HORRAH, Santa Came!

My first Christmas and so much excitement that I didn't know what to do first. I must have been really good this year because I got lots of presents. However, as you can tell from below the best gift of all was paper....I had a blast! Daddy was happy too (although I'm not sure why) because of his leg lamp. Apparently it has something to do with one of his favorite Christmas movies (A Christmas Story). Mommy says that he has to keep it in his office and definitely not in the window of our townhouse. Pappy was trying to convince Mommy to place it in the living room. Mommy put a kibosh on that nonsense and I have to say that I agree with her on this one. Who thinks of making a lamp out of a leg? Anywho, Christmas day was fun and I sure am lucky to be so loved with all my treasures that I received! Thank you to eveyone, boy I am a lucky duck :-)

Love,
Emerson




" Daddy, I think Mommy must feel guilty and that's why she's letting you keep this ugly lamp "

"Nana, can you get me more paper.... I need more to make my baby fort"

"Give me five Nana"

"Nana, open this one next... it's from me"

Twas the night before christmas.......

and for the first time in twelve years, my parents spent the holiday at home and not traveling. So here at the Rahm-Barr house, we started the beginnings of our Christmas traditions. Nana and Pappy came in town as well. After a hard day of eating, napping and relaxing we got dressed in our Sunday best and headed for Christmas Eve church services. Afterwards, we went into the District to check out the National Christmas tree (Pappy's idea). It was awesome and Mom and Dad liked it so much that they've decided to make that a yearly tradition as well. The tree was magnificent and although you can't tell from the photo below, there are trains that go around it where children (o.k. adults too:-) can toss coins into the train cars as they pass by. Also, there are individual Christmas trees for each state that are placed on the outskirts of the National Christmas tree.

Love,
Emerson




"Dad, quick look.... there's like a million lights on that tree... WHOA!"

"Pappy, help me out... Daddy has me trapped"

"hurry take the picture.... we're freezing out here"

"Daddy... let me outta here... there's so much to play with"

I surrived Guys Week!

This past week Mommy went out of town for business. Daddy and I had what I call Guys Week. In preparation for Guys Week, Mommy typed up a schedule for my food and sleep, laid out my clothes and reviewed the daycare routine with Daddy. Mommy worries too much I think. Daddy made sure that I was well fed, got enough sleep, clean, dressed appropriately for the weather and of course we had lots of fun playing. While Guys Week was a blast I sure was happy to see Mommy yesterday night and I think so was Daddy! Daddy just kept saying to Mommy " I don't ever want to be a single parent".

Here are some photos of Daddy and I during Guys Week, enjoy :-).

Love,
Emerson







" Now that I'm almost walking, I really am doing all my own stunts!"

"Daddy doesn't care if I play with the presents that Nana banana sent". "They have prettier paper than the ones Mommy wrapped."

" Do you think Nana will notice if this one is opened before Christmas?"

"Daddy thinks that I'm not smart enough to figure out how to get out." "He must be new :-)"

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree....

Today was my very 1st cutting down of the Christmas tree day! Mom and Dad went by and picked up Aunties Michelle and Susan and we headed off to Butler's Orchard. We also planned on meeting Seneca and Caleb (friends of Mom and Dad). If you remember from my pumpkin patch outing, this is the same place up in Germantown, MD.

It was the perfect day to pick out our tree. The weather man called for 30 degree weather and a chance of snow. Mom made sure that I had on long johns underneath my clothes and winter coat. I also got to wear my new winter hat, mittens, and UGG boots! After surveying many trees, negotiating with Mom, and lots of crawling, Dad picked out the perfect tree for our home. Aunties Michelle and Susan also found a good tree that is twice as big as ours and will look wonderful in their big window.

Dad loosely tied both trees to the roof of the SUV, we then piled back in and headed down to the main store for our trees to get bundled and ready to go home with us. Mom and Auntie Michelle have a favorite tree guy named Tyler. Tyler's really nice and has been Mom's tree guy every year. Mom says that Tyler is a tree expert. Tyler trims the trunk with a chainsaw, shakes any loose pine needles off, bundles the tree and then ties the tree to the roof of the SUV for a safe ride back to VA. Seneca and Caleb said that they wished they had gotten Tyler because their tree guy was not so much of a tree expert. The good news is that there is always next year :-).

We said our goodbyes to Seneca and Caleb, dropped Aunties Michelle, Susan and their new tree off at their home, and headed home for some Christmas music, tree decorating and a late lunch. After eating we looked out the window and to our surprise.... yes, my friends, YES..... IT STARTED TO SNOW! The first snow of the season and my very first snow ever. Daddy later took me outside once there was some accumulation and it was really cool. I can't wait until we get more so that I can make these snow angels that my parents keep talking about.

So, that's all for today folks. Tomorrow brings more excitement with cookie baking day at the Rahm-Barr household. Dad and I are banished to the basement while Mom and her friends make 9 different kinds of cookies. I'm thinking that I'm OK with the basement though.... I won't have to do any work and I might get cookies... it's a win, win!

Happy Holidays everyone!

Love,
Emerson





"Dad, just a second, let me get that saw for you"

"Dad, a little to the left and then you got it"

"My Daddy the hero!"

"Mom, I can't even believe all of the trees here......hurry up, let's go find a good one!"

"Auntie Susan, be careful I'm not so sure that is dirt you're about to step on"

Aaauuugh!

For months my Mom and Dad have been saying that I look like I have a Charlie Brown head. Who is this Charlie Brown guy anyway? From what I can tell so far is that he likes Pumpkins, has his own Thanksgiving special and a Christmas show on top of that! He sure sounds like he is a popular guy. So perhaps I should be flattered :-). Anyways, Mom came across this shirt that I'm wearing in the below photos (Mom got a little camera happy. ... Aaauuugh).

Tell me what you think, do I really look like this Charlie Brown kid or not?

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone... Gobble, Gobble :-).

Love,

Emerson






" Does this shirt make my head look big?"

" Dad, come sit... right here.... I promise I won't grab for your newspaper this time"

" If I could just figure out a way to get that remote control away from Dad"

" Woo Hoo.... sweet freedom, I'm almost walking!"

Grape Ape is that you?

If so, where's Beegley Beagley?

Lions, Tigers, and Bears OH MY!

Last Saturday the weather was beautiful (not too hot and not too cold). Daddy decided that we should all go to the National Zoo for the day. So after my mid-morning nap I awoke to find my Mommy packing the car and my Daddy helping me get my shoes on.

When we arrived at the zoo I was well rested and ready to see some animals. I was very excited but, I think that my Daddy might have been the most excited. Daddy had it all mapped out which is a switch since Mommy's the planner of our family. First we went to see the lions, then the apes, pandas and of course a zoo trip wouldn't be complete without seeing the elephants. It was a toss up between the apes and the pandas on which I liked the best. I have a video of Daddy, the apes and myself that I'll post later.

Did you know that the pandas came all the way from Wolong, China just to hang out at our zoo? Well, me either until my recent trip to the zoo. We saw Tian Tian (pronounced "t-YEN t-YEN" which means "more and more") that day but did not get a chance to see his female friend, Mei Xiang (pronounced "may SHONG" which means "beautiful fragrance").

Here's some photos from our adventure:

"Mom, you tricked me... there's no cheerios in your hand!"

"Simba is that you?"

Lions, Tigers, and Bears OH MY! (continued)

"Elephant's are cool" "Ask Grandpa about the time Daddy taunted one"

Tian Tian hanging out having some lunch

"Mom, check out how big this frog's peepers are!"

"And so it's time to say farewell for now." "Have a good week everyone"

Love,

Emerson

DON'T FORGET TO VOTE!

Emerson Maxwell Barr here reminding you that Tuesday,November 4th is Election Day so don't forget to vote!

I'm only 7 1/2 months old so of course I can't vote (tell that to the Obama folks though.... I keep getting calls from the "On the Move" campaign team). That's why I'm counting on you to do exactly what my shirt below says "Vote for my better tomorrow". This presidential election is not only a historic one but has definitely struck some (we'll call them light hearted) debates in the Rahm-Barr household. It's no secret that my parents are for different candidates. I often wonder how they ever ended up together with such different political views. Hey, it works for Mary Matalin and James Carville whom coincidentally also have a child named Emerson too (hmm) then it must be cool.

O.K. so remember, DON'T FORGET TO VOTE!

Love,
Emerson



"I'm so excited about this election that I wet my pants." "Just kidding, it's only water from my sippy cup". "Sippy Cups are hard".

"O.K. so, Senator McCain was like "really"...... and then Senator Obama was like "no you can't be serious"........ I got tired of them arguing so I just left. "

"High five to those of you that vote."

"So, I guess you're wondering why I called you all to my office."

