A Very "Monkey" Birthday!

** Warning: Picture-heavy post ahead! **

Happy 1st Birthday, my little monkey! For a quick flashback: this was our last glimpse of the little baby-in-ma-belly, two days before Emma was born. How could we have ever guessed what was in store for us!

(At first it's hard to tell, but her face is turned towards us & it's as if a light is shining on the right side of her face, particularly her chipmunk-cheek. See it? No? Well it's adorable, trust me. And the round white area at the top is her right fist up by her face, the same one that came out up next to her head when she was born - the same side of her head with her little funny floppy ear. I can only assume that that little hand was up there, smooshing her ear, all nine months! Or as soon as she grew fingers...)

I finally got a little extra time to post pics from Emma's birthday celebration - and believe me, it was pretty tough to limit it to just these ones! But here are the highlights:

We made full preparations for a grand party, with presents (of course), balloons, and a very special, very appropriate cake!


Once Emma woke up from her nap, it was "Babies, start your engines! " Aaaand, off she went! She got right to work with her instrument set from Gma & Gpa Norton, doing some fine rata-tat-tatting:

She's quite fond of pianos, and luckily this one came with a large Mickey attached, one of her other favorite things!

This is her sorting & resorting her new Little Mermaid bath toys from Gma & Gpa Harmon - special thanks to you from Mommy, Little Mermaid is her absolute favorite!

We knew we needed to find a Curious George for her, and this one is so cool! You sit him on his bottom & since his head is weighted, he rolls forward & does a full somersault! Emma absolutely loves it, every time we make George tumble she just laughs & laughs.

Isn't this adorable?! This was Daddy's gift for Emma, a giant monkey-head pillow! Emma loves it, she'll be in the middle of playing, and then see her pillow & drop everything to go over and lay her head on it for a few moments. Darling!

In the days since her birthday, I think this toy has earned the coveted title of "favorite new toy" - her Magna Doodle! Who knew a 1-year old would be so proficient with a Magna Doodle? But she totally knows how this thing works, she draws on it & uses the stamps, then slides the bar across to erase it all and start over. I swear, this girl does not know she's only 1!

In an effort to turn Emma's constant attention from our own, very expensive laptops, we thought we'd try providing her with her own: (Time will tell if this approach actually works, but considering this is Emma we're talking about, something tells me it will fail miserably. Oh well, I had to try.)

Following with that theory, I also gave Emma her own bag, filled with all the same things as Mommy's bag: a cell phone - no, make that THREE of our old cell phones, with old SIM cards that make them operable but not active - a set of keys (yes, real keys, she's not fooled by kiddie keys for one second), some lip glosses (none that she can actually open of course), a little wallet with old credit cards (don't tell her that, she's ready to go shopping!), a folding hair brush, and some other random "grownup-ey things." It's now called her "Monkey Bag" & is a staple wherever we go for guaranteed entertainment & happiness, no matter her mood. Way to go, Mom! (Yes, I really am tooting my own horn that obviously. Leave me alone.)

She loves to wear it around the house now, and when it falls off her shoulders she instinctively knows to lift her arms above her head until the straps slide back on. Clever girl!

About 40 minutes & 200 pictures later, Emma had acquired herself a slew of new playthings. What a haul!

Next on the program: MONKEY CAKE!! It started as a subdued investigation...

... and ended as a massacre! I was worried she wasn't even going to eat any, but after I gave her a spoon to dig in with, she started licking the frosting off & realized that the cake was for more than just smooshing in her fist. She ended up having several finger-fulls before giving me her "all done" sign.

And we all know what comes next - bathtime!! For those of you who spend the next 7 minutes laughing your rear off at this photo - this is the sort of attitude that I get from Emma all day long. And while it is hi-LAR-ious right now, I can't help but think of how I'm gonna feel about it 15 years from now. Oi...

After a thorough washing of Emma & her highchair (thanks, Grandma Jane, you really took a bullet for me there!), it was time for some birthday peek-a-boo with Mom & Dad's door in her new super-cute, super-fuzzy PJ's from Grandma Joni! This is her new favorite game - she closes the door & then runs over to the bed and waits for the person on the other side to open it; she then shrieks & runs over to close the door again. She could literally play this for an hour straight.

Look at that face! That's the face that steals my heart, every morning! Emma Jane, we love you dear! While I can't imagine how anything could top your first year, I have no doubt I'll be eating my words a year from now. :D