Hiking & A Playdate

Emma & TJ at the Botanical Gardens, mid-hike.

Emma is such a lover. TJ, however, is NOT always in the mood to reciprocate!

Emma found a BIG walking (or swinging) stick today!

Taking a rest at the end of the hike.

Emma & Gavin at the International Playdate. They are very seriously taking care of some work on the computer. Or, as little Clare told me, they "had to load something."


Today we went out to the Botanical Gardens at UCR again for a little hike. Grandma & TJ went with us too. The kids had fun, even though it was hot out and Emma insisted on being carried for a bit. We got to see fish, turtles, spiders, and lots of lizards today. Emma sure loves the animals. Then, after coming home for a mid-afternoon nap, Emma & I went back out for another playdate. We had a great time as usual. I love these days and wish they could last longer. I can't believe I have to be back at work on Monday...

Impromptu Summer Day !

T.J. & Emma checking out the turtles at the pet store...

Enjoying some pizza for lunch...

And figuring out one new way after another to conquer the slide.


We had no plans this morning, so I decided to take the little ones to look at "aminals" at the pet shop. Who knew this would be such a hit? They absolutely loved it. The entire way downtown the kids were babbling in the backseat about seeing animals and touching animals. We spent close to an hour inspecting dwarf rabbits, kitty cats, guinea pigs, hamsters, hairless rats, snakes, tarantulas, turtles, crabs, and dozens of different types of fish. In fact, Emma got REALLY close to getting a pet bunny today, but reason and practicality finally set in and we decided to wait. Instead, she got a new Beta fish and is very happy with it. Hopefully it will have a longer lifespan than our recent goldfish. After the pet shop, we went across the street and had lunch at the food court in the mall. Then we played at the indoor playground again - always a favorite! Grandma topped off the day by buying each of the kids a new set of jammies at the Disney store. It was another great summer day!

Raspberry Picking

Today we went raspberry picking at Riley's Farm in Oak Glen. Grandma, Lenay, & TJ went with us too. We were trying to meet up with some of our playgroup friends but were running late, so it was just us but we had a good time. After berry picking, we stopped in Oak Tree Village for lunch and some fresh apple pie. Yum! Then Emma & I went to another playdate this afternoon. It was a great, fun, busy, day!

Library Trip

Emma & TJ playing in the toddler room. They each found cozy seats in which to relax.



Emma showing off her handiwork.

I took Emma, TJ, & Mikayla to the library this morning for the Eco-toddler storytime & play session. Kayla is way beyond the target age range (obviously) but she loves going with us and is a BIG help with the little ones. Today they got some free play time and then a LOT of music, which both kids loved! Emma kept asking for "The Wheels on the Bus" but the teacher couldn't find the track on the CD so they did a bunch of other ones. It was still fun. Then the kids listened to a story about recycling and got to string necklaces. The "beads" were made from recycled paper. It was a good morning! :)

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RTE 66 Play Area

Emma's "Cheese" Face!

One...Two...Seven!?! Getting ready to jump...

Today was a good day. This morning we went to the Route 66 playspace at the mall with Mikayla, TJ, and Lenay. The kids really enjoyed it. Emma & TJ love jumping off any thing and everything, so this was great to have a place to play where everything is padded & low enough to leap from. Then we went out to lunch at Sundowners and home for a nap. After Emma woke up we headed to a playdate with our friends. Gotta love summer playdays!

Emma's New Bed!

Emma got a brand new big-girl bed today. It took me a bit longer than anticipated to set it up since I had to keep stopping to keep Emma from killing herself with a screwdriver and to go find my baggie full of nuts and bolts that she hid from me. But once it was finally set up, Emma loved it! She has been playing on it, sitting on it, lying down on it, and jumping on it. I have a feeling that whether she actually agrees to sleep in it tonight will be an entirely different matter though! Baby steps, baby steps...

Here's a quick clip of Emma playing on her new bed. Again, its uploaded fromOneTrueMedia.com since Blogger's uploader still apparently hates me!


