Sign Language Class

We attended our sign language class this week. Our ECFE teacher led it. Emma Claire mostly played, but she must have actually learned something. She waved "bye-bye" to Brad as he was leaving for work Friday...right on cue.

Mrs. Kathy said that babies are ready to begin sign language when they are able to wave bye bye (which is usually the first "sign" most babies do). So, Emma Claire must ready to converse! I am pretty sure she understands "milk" and "eat" now. What could be more important than that?!

On a side note, Brad's "direct mailings" went out this week. We got ours in the mail today. 5,000 photos of Brad Kadue and family. (This photo appears as a smaller image on the back of the mail out). Emma Claire is sure to win him some votes!

A is for Avocodo

It has been a good week for the family. Emma Claire's new "thing" is getting from sitting to crawl position without bonking her head. She is all over the place now and is getting faster. Brad put the baby gate up at the top of the stairs, just in time.

Wednesday, we had ECFE and swim class, as usual. Brad went with us to swimming. The new thing this week was to get her hair wet (not so much a "skill", but important if you are swimming, I guess). We practiced all of the other skills we had learned thus far.

Emma Claire had avocados again, which she seemed to like. She thought it was funny to smile at the camera. She, as of late, likes to give a "squinty" smile, where she squints her eyes and shows her lack of teeth.

Still no teeth, but Brad and I think she may be destined to be a dentist like her Dockey. She loves to look in our mouths. She feels of our teeth and examines our mouths with a thoughtful look on her face. Dockey will be thrilled to know that she is carrying on the tradition!

More photos from the week: http://cmd.shutterfly.com/commands/pictures/slideshow?site=eckadue&page=eckadue&album=606

Teensy Tots

We had our first "Teensy Tots" class at church this morning. It is a parenting class for ages birth to 1 year. The babies attend with their parents. I guess you could say it was Emma Claire's first "Sunday School" experience. We enjoyed it and met a little boy that will be in the same "class" as Emma Claire when she moves to Calvary Daycare in December.

We went to the Farmer's Market Saturday morning, which is our favorite Saturday morning outing. It was a beautiful day. Emma Claire loves to ride in her "pouch" and watch all the people. So many people stop to talk to Emma Claire. She was all smiles. There were beautiful flowers and fall vegetables. I bought a winter squash for Emma Claire to try this week. There were lots of mums and pumpkins everywhere...a sure sign of fall, although the weather seemed more summer-like.

Emma Claire seemed more like a little girl rather than a baby to me today. It is amazing how mobile she is getting. She is really trying to pull herself up, but is not quite there. She is gaining speed with her crawling and is near getting up on all fours. She still has no shortage of smiles and was especially excited about her meals this weekend. She tried avocado (sort of liked it) and loved apples...Honeycrisp apples, to be specific (which, in my opinion, are the best apples around...native to Minnesota). She can now tell when I am getting her food ready and really gets wound up.

The weekends sure do fly by quickly, but we look forward to another busy, fun week ahead!

Wonderful Wednesdays

Our Wednesdays are pretty full these days. At ECFE today, Emma Claire was fascinated with the animal puppets used for song time (Old McDonald, etc.). She sang loudly. Today, she played with a couple of the other babies and the teachers assistant. I think maybe she was waving. She was waving her hand at a couple of the other babies. It seemed like she meant to, anyway! We are working on sign language and Mrs. Kathy said when they can wave goodbye (or hello, in this case), they are ready for sign language. I can't wait until she is able to sign!

We spent most of the afternoon in the backyard. It was a perfect day. We played on the blanket, read books, watched the dogs. That is one of our favorite things to do on a pretty day.

Swim class was tonight. Skills we learned: floating on the back and "reaching and pulling" to the edge of the pool then "elbow, elbow, knee, knee" out of the pool, then 1-2-3 JUMP! into the pool. Emma Claire especially liked kicking the ball around in the circle with the other kids and doing the "hokey pokey". She also liked going under the "water spout" Mrs. Vicki created with a noodle. She and Jonah made a new friend. Her name is Liliana. She is 9 months old. They played with a pink "noodle" together after class.

