Emily's First Trip to White Water

We didn't know if Emily would enjoy going to White Water this summer, so we weren't going to plan a trip until next year. Her Uncle Andy was dying to have her come and play at the park, so we decided to do a little test run of White Water for a few hours. Needless to say, she loved it! We could have easily stayed longer. We ended up going back a couple of weeks later. Here are a few pictures (and a video!) of her first trip:

 

 

Happy 2nd Birthday to Emily!

Our sweet little friend turned two on July 18th. It's hard to believe that two years have passed since this beautiful little girl joined us! She has made us a family, and made each day more interesting and fun!

Emily had her family and friends join her at nearby Gary Pirkle Park for a Sesame Street themed party. We love this park because the playground is covered, and we were able to rent the pavilion nearby to offer our guests some shade. It was a beautiful day, and we really got to enjoy spending time with everyone that loves our little girl. Here are a few more pictures that our friends snapped from the party:

 

 

 

Here are some of our favorite things from this month:

* When asked how old she is, Emily will say, "No two...three!"
* She's back on track with her nap schedule again! Woohoo!
* She loves to have her toenails painted by her Aunt Nadine
* She has started to sleep with a stuffed animal. Her favorites are kitty cat and baby bear.
* Emily will describe things as "perfect!"
* She's starting to recognize letters and will ask "What letter is that?"
* We have turned her car seat around and she loves it! She will tell us when we are "almost there" or when we pass "BIG trucks!" She also keeps requesting to drive...oh boy!
* She is obsessed with birthdays and asked me all month about when she was going to share cake with her friends and blow out the candles. Needless to say, she was a pro by the time her party came around!

Something that Fouad wants to remember...

Fouad wanted me to make a short post about our bedtime routine so that we can remember it when we look back and read this years later.

Emily loves when Fouad sings "Hotel Yorba" by the White Stripes as her bedtime lullabye, but she calls it "Watching" or "Daddy's Song." Mommy can only sing "Mommy's Song" AKA "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse" (lucky me...) or sometimes "The Way You Look Tonight." Emily gets her favorite flower print blanket and the stuffed animal of the moment (right now it is Baby Bear) and she lays her head on our chest while we sit in the rocking chair and sing. When we finish singing she is usually exhausted and ready for bed. She gives a big hug and a big kiss, we put her down, she makes sure we cover her up, and then we say "Goodnight Emmy." She'll look up and say, "Sweet dreams?" and we say, "Sweet dreams!" Then she does the same thing with "I love you Emmy?" Then we close the door, and she is a perfect angel for the rest of the night. We do this the exact same way every night!

Happy Father's Day, Daddy!

We enjoyed celebrating Father's Day with Fouad. Here are some of his favorite moments:

Snuggle time in bed - Daddy & his girls

Emily & the cookie cake she made for Daddy at Publix

Happy Father's Day! Cookie?

Pool time with Papa

Emily loves to splash and play in the pool with her Papa! Here's a picture and video of the fun that they had:

Play time with Teta & Jido

Here's a few pictures of Emily enjoying some time with her Teta & Jido recently:

 

23 Months

We're a little late posting Em's 23 month update. What a month! We had a rough time adjusting back to reality after Cancun, and Emily had a hard time adjusting to her regular schedule after being spoiled by her grandparents for almost a week. We survived, and here are some memorable moments from this month:

* Emily has started to love the color blue. Whenever she has a choice, she always asks for "blue one!"

* Em experienced her first major thunderstorm with hail. She took it very well. We watched the lightening and hail and listened to the thunder out our back window. She would say, "Hear it? Thunder?" So sweet!

* She has started to sing entire songs including Frere Jaques, ABCs, and Baby Beluga.

* Emily had a MAJOR nap strike this month. I'm happy to say we are back on track with her sleeping, but there were times where I thought we wouldn't get there.

* Emily has learned the word "only" and uses it regularly. For instance, she will demand "Mickey ONLY!" when we watch tv.

* Some of our other favorite words this month were "maybe" "baby suit" (instead of bathing suit), and "Look at me Mommy!" Also, Emily wished me a happy birthday which was wonderful!

* Our sweet girl has started dance class and is loving it! Here are a couple of videos: