Sharing

Emma loves to share. I've been working hard at making sure to properly reward her for sharing her toys and her food. Sometimes she picks things up from the floor and shoves them into my mouth wanting me to eat it and say "MMMmmmm." This isn't always ideal, but I really want to encourage her to give willingly and happily.

So that in mind, yesterday we had a church picnic. Of course Emma was fairly certain that it was being held in her honor. She knows everyone from church and everyone there loves her. These are the people who've helped me to make sure that my daughter is properly and thoroughly socialized. We were at the picnic for 5 hours or so and I didn't have to do a THING with my daughter. She was enjoying being passed around and loved on by everyone else. Even people who don't like babies usually take a turn at holding her and visiting with her. This is because she's never shy and loves to interact with people. She's a really fun baby to be around.

At one point, I looked up to see that she was visiting with Johann, I'd guess he's about my dad's age and he LOVES Emma. I think he adores her as much as Dave and I do. Johann was holding Emma up into the branches of a tree (she loves trees) and she was pulling maple leaves off and shoving them into his mouth. Johann did well, and thanked her for each leaf he was given. The most surprising thing was that he actually ate the leaves. Emma was delighted, and kept on sharing her leaves. I think the poor man must have eaten at least five.

Of Cars and Kisses!

Yesterday our little Butter-Sausage started giving kisses. While this should be endearing, it's is actually quite scary. Emma does not know how to "pucker" up for her kisses. Instead, she opens her mouth wide (displaying four sharp teeth!) and acts like she's about to bite your cheek. Thankfully, she doesn't actually bite. After pressing her open mouth against my cheek, she finishes up the kiss with an overly-enthusiastic "HONK" which isn't always safe for noses!

While we're on the topic of biting. Emma bit Daddy a few days ago. While this in itself is unremarkable, what happened next was (to us, anyway). Emma is teething and she's trying to help herself feel better by biting. She has been getting in trouble for biting Mommy, but she often forgets and has to be reminded that biting people is not acceptable. Daddy was at his computer the other day minding his own business. Emma was standing at his knee. She turned and bit him, but immediately realized that what she'd done. As Daddy jumped and started to yell. Emma put her head on his knee and started to whimper. Her bottom lip was even quivering. She was trying hard not to cry. I called Emma to me to comfort her. She came to me, but kept looking worriedly at Daddy who tried to smile at her and let her know that he wasn't angry anymore. After I set her back down, she crawled back to Daddy. She looked at the place on his knee where she'd bit him, and started gently patting it with her hand and cooing comfortingly. What a sweet little girl she can be!

Yesterday while we were outside swimming, Emma saw a car go by. This is not an extremely common occurrence on our road and Emma was quite impressed. She raised her hand to wave and yelled "Gar!" Not perfect, but a darn good attempt! She kept yelling "Gar, GAR" every few minutes while waiting for another vehicle to come down our road.

Lately Emma has been a joy to be around. This surprises me, as she's cutting several teeth at once. It's so much easier when she can start understanding what's going on around her. I used to think that she was extremely stubborn and strong-willed, but I've revised that opinion completely. What I had mistaken for obstinacy was really insatiable curiosity. Emma is very sensitive; she hates to get be in trouble. She also requires only verbal reprimand when she's doing something she shouldn't.

Of Teethers and Tools

Yesterday Emma's top teether finally cut through. I would have expected her to be miserable beforehand. But quite frankly, we've had a wonderful few weeks with her. She's been so happy and is learning so much.

This week Emma has been learning to use tools. A few days ago, I was brushing my hair. She asked for the brush and I gave it to her. She then proceeded to hold it upside-down while she "brushed" my hair. I was so proud of her.

Yesterday we introduced her to the use of a fork. I expected her to blunder a bit with it and eventually decide to pull the food off of the fork with her fingers before eating it. That's not what she did at all. I stabbed the food for her and then placed the fork on her high-chair tray with the handle facing toward her so she could grab it easily. She deftly picked the fork up and used it properly. I was pretty amazed, though I suppose the concept isn't entirely new to her. Dave and I have always fed her food off of our own forks.

Another "tool" Emma enjoys using is a little net she has for the bathtub. It came with a few floaty fish toys. She correctly understood that the net is for scooping fishies. She's gotten quite good at catching them. We clap for her every time she's successful.

My Baby the Vampire

A few days ago, I got up early (like always) with Emma. I sat her down in the kitchen while I prepared my breakfast. At some point I left the room for a few seconds (literally). When I came back, Emma was sitting on the back porch with the cat. She was very happy. I brought her back in and locked the door. I then sat Emma back down in the kitchen with her toys and ran to use the bathroom.

