Fun and games

The older Emma gets, the more fun we have, the less I get done at work. We spend a ton of time playing, reading books, and mostly just laughing. She's got the cutest little giggle that's hard to resist.

Would you want to work when you can do this?

This month Em has definitely started trying to put words together. I can't say she's saying real words, but she's close.

The words she's working on includes; mama, papa, airplane (a-pah with a finger pointing to the sky) and all done (a-dah with her version of a one handed sign for all done). She's definitely got a lot to say. . . . .. just like both of her parents!

What being 10 months brings. . . . .

Bad hair

Good friends

A newly developed sense of seriousness.

perfecting the knack of being a clown
two bottom teeth

a need to scale everything. . . .
an easy going attitude

and a big smile!

oh. . most importantly. . .a little bit o'punk rock!!

On the move

The wild beast can no longer be contained .. . . . watch out. . Emma is on the move.

Emma is still scooting but the difference now is she's scooting FAST and SILENTLY.

The other day I put her in her corner and she was playing quietly. . . . then I hear a passerby say, "Hi baby, what are you doing out here?" Em had silently snuck out to the front stoop. According to these people, she was sitting there waving at customers walking by. My little greeter. Now the door stays shut unless I'm sitting on the floor with her. She can't be trusted :)

Emma is also a tidal wave of destruction. She has one shelf I allow her to play with. . and boy does she make a mess.

Pure delight as she heads for destruction

I love this face.

That Darned Puppy

Out of all of the stuffed animals we gave Em, she fell in love with a chocolate lab aka puppy. At first she just would cuddle him at night. That has progressed and now she insists on taking him EVERYWHERE. Heaven forbid I forget puppy at the store. . . .if I do. . .. I usually ends up returning to the store to retrieve him.

Em says I love puppy!

I hid him under a pile of her stuffed animals to see if she could find him.

A little distracted, but noticed how she zoned in on him as soon as I suggested we leave him at home. How dare I!

Miss Smartypants

Emma's nap corner is in the back of the store under the fish supply shelf. The hole was the perfect size for her pack and play and far enough from the front door that she didn't wake as people come and go.

That worked for a while, but as soon as she learned how go from laying down to a sit, the mesh sides of the pack and play became a problem. Emma prefered sit in her crib, make faces, chat, and draw the customers to her instead of sleeping. I solved this by tucking a blanket under the changing table end to cover the side facing the store. She quickly figured out how to pull the blanket into her crib, so I resorted to taping it to the sides changing table. A few weeks ago she learned how to pull herself up and it didn't matter that there was a blanket covering the end because she would stand on her tip toes to peer over the sides. This usually got a chuckle out of customers, (and I have to admit it was extremely funny) but by the end of the day she transformed into baby satan and I was paying dearly.

After brainstorming and trying a bunch of different things, I resorted to draping material from one wall to the other to stifle the circus act.

Look below, do you see a flaw in my design?

Notice the 8" x 10" area on the bottom left hand corner that's not covered?

Not much there, right?

Miss Smartypants figured out how to press her face against the mesh to bow out the crib.

A view from the top.
Please, somebody, free me from my dungeon.

Needless to say, I feel out smarted by a 9 month old. The drape has been fixed, and it's only a matter of time before she figures out how to get through my defences.

Pups on the beach

Do you think our pups like the beach?

I love to watch Truman and Mazie let loose and do what they were bred to due, RUN!

Storytime

Hello!

Welcome to storytime by Emma.

Today I will be reading my favorite book, "Hello Bee. Hello Me."

Darn pages always seem to stick!

Okay, here we go.

Hello Bee.

Hello Me.

Hello Bat.

Hello Cat.

Hello Bee.

Hello Sexy Lady.

Smooooocchhhh!!

That's one good looking baby!

Oh, sorry. Where was I?

Hello Frog.

Hello Dog.

Hello Snail.

Hello Whale.

Hello Bee.

Hello Beautiful Baby!!

Smoooooccchhhh!!

The end!

Wasn't that a good story?

You know, that baby in the book is good looking, but not as pretty as me .. .

Kalaloch 2009

We went on our annual camping trip to Kalaloch. The weather kept us on our toes and went from fabulous to blustery to monsoon and then back to gorgeous within hours each day. We never knew what the next hour would bring but we made the best of it . . . we spent a lot of time relaxing on the beach, fixing tarps, and eating giant meals with our friends. All in all it was a perfect trip.

Just the three of us.

Anderson-Schroeder clan minus old man Tuck

Baby Gnome Emma

Gnome-girl and Nate-boy.
Proud Papas.

Em and Elektra battle for the rake.

Elektra was victorious! and Em says, "yeah, well .. . . I let her win"
Using the shovel to . .. um. . .well . .. shovel . .. . .
Truman taking the opportunity to soak up some rays.
Brian and Em checking out the waves.

Hanging out and relaxing

9 month stats!

Weight- 18 lbs 2 oz, 36%

Length- 30 inches, 99%

Head- 90%

Today's trip to the pediatrician was pretty uneventful. Emma is happy, healthy, and is right on for all develpmental milestones . .. she did say that she agrees that Emma may not crawl due to her efficient motoring.

The only thing to note is that Emma has been prescribed an increased fat diet.
More Butter.
More Cheese.
More Full Fat Yogurt.
More Avocado.

Why can't Dr.'s write me a prescription like that?

Em sprouted a second tooth Sunday morning, so hopefully we'll get a few days of relief from teething pains. . .

if you look closely you can see tooth #1.


Climbing with her ducky.

Does this duck make my butt look big?