Happy Canada Baby

Okay, one more Canada day pic before I go to bed....

Happy Belated Canada Day

July 1st was Canada Day and we took Ella into her first pub for a drink on River Street in Savannah. Here she is with Auntie Christin looking at the drink menu. She wouldn't be half Canadian if we didn't start her early! ...

...And she wouldn't be half American if she wasn't the first one to pass out! Hee Hee, that's for all you Canadians out there! We know the Americans can't handle Canadian beer, or in Ella's case Canadian milk :)

Today was a boring, sleep-in day. Ella was up at 3:30 and then again at 7am for a feeding. I brought her back to bed with me at 7 and we slept in until 9. The rest of the day was very boring, we just played on her gym mat and in her jolly jumper and then she napped in her swing. We are going to be well-rested for the BBQ tomorrow afternoon at Daddy's work. It will be the first time Ron's co-workers will meet Ella. We're getting ready for bed and Ella just head-butted me in the mouth. I'm hoping I don't get a fat lip tomorrow! (Erin - remember Corfu?) I hope I don't have to avoid the BBQ because of baby abuse! :)

Jolly Good!

How much do we love the jolly jumper! After a perfect day of shopping (of course) and a solid 2 hour afternoon nap, Ella is in the best mood and so totally on schedule. Have I said how lucky we are with her? :) We pulled out the jolly jumper tonight for the first time and Ella is in baby heaven. She's always kicking her legs and trying to stand and the jolly jumper allows her to get her jump on. She LOVES it!!!


The best part about it - I can attach her to a doorway and get stuff done around the house...or play on the blog which is much more fun. Here's to hours and hours of play time / mommy time / exercise time! This is one of the best inventions...this and the swing (aka mechanical babysitter).

Happy 4th

It was so nice to have a full night sleep after a week of excitement. Ella slept very well and Daddy got up with her this morning so I could sleep in...until 10am! We are all well rested and back on schedule with nap time and bedtime. Such an easy baby. We grilled out at Grandma and Grandpa's for the 4th of July. It was nice to visit, relax and then go home with leftovers. I feel spoiled when I don't have to do anything.


Ella's already in bed and sleeping like, well, a baby. I'm going to pick a book and relax. Tomorrow I'm off to Babies R Us to check out high chairs and pick up some rubber spoons for Ella to play with. Soon she'll be on baby foods so I'll let her get used to a spoon and maybe give her some rice cereal out of a bowl instead of the bottle she's been getting.

I'm also going to pull out the jolly jumper and see how she likes it, she's always trying to stand when you hold her anyway so might as well give her some entertainment too. It's a big week for our baby, lots of new things to try out!

Home Sweet Home

It has been a very busy week! Christin, Stephanie and Matthew were here visiting and seemed to enjoy their time in Atlanta. We made a trip to the Blue Willow Inn for some traditional southern cooking. Here's a picture of the girls in front of the antebellum home. Beautiful home, great food and perfect company!
On Saturday we headed to Savannah and walked around the river front and the historic district. It's the third time I've been to Savannah and each time I fall more in love with its charm. It is really an amazing place and I love all the parks, squares and sidewalks! You can walk for miles and see all the beautiful old homes; Atlanta isn't at all a pedestrian-friendly city and I miss walking in your own neighborhood. To find a nice park it's quite a drive, so I'm limited to our boring subdivision.
We spent Saturday night in Savannah and then Matt, Steph, Ron, Ella and I said goodbye to Christin (who was heading to Orlando with her friend) and headed to Charleston, S.C. What a gorgeous city! Everyone said that if I like Savannah, I would LOVE Charleston and they were so right. The sea air, the old buildings and beautiful homes...one day was not enough so we will go back for a whole weekend in September. Charleston is on our list of potential places to settle down once we're finished with all the military moves. I had such a great time with my girlfriends and Ella really bonded with her godparents, Stephanie and Matthew. I love this picture of them! After a long visit and too much time in the car, we are home and going to bed early!!

Pool Time

Busy, busy, busy! That sums up the last few days. I can't tell you how happy I am that my girlfriends are visiting! I get a chance to catch up on all the news and there is nothing better than just hanging out with your best friends! Yesterday we went into downtown Atlanta to the Underground (an old underground railway depot they changed into a touristy shop area) and had lunch at BBQ Works. It's really good southern BBQ. Then we headed to the King Center, visited MLK Jr's birth home and his memorial as well as Coretta Scott King's resting place.
After an afternoon of "Hotlanta" we headed home for some time in the pool. Ella LOVES it! Today we spent the day at Six Flags while Grandma watched Ella. It was scorching hot but the layers and layers of sunscreen seemed to work and my skin isn't that worse for the wear. Here are some pics of Ella at the pool this evening.

Good Times...

It looks like I won't be keeping up this blog while my girlfriends are here. So far we've shopped, pedicured and talked none stop! I LOVE it! Ella is one of the girls and has been up talking up a storm with us. She's really taken to her Godfather, Matt who seems to be one of the few people who can calm her down when she's inconsolable (which is only when she is tired.) These past two days she's slept maybe one hour out of her usual four for her afternoon naps. By the time bedtime rolls around the poor thing is rubbing her eyes and crying from pure exhaustion. It's been really rough on her all this attention and lovin' from my girls. Even when we're out shopping and she's sound asleep in her carseat, some lady will inevitably come over, poke her head in say what a quiet/ good/ beautiful/ peaceful/ precious baby and wake her up. She is sleeping through the night still though so it's not all lost. Will post some pics when I get a chance. Thank you, Erin for everything...so sweet!

Girlfriends

Tonight I dedicate my blog to all my close girlfriends who are not close to me geographically but are always in my heart. Steph and Matt are on their way from Ottawa and are somewhere in Virginia; and Christin is probably frantically packing for the airport tomorrow morning. I can't wait to see them and catch up on all the things that have happened to us this past year. I wish Erin and Suzanne could come too. I miss having my girlfriends close and would love for Ella to grow up knowing her Aunties and to be there as all our kids grow up. Life just isn't that carefree day in the burbs anymore, walking down the street barefoot to your friend's, or sleeping over, not because it was too far to drive home but because you're just as comfortable in their home as you are in your own. Oh! the stories we can reminisce on that make us giggle and laugh hysterically like school girls. My girlfriends are my support group, my cheerleaders, my therapists, my life coaches and my best advocates. Whenever I need support, love, advice, a shoulder to cry on or an ear to hear me, who else to turn to but a friend. Steph and Christin, this week is going to be fabulous! Erin and Suzanne, see you in September (or Hawaii:) )

Got Milk?

This is from the beginning of June, we were out for brunch at the Blue Willow Inn for Uncle Joey's birthday. Ella was a perfect lady, except for chewing on her dress and flashing her underoos. :)
This is going to be a short one. We've finished the first day on milk-formula, and am not sure if it is helping her reflux, but I know that without the medicine she is back to her old self. She was a happy baby again and after a few moments of uncertainty, she drank her new formula with no problem.
Ron's been out riding his new motorcycle and I've been relaxing at the house. It's much to hot to be outside and the smog alert is code red...it looks so gorgeous outside, until you step into the heat and the air is suffocating. I can't wait until we are on an island again surrounded by water and an ocean breeze. Hawaii will be such a treat after four years in Korea and then 3 here in Atlanta.

Medicine or No Medicine?

Ella's been three days on her medicine and she isn't herself. Ella is such a calm, easy-going baby but she seems so agitated. The medicine lists possible side effects like headaches, dizziness, etc. but for an infant, how would you ever know she was suffering from any of them. It's not like she can say "Hey mom, I've got a headache." So I'm going with my gut and won't be giving her any more of the meds. Instead, I went out and bought some milk-based formula (we've only had soy formula so far) and I'm praying this helps her. I am breast-feeding mostly but have to supplement with formula as I'm not producing enough milk for Ella. I'm really hoping that milk-based formula is going to mesh better with breast milk; it's all milk right? Wish Ella luck. This is the worst feeling in the world to know your baby is sick and you can't figure out how to fix it. If she isn't back to herself in a few days, it'll be back to the doctor.
It's been a rough day. Apparently Ella and Nolan seem to be in synch with each other's moods. I hope both of them have a better day tomorrow. Again, there are no pictures today, but this is one of my favorites. She is a week old in this picture and only 6 1/2 pounds! Time really does fly.