Saturday, March 28, 2009

Green Beans





You decide.



-

Easter Bonnet

NEWS FLASH: Eliana has started waving now!

Monday, March 23, 2009

6 Months Old?!?!?!?!


Can it really be true? Has Eliana been with us for six months already? Was there ever a time when she wasn't here? These have been six of the most edifying, earsplitting, and exhausting months of my life, and I have thoroughly enjoyed every moment.


I must apologize for the absence of posts in the last month. I have to admit that the exhaustion of motherhood finally got to me, and I went into survival mode for a bit. For some reason, Ellie's sleep habits really went south and she was waking every hour or so. In the last two weeks I've started swaddling her again, and it seems to be helping. In fact, I'm am happy to announce that Ellie slept through the night for the first time in her life last night. 8 p.m. t0 7 a.m. Yeah!! A couple nights like that, and I might actually feel human again.

Eliana's fifth month has been such a time of growth and development. In order to catch you up, I thought I'd just list some some of the changes I've seen in her. Some of these really tug at a mother's heart, and I know I will never forget how they make me feel. Others are just plain fun!
  1. While she has liked mirrors before, Ellie absolutely LOVES them now. When I walk past one with her in my arms, I have to make sure that I really have a good hold of her because if she catches a glimpse of herself, she lunges at herself, squealing with delight.


  2. Okay, so this isn't so much of a change, but I just have to mention it. Ellie has a smile that she reserves just for her daddy. It is the biggest, most adoring smile I have ever seen. When Joe comes home she is just thrilled. Last night he came home from Easter play practice, and she was almost ready for bed (was being the operative word). She was instantly giddy and wanted his complete attention. It was so beautiful. Joe actually teared up and told her that she makes him so happy, which of course made me tear up too. :-)


  3. Ellie is able to sit in a high chair now--very helpful when we go out to eat.


  4. When sleepy, Ellie now lifts her face up to mine in order for me to kiss her cheeks and eyelids--so precious!


  5. I'm getting kisses from Ellie now. They are REALLY wet and we need to work on the pucker, but I can't even put into words the love I feel from her when Ellie takes my face in her hands, pulls me in, and plants one on me.


  6. Rock 'n Roll baby! Ellie has gone from struggling to turn herself over to being unstoppable. Gone are the days when I could put Ellie on the floor and step away to do something. I can't believe how quickly she can travel, especially when she sees something she'd like to gnaw on.


  7. Speaking of gnawing, we are anxiously awaiting the first sign of teeth. Ellie has really been chewing on everything in sight, especially cold things. She had a temperature for about 4 days that the doctor couldn't find a reason for, so I wouldn't be surprised to see the pearly whites soon.


  8. Ellie has always seemed very observant, but now she spends a lot of time studying things intently. And when she is "locked in" on something, there's no distracting her. You can just see her soaking in the knowledge. Yesterday after church she was sitting on Joe's lap having a good time. All of a sudden, she took his face in her hands (their noses were only about 3 inches apart), and she studied face for several minutes, looing back and forth between his eyes. It was so funny!


  9. Ellie is reaching for me now. I love it when someone is holding her at church, and when I show up she leans over to come to ME! I AM the momma!


  10. Well, to make this a Top Ten list, I'll say that Ellie is figuring out her mouth. She now is very adept at using her tongue to remove any food or Tylenol that she doesn't want in her mouth. She is also babbling all the time and has figured out how to blow raspberries. She actually seems to enjoy the saliva that goes everywhere with that last bit.

Well, hopefully this has made up a bit for the lean month of posts. If I continue to get some sleep, I'll try to keep up better. :-)

Love!


The High Chair and New Car Seat