Rediscovering Me

16 weeks already!

2012-02-09T20:43:00.001-05:00

Elly is 16 weeks, today! I think about her weekly posts a lot, but since I'm back at work, I just haven't been able to write any.

Here is a picture, though! Heart explosions! Love her :)

Joy List

2012-01-30T18:52:00.001-05:00

1. Elly's sweet, milky breath. It smells so yummy, and so much like my babe.

2. Owing taxes this year. This pretty much sucks but I'm attempting to look at it as a positive since it's due to us making quite a but more money last year.

3. Colorful cloth diapers. I get a kick out of get Elly's diapers ready every day because they're such pretty colors. Cloth is awesome!

4. Sunshine. It was pretty chilly today, but the bright sunshine was so pleasant!

5. Wine. It's just really nice to have a glass after work!

Sunday Sketches: Frog

2012-01-29T17:02:00.001-05:00

I'm trying to get Elly to take a nap in her crib right now, so I thought I'd type up a quick post with my final felt animal, a frog.

See the other Sunday Sketches over here!

(And just because she's so stinkin' beautiful...)

Three Months!

2012-01-21T17:59:00.000-05:00

Elly is already three months old! Yesterday was the big day. But with prepping (mentally and emotionally) to return to work last week and running around to different appointments, I've fallen behind in getting Elly's weekly posts up. They're coming, eventually!

In the meantime, here are her Month 3 pics:

Things I know about Elly:

She LOVES to talk and laugh
She recognizes both Mommy and Daddy now, by voice and by sight
She sleeps from about 9-4 every night
When she discovers a new sound she can make, she does it over and over again
She has doubled her birth weight, from 7 lbs to 14 lbs
She still gets a kick out of ceiling fans
She really enjoys watching mobiles spin
She will watch an ENTIRE episode of Yo Gabba Gabba without looking away, if I'm not careful!
Her hair is growing, but she's got a bald patch on the back of her head where she rubs it against the mattress when she's sleeping
Instead of sucking on just one or two fingers, she prefers trying to stuff her entire fist, sometimes both, into her mouth
She loves sitting up and looking around
Sometimes she looks very serious; I wonder if she's trying to solve the world's troubles, already!
She is wearing almost only 3-6 month clothing
People who know only me tell me she looks just like me... until I show them a picture of Eric
She's better able to entertain herself, now, for a little while
She can roll over from tummy to back, but will often just cry on her tummy until I pick her up instead of rolling over
She can finish a nursing session in under five minutes, but often gets distracted trying to smile and talk to me
She will sit up in her Bumbo seat for a few minutes at a time
She has really loud toots!

Sometimes I sing to her my own version of "You Are My Sunshine:"

You are my Elly, my only Elly

You make me happy everyday

You'll never know dear, how much I love you

But I'll tell you everyday

Joy List

2012-01-09T22:19:00.002-05:00

Anne over at My Giant Strawberry has two greyhounds! Also, she has a great idea to start writing out Joy Lists every Monday. I thought I'd join her.

Elly. Everything about her brings me joy. When she smiles at me, when she laughs, when she snuggles up against me and falls asleep... I'm everything she needs right now, and it's a wonderful thing.
The Wendy Williams Show. I never watched it before my maternity leave, even on my summers off. I love to watch Live with Kelly (oh, how I miss Regis!) and The View, which come on at 9a and 11a on ABC, but Rachael Ray (on at 10a) grates my last nerves. I found Wendy Williams over on Fox at 10a and she just tickles my fancy.
Henry. My good friends have been working on getting a kid for a number of years, and they finally have a picture of little Henry, who will be theirs next year. It makes my heart burst with joy for them.
Snow. We had our first real snow today, and while I don't normally love snow, it was nice to watch it from inside my nice, warm house. Plus, it was in the 60s over the weekend, so it didn't stick to anything but the grass. That's always nice.
Cuddling in bed late into the morning. Okay, so this one is Elly again, but man, it is so sweet to pull her into bed with me after her 7a feeding and sleep together until 10. That doesn't happen every morning (then I'd never see Kelly!), but when it does... what joy!

Surprise Ending!

2012-01-08T22:38:00.000-05:00

Week 11: Thoughts from Elly

2012-01-08T17:07:00.001-05:00

This past Thursday marked 11 weeks for me! I'm getting so much stronger and smarter about the world around me!

The previous week also marked the beginning of 2012. On New Year's Eve, Mommy and Daddy took me out to one of their favorite bars so I could meet Heather, who was working that night. She has been friends with Daddy for about 10 years, and friends with Mommy ever since she started hanging out with Daddy, about 7 years ago. Heather was so excited to meet me! She had been having a bad week and said that holding me made her forget about all the bad things for a little while. I tend to have that effect on people!!

We went back home around 8pm and Mommy got me ready for bed. I think she and Daddy stayed up for a little while to watch the ball drop in Times Square on the TV, but I slept right though it! The next morning, though, Mommy made sure to tell me that the new year really did begin!

Also, I learned this week that one of Mommy's coworkers had a baby boy on New Year's Eve. I hope I get to be friends with him!

Over the weekend, we got to take care of another greyhound whose mommy was going out of town. Her name was Stella. I was so curious about her! I looked and looked at her. Mommy explained to me that she's a greyhound, just like Ramona. I was a little confused, though, because they look similar, but they were different colors! I'm sure it will make more sense to me, someday! She was just like Ramona, though! They both loved just laying around being lazy! Silly doggies!

This week, Mommy and Daddy had to find child care for me since Mommy is going back to work in 2 weeks. They interviewed a few people and found a great place just a few minutes from Mommy's school. In fact, it turns out that it's actually the mommy of one my Mommy's students! What a lucky coincidence! The woman's name that will be taking care of me is Stephanie, and she seems really nice. She told me that as long as Mommy's not nearby listening, she'll sing to me all day long. Hooray! I love it when people sing to me! Mommy said she's sure going to miss me, though!

A few days this week were really hard for me because my reflux was acting up. When my tummy starts really hurting me, I cry and squirm. Those are the times when I really just want Mommy to hold me and make me feel better.

Daddy's garage build is coming along. They've built the foundation and dug out the driveway, and now both are just waiting for the concrete to be poured. There have been a couple of snafus that have slowed down the process, but it's all getting worked out. Mommy and Daddy are both really excited for the project to be complete! Mommy is going to have a great time creating a new landscaping design this spring and summer, especially since she didn't get to do anything out there last year since she was pregnant with me!

On Wednesday, Mommy and I went to the breast feeding group (the one where I met Evelyn a few weeks ago) where she was able to weigh me. I'm already up to 12 lbs, and that was before I ate anything! Mommy had to put away a few of my 0-3 month clothes this week since I'm growing so much! There are some brands that still fit me, but not all! This is a 3-6 month outfit Mommy gave me for Solstice/Christmas. It's a little bit big, but I'm growing into it really quickly!

Thursday night, I got to go to dinner with Mommy, Daddy, Ronda, and Travis. They had steaks and I had a nice, long nap! I always like to take naps whenever we're out. All that noise puts me right to sleep! Ronda and Travis are really nice. They're going to be adopting a baby from South Korea sometime soon, and I think they're going to be great parents! I can't wait to be best friends with their baby, too! Ronda gave me a new outfit while we were visiting. Check out how cute I look!

Well, that about covers this week. Thanks for stopping by!

Love,

Elly

Sunday Sketches: Felt Animals

2012-01-01T16:29:00.001-05:00

Last SS, I posted a picture of the felt cow I made on artist's canvas. I watercolored the background and glued on the pieces to make up my cow.

Since then, I've also made a sheep and a giraffe. I've almost finished the final one, a frog, but that will have to be shown off in a later post!

See more Sunday Sketches here.

2011: Year in Review

2012-01-01T15:54:00.002-05:00

Last year, I wrote a post called "How I hope 2011 is different from 2010." I thought I'd take a minute today to compare my thoughts then to how the year actually turned out...

one.
I'd like to have my credit cards paid off.

This did NOT happen. However, we cut our credit card debt in half and have a plan in place to finish the goal.

two.
I hope all of our cars remain incident-free.

Success! No car troubles this year. And, on a car-related note, work on the new garage has begun, albeit very slowly.

three.
I want to travel more.

Actually, I did not travel AT ALL this year, which hasn't happened since 2003, I believe. Whoops. But, I know exactly why, of course...

four.
Secrets, to which you may someday be privy.

SO. This one was actually a goal to BE PREGNANT by the end of the year. And we all know by now how that turned out! Miss Elly didn't want to wait around! I got pregnant 2 weeks after stopping birth control, and our sweet offspring arrived on Oct. 20. I wouldn't change that one bit, though!!!

five.
I'd like to enjoy my job, again.

Check. I switched to 12th grade Government this year and just love the change in both subject and students. However, I can't say I'm looking forward to leaving Elly at home when I go back at the end of the month. At least it will be pleasant from the job side of it, though!

I'll have to create a 2012 list later this week and post it. Thanks for stopping by!

Week 10: Thoughts from Elly

2011-12-30T13:16:00.000-05:00

Oh, heyyyyy there! Can you believe I'm already 10 weeks old? Mommy and Daddy sure can't!

This week was Christmas! First, I went down to visit Oma and Papa's house. I wish Uncle Kevin, Auntie Christina and Uncle Scott G could have been there to celebrate with us, but I did get to talk to Uncle Kevin on the phone... all the way from Thailand! He's really excited to meet me, but that won't be until August when I'm almost 10 months old!

