Emerson update: 13 months

• Walking!
• Wearing size 4 diapers
• Eating absolutely everything - Blueberries and bananas are his favorites
• Drinking whole milk
•  Starting to have temper tantrums (he kicks his legs and slams his head on the ground while screaming)
• Saying da-da and da (for dog)
• I'm continuing to only speak Farsi to him
• He loves being outside
• He is a thrill seeker
• Doing some sign language (mostly 'more')
• Waves bye bye 
• Does high fives
• He hates the vacuume cleaner
• Is almost ready to move to the big boy room in day care. He is the next class!
• Loves being read to
• Loves water
• Blinks on command when asking him in Farsi

The Addition

You may recall when we started this blog that we wrote about the background image. It's a painting titled 'Morgan and Kataneh' and we were promised that as our family grew, the painting would be updated to reflect that. 

Brendan kept to his word, took the painting back, and added a little blob to represent the addition of Emerson to our family. The painting now happily hangs right next to our TV - the most prominent wall in the house. Speaking of TV, did anyone else out there feel shorted on Mad Men's season finale?!

1yr 2wks and we're walking

Take 1:

Take 2 (solo flight):

Emerson Turns One

It's incredible that only one year ago, Emerson was brought into this world. It has been the most challenging yet rewarding year of our lives. I felt like the first 3 months were in slow-mo; maybe because of the sleepless nights and the fact that I was just a milk machine to him. But every month that goes by, Emerson's personality comes out more and more and being a mom has sunk in as the greatest reality. If I had to describe Emerson in one word it would be 'aware.' He is just so in-tune with what is going on around him.

Emerson had his first birthday party. We had it at Vasona Park in Los Gatos and the theme was Cowboys and Indians. When people told me that the first birthday is completely for the parents, they are so right. We got a taco truck and a keg. People went ALL out with their costumes. We had a costume contest (Ettie was the judge for best cowboy and my friend Carrie was the judge for best Indian since she is actually half Native American!). My dad was the best dressed Indian and my Uncle, Shahi, won for best dressed cowboy.

We had plenty of fun outdoor games (boccie, horseshoes, water balloon toss, ladder ball). It is funny that Emerson couldn't care less about any of it! He had his serious poker face on the whole time (just trying to take it all in and being 'aware'). He was probably wondering why people were wearing all the crazy outfits! He didn't go crazy with his cake. He took his pointer finger, poked it in the cake and licked it ever so carefully. He is so over the whole messy cake business. That's for amateurs. We appreciated all our friends and family that came to celebrate the day with us (especially Morgan's parents who flew from ABQ to be there!)

Aunt Janet and Uncle Jason were kind enough to create this awesome video which pretty much captures the whole mood of the party:

Oh, and check out how Emerson has grown in 12 months!

First shoes are Soft Star Shoes

Since getting his new toy, Emerson has been walking a LOT. We have typically just put socks on him to keep his webbed toes warm, but now that he is actually cruising, we thought we'd start putting shoes on him.

Of all the shoes that people have given us, my sister's Soft Star Shoes seem to be the only ones that will fit on Emerson's fat-pads. Here they are in action:

Time to Walk

Megan and Darrin gave Emerson a walker toy a bit early for Emerson's first Bday. They were in town for various reasons, so it was great to see them.

Within 5 seconds of playing with the toy, Emerson was off!

A box, a string, and a baby

We are in full planning mode. We just bought tickets to go to Nashville to kick off our east coast trip for our friend Mari's wedding. We'll hang in Nashville for a few days, drive to Virginia to visit the Red Door Farmhouse, will then fly up to Albany, NY to head to the wedding spot near Catskill, NY.

This is some of the plans for 1 wedding. We have 8 this season. As if planning for the weddings isn't enough, Kataneh is in a few of them meaning there is bachelorette and bridal showers to plan as well. My god!

So, if we aren't planning for those, we are in full swing getting things in order for Emerson's first Bday next month. We have locked in the location, food, his outfit, and some games. We still need to get our outfits, music, and decorations in order. We are really excited. If you happen to be coming to his Bday, please bring any outdoor games you may have.

Speaking of Emerson, his girlfriend and him have been having serious talks about the future. He also has a new method of getting around town the house: