What we're loving right now

 

My happy places:
*Having Greg around so much this summer! So fun to be a family of 3 for a good part of the day. Professor life is a blessing.
* Starbuck's~ I can have it now! Whatever kind I want! With milk? Check. WIth caffeine? Check. Happy place! This is not an oft-visited happy place, but it is a welcome gift when I do have it.
* Dannon Fruit on the Bottom yogurt. It is a morning snack that I look forward to every day. Especially when the flavor is strawberry cheesecake. 
* Today is one of those "perfect weather" days in my book. Sunny, deep blue sky with no clouds, gentle breeze, 72 degrees. And we already have a park playdate scheduled!
* Long emails with friends. I know they say that email is already a dying art, being quickly replaced by twitter, facebook, and texting. But I do love a long email with a dear friend! I love phone calls, too, but those seem harder to come by when juggling everyone's work and/or baby sleep schedules.
* Sleeping til 6am!!!! Emily's done it 4 out of the last 5 nights!!!! Please oh please keep this trend up! I never thought I'd be thankful for 6am, but it is all in what you have to compare to. 6 is infinitely better than 4:30 or 5. :-) AND I've been waking up on my own at that time and hearing her a minute or two later. My day starts much happier when I wake up on my own. :-)
* Family time is just around the corner!!!!! We are about to have 6 weeks off and on of family time. I am so stinkin excited to finally get to see everyone again. It has been since March!
* Making new friends and cherishing the old. I am SO thankful for this season in life with Emily. Getting to watch her make new friends and actually recognize other babies she is happy to see. Getting to make new friends up here and stay connected with friends afar. I know that if I was working full time and trying to care for her this would be so hard to do!

What Emily's loving:
* Her new obsession is Buddy's leash. It is so random and hilarious! As soon as she hears the jingle, she comes bolting down the hall to grab it and hold it before he goes out. She almost comes out of her skin, she gets so excited. If we let her play with it afterwards (which she will happily do for a LONG time if we let her), I have to have something pretty captivating to keep her from a meltdown when I take it away.
* Bananas! She gets one every morning with breakfast, and she now recognizes the actual banana before I peel it. Again, elation that only a baby can show!
* Broccoli- (ewww!!) I can't stand this veggie, but she will eat her weight in broccoli. Daddy's happy about this- it means more meals with broccoli for us! 
* Her bottle. Sigh... no transition to a cup for milk around here! She will have a meltdown as soon as she takes her first sip if it's in a cup. I'm offering it in a cup once a day and a bottle the other 3. We'll get there soon enough!
*Stacking cups and bowls
*Shape sorters
*Cruising - ok, she's not loving cruising yet. But at least she's trying it! And she does look so proud of herself when she can get to something on the other side of the couch this way.
* Waving "hi" to dada- and only dada. Hehe. Lucky guy!
* Giving mama and dada zerberts on our bellies. You have to be on the lookout if you are laying on the ground nearby. She's quick!
*Sharing!! I know this one won't last for long, as the "mine" stage is on it's way in the next year, but it is SO cute to see Greg and her share his sunglasses back and forth. It is their special game. Greg puts the glasses on his head, she pulls them off, she plays with them and then holds them out for him to take, he thanks her, puts them on top of his head, and the process repeats. She loves it!