At the Playground

Emma Claire had her first experience in a swing yesterday. It was a beautiful Fall afternoon, so she and I loaded up and went to Brookview Park to play. She sat in the baby swing, a little unsure at first, but loved it after she got the hang of it. She also went down the slide a few times (with assistance!) and played in the sand, which immediately went in the mouth. We also played in the grass. Emma Claire found a leaf within reach, examined it, and, yep, put it in her mouth. Our ECFE teacher (Mrs. Kathy) said that babies learn by putting things in their mouths. Emma Claire must be pretty smart.


More Photos at the Park: http://cmd.shutterfly.com/commands/pictures/slideshow?site=eckadue&page=eckadue&album=586

Happy 7 Month Birthday!

Emma Claire was 7 months old yesterday. Hard to believe! Time is really flying by. She is growing by the day and really coming into her own personality.

Emma Claire spent the weekend with Brad while I worked.

They had a good time. They visited with Marjorie Saturday morning, fed Paula and Chris's cats (they are out of town) and worked in the yard with Hirsh (our neighbor...he likes to climb trees :-)...that is another story).

Emma Claire is making a lot of "ma-ma-ma-ma" and "da-da-da-da" sounds. Soon, she will be saying it with intention! She does do the ma-ma-ma-ma when she is having a meltdown. (don't know if it is intentional or not, but she sure is convincing).

She discovered her toy basket in the den over the weekend. It is too tall for her to see into while on her belly, so I helped her up to the side. After sorting through a few toys, she chose the little piano (that Rowie and Opa gave her). I am sure that is an indication that she is destined to be a classical pianist!

Her latest and greatest skill is working on transitioning from sitting up to tummy position. This is great, but has resulted in some bonking of the head on the wood floor. She is getting tougher and braver, though.

She lights up every time she sees her daddy. All smiles. She is very into Rudy and Sophie. She especially loves Rudy, but Sophie is much more tolerant of her. She laughs and squeals when she sees the dogs and "talks" to them. She tugs on Sophie's ears and collar and loves her feet. Rudy just keeps his distance and runs when he sees her coming!

Emma Claire's new friend at daycare is Gavin. Apparently she is fascinated with him. He is the crawler in the group. Her teacher said that last week, she kept reaching for him when they were side by side in the ExerSaucers. Monday, she said that Gavin would crawl around and Emma Claire was trying her best to catch up to him! She is making lots of new friends. She loves to watch babies and children.

More Photos!: http://cmd.shutterfly.com/commands/pictures/slideshow?site=eckadue&page=eckadue&album=558

ECFE and Water Babies...Emma Claire's Full Social Calendar!

Emma Claire had a busy day today. It was our first ECFE class of the Fall. Emma Claire has the same teacher, Mrs. Kathy and there were 5 other moms and babies in class. Two of the babies are in daycare with Emma Claire (Charolette - 4 mos and Grant - 6 mos). I wonder if the recognized each other?! We sang songs, as usual. This go round, we actually know the songs, which is nice. Emma Claire started ECFE when she was 4 weeks old, so she has come a long way! Last spring, she mostly slept through class. This time, she was interacting, crawling all over, smiling and singing loudly with the songs!

Tonight was our first "Water Babies" class at the Courage Center here in Golden Valley. We are taking it with Marissa and Jonah. Harrison was there, too, tonight. Emma Claire and Jonah are learning how to swim together. So cute! They definitely recognize each other. The class is great. Mrs. Vicki (a recreational therapist) teaches it. Her partner is a Cabbage Patch Kid. It is a fairly large class. Maybe 15 babies total. The pool is very nice and warm. We sing songs and move in the water. We practiced our strokes ("reach and pull"!) and blew bubbles. Emma Claire especially gets a kick out of the bubble blowing. We also learned "1-2-3 blast-off) from the side of the pool. Emma Claire was worn out afer (thank goodness) and was ready for bed soon after we made it home.

