Gooftastic.

I know a lot of mothers must think, "My child is the wildest, goofiest kid, ever." Well, you're wrong...mine is. I can't explain via text and photo, just how weird and goofy Emerson is, but the photo montage below may give a little insight. For us, this is a normal, everyday occurrence. He sings, he laughs, he giggles, he yells, he snickers. TOTAL goof. We wouldn't have it any other way. After all, his parents are a little off-kilter most days.

Emerson, astronaut.

I forgot I had these pictures on the camera, until I was uploading some others. Last Friday, I had a few errands at the mall, and couldn't wait to let Emerson play at the indoor playground. He's at the age where he's climbing onto, into, over and under everything. He's very adventurous, and is completely fearless. He ran with the big kids, and got knocked down a few times, but he got right back up, totally unfazed. We had a great time! Definitely headed back there soon!

Why sit in the seat, when he can stand on it?!?!

He loved that all the planets had tunnels...

Coming back through...

The entire playground is "rubbery"...the planets, the floor, everything!

He was all over the place, but liked the spaceship the best.

Loved to steer!

This little girl was 14 months, and just a little smaller than Emerson. He thought HE should have been driving...such a gentleman ;)

And then we did "build-a-bear"! Emerson could have watched the "fluff" all day!

Here, Kitty Kitty Kitty!

Does everyone remember Elmira from the Looney Tunes Kids Saturday morning cartoons? She loved all the animals so much that she smothered them with affection until they hated her? Well, that's Emerson. He adores animals, and gets such a kick out of them, that he wants to pull their tails, grab onto their hair, and tackle them. Yes, tackle. He laughs and giggles the entire time. But I suppose if Kramer really hated it that much, he'd stop nuzzling up to Emerson basically "begging" for more!

I think I can.

Emerson and I patiently waited at home last night, while Jason picked up pizzas for dinner. Emerson took this time to move furniture all around the house and empty the cupboards of all casserole dishes and tupperware. The (cell phone) picture below was too funny...you can see him pulling his high chair into the living room, and holding onto it with all his weight pulling it with him..."I think I can. I think I can."

Let me entertain you...

Emerson has become quite the entertainer. As soon as there is music, whether a commercial on TV, a musical toy, someone singing, or music in the car, Emerson starts bobbing away! He "dances" (read: bobs head and body up and down) all the time now. He'll also "sing" to you...when we sing to him, he'll sing back.

Emerson is learning so much, and changing every day! He signs quite a bit now..."all finished", "more", and "please". We're still working on some others...but these are the ones he clearly understands and uses.

Faces! Emerson has really gotten even goofier! He makes faces, crinkles his nose, and laughs at everything. He has learned that he can climb onto just about anything. He'll climb onto the ottoman and stand on top of it. He'll scale the slide and slide down face first. This little boy is an adventurer!

Dipes and wipes.

Somehow, everything becomes a car. From boxes and bins, to chairs, to empty wipes containers...everything is something for Emerson to push around the house. The wipes container you see below didn't start out as empty. Emerson loves the process of pulling them out, one by one. Rather than stopping him, I love to watch him go through this process. He so enjoys it!

And he has a naked rumpus because he's MUCH too busy for diaper changes. There's just no time for diapers! He'll "death-roll" once the dirty one is off, and it's just a matter of catching him to put on a clean one.

Preview of Emerson's 12 month pictures

We had a great session in downtown Columbus with our amazingly talented photographer, Julie. These pictures are just a preview. They really speak for themselves. Thanks, Julie!!!

julieranee.com

Send-off party for Jared...the future Marine

We had a party for Jared last night, to celebrate his decision to become a marine, and give him a proper send-off. Below are pics from last night and today. He had lots of friends and family show up to say goodbye...we're all so proud of him!

We'll miss you, Uncle Jared!

A precious pic of Mia and Emerson

Emerson and Poppy

Jared and his momma

Jared, and his family

Jared, Jes, and Me...we love our little brother so much

Jared and his buddiesJared, Harper, and friends

Emerson and Harper, playing...they are just too cute!

Glamorous-Harper!

She's the sweetest!

Emerson, going wherever his belly takes him

We will miss you Jared...and we are so proud of you.