Two front teeth???

Just when we were getting used to sleeping through the night...we're teething! Ughhhhh! For the last two weeks, her two bottom front teeth have been about ready to pop. For the most part, she has been really great during the day, but has had the most trouble during the night. Things are getting better, but no teeth yet. Hopefully soon!

Happy Thanksgiving

This Thanksgiving, as well as others, we can truly count our blessings. We have wonderful, loving families, great friends, and a healthy baby girl...and the list goes on. We serve such a faithful God who gives us everything that we need. We are so thankful for these blessings. To celebrate Thanksgiving, we had dinner at the Vredeveld's and dessert at my Grandpa Lundell's house. Emma enjoyed her first bites of mashed potatoes and quite liked them! It was great to spend the weekend as a family!

Fall

The past 3 days in Michigan make it incredibly hard to believe that it is November. It's been beautiful and sunny and the temperature has been in the 70s. Emma and I have found ourselves raking leaves each day and spending time outside while we still can.
Since I haven't updated the blog in a while, I thought I'd give you an idea of what's happening with her. She is finally (cross your fingers) sleeping through the night...a process we never thought would take so much work. She enjoys a wide array of pureed delicacies-fruits, vegetables, and infant cereal. Emma is working really hard at figuring out the whole crawling bit. She can scootch across the floor on her back using her feet to push her and is getting really crafty at rolling around to get where she wants. I'm sure within a matter of weeks she'll figure things out and we'll be chasing after her. It's been incredibly fun to watch her as she figures things out. She is one smart cookie!

Happy Accidents

This summer we were able to take advantage of tons of fresh produce from the garden in our backyard. Throughout the summer we enjoyed romaine lettuce, beans, tomatoes, strawberries, broccoli and some carrots. Towards the beginning of the summer, we both noticed that the garden was becoming inhabited by Japanese beetles. In order to solve this dilemma, I sprinkled sunflower seeds around the garden hoping the birds would be attracted to those and stay and snack on the beetles. The beetles stayed, but we were blessed with about a dozen beautiful sunflower plants. God is good!

What a big girl!

Emma had her 6 month appointment today and she sure is growing. At 6 months and a few days, she now weighs 18 pounds, 2 ounces and is 28 inches long. She had 4 shots today--poor girl.

Back to School

Over the past few weeks, the question that I have been asked time and time again has to do with school. Do I miss it? Do I regret my decision? Am I enjoying my time at home? I do have to admit that the past few weeks have been a bit strange, but I wouldn't change a thing. Staying at home is such a change of pace from working full time. Certainly, taking care of Emma is busy and sometimes stressful, but it does not even compare to full time work. I have been able to enjoy life more. I have TIME to enjoy life more. It's unbelievable.
At the same time, all of this freedom is a little bit strange. For the past several years, I have worked hard and have been busy. In school, I worked hard. When I taught, I put my entire heart and soul into my job. Now that I am home all day, there are times I feel a bit lazy--not having any outside responsibilities--but trust me, I've gotten over it!

Go Bucks!

She's all ready for football season!

Solid Foods

We've recently, under our doctor's recommendations, started Emma on rice cereal. She spits out more than she eats and makes some pretty hilarious faces, but we're making progress!

4 Month Check Up--Growing like a weed!

So Emma had her 4 month check up this afternoon and another round of shots! She is growing so much--likely to be a basketball or volleyball player someday at the rate she is growing. She is a towering 27 and 1/8 inches tall and 14 pounds 15 1/2 oz. She certainly doesn't like those shots (and neither did her mommy), but we rewarded ourselves with ice cream afterwards!

Baptism

On Sunday, July 13, we celebrated Emma's baptism. Emma was all dressed up in a baptism dress that both my sister and I wore long ago. Both of our names and our baptism dates are embroidered on the slip of the dress. Emma did marvelously in front of church-even looking directly at the pastor and smiling right at him before being sprinkled with water. She is such a precious blessing!
After church, we had all of our family and friends over to our house for lunch. We had 40 people and 6 babies in the backyard for hot dogs and brats! We are so blessed to have such wonderful friends and supportive families. We are so thankful that we were able to celebrate with everyone!

Giggley Girl

Emma has just learned to laugh in the past few weeks and we caught her in the act on video. It is too cute!

Happy Father's Day

Well, I've never really appreciated the job of a father until the past few days. Nate has been in Cincinatti on a mission trip with our church youth group since Sunday and I have been on my own with Emma. It is incredible how much you rely on your husband for the little things...holding the baby while I use the bathroom, changing her diaper, watching her while I water the plants, letting the dog out, etc. Emma has been great over the past few days, thankfully, and I have enjoyed spending this time with her, but I'm glad Nate is coming home tomorrow. Hopefully he doesn't have poison ivy....