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So...here is an update on our sweetest little baby. This girl is amazing! Tim and I have to tell/show her something one time and she gets it! Our routine in the morning is when she wakes up she comes into our room while we get ready and she has her cup of juice on our bed. Well, this past week she as started asking for her juice the second we get into our room. She looks at me and says "juice". When she makes the "ce" sound she shows all her teeth. It is absolutely adorable. She also knows when something is hot...or things that make things hot. When you tell her soemthing is hot she blows. Whenever we walk into the kitchen she blows at the stove top and whenever we get something out of the microwave she blows...she also blows at the fireplace and candles (when lit). As you can see in my list below she has started to notice, and tell us, when her diaper is dirty. I can see an attempt at potty training in our near future. We are going to master walking before that though. She is a pro at throwing the ball back and forth. For a while there we were having a difficult time with meals...but I figured out the problem. She likes to use utencils! As you saw in one of my earlier posts...she loves to eat with her fork. So, every meal she gets utencils and eats way more than she would with just her fingers. She must not like getting dirty. Whenever I do an update like this I ALWAYS forget something! And I am sure I am now...but that is okay...you get the basic idea. Basically Emma is thriving, growing, learning, touching everyone's heart she comes in contact with....being the most wonderful baby Tim and I could have ever prayed for!

So here is my list of words and sounds she is making....again, I am probably forgetting some...I will edit if I think of more :) All of these words she says in relation to the object...so she GETS it... :)

Mama
dada
boo boos (when she has used the potty)
wee wee (when she as used the potty)
juice
bath
teeth
Bella (sounds like Belllttthhh)
Doo Doo for Duke
tutu
ball
George (for her monkey)
buddie (for her blanket)
down
done
diaper
bah (for things that are not for Emma)
baby
balloon (sounds like baooonnnn)
paw paw (Em’s dad)
moo ma (Tim’s mom)
doo da (Tim’s mom’s husband)
uh oh (even before she drops something but knows she is going to drop it)
bird


Meow when asked what a kitty cat says
woof woof (sounds like woo woo) when asked what a doggie says
baa baa when asked what a lamb says
grrrr when asked what a tiger/lion says
tweet tweet when asked what a birdie says
moo when asked what a cow says

And last but not least here is a video of Emma pointing out various body parts as well as her diaper :) Enjoy!
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In My Arms

This is a beautiful song. I heard it this morning on my way into work. I admit, it brought a few tears to my eyes. I could not help but think of Emma...of how, until the day I die, she will be safe in my arms–no matter what is going on around her. I want her to read these words after I am long gone and I want her to feel like she lived them.

So the really amazing thing about this song is how it can be sung from a parent/child perspective but also from a Father (capital “F”)/child perspective. Our Heavenly Father will always hold us tight~we will always be safe in His arms~He will always love us.

Plumb - In My Arms

From the album Blink

Your baby blues

So full of wonder

Your curly cues

Your contagious smile

And as I watch

You start to grow up

All I can do

Is hold you tight

Knowing……

Chorus:

Clouds will rage and

Storms will race in

But you will be safe

In my arms

Rains will pour down

Waves will crash around

But you will be safe

In my arms

Storybooks

Are full of fairytales

Of Kings and Queens

And the bluest skies

But my heart is torn

Just in knowing

You'll someday see

The truth from lies

When the……

Chorus:
Clouds will rage and

Storms will race in

But you will be safe

In my arms

Rains will pour down

Waves will crash around

But you will be safe

In my arms

Bridge:

Castles they might crumble

Dreams may not come true

But you are never all alone

Cause I will always

Always love you

25 Things

So for those of you on Face Book you know about this 25 random things note going around. Well, I have been tagged about a million times so I decided to type up my list. Since this blog is all about me putting my heart on my sleve for everyone to see....here it goes. My 25 random things about me list:

