Hmmmm...let's see...where to start.  I have been a bit preoccupied lately (shocker, right?!)  Brent was out of town for 5 days...living the hard life in Vail, CO with his buddies.  Meanwhile, I was at home being AWESOME as a single, working mother of a 9 month old.  We survived (thanks to my parents, neighbors, and dear friends the Mitchells) but I am soooo glad it is over.  Emma, who is usually a great baby and sleeper, got an awful cold as soon as Brent left.  She woke up the first night gagging and gasping for air.  It was a total panic moment for me - if it had gone on any longer than the 25 seconds (which felt like an eternity), I would have called 911.  The next night she coughed - ALL. NIGHT.  I almost turned the monitor off so I could sleep.  The next night, she decided to get up 3 times - that's, right, I tried to put her to sleep 3 times before 10pm.  She would fall asleep on me, and then as soon as I put her in the crib, she would wake up, ready to play for another round.  I was so exhausted and feeling physically sick at this point.  Let's just say that when Brent called, it was a rough phone call:)  Work was also really busy last week - lots of off campus meetings, midterms for students, projects due.....so I was so relieved by the time I picked Brent up from the airport.

Life is back to normal now....I'll just make it simple and offer some snippets into what's happening around here.....

We are obsessed with Downton Abbey - we have watched all of Seasons 1 and 2, and are awaiting the arrival of Season 3 from my parents.  We watch at least 1 episode a night - it's quite pathetic.

We have transitioned Emma into a new feeding schedule - I always feel so helpless in this area. I never know what's "normal" and what's not.  Right now, she gets 4 bottles a day and 5 servings of food.  She's happy, and seems to be gaining weight at a good rate, so I won't complain.  I guess Emma will let us know if she's not happy with this arrangement!  And by the way, she eats ANYTHING.  I know I am getting spoiled with this child.  She just opens her mouth and waits for the goods...and she loves whatever it is.  We are giving her little puffs to munch on, but she recently decided that swallowing them whole was the best method....so after a few slight choking episodes, we have backed off.  Any ideas here on how to get here to gum these babies before swallowing???

Emma is crawling all over the place.  She pulls up on everything - and is into everything.  I love this stage.  She also has her first tooth!  I have been a bit nervous about this because she seems so behind in getting chompers, but she now has a lower tooth poking through, and I must say, it was without much fuss (let's keep it this way!)

Recently into TV and cartoons.

Climbing in and out of the bouncy seat...

Standing up in the cart at REI... totally safe, right?  Being the good mother that I am , I was more concerned with getting the picture than her safety.  The blog comes first!

I recently discovered Polyvore and Diptic...I now have no life and am obsessed with creating hypothetical outfits and cute picture collages.  (scroll to bottom if you are new to Polyvore)

Oh...and the 3initals app...because a girl can never have too many monogrammed wallpapers. 

Emma is also increasingly obsessed with her dad.  When he comes home at night, her face lights up and she scrambles to get to him.  When she can't crawl fast enough, she gets upset and starts crying.  It is the cutest thing ever.  He went outside to blow the yard on Sunday, and Emma caught a glimpse of him at the window...she crawled over there and stood at the door - banging for his attention.  She stayed there until he came in...so sweet.

Emma has her 9 month appointment this Friday - I am anxious to see how she is doing!