Emerson Knievel

If Emerson knew how to say it, I imagine this blog would be titled "Cowabunga!"

The best part of this video is about 20 seconds in. Enjoy!

Guitar lessons with Dad

Emerson has always been very interested in music. He finds rhythm in anything and everything. He loves to sing, and he really loves to dance. And we all know it's true, he got his moves from his momma. We sing and dance in the car, and if you turn down the music, he insists it be turned back up. We are beyond proud of our groovin' little boy.

A few years ago for Christmas, I got Jason an acoustic guitar, and although he hasn't taken any lessons, he can strum a decent tune! Here's a few pictures of Jason and Emerson...

I love the last one..."But what's IN there?"

A day at the park in January

Temperatures were close to 50 degrees this weekend, so we jumped at the chance to get to the park! A little damp, but fun nonetheless! We met up with Teddy (15 mos) and Beth and ran around for an hour. The boys are so much fun right now. Emerson ran non-stop, and Teddy chased him non-stop!

Standoff? Nah, just chit chat over the swings.

There's a music themed area that the boys loved.
I think he was kinda stuck here...they were so bundled with layers, it's a surprise they could move at all! Hi, Teddy! (How 'bout those cheeks? So kissable!)

Swingin'...

Snack time in the tunnel!

Yell-time in the tunnel!

PEEKS!

Where's Teddy?

Oh, hey, buddy!

Yes, he went head first down the biggest slide he could find.

Taking a turn on the big kid swing...Apparently, Beth does all the work while I take the pictures!

Toward the end of our park adventure...clearly time for a nap.

More random pictures from January

Emerson's hair has always grown in a natural mohawk. Super blonde, and very curly, his hair is concentrated on the top and back of his head. After he finished balancing some chicken nuggets on his head, I just had to...well...you can see for yourself...

Emerson loves his "frog-king" towel. At least that's what WE call it. He loves loves loves the shower and the bath and hates to get out, regardless how pruney he is. So, extra incentives to get out are some of the fun towels he has. Similar to his "Where the Wild Things Are" pajamas, he loves the hood and insists it be up at all times. He was having so much fun in this towel, that he didn't want to take it off.

Emerson gets fired up for any game that's on TV. We often watch games in the basement with friends, and Emerson will cheer and yell at the TV with the guys. "Go, go, goooooo!" and "Go Colts" are two of his favorites. Apparently he needed a better seat, as you can see in this picture. Please ignore the fact that he has no pants on.

Watching the game with the big boys...

Not sure what he's peeking at here...it was just too cute to not take a picture.

A few pictures from early January...

He likes pickles. This is not surprising since his Momma is obsessed with them, and rarely goes a day without eating one.

On a quick trip to Lancaster...singing and dancing in the backseat with Auntie Jessie. He would complain if I tried to turn down the music!

"My Mom lets me do this sometimes while she's cooking. I love to wash my hands! And legs. And belly."


"I love food...yes I do...I love food...how 'bout you?!?!?!"

Just doin' his thang.

This is what he does. When he wants/needs Brutus, he'll ball him up and put him on his shoulder and walk around like that. He also has a Brutus imposter that he's recently taken a liking to. It's made of the same fleece material, and is also red. We think he views it as an extension of Brutus.

A couple more cute pics of Emerson and Kasey at COSI...look at those cute little butts!

MLK day at COSI!

“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” -Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

In honor of MLK, I had the day off! A new holiday for me, I was excited for a weekday outing with Emerson. We headed to COSI with Bizzy and Kasey. Bizzy is my sister-in-law's sister-in-law, and mom to Kasey, Emerson's cousins' cousin. Make sense? Kasey is just a couple months younger than Emerson, and sweet as can be.

On. Off. On. Off. "Look Kasey, I'm going to be a doctor just like your Dad!" (They're totally getting married one day)

I love this one...Emerson is throwing stuff in the water, and Kasey is cheering him on! At least, that's my theory. And seriously, what's the point of the raincoat. Look at his pants! He's soaked!

In one of the playhouses...Emerson loves those lightswitches!

(Thanks for the pics, Bizzy!)

What does a lion say?

We’re on the road to health! After being down for the count on Thursday and Friday, and having the weekend to recover, Emerson is feeling sooo much better. Somehow, Jason and I escaped the illness. And Kramer is healthy again, too, following his near-death experience.

