Sunday, October 31, 2010

Ellie's 1st Halloween

For Ellie's first Halloween we played it pretty low key. However, since we'd been given really cute Halloween clothes, we did prepare throughout the week by wearing our Halloween jammies from Grandma as well as outfits like this.

I think she already understands this is a holiday a kid can appreciate. PS, one of my favorite pictures I've taken of her recently.
We also went to our ward party and Trunk-or-Treat Saturday night. Ellie was a ladybug. I know, store bought, but still very cute! And sorry, I'm not domestic... Don't mind the passifier, she was grumpy when we were trying to get pictures as she was tired and doesn't like getting dressed or having things on her head at first... Great combination, I know.Like I said, tired.... And here is when she woke up at the church while we were having dinner.
She was looking everywhere, and I think a little unsure about all the craziness going on around her.But eventually, she decided she was just fine so long as she was with Daddy. (Note: one of the rare pictures where you can clearly see a dimple! She has two, I promise.)
And before anyone asks, no we didn't go Trunk-or-Treating. We couldn't justify taking a toothless 2 month old around who we couldn't even claim would remember her first Halloween candy... We did however give plenty of candy out and our favorite quote of the night:
Two little girls came over to us and one was in a black dress so Steve asked her what she was. She shrugged and said she didn't know. Steve asked, "You don't know what you are?!" and she shrugged again and said no. So her friend decided to help her out and after looking her up and down for a moment happily exclaims, "You can be um... a black person!" and they walked off leaving Steve and I to guffaw and laugh. You've gotta love kids.

Today we went to church, and that about finishes out our Halloween plans. We don't really expect trick-or-treaters where we live and are planning on a fairly quiet evening. This was Ellie's outfit for her first Halloween.
At least until she spit up all over and smelled so much like vomit that I stripped her down... Happy Halloween!

The Little Things

I've been thinking the last couple of days about all the cute little things Ellie currently does, and all the little things I love about her that make my day. And as we yet again go through her clothes she's outgrown, I realize many of these quirky habbits will probably soon be gone and I want to remember them. So here is my record.

I love that when Ellie nurses she almost always crosses her ankles as it seems so prim and ladylike.... I also love that she almost always grabs my collar with her top hand and holds it while she eats.

It always makes my day no matter what time of the day or night when I go into Ellie's room to get her and when she realizes I'm there she just gives me this big smile like she knows I'm there to fix whatever is wrong. This is made doubly fun when she is then happy and chatters at me while I change her.

By the way, another thing I love that Ellie does right now: chatter, coo, and gurgle! She sometimes gets really wound up and loud too now, but only every once in a while and never while I am recording! I have a video of this I've tried to post twice, each time literally letting it load for hours without success. I'll try again when the internet is better...

Other things I love that Ellie does: Look freaking adorable in anything she wears!
Don't mind the bow in the center of her head, she'd been crying and rubbing her head while she was upset, so it got moved around a bit...
Also, pull on her headbands and hats. I know, there's proof of this in other blogs, but the latest development is that she frequently keeps pulling until this:becomes this:
I love that when she is happy she goes through about 6 different smiles instead of staying with one, and that frequently the first smile is a crooked, head-moving one like this: (notice slightly blurry thanks to the head moving part...)
She also cracks me up when she sleeps anywhere, in any position. For instance, the swing is supposed to put her to sleep, and gets used mostly when she's grumpy and wants to be in motion and we're finally tired of bouncing her. However, I don't usually expect to find her head at this angle when I come check on her... I know Dad, she is truly her mother's daughter in this regard.
Speaking of sleep, I hate that she's been sick a few different times lately, but love what a trooper she's been. And as much as it may be wrong to admit, I love the hugs I get and how cuddly she is when she doesn't feel good or is extra tired and I'm rocking her. Here Daddy got some quality time the other day when she was both feeling yucky and tired from not napping due to not feeling very good. I also love watching how amazing Steve is with her and how much he obviously loves our little girl. (PS Steve obviously doesn't know I took this picture, so it's a secret.)
Another thing Ellie does right now is happily play. I love that you can tell how happy she is (she's such a good baby) all the time, even when she's not smiling. But I especially enjoy when she gets really excited and wound up. This is usually evident because she is doing some combination of: sticking her tongue out in a million different ways, panting, shaking her arms in the air, kicking frantically, etc.
Man, she's getting so big so fast! But, I'm glad that we have this blog to share with family and friends all the best parts of Ellie during each new phase!

