Looking Back... Emma is 11 Months Old!

Lots happening this past month... More so, because I've been a very lazy blogger as of late. Don't know why - just particularly uninspired to write about much these days. Perhaps it's because I feel as though I've been writing & writing, and nobody is reading. That's bound to have an effect, dontcha think? In any case, here's what's new in the life of a kid called Emma:

Most of the new & exciting bits are food related. Aren't they always? Been to this restaurant? Oh my god, the fois grois at such & such (North 44) is to die for! In Emma's world, just replace fois grois with chocolate & cheerios. Obviously the latter paled in comparison. Overall, Emma hates food. This month she decided enough with the baby crap, she's ready for big girl cusine and halted the assembly line of pre-made jarred shit. And unless everyone is sitting at the table eating together, she won't eat at all. Wonderful.

Here's her food reviews at present:

Carrots - delicious!

Broccoli - disgusting. Even when mixed with delicious carrots. Then they're both disgusting & mommy is life's biggest bitch in the whole wide worle for ruining perfectly good carrots.

But the biggest winner of all is... taa daa... bananas! Or as we say in the Abray household - BA NA NA. Okay, fine - it's just me that says it like that. But I think Em enjoys it. Or she amuses me by laughing to get to the banana quicker.

And second to bananas are ... get this... mushrooms. Thankfully not the magic ones. And least not yet. However, if we were ever to move to Vancouver that would be sure to change.

While Emma is 'cruising' all over the house, she's also discovered a new way to getting where she needs to go. She lifts her arms up high over her head so whomever is closest will undoubtedly pick her up. Once that's done, she'll simply point to wherever she needs to go! How brilliant! Works like a charm every time. The other night was the best... It was past her bedtime, and she was exhausted. Granted, I didn't realize just how tired she was until I was holding her & she pointed me in the direction of the stairs... then pointed up... then led me to her bedroom... and get this... straight to her crib!

Another new thing we do every night at bedtime is kiss all her stuffed animals goodnight. Okay, fine, we've been doing this for awhile now, but until recently I didn't really have a need to write about it. As of yesterday (Sept. 9th for those of you who are keeping track), she has become discerning about whom she bestows a hug and/or kiss upon. Not just any bear is so lucky these days. And if you're a bear who's in the bad books for any reason whatsoever, she'll actually PUSH YOU AWAY from her! It's hysterical. Cuz if she's liking you, you get exactly the opposite - big two-armed hugs and face kisses galore. I must say, I'm quite proud.. she's fussy and isn't giving it away. She'd better keep it up.

Plays 'coasters'. What's coasters? If you're thinking it's a drinking game like quarters you're wrong. Christ, the kid is only 11 months old. Although there is that nasty beer habit, but sadly she is too uncoordinated at this point to properly flip a coin into a glass. Coasters is where you sit on the floor surrounded by 4-5 square leather coasters, pick up one at a time and throw it behind you over your shoulder. With each one thrown, you spin around on your bum and retrieve it, only to throw it over your shoulder again. This game can go on and on and on... It's loads of fun, you should try it.

The bath... ahhh, the bath. The kid really does think it's liquid Channukah. And now she's getting pretty bold - skimming the surface of the water with her face, just tempting fate to make her fall flat & experience her first soaker. She's hold her face so close to the water that her nose & lips will touch it ever so slightly, then she'll sit up with a start, burst out laughing, and clap and splash like the crazy woman she is. And, in the process, I get drenched every time.

Says "duck", "banana", "dada", and "wow wow". Of course, none of these actually sound like that... except for dada & wow wow - but would you have ever guessed that wow wow is actually "woof woof" or "dog"? Oh.. and she also says Mother. That is incredibly clear. Believe it.

Ummm... chocolate. Have I already mentioned that? Even if I have, Em enjoys it so much that it's worth repeating.

Swiss Chalet. The only chicken worth eating. This habit will undoubtedly solidify the odds of Emma having extremely large boobs by age 12.

The kid now carries a purse & telephone. Okay, so the purse is actually the Avent themo-cooler bag, and the telephone can be anything from an actual telephone to the 'puse' strap to her hand, but the kid is in demand. It's always for her. Occassionally she has me say she's out. Wonder where she picked that up from?

Doing the "what do you want???" shrug with both little palms pointed to the sky, and arms held out at her sides. Visualize. You'll get it.

I can't believe, really can't believe, that next month she is going to be 1 year old!!!!!!!! (And I still have 5 lbs to lose. Oy.)