happy 7 months, Emily!

We had a lot of holiday fun as Emily's 7 month birthday came around and I realized how much more we're learning about our little girl. Here's a list of new (or maybe not so new) fun facts about Em:

• Emily loves, absolutely LOVES oatmeal. (We really need to post a video of her downing it!) She can't gobble it up fast enough.
• The higher, the better. Em loves to be lifted high into the sky--and even enjoys riding on mama's shoulders from time to time.
• Hair's coming in, slowly but surely. The exact color is tbd.
• Emily is still an an outdoor gal. She loves going on walks, exploring the backyard, and hanging out on our deck. Daddy just bought her a swing to hang from a tree branch, which will combine her love of the outdoors and heights. Perfect match!
• Emily is still an amazing sleeper.
• When we are on a shopping outing and Em's at her crankiest, Matt's still able to get a giggle out of her by steering her stroller into something (a wall, a display case, a cart) and saying "Whoops, sorry!" This always elicits a hearty laugh from Emily - crazy Daddy!

houston, we have a tooth

See that white little bump on the right side of Emily's lower gum?

visitors

So. Last night around 1am we had some new friends pay us a visit. Amy and I woke up to hear a weird scraping sound outside. Adrenaline kicks in and we are suddenly fully awake and turning the deck light on. Four raccoons are all taking turns grabbing sunflower seeds from our bird feeder which is now laying on the deck. While three of them are fighting to grab the next seeds, one is wandering around our herb gardens looking for bugs or other tasty items. Knocking on the window got their attention but only for a short time; fearing a crazier situation if I opened the door and tried to swat at them with something, I stood there watching until they lost interest and went down the steps to terrorize another neighbor.

It was a little difficult to fall asleep afterwards.

-M

oatmeal

Emily loves oatmeal.

I think she gets it from her Mom.

Before her 1pm nap, we feed her a little bit of baby oatmeal mixed with milk and she can't get enough. In contrast to the rice cereal, we can't feed her fast enough. It is very cute and we're ecstatic that she's taking to "solid" food quite well. Recommendations on the next food we have her try? We're thinking sweet potatos or avocado.

-M

ready for winter

time to get up

one of Emily's favorite ways to wake up after a nap.

our new front porch roof

This fall has served as our first foray into the world of home repair involving contractors. We hired a local contractor to replace our severely rotted out front porch roof. Here are a couple pictures of during and after. What's not shown in the bottom picture is a nice ceiling that was added with ventilation.

Next up? New gutters. Our original wooden 1940's gutters are all rotted out. Hopefully we'll get them taken care of before the rainy season really gets into full swing.

Then we can paint everything in one shot.

-M