I got lots of really nice presents while I was down there visiting. Oma and Papa gave me some new outfits and this neat interactive puppy that talks and sings songs. It came with a sing-a-long CD, too! Alivia even gave me a cool wooden worm toy.

Oh yah, I almost forgot! Before we opened our presents, Papa read us this really cool story called How Mrs. Claus Saved Christmas, by Phyllis McGinley. Mommy said he's been reading that story every single year, ever since she was little like me!

Friday night, we drove back home so that we could go see Daddy's side of the family over the weekend. We got up bright and early Saturday morning and drove up to Great Grandma Christine's house for Christmas dinner. I got some more clothes from her and met her crazy little schnauzer, Schotzie. She sure barks a lot! I think she was jealous that there was another baby in the house :). Nana and Uncle Scott were there, along with lots of cousins, aunts, and uncles! Here's Uncle Scott holding me... we get along great!

The next day was Christmas, and boy did I get spoiled by Nana! I got a few clothes, but mostly just toys and books, books, books! Oh, and LOTS of socks! That's a good thing, though, because I hardly had any, and I sure need some cute socks for this cold winter coming up!

Over the weekend, I discovered that my fists are really handy for putting in my mouth and sucking on. Sometimes I try to put both of them in my mouth! When I do that, Daddy says I'm having a hand sandwich. That silly Daddy!

On Monday, I got to meet some new friends, Cherise, Cory, and Sophia. They gave me a cute little snowman hat and blanket, as well as a cute, cuddly duck. Mommy needs to take a picture of me in my snowman hat because I know it makes me look adorable!!

That night when we came back home, I slept for my longest stretch, ever! I went to sleep for the night around 11:30 and didn't wake up to eat until 5:40! Mommy was so amazed when she woke up to get me and saw that it was nearly 6am. However, the next two nights I woke up every couple of hours, so maybe I was really just playing a trick on them! We'll see how I sleep over the next week. Mommy hopes I go back to normal soon, but I really like it when she's so tired that she just brings me to her bed to sleep snuggled up close to her. Who doesn't like being cuddled while they sleep?

This week was also Nana's birthday, so she and Uncle Scott came to our house to visit and have a nice birthday dinner. It was so exciting to get to see them again so soon after Christmas!

Oh, and Mommy has started sending out interview requests to potential nannies for me. We're both really sad that she's going to have to leave me during the day to go back to work on Jan. 19, but we're hoping we find somebody really nice to take care of me while she's gone. I'll let you know how that turns out!

Well, Mommy told me that the next time I write to you, it will be a new year. I can't believe it! I'm sure I'll have a good time celebrating the arrival of 2012, and I'll be sure to tell you all about it next week! Until then...

Love,

Elly

Week 9: Thoughts from Elly

2011-12-29T10:26:00.004-05:00

Oh my! I'm so late this week! I'll tell you all about it in my Week 10 post. First, though, I have to remember Week 9!

This week, I turned two months old. I had to go to the doctor and get a bunch of shots in my leg. It was terrible! I cried a little, but Mommy and Daddy were right there to hold me and make me feel much better! Getting shots is definitely not the best way to spend your birthday, though. I wouldn't recommend it. But Mommy told me it's because she loves me so much and wants me to be healthy so I can live a long time. I guess I can accept that!

At the appointment, my doctor wrote me a new prescription for my acid reflux since I had already run out. The next evening, Daddy went to CVS to fill it. When he brought it home, Mommy thought there was something different about it, so she compared it to my last bottle of medicine. She realized there was a mistake somewhere, because the old bottle said I should be getting 4 mL of medicine three times a day, but the new one said I should get 0.6 mL twice a day. Mommy and Daddy got really worried. Daddy called the doctor and went back to the CVS to figure things out. It turns out that my original prescription was written for 0.4 mL of medicine, but the CVS pharmacy wrote the directions wrong on the bottle!! So, for 5 1/2 weeks, Mommy had been giving me 10 times more medicine than the doctor said!!

Mommy and Daddy were both really mad at CVS. The pharmacist apologized and admitted it was their mistake. I'd say! Daddy called Poison Control and both they and the doctor said there didn't appear to be any ill effects from taking too much of this medicine, but to keep an eye on me and hold off on giving me any more medicine for a little while. Daddy sent a complaint to the corporate offices of CVS and they responded to him right away, promising to pay for any medical bills we may have associated with this. Hopefully there won't be any medical bills over this! So far, I'm feeling okay, but we'll have to wait and see if there are any long-term effects.

Mommy and Daddy want everyone they know to hear about this huge mistake that CVS made! They say that if you shop there, and especially if you get your prescriptions filled there, you should switch to a new place. Daddy did some searching online and found out that this isn't the first time a CVS pharmacists has written the wrong dosage on a kid's medication. It's so scary!!

