Arriving in Wisconsin

We made it! We arrived in La Crosse late last night, and look who was there to greet us: Grandma! Baby Juniper! Oh, we are so excited to start our month-long adventure.

Family in Kansas City

We had a great time spending Thanksgiving weekend in Kansas City. Half of Ben's family lives there, so it's always fun when we make the trip. It's hard to believe that it's been over a year since we last visited, and that this was the first time Paul, Jen and Tess met Emma. With so much family spread out over three states, even spending all of our vacation time traveling to see them doesn't guarantee we will make it to every state each year. But we try.

All the kids--Tess, Anthony, Stella and Beck (we didn't get to see Amira this time!) grew like weeds since we last saw them. At thirteen, Anthony is now a head taller than everyone! We celebrated Stella's birthday on Saturday evening, and the kids all had such a good time together. Big families are so much fun. Isaac and Emma are lucky to have one!

Ah, hanging out with modern day teens, where texting your mom, who is sitting right next to you, is hilarious. And your phone is a convenient thing to hide behind if you don't want your photo taken. 

Look at Anthony! I think this photo does a great job of showing just how tall he has gotten.

A new market for my bows? I mean, beards are all the rage right now, why not beard bows?

Grandpa and Emma, inspecting Daddy's newest bottle of whiskey.

A little rain didn't stop these guys from enjoying a fire in Gramps' backyard. 

Thanks for a great week, Vanbergs, Malinowskis, and Hoefts!

Emma, Eleven Months Old

Emma Noelle is eleven months old today. How quickly the months pass never ceases to amaze me. And now, in just one short month, our baby girl will be one. I'm all kinds of emotional about her first birthday. But let's focus on the present right now, shall we?

Look at this girl. She's the cutest, right? My sweet and sometimes shy Emma Noelle is really showing signs of becoming a toddler this month. Her communication skills have broadened, and she will sign, shake her head no or say "uh, uh, uh" and point to let us know what she wants. She drinks from a sippy cup now--her brother's cups being her favorite--and I think she's completely done with bottles. She's only used them a handful of times, so transitioning to a sippy was no trouble at all. Emma continues to be a good eater, and we're finding that meat is one of her favorite foods. (Those genes most definitely come from her daddy.) When she's done eating, she tells us so by signing "all done" and then wiping the leftovers in her hair. Oy.

Emma weighs 16 pounds 8 ounces now. I know this because of an unfortunate trip to the doctor one Saturday morning this month when Emma woke with a fever and rattling in her chest. She'd had a cold for the better part of three weeks, and just when I thought she was beginning to feel better, she developed pneumonia and an ear infection, poor girl. The good news is that we caught the pneumonia early and with the help of antibiotics, she recovered quickly. Thank goodness.

The biggest news this month is that Emma started walking! She began her training by doing unassisted standing reps, as I liked to call them, just before she turned ten months old, and once in a while would try to take a step, but would immediately fall down. This month she mastered her skill, and took her first true steps. Just like her brother, there was really no turning back once she started. She went from a step here or there to multiple steps to flat out walking within a matter of a week. 

Emma is still quite the daddy's girl. Ben and Emma's relationship is really blossoming, and it makes my heart full to see the two of them together. 

In other news, we are celebrating Emma's eleven-month milestone in Kansas as we are visiting Ben's family for Thanksgiving. From here, we will continue on to Wisconsin and Minnesota and stay with family for a total of five weeks. This is a big trip for us, especially with two small children, but Ben has the opportunity through his company to work remotely for a month each year. Because I stay home with the kids and Isaac is not yet in Kindergarten, we knew we had to take advantage of the flexibility in our schedule and go somewhere. It's the kind of opportunity you shouldn't pass up if it comes around. After some discussion about where we might like to go this year (The mountains? Somewhere warm?), we agreed to spend an extended holiday with our families. I had a difficult time leaving Wisconsin after meeting Juniper, so personally this trip meant a lot to me. Right now, with three baby girls in the family, it just feels so important to be close and connected to them. Babyhood doesn't last. Emma's first year is nearly over, which has me reeling, and I want to be as much a part of my nieces' first years as possible.

Five weeks in Kansas, Wisconsin, and Minnesota to celebrate Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year, and Emma's birthday (and a number of other family birthdays). What a trip it will be. After months of prepping and planning, I'm glad to be here in Kansas with Gramps, Jen, and Tess, giving thanks (and celebrating Gramps' birthday!). Then our sweet Emma Noelle will turn one while we are in the Minnesota.

Happy eleven months, baby girl!

A Visit to La Crosse in October

We visited La Crosse last month, but I only just received the photos from our visit (since I left my camera at home). We had such a great trip, so even though these are from a while ago, they are worth sharing now.

Some highlights from our trip:

Babies in the morning.

Auntie and Emma

Sweet Juniper Jean, three months old.

Grandpa and Juniper

Sawyer Kae, six months old. She is the happiest, most laid back baby I have ever met. Sweetie.

Love.

Grandma and Juniper

These baby girls do a fine job of modeling for my new business, Baby JackByrd, don't they?!

On the Mississippi River

I swear she isn't getting sick over wearing green and gold.

Family walk!

Kids Coulee in Myrick Park

In the marsh, overlooking the beautiful bluffs.

Game day.

Emma, doing what she does best.

For a couple days, Isaac went to Grandma Cheri's house in Rochester. It was then I realized how funny Emma can be! Usually she spends most of her time laughing and copying her comic-brother, but without him around she was able to make some of her own silly jokes. In this photo, Emma had been crawling as fast as possible across the bed hoping Meagan or I would pull her back by her legs so she could take off again. She found this absolutely hysterical. Looks like I have two little jokesters!

And last, but certainly not least, this: