BIG Girl Time!

Emma has had several BIG changes this week as we make some significant transitions in her life to becoming more independent. At four years old, she is still used to being carried primarily from one place to another- bed to changing table, changing table to bath, etc. And at over thirty pounds, it is really starting to wear on those that carry her, like me.

When she came home from her weekend visitation with my ex, she came home to a new BIG girl room- we removed her crib and replaced it with a full size bed with rails and pillows galore because Mommy is a little bit of a nervous wreck when she can't be around to keep an eye on her. A new baby monitor has given me some piece of mind though. We opted for the low profile box spring and set up the bed frame to be on the lowest setting as well to keep it closer to the floor in the event that she was able to circumvent all the barriers that we made to keep her safe. Emma loves it and calls it her "big girl bed." It is even big enough that Mommy and Daddy Ryan can lay down with her and snuggle- which she asks for most nights when we put her down in it. I've noticed that she really doesn't move around much now either- another big change from her crib, where she was all over the place all night long. I'm sure the new mattress is much more comfortable and makes a big difference. Her other furniture still lines the hallway outsider her room, and probably will until a time where I'm sure we aren't moving back to it.

Then, on Tuesday, she got her custom wheelchair which is meant to address her scoliosis. While it will also give her a chance to be more mobile once she learns how to move herself around with her new wheels, the main purpose is to brace her back when she is in the sitting position to keep the curve in her back from getting worse. At my future brother-in-law's rehearsal dinner Friday night, she started rolling herself forward enough so that she could move several feet across a room over to me to get a hug. It won't be long before she is moving around the house and choosing where she goes. While that does make me nervous, and reminds me we need to finish baby proofing the cabinets in the house, I'm ecstatic about the idea that she can start making up her mind on what she wants to do and then do it herself! Of course, you wouldn't be able to tell how well she is doing getting around in it from this picture of when she was getting it fitted before we took it home. To her credit, this was during nap time and she was still very cooperative while she slept.