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

2 Months of Parenthood

Well, last week Ellie turned 2 months old. I didn't post anything because her 2 month check-up was this last Monday. Our pediatrician said that Ellie was really healthy and her only warning was that Ellie is getting a little flatter on the right side of her head. She can look wherever, yet for some reason she prefers to look over her right shoulder... Oh well. The doctor also told me that Ellie can't be left unattended on a couch or anything anymore because she's too good a kicker, and that girl really does love to kick! And stand and jump when she's on my lap... Boy how she has grown! At her appointment Ellie weighed exactly 12 lbs and was measured at about 22.5 inches long. I say about because I maintain she's longer than that... She was really grumpy about being measured and the nurse gave up and read the measurement while Ellie's leg was still slightly bent. I know, I'm just being a mom, but she really is longer than that! As proof, here is Ellie next to our friend's 5 month old. They're almost the same size! Ok, well at least nearly the same length... Tess is way heavier and more able obviously. It was cute how she kept trying to hold (and occasionally eat) Ellie's hand. I can't believe they're so close in length!In fact, Ellie is wearing very few 0-3 month clothes these days and is in all 3-6 month jammies. Here is a picture of the really CUTE jammies Grandma Kerry got her for her first Halloween.
Oh, and she still took her shots like a total stud - crying for only a few seconds and done! So much easier on Mommy and Daddy who feel bad about her hurting, even if we know it's the best thing for her.

Other developments: Ellie was sick and is still slightly fighting the last drainage and cough occasionally. So she's been a pain about tummy time, only throwing fits and hardly moving, but she can hold her whole head and chest up easily when she wants to. We hardly help her with her head, and mostly just to keep her from throwing it back to look at lights, ceilings, and pictures on the walls - easily her favorite things. She also plays more! Here is a picture of her playing with Aunt Julie while Julie was still here. She LOVED Aunt Julie! Back to her playing... Yesterday we were in Target starting to buy a few small things for Chirstmas and Steve blew Ellie's mind with a Jack-in-the-box. It was so funny! But we didn't buy it. And Ellie enjoyed Peek-a-Boo today for the first time! Also, a friend gave us this play mat and Ellie is starting to really like it. As a result, I think we're going to get another, bigger one with more toys for her.
Did I mention this girl still loves her sleep? And can still fall asleep anywhere at any time? During this little nap - I was vacuuming the room. Other places Ellie can fall asleep? Like I said, anywhere. She started sitting on the couch before I turned and saw her fall down - and go to sleep.Another example of her loving to sleep and loving Aunt Julie. One of her favorite places to sleep for a while was in Julie's lap.
She also loves - naked time! I laid her down all bundled up in blankets one day when she fell asleep after I'd stripped her down for a minute and fed her. I heard little noises and went in to check on her to find this. She is such an expert at kicking out of covers...
And perhaps her favorite naked time: bath time. This girl loves the warm water! And has even come to like lotion time after her baths each night. In fact, she cries for a minute each night when I take her out of the bath, and then when I lay her down to lotion her up she smiles and talks at me now. This is her loving the bath Aunt Kathy brought us during the baby blessing. Steve said no pornographic pictures, and I have to agree about posting them online, so I've started using the washcloth trick... Because she just makes the best faces when she's loving bath time!

And, just for kicks, a picture of how Ellie was dressed coming home from a football game last week. It got cold, so we left at half-time, especially where she still rasps at times, but she had on an outfit, her coat, then this thick sleeper, and her hat. This picture really shows how her cheeks have filled out! (Granted it's exaggerated by tight clothes and seat belt, but still...)Yup, Ellie is getting so big! And we're so proud of her as she learns to do things! For instance, we've started a bedtime routine and she's gone down at 9:00 after her routine 3 nights in a row! Maybe she doesn't stay down, but she does go down for at least a while! This is much preferred to last week when one night she didn't go to bed till 4:45 AM! And I was ready to post a free baby ad on craigslist - first come first serve. She's cute, so I figured I wouldn't have to wait long....