Emerson has been cracking us up lately! He is a mimic and a comedian! This is great, most of the time. He doesn’t have an off button though, so it can get a little old when he’s trying to entertain while he’s in the high chair – throwing food, balancing a bowl on his head, etc. He gets a serious kick out of throwing tennis balls for Sheffield. He even figured out that if he has two tennis balls, he can throw one, and while Sheff drops the first to chase the second, steal away the other. And then throw that one, Sheff drops the other...You see?

Lately, he’s been very interested in animals. Books with animals, animal toys, and animal sounds! And in the last few days, we’ve had a lot of fun with animal noises. Emerson, what does a _______ say? His answers are the best! (Kitty cat is our fave.)
- Kitty cat…"Myuw" (in an uncharacteristically high and soft voice)
- Lion…"Rhaaaaaar!" (in a loud whisper)
- Doggy…"Rowf. Rowf."
- Monkey..."At-at-at-at"

He continues to love music and dancing. He’ll dance to anything! Seriously, anything. He’ll bob his little head, shimmy his shoulders, and move his rumpus to any beat available.

We’re amazed at what a big boy he’s become. Just yesterday, he pushed his step stool over to the fridge, and climbed up to use the water dispenser. No, not to fill a cup. Just to dispense water. He eats big boy meals. He says "Hiiiiiiii" to anyone on the phone. He runs and climbs onto anything and everything. He’s learning so much! And teaching us so much. Mostly with patience ;)

Sicky sickerson.

So, Mercury is in retrograde and the front door to Saddlebrook has apparently become the portal to hell.

Jason was traveling M-W this week, and Emerson and I were doing great! Until 10pm on Wednesday, 3 hours before Jason was scheduled to return. I did it to myself, though. In talking to my sister-in-law last week I was just mentioning how lucky we were in that Emerson had never had any stomach viruses, only colds. Seventeen months, not bad! Well, I certainly jinxed myself, b/c at 10pm on Wednesday, barf city.

Although not really interested in dinner Wednesday evening (highly unusual) Emerson went to bed at his normal time, 7:30. Two and a half hours later I was surprised to hear him awake and making a weird yell for me. I went in to find a hot mess in his crib. After a clean-up and sheets into the wash, we parked it on my bed. And another mess. Six hours later, he had thrown up 10 times. Poor little thing was frightened. Who isn't when that happens! After the first couple of times, I learned the predictors, and was able to keep the mess maintained. Welcome home, Jason! This continued until 4am. Ugh. He's been home with me, and now Jason the last couple of days and although cranky and tired, is now on the mend.

Oh, and Kramer. Kramer the cat decided on Thursday it would be a great day to develop bladder disease, resulting in a trip to the vet (with Jason, as I was home with barfy-Emerson), and an emergency surgery (at a bargain basement price of only $1,000). The result is Kramer is off his death bed, and coming home tonight.

Happy new year, everyone!

Mr. Big Stuff

A few fun pics of Emerson over the last couple of weeks...

He prefers to do his coloring with the crayon box ON his head. It helps his creative thinking.

Jason was behind that closed door, so Emerson waited patiently for him to come out! With his footballs, of course.
Where did Kramer go???

And just because.

Not sure how or where he learned this, but Emerson has been doing a "pinch" wave when he says goodbye to someone. Apparently it takes too much effort now to do a complete wave with his full hand.

Working hard!

Check out the new chair!

Zielinskis' New Year's Rockin' Eve!

Catching up a bit on blogs! We had a great New Year's Eve! We had a big group at our house, including a handful of kiddos. All the kids were gone or in bed by 9 though, which is obviously when the party started! There are no pictures after 9pm. Intentionally.

Emerson tried on an array of party hats...this one is nice, but doesn't fit quite right.

Yes, this one is nice, too.
Yes, this is definitely the one!

Emerson's buddy, Teddy...he's always ready to pose for the camera! This was my attempt at spending some time with sweet little Eleanor...shocking that Emerson HAD to be held at that moment.

Wii bowling! Good times!

The Sheppards got Emerson a really cool tunnel and tent for Christmas. Emerson and Teddy had their own little party in there...

Here, Teddy...you try!

I told Emerson as a punishment when he's older, we're going to make him dress like a dork. This is a little sample of what's in store. The hair was a coincidence!