed by her accomplishment. Now she does it like a pro.

One of her new favorite faces is a kissy face. She will be sitting and playing and just start puckering up her lips. It is so cute. I will try to get some more pictures on here soon.

Sitting in the shopping cart :)

2009-07-16T10:05:00.007-05:00

Emma sat in the shopping cart like a big girl for the first time last night. She looked like a little princess in her pink Buggy Bagg. The entire time we were in the grocery store, she was looking at everything from her new higher perspective. We had to take a quick picture with Matt's phone. It's too bad we couldn't get a picture of Matt and I trying to get Emma to look at the camera. I am sure that we were entertaining to the other shoppers around us. It is so easy to go into a "parent's bubble" and forget about anyone and anything besides your baby. And honestly, I think that is perfectly acceptable because Emma Ruth is the most important thing on the planet - at least to me. :)

Our Big Girl

2009-07-11T18:47:00.004-05:00

I just had to stop and post a quick note. I can't believe how big Emma is getting. I am picking up around the house while she takes a nap in her swing. I looked over at her and stopped in my tracks. I can remember when she was a tiny little bundle in her swing and now she has almost gotten too big for it. She is such an amazing little blessing and she is growing so fast. My precious little girl.

Hawaii teaser

2009-06-19T18:14:00.004-05:00

I am stuck at work waiting on someone to call me back about a software issue, so I thought I should post some Hawaii pictures. We all had so much fun! Emma did great on the long flights. She is a born traveler. And she was definitely the best dressed baby in Kauai! I will post more pictures later with some details about what we did. Hope everyone has a great weekend! And hope that I get to leave work soon! :)
We were greeted with leis at the airport!
Emma loved "swimming" in the pool
Emma's introduction to sand
Emma Ruth chillin' on the beach
A Beautiful Sunset

All mixed up

2009-05-26T10:25:00.005-05:00

Somehow, my posts went out of order. Not sure how I did that. Make sure you check out the slide show from our Borger trip. It is hiding below the post with the pictures in the towel even though it was posted after that.

Here is a picture of Emma chatting with Gramma and Granddad Thompson on the webcam. She loves getting to listen to and see her grandparents on the computer!

Happy Monday everyone!
:)

Sweet pea eating sweet peas!!!

2009-05-24T23:23:00.009-05:00

Emma moved on from formula and rice cereal tonight. She ate sweet peas for the first time and liked it! She showed a lot more excitement for the sweet peas than she has for the rice cereal. In a few days, maybe we will add in something else exciting... like sweet potatoes or prunes.

Sweet peas on May 24th

Rice cereal on May 22nd

Emma's Half-Birthday

2009-05-19T23:11:00.003-05:00

Believe it or not, Emma is six months old today. And she had a big day. She had her well baby check up at the doctor and got two shots. :( Then we went the the Astros game. We had a great time with friends from Pearland Bible study even though the Astros lost. They did have a great play with Matsui stealing home. (check out the clip on the Astros web page.) After the game, we came home and Emma ate some rice cereal. I think she wore more than she ate tonight, but at least she had fun. Then she had her bath which she always loves. And to finish off the night, she talked to her Aunt Melissa and Uncle Greg while she played in her towel her Gramma Thompson made for her. I just had to share some pictures.

Pictures from Borger

2009-05-14T10:58:00.006-05:00

I wanted to post some pictures from our trip to Borger. We had a great visit with my dad. He couldn't believe how much Emma has grown. I also learned a good lesson when packing for Emma. I had packed for warm weather because it was in the high 80s in Borger on Friday. Emma had cute little sundresses and capris and only one sweatshirt. A cold front came through while we were there - high around 55. Brrrr!!! Next trip I will be more prepared.

Hope you enjoy the pictures!

Baby Girl in Big Borger

2009-05-09T21:49:00.006-05:00

We have all traveled to Borger to visit Grandpa Spelce. We flew in late last night. Emma had her own seat and did well on the flight again. These little hour and a half flights are hopefully preparing her for the eight and a half hour flight to Hawaii that is in three weeks.

We hit some of the highlights of Borger today - Walmart, JCPenney, Lorene's, and Moore's Pharmacy. I think this was my first trip to Walmart since I graduated without running into someone I know. Maybe I was just too focused on Emma to pay attention. I always look forward to eating the chili rellenos at Lorene's. I haven't found them anywhere else that can compare.

Tonight, we went to dinner with some great family friends, Tina & DC Taylor. We went to the XXL Ranch. It is about 20 miles outside of Borger going towards Dumas - pretty far out in the country. It is a very relaxed atmosphere and the food was really good. Perfect for catching up with friends and family.

Catching up

2009-04-28T22:20:00.010-05:00

Well, it has been a while and Emma Ruth has been growing like a weed. So let's play a little catch up.

Last Sunday, Emma and I walked in the March for Babies. Actually I walked and Emma rolled. We had a great group out there representing Latin pricing - Josie, Heather, Gina, Emma, & I.

The weekend before that we walked in Relay for Life. We had a team from our church at the event and we walked all night long for the American Cancer Society. We set up our tent and Emma had her first experience "camping out" with the group. We all had so much fun and raised money for a great cause. We are already making plans for Relay for Life next year and a camping trip this summer - before it gets too hot.

After church on Easter Sunday, we ate lunch at the Williams' house. Emma got to spend some time with her friend Zoe. I think that Zoe will be excited when Emma can really play with her. We took some really cute pictures of them while they were laying on an Easter blanket and playing with some bunny ears.

Happy Birthday Grandpa Thompson from Emma

2009-03-30T23:34:00.004-05:00

Emma, J-J, and Matt wish Grandpa Thompson a very Happy Birthday!!! The picture is really dark, but make sure that you can hear the sound.

It's been a while...

2009-02-27T15:03:00.005-06:00

We are in Midland for Emma's first visit to Grandad and Gramma Thompson's house. This is also her first time to meet her great-grandmothers. Here a few pictures that we have taken today. I will try to post a little more later.

Three generations of Thompson's

Gordon, Camilla, & Emma

Look at my hands!

Safari Girl

Friends and Family

2009-02-08T18:40:00.005-06:00

We have had a nice weekend. Matt's cousin Sunnie and her husband Justin came down for a visit Friday night. This was their first time to see Emma. We had dinner at Babin's on the Kemah Boardwalk. The food was great and we had fun walking on the boardwalk and catching up. Sunnie & Justin were great playing with Emma and feeding her. Emma even spit up a little on Justin. That is a sign that she really likes someone.
Sunnie, Justin, & Emma

Saturday night, we went to Kingwood and had a belated Christmas dinner with some of Emma's Houston Aunts - Melissa, Heather, & Kristin. (James and Matt were there too.) The girls all took turns holding Emma and playing with her. After the meal, we exchanged gifts and Emma got her first A&M outfits. I can't wait to see her in everything. She is going to be a precious Aggie Fan. Kristin, Heather, & Melissa with Emma
Everyone having tummy time

Eight hours!!

2009-02-03T13:20:00.004-06:00

We had a milestone on Sunday night. Emma slept from 8:30PM - 4:30AM. Eight full hours! Unfortunately Matt and I were up until midnight, so we didn't get take take advantage of that many hours of uninterrupted sleep. At least we finished putting the shelves in the kitchen pantry.

Emma has gotten pretty good at holding her head up without help. Today, she sat in her bumbo for the first time. I think she enjoyed the new perspective to view the things around her. Now I am carrying her in the sling and we are doing stuff around the house. At least we will be once I finish posting. :)

Happy baby!

2009-02-01T08:03:00.008-06:00

Emma and I are still having so much fun together. I am going to back to work on February 17th, so I am taking full advantage of this time. I finally went to visit some daycares this week, and I don't know how I am going to make that decision. Be praying for wisdom for us so we make the right decision for her.

