Emma's Naming, "Easter Emma," Bath Pics

Our trip to NY was a big success. Emma slept all the way up to NY on the flight there, napped in the car on the way home, and was good all day....until bedtime. Yikes. She was a holy terror that first night. As of yesterday Emma was diagnosed with a bad ear infection, so now that I look back on that night (and the night that we flew back to NC), her ears were probably starting to hurt and the air pressure didn't help. Poor thing.

In any case, Amy's wedding was absolutely beautiful and unlike anything I'll surely ever see again. Let's just say, it was an "experience." Amazing food, amazing drinks, amazing music. Good times had by all. AND we spent our first night ever away from Emma. Thank you Grandma Carol, Uncle Evan, and Allyssa for taking such good care of the baby.

Emma's naming ceremony went very well. She seemed to really take to the Rabbi. He was pretty funny and made the ceremony interesting and "interactive." Emma even tried her first bite of Challah bread! It was so great to have all of the grandparents present (Grammy and Grampy Farrell, Grandma Carol and Grandpa Joe) and even one of Emma's great grandmothers (Great Grandma Jennie Trumpatori).

Emma received some beautiful and thoughtful gifts, including: a beautiful necklace and frame from Grammy and Grampy Farrell, a pearl picture frame, and a comfy blanket that was given to her by Allyssa (she designed it herself and even chose the colors for it based on a picture of Emma with her daisy headband and tutu).

Emma took the name of her Great Grandma Pauline "Peninah" Meisler. Peninah literally means Pearl (or can also be referred to as Coral, as I learned from Allyssa), so the pearl frame and the engraved frame from Grammy and Grampy certainly hold special meaning.

Here are a few pictures from the naming:









We didn't do anything special for Easter or Passover this year, as we figured Emma is a little young to really "participate" in anything. So, here are a few cute pics of the "Easter Emma" with her bunny ears on...








And just for fun, some cute bath pics...

A Mother's Prayer for Its Child.... by Tina Fey

A hilarious excerpt from Tina Fey's new book. I find it to be hysterical and EXACTLY hits on my every fear as a mommy.

Please, Emma, listen to my prayer...


“First, Lord: No tattoos. May neither Chinese symbol for truth nor Winnie-the-Pooh holding the FSU logo stain her tender haunches.

May she be Beautiful but not Damaged, for it’s the Damage that draws the creepy soccer coach’s eye, not the Beauty.

When the Crystal Meth is offered, may she remember the parents who cut her grapes in half And stick with Beer.

Guide her, protect her when crossing the street, stepping onto boats, swimming in the ocean, swimming in pools, walking near pools, standing on the subway platform, crossing 86th Street, stepping off of boats, using mall restrooms, getting on and off escalators, driving on country roads while arguing, leaning on large windows, walking in parking lots, riding Ferris wheels, roller-coasters, log flumes, or anything called “Hell Drop,” “Tower of Torture,” or “The Death Spiral Rock ‘N Zero G Roll featuring Aerosmith,” and standing on any kind of balcony ever, anywhere, at any age.

Lead her away from Acting but not all the way to Finance. Something where she can make her own hours but still feel intellectually fulfilled and get outside sometimes And not have to wear high heels. What would that be, Lord? Architecture? Midwifery? Golf course design? I’m asking You, because if I knew, I’d be doing it, Youdammit.

May she play the Drums to the fiery rhythm of her Own Heart with the sinewy strength of her Own Arms, so she need Not Lie With Drummers.

Grant her a Rough Patch from twelve to seventeen.Let her draw horses and be interested in Barbies for much too long, For childhood is short – a Tiger Flower blooming Magenta for one day – And adulthood is long and dry-humping in cars will wait.

O Lord, break the Internet forever, that she may be spared the misspelled invective of her peers And the online marketing campaign for Rape Hostel V: Girls Just Wanna Get Stabbed.

And when she one day turns on me and calls me a Bitch in front of Hollister, Give me the strength, Lord, to yank her directly into a cab in front of her friends, For I will not have that Shit. I will not have it.

And should she choose to be a Mother one day, be my eyes, Lord, that I may see her, lying on a blanket on the floor at 4:50 A.M., all-at-once exhausted, bored, and in love with the little creature whose poop is leaking up its back. “My mother did this for me once,” she will realize as she cleans feces off her baby’s neck. “My mother did this for me.” And the delayed gratitude will wash over her as it does each generation and she will make a Mental Note to call me. And she will forget. But I’ll know, because I peeped it with Your God eyes.

Amen.”

-Tina Fey

8 Months Old, First Bike Trip, NY Trip

Happy 8 Month birthday to our baby girl! (4/2/11)



Emma had her second tooth break through a few days ago. It seems the "teething boogies" are neverending, so I'm wondering if she's going to pop a few teeth through on the top soon.

She's been sleeping much better lately (::knocks on wood::), only waking once in the night looking for her pacifier, then sleeping til about 6 am. Hey, we'll take it!

Her new favorite thing to do is crawl over to walls and stand up against them. We like to call her "Spider Baby" because she's so quick when doing this and doesn't lose her grip.

It's pretty incredible to see how quickly she's growing up. Now that she's a crawling machine she is exploring more and more. At The Little Gym she's getting more and more confident, crawling away from Mommy and towards new friends or the gymnastics equipment.

Brian bought a pull-behind bike trailer for Emma (the covered kind) a few weeks ago. We finally found an infant helmet and go her in it (she hated it) and went off for her first bike ride. We just went around the neighborhood for about 10 minutes. All in all she seemed to like it, we just need to get the straps to fit her a little better because she was sort of listing to one side the whole time.




We leave for NY on Friday morning--hopefully the little Stinker will sleep on the plane. If not, I have a feeling we'll have our hands full (now that she constantly wants to be moving).

We've got Amy Cohen's wedding (Kelly's college roomate) on Saturday night. It's a black tie event and we're looking forward to getting all dolled up to have a night out. Thank you Grandma Carol for taking care of Emma for that night so we can enjoy ourselves!

On Sunday morning, we will be having a naming ceremony for Emma. It's part of the Jewish tradition and is a way of honoring recently passed relatives. We're doing a more modern version of this with the Rabbi coming to Carol's house on Sunday morning to lead the ceremony, then we'll follow with a brunch. Emma will be taking on the name of Brian's maternal grandmother, Pauline or Pearlie. Brian and I are looking forward to being a part of such an important ritual and to be able to honor Brian's grandmother in such a nice way.

...Now, just wish us luck with the flights!!!