Oh this infant!

And that my friends is how you hold up your head! :) Rachel here. My little Emmabelle FINALLY did it! She's a champ now... ugh I could eat her up. Well, I could also probably strangle her... in a non CPS calling kind of way though. The bottle battle continues. Soon after I posted our success with the Drop-ins bottle all hell broke loose. Three days ago it took Bryan and I 2 HOURS and THREE different models to get her to take a bottle. Because I didn't want to keep reheating the bottle over and over, I had 2 three ounce bottles on reserve for such a tantrum. The following day I decided to do the same with the 2 bottles in case we had a repeat. She did MUCH better! The first go round it only took her 10 minutes to take the bottle and the second bottle it took 4 minutes. I know the exact times because during those first 2 hours, that 10 minutes, and that 4 minutes she screamed. And when I say scream... I mean wild banshee screaming... screaming that sounds like I am slowly cutting off her limbs screaming. UGH. Today, however, I only had one bottle defrosted (wishful thinking on my part), and it took her LESS THAN ONE MINUTE! Hurray! Granted she still screamed bloody murder for that minute, so the goal is to have her simply take the bottle tomorrow like a sweet little angel baby. :) I'd like to be able to enjoy Reese's bday party Saturday and not have to go bf her in the middle of the shindig. Bryan will also need to feed her next Wednesday as I'll be in court for my fender bender, otherwise I wouldn't stress about this whole production that much. I was telling Auntie Lu the other day how stressed and frustrated I was when Reese wouldn't breastfeed... how she cried and cried and cried... how I cried and cried and cried. And then how utterly stressed and frustrated I was becoming because Emma Grace wouldn't bottle feed. It's just another lesson in "you're damned if you do... and damned if you don't," which for the record... I'm becoming quite the student in.

Just some news...

Rachel here. I thought I'd update you on some happenings here in the Pattison household while Emma naps and Reese... PRETENDS... to nap as well. :) She's good like that.
~
Oh my Emmaroo... would you look at that face?! I could die at the adorableness that is this child. She tries so hard during tummy time your heart would just melt for her, but alas she can still NOT hold her head up... for the love! I could eat her up nonetheless.
I believe it was Auntie Lu who said Emma looked like a Cabbage Patch doll because of her little dimple. I concur. Look at the uncanny resemblance! Oy! They even have the same little tuft of hair upon their heads. She's a mush that's for sure.

She's becoming so interactive with her toys now I love it! She literally layed here entranced by her play mat for a good hour! She usually gets super fussy within an hour of eating... signally naptime, but she was marathon playing this morning. The little caterpillar thing she is playing with is really for her carseat (Gma and Gdaddy bought it for her), but I recalled it due to the fact it kept smacking her in the face while driving.

Check out that lift! Well sort of. Honestly I can't really complain... she's come along way!

Oh my sweet sweet gigantic handful Reese. She is seriously the most rambunctious, crazy, balls to the wall, tenderhearted, beautiful child I know. I could seriously strangle her and devour her with kisses all within a 2 minute period. I don't know where my life would be without her. She is becoming more and more calm-tempered and loving. Just look at her with her doll! She HATES dolls, and just look at her! Side note... my non-girly girl is playing with her babydoll on her train table. ;)

Today we decided to go for something new... totally unplanned... NO PANTS DAY! Emma goes pantsless on a regular basis because we're classy like that, I was waiting for my jeans to come out of the dryer, and Reese was fully clothed... at least that's how the day started. I don't know if she was jealous or what, but Reese was in dire straits to take her clothes off. This was indeed not a battle I was willing to fight seeing as how we weren't planning on going out anywhere today, so off came her clothes. Now she's infamous for sitting just about anywhere in her diaper and peeing... because of the way she sits, she usually gets more pee on the floor than she does in her diaper, so on went a diaper cover... and of course some leg warmers because Emma had some on... and we can't be unfair now can we? Just look at that HOKIE hiney!

Reese is the best big sister we could have asked for for our wee one. She always wants to play with Emmaroo and tickle her. She's a super great helper too and is great at throwing diapers in the garkish (garbage) and wiping off Emma's face if she's spit up. She's still not super great at the latter of those tasks and often tries to smother her, but I digress. :)

Check out the new couch! It's really nice and pretty comfortable. Reese looks minuscule on it, but it'll hide all of her art/breakfast eating antics... and it's a sleeper!

