Family Visit...

This week Chelle's uncle Steve and aunt Carol came to Dallas for a visit. Emory was so happy to meet them and show off all the things she has learned how to do.
We took Steve and Carol to have some tex-mex at Chuy's. It was Emory's first restaurant experience. She did very well up until the end. No yummy queso for her yet, someday soon.Chelle and Emory at Chuy's.Emory was so glad that Steve and Carol could come visit her. She showed them her friend the ceiling fan.Of course Grant and uncle Rhino played guitar hero. Steve and Carol even played, but we promised there would be no pictures of them playing the guitar.Emory getting cozy with Steve and Carol.Steve is very handy and helpful around the house. We didn't think we needed to work on anything but found our the gas start to our fireplace needed some work. One trip to Lowe's and Steve and Grant fixed it. We have enjoyed many fires since then. Carol was busy too, cooking a delicious roast. Mmmm. We all miss the good home cooking that we grew up with.Thank you so much Steve and Carol for a great visit!! We are so glad you got to come down to see where we live and meet little Emory. We can't wait until the family reunion in July!!!!

Hanging Out At The Gym

Emory really enjoys her play gym. The boppy puts her in the perfect position to bat at the bee and see the butterfly. She starts kicking like a mad woman when the music starts.
Oh so excited for play time!!
We tried to get a picture of Emory hitting the bee, but she is too fast for us.

These are a few of my favorite things...

Emory has been much more attentive lately and we learned a few things that she likes.

This butterfly is on her play gym. It lights up and plays music which Emory is fascinated with. We take this toy with us when we go places just because it does the trick to calm her down.
While Chelle is feeding Emory, she often stares off at this chick. We think its the orange feet, but we really have no idea.
Emory's last favorite thing is the ceiling fan. We know most babies like lights but it doesn't matter if the light is on, she still just stares at it. We have even caught her smiling at the fan. You might say it's Emory's best friend right now.

Just to prove the level of infatuation, here is what she looks like while looking at the fan.

Silly Girl

Chelle thought it had been awhile since we posted some pictures of our silly little girl, so here is what she has been up to. She has so many expressions and none are as good in pictures as they are in person.

Grant having fun with Emory while Chelle was gone. You might say she has some chubby cheeks:
She had started doing this face where she sucks on her bottom lip. We have no idea why.
We love to get smiles!!
This is Emmy's expression when she remembers we have a ceiling fan. Serious concentration:Chelle has a small objection to how the voting has been going from the last post. Look at this baby. Those cheeks, those eyes, that chin!! How can that not be from her?!?

Who do I look like?

Recently we found more baby pictures of ourselves and we have been debating about who Emmy looks more like. So see for yourself and let us know what you think on the survery!!

Grant at 7 weeks (Emmy is just over 5):
Chelle at birth:
We know this one is random but here is Ryan at birth (Chelle's brother):
Grant at birth:Chelle at a few months:
Grant at one month:
Chelle at 2-3 months:

What's in a name?

When talking about what to name the baby we knew that we liked the idea of using family names. We asked both parents for a list of names from both sides and while some names were funny, like Mercy Mae, we liked what we had to work with. We decided to use the name Emory for either the first or middle name whether it was a boy or girl. Emory is named after Chelle's grandpa, Emory "Mick" Bensen (pictured below). We also decided to use the name Jane because we both had grandma's with Jane as their middle name: Betty Jane Zimmerman and Lela Jane Dess.

Hanging out with Mom

This week is the first full week that Chelle has been home alone with Emory. Overall things have gone well, excluding another growth spurt which makes Emory less sleepy and fussy. But luckily the weekend is here and Grant will be home.

The first pictures is what Chelle was brought home from the hospital in. Emory wasn't into playing dress up, so Chelle took what she could get. Thanks for bringing it down Grandma Zimmerman!

Chelle keeps Emory busy with plenty of tummy time. She is getting strong with lifting up her head. Emory has also discovered a love of Mozart thanks to Nanny Dess who gave her a baby Einstein cd.

She gets very tired after all our play time. How sweet is she!?!

Emory went for her first stroller ride this week. It's been so nice here we thought she would enjoy the outdoors. As you can see she was really excited by the whole thing.

Happy One Month Birthday!!

Emory had her doctor's appointment Thursday and now weighs an even 9 pounds, which moves her from the 20% percentile to the 50%. She is now 20 3/4 inches long.

Top Ten Moments of the First Month

10. Umbilical cord falling off. That thing was gross.

9. Hitting 9 pounds at the one month checkup.

8. Changing to Size 1 diapers.

7. Emmy peeing clear off the changing table.

6. Her first trip to the grocery store. No crying, no talking to anyone, just groceries.

5. Going for her first stroller ride (just yesterday). She slept the whole time.

4. Opening the piles of Christmas presents that Emory got. Thanks to everyone who contributed!

3. Sleeping in the crib at night, rather than in Mom & Dad's room.

2. Emory hit the trifecta. "Sneeze, Burp, Toot" in rapid progression.

1. Meeting her grandparents for the first time.

I Feel Pretty...

We would have never thought that our daughter would be wearing a hot pink tutu, but here she is. Even though we prefer jeans and t-shirts, we have to admit she looks adorable. Grant didn't want the tutu at first, but just look at her. Get her ballet shoes ready.

Grandma Zimmerman gave Emory this beautiful outfit. Including the sparkly silver shoes!! The dress is still big but we thought it was time to get some pictures in it.

Grandma also gave Emmy a pretty bracelet with her birthstone. What a lucky little lady!!