The life & times of Emery Dean Toothaker: January 2005

We love the little bear hat- thanks Laura :)!!!

Welcome baby graduates from birthing class of 2004. I don't know what Emery's crying about, he's the only boy in the bunch! Daddy's going to have to teach him how to get his game on a little bit better :)!

And I thought Emery had chubby cheeks!!

Sunday morning breakfast

Emery in his new Hop & Pop from Grandma and Grandpa Toothaker. He can't quite reach the floor yet with his feet but it won't be long 'til he does!

Bad ass biker babe. Adam says the beard is because of a play (he NEVER looks like this usually...yeah right.). Thanks to Uncles Bobby and Robert for the Harley Davidson wear!

Gifts from Sage in Taos New Mexico. We can't wait for Emery to fit into those moccasins! I have been pondering for weeks about giving a special Christmas gift to Emery each year. I wanted to do something special that he could look forward to and take with him when he grows up and moves out. When I opened Sage's gift it came to me- do an album to chronical each year! This one will be his first, it even has a space between each picture to write a bit explaining each picture. I am excited to get this family tradition started! Thanks Sage for spurning this great idea! And you'd better come visit soon so I can put a picture of you and Emery on the front!

Emery's pewter cup from Great Grandma Warner. I love this family tradition :)

Is is 12 weeks already?!?!

Well, the holidays are over and we're beginning to get used to our new schedule now. I work from 6am to 12:45 while Adam plays Mr. Mom, then we switch and he works from 1:00 pm to 6:30. So far it's working out pretty well. Adam loves his morning time with Emery (as I knew he would, it's Emery's cutest time and I miss it dearly). I do not love getting up at 4:30 to get to work on time, but Adam has made it easier by getting up with me and making coffee and a morning smoothie while I nurse. And I have to admit I do enjoy getting a few hours of work in before anyone else is in, and leaving in the early afternoon is a treat! I have been much more efficient and have actually been able to get as much done now as I used to when I was here a full 8 hours. I still have to come in on Saturday or Sunday to make up the hours I missed during the week, but so far it's been alright. I used to regularly come in on the weekend anyway to get a jump on the week so it hasn't been much of a shock, and I get to sleep in so it's not so bad.

We've started tracking Emery's sleep schedule so that we can see about getting him on somewhat of a regular schedule when he's old enough. I'm very excited that he's going to be 3 months old soon since that's when they say he's old enough to begin sleeping through the night. He already does okay, half of the time I don't need to get up at all and get a whole 5 or 6 hours of sleep in one stretch. The other half of the time he still wants his 3am feeding, which sucks! Just as I get back to sleep my alarm goes off. So I try to nap in the afternoon with him. Of course he has decided this week that he no longer wants the afternoon nap and it has been a battle of the wills between the two of us. If he doesn't nap then he's fussy and cranky all evening (or should I say we're both fussy and cranky). So I try in vain to get him to sleep as he fights like hell to stay awake. The swing is a godsend. If I can get him to fall asleep in that thing I can determine how long I want him to nap. It's great to watch him try to wake up in it. He'll try to keep his eyes open but the motion makes it impossible and bam!- he's right back out. Then I can nap and get a shower, its just marvelous! But the kid's smart, he's figured out my plan and now won't have anything to do with the swing. Foiled again!

Anyway, Adam and I are very excited to move into our new place. We will start packing this weekend for the big event. Adam's parents and brother are coming to town to help which is just so cool! And my mom will be here next week as well to help move and get the place set up. She's the super decorator and Adam and I are happy let her go hog wild! I just can't wait until it's all done and I can get a whole extra 20 minutes to sleep in the morning!

I haven't taken any new pictures to post lately but I'll try to get on it and post some more very soon! Tootles!!

Happy New Year!

Hi all! Hope everyone's holidays were relaxing, fun and filled with family and friends! Our first Christmas with Emery was great. It was the first time that Adam and I hadn't gone back to Boise in years, so it was hard at first to feel like it was Christmas. We got up and opened our gifts, then Adam made a wonderful Christmas breakfast. Although we both missed being with our families, it was nice to just lazy about and enjoy our beautiful son for awhile. In the afternoon we went over to Greg and Craig's place and helped to cook an awesome Christmas feast! Emery was a jewel. He didn't do his evening fussy thing too much and I got to hang out with adults without a kid attached to my hip the whole time! The day was a great success that left Adam and I thinking about all of the Christmas holiday traditions we can start with Emery.

New Year's was good for us as well. I worked on New Year's Eve and came home to a clean house and the demand that I take a nap (this really scored points, as any new mom will attest!). Adam then went shopping for the ingredients of an awesome dinner, scallop salad and lobster. I had never really had lobster before, so this was a treat. I must admit though, I'm not sure I'll ever be a lobster aficionado. I am so used to being disconnected from the meat I eat. I mean, I know I'm eating cow whenever I eat beef but it's not like I'm eating it directly from the slautered carcass in front of me either. And it didn't help to know that it was still alive when it was thrown into the pot. Surprisingly enough this bother me as well. Being in the sciences I have had to become more accustomed to the euthenization of animals, I've seen my fair share of mouse carcases. But this felt more like a desection from physiology class, only this time I ate the specimen. I'll be honest, I was a little grossed out by the whole experience. But that didn't stop me from sucking the meat out of its little stick legs- I was a real trooper I tell you!! I do admit that I like the taste of lobster, but I'll be just fine enjoying it in other dishes in the future. I don't need to be looking at the carcass while I'm eating it, having it's beedy little eyes staring me down the whole time!

Anyway, the rest of the night was a success. We rented movies but didn't get very far with those. One thing people don't warn new parents of is the fact that watching a movie all the way through-without interruption- becomes a very rare treasure. I don't know how long this lasts, but I'm guessing quite a long time. Oh well, its a fair trade-off anyway. Emery is way more interesting to me than anything on the tv, that's for sure!

Well its booby time for Emery- better go! Best wishes for a new year that's sure to be better than the last! :)