Haunted House

Lately Emily’s new favorite game is putting her blanket over her head and walking around the house. Of course we’ve had a few crying episodes when she’s run into the wall or a chair, but for the most part she’s pretty good about navigating her way around. It actually amazes me. The other day she was having a good old time chasing me around the house and trying to “find me” as I called her name from across the room. Emily is such a character!

Go Utes!

Those of you who know us know what big football fans we are. And of course, we bleed red. How can you not when you’re a Holbrook? Emily is on her way to becoming just as into the game as Jeff is. I think she knows its a game day as soon as I pull out her U shirt. She loves to watch the game with us and is actually pretty good about cheering at the right times. The Utes have been unlucky with all their injuries this year and the season hasn’t quite turned out the way any of us planned. Saturday’s game wasn’t the best playing we’ve seen, but we at least pulled off a win. We have to celebrate when we can right?

Rainy Days

Emily has always loved the outdoors. I remember during those first few months the only way we could get her to calm down was to stand by a window and let her look out. She is increasingly interested in watching cars go by now that she hears all the big work trucks outside (they are working on a parking lot just to the South of us and putting in a big condo complex just to the North). Last week it was pretty rainy and if I’d let her have her way, we would have stood in front of the window all day. However I rarely have a day that isn’t already filled with something, so I let Emily stand on a chair in our bedroom while I folded laundry on our bed. She was of course so cute that I had to grab the camera.

Makeup Artist

Emily has LOVED her dried strawberries lately. She pretty much enjoys any fruit, but the strawberries are definitely a favorite right now. I’m somewhat hesitant to let her have free reign with them since their powder can make a mess out of anything. The other day Emily was very persuasive (ie: screaming) and I therefore relented and stripped her down. When she was done she looked like she’d just been playing with my makeup. Hmmm, I hope it doesn’t give her any ideas….

Best Friends

We had dinner with the Lloyds a few nights ago. As usual, it took Hayden & Emily about two hours to warm up to each other – really, you’d almost think they were siblings or something. Once we got all the hitting & fighting over with (and all the consequential sorrys and loves) they had a ball together. Emily kept trying to “hold” Hayden and they were laughing like crazy. It’s amazing how entertaining kids can be. (Of course Jeff had to do a bit of entertaining to get - and keep - them that way of course).

Sugar & Spice and Everything Nice

Little girls are so fun. I've always enjoyed dressing Emily up, but it's been really fun lately because her hair has gotten long enough to play with. I’ve had to be pretty creative at times to coax her into staying still long enough for me to actually get decent pigtails in (and a lot of times her part is way off and the pigtails are completely uneven), but I still think they're cute. I’m excited for her hair to get even longer and I only hope that she’ll continue to let me have a say in what she wears and how her hair is done (one can always hope, right?).

Like Father, Like Daughter

One of Jeff’s assignments this semester was to spend a day in a wheelchair. It was an effective assignment to help them better understand their patients - but it also had a big impact on their families. Since the assignment was for a full 24 hours I soon realized how big of an adjustment it would be to have a disabled husband. It was difficult for him to change Emily’s diaper, run around and play with her, and also get anything he needed from the kitchen cupboards (and of course that's just a few of the things that I noticed). Of course Emily enjoyed trying the chair on for size and also riding around on Jeff’s lap. But overall I can say that I’m glad I only had to deal with it for a few hours and the experience has definitely made me grateful for not only my legs, but Jeff’s as well.

Cabin Party

We had a family party up at the cabin last weekend. Emily was enthralled with the stairs and spent most of her time climbing up and down them. She loved it when Sara & Ally joined her and she kept lifting up their shirts trying to find their belly buttons (her new favorite body part). The leaves are just starting to change, so unfortunately we didn’t really get any good pictures outside. I think we’re going to have to visit again soon and hopefully get some good shots of Emily and all the fall colors.

Say Cheese

I’ve been meaning to make a post for quite a while now and my pictures of Emily have just been adding up. They of course are all too cute to not show off, so I decided a slide show was in order. As a bit of a background and an update on Emily - she is extremely independent and becomes more so every day. She is convinced she’s quite grown up and wants to do everything by herself (or insists on at least helping out). She loves to help at the grocery store by carrying things around; she’s adamant on feeding herself and won’t let us near her mouth with anything; she always wants to put her own shoes on & then gets frustrated when she can’t quite figure it out; and she practically shadows me in everything I do – if I’m sitting at the table, she has to sit at the table - if I’m cooking in the kitchen, she wants in on the action.

However, Emily is also very good at entertaining herself. The other day I was busy in the kitchen and when I looked up I noticed she was playing with one of my storage bins on the landing of the stairs. She was putting it on her head and pulling it off and just laughing to herself (fortunately the camera was close by and I was able to snap a few pictures of her before she lost interest in it). Emily also enjoys playing with mom & dad anytime she can. She loves climbing all over Jeff and just squeals in delight whenever he comes to “get” her. It’s so fun to see how much she adores him.

Back to School Fever

Jeff's school had a BBQ last week so Emily and I went up for a visit. We had fun seeing some of Jeff's classmates that we haven't seen in a while and Emily loved watching everyone play volleyball. She also enjoyed being outside and seeing all the kids & babies. Of course everyone thought she was adorable in her little sunglasses and pigtails - and we weren't about to contradict them.


Emily also got sick last week. She had a fever for a few days and then broke out in a rash. Sick babies are never fun, but I think it's worse when they're also teething. Emily spent most of her time curled up in my arms or sitting on the couch watching her Little Peoples DVD. Her blanket, baby & bear were constant companions those few days and by the end of the week I was of course more than ready to throw out her movie.