ISH!

Emma's newest word is "ish". She says it very deliberately. Dave and I have been trying very hard to figure out what it means. We're pretty sure she is saying "yes", but she also got to see several different aquariums this week and seemed pretty fascinated. She says "ish" frequently while watching the fish swim.

Emma is also GREATLY enjoying her stroller. We don't use it very often. She used to hate being in it. Now, she's content to sit quietly and watch the world go by. This makes Mommy very happy and makes it more enjoyable to go places.

Emma is still eating EVERYTHING we put on her plate. This week, she got to eat ground rattlesnake, and also some elk steak. She loved both. It is such fun to let her taste new things. She is always so eager and appreciative.

Another thing Emma has learned just today (after days of practice) is to flip the switch to turn lights on and off. It took a bit for Emma to realize that slapping the switch never worked. It was hard for her to learn to grasp the switch and know when to push it and when to pull it. Her success is a big accomplishment and has taught her a lot.

Dave and I have been using the principals of operant conditioning to teach Emma to mind. It is a proven science and has been successful. We do try to avoid using positive punishment whenever possible, but I think Dave and I both agree that there is a time and place for such (like when Emma used to play with the electric outlets). We do utilize negative reinforcement, negative punishment, and positive reinforcement as the need arises.

Read up on this before you make any judgement calls concerning our parenting skills. I am not particularly fond of having people read the term "negative reinforcement" and flipping out.

A thorough explanation can be found here.

Pool Party!

Last night we had a pool party in celebration of a friend's birthday. We had 10 adults and 2 children (including the Butter Sausage) present. Emma had a blast. She'd never before been in the pool with anyone other than Mommy and Daddy. She was very brave and loved splashing, and enjoyed having the guests take turns passing her around. Daddy and his friends did lots of wrestling in the pool and it was all very exciting to Emma. I don't know how long we were all out there, but I'd guess we spent more than an hour enjoying ourselves. Needless to say, the infant slept well last night and her sleepiness even carried over into today. I think we need to have MORE pool parties in the future!

On an unrelated note, our little girl has been learning to clap this week. Her attempts are uncoordinated and very cute. Mommy and Daddy are SO proud!

The attached picture is of Emma asking Mommy to help her down the stairs. She needs her favorite toy!

9 Months Old!

Emma turned 9 months old on the 3rd of this month. She enjoys playing with new toys, swimming in the bathtub and waving at people. This month, she's also started playing peek-a-boo. She has also experienced some back-pedaling when it comes to sleeping through the night. The biggest reason for this is because Dave and I turned off our window air-conditioner in our bedroom since the weather has been a little cooler. That means, I can hear Emma more easily when she wails. With the A/C on, I tend to not hear her.

Right now, Emma's two favorite foods are garlic-guacamole (I make this for her) and chocolate ice-cream (in teeny-teeny amounts, probably 1 tsp sized serving), she also enjoys Baba Gannouj (it is a hummus-like dip that also includes cooked, whipped eggplant. Mommy loves it too!). We still haven't discovered a food she doesn't like. If I were forced to pick something that might be her least favorite, I'd probably go with green beans.

Her favorite toys are the brightly-colored toys that form a chain when you link them together (I don't know what they're called, but they are pictured in a previous post). She loves these because they're easy to hold, the tabs at one end are great for chewing on, they also float in water. There is a hole at one end that she likes to use to scoop water up. She then pours the water into her mouth, or on herself. What fun!

Here's the break-down:

Emma still enjoys singing, and is starting to add different vocalizations to her "songs". I find this utterly adorable. Emma and I sing together all day long. Singing is a normal thing for us.

Emma understands what "No!" means, but we aren't always guaranteed compliance. Many times, she grins and tests again.

Emma can go down the stairs. Some days she's fearless about doing so, but other times she sits on the edge of the stairs and makes noises to let Mommy and Daddy know she needs rescued.

Emma has been more cuddly. Lately, she has been very into Mommy, and frequently asks to be picked up and cuddled. She's never been a very affectionate baby, so this new behavior is both surprising and very welcome.

Emma can now sit in the high-chairs at restaurants. She's been able to do this to some degree for awhile, but now Mommy and Daddy don't have to keep one hand on her to make sure she doesn't slip out. For purposes other than safe driving, we are carrying her car-seat with us less and less often. It's a nice change.

Emma eats every 2 hours or so. She is still eating about 95% breast milk. Every day she is allowed to be hand-fed a TINY sampling of everything Mommy and Daddy have. She loves this and seems to be thriving and content. I much prefer this to offering her cereal or crackers to snack on. I really don't think it's a good idea for parents to be feeding such things to kids. Especially as a large part of their diet.

Emma can put one hand on the furniture (for balance) and walk all the way around her. She is a mobile little beast!

Emma has two teethers. She has her bottom two teeth now, and is enjoying using them to bite off bits of a larger portion of food that Mommy and Daddy offer her.

Emma is marginally afraid of thunder. Mommy and Daddy take her outside to watch and enjoy the thunderstorms. She doesn't mind this, but does show some fear if she's alone in her crib when the storm hits.

Emma has learned that she doesn't like to pray! Mommy and Daddy insist on saying grace before each meal. This is hard for Emma. She wants to eat the food right away! No waiting allowed! We also pray with her before we place her in her crib at night. She's quickly learning that praying means she has to wait for her food, or that she's going to bed. Mommy and Daddy aren't gonna budge when it comes to saying Grace. We are, however going to pray with her before we take her into her bedroom at night. It's funny what kids pick up on sometimes.

Fireworks and Swimming!

Last night we took Emma to a get-together to watch some small-town fireworks. I was prepared for her to be a bit nervous about the noise, but she wasn't bothered in the least. She enjoyed seeing the colors in the sky, but the duration between fireworks was too long for her and she'd end up focusing on something else. She stayed up much later than normal to watch them with us, and by the time the finale started, she was wiped.

Earlier today, Daddy decided to take a dip in the pool. We were excited to take Emma for her first swim. She LOVES swimming in the bathtub, so we anticipated good things. The only thing I was concerned about was whether the cold water would bother her. She did not let us down. She was absolutely fine. She even played with some pool toys and splashed a bit.