1. I asked Jesus into my heart in my early 20's and was baptized in a lake a few years after that.
2. I have a passion for photography.
3. I am so in love with my family....Tim and Emma. They fill my heart with joy.
4. I am obsessed with Christian recording artist, Chris Tomlin. I have traveled up and down the East Coast to see him in concert a hand full of times and have front row tix to see him in Winston Salem this April!
5. I LOVE that my sisters and I all have babies now. It is so amazing how that has brought us even closer.
6. I wish my dad lived closer to me (close enough just to hop in the car and see him whenever I want to).
7. I second guess myself with every parenting decision Tim and I make.
8. Tim and I have been on two cruises and plan on doing one every year–with Emma in tow. We LOVE it!
9. My first time flying was when I was 26...I flew at the age of 4 but don’t remember it.
10. I was born in Cleveland, Ohio.
11. I love my job and my boss...she is one of my closest friends. I actually got my job because I was my boss’ bank teller and she approached me one day asking me if I had ever considered being a paralegal....I have been at my job for 8 years.
12. Tim and I use to have a ferret and his name was Simon. He was awesome!
13. I cried my first day after middle school because my mom was not at my school anymore (she worked at my elem school).
14. I am very shy and not so outgoing....a personality trait I gave to my Emma...and I am ok with that.
15. I cherish the relationships I have made with fellow Christian women. Specifically those in BSF (Bible Study Fellowship).
16. My heart hurts for family members/friends who do not know the Lord...I want to see them in Heaven.
17. I want to do everything I can to make my marriage thrive. (It is the second most important relationship in my life)!
18. I met Tim when I was 15 and had a HUGE high school crush on him...and we started dating when I was 18...the rest is history.
19. I am a horrible house wife and wish I was better at it, i.e. cooking and cleaning
20. I love the seasons of North Carolina...they are just right.
21. I think time with family and extended family is so special!
22. I would love to have baby #2 but would be perfectly happy just having Emma.
23. I have to have one cup of coffee in the morning to function.
24. My sport in high school was swimming.
25. I love my husband so much...he is so amazing and works so hard for our family. He is also so wonderful with Emma...she loves her daddy so much. I could not get through a day without him.

Emma eating with a fork (sort of)

Pretty impressive if you ask me :)

Visit with Papa

So my dad came into town this past weekend with his wife, Sandi. Unfortunately, the reason they came in was for Sandi's father's funeral. Bryn and I attended Mr. Whitehurst's funeral and I am confident in saying that he has gone home to be with the Lord. I pray his family finds comfort in that during their time of grief.

~So on to the visit. Dad and Sandi along with Bryna and Noah came to our house for dinner Saturday night. Dad made some good comfort food...mac & cheese and meatloaf (made with turkey and chicken). Yummmm! Noah slept the whole time and Emma had a good time playing and visiting. Dad and Sandi brought Gipsy (their poodle)...so Emma had fun playing with another dog.

Enjoy the pictures :)

Dad with his two youngest grandbabies.

Emma with her Papa

Emma checking out Sandi's jewelry...she loves jewelry.

Emma and Gipsy

Aunt B and Emma (Noah is sleeping in that bean bag behind Emma)

Papa playing with Emma. There is nothing like seeing your own dad playing with your baby...it is amazing.

I love candid shots. This picture just makes me smile. Everyone looks so happy :)

Bryna has been complaining about needing a belt (good problem to have a month after having a baby!)

Tim and Emma do this thing where Tim holds Emma's hands and runs really fast with her...she loves it!

Good family fellowship :)

Something made her really silly....
Dad making dinner....his cooking is SO good!

Emma lovin' on Bella

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S~N~O~W

We had snow today in Raleigh, North Carolina! How fun!! This was Emma's first time experiencing snow and she loved it. We took her out first thing and then a little later in the day after a nap and lunch. We could not believe it...it just kept snowing and snowing. I think the official total was close to 6 inches. The snow was so pretty. I tried to capture some of the beauty with some photos, but it is hard to capture what you are seeing with your eyes with a camera. I am going to head out later to try to take some more photos of the scenery because a snow like this only happens once every several years here in NC. I also want to document Emma's first snowfall ever! So....enjoy the photos :)

Emma tasting snow
Our house and yard

A small pond behind our house...it was sort of frozen

These are on some horse trails behind our house. I loved how the snow stuck to all the branches...it was georgeous

Do you see Bella at the end of the trail....

We made sure to keep the bird feeders full for our friends

We really need to get a sled...Tim put Emma in a plastic tuperware bin :)

We also tried putting her on a cookie sheet. That is what we did when I was little :)

We had such a good day. There is nothing like having tons of fun in the snow and then heading inside to the fireplace and hot chocolate! It is also a bonus to have a day off of work to spend with my two most favorite people in the whole world!