We Need YOUR Help!

I know I am a terrible blogger and have neglected this sweet little page lately!  I honestly cannot find the time to put together my thoughts in the way that I would like, so I have just stayed away instead of posting something that doesn't have my heart and soul behind it.

Another HUGE reason why I haven't (and don't) post here is that I am a Mommy Vlogger and share our life on YouTube, so the majority of my time sharing about my life as is Mommy is spent there.  I would love for you to check out our channel and subscriber if you are a YouTuber.

This whole topic brings me to the point I made in the header - we need YOUR help!  We are currently in the running for Top 25 Mommy Vloggers over at Circle of Mom's website.  SUCH a huge honor! We are up against some powerhouse YouTube Mom's with HUGE subscriber bases, so our little channel is doing great holding it's own against these big names.  I would love your support by voting for us in the competition.  We are currently #8 and need every bit of help to stay there.

Voting is simple, you don't have to sign up or log in, it's literally a simple 2 second click and you're done!  You can  vote once every 24 hours until March 13th and I would LOVE your vote each day!

http://www.circleofmoms.com/blogger/dodge-family

Thank you in advance!!!

Eight & Nine Months Old!

My dearest little Emma,

Please forgive Mommy for being so late with recapping your past two months.  Every time that I want to sit down to write it all down, I either cannot spare the time of leaving you to play alone, or am far too tired in the day to do it.  Like every other month before, time keeps going by faster and faster and I feel like I blink and you are another month older.  Yes, I say that all the time, but it couldn't be more true.  Sometimes I sit back in amazement looking at how big you are now and try to piece together how in the world we got here so fast.  I suppose for the rest of your life I will be in that constant state of wishing time to go slower so that I can soak up each moment of your life before it flies by.

You have grown and changed so much over the past two months, I am constantly amazed at you!  Your funny little personality is showing more each day.  You are still such a happy and fun loving baby who isn't phased by a whole lot.   You are usually pretty go with the flow, but now when you want something you are quick to let us know what you want and what doesn't make you happy.  You have learned who you feel comfortable with and Mommy wins for being #1 in your heart.  I suppose that you do love your Daddy as much as me, but you get so excited when I walk in the room after being gone away that if you could, you would jump right into my arms.  Mommy is the one you want when you're sad or wake up in the middle of the night crying.  Daddy can calm you for only a minute or two, but your sweet little puffy eyes stare down the door of your bedroom waiting for me to walk through and "save the day."  Honestly, I adore that you adore me.  Even in my sleepy 2 am state of mind, I absolutely treasure getting to cuddle you so closely to me as you drift back off to sleep.  I wouldn't trade that feeling for 10 hours of sleep every night.   One of the favorite things that you do that Daddy & I love is that when you are so tired and sleepy you insist on holding so tightly to one of our fingers with your whole hand and you don't like to let go until you are completely out.  You are so cute sucking your thumb with one hand, and gripping our hand in the other right near your face.  As long as you know that we are still there, it's as if you know that everything is right in the world and you can safely fall asleep.  If I could capture any moment in time, I think that would be it.

You are learning and discovering new things every day, and it's fascinating to watch your curious little face as you examine the world around you.  Whenever we go, you are quiet and soaking everything in as your little eyes dart back and forth throughout the place we are at, as you are trying to figure out what and why everything is there.  You squeal with delight when you find a new thing that you love and find fascinating and it's adorable to watch you giggle and laugh over it. 

You aren't crawling yet and you definitely have strong feelings about us trying to make you do it.  You have let us know that you are happy where you are, and aren't ready for us to force you to do anything of the sort.  One thing that we are learning about you is that when you have your mind set about something, there isn't any changing it and you are gonna let us know that for sure!  You scoot your little self around and roll in delight to where you want to go, but army crawling and inch worming is about all that you want to do.  You are clearly more interested in standing up and trying to move around that way rather than crawling on the floor.  I am anxious for you to start scooting around, and you appease me from time to time, but then plop yourself back on your backside to play with your toys in delight.   You're definitely a funny little girl!!

One thing that you are not shy about is your love of FOOD!! You love getting to eat "big girl" food and trying things off Daddy & mine's plates at meal time.  Your buggy little hands are always grabbing at anything that's near you and if we aren't quick enough it's in your mouth before we know it.  There isn't one thing that you won't try and you finish everything we give you.  You are such a good little eater and it's so cute to see you grin from ear to ear as you feed yourself.  You LOVE green beans and spaghetti noodles the most, and they usually end up all over your face.  You are such a pro at feeding yourself now, and even try to grab at the spoon when Mommy feeds you so you can attempt to do that too.  I don't usually let you get too much into it or else I would be scrubbing walls every meal time, but we let you get in there from time to time and you love the independence of it.

Emma Charlotte, you are such a joy and you have taught me so much in your sweet little 9 months of life.  I love watching you learn and grow every day, and you make me fall more in love with you each moment that I spend with you.  You are such a blessing from the Lord and we thank Him every day for you!  Promise Mommy that you won't turn ONE too fast, pretty please?!

Seven Months Old

My sweet little Emma,

I cannot believe that we are over the half year mark, and you are now SEVEN months old.  Don't you remember the deal we made where I said you couldn't grow up too fast?! What is happening here?! Each month brings so many new adventures, as you become your own little person more and more each day.  I beam with pride over all the new things you accomplish each month, but my heart can't help but feel a little sad that you are growing so fast.  I suppose this is something that Mommy will deal with your entire life though.

You are learning so much about life and your sweet little giggle and smiles show it.  You find playing by yourself and learning about all your toys to be so enjoyable.  We often hear you playing by yourself and laughing in delight as you pickup and toss each toy after chewing on it & observing it contently for a few minutes.  You officially LOVE sitting up like a big kid to play, and so far hate it when we try to make you play on your tummy and learn to crawl.  I assume you are wanting to enjoy the mastery of sitting up, since it was hard work to learn, and don't like us trying to make you do something new... at least not yet.

You are very vocal now about what you like and don't like...as well as who you like and don't like.  Mommy is still your favorite person of all, and I not so secretly (still) LOVE that!! You are very cautious about new places and people, and grab on tightly to me until you feel good enough about everyone else.  I love that you still need me the most, and I try to treasure that for as long as I can, because I am well aware that it a fleeting moment in time.

You love to eat, and meal time is your favorite time! You squeal with delight and get very unhappy waiting in your high chair as we prep your food.  You want the food shoveled in bite after bite, and you let us know if we are doing it too slow for your liking.  It is so cute to see your sweet messy face at each meal! You love banging your spoon and trying to feed yourself.   It's so cute watching you try to figure out how we do it, and try to replicate that yourself.

You still have the sweetest and calmest demeanor, and you make life on Mommy & Daddy quite easy. Sure you have your fussy moments, what baby doesn't, but even in your fussy moments we can get you to smile seconds after crying.  The fussy moments usually don't last too long!

You love trying to play like a big girl, and always want to be standing up and holding on to toys or things. Daddy & I think you may just walk before you crawl sometimes! :)  You love to talk and scream when you are having fun, or really just any time you're awake.  Daddy is a little afraid that he now has two chatterboxes on his hands!  I love listening to your sweet little voice try to figure out new sounds and put them together.

Emma, we love you so much and we truly thank God all the time for blessing us with you.  It's a joy to raise you as you grow each and every day, and we will always treasure that responsibility.  We love you baby girl!

Six Months Old

Dear Emma,

I feel like I start off each monthly post this way, but I honestly cannot believe you are SIX months old! You are officially at the half year mark and if the next 6 months go by as quickly as the first did, I just don't know what I am going to do with myself! I feel like I blink and you have grown in leaps and bound, and even though that is the greatest pleasure I have in being your Mommy, I wish I could freeze time for a few moments to soak in all your littleness before it passed by.

You are constantly growing and changing into your own little person day by day and I adore seeing your little personality blossom.  You are such a sweet baby and you truly bring so much joy to those around you.  There is not much in life that phases you and you take each new day with a smile on your face and a sweet, calm demeanor that truly astounds every one.  No one can grasp just how peaceful you are!  They always think it's strange to see such a well behaved baby who rarely cries and truly embraces each moment with joy, but to your Daddy and I it is no surprise.  We covered you in prayer each day that you formed in my belly and spoke peace, joy, calmness, and happiness over your life and you are living proof of those words.

You are learning so many new things each day and it is so fun to watch you discover!  You love to play with all your toys, especially the exersaucer, and you love to make lots of noise when you are in it.  You have really found your voice lately and have chosen to express yourself with the loudest squeals possible.  It is so funny to watch your sweet little face light up with excitement as you screech and squeal over every little thing.  You are learning to sit up on your own like a big girl and play, and you beam with pride when we dote on this accomplishment!  You are still learning the ins and outs of balance, but it's precious to see you teeter as you figure it all out.

