Camping Trip to Superior

We just got back from our camping trip to Pattison State Park near Superior, WI. It was absoultely beautiful with the tallest waterfalls in the MidWest. Emily was a real-trooper and seemed to love camping! We went hiking, played cards & "lawn-golf" and enjoyed the great outdoors -- at least some of the great outdoors. We slept in a camper that had a queen size bed and pull-out-couch, complete with dishwasher, fridge & cappuccino maker! It was rough and we suffered through it, but as you can see, we had a blast regardless of the extreme conditions! ;)

As you can see from this picture, it was actually kind of chilly while we were there. So, Emily kept warm by the campfire by being snuggled by Grandpa -- it was really sweet! :)

Emily is getting so big and starting to do a lot more! Not only is she still super-alert but she's starting to make a lot more "talking" sounds and is starting to do this for most of the time that she's awake. And yesterday, for the first time, she took a toy that Gradma had put into her hands and she put it to her mouth. I know, not a big achievement in the world's eye or by it's standards, but it was special to us! :) And not only is she holding up her head while on her belly but she's starting to hold up her shoulders and part of her back as well -- she is so awesome! I can't believe God has blessed us so much by giving her to us -- she is simply amazing and a gift from God!

Balloon Launch

We went to a balloon launch and balloon glow tonight. It was a lot of fun and Emily was just mesmerized by the balloon glow -- it was really cute! This picture (from Right to Left) is of my parents, Dave & Lois Petrie (my parents' good friends) and Gail & Butch (Lois' sister and her husband). We all had a great time and it was really cool to see the balloons lit up -- I've never seen that before!

Tomorrow we're going to church and then heading up north to go camping for a few days. It should be a good time, but you won't hear from me for a while. I'll be sure to post a lot of pictures when I get back! :)

More New Friends!

This is me with Mommy's friend Lisa and her daughter Emily. We went over to their house last night for a cook-out and s'mores -- it was a lot of fun! :)

Meeting New Friends

Here I am with my new friends - Mikala, Emily, Ava and Claire. They go to Grandma & Grandpa's church and were really nice to me!


I got to spend more time with my Great-Grandma today too. She gave me lots of hugs and kisses -- it was fun!


And I learned how to play "Hand & Foot" and was Grandma's good luck charm -- she crushed Mommy and Grandpa! :)

Fun in Wisconsin!

Trip to Grandma & Grandpa's House

As some of you know, this year my cousin Adam is a freshman at Cedarville University (our alma mater). His parents and brother dropped him off this past weekend and came up to our house for a visit, where Emily and I then hitched a ride with them to WI to see my parents and family. We'll be here for almost two weeks and then Nelson is joining us over Labor Day Weekend.


The trip yesterday was a long one -- about 12 hours -- but it went really well. We were a tad concerned about Emily being in the car for that long, but she did wonderfully! We stopped for gas, lunch and a "fussy-break" for Emily but were at my parents' home by 5:30 last night. Emily did really well but was very excited (aka fussy) to get out of the car! She even got to meet her Great-Grandma when we got here -- it was a nice "Welcome Home"!


Here are a few pictures from our trip and arrival home. I'll keep posting pictures while I'm up here in WI, so stay tuned . . . :)

Look at Me!! :)

I met some new friends today -- Shane & Christy are really nice! I had a good time with them!


I just love my dress from "Aunt Katie"! It has pineapples on it -- perfect for my "pineapple-ly" hair! :)

Weight Check Continued Again . . .

Emily was weighed and measured again this afternoon. Since three days ago she has gained 12 ounces and grew 1/2"! That's some amazing progress! The formula (cow milk based) Dr. Joyce gave us on Tuesday didn't settle well with Emily's stomach, so yesterday we switched to a soy based formula. Her stomach not only handles it better but she's REALLY eating fast and well from a bottle now! Before this week she would only take 2-3 ounces from her bottle and it would take her about an hour to do that. Today alone she has eaten almost 15 ounces from the bottle and didn't fuss at all while doing so! She must really like that formula! Dr. Joyce wants us to keep fortifying the milk 3x/day for the next two weeks and then have Emily weighed again. But things are definitely improving . . . YEAH!! :)

3 Months Old!

Emily is 3 months old today! And to make the day memorable, she giggled for the first time. It was so adorable -- I wish you could have all heard it! But until you can, here is a great picture of her in the swing she just loves!!

And for those of you who know Nelson or his family fairly well, you will know that he and several others from the Lewis clan sneeze EVERY time they get into the sunlight. Well, we've recently noticed Emily now doing the same thing. Guess it runs in the family, huh?! :)

Weight Check Continued . . .

. . . well today we had Emily's weight checked again. She has gained one ounce since last week -- not exactly what the doctor was looking for. So as a result, she advised that we "fortify" my breast milk with formula (just the morning feeding) to give Emily more calories. This should enable her to "fatten up". We scheduled another weight check for this upcoming Friday just to see how this is going. Dr. Joyce said she's looking for Emily to gain about an ounce per day -- so, we'll see how she does! Otherwise, Dr. Joyce said Emily looks great and there is nothing to be concerned about. :)

Guess what?

Emily rolled over today for the first time! She was on her back playing with her floor gym and she rolled right onto her belly! She couldn't get back onto her back so I had to help her, but how cool, right?! She's so much fun! :)

My First Trip To The Zoo!

I met up with a bunch of my friends and had my first visit to the Akron Zoo. It was a lot of fun to see my friends again and to see all the animals! These bears aren't real but I had fun looking at them! :)

This is my friend Kate. She's a month older than me. Aren't we both cute in our purple outfits?

I had such a good time with my friends that I tired myself out --

What a fun day! :)

Good Morning, Everyone!

I slept 11.5 hours last night and I feel great this morning!

Weight Check

We went to the doctor's office today for Emily's weight check. She weighed in at 10 lbs 4 ozs (5 ozs lighter than two weeks ago) and 24" (1/2" longer than two weeks ago). Dr. Joyce suspects that Emily was not weighed properly two weeks ago (apparently a fairly incompetent nurse) and said there is nothing to worry about. She is having us come in again next week for another weight check just to be sure everything is progressing as it should. Dr. Joyce reiterated that there is nothing to worry about -- Emily is eating enough at all of her feedings and getting plenty of food throughout the day. She thinks Emily is just "choosing" to grow in length first, not weight, but that this will catch up soon.

So, overall a good check-up. We'll let you all know what happens next week!

Until then . . .

Look at me smile!

I love Mama's clothes!

Here is Emily in some of my old
baby clothes ---- a little dated, but super-cute on her!!


















And she's still getting used to Nora but aren't they cute together? :)

Miss Bright Eyes

Oh no, I'm slipping!!



And I LOVE my swing!! :)