I know this sounds completely crazy, and I'm sure it was just a fluke, but Emmylou just ROLLED OVER a few minutes ago!!! I didn't actually witness the act, but I put her down on her new play gym mat on her tummy and the next time I looked over a few minutes later she was on her back! She landed right near the mirror on the side of it (which is one of her new favorite things, and, as you know, a sure sign that she is her father's daughter). Many thanks to Lulu's great-grandma and great-aunt Nancy for the play gym-- she loves it!

Emmylou's Grammie sent her this swimsuit and towel as she is very excited about having Emmylou in Texas this summer to try out her new pool. It was warm today and I couldn't resist having her try it on. As Lulu is enjoying her baths more and more, I have a feeling the pool will be a big hit. She also has a matching cover-up and sunglasses which I'm sure you'll see in future photos!

Here is Lulu in one of her favorite spots: her swing, which we affectionately refer to as “Disneyworld.” This thing does it all: it plays music or three different nature sounds (birds, water or crickets); has a mobile consisting of plush leaves, butterflies and birds that rotate, spin, raise and lower all at once surrounding a convex mirror; and swings at 6 different speeds in 2 directions (forwards and backwards or side to side), all the while keeping her comfy-cozy in a luxuriously padded papasan seat. Most of the time, she loves it. Come to think of it, without the steep admission price, long lines and unattractive Americans in tube tops, it might actually be better than Disneyworld.

Today Emmylou pooped, peed and threw up all over me numerous times, cried for hours on end unable to be consoled, and I still think she’s the most wonderful thing in the whole wide world. I’m one of THOSE mothers, aren’t I? I think I’ll just embrace it.

Gary and I have been on hair-loss-watch since Emmylou was born figuring she’d become a blonde one of these days since we both were as kids. Well, it has finally begun to happen. Only it’s not happening all over her head at once, but with the sides over her ears first so she kind of looks like she has a mullet (Kirk?). Or maybe she really will take after her dad and it will become a mohawk soon. I’m just glad her sideburns have disappeared. They were pretty funny and you can kind of see them in the very first picture I posted on this blog. On a different note, the other day I mentioned Lola’s “baby”- her monkey we gave her to understand that the baby was coming. Here’s a photo of her with it. I’m pretty sure she loves Emmylou as much as she loves that monkey.

Here is what Emmylou thinks of her crib. We’ll be working on that.

Thanks for tuning in today! Aren’t you baby-ed out with all the news of the ‘TomKitten?!’ I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty creeped out by Tom Cruise these days so I’m glad their baby’s here and we don’t have to hear about it anymore. Emmylou was a little annoyed with them too. I think that’s why she was fussy last night, but today she’s over it and more interested in looking at the lights around the room and discovering that her toes are actually attached to her own feet.

We have been walking fools today! The one (and only) advantage Baltimore has over Austin is the fact that today the high is 68 degrees rather than 101. Now don't get me wrong, it does get miserably hot and humid here too, it's just that it only lasts about one month rather than six. So we decided to take advantage of the beautiful day, going for 2 walks this afternoon. First, I had to pick up a few things at Safeway so I strapped Lulu into the Baby Bjorn and we went the five blocks, stopping for a sandwich and at a cute little clothing store on the way. Then we got home, Lulu ate, and we decided to take Lola to the park for a walk. As you can see in the pictures, Lulu is under the last of the cherry blossoms still (barely) blooming and then she and Lola posed in front of the pond in the park. Everything is so green and pretty here (finally!); a welcome change from the drabness of winter that didn't seem like it would EVER go away.

Someone was very, very happy this morning. Maybe it was all those jelly beans I ate yesterday coming through the breastmilk or maybe it was just gas, but she finally smiled long enough for me to capture it in a photo. And not only a smile, but the elusive left-cheek dimple was captured as well!

Here is Emmylou yesterday on Easter. Our good friends Eric and Missy had us over for a very yummy dinner and a poker game (nothing says "Easter" like a little poker, right?). Not only do they have the most adorable kids, Alyssa and Aaron, they have a 7 week old Great Dane puppy they got last week. I had meant to get a photo of all of us to post here but somehow left with only a couple of little Bella and Gary. I know this blog is supposed to be about Emmylou, but the puppy is just too damn cute to not include it here.