Gulf Shores or Bust!

We had a great time in Gulf Shores this weekend. The trek started last Thursday. Emma Claire did great on the flights. She enjoyed looking around, making friends and jabbering...a lot and with volume! She was even able to sit in a free seat next to the window on the last leg to Pensacola. She liked playing with her maraca.

We arrived in Pensacola after lunch and were picked up By Greta and Jason. We met Mom and Dad and settled into The Baileys' condo at "Martinique". It was a beautiful place and just steps from the beach. Greta, Rowie and I took Emma Claire to the beach. It was her first time to see the ocean. She enjoyed playing in and mostly eating the sand. We had supper at LuLu's on the water. We ate lots of good seafood and Emma Claire enjoyed sweet potatoes for the first time. She loved them!

Friday, Brad and I took Emma Claire to the beach early. She played in the sand again and was frightened of the waves. She swam in the pool and floated in her "frog". We ate at the "Steamer" on Friday night. Again, lots of good seafood (sweet potatoes for Emma Claire). Emma Claire enjoyed the shrimp "performance" that Uncle Jason put on (shrimp heads on his fingers). Following dinner was a heated put-put golf match. Couples teams. Brad and Emily won, Jason and Greta second and Mom and Dad third. Ice cream all around for the finishers. Mom made the only hole in one.

Saturday...game day! We watched Ole Miss vs. Wake Forrest. The Rebs lost in the last minute by a field goal, but had a good showing. We celebrated the birthdays on Saturday night. Mom's 59th and Dad's 60th. We played a "trivia" game and had Blue Bell ice cream (cookies and cream, of course!). A real treat for this transplanted Southern girl. One day maybe Byerly's will wise up and get Blue Bell!

Finally on Sunday - home. We had fun, but it is always good to be home (to beautiful fall weather, too). We walked over the the Hansons' to pick up the dogs. They all had fun. "Delightful" and "Sweeter than sweet" were a couple of the phrases Whitney used to describe them...I am not sure she had the right pups! I think they were sad to come home!

We had a great time!

More Gulf Shores Photos: http://cmd.shutterfly.com/commands/pictures/slideshow?site=eckadue&page=eckadue&album=428

Splash Pad in the Den...and at the Pool with Friends

Thursday, August 28, 2008-

I left Emma Claire alone for just a minute in the living room and came back to find that she had somehow opened up a water bottle (that was full). She made her own little "Splash Pad" in the den. She was having the most fun...on her belly in the middle of a ton of water. Just spashing with her hands and scooting and rolling. She was soaked.

In the late afternoon, we went to the pool with Jonah/Marissa and Addie/Suzanne. We never even got in the pool. Just sat in the grass and played. We had the place to ourselves! Emma Claire enjoyed showing off her "motorboat" noise.

More Photos: http://cmd.shutterfly.com/commands/pictures/slideshow?site=eckadue&page=eckadue&album=372

Labor Day Fun

We had a good Labor Day. It was warm here in Minneapolis. Near 90, I think. The days ahead look much more fall-like. The change of seasons is always nice here.

We had lunch with Marjorie. Emma Claire sat in a high chair at the end of the table and thoroughly enjoyed herself. Watch out for your plate if you are eating near her! She is quick and loves to grab at plates and glasses in her reach. She was happy and very entertaining. She likes to bang on the table.

After a good afternoon nap (in the crib :-), we went for our "last swim" of the summer at GVCC pool. It was crowded (everyone else had the same idea). We saw the Hernandezes'. Emma Claire and I swam in the big pool. Sad to see the summer come to an end, but looking forward to more fun in the sun in Alabama this week!

We visited Grandma Linda and the Kadue cousins. Hairdresser Lila had cut her hair and Ollie's hair (Quinn was somehow spared). We ordered pizza and played. Emma Claire again showed off her cupie.

More Labor Day Photos: http://cmd.shutterfly.com/commands/pictures/slideshow?site=eckadue&page=eckadue&album=409