Moving on.

I've been getting a little bit better about taking naps during the day. Usually, Mommy still has to hold me until I fall asleep, but then she can put me in my chair and I'll sleep there for about 30-60 minutes. Sometimes my reflux bothers me during the day, so I feel much better when I'm being held, but if my chair is angled up a bit, I can do okay in it for awhile.

Also, Mommy is getting so excited that my eyelashes are finally growing! I didn't have any when I was born, probably because I came out so early! But now they're getting nice and long. Mommy loves looking at them!

Wednesday night we celebrated Winter Solstice at home with presents! I just got a few things because Mommy knew that I would be spoiled over Christmas with my grandparents (she was right!). We had a fun time, though, opening gifts and hanging out together.

Even Ramona got in on the action! By the end of the night, she was so tired she couldn't even lay right!!

On Thursday, Mommy took me into the school she works at so I could meet everybody. It was so much fun! We were there for a really long time because there were so many many people who were so excited to see me. That night, we drove down to Oma and Papa's house to start our Christmas celebrations. But that's for my next post.

See you again, soon!

Love,

Elly

Happy Krismas!

2011-12-25T08:39:00.001-05:00

Well, as if Miss Elly wasn't already well adorned... Looks like Santa and all 8 of his reindeer pooped out a Merry Christmas morning! If you look really closely, she's all wrapped up down there with the rest of the gifts!

Week 9 is coming....

2011-12-24T19:33:00.001-05:00

I've been so busy with visiting people that I haven't had a moment to sit and update you on my week! But, I promise I won't forget!

Love, Elly

It's Festivus. For the rest of us.

2011-12-23T07:29:00.000-05:00

And so, another year has come and gone.

As with in years past, I'd like to take a moment on this *special* day for the Airing of Grievances.

I'm not a millionaire, yet.
I have to go back to work in less than a month.
The year I take 3 months off for maternity leave is the one AFTER having my least favorite students.
Childbirth.

What can I say? It's been a pretty good year.

Two Months

2011-12-20T21:53:00.000-05:00

My baby is two months old today!

We took her in to the doc for her check-up, and she's doing great! She's 10 lbs, 9 oz and 23.5 inches. She didn't give us the actual percentile range, but according to Baby Center, these are her stats:

Length = between percentile 50 and 75
Weight = between percentile 25 and 50
Head Circumference = between percentile 5 and 10

Here's her two-month picture!

Things I know about Elly:

She loves to watch the ceiling fan. I turn it on low for her so she can watch it move. Sometimes I think she's having a conversation with it. She'll stare up at it for awhile and make noises, and then she'll laugh every now and then. That clever ceiling fan! Such good jokes!
She also loves to look at lights.
She absolutely recognizes my face and is pretty good with Daddy, too.
Her head bobble is nearly gone when she's upright, unless she's really tired.
She is a great night sleeper, only waking up once, around 4am, on most nights.
She is much happier and playful in the mornings. Her witching hour is around 5-6 pm.
She's gaining control of her hands/arms, although she hasn't discovered them, yet. She swats at the lion and giraffe that hang from her vibrating chair.
Her naps during the day are short, typically ranging from about 15-45 minutes. I read that the natural sleep patterns they exhibit now will last through their childhood.
She loves crowds. We've taken her to two parties this month and stayed until after midnight at both because she just sleeps in anyone's arms (and there are plenty of willing arms to cuddle this sweet girl!)
She has such a sweet personality... she just sucks you right in!
I love to watch all the sweet (and funny!) faces she makes when she's asleep. When her expressions are especially happy, I like to imagine she's dreaming about the ceiling fan :)

Amazingly, I love her even more this month than I did last! Who knew it could just keep on growing? I love you, Elly bean!

Sunday Sketches: Cow

2011-12-17T23:59:00.003-05:00

I finally got a chance to be crafty this week! I made this cow for Elly's room. I was inspired by one of her gift bags!

I have some 8x10 canvases from the craft store. I used watercolor for the background and cut out pieces of felt for the cow. I like how it turned out!

I actually also made a sheep the next day, but didn't take a pic, yet. I'll save that for next week, I think!

See the other participants over here.

Week 8: Thoughts from Elly

2011-12-16T23:25:00.000-05:00

Wow, every week goes by so fast! Mommy says she'd like to post on here, herself, every now and then, but before she knows it, it's already my turn again!

Well, I've now been kicking around this green earth for eight weeks, already!

At the beginning of this week, Mommy and I went down to visit Oma, Papa, and Uncle Chris. Aunt Jen, Uncle Lance, Alivia, and Blake also came over! It was so fun to see everybody again! Alivia kept saying over and over, "Baby Elly is so little!" She wanted to hold me a lot, but after awhile she would say, "Take Baby Elly back, now."