Our two girls... Emmylou and Lola. Many of you have asked how Lola is taking the new addition, and I must say it seems to be going really well. Lola has not acted jealous in any way, only a little annoyed when she's trying to nap and the baby's crying. Of course, when Lola's upstairs and hears the baby cry downstairs, she frequently comes down to see what's going on and to check on Emmylou. A few months before the baby came we got Lola a stuffed monkey to be her own "baby." Apparently she got the idea because the other day Lola put her monkey in Emmylou's swing!

Today marks two milestones in Emmylou's life: 1) she turned one month old today, and 2) she made her very first trip to Nordstrom this afternoon! It was an ordeal getting all of the gear together (who would have ever known that something that weighs less than 10 pounds would need a carload of accessories to survive a 2 hour trip to the mall?), but we made it and us girls had a lovely lunch in the Nordstrom Bistro before hitting the shops. She enjoyed getting oohed and aahhed over (or was that me who enjoyed that?) and her stroller was apparently the topic of the day. I think about 10 people commented on her Bugaboo and Emmylou herself could not have seemed more comfy stretched out in the bassinet. I think this evening we'll take it out again as we're planning on walking down to the Austin Grill for dinner tonight (sadly, the next best thing to being in Austin when you live in Baltimore). These photos are of her waking up after she shopped til she dropped and in her daddy's arms-- I've found that no matter how stressed out he gets, if you shove that baby in his arms, the stress melts away and he immediately becomes a much nicer person!

Today's adventures included a bath this morning and (if we're really lucky) might include a trip to Safeway or Target this afternoon. Lulu seems to enjoy her baths although she doesn't always seem quite sure of what's going on when she's in the middle of them (there are a lot of furrowed eyebrows). I can't get enough of how good a clean baby smells so I've started giving her one every single day rather than the once a week frequency suggested in my baby manuals (still, she's never gone 2 or 3 days without one). Hope y'all like the bath photos. The third photo posted is of her and me in our new rocker/glider given to us by Dad and Joyce. Although it's not the most attractive piece of furniture we've ever owned (yes, Dad and Joyce agree), it's definitely the most functional and my favorite at the moment because Emmylou has already fallen asleep in my arms several times in it. On another note, something happened yesterday that I forgot to include in my post that was one of the highlights of my entire life: when I woke up yesterday from hearing Emmylou stirring in her bassinet, I leaned over, said "good morning, Emmylou," and she broke out into a huge smile! My heart absolutely melted. However, I tried it again this morning and zilch... just some smacking and grunting (maybe I'll get another smile tomorrow). An update for those of you who knew there was an inkling of a chance we would move to Austin next month: no such luck. BUT, we are looking at being back in 6-12 months depending on what opportunities open up and it will be for a promotion for Gary rather than a lateral move, which this situation would have been. So please keep your fingers crossed for us that our return will be very soon! We can't wait to share all of these experiences with those we love.

Hallelujah! After a scary day yesterday full of crying, no naps and Emmylou insisting on being perpetually held, today has been quite the opposite. She not only slept like a champ last night (allowing me 6 [6!] heavenly hours of sleep), she has been right on schedule with her feedings, play times and naps all day! I'm starting to learn that every day brings something new with her and that most bad days come with at least one redemptive one. The photo posted is of her in her swing-- which she couldn't stand to be in yesterday but is apparently pretty comfortable in today.

At the request of those far, far away (okay, just Emily in Austin), this blog was created to keep everyone updated on what little Emmylou is up to. I'll try to include a daily picture so you can see her grow and maybe include some accounts of how Gary and I are trying to keep the little critter alive and kicking (sometimes harder than it seems). Today she turned 4 weeks old and has grown noticeably larger in the last week or so... she's defiinitely chunking up and even her little arms are growing longer. I realized yesterday that she's actually outgrown an outfit for the very first time! It's one of those sack pajama things and her feet kept popping out of the front through the snaps because she couldn't fully extend her legs in it anymore. So, finally after wearing the same 3 outfits for 4 weeks because everything else was just too big, she's ready for her (relatively speaking) "big girl" clothes. Other news is that she seems to be entering a new phase where she operates between 2 modes: sleeping and crying. To my horror, unless I am holding her, she cries; something I certainly hope has not/will not become a habit. The good news is that instead of her usual 8 hours spent napping throughout the day, she has only slept about 3 hours today, so maybe she'll sleep well tonight. I'll let y'all know tomorrow how that works out.