First Steps

Emery took her first steps on Thursday. She still needs to be abandoned standing up in order to take any, but I'm sure independent tries will begin soon. Luckily, we have cameras with video functions to document the steps that occurred right after the first:



Also occurring on Thursday was another milestone: we signed enrollment papers to Em to start daycare next month. While we really don't need care until the end of September, when a place at our absolute favorite center opened up for immediate start, we had to grab it up. While I am very sad that my stay at home status is coming to an end, this will be a good thing. I can work on my thesis and maybe actually get that in a submittable state in the next couple of months.

On the list of things that totally aren't working: eating. The daycare assures us that they'll work on it with her, but if you had told me a year ago that I would be exclusively breastfeeding a 10 month old, I would have thought you were insane. I am pretty disappointed that I didn't get to feed her the way I wanted to. I have books with recipes for baby food, special ice cube trays to freeze food cubes, a steamer and ricer to make perfectly thinned and nutritious meals, I've read tons of articles about when to introduce foods, how to get kids to eat vegetables and be adventurous eaters. All of it is out the window. If I can get her to swallow one bite of anything it's an accomplishment. While I have run across a few moms in similar predicaments, most mommies are stunned and seem to believe I must be doing something wrong: have you tried rice cereal? sweet potatoes? apples? Gee, no guys, I thought she was supposed to eat dog food. I've switched out eating locations, spoons, bowls, textures, tried salty, sweet, bland, bold. Nothing. The list of things she doesn't eat? Pears, strawberries, ollalieberry, freeze dried strawberry, banana, apple and asian pear, broccoli, carrots, chicken, salami, avocado, guacamole (so much puking as a result), oatmeal, rice, noodles, bread, Cheerios, Gerber Graduates, cheese, yogurt, peas, sugar, cheesecake, cookies, churro, cake and everything else edible. Except ice cream. She'll gobble that right up. Baby yogurt that has been frozen and mixed with fruit that tastes just like ice cream to me? Of course not.

Emery's New Word

While adorable, this means "mama" has completely disappeared from her vocabulary. Sigh.