This chica loves the outdoors almost as much as she loves her thumb.

I tried letting her play on the ground but she started licking mud. Which is not very desirable.

But, she had fun none the less. As you can see she was absolutely thrilled. That was until the UPS guy arrived and she gave him the "What are you doing here?!?" stare. A stare not to be messed with. Isn't our girl sweet. :)

But, overall she gave the afternoon a big thumbs up.

Happy Birthday Baby

Here is the birthday girl a few days late. When I started taking these birthday shots I thought it was a great idea to see her progression. But, as you can see getting a 7 month old to sit still is pretty much a lost cause.

I'm not sure what's going on here.

It's especially tough when she is trying to climb off the couch. Anyways we had to run to the Doctor on Friday for a nasty cold bug and Emerson weighs an even 13lbs. She is getting bigger everyday but is still such a perfect size to cuddle with. She has become increasingly mobile. She has been scooting all over the place and now gets on all fours and plunges forward. Sometimes she will sit for a few seconds but she really prefers to be on the go. She is also starting to pull-up on things which gives me a heart attack. Sadly she also tries to get down when I hold her because she has got places to go. I've love this age because she is so interactive. She loves to follow me around and whenever I talk to her she gives me the cutest grin. Emerson also loves music, singing, and dancing around. It's doesn't matter what we sing. It can be the silliest nonsense and she loves it. Being a parent turns you into a complete goofball. Lately she has been making loud noises which somewhat resemble a wild animal. At first I thought she was upset then I realized that she was just having some fun. She also whoos like a little owl. Her favorite toys lately are the exersaucer and stacking cups. She also finds shoes laying around the house interesting, cat toys, the dog bowl, and any electronic device. E. is also sporting some impressive hair growth and extremely dark eyes. So if you guessed hazel you're wrong. But, don't worry I was wrong as well. She is now our brown eyed girl.

They say it's my birthday

No way! I'm really 7 months old?!?!

I'm so excited!

I love my birthday

Let's go get my presents.

Seriously, where are my presents?

Team Spirit

We've got team spirit, yes we do.

We've got team spirit, how about you?!?

Go App!

Busy Little Bee

Little E. is a busy little bee. She also really likes to chew on little bees...

and admire her bright attire.

Like any busy bee she does not rest.

She does not sit.

"No, not me!"

This is what happens when your busy bee trys to attack the camera, crawl off the bed, and I photograph with one hand. No professional studios pictures here. We prefer true life with our busy bee.

Mover and shaker

This is the kind of thing I've been dealing with the past couple of days. So you can imagine she's been keeping me busy. We've plugged up the outlets but I'm not sure how to baby proof so she doesn't turn everything into her personal jungle gym.

Caught in the act. Scary thing is she was on her way down. She was in the complete middle.

"If I'm really still maybe she won't notice."

"Come on Mia. Give me a little push."

"I'll just make a few adjustments."

Who me?

Guess who has been rocking around on all fours and sitting up until face planting?? This kid right here. Who has also decided that sleeping isn't that much fun and would rather play around? Hmmmm, not quite as exciting but true none the less.

Milkcicle

We haven't fed Emerson any solids yet. 1. Because I dread the beginning of stinky diapers 2. I dread a big mess and of course there are more logical reasons like letting her digestive system develop, reducing risks of allergies, and keeping her immune system up with the most milk possible. None the less there is no reason she can't have a little fun while she waits on the real deal. Last night I had an ounce for frozen milk in the fridge that was pretty much on the verge of going bad so I decided to let Emerson have it. So we broke it up and put it in our handy baby feeder. Voila! A milkcicle. She was in love. She gobbled it down and immediately begged for more. She was sucking the remnants of milk on her bib and becoming rather agitated. So I pulled out another frozen ounce and she yanked it out of my hand. She wanted that milkcicle now. When I took it away so I could actually put it in the feeder. It's kind of hard eat to a milkcicle through plastic. Waiting isn't in a 6 month olds vocabulary so she pitched a fit until we finally got it transferred.

Then went to town on the second one of the night. When it was done she was again not thrilled but that was all I had and I was afraid the kid was going to get frost bit on her tongue. So milkcicles are our frienemy. Awesome until they inevitably run out.

Toys, toys, toys

Little Emerson is getting to the age where toys are a whole lot of fun. Not only that but they are pretty much necessary to keep her out of trouble. Well, at least attempt to. I'm always contemplating what would be the best toy for her. It's a gamble because either they will love it or never even touch it. I'm already going through my head making a christmas list of things I think she will enjoy in the months to come. I can't believe I'm already thinking of Christmas but Emerson has gotten me really excited about it this year. Her festive bow is already on order, her holiday photo shoot, and I'm already contemplating Christmas cards. I think I'm kind of skipping over Halloween but you know I can't really justify paying $20 for an outfit for one day. Now that I'm all side tracked back to our subject at hand. What is it again??? Oh yeah. Toys.

She has been having a blast banging her toys on the bumbo tray and well you know eating it as well. Isn't that how it's suppose to be used?

Chica has also been in love with her new bath toys in and out of the water. Her favorites are the bumblebees which we keep on hand at all times. Great teething toy for babies and dogs alike appparently.

We have finally gotten into the exersaucer. She use to just get really angry that toys wouldn't come off. Now she has figured out that it isn't so bad if they stay attached because she is in there anyways.

We also replaced the batteries after having it for 8 months so it plays silly kiddy songs when she bangs on the buttons. I would like to say we knew that it played music but it was until about a month ago we realized that the buttons probably did something. Ooops.

Now for my proud purchase. I got these stacking cups for $1 at the consignment sale. Best purchase ever. Not only are they fun colors but they have numbers on them as well leading the way for all kinds of developmental good stuff.

We've enjoyed banging them together, banging them on the floor, the fireplace, and Mommy from time to time.

After all these fun toys what does she really want? By the way do you remember this outfit?

The remote.

Where have I been?

Ooops! I haven't blogged in almost a week. But, now I have lots of pictures to share with you. My birthday lens arrived and I had fun this weekend playing with it. I could actually take pictures downstairs in my dungeon of a townhouse with no problems. Thank goodness! I thought I wouldn't go crazy snapping away but of course I was wrong. Poor Emerson probably didn't get a break for 24 hours.

This is inside with very little sunlight. Since we are an inside townhouse we don't have windows on the side so I always suffer taken pictures of Emerson playing in our living room. But, yet this picture looks so bright and sunny. Emerson was serious interested in the camera and proceeded to chase me.

You may think I'm kidding but seriously this girl can move. See how she has scooted off her blanket already. Be still is not something she understands. Several people have told me she will be crawling soon. I sure hope not. But, in all honesty what is the difference in a kid on all fours and one who can army crawl like a trooper. It definitely has not held her back.

Here is father-daughter enjoying dinner at a friends house.

Next weekend is the close of the pool so I decided for Emerson to experience the fun.

She doesn't have a swim diaper so her attire consisted of cotton bloomers and a cloth diaper cover. Then she wore a 12-18 month swimsuit with a t-shirt over top. She had a sun hat on and couldn't seem to look up from the water so her face is barely in the pictures.

I can say that she has nerves of steel because that water was cold. Not refreshing but "What was I thinking jumping in?" cold. She finally warmed up to the pool idea and kicked the water just like she does in her bathtub. I'm sure she will have a blast next year.