Good Day

TB had the day off today. It's a truly rare occurrence during the summer so we took full advantage. We slept in late (until 10am!), took a walk around the neighborhood, had brunch at a local spot we've been wanting to try, and went to the zoo for the afternoon. The zoo has been calling our names since we moved to town three years ago. The one we went to wasn't the big fancy Minnesota Zoo but the Como Park Zoo and Conservatory. It's free to go (they accept donations) and we were really impressed!


Emma dressed up for the occasion


and brought along her very own giraffe that squeaks.


We saw some primates,


zebras,


lions,


giraffes, penguins, polar bears, and lots more.

Here we are with our babe.




We can't wait to go back when Emma's a little older and excited about seeing all of the animals.

Matching

Emma received a lovely new outfit this weekend. Its extreme cuteness combined with the fact that it matched her hair almost exactly required an immediate photo shoot.






Then Emma and I (followed by Tyler) went to visit friends. They moved into a new place this morning that is just 3 minutes down the road from us and we couldn't wait to check it out.

Here's Emma with her Auntie Chelsea, whose new place we visited.


And here she is with her Auntie Amanda, who helped Chelsea and Matt move.


It was so good to see them!

Home Invasion

We've been fighting a nasty little cold in our house.


It started with Tyler.

Moved to Emma.

And is currently finishing its business with me.

We were so sad when it hit Emma. Tyler and I would have given anything to take it away from her. She was miserable. She had a cough, a low-grade fever, and lots of congestion. She was also pretty lethargic. As you can imagine, I, like any paranoid and neurotic new mom, called her pediatrician and my own mom for advice what felt like 85 times per day and stayed awake watching her sleep on more occasions than I'll admit. In doing so, I learned a few tricks:

1. To squirt a few drops of saline solution up her nose, let it sit for 10 seconds or so, and suction both nostrils before each feeding and bedtime.
2. To put her bed on a slight incline to keep things moving the right direction at night.
3. To keep a cool humidifier running.
4. And, most importantly, to hold her, to love her, and to tell her that we'd take care of her and she would be ok. Lucky for us we were pros at this one already.

And to all you veteran moms, did you know they now make thermometers for babies that don't need to be inserted anywhere unpleasant? Heaven, I tell you. I could reach over as often as my heart desired, scan her little forehead, and get a temperature reading in no time. Best of all, I could do it without waking her or making her cry. Thank you, Safety 1st. You truly are the hero of paranoid and neurotic new moms everywhere.

We're so thankful Emma is feeling better. We didn't think we'd have to deal with her first sickness so soon but we survived and learned a little along the way. And, best of all, our happy girl is back and smiling more than ever.

"Making the decision to have a child...it's momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body." Elizabeth Stone

Wordless Wednesday

Awkward Family Photos

I just have to share with you the most hilarious website. It's www.awkwardfamilyphotos.com. Basically, people send in their awkward family photos and the people who run the website post them for all to see. TB and I are making it our personal goal to submit a picture in the next year :)

It's just not as fun when you do it alone.


Just another reason to hate the dentist.


Somebody isn't too thrilled about the new addition.


You go straight, you're out of the sisterhood. No exceptions.


Unlike Santa, the Easter Bunny isn't afraid to completely freak children out in broad daylight.


It isn't her he should be worrying about.


He just decided to imagine them as bookends.


Oh, Dad.


Introducing the new face of frigid.


Sometimes the head-turn just isn't enough.

Father's Day

Sunday was Tyler's very first Father's Day. I'm not sure his Father's Day could possibly beat my Mother's Day (it's when our Emma was born), but we sure tried hard to make it special.

While he was at work, Emma and I wrapped his presents


and made some cupcakes. They were miiighty good.


When he arrived home, he opened his presents. Emma made him a koozie


and I bought him a new wallet.


Then, like any good golf-loving family, we watched the Open. Oh, and took the occasional nap.


It was a relaxing day. If you don't believe me, feast your eyes upon this little face.


She sure is a lucky girl, isn't she? Tyler's a great Dad. And nothing beats seeing them together.

Two Peas In A Pod

And look who's finally getting friendly?

Redhead

Our Emma's a redhead. When we're out, we often hear comments like "Look at that hair!!" We have no idea if it'll stay red but it does seem to be getting more and more red by the minute. We love it.

Want to know some cool things about redheads?

1. The gene that causes red hair is recessive, so in order for someone to have red hair, he/she has to inherit two copies of the gene, one from each parent.

2. The highest percentage of natural redheads in the world is in Scotland (13%), followed closely by Ireland (10%). In the United States, about 2% of the population has red hair.

3. A 2002 study found that redheads are harder to sedate than blondes and brunettes and require 20% more anesthesia.

4. Red hair doesn't turn gray. It turns sandy and then white. It also fades later in life.

5. 60% of women who dye their hair do so at home. Of them 26% percent choose to go blonde, 27% percent go basic brunette, and 30% choose to become redheads. The sale of at-home red dye kits has gone up 17% since the year 2000.

Summer Reading

I love summer for so many reasons.

The sun.

Barbecuing.

Sitting on patios with friends.

Sleeping in.

Golfing.

Farmers markets.

And, reading. For you readers out there, here's what's on my summer reading list! I'd love to hear what's on yours.




S

Tapemark

TB played in the Tapemark Charity Pro-Am this weekend. It's a pretty big golf tournament here in the Twin Cities. It was founded in 1972 to raise money for non-profit agencies serving people with developmental and learning disabilities. A lot of money is raised each year.

On Wednesday evening we went to a dinner to kick off the tournament. Then, we attended the Friday Night Bash. A good band played and we sat on the patio with friends. Saturday night was the final social gathering. Here's what Emma wore. (What would a blog post be if I didn't show off a piece of her cute wardrobe?!).



TB played great in the tournament. On Friday he shot 3 under and was in 3rd place at the end of the day. It was the best he's played in a long time. On Saturday he shot 4 over. And on Sunday he shot 2 over. He finished 3 over for the tournament. Not too shabby!

Here he is doing his thing.


Emma and I watched him a little bit each day. I stuck her in a few of the carriers we have (Baby Bjorn & Mod Mum) and we did some walking. She was a good little golf spectator!

Emma's First Month

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Back to Reality

Last week, I left this world (the world of hanging out in bed with Emma)


and re-joined this one part-time (the world of data management and Ph.D. written preliminary exams).


I was pretty nervous to have my first meeting in a month with my advisor. Beyond knowing I'd miss Emma like crazy, we haven't introduced her to a bottle yet and don't really want to for another week or so. We timed her last feeding for just prior to my meeting and hoped she'd snooze until I finished. But, knowing that she can sometimes be unpredictible, I gave TB a bottle just in case. She didn't end up needing it! She snoozed for my whole two-hour meeting. Thank goodness.

Naturally, TB and Emma passed the time at Golfsmith, where he taught her all about golf clubs.

One Whole Month

Hi! It's me, Emma.

I'm a pretty happy girl because today I turned one month old. I celebrated by getting all gussied up and going to a fancy dinner to kick off my Dad's big golf tournament. Of course, my Mom just had to take fifty pictures of us before we left home. I showed off my grin for her.








Now I'm home. Boy did my night on the town poop me out.


"I thank my God every time I think of you." Philippians 1:3