Starting School

This past week Emmery made it through her first week of school, and I made it through my first week as a "working mom".  The week has definitely been harder for me than her- she is doing great and seems to be well-loved by her teachers, Ms Vickie and Ms Fawn.  As I worked on figuring out how to fit pumping into my schedule, dealt with my car battery dying, and found out just how busy work is (we are in the middle of an expansion), Emmery enjoyed watching all of her classmates crawl and walk, listened to her teachers sing, got rocked to sleep, looked at herself in the mirror, and sat outside in the shade.  After the first day, she babbled the whole way home to Jamison and me- we think she was telling us how great of a day she had :-)

This is a picture from Monday morning

And a picture from Monday evening.  Jamison has started leaving work at 4:30 so that he can pick little Em up at 5:15 :)

Emmery got some "starting school" gifts from Grammy Brewer- a new rattle, a baby photo album, and an outfit (which she wore in her 12-week picture). 

And that is all of the pictures I have from the week... guess that is how it goes!  Especially because I like natural light for pictures.

On Saturday Emmery and I sat in the grass (in Doug and Denise's front yard, which has way nicer grass than ours :)) and watched Jamison wash the cars.

We also stopped by Denise's studio to give her some flowers and see how the "artist studio tour" was going.  Here are Denise, Emmery, and Moose in front of her printing press.  Denise actually just got another really big printing press that has a motor!

Daddy and daughter in Denise's studio.  Doug and Denise built the studio/garage last year and it is significantly cooler than our house- amazing what insulation can do!  Probably the biggest benefit of going back to work is having air-conditioning.  And getting paid :)

And this week Denise introduced me to "chalk markers"- see how vibrant they are!  Our little bean is 12 weeks old already.

My last week off

This past week I have been feeling a little down since I am going back to work on Monday.  I think possibly the Grandmas were also feeling like they had to get some time in with Emmery before I go back to work, because Jean came up Sunday and my mom came up Tuesday.  It was great to see them, and Emmery always smiles so much when they are around.

Last Saturday we had Justin, Natalie, and their 9 month old daughter, Lauren, up for dinner.  After dinner we walked down to Taste of Fort Collins to hear Everclear play.  Even though the band did not sound very good (possibly because we were pretty far back), we had a great time.

On Sunday Jamison and I went out for lunch and a movie.  This past week the High Park fire started just west of Fort Collins.  Here is a picture taken out of our car while on our date of the smoke.  The fire has caused Fort Collins to be smoky all week, which means staying inside with closed windows as much as possible.  :(   My heart goes out to all of those that have lost their homes.

Our cute little bean...

My sweet neighbor Denise brought over a back-to-work gift for me, and it made my day.  How can homemade cherry jubilee and ice-cream not make you feel better (maybe it was the brandy :))?  I thought I would try a bite and ended up eating a big bowl, because it tastes soooo good!

Those are cherries and cinnamon sticks floating inside.

11 week pictures. We got a package of clothes from my cousin Nikki this week (which were actually hand-me-downs from my sister)- check out how cute Emmery's outfit and matching shoes are!

Meeting the Martins and more

This last week Emmery has gotten stronger.  She is now actively pushing up on her forearms to hold her head up, she started reaching for toys, and she even rolled from her stomach to her back (though she hasn't repeated this one)!
She is quickly growing up and will be starting "school" in a week (which means I will be going back to work).  We stopped by her daycare, the Goddard School, the other day and I realized how much I really do like it.  They remembered her when we walked in (we haven't been there since she was 3 weeks old) and the place is so open and fresh feeling, and they try to get the infants outside under the trees to feel the grass two times a day!  Emmery had some tummy time with two other 3 month olds while I chatted with her teacher, and Emmery liked it so much that she started to fuss when we left.

Here are some pictures from the last week...
On Friday we stayed with Scott and Katie.  We had a great time walking around the "Friday night art/music walk" right outside of their house, and Scott treated us to some tasty barbecue.  The next morning we went to Wooden Spoon and had amazing breakfast sandwiches and got some treats for later. Jeanette (Hannah's good friend) owns the place with her husband and gave us some complimentary scrumptious lime cheesecake slices.  I highly recommend stopping there if you are ever in the Highlands area in Denver.

Emmery with her Uncle Scott in her cute plaid dress.

Emmery with Aunt Katie at dinner.

As we were walking we took some photo booth pictures.

On Saturday we went down to Tom & Jean's for a "Martin family meet Emmery" get-together.  We really had a great time, and Emmery enjoyed meeting some of the Martin family!  And the "simple appetizers" Jean put together were very tasty.  I swear Emmery didn't sleep the whole day, but you wouldn't know it with the pictures I have...

Emmery with her great-Aunt Bonnie.

And she was very comfortable after her great-Aunt Judy fed her :)

And she loved the way Elba bounced her on her knee.

That night she played with her Grandpa Martin.

And got held by her Grandma Martin.

Last week the doctor cleared Emmery to go running as long as she is in her carseat (which attaches to the stroller), so I have a new running partner and can finally start getting some exercise in!  We have been doing short 3 mile runs.  Running is a lot more fun when you have a cute little face looking at you like this...

I think she's a bit confused on what I'm doing :)

On Monday night Kristy came over for dinner.  She was doing some training for her new job in Loveland, and it was absolutely wonderful to see her.  Unfortunately Emmery was fussy almost the whole time she was here :(  She gave me some super cute white pants that are too short for her long legs and are a motivation for me to lose those stubborn 5 lbs.

As I mentioned above, Emmery is starting to reach for toys.  She loves this zebra toy.

And for her 10 week old picture I put her in her bright orange bathing suit with ruffles.  She loved pulling at the ruffles and putting them in her mouth :)

I also put her little sunhat on.

And the adorable matching cover-up.  After the photo shoot we stopped by the pool for about 30 minutes where Emmery enjoyed watching all of the kids playing and even dipped her feet in the pool.

A busy 9th week

We had a fun-packed memorial day weekend...

Saturday morning we met Ken and Patty for breakfast.  Emmery loved Patty- she didn't cry or fuss the whole 2.5 hours we were there!

Emmery is really growing up and becoming more independent.  I am often amazed at how she is starting to be just content sitting or laying on her own.  Here she is just watching me cook dinner.

On Saturday night we had Dave & Anke and Zac & Janelle over for dinner.  Dave & Anke had a little boy, Oliver, exactly one week before Emmery was born.  We actually had the same doctor, so every once in a while I would see her at the doctor's office.

The boys.

Janelle with her cute 2 year old boy, Evan.  I tried to make cupcakes from scratch using my Martha Stewart cupcake book, and they turned out pretty dry :(  Good thing frosting can always help a dry cupcake!

Emmery, Oliver, and Anthony (Dave & Anke's 2.5 yr old- you can see his hands under Oliver) tried to make a totem pole.  Emmery was happy being on top, but Oliver wasn't having it :)

On Sunday Tom, Jean, John, Amanda, Johnny, and Quincie came up for the day!  We walked downtown for Realities Ride and Rally, but not much was going on since most of the bikers were out on the "Ride". So we went out to lunch and then walked to the park.  Emmery slept for a good chunk of the day, but they did get to see a bit of her smiling.  I only have 2 pictures from that day, so will have to get some more from Jean.
Emmery cuddling with her Aunt Amanda and Uncle John.

And getting fed by cousin Johnny.

On Tuesday Emmery and I headed down to Castle Rock to see Kelly and the boys in their new home.  Emmery was a lucky girl to be hanging out with two cute older boys, and I enjoyed seeing their new home which Kelly and Dane are quickly making beautiful with a little cleaning, paint, and love.  Here the three kids are together- Carter is sucking on a pacifier to be like a baby for the picture :)

On Wednesday Emmery had her 2 month well visit, which means she got her 2 month vaccinations... she cried a lot, took a nap, and then became very grumpy.  When Jamison got home she quit fussing for a little while to let him know how mean I was to her that day, and then the only way she would sleep that night is if I held her.  Poor thing.  Luckily after ~1.5 days she was back to her usual self.

On Friday we ran errands and got ready to head down to Denver and the Springs for the weekend.  So, I quickly took her 9 week old pictures as we were running out the door.  She could tell I was rushing her...