My Montage 7/19/09

Feeding the Ducks at Ford Park

Yesterday morning Emma & I went to Ford Park in Redlands with some of her cousins to play on the playground and feed the ducks. We got there around 9:30 a.m. but could only stay for about 45 minutes since it was so hot already! Even the ducks were lazy & hiding out somewhere in the shade. So we played for just a bit and then left to go to the library instead. Ahhh... air conditioning!
Emma getting ready to head down the slide...

Emma loves the swings. She closes her eyes and throws her head back giggling. Then I think she gets dizzy because she will get very serious looking all of a sudden. Our friends at playgroup have told me she has been inducted into their "Swingers Anonymous" Club!

Emma & T.J. trying to lure the elusive ducks back to them...

More camping pictures...

Emma & a few of her cousins hanging out at the campsite.

Emma & Katie venturing into the lake the first afternoon.


Emma snuggling with her best pal Lucy during the evening.

The ONE morning Emma slept in later than me. This is her peeking out the tent at 7:10 a.m.

Playing with the kids on the grass area. Hmmm... which pony should I ride now???

Emma during the ONE temper tantrum we experienced during the week. Not a bad rate for the trip. Emma was upset because I reprimanded her for intentionally dumping juice on my foot and told her she could not go play until she was being a good girl. So she laid down on the ground and refused to speak for about 30 minutes. But when she finally got up, she said "Tarry Mommy. You okay?" and gave me hug before going back to play. Yes! Consistency is paying off!

The bug catcher kits from the dollar store were a big hit! Here Emma is intently observing her ants and a beetle.

Making time for a little rock climbing...

The dirtiest baby in the world! We went through almost 2 entire packs of baby wipes this week, in addition to showers and wet washcloths!

Friday morning, saying Good-bye to the lake...

Camping 2009

This is my favorite picture of Emma from the week camping. She is heading back into the freezing water, despite having just been changed out of soaking wet clothes into a shirt borrowed from her cousin Lucy.

We spent the past 5 days camping at Silverwood Lake with our family. Emma loved it! She was the youngest of the 6 kids we had with us, and they were all great with her! She loved running around trying to be a big kid, playing crack the whip, swimming in the lake, eating cherries and tasting her first s'more. We had a bit of a start the first morning though when she woke up and realized that she was in a tent and not at home but, by the 2nd day, she was waking up smiling and pointing up, telling me "Tent, Mommy." Emma is such a trouper! She also ended up with her share of battle scars, scrapes, and bruises, but never came to me crying. She just kept playing hard with the kids.


As I was loading the jeep and tying countless chairs and multiple tents onto the roof Sunday morning, this is where I found Miss Emma. I guess she was ready to go!

Lazy mornings spent lying in the tent reading books with Grandma...

Emma & Grandma roasting marshmallows.


Mmmm.... My 1st S'more...


Decorating camp hats with the cousins... Each time we camp, I buy plain baseball caps and fabric markers for the kids. Its a nice, relaxed way to spend some low-key art time with the group and the fact that they decorate their own hats makes them more likely to wear them during the week and get a bit of sun protection!

Sweet cherry-stained face by the lake...

7 - 12 Month Montage

Emma 6 - 12 Months

I finished the 2nd montage. Think I will combine them into one DVD for Emma... She's a bit egotiostical & will probably enjoy watching herself! :) I wish I hadn't lost all my video clips from my cell phone though so I could have included some of those... :(

Infant Emma Montage

I love being off track!!! I end up with lots of extra time (broken up into 5 minute segments of course!) where I can play on the computer & organize the tons of pictures I have from when Emma was tiny. I decided to make a montage of her 1st year on OneTrueMedia.com but... turns out I had even more pictures than I thought! :) So, I decided to break it down into 6 month increments. Only the 1st one is done so far. Here's the link for anyone who wants to check it out. She was so cute and tiny!



Emma's 1st Six Months