My first little cold

Ellie woke up this morning with some congestion. We decided to err on the side of caution and took her in to the urgent care clinic. The doctor said she has some mild congestion and not to worry too much. You can't medicate such a young baby for the common cold, but we made some saline solution and have been flushing out her little nose and then using the bulb to suction out what we can. She hates that, but her nasal passages are pretty clear. She's eating and sleeping well. As you can tell from the pictures below, she's not suffering too much. She still has her energy and is in good spirits! Here are some shots from our Saturday.

Reflection

Overall the week went very well. Seth, Ellie, and I all survived to enjoy another weekend. It will be interesting to see how Ellie does with her schedule tomorrow after being with Ms. Betty all week. All of the worrying about eating was for nothing...thank goodness! I send three full bottles each morning and Ellie always eats about 11.5 oz of the 12 oz I send. She is very content in the evenings, which is reassuring. The change in her schedule has not affected her sleep significantly - she still only requires one feeding per night. I worry a little that she isn't sleeping as much during the day as she used to, but if that's the case it doesn't seem to bother her too much. Ms. Betty is beginning to figure Ellie out. For the first several days Ellie would fuss every day at 3, after taking her only formula bottle for the day. Ms. Betty made the connection and asked that I send more breast milk. She hasn't had the same problem since. Ellie even turns towards Ms. Betty's voice when she hears her talking (I'm only a little jealous!). Ms. Betty calls Seth, Ellie, and I "the triplets," which I think is hysterical.

I'm excited to spend some significant play time with Ellie tomorrow, as we have only gotten one play time a day with her this week. I wonder if she's learned anything new that I haven't picked up on. We'll take plenty of pictures this weekend and post them as soon as we have the chance. We love you all and appreciate all of the well wishes and prayers.

Lots of love.

Happy Endings

Who could ask for a better ending to a long day? She's the perfect remedy :)

Tummy Time is not all bad...

Ellie hated tummy time for the longest time. I had parent guilt about it because the nurses in the hospital really stressed the importance of Ellie spending time on her tummy. We tried to be strong and let her fuss it out, but it was very evident that she was miserable on her tummy. Since Ellie learned to roll over she's decided tummy time isn't so bad. We've been very impressed with her arm strength when she pushes herself up and surveys the room. Such a cutie pie...see for yourself!

We made it!

Our first day back went better than I could have hoped. Ellie ate normally for Ms. Betty, who reported that she had a very good day as far as first days go. I'm thrilled to see that Ellie is in such a good mood this evening and see that as a sign that she got along well at Ms. Betty's. I was glad to see my students and they were very well behaved. I hope the honeymoon period lasts longer than just a few days! Thanks for your prayers.

XOXO

Tomorrow's the big day : /

I'm feeling a little nervous about returning to work tomorrow, but not too bad. Everyone pray that Ellie has a stress-free transition to daycare and that Ms. Betty will be a wonderful caregiver. I'm so thankful that Ellie has taken to the bottle again. That alone brought my stress level down significantly.

Now that I'll be working I'm sure I won't be able to post messages as often. We'll do our best to keep up the blog and keep you all in the loop.

Lots of love!

All dressed up

Our first family stroll

So today we unpacked the stroller for the first time and put it to use. It took Ellie all of about 2 seconds to start crying when we put her in it. She settled in over the next few minutes, though, and slept in and out the rest of the walk...without an extra peep. Lucy had a great time too! Good family fun.




So today we unpacked the stroller for the first time and put it to use. It took Ellie all of about 2 seconds to start crying when we put her in it. She settled in over the next few minutes, though, and slept in and out the rest of the walk...without an extra peep. Lucy had a great time too! Good family fun.

Happy happy! Joy joy!

Ellie slept through the night for the first time last night...all the way through...no meals or fussing at all...from 10 until 6:30 this morning! AND, Seth fed her 3 ounces from the B-O-T-T-L-E! She has refused to eat anything at all from the bottle for the past two days and hasn't eaten more than an ounce and a half in quite some time. What a relief! There is hope she won't starve next week!

We've got a roller!

Ellie rolled over once before but I didn't see it. Much to my surprise, I peeked into her crib to find her staring up at me (I had laid her down on her tummy). Today I saw her roll over three times! Of course I grabbed the camera so I could share it with you all. Here it is.

She scares herself when she rolls over. I didn't film long enough for you to see it, but she always starts to cry afterwards. Little pookie.