While I was playing with Papa and Mommy, you wouldn't believe what I figured out how to do! Just watch this to find out:

That's right! I started laughing this week! Mostly, I laugh when I'm looking at the ceiling fan. I also like to laugh when I see this great big black and white picture in our living or when Mommy and Daddy make silly noises and faces at me.

My trip ended too soon, but we had to get back home so Mommy and Daddy could take me to another party! I was really popular, again. People sure do love to hold me! And I think it's so great. I never get upset or fussy, I just hang out or sleep the whole time! Oh, and everyone there was really impressed with how strong I am! Mommy was right... my tummy time has paid off!

Two of my other baby friends were there along with another who'll be showing up in the spring. We all took a picture together. Can you tell I'm the oldest one there? Well, as long as you don't count the girl in pink!

I even got to have my picture taken with Santa! Don't worry, I know that it's really Mommy and Daddy who give me presents at Christmas, but isn't the Santa story fun to celebrate?

Mommy and I have had a pretty good time together this week. I had a lot of visitors! Mommy has some really good friends to help her out! She's really glad about that, especially since Daddy had to work late a lot this week.

On Wednesday, Daddy was so happy that the work on his new garage finally got started. First, they had to dig out the stump of a really big tree that used to be in the backyard. That meant they had to take down the fence and do lots of grinding and digging! It looks crazy back there right now! The shed in the picture is in our neighbor's backyard. The garage will go in the back corner, there, right next to the big shed, so hopefully we won't be able to see it anymore!

This week ended on kind of a scary note. After Mommy took me upstairs last night to change my diaper, we were heading back down and she slipped on one of the steps. Her only thought was to keep me safe! I was so scared, though!! She screamed for Daddy who came and held me while I cried. Then Mommy took me back and checked me for any bumps and bruises while I ate a little bit to calm down. She didn't find a single scratch on me!

However, she did notice that her elbow looked really swollen. She showed it to Daddy and asked him to get some ice, but he thought she should get it checked out by the doctor. We all headed down to the Urgent Care clinic so she could get X-rayed to make sure everything was okay. They said nothing was broken, which was a big relief! Her elbow looked so crazy that Mommy and Daddy were both sure it had been dislocated. Luckily, it was nothing more than bursitis, which heals itself with rest, ice, and ibuprofen. Daddy took a picture of her elbow... it looks painful!! (PS. Besides that crazy elbow, Mommy is surprised by how skinny her arm looks! She always thinks she has fat arms!!)

The swelling has already gone way down, though. Now, it's mostly just a really huge bruise on her arm!

Well, it was quite an adventurous week for me! Next week I have my 2-month check-up! I'll also have to remind Mommy to take my picture on our round chair so we can see how much I've grown over the last month. Lots, I bet!! I'll be sure to let you know!

Love,

Elly

Week 7: Thoughts from Elly

2011-12-11T17:36:00.001-05:00

Well, hello!

So, I'm seven weeks. When I was thinking about what I'd write this week, I realized that I'm really glad Mommy lets me post my thoughts here, because I've already almost forgotten what my first week was like! Things have changed so much for me since then that it's hard to believe I was once so small and unsure about the world! I'm nearly an old pro, at this point :)

This week started with a visit from Oma. I was so excited to see her, until I realized that it meant Mommy was going to be leaving me for a whole day! She went into DC for a conference where she had to give a presentation. I wondered why she wanted to give a presentation so far away from me, but she told me that she didn't even know I'd be coming to live with her back when she submitted her proposal! In that case, I thought it was okay. Besides, I ended up having a really good day with Oma, and Mommy was home before I knew it!

The next day, Nana came to visit because Mommy was going to go back to her conference and Daddy wanted some help. Mommy ended up changing her mind about going to DC again, though, so the four of us hung out for the day. I had a great time! First, we went to brunch together. Everybody there kept telling Mommy how precious I was! After brunch, we got to go pick out a Christmas tree! It looks pretty cool in our living room.

After Nana left, I went with Mommy and Daddy to this Studio Party they go to every year. This was my first party! Mommy had a student five years ago whose parents are both artists, and they host a holiday party annually to see their friends and show (and sell!) their art. Mommy loves to go and look at everything. She usually buys one or two pieces of art while she's there, too. This year, Daddy even got to play a guitar for a little while, which he really loves!

I met so many people and got held all night long... In fact, we were the last to leave the party at 2am! I met this really neat guy there who fought in Europe during World War II. We took some pictures together, since we were the oldest and youngest guests at the party. How many babies my age can say they have had a picture taken with a WWII veteran??

Let's see... what else went on this week? OH!! On Monday, I smiled my first "official" smile for Mommy! I've had lots and lots of practice smiles, but this time, I knew what I was doing and I smiled on purpose! I love it when Mommy makes funny sounds and gives me kisses. That's what makes me smile the most!

