Hawaii

Hawaii. What can I say. The weather was beautiful – the BEST we have ever experienced during that time – and fantastic company – my parents, sister and brother and his girlfriend Emily. But it was the most stressful and tiring vacation Jamey and I have ever taken. Emma didn’t adjust to the time change at all and was generally uncomfortable sleeping in the hotel room at night! (Hawaii is two hours behind SF). Emma had a lot of trouble sleeping and would wake up in the middle of the night crying every night. There was only one night this didn’t happen. She also would be up for the day any where from 3am-4am. This was brutal for me and Jamey. She wouldn’t go back to sleep and she would cry so we had to leave the room and take her for a walk. Jamey was amazing and would take her in the morning so I could sleep a little more but we were walking around like zombies.

Besides the sleep deprivation, we had a great time! Emma loved playing in the sand, going in the Ocean and swimming in the pool. She loved looking at the fish, the flamingos, the swans and talking to the birds (all in the hotel atrium). She loved going on her walks and would constantly fall asleep on them. She was averaging 3-4 naps a day (unlike the 2 she typically takes).

For a girl who barely slept at night she sure was happy!! She was constantly smiling, laughing and playing. She was so social and making friends with everyone in sight. She was a waving machine. She was also a kissing machine!!! She had stopped for a while but she is back in action and the kisses are better than ever! She makes the “MuuuuaaaaaaaaaaaHHHHHH !” sound as she leans in and kisses you.

Emma is also OBSESSED with Grandma Marcia!! It is the cutest thing!!!! I would be holding Emma and when Grandma Marcia showed up, Emma wanted nothing to do with me and would immediately reach from Grandma. Also, when she saw Grandma from afar she would do this little excited laugh until Grandma was next to her. She would constantly kiss her and was stuck to Grandma like glue.

Every morning Emma would eat a breakfast for champions. She loved eating pancakes, waffles, oatmeal, eggs and fruit. I swear she ate more than me many days! What that little body could pack in was amazing.

Grandma taught Emma a new trick which is really cute. Grandma took her into the ocean many days and when the wave would break, Grandma would pick her up, say Halleluiah and put her arms up in the air. So, after a while, whenever Grandma would say Halleluiah Emma would raise her arms over her head. Sometimes though, she wouldn’t raise her arms but she would squeal as if she was saying Halleluiah. It was awesome to see her do that. Emma also loved playing in the sand. Yes, she ate her fair share of sand but she did learn after a while that sand was not to be eaten. We bought her a pail and shovels and she had a great time putting sand and other things in the bucket and taking it out.

Emma also had her dancing shoes on the whole trip. She would do the happy dance whenever we asked her to and when she would get excited or happy over something. Uncle Ryan loved the dance the most and would constantly ask her to do it.

Emma’s new thing is to open up doors or drawers, take everything out of them and then put some stuff back. She would do this over and over again. It was quite entertaining to watch her and she kept herself entertained. She would reach for the highest drawer and literally hang from it. She would get on her tippy tippy toes and try her hardest to see what was in the drawer and take it out. Most of the time she failed at getting anything out of it since it was so high up. It was really cute to watch her do this.

Emma is also improving standing on her own not holding on to anything. She kept practicing over and over and was balancing on her own for longer each time. She isn’t as timid as she was before. She would get her balance and start to play – she would shake her shakers, clap her hands or just look around. This is a great leap towards walking on her own.

At the airport on our way home we discovered another new thing. Really Auntie Deb taught her or at least was the first person to allow Emma to do it and that was Emma knows how to eat a banana like an adult. We don’t need to give her little bites anymore – we just need to peel it and she will take bites from it. It is pretty neat to watch her do this.

The next challenge we face is weaning Emma from breastfeeding. This is going to be a feat within itself. Most of the time she won’t take the bottle in the morning and there is no way in the world she would take the bottle at night. This is a problem and we have created a monster in a sense. When we try to give her a bottle at night she screams bloody murder, swats the bottle away and won’t take it for the life of her. When this happens the poor little girl screams until she falls asleep. This makes us so sad. We are going to change her bedtime routine and hope it isn’t too hard. Right now when I feed her she falls asleep for the night and I move her into her crib. Obviously this can’t continue. Check back soon for an update on this. Cross your fingers for us that the transition isn’t too hard!!