Halloween 2009

So Brad was around for Halloween this year so I made him rearrange the storage unit to find the costumes I had bought for Eme and the dogs last year. We Trick or Treated via Skype to family and then I took Eme to one house to visit. She got an orange as her treat cause there wasn't anything else that she could eat and Mary did not feel right about letting her leave with an empty bag. So here are some pictures of the three of them together. Enjoy!

I am pretty sure that I can pick this one up too!!

Ruby is sacked out, as we say, cause being a ladybug is really hard work. Rika is pretty done too. Our dogs are such good sports. It has been a very long while since they were dressed up so they have nothing to compain about.

Not a great picture but the best of all three of them together.

She is so big!!!

Enjoy!

Starting a new chapter

So we are going to ignore the fact that I have not blogged in forever. Sorry to those who looked her to keep up with us. I have been plain lazy about blogging and other things so there isn't an excuse. I am hoping to get better and I am going to move my computer back down stairs as that is when I fell off the blogging world. So we will see.

What has been going on??? Brad left on his deployment a few days ago so Eme and I are finding our groove so to speak. We have a routine that we found worked a few weeks ago when Brad left for a short underway.

Eme is growing like a weed. She has gotten so big it is unreal. As some may know we have been going through some allergy and GI issues for a while now. I think that we have found the cause and know how to fix things. She is on a milk, soy and wheat/gluten free diet now. Well, we both are as I am not going to fix multiple things for her and I to eat. It is hard enough to cook for one and then another half meal for her. So we are getting away from processed foods and back to fresh fruit, veggies and meats. This also means that I am having to cook more. It has made the world of difference in her attitude and persona for lack of a better word. She is much happier, giggling, playing by herself and fun little girl. I had to put wheat back into her diet for the past week and a half so that we could get one last blood test run. We thankfully got that blood test yesterday so we are back to the diet now. Incidentally, I had my blood test results come back negative so we will see what that actually means. I don't really trust what this dr says as she did not want to order the test anyway. I am interested to see what Eme's numbers are going to come back as. I just hope that they have run the right test as I don't want to add gluten back in because there really is a difference in her personality.

So I today I am making pumpkin muffins. And for dinner we are going to have pork chops for dinner. I am not sure how I feel about the chops cause I am not a huge pork fan anymore. I will give it a good try though cause if Eme doesn't eat it I will have lots of left overs.

Here are a few pictures from the Pier at the boat BBQ before they left.

A friend of ours captured Eme running crazy on the pier. She kept wanting to run to the gang plank thingy that you board the boat on. It had stairs and Eme decided that she needs to climb all stairs no matter where they lead.

Here is the boat pushed away from the pier. It takes forever for this to happen once the sailors load the boat. Well, maybe not as long if the Supply Officer did not leave something somewhere and have to run to go get it. Anyway, I got a wicked sunburn for sitting out there for so long. Eme was a little pink but thankfully she has Brad's skin and did not burn. I will remember the sunscreen for homecoming!!

Here is the boat hitting the open channel out of Pearl Harbor. There wives all traveled from the pier to the point to see them leave. Counting down the days to see the boat going the opposite direction!!!

Here is Brad and I before he left. And you wonder where Eme gets her cheese face from right. Oh yeah, Brad decided that it would be a good idea to shave his head for the deployment to be able to keep a timeline in pictures, by the amount of hair on his head. So, I took the clippers and shaved his head, only after asking him 15 times if he was sure. Then he lathered up his head and shaved it clean. So maybe once he gets back I will post the pictures of his timeline and see how it worked out.

A day at the playground

So it has been a while and lots of things have happened since I last wrote.

Brad started his Engineering school so he is home during the week at a reasonable time and sometimes on the weekend too. It has been really nice having dinner as a family. He is getting some much needed bonding time so that makes my heart happy. It is going to be hard having him around right now then having to adjust real soon for his upcoming deployment. I am trying to savor every minute that we have him here until he has to go into the great blue yonder.

