Baby Grows Teeth, Big Brother Learns to Read

Blogs are like photos. They capture precious moments in time that might otherwise be lost. A child's life is full of incredible firsts: first teeth, first words, first steps, first time reading... but even the most priceless of snapshots get lost in the mile-high pile of photos that we call life.

And that's why I love our blog. Now if only I could get better at writing in it consistently!

Ow! These things hurt!!!

Since my last posting, Emma got her first teeth. The two bottom teeth came in tandem, and I first felt them break the skin on a Friday morning -- February 3rd to be exact. She was just under 5 months old when it happened and - considering I'm still breast feeding - it was a rather unwelcome surprise. No, she's not crawling yet, sitting on her own, or talking. But for those things she has plenty of time. Since she's definitely our last "baby", we're in no hurry for her to grow up! Finally I get that it's not a competition, and that she's not going to become the first female president of the United States just because she spoke one month earlier than most babies. :) OH! But she has started rolling on her own. I guess that's supposed to be a big miletone in baby developments. And on her 6-month-birthday (March 6th), we began a Mama-Baby class known here in Germany as "Pekip" (Prague-Eltern-Kind-Program... or something like that). It's all about stimulating the senses of the little ones through touch, sight, sound, etc. Emma loves interacting with the other babies! Lastly, at the end of Feburary Emma had her first ride on Mama's bike... it was on the first warm afternoon of the year (relatively speaking) - February 22nd! :)

Lukas' First Reading Adventure!

Emma's older brothers, who of course adore her, are in important developmental phases of their own. Though he still has a sweet lisp, Alex's stuttering went away on its own, and he's making a big effort to speak more English with Mama. Our oldest, Lukas, recently picked up a book and began to read. It happened on a Saturday morning. He got up at an ungodly hour (around 5:30 am), and I told him that - if we go downstairs - we won't be watching TV. Which, in turn, inspired him to pick up a learn-to-read book and start reading! He sounded out one word at a time, asking for help occasionally and - before I knew it - he had completed two pages! It was one of my proudest moments as a Mama, and I can say with great certainty that time is going by WAY too fast!

Alex - exhausted after February "Fasching" celebrations

So congratulations to each of our three kiddos for their latest achievements! Emma, for her teeth - Alex, for his speech (in Alex's words, "Ich bin schon groß gewachsen!", or "I've already grown big!") - and Lukas, for his reading!