...And ended here. You were such a big help.
Life is so much more fun with you around!
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Momma's Helper
Thank you, Ellie, for helping me fold your diapers. We started here...
...And ended here. You were such a big help.
Life is so much more fun with you around!
...And ended here. You were such a big help.
Life is so much more fun with you around!
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Ellie is Growing
I've been done working for over a month now. I had a wonderful trip to Oregon and Idaho last month for 2 1/2 weeks. Ellie was a great traveler and continues to grow and change even daily. Instead of trying to post all the pictures I took, here is a link to the album I posted on Facebook. I had fun taking pictures of all the friends and family I visited and all the people who got to spend time with Ellie.
I can't put into words how much I enjoy being at home with her (but I can sure try!). When I put her down for her naps I look forward to the downtime, but when I hear her awake, talking to herself while she waits for me to come get her, I get excited and almost giddy to walk in her room. I know she's going to get a huge grin as soon as she sees me. I love scooping her up out of the crib, hugging her and cuddling while she's still slightly groggy, before she is back in Go!-Mode where she doesn't stop and has to explore everything.
She's eating more fun foods all the time. For quite a while she was mostly a vegetables girl, and I realized that fruit usually takes 4 or 5 tries before she likes those, especially because fruit is often a bit tart without any sugar. She eats sweet potato, squash, carrots, peas, avocado, bananas, mangoes, pears, peaches, oatmeal, rice cereal, and most recently, scrambled egg yolk.
As soon as we got home from our trip she decided she was ready to sit up, and she's a pro already.
Her personality is coming out more each day. She is stubborn (a trait from her daddy?) and curious. She is happy and loves to laugh. She loves music and "dances" when music is on with a beat. She is full of joy and smiles all the time. People always remark how happy she is all the time. She waves to people and waves good-bye to her drum that tells her "good-bye" when she stops playing with it. She loves books, both being read to and looking at them herself. She is climbing in and through and up on anything she can find.
We are so blessed! Not a day goes by that I'm not thankful for our precious daughter. We love her so.
I can't put into words how much I enjoy being at home with her (but I can sure try!). When I put her down for her naps I look forward to the downtime, but when I hear her awake, talking to herself while she waits for me to come get her, I get excited and almost giddy to walk in her room. I know she's going to get a huge grin as soon as she sees me. I love scooping her up out of the crib, hugging her and cuddling while she's still slightly groggy, before she is back in Go!-Mode where she doesn't stop and has to explore everything.
She's eating more fun foods all the time. For quite a while she was mostly a vegetables girl, and I realized that fruit usually takes 4 or 5 tries before she likes those, especially because fruit is often a bit tart without any sugar. She eats sweet potato, squash, carrots, peas, avocado, bananas, mangoes, pears, peaches, oatmeal, rice cereal, and most recently, scrambled egg yolk.
As soon as we got home from our trip she decided she was ready to sit up, and she's a pro already.
Her personality is coming out more each day. She is stubborn (a trait from her daddy?) and curious. She is happy and loves to laugh. She loves music and "dances" when music is on with a beat. She is full of joy and smiles all the time. People always remark how happy she is all the time. She waves to people and waves good-bye to her drum that tells her "good-bye" when she stops playing with it. She loves books, both being read to and looking at them herself. She is climbing in and through and up on anything she can find.
We are so blessed! Not a day goes by that I'm not thankful for our precious daughter. We love her so.
Friday, May 13, 2011
Painful Parenting Lesson
THUD!
Never has a sound been so sickening to my ears. It took a few milliseconds to process the noise and the crying that immediately followed. In those micromoments I experienced confusion followed by sheer horror and realization as I ran to my baby girl lying on the wood floor, next to the extra tall bed where she’d been playing on only seconds before.
As a parent, I have been warned that accidents will happen, that I can’t protect my child from everything, that one of the hardest parts of being a parent is realizing how little control you have over certain things, and that everyone ends up with a horror story of an accident or near-tragic incident.
My first of these occurred last night. Unfortunately, it is one instance where I can’t say “there’s nothing I could have done differently,” because this was an easily preventable situation. She’s been so squirmy lately, but I convinced myself she’d be fine for just a quick moment on the bed while I ran across the hall (where I could still see her on the bed) to dump her diaper. That’s all it took for her to somehow find the edge of the bed and then the floor.
