I decided to pay tribute to my hairless girls and force Emiline's hair into a rubber band just like I did with Jane's hair at the same age. If you care to compare my kiddos (or you are one of the vast number of people that think they are spitting images of each other) click here. Emiline's rampant mobility makes it difficult to take pictures, but her cuteness makes up for it, dontchya think?
I got adventurous the other day and decided to take a billion pictures in a candid kind of photo shoot with my kids one morning. I'd been reading that the key to cute kid pictures is 1) taking a billion and 2) getting the right light. So here are some from my attempts at morning light.
Above is a classic Emiline smile. I think my kids do look alike, at least like sisters, but their smiles are all their own.
By the time I did find the light, Emiline was ready for a nap... her cry is all her own, too. My girls look very different when they cry, too. My dad and I kind of have this joke. Every time he calls he asks about the kids and comments something like, "Well that Emiline sure is a good-natured kid. Always so happy!" And I say "yeah, she is. Except when she's not." So far Emiline is not a luke-warm kind of kid. Hot or Cold, baby. Hot or Cold.
She has been into really playing with her tongue while vocalizing lately, thus we hear a lot of "lool, lool, lool. la, la, la. loola la, lool." At the moment, she also thinks she is a monkey. A few days ago we were reading Where's Spot (one of her favorites) and when we got the monkey, I made the noise, then Jane made the noise, then Emiline made the noise. Jane and I both laughed and Emiline did it again. When Eric got home, we showed him and Emiline likes pleasing the crowd. Since then, she has been making monkey sounds throughout the day and will always parrot you back. Speaking of communication, she does some signing, and actually signs more with her Dad (probably because I know what she wants sans sign and just get it for her. He waits. He's great at that;-) She'll do milk, more, and water with him.
Meet Roxy, Emiline's chosen lovey. I bought this cow from IKEA when Jane was a baby because I thought she was so cute. Jane was not moved. It was love at first sight for Emiline, however.
Even with the nose crusties, she's got a pretty cute smile, eh?
This is Emiline's thinking look. I know it looks pensive + sad, but it's more pensive + tired/lonely/hungry. I know this face, but I wouldn't necessarily describe Emiline as a big thinker, not like Jane is/was. Emiline is a mover. She doesn't think on a problem so much as she attacks it. She gets into things and tries to make things happen with pure momentum. I love to watch her crawling and cruising around the room just to see what she'll get into and experiment with next.
Probably because of this appetite for experimenting, Emiline is a fantastic eater! It has been such a joy to watch this kid eat. The above picture could be captioned "Oh my gosh I love pizza and smoothies SO MUCH I can't stand it!" Every meal time is filled with sounds of Emiline grunting in appreciation and smacking her lips. It's hilarious. The only thing she "won't eat," which means she's refused it a half dozen times, is bananas. Every thing else she'll try, especially new things. Tonight we had asian vegetables with sesame seeds on rice with pot stickers and cantelope for dessert. She hadn't had pot stickers before. After she had some of everything else she started making a fuss and "asking" me for a pot sticker. She was not satisfied til I give her one. I really hope this keeps up! She drinks from a cup with help. She thinks she knows how to use a spoon.
This last picture is a shot of Emiline getting stuck under the couch, which happened fairly regularly up until a few weeks ago when Emiline started cruising on everything possible. She was on the verge of crawling for more than a month (I think she was slowed down by getting sick). But then she finally figured it out. Before she was even crawling, she was pulling herself up a lot. Now it's non stop. I think she's wanting to walk and today she kept standing on her own unsupported for a few seconds throughout the day. Boy, was she proud of herself for that! So was I!Other fun facts about my girl:
Emiline has two teeth and holding. No sign of anymore.
Emiline is a great night sleeper (11-12 hours). Bedtime is around 7:00 depending on how the afternoon nap went (or didn't) and she's usually up by 6:30. Like her sister, she seems to be wanting to give a nap already. Half the time she takes a morning nap at 9:00 or so, the other half it's not til 11:00. When she has an early morning nap, she'll sometimes take an afternoon nap, but not til 2:30 or 3:00 and it's usually pretty short. If she takes a late morning nap, it's not afternoon nap and an early bedtime. She has a short sleep routine of a story, a song, tucked in with blanky, kiss from Roxy, a binky, and some patting by mommy. If she's going to sleep, she goes right down. If she's not, well, she's not. Hot or Cold.
She's started to be more into books. She loves all flap books and all books with pictures of babies in them. Other than that, not so interested.
She still giggles like crazy over Wash The Ladies Dishes. And she went through a If Your Happy and You Know It Period, as well. But clapping for fun was so 8 months old. She loves to play mimic with Daddy, it's crazy what he can get her to do. And recently she likes to play chase with Jane. Although, she doesn't like playing chase with Mommy. She is starting to have separation anxiety with me. She loves to be kissed and to kiss. She loves to climb up me when I'm holding her. And she has earned herself the nickname "Squirm-a-whine" lately. She whines when she is frustrated or sick. She squirms all the time. I'm realizing more and more how unusual Jane was (and I can't tell if Emiline is unusual on the other side of the spectrum or just normal). For example, Emiline put her hand in the toilet today. Jane has still never done that.
And on that note, let's reveal the stats:
Height: 27 1/2 inches (50%)
Weight: 14 lbs 2.6 oz (55%)
Head: 45.8 cms (95% - which is small to me, Jane was WAY off the charts at this age)
I'm so pleased to have Emiline in our little family. I can't imagine not having her. I remember how worried (terrified) I was at having two. I remember how strongly (stubbornly) I thought that kids needed more space between them. And I'm happy to be wrong. We all need Emiline right now, especially Jane. And having two has been delightful (as long as I can keep my cool when it's time to go anywhere, what with all the hat, coat, gloves, shoe, diaper bag, keys, purse, and phone grabbing that goes on). I can't wait to watch her grow and have the opportunity to continue to nurture her. I'm so grateful to be her mother.
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