Happy 1st Birthday: Part 2

Prior to singing happy birthday and eating lots of cupcake Emma opened her many gifts from family and friends.  Emma is one loved little girl and she is very thankful for all of the gifts she received!  Thanks Micah for helping Emma open her gifts and thank you to everyone for the gifts and for celebrating Emma's special day with her!


It's my birthday!!!



Emma is ready for the beach! 

 

Emma's mini hippo pillow pet which she absolutely loves to snuggle with!

ooohhhh wrapping paper!  Thanks Micah for the help!

Thanks Granpa and Gramma C for the clothes!  

 

Thanks Papa and Grandma G for my own handmade blocks!

 

Micah and Emma, SO cute!



Happy 1st Birthday Emma!

On February 4th, 2012 Emma Mae Grunenfelder turned 1 year old.  Kent and I are so amazed at how fast this year has gone by.  We can hardly believe our 7 lb 18 1/2 inch baby is now a 20 lb 29 inch toddler.  Emma Mae spent her special day with her family and close friends.  We are so thankful our family and friends were able to join us in celebrating Emma's 1st birthday.  It definitely made her day even more special.

For Emma's 1st birthday we had a cupcake themed party.  I made a large cupcake for Emma to eat by herself and made small cupcakes for the guests.  In preparation for the birthday party I wanted to make sure the large cupcake would be a success, so I decided I would make the cupcake a week in advance.  This cupcake was also used for Emma's cake smash photography session.  Well, this was quite the adventure for me.  I actually ended up making 4 large cupcakes in one week.  The first cupcake I made did not bake all the way through, so I had to make a second one for the cake smash.  After changing the recipe I once again made a 3rd cupcake.  Well, that one apparently decided it did not want to bake either.  So, for my 4th attempt I used a different cake batter and thankfully it was a success.  Thanks to my aunt Cheryl I was able to frost the cupcake using professional cake decorating supplies which made decorating much easier. 



Final Birthday Cupcake


I was very thankful that we had Emma participate in a cake smash photography session prior to her party because it gave Emma a chance to get acquainted with the cupcake.  For her party she was not nearly as hesitant to eat the cupcake as she was at the cake smash.  Once she started to dig in she absolutely loved it.  It also helped that her friend Micah was digging in as well!



Singing Happy Birthday to Emma!

  

Hmmm... I think I remember this!

  

Yup I remember this!  So does Micah!

 

YUMMY!



Emma did a pretty good job eating her cupcake!



11 Months

It is amazing how fast children grow up.  I know Emma is still little, but every time Kent and I see families with brand new babies Emma does not seem so little anymore.  She has grown so much in the past 11 months.  We still can not believe that she will be one in a month.  Lately we have been making more of an effort to walk with her throughout the house to encourage her to walk on her own.  It does not seem to be working though.  Since she is able to move so well by crawling she does not seem to want to walk.  At 11 months Emma absolutely loves to listen and dance to music.   Emma has also cut her 3rd tooth and is working on her 4th.  I learned recently that one of Emma's favorite things to do is play on the swing set.  I have never heard Emma laugh and giggle so hard.  Kent and I decided that she definitely needs her very own swing set.  We are so thankful to have such a healthy little girl and are so excited to celebrate her 1st birthday!

Here is a video of Emma swinging at the park!

10 Months

At 10 months Emma is cruising around the house from chairs to coffee table to couch.  She is really enjoying her new ability to walk while holding onto sturdy objects.  While visiting family during Christmas Emma learned how to climb up stairs at her grandparent's house.  Kind of scary for mommy, but I am thankful we do not have any stairs in our home.  She has also started standing on her own, however it is not for very long.  She tends to stand by her self when both of her hands are full, but once she realizes she is not holding on to anything she sits down.  Below are a few pictures of Emma at 10 months. 

Disney On Ice

Every year I see the commercial for Disney On Ice and I have always wanted to go.  I have never been able to go due to school or other priorities.  Well, this year neither Kent nor I are in school so I thought it would be fun to take Emma.  Well Kent did not really want to go, so I decided to ask my friend Annie if she would want to go with her daughter Lilly.  Lilly just turned one so I thought it would be a great birthday gift for her.  We had so much fun with the girls.  Lilly stayed awake the entire show and Emma was awake for about 2/3 of it.  I definitely hope we can make this a tradition and go every year. 



 



The girls at lunch!

 



They are already such good friends!



All of the girls at Anthony's before the show!

Thank you Annie and Lilly for spending the day with us.  Emma and I had so much fun!

Emma's First Christmas Tree: Part 2

Well, once we moved the tree into the house we realized it was once again slightly too tall.  After cutting about a foot off of the bottom and trimming the top it fits perfectly in our home.  Emma was not as curious about the tree as I thought she would be when we first put it up, but once we hung the lights and ornaments she was definitely more interested.  We made sure to put all of the non-breakable ornaments on the bottom so she could take them off, which she seems to enjoy doing.  Kent and I are really enjoying watching Emma as she experiences new things such as Christmas trees and ornaments.  Emma definitely reminds us of what Christmas is all about and we are so thankful for her. 



Emma wearing her Christmas tutu Auntie Laura bought her!

 

Mommy and Emma hanging ornaments!

 

Mommy and Emma

 

Our stockings!



Our beautifully finished Christmas Tree!

 

Kent and I made our stockings for our first Christmas together and this year we made one for Emma!