Quite the conversationalist

Mama is old news these days. I bob around trying to get a giggle out of Ellie, but most times she looks at me like I'm a big dweeb. She's such a daddy's girl. When Seth comes into view she lights up like a Christmas tree...so sweet to see. I caught a break this morning! Ellie was awfully chatty and was being super silly. By the time I grab the camera and got back to her she had toned it down some. I obviously had a hard time keeping the camera centered (sorry!), but you hear her gabbing away. I managed to get this moment. Enjoy!

Harvard bound!

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She looks like she's just sleeping, but she's really solving a proof in her head.

Today we were reading a picture book when I noticed that Ellie was really into feeling the pages. I remembered that we received a touchy-feely book as a shower gift called Peekazoo - it has all different types of textures worked into pictures of animals. Ellie was exploring with her little hands and feeling the soft wool, velvet, and fleece. She was especially into the rough textures like corrugated cardboard, painted sparkles, and bumps. It was really neat to see her take her hands and deliberately run them over a surface repeatedly. Before I know it she'll be putting together 500 piece puzzles like little cousin Owen! :)

Moving on up

Very few of Ellie's newborn outfits still fit and only a handful of her 0-3 month clothes leave much wiggle room. Today she jumped to her 3 to 6 month clothes! (Not that she won't wear old outfits that still fit.) Such a big girl! Check out her bad self in this cute little pink and brown number:



Adorable

Deminishing success

The bottle situation is getting worse, not better. Yesterday she would begrudgingly take an ounce, today only half an ounce. I'm starting to feel a little panicky about leaving her with Ms. Betty after having such difficulty with the bottle. I talked with a nurse from her pediatrician's office and I talked with with my mom. Both said she'll get hungry enough to work it out on her own. I can't stand the thought of her hungry and crying, but I'm not sure what else is to be done.

Shake, Rattle, and Roll (well, not roll)

During our 6am playtime (ahh!), Ellie worked on mastering the art of the rattle and on balance. Such a cutie patootie.

Victory!

Ellie had her 11 weeks old birthday yesterday and she gave ME a present! She has had three consecutive 7 hour nights! Woooooooo hoooooooo! For the longest time she had three feedings a night. Slowly she cut down to two, and now only one (at 4 - 4:30am!). She is such a big girl. She also made the transition out of our room and into her own. I think she's handling that better than I am. I'm off to buy one of those mats that beeps if shes stops breathing or if she is removed from the mat. Then maybe I can actually sleep during those looong seven hour stretches! My little girl is growing up so fast!

I guess I'll just have to stay home...

Ellie has fed from a bottle successfully numerous times for quite awhile now. Granted, most days she feeds from the breast, but when I'm out on an errand or having some girl time with friends, Daddy gives her a bottle. On these occasions Ellie has been known to suck down a full four ounces in no time flat. Next week Ellie will be with Ms. Betty for her 9, 12, and 3 o'clock feedings, so I decided that I'd better start introducing the bottle more regularly. Of course, suddenly she hates the bottle. She'll happily eat an ounce and a half and then scream her head off until I break down and breast feed. I'm hoping that as the week progresses she'll slowly get used to the bottle. Otherwise, Ms. Betty is in for one heck of a week!

Daddy's Girl? Or Mama's Girl?

A new milestone!

Ellie rolled over today :) I put her down for a nap on her tummy. After 10 minutes or so I heard her fussing and went to take a look. She was on her back! What a big girl. She'll be rolling like a log across the floor in no time. Other new tricks are on the horizon: I can see that she is about to figure out how to accurately aim for her mouth. She tries to grab things and bring them to her mouth, but she just hasn't gotten it down pat yet.

-Wow, the things that excite me these days!

Brrrrrrrrrrr!

Bundling up my bundle of joy to face the cold weather! Such a cutie pie!

Empty Nest...already?

I'm trying to put on my big girl britches, but each morning I wake up and think, "Only one more Thursday (substitute appropriate day of the week)." I know I'm very fortunate that Ellie will only need childcare for 4 months, but I'm already tearing up when I think about the time I will lose with her. Her sitter will be Ms. Betty, a wonderful older lady who came very highly recommended. I already have a secret little grudge against Ms. Betty, because she will be the lucky one who gets to witness all the new changes and nuances as they come. She'll know the little tricks to get Ellie to quiet down or to smile.

Seth will drop her off in the mornings and I have 97 sixth graders to preoccupy my thoughts during the day, it's the evenings that will be hard. Only having one feeding and one playtime before it's time to go down for the evening... June can't come fast enough!