Last weekend we went to a playground at the elementary school down the street. Eme really enjoyed it and once she got going she did not want to go home. But a nap was calling her name so off we went.

Look Eme there is a giant hole to go through. Daddy shows her how to climb through.

Dad, you want me to go through this hole...

But why on earth would I do that when I can just as easily go around. See!!Look Mom, I did it like Daddy, right.Okay, I will do it like Daddy did but only if Mommy helps. Tada!!!Dad, I don't know about this slide thing but I LOVE STAIRS!!!

Guys, I really don't know about this...

Okay, that was fun!!!

Now Daddy goes down with me right... This is the big curly slide. It is really big!!!Yeah, that was so much fun!!!!! Daddy rubbed the skin of his toe but I had a great time.

This was probably the best time of the day for me. She wouldn't let go of Daddy's hand when it was time to go.

Man, I was parched!!! She is not a little baby any more. She is growing up so fast. She even has enough hair to put into pig tails now.

Upstairs bathroom

Here are some before and after pictures of the house. This is what the bathroom upstairs used to look like:
Here is a new shower curtain that I made and the painted walls and cabinet.
I made curtains for the doors since there were not any doors to begin with.

And here is the detail of the shower curtain, I made 12 button holes for the rings to pass through.

More to come later!!

Update

So we found out what the fussiness was from - a double ear infection, a sinus infection and a high narrow palate, along with the GI issues and a milk & soy allergy.

This poor kiddo has a right to be fussy and screeching and all the rest. I feel so bad that I did not see the signs that pointed to the ear infections, very wobbly (attributed to learning how to walk), jaw clicking, drooling and chewing (attributed to teething), and the outbursts (attributed to normal toddler Independence) but she did not have a fever like the last time. Anyway, we got her medicated and waited to see if she did better. We went back to the dr a few days later, as she was not doing better and got some ear drops that numb her ear to help with the pain. I took her back to the dr to get her ears checked once the antibiotics ran out, well one side had cleared up and the other was still infected. So another round of antibiotics and ear drops. She is still wobbly but seems to be getting better, the tantrums and outbursts have turned in the the occasional and not the daily/hourly occurrence. So she is doing much better and is back to our happy baby again. On the GI issues, I have removed all dairy and soy from her diet, put her back on a prescription formula and increased her medicines. I am hoping to try to reduce her meds once she is healthy or at least trial them again.

Since I have been dealing with all of this by myself, I had a surprise last minute visitor come out. My dad made a special trip out to help me with Eme and specifically to help out with the long to do list for the house. Well, after 10 days here, and am very happy to say that we are done with home improvements for a very long time. There are 3 things left to be painted and a few boxes left to be packed up. This is a very different house than before. We have made changes to every room but the kitchen since we moved in. Well, we have made a few minor changes in the kitchen but nothing that is as noticeable as the other rooms. I tell you this, I was so busy, as I needed to be, I did not have a bit of down time. When Eme was asleep, I was working, when Eme was awake, I was working, when Eme was at day care, I was working, when Eme was playing with Grandpa, I was working. Once my dad left I crashed so hard that I am just now recovering. I think I still have paint on places that I can't see to get off. Once I get back into my groove, I will post pictures to show before and after of what we did. We did manage to go to the zoo and headed out to the west side of the island to explore.

Dad -
Thank you so very much, I can't express my appreciation and gratitude for your willingness to come out and help me with anything that I needed. I could not have done it without you!!!

Crazy fussiness

Hey there, sorry I have been MIA. There has been a lot going on and Eme has been super fussy. We have had to go back to the dr and the GI to see what is up and how to help her. It is amazing how a screeching baby all day long can drain the life out of you. I have had very little energy to get up and blog so I have not posted anything. I do have some pictures and video that I need to get uploaded so I am hoping to get that done soon so I can share. We did finally set up the web cam and Skype so we can chat with people. It is pretty cool and amazingly simple. If you have not tried it, you should.

Anyway, I am off to bed to rejuvenate for another day. But here are some April Photogs for you.

