On October 21st Emma turned 3 years old. To celebrate we had a “Princess Themed” birthday party with two of her closest friends (Alex and Emma). Elena set up an action-packed and fun-filled day with balloons, arts-and-crafts, a pinata, playtime, and cake. It was really nice to watch Emma enjoy herself so much. Elena and I were honored to have her friends come over to celebrate her special day and make it as beautiful as it was.
Emma at the RDU airport waiting for the plane.
We just came back from a two week trip to North Carolina where we spent time with Elena’s Mom, Frank, Pititi, Rosy, Jackie, Alex, Vicki, Marco, Mario, and Anamarie. We had a great time with them and it was sad to leave. Emma has grown a lot since the last time I posted. She is now running and can kick a ball without loosing her balance. Like her cousin Matthew, Emma is able to climb off the bed (air mattress) and onto the floor. She does this in a controlled way by moving her legs to the edge of the bed and easing her way down. When she wants me to put her on the floor she says the word “down!” in a very commanding tone and uses both hands to point to the floor.
Happy Birthday wishes to Emma’s Godfather Rob and to her friend Ian.
On January 13th we celebrated Elena’s 37th Birthday. We had dinner at O’Charleys in Raleigh, North Carolina with Elena’s cousin Pititi and his family. Emma met her beautiful twin cousins, Jackie and Alex for the first time. Both are the most loving, well-behaved children you could ever meet. It was nice to see them after so many years. We look forward to seeing and spending more time with them in the future.
In five days Emma will be 15 months old. She is quite mobile and surprisingly fast for a creature of her size. Her verbal skills are still extremely limited and has a five word vocabulary (“was-is”, “dadadadada”, “nana”, “clock”, “cup”). Despite this she can sign at least 17 different signs (“milk”, “vegetables”, “bath”, “potty”, “banana”, “bear”, “cheese”, “water”, “diaper”, “more”, “train”, “all done”, “bubbles”, “me”, “I love you”, “hi”, “bye”) and can process simple commands like “give the doll to daddy”, or “put the paper in the garbage”. She is quite fascinated by the trash can and despite our strict rules against her touching it, will deposit random items in it when we are not looking. So far a shoe, and a toy has found its way to the bottom of the receptacle. It’s only a matter of time before our coveted TiVO remote is sent to an early grave at the bottom of a landfill. Little by little I am starting to feel like a Dad. I wish it would have been a more immediate feeling but for Dads I believe it takes a little bit longer before you feel like you matter in the eyes of your child. Today was a fine example of that. When I returned from work and opened the first of a pair of doors I use to enter my house, I heard the pitter-patter of little feet hurrying to greet me. When I opened the second door, Emma was standing on the other side with the brightest little smile. She had heard the garage open and recognized that the sound she had heard meant that Daddy was home. It’s moments like that that make me feel like a million bucks.