When I got back, Emma was once AGAIN out on the back porch with the cat (all I can figure is that the door didn't lock properly). This time, however Emma was covered in gore. She managed to find the raw chicken liver I tossed to the kitty a few hours earlier that same morning. My little daughter had the liver hanging out of her mouth. Her face was smeared with gore. Her hair was even sticky with it. When she saw me, she smiled and held out the (tiny) remaining piece of liver. I suppose it was an offering meant to placate the look of horror on Mommy's face. She smiled hugely and said, "MMMMMmm!"

10 Months Old!

This month went by pretty quickly. Emma is changing rapidly (as always). Last week we drove up to Detroit to visit Grandma and Grandpa. Since Emma is an intensely active child, I dreaded it more than words can describe. Thankfully, I dreaded it so much that no matter how badly she behaved, it'd be better than what I was prepared for. She actually did pretty well. She was almost perfect on the drive up, and on the drive home she was pretty crabby but we dealt with it just fine.

On Saturday in Detroit, we went to the zoo with Grandma and Grandpa. It was a long hard day for Emma. She enjoyed being out and about, but had no interest in the animals. She was most interested in the people. People are a lot more visually stimulating than animals are, especially on a hot day at the end of July. Grandma bought Emma a stuffed monkey to help her remember her first visit to the zoo. Emma loves it.

As far as developments go, I am increasingly amazed at Emma's problem-solving abilities. I don't know what is normal for a child her age, but watching Emma figure something out is rather amazing. For instance, I've been teaching her to turn the bathroom light off after her shower each day. She always remembers (even when I don't) to do it. Recently, she started recognizing OTHER light switches throughout the house. She always asks to turn them off. I'm proud of her for generalizing so well!

Another thing she's begun to do in earnest is climbing. Today I was lying on the couch and Emma was on the floor next to the couch asking me to pick her up. Instead, I got down on the floor with her. She immediately climbed up my leg and got HERSELF onto the couch like she originally wanted. She was extremely proud and laughed with delight in her accomplishment.

Other things Emma is doing right now:

Emma likes to hand me things. Sometimes while she's playing with her toys, she'll bring me one and place it in my hand. She wants the toy back immediately after handing it off.

Emma is bashful. This is not the same as being shy (I have almost no tolerance for real shyness. I tend to think shy behavior is the result of an under-socialized or coddled child), but when Emma meets someone new, she'll put her head on Mommy or Daddy's shoulder and smile at the newcomer. Sometimes she'll bury her face and peek every few seconds. She grins the whole time. I find it adorable. Emma will let the new person hold her immediately and without complaint but she prefers to gauge the new person's reactions before being passed off. I can't blame her for that!

We've discovered ONE food Emma doesn't much like. Bleu Cheese! I gave her a taste and although she ate it, she makes some pretty ugly faces. What amuses me is that no matter how many times I offer it, she still doesn't have the willpower to refuse. Silly baby!

Emma is learning to hold her breath. I've started dunking her completely under the water while in the pool. While I can't say she appreciates it (especially if she forgets to close her mouth!), she is certainly not frightened. I've been pouring bowls over water over her head since she was very tiny. As a result, water doesn't really phase her much. Now, as we're about to go under the water, she'll take a deep breath. I've heard that doing this will help her to be more safe in the pool. That seems to be true. When it comes to pool safety, I am doing my best to take no chances.

While I think Emma is still a few months away from actually walking, she has started to try to walk between two pieces of furniture without using any hands to support her. She can usually take one step before she falls. She keeps on trying!

Emma is still sipping water out of a drinking glass. She's neater about it than she used to be and I am greatly encouraged by her ability to do this. I am still hoping to skip the sippy-cup phase altogether.

Still breastfeeding. Emma is probably about 90% breastfed now as opposed to the 95% I was estimating last month. She is allowed to sample larger portions of Mommy and Daddy's meals. I am not yet allowing her to feed herself much at this point. I probably should start soon. She is very good at picking things up off the floor and eating them. Several weeks ago, she tried dog food. "MMMmmmm" she said. I'll take her word for it.

This month, Emma seems to have back-pedaled a little with her talking. "Ish" has changed to "yes" so that is an improvement. She has hardly said her other words (Daddy, Hey, Hi, Ok) at all. She still likes to sing. The song I've been singing to her most often is this "That's What Faith Must Be", by Michael Card. I hope she holds this song close to her heart when she's older and more able to understand it.

Michael Card
Galatians 3 & Romans 3:22

Chorus
To hear with my heart
To see with my soul
To be guided by a hand I cannot hold
To trust in a way that I cannot see
That's what faith must be

When the universe fell from His fingertips
He decided He wanted some fellowship
But the man and the woman would not submit
So He made a better way
When the moment was right He sent His own Son
And He opened the way so that everyone
Could have hope and believe that when time was done
He'd be able to make us one

Chorus

Now I understand that there is a key
It's Jesus in me, a reality
That God is in Christ and that Christ's in me
That with faith I see what is unseen

Chorus

That's what faith must be