One Step Closer...

What has been going on with the Emberson’s you ask? Well, we have been super busy as always! I always have good intentions to document more about our outings and milestones, but time with family takes precedence.

 

My favorite little shopper!

July and August were crazy busy months for this mommy! I did a lot of travel for work and found myself in New York, Atlanta, Chicago, Baltimore and Fayetteville for work meetings. It’s so crazy for me to think about all the places my job has taken me and the fact that before 2009 I was TERRIFIED of flying, had never been on a plane and was just fine with that. Now, that is the only way to go for me. Don’t get me wrong, I still love to drive, but getting somewhere across the nation is so much easier when you fly. I usually do not have a lot of time to do much sight-seeing, but I did have some free time in the evenings and was able to drive up to Niagara Falls for one trip, visit the Harbor in Baltimore and see the attractions of downtown hot-Lanta.

Cannot get enought of those cherries...

Reese started crawling and saying “dada’ at the first of August at just over 6 months old. She amazes us every day with how much she picks up!  She loves her walker and practically runs across our floors in it every chance she gets. She is getting more skilled with her sippy cup but still takes a bottle. She loves her veggies and I have started incorporating meat and fruit into her diet. So far she really likes sweet potatoes, carrots, corn, Petit Jean ham (good taste J), zucchini, squash, green beans, mashed potatoes, black eyed peas, banana, pineapple, chicken, dark cherries, blueberries, apples, grapes, strawberries and oatmeal. She refuses to eat green peas and is not too crazy about avocados.  I feel like I should open a food factory, my freezer is packed with homemade baby food and I absolutely love it! I love knowing I can provide this healthy food to start shaping her diet. She has recently started snacking on organic sweet potato and green vegetable puffs. It’s really fun to watch her pick up her puffs with that little finger and thumb….love her! We have learned how to say bye-bye and wave, clapping and this week she learned how to play peak-a-boo….this is one to see! She covers her eyes every now and then on her own, but mostly puts her hands on the side of her head or over her ears, really cracks us up! This is probably my favorite thing so far. In the mornings when I went to get her out of her crib she will stand up and clap away and then trying to play this new game, melts my heart. Soon after Reese started crawling she was pulling up on everything. As of this week, she can stand for a good 15-20 seconds on her own, and she has taken up to 3 STEPS at a time…. WAY too fast. She is so little at 9 months mommy and daddy are just not ready for this. We have also discovered that our sweet little girl is a talented dancer, I mean, baby can keep a beat! She will shake her head to the music or rhythm…we laugh so hard it scares her and then she starts right back up again. 

Caleb has been busy playing and helping coach our church softball team. He is so competitive, it’s fun to watch him!  He never fails to surprise me, but recently, I believe he broke his own mold. We began our journey with Dave Ramsey after our church offered Financial Peace University in 2010. We knew we had made some silly choices the first two years of marriage, mostly in the purchase of cars. We did not have any major credit cards but did have a couple of store type accounts. We loved the idea of being debt free…wouldn’t that be great someday? We paid off our store cards, our race car, cash flowed my master’s degree, medical bills, fertility treatments and vacations.

Caleb has recently made some big changes that moved us closer to our goal, he sold his 94 Mustang GT race car “Giddy Up”. Not because he had to, not because I made him, not because of anything else but pure unselfishness. He still has a fun car, the Cobra, but now we have two paid for vehicles and one more to go and our house, then we are DONE! Caleb and I both have our nerd and free spirit tendencies, but I am the keeper of the spreadsheet kind of nerd. Communication is such a big part of this process and saying no…well that pretty much sucks…but no more will we be slave to the lender!  Being debt free is a mental process we have learned (much like saving), but who are we trying to impress with all our “stuff” anyway? Now don’t get me wrong, ya’ll know I LOVE to shop….but I pay cash, which costs me “zero” in interest…say no to those store cards, read the fine print, because the interest you will be charged after those first few 0% months is not worth it. I think every couple should take Financial Peace before they get married. With the holiday gift buying just around the corner, it’s never too late to plan out how much you are going to spend on people, trips and food. According to Dave Ramsey, October is the make or break month for budgets. It is critical to make sure your financial house is in order because, honestly, how many of you remember the gifts you got for Christmas last year?? Now how many of you remember the time that you spent with family and friends? Those gifts, the memories are the real important gifts you can give someone…just a little time and Jesus is the real reason for the season. So I will happily step off the soap box with one last thought…December 25^th will come the exact same time next year and planning can help alleviate so much stress. Consider putting a small amount of money in a savings account weekly or monthly (ING online is awesome), let it draw a little interest and then a magical thing happens….no worries, the money is there for whatever you need it for.

We are still far from perfect in this process, but we have learned our lessons and want to help others not make those silly mistakes. Think before your purchase this Christmas season :).

Love to all,

The Emberson's

Milestones

Is it really the end of July? Where did June go exactly? *Sigh*….

It seems like the weeks are just flying by these days for sure. My sweet little princess will be 6 months this Friday and it seems like we just came home from the hospital. Reese is in the middle of so many new things right now and we are having a blast watching her grow and explore. Recently, she has started solid foods and absolutely loves it! I am a crazy researcher, planner and have literally been researching how to start solids and which ones would be best for Reese since I was pregnant. After reading many books, blogs and discussing my ideas with our doctor, we decided to start Reese on oatmeal cereal and it was an instant hit. She has been eating oatmeal good for month now so now it’s time for veggies. Child cannot get enough of this stuff! I decided to make my own baby food using organic veggies where I can.  My first batch of food consisted of roasted sweet potatoes, carrots and yellow squash. This was super EASY, all you need is a food processor, strainer and some ice cube trays…that’s it. She loves them all and we cannot get the spoon refilled and in her mouth quick enough. This week she started green peas and avocados. We have also introduced the “sippy cup” to get her use it and slowly take her off the bottle. She has been so interested in our cups and I think this makes her feel all big and grown up (slow down princess)! This has been interesting to say the least. She is teething, therefore it seems that she mostly gums at the cup but she definitely knows where it goes and how to get the liquid out. I was really worried about the transition to solid foods, but she is doing so well with it…proud momma for sure!

Since four months we have been doing basic sign language with Reese. Of course, we do not expect results from her at this age, but with all the repetition, hopefully she will be able to use it soon…but no pressure. It sure has been fun for us to learn the different signs and what they mean. We are so anxious for those first words. Not really what she says first, we both generally say “mama” and “dada” when we talk to her but just to see what that sweet little voice will sound like!

Reese has had a busy few weeks. For Father’s Day we surprised Caleb with a trip to St. Louis to see the Cardinals play. This was her first really long car ride, but she did really well. Let me give you a little baby travel advice…never use the cribs at a hotel…even a nice hotel like the Hilton. We really should have taken our pack and play, but honestly I thought wow, they offer cribs so we will just use that. No. The mattress was really thin and it was covered in stacked sheets for more “cushion”. Lesson learned. Reese loved the ball game and enjoyed looking at everything. Our tickets were great and not in the direct sun so it was not too hot. We stayed right across the street from the ballpark so I was even able to take her back up to the room to eat and stretch out for a little bit. We had dinner at a really nice local steak house and visited a vintage flea market before heading home. Can’t wait for another getaway with my loves!

Reese has been a very active baby since she was born, but she has been a very busy body here lately. She has been moving herself all over the place in her crib and pack and play, but mostly likes to be on her feet in her jumper or one of us holding her upright so she can “walk”. I know she will be on the move more in more in these next few months and it’s only going to get more fun to watch  run after her.

I never knew how much I could love something so small! Every day, she does something that completely amazes Caleb and I…so sweet!

Guilty. I started this blog a year ago as a way to keep my distant family and friends up to date with what’s going on in my life and I have failed. It’s okay, life is super busy for the Emberson’s so I will try and catch you up in this lengthy post. I plan to update monthly…let’s hope that happens!

On January, 27 2012 at 4:53 p.m. Caleb and I welcomed Reese Elaine Emberson into the world. She weighed 8lbs and was 20 inches long. My labor was less than perfect, but I am a strong believer that the Lord will not give you more than you can handle. 2 weeks of contractions between 3-5 mins apart and a 38 hour active labor were not what I had planned when I set out on the baby journey, but I honestly would not change one thing about it. When we were trying for Reese we prayed and prayed for all the experiences that would come with pregnancy and labor.  I prayed specifically for all the emotions and physical feelings that would come along with carrying a child in my body. For this reason, I am grateful I was able to experience such a miracle.