You love to eat and it is probably your favorite time of the day! Each time I place you in your Bumbo chair and put your bib on the squeaks and squeals are endless.  I can never get it all ready fast enough and you sit with your mouth open waiting for me to shovel in the meal of the day.  I love watching your fun expressions as you try new foods for the first time.  You may not always like it at first, but you are willing to give it a go and haven't had one thing that you haven't finished yet.  You are constantly trying to snag our food like a big kid, but we keep telling you that will have to wait a few more months.

When it comes to your love for Mommy and Daddy, we each have different roles in your heart.  Daddy is your playtime buddy and you love goofing around with him,.  He can get you to giggle a lot easier than I can, which isn't always fair, but it sure is cute to see how you love playing with him so much.  Mommy is the one you turn to when things aren't going the way you want.  You always choose me over Daddy when you are tired and fussy, or just want some cuddling and I couldn't love that any more.  It makes me so happy that you find me the most comforting.  My favorite time of the day with you is rocking you to sleep as you snuggle into my arms and slowly drift off into dream world.  I try to soak each night in and lock it into my memory bank since I know that this is just a brief moment in time where you will let me do this.

Emma, we love you so very much and you bring so much happiness to our lives.  I cannot believe how quickly you are growing! I love that each new month brings new adventures, and I cannot wait to see what the next has in store!

Four & Five Months Old!

Dear Emma,

I cannot believe that you are already FIVE months old.  Mommy has been horrible at keeping up on things this summer, since we have been so busy and only home to sleep.  I figured before you turn SIX months old (yikes, how is that just around the corner already?!) I should probably update on how you've been the past two months.

The past two months have literally just flown by so fast, we have barely had time to catch our breath, but somehow you find the time to just keep growing and growing.  The past two months you have learned so many new things I don't even know where to start.  You are so playful and love grabbing at and throwing your toys all around.  You finally discovered that they make all these fun noises when you pull and squeeze them and there is no stopping you once you have them in your hands.  Another new discovery is that the toys taste even better when they are in your mouth! You always are trying to figure out how to get anything and everything in your mouth to drool and chomp on whatever the object of your affection is that moment. 

You finally figured out how to roll from back to tummy and now each time we lay you down you are a rolling machine.  You are moving all around the floor, scooting and manuvering yourself into these funny positions.   Once you get yourself into a mess then you like to cry for us to come get you back to where you started.  It is so fun to watch you play and interact with all your toys, but one things you truly LOVE is the ceiling fan.  You constantly follow it around and could stare at it for a long time, and who can blame you it really IS that fascinating! :)

Daddy finally pushed me into letting you be more independent and sleeping in your crib overnight.  While Mommy had tears in her eyes as I laid you down that first night, like everything else it life you were such a pro and acted like it had been your bed since day one.  I love how easily you adapt to change, even if it means you don't need me as much.  It made me sad to see you sleeping in your crib like a big girl, because I know it's just the first of many milestones where you will become more and  more independent.

You are still in love with your thumb and it is pretty much always in your mouth, unless you are talking and screaming at the top of your lungs.  I have no clue where you get your constant need to babble from?! You love to laugh and giggle, but you make us really work for it.  Daddy has a way of making you break out into a giggle fest much easier than I do.  Although, it feels a bit unfair at times, I know you adore him and that is the best feeling in the world.  You are such a sweet, easy going baby and we are constantly reminded of that from family and friends, and even strangers who meet you for the first time.  I guess you inherited that easy go with the flow thing more from your Daddy than me.  So far you have a great balance of each of us.

Emma, we love you so much and are constantly amazed at you each and every day! I cannot believe you have been in our lives for 5 months already!!

Three Months Old!

**I wrote this post way back when she was 3 month old but totally forgot to publish it! OOPS! :)***

Dear Emma,

Another month has vanished into thin air and I cannot believe how fast you are growing up.  You are constantly changing daily before my eyes and I feel like my itty bitty baby that I brought home just months ago is no where to be found these days.  You have learned so much this past month and your adorable little personality is becoming more and more evident these days.  It is so fun to watch you grow and discover the world around you.  Everything you do is just so cute and fun, it brings so much joy to your Daddy and I.