She's also putting herself to sleep after playing for a while. She's still afraid of the dark, so we bought a lamp for her room so that I can turn that on and go back to bed, and she'll do the rest herself! Once again, this is a huge improvement for me so that I don't have to stay up or sleep in the recliner in her room till she puts herself down, especially since she usually wakes up for a 2 hour stretch at some point in the night.

And, she's starting to stretch some of her sleeping periods to 4.5 to 5.5 hours. So awesome for Mommy and Daddy! And her last greatest achievement happened only an hour or so ago. She cried herself to sleep! This may sound silly, but anyone who has seen her so tired she can't or won't go to sleep knows that this kid is stubborn and has a temper! As a result, she would cry for a half hour or longer and even if she fell asleep, she'd wake up 1 minute later even more angry that nobody had come and gotten her before she passed out. But, part of her night time routine is that we're trying to teach her that after 9:00 PM it's crib/bed time. So, after she woke up tonight and had been fed and changed, I laid her there and let her cry. When I went in, she just stopped and smiled at me. No Ellie, this is not the time to manipulate Mama. So, after that she didn't get answered, and eventually she cried herself to sleep!

We're so proud of our little Munchkin! Ok, this is all probably way more info than any of you want, but.... This is my life, and I love it!

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Blessing Ellie

On Sunday September 25, 2010 I got to enjoy watching my husband exercise his Priesthood for our family by blessing our daughter. I loved every bit of it. Most of both of our families attended (we each were missing a sister) even though it meant a lot of traveling and quick turn around time for most of them. We had family come from Idaho, Utah, Washington, Alaska, and Okinawa. We enjoyed a fun weekend with a chaotic home full of people, going to the hot air balloon festival activities with them, eating great food, and especially having so much family together at church.


We had a fussy 6 week old, so we didn't get out to see many of the hot air balloons as they take off around 6:45 or 7:00 in the morning, but many family members did enjoy watching them in the morning, or whenever we happened to spot one outside.We tried to go to the night burn. If you want to see what it's like, look at our post from last year. We enjoyed watching the hot air balloons light up as we walked to the stadium where it is held each year, and just as we got there - it ended. They called it on account of the wind. Somehow, I don't know that the kids really minded. They seemed to have a pretty good time anyway.
The next morning brought what everyone had come for. Baby blessings are especially amazing moments for me as our entire family attends church together. It means the world to me each time it has happened. Steve brought me to tears as I heard the love and emotion in his voice as he blessed Ellie Jaylin Bennett. It was a beautiful and special time for our little family.
Here are some pictures of Ellie in her Blessing outfit. I made her little bow just for her special day and was proud I could contribute by adding something personal. Now the whole outfit will be put away so that she can have it someday. (Minus the headband the bow is on - we only have a few of those!)

Steve declared that the only proper way to welcome a Bennett into this world was with the flesh of a beast - his words, not mine. So, naturally, we celebrated with a 16 lb. prime rib after church. It was so large the rotisserie couldn't turn the meat and we had to cut it in half and bake the second half. Most of the 16 lbs. was consumed that afternoon and all of it was DELICIOUS!
After lunch we took the kids to the Prosser park and everyone seemed to have a great time!
We really loved watching the families mix and adopt each other while everyone was here.We were especially glad to see these two become fast friends!
Sunday night we brought out the fire pit and everyone got to roast marshmallows.
It was a great weekend! It may have left us feeling like this...
But it was well worth it to have a moment like this.
Thank you to all of our family members who put in so much effort to be here for Ellie's special day. We love you!

Monday, October 4, 2010

Formal Pictures

My sisters and I don't make it to the same location at the same time very often. Every 2-3 years is about the best we do. So, whenever we are together we always get formal pictures taken for my parents. Ok, definitely for us too. Especially this time as I tagged along by getting pictures taken of Ellie. I would have loved to have gotten pictures of Ellie and I with Daddy too, but unfortunately silly things like adult responsibilities and work got in the way. I'm not sure what pictures family would want up, and since my family all has the pictures, I'll just post the ones of Ellie and I for the Bennett side to see. Our girl is beautiful! So enjoy!


Yup, thankfully our little Monkey is NOT like her mother in one way - she's photogenic! Hooray!