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.

Happy Birthday My Love

Happy Birthday to Eme!!! Here are some pictures from her first few days and her birthday yesterday.

Mommy and Eme at Tripler Hospital in Hawaii.Daddy and Eme minutes after her birth. I love the expression on her face. "Hi Pops!"
Little Angel sleeping in the hospital the day we went home.
Our first Easter together as a threesome.
Our friend Vaiva did this with her daughter Katrina and I thought it was a cute idea so we did it too. This is a big purple bunny that I bought to use as a growth chart for Eme. Each month, I took her picture next to the bunny so that we can compare her growth from month to month. I will share with you her first month picture which was taken 3/23 and her 1 year picture. What a big girl. I want to take her picture with the bunny each year on her birthday for a few more years to come.

Here is Eme showing you where the Bunny's nose is -
and where her nose is. She can also identify her head, ears, mouth and we are working on her eyes. She can also point them out on other people and in a book.

Here is her birthday party. We have had a party in Houston before we left at the end of Feb with my parents and sister. We had this party last night with Mommy and Daddy. She will have another party next weekend with her friends. Man, I don't know that I can keep up the multi party tradition as she gets older. I made her mini cupcakes and iced them in pink icing. I had them on a plate but she promptly turned the plate upside down on her tray.
We had to show her how to put her finger in it and taste the icing. Then Brad broke the pieces up for her. She liked to put the pieces in her hand and squish them into crumbs. Then licked her hand.
Yummy icing!!!Daddy brought home these beautiful flowers for Mommy to celebrate the year with Eme. Isn't he sweet!!! Thanks honey! Our day started early with a dr's visit and shots. Eme got her MMR, Chicken Pox and Hep A. Mommy got her allergy shots too, one in each arm. Then we came home and Eme took her nap a little early. For lunch, she had yogurt for the first time. Then we played with some new toys. She went down for her second nap and I made her cupcakes. Daddy got home and Eme had dinner then we had her party. Eme got a bath and then off to bed she went. I think her first birthday went very well. She had presents to open from Grammy and Gramps along with a card from Great Grandmother and Grandpa. She got calls from her Granddad, her Grandpa, and her Auntie. She received lots of messages on Mommy's face book page and even an Ecard from Grandpa. Thank you to everyone for their birthday wishes. I will be making every effort to capture them all for her book.

The past year has been very long and hectic. At times, it seemed unbearable. You know, looking back it was rough but I would not trade it for anything in the world. I love having Eme in our life and I can't imagine our life without her. I can't wait for the many years to come. I am sure that there with be rough days in our future but I will get through them just like all moms out there do.

Happy birthday little girl, we love you!! You are our little Makana and you bring us joy every day. Love you always, Mom and Dad.