Emma is getting so playful. She loves to lay on her blanket and kick her feet and move her arms hitting the different rattling toys around her. We were playing with one of her little elephant rattles and I was holding it above her chest. She was moving her arms around and grabbed onto it with both hands. She seemed shocked that she actually had something in her hands. It was precious.

Playing with Emma has also taught me why people talk to babies in silly voices. It makes her smile and talk back so much more. She is making the cutest little sounds. She has also started smiling much more - when she is happy and not just when she has gas. :) I am constantly trying new things to make her smile. Babies can truly make adults look ridiculous, and it is worth it.

Emma has been playing on her blanket next to me and she has decided that it is time for breakfast, so I will post more pictures later.

Pictures of Emma

2009-01-13T17:00:00.002-06:00

We have had a busy and exciting three weeks since I last posted. Here is a link to pictures of Emma from the day she was born until last weeks. I hope to post soon with details of everything that we have been up to since the last post. I am having so much fun getting to know Emma. Her personality is coming out more everyday. I hope you enjoy the pictures.

Pictures of Emma on Snapfish

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T20:53:00.007-06:00

We have had a fabulous Christmas so far. It started with a great Christmas Eve service last night. This morning, Matt, my Dad, Emma and I opened our stocking gifts. Bailey even had a few gifts in her stocking. Then it was time to get ready for dinner. We had fourteen people, counting Emma, for Christmas dinner. We all squeezed around our dining table and we had so much fun. Everyone contributed to the meal, so we didn't have to do too much. It was perfect. Debbie and Terri Sealock and Larry and Phyllis Simpson hadn't seen Emma before last night, so they enjoyed getting to hug on her. Emma definitely didn't lack attention today.

Matt, Debbie, Emma, J-J, & Terri
Emma's Christmas dress
Matt, Grandpa Spelce, Emma, & I

Emma's first day at church

2008-12-21T23:16:00.005-06:00

Emma had a big day today. She went to church for the first time this morning. She did really well and enjoyed all of the attention that she got. Matt and I also enjoyed returning to church.

After a night of Messiah at our church, we came home for a Christmas photo in front of our tree. That just about pushed Emma over the edge, but we were able to get a few good pictures.

The Mirror

2008-12-16T13:58:00.003-06:00

Emma played on her activity gym for the first time this week. I layed her down and she was looking at all the new stuff around her. Then she turned and saw the mirror and froze. It was her first time to see herself in a mirror. She started making faces and moving her head to watch her reflection. It was adorable. She enjoyed looking at herself much more than looking at all the other things on the gym. I am looking forward to playing on it again to see if she is still as fascinated by herself.

More pictures

2008-12-12T16:44:00.002-06:00

I have had a lot of requests for more pictures from our out of town family and friends, so here you go.

3 Weeks old & First Snow!!!

2008-12-10T19:16:00.005-06:00

I can't believe that Emma is already three weeks old. I am having so much fun getting to know her. She is fabulous! I have been taking a lot of pictures, but I am still working on my technique. We also got a webcam so the grandparents can see Emma real time. We have had a lot of fun with that.

As an added bonus, it snowed today. It is actually still snowing right now. We took Emma outside for a few minutes to take some pictures. Who knows when it will snow again in Houston? We will have to wait a little while before Emma can really play in the snow.

Emma's first shopping trip

2008-11-25T20:14:00.005-06:00

Emma went on her first shopping trip today. Grama and Grandpa Thompson, Matt, Emma, and I all piled into the car and headed to the Pearland Town Center. I wanted to get a baby charm engraved and we thought that it would be a good opportunity to venture out for a short trip. We all enjoyed the outing and the proud grandparents bought a Christmas present for Emma.
The Proud Family
Emma's check-up with her doctor went well yesterday. Her jaundice levels have gone down, so she doesn't have to be on the light box anymore. Everyone here is excited to be able to hold her and love on her all they want.

