Birthday preparations

I don't know if I've mention before how much of a planner I am. I prefer to have every event, vacation, weekend planned down to the minute. Well, maybe I'm not that bad, but you get my point. For several weeks now, I have been planning Emma's 1st birthday party. Ok, ok, for months I have been planning Emma's birthday party. Or at least thinking about it.

I have FINALLY made some decisions and I though I might share them with you all, wonderful readers of the Emma blog.

Since her party will be ON Halloween, the party will be Halloween-esque. No ghost and goblins hanging from the ceiling, but we will acknowledge the holiday by using Halloween-y colors (purple, orange, and lime green) and the guests will be in costume (ADULTS INCLUDED). That is mainly because the Little Bitties don't have a big chance to wear their costumes and this party will be an excuse to wear it twice, and because I like to humiliate my family and friends and make them wear costumes! Clinton and I will also be in costume... yes, we have already picked them out. Yes, it is still August.

I have spent hours on my favorite website, etsy.com, and Emma is going to have 2, count 'em... 1, 2... custom outfits. I doubt both will be worn at the party, but one will be used as her costume for trick or treating. I'll post pictures when I get them!

I have been working with some great vendors on etsy to make Emma's party super special and fun... I kind of want to keep it secret, but I CAN'T... here is the samples I got back for her party supplies....

Invitation Sample

Top- Favor Tag

Bottom- Cupcake Toppers (will be on sticks)

I hate to share my secrets, but...

these were made by a very nice lady, Jeniene, who worked with me to make everything exactly how I wanted it! Check out her etsy shop, Ciao Bambino
http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5303590

That's all I'm going to share for now... there's so much more to come! My baby is going to be ONE!

Adventures in Eating...

Corn on the cob- so fun!



I think it felt good on her gums!

And guess where we found corn later.... gross!

Basgetti! (Or spaghetti if you don't speak baby)

I'm making a mess, Mommy!

A big mess!

Tam Tam turns 5!

August 4th was Kamryn's 5th birthday! His party was on Aug. 8th! This was the first birthday party that we've taken Emma to that she really knew something was going on. It was fun!

The Birthday Boy

Kamryn!!

The horses went to the bathroom on the cake!! Yes, Trishia & I did it! LOL!

Gimme!

Aunt T put cookies in the pinata just for Emmy!

Emma Goes to the Zoo

On August 2nd, we took Emma to the zoo for the first time. We went to Caldwell Zoo in Tyler. It was great.... it was hot, but it was really fun. Emma really did have fun. She didn't see ALL the animals, if they were far off and not moving around she couldn't figure out what we were pointing at!

Eating yummy ice cream!!

Emma pointed at the leopard and said "Cat"! Then he stood up, and she was like "WHOA!"

Watching Daddy feed the ducks! Emma says "Duck" now, too!

Crafty Mamas

I made some more clippies for Jaci and Necah.

In the first picture, the first two is "John Deere" or as close as I could get. Can you believe I couldn't find John Deere green ribbon?!?! The next two are for Dailee! In the second picture, the first one is Dailee's pink clippie. The green and pink clippies are for Necah to give as a gift!



Jaci is pretty crafty herself! She makes onesies and bows. She made Emma an outfit! Isn't it cute!

To check out more of Jaci's creations (and her beautiful little girl!!) take a look at her blog!!

http://jacilynnpostell.blogspot.com/

Stressful Times

I haven't posted in a little while. There is a reason for that. I have been trying to get ready to take my Texes exams. I took Mathematics 8-12 on Saturday (July 18) and EC-4 Generalist on Monday (July 20). I have spent the prior week studying as much as I could trying to get ready. I've had some distractions (see below) and honestly, its hard to teach yourself all the math you learned in high school (algebra, geometry, calculus, trig, and number theory). I got the results today. I failed the math test :(! What really sucks is that I didn't fail by much. I almost wish I had just bombed it! BUT I passed the EC-4 Generalist test!! Now just to try to find a job opening.

Well, we've had another round of ear infections. We are still battling it actually. I think Emma might have had a whole 3 days of healthy ears. Then "Super Cranky Baby" came back! She was so sick. It is so hard to see her like that. This time the doctor said that if her ears are not 100% better in two weeks (July 27), we are going to go see the specialist about putting tubes in her ears. I'm conflicted about this, but I know that they will make her feel better! I do not want her to feel this bad again if I can help it!

Here is Emma snuggling with her Daddy after her doctor appointment.

Poll

Please tell me your opinion-

Emma is our "Little Pumpkin" born on Halloween... so her first Halloween costume has to be special. Here are a couple of costumes I like... yes its early! I'm a planner, so what!

[Note: this will NOT be the outfit she wears for her birthday party. I'm planning something special for that ;)]

Candy Corn Princess...

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=mt&listing_id=27594652

Bandstand Baby...

http://www.onestepahead.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=379762&parentCategoryId=85179&categoryId=97179&subCategoryId=117290

Clippies! Injuries?

Clippies

When Emma was born, we had one pacifier clip that I really liked. It wasn't "too much" as I like to say. Well, as most baby things, it got dirty. Then it got washed. Then it got broke. I was pretty bummed about it. So I set out on a journey to make my own. I've done some experiments and I will keep trying new things, but so far I've got some that work pretty good. Now, I'm making them for anyone who might want one. I have a lot more colors of ribbons and beads than what is shown and I can probably get anything! Tell your friends...

Girly colors...the first two are personalized.

Baseball!

Neutral colors...

Cool thing- if the beads/ letters are neutral, I can make extra ribbons to be switched out!

Injuries?

Yesterday on the way home from work, my knee started to ache. Then I noticed it was swelling. What I have I done now?? I have been known to walk into walls, furniture, and doorways. I really don't remember hurting my knee, but honestly sometimes I don't remember my name. Fast forward to this morning. The knee was still swollen when I woke up, but not really hurting. I got up, got ready, got Emma ready (mornings are a production), then left to drop Em off. By the time I got to Sherri's house, my knee was throbbing pretty good. I couldn't even imagine trying to drive all the way to Pittsburg. I went to see the doctor. Since there was no "known" injury to my knee, there wasn't a whole lot to go on. She gave me some anti-inflammatory medicine, told me to wear a brace, and put it up with ice. If it's not better by Monday, I will need an X-Ray and possibly have to go to an Ortho to have it drained...eeek! Its the right one btw! The left knee is fat from calories and genes! Disclaimer: This is after sitting with it up for a little while.

One Amazing Husband

So after a long, busy weekend, I really needed to study for the TExES exam that I am taking next Saturday. Clinton told me he would watch Emma while I studied. He, also, cooked supper, did laundry, and cleaned the kitchen!

Broke my heart, Emma kept trying to climb up on the couch with me while I studied!

Clinton playing with Em!

Eating grape (sugar-free) popsicles with Daddy !

Clinton smoking his meat!!

Adding his homemade BBQ sauce...

Lotsa meat... and a finished plate. It was definitely a "Clinton" meal... meat and potatoes! It was delicious!