Marcs at the Park I

On Thursday we got to hang out with our buddies the Marcantonios, or the Marcs for short. Since the weather was reasonable, we mommies took everybody outdoors for some playground time. And with Jessica there to help me keep my brain in, I dared to take my camera back to the scene of the crime. It's a good thing too, because I had to capture a whole lotta cuteness in Miss Emma, who is now five months old.

It's funny--I always smile when Jess posts pics of Emma on her blog, because she posts about 70 of them every time, and all the shots are nearly identical. Well, now I know why she does it! When you're dealing with such loveable adorableness, it's just too hard to pick and choose! So without further ado, here are my (roughly) 70 shots of Emma, some being more identical-ish than others.

Since we didn't have an Emma-sized coat, we bundled her all up in this little bunting thing that I have from Meg's infancy. It turned out to be a teensy bit too warm for Emma. You'll notice that she sheds some of her layers later on...

Me: Jess, I think you're losing your daughter there.
Jess: No, I'm not. (Pause.) OK, maybe I am.

"Oh, that sun is so bright in my little eyes!"

Babies can slide too, you know.

Whoops, Matthew snuck into this shot. Is it me, or does Emma look less than enchanted to be sharing the spotlight? I think she's about to sneeze on my son.

Speaking of enchanted, my kids think Emma is just about the greatest thing since Hershey's Kisses. Matthew knows her by sight and says her name over and over again until someone acknowledges him: "Memma" or "Namma". (Jack and Emma are about the only names he knows other than family members, so that's a pretty big deal.)

Meg seems to view Emma as her own personal doll-baby. On Thursday morning before the Marcs arrived, I was coaching my kids at breakfast. "How can we be a blessing to our friends today?... We can be kind... we can be gentle... we can share... etc." And Meg pipes up: "Yeah! Especially with my little girl Emma." Then she thought for a second and asked, "What is Emma wearing today, Mama?"

Oh, the mind of a little girl! 'Tis a strange and marvelous thing.