Simple toys for Eme, a really big box... event he dogs got in this one with her.
A wooden spoon, some Tupperware and yes, even a roll of toilet paper. She carried it around every where. The spoon is really her princess scepter, she turns the dogs into goons pretty regularly.

While we were cleaning out the downstairs closet, we found Brad's old soccer ball. It is very deflated and probably doesn't hold air any more but I decided to give it to Eme as she is getting more agile and I thought she might like it. Yes, she loves it. Problem is that she would not let go of it for anything. I just asked her if she wanted to put her ball down so I could change her diaper. Answer - how about no mom. And no we don't let her run around naked, but this day she was naked as a jay bird.

She would not even put the ball down when I changed her diaper.

See mom, you can change my diaper with me holding on to my ball and laughing!!! I love my ball.

Off to bed now. Love and aloha!!

Happy Easter!!

We got all dressed up and headed over to the Marine Corp base for an Easter Egg hunt only to find out that it was yesterday. Oh well, not that Eme really would have know what was going on anyway. We still have a boat Easter party to go to so she will get to hunt eggs there. So instead we headed over to Pinky's, our favorite pupu bar and grill, to eat a yummy breakfast buffet. It was really good. Brad and I had mimosas, eggs Benedict with crab cakes and spinach, salmon with lobster and crab in a yummy cream sauce, fruit, prime rib, and the typical breakfast foods. It was very good. Eme had some french toast which was a first for her. She loved it. She was getting tired so we made it a quick breakfast and headed home for a nap for all. Here are some pictures from this morning.

Eme reading the Easter book to Daddy

Eme excited that she got a cute little Easter bunny basket from our friends next door.

Happy Easter all dressed up, head to toe navy and pink

Eme was toast since it was close to nap time. She was a trooper and made it through the meal with out too much fussing. She decided that she was done and ready for her nap so she used her new bunny lovey as a pillow on the table. Thanks Grandma! That is her new sippy cup with a straw that she loves.

Here is Brad's boat coming home yesterday.

Special outfits & Signs

I have to post a few pictures of Eme in her newest outfits. A very good friend in Washington sent Eme some new onsies that she decorated for her. She is very talented and has made these for some other friends too. Now Eme gets to join the ranks of the cool kid shirt club. Thanks Vaiva!!

Eme in her new Initial shirt.

It has a special friend on the back. It is an elephant. A new animal to learn about.

And a purple subbie shirt!!! While I was taking pictures, Eme was doing some sign language too. Here is her sign for please. You are suppose to rub a circle on your chest and she kind of swipes her hand across her chest. Here is a Thank You to Vaiva. She hasn't yet learned to pull her hand away from her mouth yet. This is also her sign for blowing/throwing kisses, again she doesn't get the hand motion yet. She does know the difference and context to use them. If she hears the words, she will make the sign.
Here is "all gone" or "all done". I am not sure if this is one that is official but it works for us.

Here is more. She has been using this for a while now when she wants more food and I have gotten her to combine it with please, so she signs "more please". She has recently started using it for other things, like when she wants another book or to read it again. Also, when she wants another song or more outside/stroller time. This is where did it go or I don't know. Again probably not an official sign. And this is Eme walking toward me after she was done with pictures.

I am trying to work some additional signs into her language so that she can learn to communicate with us a little more. I am using this website because it is pretty easy to understand. I also have a book and a few dvd's too.

I better put my running shoes on!!!

So Eme has been cruising along for the past few months. We all thought that she would be an early walker. But she has not really wanted to get up an go until now. Recently, she has been taking steps like this every so often. I have been trying for weeks to catch her on video but every time I pull out the camera, she sits down and shakes her head at me as if to say "No pictures". For the most part, she is still crawling.

Please pardon the outfit, she has been sick and I keep having to change her top or bottom because she has an accident or throws up on it. Needless to say, I have stopped trying to have her match when she is at home.