Lots of pictures

2008-11-22T22:39:00.004-06:00

Here are some pictures of our little Emma in the hospital and at home. We have enjoyed getting to know her precious personality so much. She is even letting Matt and I get some sleep. When we left the hospital, she had a little bit of jaundice, so she went for a check-up with her pediatrician this morning and her levels had increased slightly. Her doctor ordered a light box for her to sleep on here at the house for the next two days. We will go back to the doctor on Monday morning to see how she is doing. Please be praying that this gets everything under control and she doesn't need any more treatments.

Emma Ruth is home!

2008-11-22T07:22:00.003-06:00

Emma and I got to come home yesterday. She is doing great. I am going to post some pictures a little later today. I might be a little partial, but I have to say she is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen!

It's almost time

2008-11-18T17:49:00.005-06:00

I just wanted to post one last time before Emma gets here. We are getting ready to go eat dinner and then Matt and I are going to head to the hospital. My dad came in yesterday from Borger and Matt's parents flew in this morning from Midland. We have been doing last minute things around the house trying to get ready. I can't believe that it is time.

Want to see us...well maybe just Emma?
Hospital: Memorial Herman Southwest.
Take HWY 59 south toward Sugarland and exit Beechnut
We should be on the 5th floor in the Pavillion.

Here are some pictures from the sonograms at 37 weeks.

Touring the Labor and Delivery Wing

2008-10-27T20:11:00.002-05:00

Matt and I took a tour of the labor and delivery wing at the hospital last night. :)

I was having constant abdominal pain on the lower left side yesterday afternoon. We called and talked to the doctor on call and she said that we should go into the hospital and get checked out. When we got there, they hooked Emma and I up to monitors. Emma's heartbeat was very strong. I was having small contractions that I couldn't feel. They gave me medicine and were able to get the contractions stopped. They also gave me lots of fluids, antibiotics, and pain medicine. We went home around midnight.

On the good side - Now we know where to park, where to go in, and exactly where to go when Emma is really coming. No need to sign up for the official tour. I also know that I don't have any bad reactions to the pain medicine they use.

I had a check-up with Dr. Diase today and everything still looks good. I haven't had any pain today, so she said we would just watch to see if it comes back. She went over all the signs of labor to watch for and told us to be prepared. Emma could come anytime or she could still wait for the 20th. We just have to wait and see.

Emma's Sonogram Pictures

2008-10-18T10:36:00.004-05:00

Here are some sonogram pictures that we have of baby Emma, beginning with her as a precious little peanut at 8 weeks. At 14 weeks, you can see her perfect little hand. At 20 weeks, her cute profile. At 28 weeks, the muscles and bones in her legs are already well defined.

This has been such an amazing experience to see her grow. I can't express my overwhelming sense of awe when the doctor pointed out her heartbeat at 8 weeks. And when they counted her fingers and toes at 20 weeks, I was amazed again. We are so blessed! And now we have less than 5 weeks until we will see little Emma face to face!

Birth of Emma's Room

2008-10-13T22:29:00.000-05:00

Stroller Time!

2008-09-30T22:26:00.006-05:00

Our stroller came today. We were so excited to open the boxes and put it all together. Looks like the first grandchild is already getting spoiled. Thanks grandparents-to-be Gary & Carol!

Happy First Day of Fall!

2008-09-22T10:15:00.003-05:00

I am finally starting my blog, but you will have to be patient with me while I learn. I hope that this will be a good way to let everyone know what is going on with us and baby Emma when she gets here.

Matt and I are starting to work hard to get ready for Emma's arrival. I am in the process of changing my "craft" room into the nursery. Matt built some shelves for our guest bedroom closet so I can move some of my materials in there. I am also keeping him busy moving heavy boxes, cleaning out the attic, running up and down the stairs, and trying to find something that he can cook for me that I actually want to eat.

This week we are going to try to pick out the crib and bedding. We have seen a few things that we like, but nothing that was exactly what we wanted. Any suggestions on places to look at baby furniture and bedding in Houston are welcome. Or any good web-sites. Most of the ones that I have looked at on-line have tiny pictures and you can't really tell what the bedding looks like.

Thank you to everyone that has already done so much for us and been praying for us while get ready for our little girl!