Could Bryan and I have a more gorgeous child? Granted you can't see much of her face in this photo, but LOOK AT THAT HAIR WOULD YOU?!

Her personality is forever cracking me up! Toddlers and their OCD tendencies! She filled this bag up with all of her train pieces this morning, dumped them on the floor, and then placed them back into the bag... I can't even tell you how many times.

I can't believe in a couple short weeks she'll be 2. I'm working hard on the finishing touches to the party next weekend... WE CAN'T WAIT!

HIGHlarious

Rachel here. So I have no pictures for this particular post because frankly it would have grossed you out. It all starts with the fact that Bryan and I have a home with 3 bedrooms. Those 3 bedrooms used to be occupied by us and every other person known to man who needed a place to stay for HOKIE football games. Well you see... when two people love each other... blah blah blah... Now those 3 bedrooms are occupied by Bryan and I, Reese, and Emmaroo. This leaves our poor guests a nest in the garage (which the Coles have come quite accustomed to), or a blow up mattress in one of the girls' rooms. Desperate times called for desperate measures, and a little over a month ago we purchased a sleeper sofa. Well, we got a call last week saying that it had FINALLY come in. This meant we needed to get rid of our super slinky red couch. Craigslist here we come! So here's where we get to the actual story... a female Radford student came to take a look at the goods today with her brother. I'm guessing she brought him with her in case I was into some kind of crazy sex trade shenanigans... originally Bryan was supposed to be here with me when people were to come for that same reason, but he's out of town. Anyway... so in the house they come... stepping over toddler toys. I'm holding Emma with her back up against my chest and Reese is standing VERY CLOSE TO ME at my legs. I'm talking to the girl when all of the sudden her brother goes "OH MAN!" I'm all like "what?!" Emma BARFED ALL OVER REESE'S HEAD! It was epic! We all laughed, and poor Reese had no idea what just happened. Needless to say she got an immediate ticket to the bathtub. :)

A hairline only a mother could love

It's bad enough people have a hard enough time telling whether a baby is a boy or a girl. Now we have to worry about Emma Grace being confused for a middle aged beer drinking male. Can you say AWKWARD?!

In this case...

... cheaper is better. Rachel here. I am a huge fan of cheap things... not to be confused with cheaply made things. The Adiri bottles I bought Emma yesterday in hopes to get her to take a bottle before I have to appear in court October 7th for my car accident... GARBAGE! They retail for $22.99 for TWO. I thought I would give them a try because they were shaped like a boob (well sort of)... and they are all new age or whatever. Here was Emma's reaction:

Fast forward to today when I got a wild and crazy idea to use a bottle we already had to see if she would take that. LOOK AT THIS CHILD WOULD YOU?! Happy as a clam with an EMPTY bottle. Oh the saga! And what's she drinking out of you ask? Playtex Drop ins... the grotesquely cheap bottle... we're talking retail $18.49 for FIVE of them people! The nipple is much softer and pliable than that of the Adiri... Emma is sold. (Side note... check out those HOT CHEAP Circo babylegs she's sporting! OH THE CHEAPNESS!)

God Bless America

Rachel here. So I seriously hope I'm not jinxing myself when I say this... but today is the BEST day ever! Reese woke up in a splendid mood, so out we went. We went to Target in hopes to finish up the goody bags for the party, and to pick up some new bottles for Em. We walked in and of course the dollar section immediately begins to taunt me. I've sworn off the dollar section at Target because there hasn't been one time EVER that I've made it out of the section without buying something. Something told me though that I needed to take just a little peek. What did I find? I found BIG BIRD stampers! HELLO! Reese's recent obsession with Big Bird is no secret, so alas, I thought they would be a perfect addition to the goody bags. :) Onto the goody bag aisle. Nothing too terribly entertaining there. I found a couple of things but nothing blog worthy. :) It wasn't until I got to the baby section that I almost wet my pants. First off I'd like to say that I think onsies with pants look ridiculous! Have my children worn onsies with pants. YES. Did I feel they looked undesirable... YES. :) So yesterday I went to OUAC in search of shirts for Emma Grace... no onsies. I only found a couple that I thought were cute. I'm VERY particular about what the girls wear. Just ask my mom... who has yet to buy the girls ANY clothing because she knows how picky I am. ;) But I digress. So instead of pants, Emma wears a lot of Babylegs. They are adorable baby legwarmers that can be worn INSTEAD of pants and are great with onsies. Reese had a couple pairs, but her legs were always way too big for them. :) My little chunkster, so she didn't wear them often, however, she now likes to fashion them on her arms. It's no secret that said Babylegs are not the cheapest things on the planet. At Target they average $9.99 a pair but are TO DIE FOR. In fact... I'm not above buying adult knee socks and cutting the bottoms/heal off and stitching them up for the same effect. Today I was pleasantly surprised when I noticed that Circo now makes them for a mere... wait for it... $3.99!!!!! SAY HUH?! Needless to say EG has 4 new pairs... and a new onsie to boot!

~

Onto the bottles. I found EXACTLY what I was looking for! Now hopefully they work... because they weren't cheap either. UGH. Why do people insist on charging an arm and a leg for baby gear!?

And to conclude my PERFECT morning... Reese jumps out of the car for me only to realize she has broken her Croc. NOT PERFECT. HOW DOES THAT EVEN HAPPEN? The strap is half way off and the rivet is nowhere to be found! Reese has TONS and I do mean TONS of shoes, but I've realized the Crocs are my favorite because they are durable and she can put them on herself, so to have a man down is DEVASTATING. After I give her a talking-to, I hopped on the Croc website, right onto the live chat, explain to the customer service person my dilemma and asked him (Allen) if anything could be done... he asks no questions and says "I would be happy to send a replacement for you. What was your address? I will mail those rivets for you TODAY." God bless America! AND GOD BLESS ALLEN!

VT vs Nebraska

Nothing like a Hokie Tailgate to get your juices flowing!

Here is our beloved rental... oh how we will miss you.

ALY!

Mommy is very thankful for our friends and family that love her girls so much!

The Big Girl cup

Mommy has been letting me try to use a big girl cup... it's been interesting to say the least. :)

B.U.M.B.O.

3 months

Rachel here. I'm not sure how or when this happened...

but my wee little nugget is 3 months old! TEAR. Seriously folks... look how adorable she is! I could melt. Emma Grace is such a blessing to our family. We all (yes, even Reese) just love her to pieces.
~
EG is cooing like CRAZY! She'll say "hi" to you if you say it to her first. Smiling is something that comes completely natural to her, and she is a bundle of cuteness when she does it. She's doing something that I don't ever remember Reese doing... DROOLING. Now I'm telling you RIGHT NOW... I am not ready for my wee one to start getting teeth... do you hear me up there... NO TEETH. Reese was 10 months before she got her first tooth, and I'll be damned if Emma starts BEFORE then. Now I know I have no control, but HAVE MERCY! She's always trying to jam my finger into her mouth. Ugh. EG STILL hates tummy time. I think around this time was when Reese could hold her head up easily on her belly. Emma is still a huge fan of eating mouths full of blanket. She's getting better... meaning we go longer before she starts screaming. :) She's pretty solid though when you sit her on your lap with no head support, so at least we've got that going for us.
~
I think she's gaining weight nicely. We don't have another appointment until October 26th, so I don't know for sure, but she's outgrowing her clothes, so I can only assume. :) I went ahead and bumped her into her 3-6 month clothing. Like Reese, she still fits in SOME... VERY LITTLE... BUT SOME of her 0-3 month clothing, but with the changing seasons it just seemed easier to switch her completely over. That allows me to get the 0-3 month bin of clothes back into the attic and gain some more room.
~
Emma is still eating every 2 hours during the day (that's about 7-8 feedings, and I'm assuming she's getting about 3 ounces each feeding). We've cut out the night feeding because she's pretty much sleeping through the night. This in turn means Bryan isn't needed for that feeding... which in turn has created an "I'm not taking that bottle from you" monster. UGH! We tried to give her a bottle at the tailgate, and she screamed like it was nobody's business. We tried again at Auntie Angie's house, and after about 30 minutes of refusal, she gave in. Sometimes I just like the freedom of being able to have someone else feed her... especially now that we're getting out more. I'd love to be able to make it to a football game this season, but who knows now with the bottle/boob issues we're having. I'll be heading to the Target to purchase this special boob bottle, so hopefully that'll get her taking them again.
~
She's an EXCELLENT sleeper these days. Bedtime for both girls is 7. Emma is slowly learning to soothe herself if she hasn't fallen asleep while feeding... well for the most part anyway. I put her in her crib, give her the paci (for the most part she DOES NOT take it... there is a rare moment, and those moments are blissful), and crank her mobile. She LOVES her mobile. We can usually get away with doing it only twice and she's down for the count. Occasionally though she throws us for a loop and cries. We're getting more and more used to letting her cry it out... and those sessions are getting shorter and shorter. She'll wake up to eat anywhere from 4-8. The earlier she wakes up in that block the more likely she is to go right back to sleep for at least 3 more hours. If she's up closer to 8... she's up to play. We really can't complain especially with her being breastfed still. I've heard some stories and am just thankful we only have to get up once.
~
Little sister. Emma LOVES Reese, which makes me smile. She is always smiling at Reese while Reese is tickling her belly or playing with her feet. I can't wait until she can interact with Reese more. They are two remarkably sweet little girls, and Bryan and I are SO lucky.

Comparison

Rachel here. Could these girls have been born with a goofier/cuter smile?

Reese~Left

Emma Grace~Right

Underpants

Rachel here. Why oh why don't they make Thomas/Cars underpants FOR GIRLS? A few weeks ago, while in The Wal-mart, we were looking very briefly at the underpants. There were Disney princesses and Dora... and Tinkerbell... frankly I wanted to vomit. I'm fighting the Disney princesses off for as long as I can, which may not be an issue with our child who likes to stroll around her cars as opposed to baby dolls in her stroller... and there is something about Dora that just isn't right. Reese, however, was in dire need of the underpants with Cars on them. I was all prepared to purchase said Cars underpants, when Bryan chimed in and said something to the effect of... "no... because I don't want to explain to her the flap." SERIOUSLY? She probably wouldn't even notice... anyway... we DID NOT buy said underpants... I decided I would check out Target's selection. Fast forward to yesterday when I FINALLY made it out of the house to make a return at Target. We bounced on over to the underpants aisle, and I found these super cute Hello Kitty underpants. We've decided they'll work for now, and if she wants the Thomas/Cars underpants THAT BADLY... we'll get them. Picking and choosing my battles is becoming more of an everyday occurrence around here. I can't fight them all. If she wants boy underpants at the ripe age of 2... so be it. If she wants a thong at the ripe age of 2... I'll put my boxing gloves on for that one. See the difference? ANYWAY... here are the super cute undies. I've never seen a cuter pair. :)


Reese was actually nice enough to share a pair with Emma.

Who promptly put them in her mouth and tried to suck on them. That's a whole other story... revisit us on the 19th. :)

Noggin

Rachel here. So last night Reese took a wall off the face. GOOD TIMES. Can you see the line from the middle of her forehead all the way down to her cheek? The kid is seriously indestructible! She screamed for 1.2 seconds. Last month she fell off the arm of the couch onto Emma Graces's papazan chair and had a HUGE bruise on her cheek. I think she only cried for .2 seconds that go round.


Don't worry though... there wasn't much swelling. She made sure to ice it. ;)

Nakee time

Who needs a diaper? I like to be free!

VT vs MARSHALL

Rachel here. So this past weekend was our first home football game, and it was Emma Grace's first tailgate EVER! It was nice to be able to hang out with our friends and family. Our "internet friends" the Biasi's came to hang out with us for a little while before the game. Lila Anne then came over to our house with Aly for a little playdate. The girls seemed to have a really great time, and it was nice to be able to catch up and chat with friends.

~

Melissa was gracious enough to take some great pictures at the tailgate. These happen to be some of my favorites that she took of my girls. :)

If you live in the Hampton Roads area, she's for hire. :)

Tummy time... the saga continues

Here was tummy time yesterday. I DON'T KNOW WHY this woman makes me do this!
On another note: Mommy thinks that I'll learn to roll over before I learn to hold my head up at the rate I'm going.

And here was tummy time today... so much more relaxed.