Zoo Day

A few weeks ago I took the kids to the zoo and we met Kate, Emily, and Sophie. We brought Bailey so Tia could get some rest and had a fabulous day! Emily and Sophie were amazing with the kids and played with them and helped me a lot! I need a couple of girls to help me out! We fed the giraffes (Bailey and Sophie were a little leery but Emmett LOVED it), watched the meerkats (Soph's favorite), and even got to see the baby lion (he was absolutely adorable). Clarita was obsessed with the petting zoo and picked out a goat which she declared was her "llama." She kissed it, brushed it, wrapped it's ears around her face, and generally loved it. It was pretty funny. Bailey and Emmett also loved the animals and ran around brushing and petting them. I told Clara we could stop at In N Out on the way home, but I got sidetracked and passed the exit. She was pretty sad so we stopped at McDonald's and she got her first happy meal (the other two were asleep). She was pretty excited, more so about the french fries and chicken nuggets than the toy and inhaled them! It was a great day and we had so much fun with some of our favorite friends! 

Double stroller with three kids? Check!

She's a pro

Bayleaf let go of the lettuce every time the tongue touched it

Emmett absolutely loved feeding the giraffe

Such a good helper

Kids love Emily!

Saving Bayleaf from the scary stingrays

Not quite as tall as a gorilla but Clara was
very impressed that Emily was.

The petting zoo was by far their favorite part!

This is Clara's "llama." She brushed her, hugged her,
petted her, and laid on her.

Clara wanted to sit with Emily and Sophie...

So did Bailey...

And Emmett!

18 Months

Where oh where has the time gone? My Little Em Bug is a year and a half old! This month he has been the happiest, snuggliest little guy! He gives hugs and kisses whenever he gets the chance and it melts my heart when he gives Clara kisses! He's obsessed with his Bearbears (Carebears) and likes to carry them around singing, "Bearbear Bearbear" like he heard on Clara's Carebear video. He gives them kisses and has them give everyone else kisses too! Emmett's new favorite thing is to give anyone who looks at him the biggest, cheesiest grin. So big his eyes are almost closed. It's adorable and of course everyone smiles back.

The cutest Bearbear around!

This month he has made vast improvements in the communication department. He repeats everything we say and has a lot of new words. Of course they are more like sounds and only people that spend a lot of time with him can understand them, but he consistently says the same sounds for each word. He has also started stringing two words together like "right dare" and "I do it." He has learned more signs too. It is less frustrating for all of us now that he is better at communicating.

Emee continues with his stubbornness and throws himself down on the floor for tantrums. It's really more like he launches himself forward complete with screams. Luckily it stops almost as quickly as it starts. It's actually kind of funny because it is so comical. What's not comical is when he headbutts us, hits us, or kicks us. Most of the time I don't think he is trying to hurt us, he just thinks it is fun to flail about and he likes the reaction he gets. Dada said that he has moved on from trying to kill himself to trying to kill someone else (those heatbutts seriously hurt).

In a big boy booster seat

Someone colored on his face...

The Little Guy has shown more interest in the potty. He sometimes asks to sit on it and tries to pull his pants down. I happily oblige because I would like nothing more than to be done with diapers. He sometimes goes and sometimes doesn't. Since he is almost always dry in the morning I have been putting him on the potty right away and he usually goes (I learned it is important to point the penis down or I get a bath). I am hoping the fact that he has always wanted to do what everyone else does leads to an early potty training...but I'm not holding my breath or getting my hopes up. I'll just go at his pace and see what happens. I just don't want to miss my early window like I did with Clara and then have to wait.

Emmett LOVES to read. He reads to himself, he lets Clara read to him, and he constantly brings us books and plops down on our laps. He has favorite books and he will pull each book out of his bookshelf and look at it to see if it is what he wants. If he doesn't want it he throws it aside. 

These two are trouble makers!

Buggle continues to be the sweetest little guy and we all love him so much. Clara loves to give him hugs and snuggles and genuinely misses him when she's away from his for a day. I couldn't have picked a more perfect baby to complete our family!

Emmett's Stats

Weight: 24.2 pounds 

Height:  31.5 inches 

Head Circumference: 19 inches 

What Emmett Wears

Most of his clothes are 18 month and 18-24 months with a few 2T thrown in. Shoes are a size 5.

Things Emmett Loves

Mama and Dada, Clarita and Bailey, playing with his toys, people in general, spitting, splurping, eating-especially fruit, animals-especially his cats, going for walks in the stroller, swinging, Gymboree, baths, being outside, climbing, balls, running, hats, trying to jump, dancing, eating, socks, shoes, bikes, scooters, blowing bubbles with straws.

Things Emmett Does Not Love

Waiting to eat, having things taken away from him, being set down when he is hungry or tired, and being told no.

Eating

It really just depends on the day. Some days he eats everything and other days he will only eat a select few things. His favorite foods are pizza, pasta, cheese sticks, and tangerines/oranges (although he loves all fruits). He won't really eat meat unless it's in the form of a chicken nugget and veggies are hit or miss.

Signing
He signs more, eat, sleep, water, hat, please, thank you, baby, all done, outside, dog, cat, fish, horse, ball, train, drink, brush teeth, car, shoes, socks, wash hands, Dada, Mama, diaper, tree, bird, banana, boat, pear, star, monkey, book, penguin, help, cheese, star, leaf, carrot, rain, plane.

Talking
He says Mama, Dada, ma (mas), awa (agua), cl (clara), up, dow (down), a a (hat), baal (ball), bah (bye), awa (agua), uh uh (uh oh), papa (pizza), baby (Bailey), bapa (Baza and calabaza [pumpkin]), Aba, da (thank you), aa daa (all done), dat (that), I know (I don't know), myyy (mine), nah (no), dare (there), nana (naranja [orange]), abi (habichuela [green bean]), bearbear (Carebear), bebe [baby], pe (pez [fish]), turto (turtle), mer (comer [eat]), tar (star), wehwah (Clara), deet (dientes [teeth]), chee (cheese), emo (Elmo), neighneigh (conejo [rabbit]), pa (pan [bread]), ama (grandma), wite dare (right there), I do dit (I do it), apane (airplane), anah (oh no).

How Emmett Sleeps

Emmett goes to bed around 8:30 and sleeps until around 7:00. He takes a nap between 1:00 and 2:00 for two to three hours. He sleeps with his sleep sack, water, and a million animals. His favorite is Conejo followed closely by his Carebears. 

Teeth
He has five, both bottom front, his top left, and his top incisors.

Nicknames

Snugglebuggle/Buggle, Little Guy, Baby Emmett/Baby, Baby Bug, Buddy, Emee, Bubba

Monthly Exciting Events

January 14, 2017: First time on skis (he wasn't a big fan)
January 28, 2017: First ice cream (it took three attempts but he loved it)

Monthly Pictures