"Boy,whomever said that campaigning was easy lied..... I'm off for a nap!"

Shenandoah National Park

On Saturday afternoon, my parents decided that we should all take a drive to admire the beautiful fall foliage. My Dad is always boasting about the wonderful four seasons that Northern VA has and thus one of his common rebuttals for not wanting to move back to Texas.

After breakfast, Mom packed my essentials (food, diapers, and of course Cookie Monster... he's my new favorite..shh, don't tell Elmo or Big Bird) and off we went to Shenandoah National Park. The Shenandoah Mountains aren't very far from the D.C. Metro area (about an hour and a half away) so, we decided to go there. Plus, my Dad has a parks pass and wanted to make use of it since he says that he hasn't been able to use it much since March. Hmmmm..... I wonder if that's because of me, nah... it couldn't be :-). Anywho, Skyline Drive is the name of the road that runs through the part of the National Park that we drove through and it was a great time! I overheard Dad tell Mom that he'd like a vacation home their. Here's some photos of our excursion.

Love,
Emerson




"Really, the hat is too small for me now !"


Shenandoah mountains.....

"Mom, let me down.... I see a deer that I want to chase"

"Dad, it's freezing out here.... get me to the car quick!"

"Mom, Dad..... do I have a surprise waiting for you in my diaper :-)"

Happy Halloween Everyone!

This morning I started off on a good foot by making Mommy happy wearing a shirt expressing my love for her. Nana had bought it for me when she was in town last and told me to save for when I needed brownie points.

For my first Halloween, my Mommy thought it would be funny to dress me up like a hot dog and as you can see from the photos below my Daddy thought it would be funny to pretend like he was eating me (see photo # 3). Needless-to-say, Daddy needs help :-). At 6 pm tonight our subdivision had a parade of costumes. This parade involves all the children from our neighborhood, grilled hot dogs (no I didn't know this advance otherwise I would have selected another costume), a graveyard with fog, and lots of candy. It was a great time and a chance to meet our neighbors. I thought for sure that I would be the only hot dog but as it turns out, there was a dog that was dressed in a hot dog costume too. Great minds think alike I guess! We didn't stay that long because I started to get tired and was ready for my bath, book, bed and bottle. However, while Daddy helped me get ready for bed, I could hear all of my neighbor friends come to our door yelling "trick or treat". Mommy handed out handfuls of candy while admiring all of the fun and unique costumes. Boy, I can't wait until I'm big enough to go trick or treating.... FREE CANDY, what a great gig!

Well, that's all for now. I've got to get my beauty rest as tomorrow we're heading for a nice drive along Skyline drive in the Shenandoah National Park. I'm sure I'll have photos of the beautiful fall foliage so be sure to check my blog later this weekend.

Love,
Emerson

It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!

Every year in the first week of December since 2004, my parents have been schlepping out to Germantown,MD for their Christmas tree at Butler's Orchard. This year was the first year that we went to visit their pumpkin patch. My Mom bribed my Aunt Anne into coming as well and we had a blast. There were sooooo many pumpkins.... big ones, little ones, white ones, green ones and of course orange ones. My Mom just loves this time of year and in fact Aunt Cookie and Nana Banana will tell you that the first sign of the weather changing from Summer to Fall, my Mom calls and sings "It's the most wonderful time of the year". It's no secret that Mom's a little nutty but I'll keep her around for entertainment purposes.

Halloween will be here soon and I can't wait! I'm already starting to prepare by watching "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown".

Love,
Emerson

A Day to Remember!

On Sunday, October 12th I went before the Episcopal church for my baptism. I was dressed in white and my Mom said that since I am such a pretty boy, it's hard to tell whether I'm a girl or boy. Luckily, the dress only lasted an hour and then I was back to my overalls! Again my folks forgot their camera so thank goodness for Aunt Cheeks and Aunt Cookie (Aunt Cookie is the Godmother) for sending along their photos. My Godfather was my uncle Scott, whom by the way is really cool and like my Aunt Cheeks, has great fingers to chew on. I'll have to send more photos of my Godfather and Godmother along later once my parents get their act together with the camera :-).

Anyways, the ceremony was really nice except that I was a little uncomfortable and tried to squirm my way out of The Reverend Judith Harris Proctor arms but all was good. Afterwards, we all headed back to my house for a brunch and more of the "pass the baby" game. It was lots of fun and I'm so excited to be a new member of our church!

Love,
Emerson