Feeling a little nostalgic. Time flies.

Talking with friends

We are having such a good time during playtime these days. Ellie is such a sweet, happy, little girl. Here she is chatting it up with her toys.

A girl after my own heart...

Sometimes only a little Tina Turner and Rolling Stones will turn a frown upside down!

Baby Wise?

There are two books that I would recommend to any expectant/new mother: Baby Bargains, and Baby Wise. Baby Bargains is like consumer reports for baby everything. I had it with me every moment while registering. Baby Wise is a mother's road map. The book teaches you everything you need to know about breast feeding, burping, and most importantly, scheduling and routine. According to the book, 97% of mothers who use the Baby Wise methods have babies that sleep 9 hours through the night between the ages of 7 to 9 weeks. I know many friends who have used the Baby Wise methods with amazing success. I read the book and have been using what I read for 10 weeks, still Ellie wakes up every three hours or so. Sure, I've had a handful of nights where she slept 5 to 7 hours, but she has never had consecutive nights like that or even two of those nights in the same week.

I'd love some helpful hints from anyone who has used this method with success. I have two weeks (AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!) before I have to go back to work...I'd really like to have Ellie sleeping through the night.

Puppy Love

Lucy continues to be a little jealous of Ellie, but also madly in love like the rest of us. She is mainly jealous of Ellie's toys, especially the ones that squeak. Most of Lucy's day is spent looking out one of the front window's for daddy's car, or sleeping with daddy's socks. Poor puppy.

Proof Positive

Eating Mr. Monkey Face





...and sticking out our tongues!

The next BIG thing.

During play time Ellie loves to lay on her back and look up at you. She does a lot of mimicking...smiling after you smile, trying to repeat sounds you make, and these days, sticking out her tongue. She's fascinated by her tongue! Licking, munching on, and sucking different fabrics and plastics is her new favorite pastime. Super cute. Now we're working on smooches and rolling over. Currently, a wide, gaping mouth is her best smooch...and she only does that every now and then. Rolling over is also challenging, as she hates tummy time. We'll get there!

Ringing in the New Year

We spent a quiet New Years' Eve just the three of us and Ryan Seacrest. Ellie woke up just before midnight to hear Auld Lang Syne and participate in our grape juice toast!


Papa and Gamms came on New Years' Day.


And ReRe came on the 3rd.

Obiously not too traumatized

Today, in the swing.

Trying to coax a smile.

Traumatized?

Maybe I'm being a bit dramatic, but....

I'm not sure who was more traumatized: Ellie or mama. Little pookie had her two month well visit yesterday - and her immunizations. Three were given as shots and one was given orally. I know it's her job, but the nurse pinned downed Ellie's legs and gave her three jabs in the thighs. Ellie handled the first shot decently, but was shocked and panicked as she was jabbed a second and then third time. Her expression almost showed betrayal, and I felt like crap and like I failed to protect her. Ellie was not happy. I wasn't either.

If you've spent any time with Ellie, then you know she loves getting her diaper changed. She can be in the middle of a huge tantrum, but will quiet down as soon as you begin the diaper changing process. (Of course she's back to fussing as soon as you're done.) Well, after the immunization experience we headed home for a quiet, calm evening. I went to change her diaper and, to my surprise, when I laid her down she began freaking out. She was laying on her back in only a diaper, just like she had been only a few hours before for her shots. She had the same sort of panicked expression that I saw on her face at the doctor's office. Her first tear streaked down her cheek. We transitioned to the rocker to try to relax a little bit. She just put her head on my shoulder and made the saddest little whimpering noises for ten minutes or so before she dozed off.

Worst experience ever! :(

How is this for a happy mama!

Ellie had a seven and a half hour cycle last night! Woo hoo! She slept from 10pm until 5:30am. I still got up a few times, you know, to make sure she was still breathing! We are both very rested this morning.

How is this for a happy baby...

Mixing it up with the Wildcats :)

So, I mentioned the "first annual Wildcat Mixer" in a previous blog and asked for pictures to be sent. Charity was sweet enough to send me a few shots from our get-together. For you non-Lexington folks, our high school mascot was the Wildcat...thus the Wildcat Mixer. I know I'm dorkie. Here are two pictures: the first is a picture of all of us ladies with both Hailey and Ellie, the second is just lil' Hailey and lil' Ellie...future BFFs.