This month you learned how to roll over and it was such an exciting accomplishment, more for Mommy than for you, but exciting none the less.  The first time you did it I screamed with delight and all your reaction was simply a blank stare at me trying to figure out why I thought that was so exciting.  At first you needed our help to do it, but now you have mastered the skill of rolling over and automatically do it nearly every time we put you on your tummy.  You learned to play and interact with your toys and you  have mastered the holding of your rattle, minus the fact that you still tend to unintentionally hit yourself with it.

You continue to talk all the time and let us know what your thinking about in all your little baby babbles.  You like it when we talk back to you and you try to continue the conversation with us.  You love looking at books and studying the colors and pictures in them when we are reading to you.  You are constantly taking in the things around you especially when we adventure out into the world around us.  You quietly study it all and try to figure things out, it's so cute to watch your little eyes go back and forth observing everything aroung you.

You are growing stronger all the time and you are happiest when we are holding you up and letting you "stand".  You love to work out your legs and act like a big girl, and even sitting like a big girl makes you the happiest.  You just wanna grow up too fast and Mommy's not ready for it!! Just promise me you won't start crawling super early?! :)

This month you found your thumb and have become an avid thumb sucker.  It's so cute to watch you spit out your nuk and delightfully suck your thumb as you fall asleep.  It's precious and every one melts when they see you do it because you are just so cute!! At first, you would cover your whole face with your hand in order to get to your thumb, but you are figured out how to move your hands around your nose to get just the thumb but still look around. 

You are still the happiest and most easy going baby I've ever been around.  You barely cry but when you do Mommy seems to have the magic touch to calm you down, even better than Daddy.  I (not so) secretly love that!!!

You are constantly changing all the time and as wonderful as it is to watch you grow, I am sad that time keeps flying by!!

Two Months Old

Dear Emma,

I cannot believe that you are now TWO months old.  I feel like I blink and you are another month old again! Time has been flying by so fast since the day that you arrived and I just want it to pause so I can take in all your cuteness and littleness before it's gone forever.  It has been so fun to watch you grow and change over the past month, but it's all so bittersweet at the same time.  I love seeing you change and become your own little person more and more each day, but at the same time I am not ready for you to grow up.  I know you aren't really all that grown up yet, but each day is a step towards you becoming bigger and bigger.

This past month you have grown SO much! You learned to smile, talk in coos and grunts, and you have started to play and interact with us more and more every day.  We love listening to you "talk" and you are especially chatty when we are doing tummy time.  You have so many stories to tell us about life and we love listening to them.  You make us laugh with all your expressions and the funny ways that you do things and communicate with us.  You LOVE watching us do things and always are trying to learn about what is going on around you.  You stare at us with this quizzical look and try to take it all in. You love looking at all our picture frames and book shelves, it leaves you in complete wonder. You love when we read books to you and if you aren't busy taking in the pictures, you are busy telling us about you think about the book. It is just so fun to watch you discover new things every day!!

Pretty much every morning you wake up with a big smile and love to say Good Morning to us that way! It is the best thing in the world to see your cute little smile.  You have learned to recognize Mommy and Daddy's faces and will smile at us when we come in from other rooms to where you are, or when we get home from being away from you.  It absolutely melts our hearts!! I think I still have a place in your heart as favorite and I can usually calm you down over any one else when you are really upset, but don't get me wrong you ADORE your Daddy (and he adores you)!  You love to snuggle us both and we have a hard time saying no to snuggling you when you cry at night or at nap time when we are trying to lay you in your bed.  To say you have us wrapped around your tiny fingers would be an understatement. :)

You learned to eat from a bottle this month and Daddy is learning how to feed you.  It made me really sad since that means it's almost time for me to go back to work soon and I am not ready to leave you quite yet!!! You love your paci and like to play the "paci game" with us all the time.  You spit it out and then smirk at the fact that we have to keep picking it up and putting it in your mouth since you haven't mastered the concept of that quite yet.  Good thing you're cute...

I don't think you could ever fully understand how much we love you and how much joy you bring to our life.  Every day gets better and better and we fall more and more in love with you.  You are truly the best thing in that has ever happened to us, and we thank God for you all the time. The past two months have been such a fun adventure learning to be your parents and I know that each month will get better and better.  Just don't let it go by too fast, deal? :)