I was probably crying harder (or at least longer) than she was. Another common piece of advice is to not freak out, to remain calm so that the child stays calm. That was a fleeting thought as I screamed and scooped her up into my arms, suddenly hysterical. I held her tight, patting her, hugging her, consoling her, apologizing repeatedly...”I’m so sorry, my girl. I’m so, so sorry.”
She settled down, I nursed her, and she was soon playing and laughing and scooting all over the floor. A slight bump and bruise were the only evidence of the horrible fall. I called my pediatrician’s office just to talk it through. “99% of the time babies fall off the bed and are fine,” she said. Of course, she had to mention a few things to look for, and of course with each word I found myself imagining the worst scenario taking place: blood, hemorrhaging, internal bleeding, swelling, vomiting, lethargic, unresponsive...She could have landed on her face, broken a nose or ear, or who knows what else, but she didn’t.
This morning, she’s been happy and playful and back to herself. The slight red bump is barely even noticeable. The only scar from this whole experience is on this momma. I keep hearing that thud, playing the reel on repeat in my mind, and thanking God constantly for protecting my baby. It’s humbling to realize that I will continue to make mistakes as a mother, yet encouraging to know that God is watching her and protecting her, and I have to trust her to Him every single day.
Never has a sound been so sickening to my ears. It took a few milliseconds to process the noise and the crying that immediately followed. In those micromoments I experienced confusion followed by sheer horror and realization as I ran to my baby girl lying on the wood floor, next to the extra tall bed where she’d been playing on only seconds before.
As a parent, I have been warned that accidents will happen, that I can’t protect my child from everything, that one of the hardest parts of being a parent is realizing how little control you have over certain things, and that everyone ends up with a horror story of an accident or near-tragic incident.
My first of these occurred last night. Unfortunately, it is one instance where I can’t say “there’s nothing I could have done differently,” because this was an easily preventable situation. She’s been so squirmy lately, but I convinced myself she’d be fine for just a quick moment on the bed while I ran across the hall (where I could still see her on the bed) to dump her diaper. That’s all it took for her to somehow find the edge of the bed and then the floor.
I was probably crying harder (or at least longer) than she was. Another common piece of advice is to not freak out, to remain calm so that the child stays calm. That was a fleeting thought as I screamed and scooped her up into my arms, suddenly hysterical. I held her tight, patting her, hugging her, consoling her, apologizing repeatedly...”I’m so sorry, my girl. I’m so, so sorry.”
She settled down, I nursed her, and she was soon playing and laughing and scooting all over the floor. A slight bump and bruise were the only evidence of the horrible fall. I called my pediatrician’s office just to talk it through. “99% of the time babies fall off the bed and are fine,” she said. Of course, she had to mention a few things to look for, and of course with each word I found myself imagining the worst scenario taking place: blood, hemorrhaging, internal bleeding, swelling, vomiting, lethargic, unresponsive...She could have landed on her face, broken a nose or ear, or who knows what else, but she didn’t.
This morning, she’s been happy and playful and back to herself. The slight red bump is barely even noticeable. The only scar from this whole experience is on this momma. I keep hearing that thud, playing the reel on repeat in my mind, and thanking God constantly for protecting my baby. It’s humbling to realize that I will continue to make mistakes as a mother, yet encouraging to know that God is watching her and protecting her, and I have to trust her to Him every single day.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Family Time
Over Spring Break Michael's parents came to visit from Idaho. They haven't seen Ellie since the week she was born, so it was fun for them to have some high-quality grandparent/grandchild time.
We went to the coast and stayed for a few days. We relaxed, slept, read, and ate at Bubba Gumps.
Happy Easter!
We went to the coast and stayed for a few days. We relaxed, slept, read, and ate at Bubba Gumps.
Happy Easter!
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Future Guacamole Lover
I am a literalist. (According to spell check that's not a word, but I'm making it one.)
I read all directions to everything. Repeatedly. And follow them literally. This includes instructions to things like my shampoo bottle, kitchen gadgets, recipes, games (I'm an avid, literal rule-follower when I play games)...basically, anything that comes with words to read and inform.
With the internet and the plethora of variations to everything under the sun online, I often find myself reading 17 different opinions about how to do something before I make up my mind (to the chagrin of my husband, who often gets to hear all 17 versions). Since having a baby, these habits have only multiplied.