Here's something funny. Before I was born, Mommy thought that only boy babies would pee all over the place when they got their diapers changed. WELL. This week I showed Mommy that even I'm a girl I can still do everything a boy can do! In fact, I was able to shoot it all the way across the changing table and onto the lotion and wipes!

I've been getting better and better at sleeping the way Mommy wants me to. I sleep in my own room all night long now! Of course, my two FAVORITE places to sleep are with Mommy or with Daddy.

During the day, I still like to be held as much as possible, but I'll usually let Mommy put me in my new vibrating chair so she can take a shower or get something to eat while I sleep for a bit.

I've started moving my arms around with a lot better control this week. I'm still not sure what those things are on the end of my arms, though! All I know is that they're really useful for grabbing on to Mommy's shirt while I'm eating. Mommy said she loves that I started doing that. Sometimes I'll grab her necklace while I eat if she's wearing one, but I never pull on it, I just hold on tight!

Oh, remember how I got to meet my Auntie Christina a couple of weeks ago? I told you that she made me a really cute shirt with my name on it. She made one for Blake and Alivia, too. Here's a picture of the three of us wearing our shirts. Don't even ask me what I was thinking at the time, though... I can't remember!

Aunt Christina took a bunch of pictures of me while she was here, and she just sent them to Mommy this week. Mommy says this is one of her favorites. She loves it when I make silly faces!

Well, I'm starting to get pretty tired and I'd like Mommy to feed me before I go to bed for the night. Thanks for reading. See you next week!

Love,

Elly

Week 6: Thoughts from Elly

2011-12-02T21:38:00.001-05:00

Six weeks, six weeks, six weeks!!!

Mommy says she can't believe how much I've grown, already! I know I feel much more mature and knowledgeable about the world around me!

So, all those books that Mommy reads says I should be showing off my "social smile" any day now. That means that I smile back at someone. I've definitely been practicing how to smile, but I haven't done anything that's repeatable enough for Mommy to count it as my first real smile.

Let's see now... What has been going on this week? Well, I started out the week with a cold, which was just terrible! I never got a fever, though, so that made Mommy and Daddy really happy. My nose is still a bit congested, but not so much that Mommy has to suck the snot out very often. That's great, because I scream my face off whenever she does it!

The weather was so nice earlier this week! Mommy said this isn't normal for November, but we didn't complain! Especially since it meant that Mommy took my out on walks with Ramona. On one of our really long walks, she took this picture of me. I'm not sure what I was looking at, but Mommy says I look really pretty!

OH!! I started sleeping in my own room this week! I don't always stay in there ALL night, but I do make it through my long, nighttime stretch (about 11p-4a) in there without a problem. I still like for Mommy to take me into bed with her in the early morning, though. I don't know what it is, but something about going back into my crib after that 4a feeding does not make me very happy! Mommy keeps sending Daddy in to try to rock me back to sleep at that time so I don't smell Mommy's milk and want to eat more, but that hasn't really worked, and it's sure making Daddy sleepy! But I can't help it... I just love being around my Mommy and Daddy!

Also, this week I've started needing a lot more attention and entertainment from Mommy during the day. I used to be pretty good about eating, hanging out for a bit, and then sleeping in my swing. But this week, I decided that I was tired of my swing and would rather be held by Mommy. So, she caved and bought me a vibrating chair. I.LOVE.IT! As soon as she puts me in there and turns on the vibrations, I just relax and melt right into the seat. Ahh, bliss! Mommy calls it her "magic" chair. I wonder why?

On Wednesday, Mommy and I went to a Breast Feeding group a couple of miles from our house to meet my new friend Evelyn. Her mommy is friends with mine, and she was supposed to be born 11 days after me. Since I came early, though, we actually ended up being exactly 4 weeks apart. This is us when we met for the first time. I'm 1 day shy of 6 weeks, here, and Evelyn is 1 day away from 2 weeks (even though she is lots bigger than me - I weighed 9 lb 0 oz that day and she was 9 lb 9oz!)

This coming weekend I get to hang out with both of my grandmas! Oma is coming up on Friday and Nana will be here Saturday. I'll tell you all about it next week!

Love,

Elly

Week 5: Thoughts from Elly

2011-11-26T14:35:00.001-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving! What a way to end a week, with turkey and cranberry sauce! Of course, Mommy and Daddy did all the turkey eating, while I just sat around looking extremely cute. But I'm getting ahead of myself, here.

My fifth week of life began with my first car trip to Richmond to visit Mommy's family. Mommy and Daddy said I did great in the car! I don't remember the ride at all, though, because I was asleep for the whole thing. I sure do like my car seat!

When we got there, I was able to meet Aunt Christina for the first time, ever. Mommy was happy, too, since the last time she saw her was when she and Daddy got married two years ago.

Aunt Christina made a really cool present for me! She's really crafty, and with her mad skills, she designed an iron-on for one of my onesies! Mommy hasn't taken any pictures of me wearing it, yet, but this is it. Trust me, I look really cute in it!

Actually, Mommy didn't take any pictures at all while we were down in Richmond! I think that's because Aunt Christina took so many awesome pictures, though. She really likes photography - she even blogs about it over here! Now, Mommy is just waiting for Aunt Christina to go through and edit all of the photos so we can see them. I had a lot of fun spending time with her. She even told me that she might give me some more cousins one day!

Speaking of cousins, Alivia and Blake were there, too! I already love them so much! I'm really glad we get to be cousins, and I'm so excited to spend time with them as we get older. Their Mommy and and Daddy were also there - that's my Auntie Jen and Uncle Lance. And of course, Oma and Papa were there! I sure felt the love from everyone because I got held and cuddled all day long!

Unfortunately, there was one downside to our visit. On Monday, Mommy got a cold that she caught while we were there. Then on Tuesday, Daddy got sick, too. So, it was no surprise when I started coughing and sneezing on Thursday night! Only a month old, and I already have my first cold! It's definitely not fun, but I'm staying pretty positive about the whole thing. I just REALLY hate it when Mommy sticks that thing up my nose and sucks out the mucus. Yuck! It makes me cry and cry. She always lets me eat right afterwards, though, and that makes me feel better right away!

On Thursday, the day I turned 5 weeks old, it was Thanksgiving. This was my first real holiday! Even though I was 11 days old on Halloween, I didn't really do anything, so I don't think that counts.

We had our first official Thanksgiving dinner in Richmond with Mommy's family last weekend, but on the real day, we drove up to Nana's house in Maryland. There, I got to see Uncle Scott, Nana, and Aunties Kelly, Summer, and Holly (Auntie Kelly is actually Daddy's aunt, and Summer and Holly are his cousins, but they all said they want to be my aunties!). I had a great time being passed around and held by everyone. My head got lots of kisses that day!!

Here are Ramona and me hanging out while everyone was noshing on turkey and stuffing.

By the way, on Friday morning I went back to the doctor to check up on my reflux. The medicine has been helping me. Even though I still spit up after I eat, it's a lot less and I'm not in as much pain anymore. The doctor said I'm looking great and gaining the right amount of weight. In fact, I'm up to 8 lbs 8 oz now! That's a full 2 lbs heavier than my lowest weight at 4 days old! Mommy and Daddy were both so glad to find out I'm really thriving!

Now, I just have to get over this cold and feel like my normal self again. Once that happens, Mommy is going to try to get me to sleep in my crib (in my own room!) during the night. Wish me luck!!

Love,

Elly

One Month

2011-11-21T18:35:00.001-05:00

Elly turned a month old, yesterday! I can't believe how quickly the time has already gone. Next thing I know, I'll be dropping her off with her college roommate!

I looked around the Interwebs for cute ways to document her growth, and loved the idea of taking a picture of her in the same place every month/year. We'll see how long we have this particular chair!

So, here is the little one at the end of her first month.

Things I know about Elly:

She loves to listen to Hank Williams
She would rather be held than not
Her poor little tummy hurts a lot, so I don't mind holding her a lot
She's already outgrown her "newborn" clothes, but doesn't quite fit in the "0-3 month" outfits, yet
She is a comfort sucker - she loves her pacifier
She is very curious about colorful rattles
She finds Daddy's face very interesting
She loves to be snuggled with Mommy
Taking a bath calms her down dramatically
She will sleep through a 2-hour car ride without making a peep
She is well-loved by everyone who knows her!

I love you, Elly girl :)

Week 4: Thoughts from Elly

2011-11-18T15:01:00.001-05:00

Hi there!

I've reached the 4-week milestone! On Sunday, I'll be a month old. So much has happened to me over the last four weeks! I've gone from a sleepy, squishy-faced newborn to an active, wide-eyed baby.

This week started off with a visit to the doctor. Over the weekend I started spitting up a lot more and even vomited a couple of times. When Daddy was a baby like me, he had something called pyloric stenosis. That meant that his food was blocked from going from his stomach to his intestines, and he had to have surgery to fix it. Mommy and Daddy wanted to make sure that wasn't happening to me, since it usually starts around 3 weeks old.

Well, it turns out I don't have that, but I do have a pretty bad case of acid reflux. The doctor gave me some medicine called Zantac that I have to take three times a day! So far I think it's helping with the pain (I was arching my back and grimacing a lot after eating), even though I still spit up a lot!

I got to go on two walks this week with Mommy and Ramona. Mommy wraps me up in her Moby wrap, puts a hat on my head, and then wears one of her maternity coats so I stay nice and warm in that cold November air!

