Swimming Lessons

Emerson took swimming lessons for two weeks at the Kent City pool this summer. She was much more willing to put her face in the water, put her head under, and more comfortable swimming than she was last year! Miss Sarah was a great teacher :-)

Meeting Cousin Maggie

We traveled to Chicago to meet Emerson's newest cousin Maggie this spring and see big brothers Noah and Koen.  Emmie spent lots of time snuggling with and holding Maggie--good practice for this soon-to-be big sister!

Emerson picked out a stuffed dog to buy for Maggie that is identical to one that she has. She knew she loved hers and thought Maggie would too :-)

Spring Soccer

Emerson played AYSO spring soccer this year for the first time. She was on the U5 team with a few of her buddies and our friends Pedro and Mike as her coaches.  They learned lots of basics at their weekly practices and ended each practice with a little scrimmage against each other or against the parents.  She had lots of fun but says next year she wants to play basketball instead :-)

Ava and Emerson celebrating the end of their season with ice cream!

Preschool

Emerson attended 4 year old preschool this year every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoon with Mrs. Natalie.  She loved it and looked forward to going everyday.  The thing she liked best about school was playing with her friends at recess and inside. She made lots of friends, improved her listening skills, learned lots of new songs, and learned to read!

Above is a picture of her on her first day in September.

Here she is on her last day of preschool in May. She wanted her nails painted and hair curled for her last day :-)

The Graduate!

The belly seems to be growing faster this time around!

Here is a pic of my growing belly around 14 weeks (Feb. 25)

And here is a picture at 25 weeks (May 16)

We're having a boy!

Wow, I have been such a blog slacker :-(

So much has happened since my last blog post way back in June...we enjoyed a wonderful summer, we moved to a new home in the country just before school started, Emmie started preschool and turned 5, and then just after Christmas we found out that we are expecting another baby!

Baby Boy Mayra is due around August 29, 2013. He is a very active little guy already and didn't pose well for his 20 week ultrasound pictures! Here are a few for you anyway:

Spring Family Fun

Again, I am attempting to document a few of the fun things we've done lately--way after the fact, but better late than never :-)  We went with our friends Dan, Tracy, and Jayce to a Grand Rapids Griffins hockey game.  It was Star Wars night, which Emerson and Nick both loved.  She got a red light saber souvenir and got to talk to Princess Leia!  She was all smiles all night long.

 Nick and I took Emerson to the Shrine Circus when it came to town this spring.  When we asked her what she was most excited to see there (thinking she would say "lions" or "elephants") she said "Cotton Candy"!  Then when she sat down in her seat and started eating it, she declared that it felt like dog fur, but it tastes much better :-)

 One Friday afternoon, we discovered that a carnival had come to town. We hopped in the car and headed there for an evening of games, rides, and fair food (mmm....elephant ears)!  The highlight for Emerson was definitely the awesome trampoline in the video below.  Our girl has lots of energy and LOVES to jump!

Gymnastics

Emerson just completed a 16 week session of gymnastics at Grand Rapids Gymnastics.  She loved her "Tumblebugs" class!  Her coach set up lots of fun circuits for the girls to complete to practice different skills each week.  She really enjoyed the balance beams, foam pits, and trampolines :-)  She had a great time each week and made lots of new friends.  She will be starting her next sessions (Tumblebugs 2) next week already!

This video is from one of her very first classes: what she lacks in focus she makes up for in enthusiasm :-)

And a video from her last class.  Her gymnastics and listening skills both improved! :-)

Receiving her certificate from Coach Aimee

Emerson and her friend, Hayden

We <3 our spunky little, gymnast!

Emerson's 4th Christmas

Wow, how is it that I haven't put any Christmas pictures on this blog and it is now March!?!  I knew I was behind but this is pretty bad!  

Christmas was so wonderful this year! Emerson was so excited about everything we did and wanted to help with the decorating, baking, wrapping, shopping, etc.  We got to stay home this year and my parents came over to stay with us for a few days.  On Christmas Eve, we had a yummy fondue dinner and then got to go to our church's Christmas Eve service (we've never been home to do that before) and then came home and had Christmas cookies before bed. On Christmas Day, we celebrated at our house and then went to my sister's house to have a delicious dinner and open gifts with her family.  It was so nice, relaxing, and fun to be in our own home celebrating the holidays. 

Decorating Christmas cookies

Emmie and Dad made a gingerbread house together

With Grandma & Grandpa Ross on Christmas Eve

Our family on Christmas Eve

Cookies and chocolate milk for Santa, carrots for his reindeers :-)

Christmas morning=sleepy smiles and squeals

Mackenzie, Emmie, and Madison on Christmas Day

Our family on Christmas Day

Decorating (or undecorating?) the tree

Grandma Glo's visit

Grandma Glo came for a visit in January.  She spent lots of time with us while staying with Aunt Marcia and Uncle Bill.  Aunt Nina and Izzie drove over for a day while she was here and we girls had a great time together.  Emmie loves her little cousin Izzie!

Reading to Izzie while she was getting her diaper changed

Emmie thought Grandma Glo would like to learn all about Squinkies

4 Year Stats

Emerson is growing so quickly!  Here are her stats now that she's 4:

Height: 43 inches

Weight: 49 lbs

Likes: Barbies, princesses, dolls, fairies, horses, reading, games, snow, gymnastics, soccer

Dislikes: most fruit, alligators, sharks, spiders

Favorite foods: black olives, carrots, apples, mac & cheese

Favorite color: red

Favorite music: Taylor Swift, Lady Antebellum ("Lady and the bellum" :-), Sugarland

Favorite shows: Octonauts, Team Umizoomi, Dora, Kai-Lan

4 Year Pictures

We had Emerson's 4 year old pictures taken by Nikki Loren (who took her 3 year old pictures last year).  It was a chilly day in late fall but we were able to get some done outside.  Emmie was a complete ham but I love the variety of pictures we got--they really show her personality :-)  Here are a few of our favorites:

4 Years Old

I really don't know where the time has gone...how can she be 4 already?  Our little lady is full of spunk and personality.  She has an incredibly sweet, thoughtful, and giving side, but is usually more comfortable being the center of attention and running the show.  Emmie loves music and has an incredible knack for memorizing song lyrics and actually singing fairly on-key for a 4 year old.  She has endless amounts of energy and doesn't stop moving until she goes to bed each night.  We love every moment (and every challenge) of being her parents.  We are so blessed.

Emerson usually has about a month-long birthday celebration because we celebrate with the family we are with at Thanksgiving and then at Christmas and everyone we see in between!  She is a lucky girl!  This year, after her breakfast of choice (french toast sticks dipped in syrup), we went to church, and then surprised her with lunch at Chuck E. Cheese's after that.  She was so excited and we had a wonderful day together celebrating her and the joy she is!

Emmie and Chuck E.

She got a Xia Xia crab for her birthday from us and she was so excited!  She loves sea creatures (wonder where she picked that up?)

 Nana came to visit a few weekends before her birthday and made her a special Barbie cake (oh the excitement!)  Emmie got to help bake and decorate and she loved every minute of her special Nana time :-)

When I asked her what kind of cake she wanted for her birthday, she said the "ice cream kind with the cookies on it".  She had a Coldstone cake for her 2nd birthday and apparently she remembered it so we got another!