And yes, that is a necklace on her. It is actually an amber teething necklace that a mom sent me from one of the online mommy groups I visit a lot. She said it helped her daughter and she wanted to pass it on to someone who was teething. So I figured what the neck, I will try anything within reason right now. The poor kid is just had one molar come through and another one is poking out now. That will make her third molar. Her teeth count is at 7 on top and almost 6 on bottom.

I hope you enjoy this. I worked hard to capture it.

A few videos for our fans

Eme has been really sick for the past week, well not really sick she just throws up every afternoon and has an ear infection and is very congested. Way more than I really want her little body dealing with at one time. Anyway, we have had a lot of time together because I have not been able to take her to day care so we have been playing and reading lots of books. We recently received a bunch of hand-me-down toys that included lots of new books. Instead of playing with the toys, Eme's first choice out of the bag was a book. What can you say when you have two geeky parents? Besides, I make her watch "Sid The Science Kid" on PBS every morning so she is going to be somewhat geeky, right?? So anyway, we have been reading lots of books over and over and over and over again. So, you may ask, "Has she learned anything?". Well, watch the below video and you will see what she has learned.

I hope you enjoyed the video. I have some more that I can post. I am trying to get video of Eme doing what walking that she does right now to show the progress but she sits down every time I pull out the camera.

Oh, Eme has another dr's appointment to see what is wrong with her. She has been really congested, runny nose and a cough. Then she started throwing up and hasn't stopped. She is on just liquids which is hard because anytime she sees food she wants it. She will stand under the counter and point up to where the banana tree is and point and grunt and squeal. She loves her some bananas. I will see what the dr has to say about it tomorrow. There are so many variables going on that we are pinning them down and weeding them out. It has been rough but at least she is staying somewhat hydrated. I was able to get her to keep down some oatmeal and applesauce today but she still had a few minor throwups. I hope that she is on her way to getting better.

Here are a few pictures that we recently took at Sears. First, a family photo at 1 year old.

Next, my 2 sailors.And last, Eme and I playing with flowers.

Update - Eme's birthday party and St Patrick's day

Hey all, sorry I haven't posted in a while. I have been super busy and don't seem to be on the computer all that much right now. I am trying hard to get stuff packed up into storage and cleaned out a little bit. It seems to be very cathartic as I keep doing more and more. We got a 9x13 storage unit for a super deal so I am trying to get the house into shape.

Eme's birthday party went pretty well. We had major rain that morning so the pool idea was out so we ended up in the house playing with Eme's toys. It worked out very well and I think everyone had a lot of fun. Here are a few pictures from the morning.

Here is a family shot after cake time. I made reduced sugar cupcakes, mini cupcakes. 68 of them to be exact. I iced 24 of them the night before and they turned out really cute. I figured that the kiddos would not mind not having all that sugar in them and they really did not taste all that different. I also made sausage pinwheels for the adults, which got rave reviews. I love making them because they are so easy and really are tasty!! By the way, Eme is holding a Mum Mum cracker instead of eating cake. She did not want the cupcake and actually spit it out.

Here is Xavier trying to get the balls out of the Penguin, which was a gift from the Lambert's. Thank you Wendy and Chris.

Here the kiddos are watching Eme open her presents.

Later that day we did some laundry so Eme helped. She likes watching the stuff spin in there.

Here are some pictures from St. Patrick's Day. She was playing with the favors from her party, wrist warmers/sport wristbands whatever you call them. She wore them on her ankles for most of the day.

PS, Grandpa, here is a picture of her bowling ball head for you. I took these and thought WOW she really does have a round head. Anyway, I think the hair do really accentuates it.

Hey camera, look at me. This is the look of trouble!!! I have a hard time not melting when she looks at me now, I can't wait to see how I react when she is asking for the car. And this is a picture of her March 18th after her 1 year well baby check up. She had to have her blood drawn so she is sporting a pretty pink pressure bandage. She did really well while they took her blood. She did have a light bruise a few days later.

So that is a little update for you. Sorry it took so long to get them up. I will have more soon.