More Pictures of Little Em

He's so good at being sad! Notice the little tears running down his cheeks.

Lounging around after his bath

Showing off his cool robe and slippers

I realized the other day while looking at the pictures I have of Emerson that he's getting so much bigger! It makes me a little sad. I just don't know when he grew up so much! He was just a newborn yesterday, I swear. He's so much fun though, and I'm sure he'll continue to be fun as he learns more and more things.

Berry Picking

I was invited to go berry picking with some girls in the ward our second week here, and it was loads of fun! We went early in the morning so that the heat and humidity didn't kill us. Apparently there are a few farms around that let people come and pick berries, so we'll have to go again when blackberries and strawberries are in season. The raspberries were delicious! Emerson was a good sport while Mom got her berries to make cobbler and jam.

The Columbus Zoo

Tiger in his natural habitat

During orientation week, Ben got Friday off, so we decided to check out the zoo. It's pretty awesome. It's a lot bigger than Hogle Zoo, and there's a lot more to do. They have a little carnival-type thing with rides and a big waterpark. I'm thinking that next summer we'll be spending a lot of time there. Emerson was awake and alert the whole time we were there until we got to the climax of our zoo trip: the tigers. And of course, he was asleep. So we just took a picture of his best friend, Tiger, in his natural habitat.

Mmm....Rice Cereal

That about sums it up.

Our Little Monkey Boy

These pictures demonstrate how funny our little guy is. Ever since he discovered he can grab his toes, he's realized how useful his feet can be. He's decided that he prefers playing with his toys with his feet instead of his hands because they're longer and can reach farther, and they are good for making giant splashes in the tub. And his hands are usually occupied in his mouth. My little multi-tasker is quite the talented little boy.

White Coat Ceremony

We're almost caught up to present-day blogging material! These are pictures from Ben's white coat ceremony on August 11th. They read all the incoming students' names and put their (short) white coat on them after a few doctors spoke. Then they took the Hippocratic Oath and were dismissed to find their families and have ice cream sundaes. Mmmm...Graeter's Ice Cream...my new favorite. Ben's family was wondering why the white coat was short and my mom explained it best: "The short coat is kind of like the short bus." Good one, Mom. :) We'll look forward to the day when Ben gets to figuratively ride the long bus.

Cousins Are Cool

I forgot to post these cute pictures of Emerson and his cousin Kennedy. They were both tuckered out after a long Sunday.

Along the Journey

The Nauvoo Temple

Ben being sad because he had to take little man out during the Carthage Jail tour. (He'd already seen it so he took Emerson so I could enjoy.)

Such an innocent-looking fella

Here is weaselish Ben making E impersonate Joseph Smith at the well under the window at Carthage. (I totally didn't even get what he was doing at first, or else I might not have taken the picture. It is kinda funny though...)

*Shudder* The Indianapolis Motor Speedway which was close to the gas station where we were almost killed.

Our little cowboy at Fort Bridger

Melinda and Emerson bravely staring down the barrel of the cannon

Daddy and Emerson

Ugh...somewhere in Wyoming

Far West

Emerson pretending to be Joseph Smith at Liberty Jail

Looking out over the Mississippi. (After a long hot day in the humidity, we didn't look so good.)

Little E in his Snugli enjoying his freedom out of the carseat

Here are a few pictures of our journey across the country. It was a pretty long trip...a mere 1800 miles...but we stopped and did some fun things along the way.

David and Christine's Wedding

Our little man in his tuxedo

Yes...it even has a little pocket square!

Ben and Melinda at the temple

Our little family at the reception

The lovebirds coming out of the temple

2 days before we left for Ohio, Ben's sister Christine got married. We decided we'd delay our departure to Ohio so we could be there. (I know, that's big of us, huh?) It was fun to see them get married and we were glad to see them so happy together.
We had a great time dressing up for the occasion as well. Emerson got a brand new tuxedo so that he could match all the big boys. He didn't get a boutonnière though 'cause he'd just eat it. I think he looks rather dapper, just like his old man.

Breaking Dawn

I had to post this just to prove that my sisters and I did, in fact, go to Borders to get Breaking Dawn in the wee hours of the morn when it was released. Ben was off seeing The Dark Knight with his uncles and brothers for the second time, so I figured I should get to do something fun too! We didn't do any of the party stuff, it was just an efficient little errand. It was a nice last hurrah for the girls before I moved to Ohio. Aside from the dorky 40-year old trashy moms that were looking at risque books that cut in front of us in line (long story), it was a pretty good time. It was kind of spontaneous of us 'n' stuff.

Tuacahn

Aunt Nat

My Little Buttercup

The lil' Christensen fam

Nat with Marius and some other guy

For our last little hurrah with the whole family before we all move away, we went to Tuacahn to see The Sound of Music and Les Miserables. We had so much fun! Les Mis was amazing. Emerson was kind of fussy, and we thought he was teething or something, so my parents were great and helped take care of him so I could see the show. While we were in St. George, the boys went golfing and the girls went shopping, then we met up and went swimming while Emerson stayed with Grandma and Grandpa J. It was a great little trip and we were sad to see it end.