The past 4 months of parenthood have been absolutely amazing. I am sure Reese has no idea we didn’t know what we were doing, or at least I didn’t. I had never even changed a diaper until I changed my princess on the second day in the hospital. You can read books, look at magazines, take advice from good intending people, but until you are actually doing it, you just don’t have any idea of how it will go. I have had experiences emotionally over the past 17 weeks that have made me step back and appreciate the love of my mother and grandmother. I am so thankful that they along with Caleb’s mother, step mother and grandmothers are a part of our lives. It really makes a big difference to have so many people who really love Reese. In the weeks since Reese was born we have had meals, visitors and tons of phone calls and texts and I am so thankful to know that we are loved by so many.

Caleb gets the father of the year award, hands down. I have never met a more unselfish man in my life. We were brought together in such a “God intended” way (see my first blog post) and it really fits how our lives have molded together. Caleb is a great man of faith, but I have seen him in a whole new light since Reese’s birth. He has always treated me as a princess, put me first and now he does the same for Reese. He is a very hands on dad and I knew he would be from the way he is in our relationship. If you know me well, you know that I am a demanding control freak and perfectionist…there I admit it. I love it when people around me do something without even asking, just do it…I believe this really was inherited from my Abuella… since we are on the same page with our parenting skills this is true even more now. Caleb knows that if I am going to get a bottle ready, he is getting a burp cloth, changing a diaper or getting the boppy ready so I can be comfortable or vice versa. It’s like an orchestra, not always perfect, but we sense each others needs.  This man is my best friend, an amazing husband and father.

I was able to enjoy 14 weeks off with Reese before I returned to work. Bonding with her everyday was such an amazing experience, more than I could have ever imaged. Having a baby is hard work, I am not saying it’s all magical, but it’s a different kind of loving work that just comes natural. We were able to visit friends and family, hangout at lunch with Caleb and of course go shopping. We had several meetings with my mom and dad in some part of the state every week. My sister was able to see her every couple of weeks as well! It is so fun to see them so involved with Reese and watching them interact with each other…heart warming!

 I had no question in my heart that I wanted to keep working after I had Reese. I knew it would be hard, I prayed and cried over this decision, but ultimately I know that God has placed me in a great place in my life. I have several friends who are stay at home moms, my mom was a stay at home mom but I just did not feel like that was in the cards for me. Of course whatever decisions you make as a parent are criticized by those around you, have you ever heard the quote by Eleanor Roosevelt “Do what you feel in your heart to be right- for you'll be criticized anyway”? I think until you are in a situation for yourself, it’s hard to say what you would do. Reese is at an awesome school with people who show her lots of love during the day. I am so grateful to work for an organization that is flexible with my needs and schedule.  I wish my mom lived closer to us, I know she would have so much fun keeping Reese a few days a week.

I did some work from home beginning at week 4 to keep in the loop so my transition back to the office would not be as difficult and it proved to be smooth. Luckily we haven’t had any disasters and things have been pretty calm since my big project roll out at the end of last year. Of course, with work comes travel and I have a lot of that lined up for the fall. It will be difficult to leave Reese for an extended period of time, but I know that I will get to see that beautiful face thanks to technology! I have been so blessed in the position that I am in, I know that God is doing some amazing things and it’s so exciting to see them unfold...this further affirms for me where I should be. Since November of last year I was elected to serve on the Arkansas InfraGard Executive Board, which is an information sharing partnership between public and private sectors sponsored by the FBI.  In April of this year I was asked to serve on the Advisory Council for my Alum Arkansas Tech University’s Emergency Management Program –what a huge honor! Since I start at DIS almost 5 years ago as an intern, I have been able to guide 17 students through the very internship that changed my life, true blessing to be involved with so many! So many great things are going on in preparedness in Arkansas and we are finally being recognized at the national level. In July, I have been asked to present the success of my program at the National FEMA Continuity Conference. Again, I am so overwhelmed!

As a couple we have made big strides in our goal of becoming debt free through the Dave Ramsey program. We are so close, it’s crazy! Budgeting really works people; you just have to have discipline! This doesn’t mean you can’t do anything, this means you can do ANYTHING, no credit cards required.

Caleb has been doing a lot of extra work around the house as we prepare to sell and move closer to “town”. He is such a handy, fix it all man and I love that! Of course he has slowed down on racing since Reese made her arrival. Our weekends are so precious and we want to spend as much time with our little family as possible. He still plays around with the Cobra and we recently had a fun time in Memphis with some of his buddies at the Midnight drags.

Ratchet is adjusting well to life with a sister; he loves her so much and is so protective of her. His routine when she comes home includes licking her toes to say “hi”.

So this is what has been happening in our little life! Hope everyone is enjoying their Memorial Day and remembering those who made and continue to make the ultimate sacrifices for our freedom.