For example, cloth diapers. I emailed friends, I read and reread articles and books, I read blogs, I read the instructions that came with the diapers I finally ordered (and still look over them from time to time), and after six months I can say that I finally feel comfortable with the process of how to clean them and use them properly.
That's my hope in this process: eventually, I become an "expert" at what I am researching and feel confident in my knowledge and skill level. With a new baby, this applies to everything from cloth diapers to nursing to pumping and storing milk to naptimes and sleeping strategies to eating strategies to the daily updates I receive from multiple baby websites about everything there is to know or not know about raising a baby.
Enter the next milestone I've been studying and preparing for: introducing solid food. First, I had to decide when this should happen (based on all the research, APA recommendations, needs of my baby), and then what to feed her, how often, organic or not, frozen or fresh, hand-made or store bought...the list is seemingly endless.
The good news is that we've entered the stage of solid foods, and after much research I am feeling ready to give it a whirl (and I feel like my daughter is ready). Hence, today Ellie got her first taste of avocado. No, not rice cereal, but instead green, smooth, creamy, pureed avocado. Verdict? Success! She loved it, though at times she was confused by the texture and taste:
Waiting patiently.
After the first bite, she grabbed the spoon and tried to feed herself. I wonder what this means for her personality as she gets older?
Happy girl.
In case you're curious, we've decided to go mostly organic and to make all of our baby food at home. I'm looking forward to all the new flavors my daughter will get to experience over the next several months.
I read all directions to everything. Repeatedly. And follow them literally. This includes instructions to things like my shampoo bottle, kitchen gadgets, recipes, games (I'm an avid, literal rule-follower when I play games)...basically, anything that comes with words to read and inform.
With the internet and the plethora of variations to everything under the sun online, I often find myself reading 17 different opinions about how to do something before I make up my mind (to the chagrin of my husband, who often gets to hear all 17 versions). Since having a baby, these habits have only multiplied.
For example, cloth diapers. I emailed friends, I read and reread articles and books, I read blogs, I read the instructions that came with the diapers I finally ordered (and still look over them from time to time), and after six months I can say that I finally feel comfortable with the process of how to clean them and use them properly.
That's my hope in this process: eventually, I become an "expert" at what I am researching and feel confident in my knowledge and skill level. With a new baby, this applies to everything from cloth diapers to nursing to pumping and storing milk to naptimes and sleeping strategies to eating strategies to the daily updates I receive from multiple baby websites about everything there is to know or not know about raising a baby.
Enter the next milestone I've been studying and preparing for: introducing solid food. First, I had to decide when this should happen (based on all the research, APA recommendations, needs of my baby), and then what to feed her, how often, organic or not, frozen or fresh, hand-made or store bought...the list is seemingly endless.
The good news is that we've entered the stage of solid foods, and after much research I am feeling ready to give it a whirl (and I feel like my daughter is ready). Hence, today Ellie got her first taste of avocado. No, not rice cereal, but instead green, smooth, creamy, pureed avocado. Verdict? Success! She loved it, though at times she was confused by the texture and taste:
Waiting patiently.
After the first bite, she grabbed the spoon and tried to feed herself. I wonder what this means for her personality as she gets older?
Happy girl.
In case you're curious, we've decided to go mostly organic and to make all of our baby food at home. I'm looking forward to all the new flavors my daughter will get to experience over the next several months.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Funny Little Girl
Our little one is getting quite the personality. One day Melissa shot this video when Ellie couldn't stop laughing at her little rattle. I got home five minutes later and shook the rattle in front of her and she acted like it was the most boring thing she'd ever seen. I guess it's only funny when mom does it.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood...
We are enjoying the beautiful 75-80 degree weather. It's been absolutely beautiful and a great time for Ellie to explore the outdoors. Today she experienced grass, and spent many minutes just rolling her fingers across it, feeling it and playing with it. She's definitely in exploratory-mode these days. She sees something and army crawls across the room or ground or blanket to reach it and play.
She always crosses her legs while she's laying on her tummy. So relaxed and just "chillin'."
Playing with a mirror:
My beautiful girl, scrunching her nose.
If you look closely, you can see her new tooth popping through in her bottom gums.
She always crosses her legs while she's laying on her tummy. So relaxed and just "chillin'."
Playing with a mirror:
My beautiful girl, scrunching her nose.
If you look closely, you can see her new tooth popping through in her bottom gums.
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