If I could be wrapped up against Mommy 24/7, I'd probably be the happiest baby in the world! I'm getting better about remembering that I need to sleep on my own too, though. Sometimes I still need to be close to Mommy all day long, but I have been able to take naps in my swing or hang out in my bassinet while Mommy gets things done.

I'm also getting better about my eating schedule and sleeping at night. One night, I even slept from 11pm-4am! Usually, I wake up for my first nighttime feeding around 3, but some nights I still get up every couple of hours. I promised Mommy it would get better as I got older, though!

Daddy and I have gotten to hang out some more this week. Mommy took a picture of us - she said Daddy looked silly, but I was really cute, so she cropped him out of the picture! What do you think?

She also took some video of us having fun together. I sure love my Daddy!

This week, Mommy tried out cloth diapers on me. I wore them for two days, but Mommy says she thinks I'm still a little too small to switch to them permanently, because we had some "leakage" issues down my legs. She told me I sure looked cute in them, though! Maybe in another month when I've gained some more weight and they fit a little more snugly on me.

Oh yah! Since I've been spitting up a lot more from my reflux, Mommy started putting bibs on me to keep my clothes cleaner. Here are a couple of my favorites!

One last thing - Thursday was Uncle Chris's 19th birthday. Happy Birthday!! I love you!

Love,

Elly

Blog Share

2011-11-15T11:39:00.001-05:00

I've participated in a few Blog Share events in the past. I missed today's share, hosted by -R- at And You Know What Else, because I *somehow* couldn't find the time to write my anonymous post...

However, I love reading from the participants, so I thought I'd share the list. Visit, comment, and enjoy!!

Blog Share participants:

Andrea Unplugged
April On Ashley
Bright Yellow World
Drifts Get Deeper
Malfeasance
Our Little Geekling
The Reluctant Grownup
Together They Come
Did I Say That Outloud?
Snarke
Operation Pink Herring
Nonsense and Frippery
Mama Bub
Heidikins
Nothing Is Easier Than Self-Deceit
Barfing Rainbows and Unicorns
And You Know What Else

A couple of things about my babe

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1. I love to "style" her hair so that it's sticking up all over the place. I don't know why, I just think it's cute :) Here she is, sporting the faux-hawk look. Of course, Daddy is always close behind, smoothing it back down.

2. I also love to watch her. She makes all kinds of faces. I try to make my videos short since nobody wants to watch a baby doing basically nothing for as long as Mommy or grandma might...

3. She's a fun one!

Week 3: Thoughts from Elly

2011-11-11T15:52:00.001-05:00

Hey, how's it going?

Today, I'm 22-days-old. Three weeks, already! I had to go back to the doctor yesterday to have my weight checked, since she wasn't happy that I hadn't gotten back up to my birthweight by last week's appointment. I'm happy to report that I weighed a solid 7 lb 7.5 oz! Everything is right on track, now.

This week, Mommy is trying to get me started on more of a routine. I had a few nights where I was waking up and fussing every hour, and that makes it hard for Mommy and Daddy. One night, I even woke up at 1:15 am and didn't go back to sleep until after 3! And even then, Mommy had to move me into bed with her around 4:30 so that I would finally sleep quietly. Also, during the day on Monday, I cried any time she wasn't holding me. That must have been really rough for her!

Auntie Jen sent Mommy a book called On Becoming Baby Wise that talks about creating structure so that I will sleep better at night. She started reading it to get some ideas on how to do that with me. She also ordered two other books so that she can blend all of the theories out there into something that will work best for us!

Already, she's seen some improvement in me! Last night, I only woke up twice, at 1:30 and 4:15. Mommy said that was right on schedule! And she is feeling much more rested, today!

One of things I need to keep working on is self-soothing. It's hard right now, because I still can't quite figure out where my hands are. Once my mouth happens to find a finger, though, I love it!

On Tuesday, Mommy's friend Diana came over for a visit and we went on a nice, loooooong walk together. Even Ramona came along! The leaves on the trees are so pretty (even though I didn't really see much of them, since I slept during the whole walk!). Mommy was really happy to spend so much time out of the house with me, too.

Daddy and I have really been getting to know each other better. He likes to play with me after he comes home from work. I think it's so interesting to look at him and listen to his voice - it's so different from Mommy! I think we're going to be really good friends!

I'm really excited for the next couple of weeks to get here! On Thursday, Aunt Christina is flying out here to visit and I'll get to meet her for the very first time! Then, it'll be my first Thanksgiving. I think I might get to meet some more of Daddy's relatives, then. Oh, and I'll be taking my first long car ride! Mommy says it's good that the ride will only be about an hour and a half, though. She wouldn't want my first experience on a trip to be much longer than that! I do pretty well in the car just driving around town, so we'll see how it goes!

Well, I think that's pretty much all for this week. Talk to you, soon!

Love,

Elly