La, La, La, La...Ella's World

Dolphin Gal!

2010-02-20T22:09:00.002-05:00

I took these pics of Ella when Grandma was here visiting. Grandma Adrianne bought her some adorable Dolphin wear and this is the hat that goes with the outfit! Too cute :)

Ella 8 Months, 9 Months, 10 Months

2010-02-20T21:53:00.002-05:00

Ella 9 Months
Ella 8 Months
Ella 10 Months

Ella's Daddy has kept up the tradition of taking a picture of Ella every month and here they are! Isnt she a cutie?? I know I am biased but she is seriously one happy little girl!

Snow Day 2010

2010-01-07T16:45:00.004-05:00

It snowed today, and it just keeps on coming. This is Ella's 1st experience and Dani's 3rd actually! And before you all give me a hard time the girls were bundled up when we were out today but when Mike came home I wanted him to take a quick pic, so just held both and came right back in, I promise!!!

First Words????

2010-01-07T08:42:00.001-05:00

I heard a rumor from Ella's daddy that Ella is on her way to being a little talker (just like her mama)!! Tom told me yesterday that when he went to give Ella her morning bottle he clearly heard da-da ba-ba!! Two word sentences already = baby genius :)

Great Communicator!

2009-12-30T08:34:00.001-05:00

This morning I feed Ella some puffs while I was eating breakfast. Shortly after I went ahead and fed her some baby food since she was sitting in her booster chair so nicely! She ate a bunch and after a few minutes she started shaking her head side to side like she was saying no. I thought she was being silly and playing a game since she likes to imitate me or Dani, but nope she than proceeded to close her mouth and purse her lips so I would not feed her anymore! She was definitely communicating and her point came across loud and clear :)

Ella cruising

2009-12-28T20:33:00.002-05:00

Danielle feeding ella

2009-12-28T20:27:00.002-05:00

Dani making ella laugh

2009-12-28T20:15:00.002-05:00

Danielle feeding ella

2009-12-28T19:56:00.003-05:00

Ella eating her first puff

2009-12-28T19:49:00.003-05:00

Pictures - Playing Catch up

2009-12-28T18:41:00.005-05:00

Ella Updates!

2009-12-28T15:34:00.002-05:00

So, I am new to this so I seem to remember everything after I post :)

Here is a list of all of Ella's happenings!

1. Ella has 2 teeth and she likes to use them!

2. Ella stands up holding on to things and today has started to cruise while holding on!

3. Ella loves to dance!

4. Ella LOVES to smile for the camera and she waves to it.

5. Ella does not like to sit still, Aunt Robin's least favorite thing :)

6. Ella LOVES to bang on the computer or in the alternative grab it from you while using it!

And that folks is the latest update on Ella!

Ella's 9 month Stats

2009-12-28T15:04:00.002-05:00

Ella had her 9 month well-baby check-up on December 18. She weighs 18 pounds, 1 ounces (39th percentile), is 28 1/2 inches long (83rd percentile, HOLY MOLY she is tall), and her head is 17 1/2 inches wide (67th percentile). Aunt Robin and Danielle accompanied her and she did really well with her shots, she only cried for about 30 seconds or so and immediately stopped once she saw Danielle. The Dr gave the ok to start giving her puffs and cheerios or any appropriate table food. I (aunt Robin) got some cute video of her first attempt with puffs and her daddy gave her cheerios which I heard she LOVED!! Later I will attempt to post pictures and videos when I do not have a 9 month old attached to my leg :)

Hi from Ella's Aunt Robin

2009-12-28T14:31:00.004-05:00

Well, as it goes without saying I (Aunt Robin) am not going to be able to blog as well as her mommy but I am going to attempt to try to do the blog justice by at least posting the dirt I have on Ella! It has been about 3 weeks that Ella has been staying at our house during the day with Danielle and I and I can say for sure that Dani is in absolute heaven. Whenever Ella's daddy picks her up Dani cries every day that Ella is leaving and when Ella arrives in the morning Danielle gives her a big kiss and lights up. Luckily Ella feels the same way about danielle! At times this makes me life easier and at times I have to spend half my day trying to explain to Danielle that Ella is only a baby and cant play with her the way she wants her to and cant play with small toys and it is not Danielle's job to take things away from Ella or give them to her or to feed her! All in all it has been very good for both Danielle and I to get to spend time with Ella. She is so adorable but boy does she have a stubborn streak! Anybody want to guess where she gets it from? Well, actually if you ask her daddy she comes by it honestly. :)

Ella is quite the active and curious child! I remember Shelly used to always say how much Ella moved in her belly and boy was that a sign of things to come. This child does not sit still! She will not go in the swing, the bouncer, the highchair or anything that keeps her still without quite the fight! She is standing up on her own holding onto things already and crawls like she is at a race! The other day she managed to pull off one of the covers to our electrical outlets on the wall that was screwed in! Just like her momma she is a super woman already!

Well Ella's blog is going to be a collaborative effort from now on. At times, I (aunt robin) will post, her daddy will post and her Aunt Debbie is going to join in the fun too!

Seven Months Old!

2009-10-21T21:53:00.004-04:00

I can't believe that Ella was born seven months ago already! The time really does fly, especially when you spend an entire month in and out of hospitals. We are all really hopeful that this month is the start of only good things to come. We took her picture in her Gator chair today, as always. But, we got a special treat that I just couldn't resist. I ordered an adorable Gator bow/headband for Ella last week and it arrived today - just in time for her picture! It totally doesn't match her outfit, but it was too cute not to take a picture!

We also had the pleasure of attending Noah's bris this afternoon. Noah was a total champ. He only cried for a few seconds and then slept for hours (of course, that could have been the Manischewitz that made him sleep). Tom and I were given the honor of carrying Noah into the ceremony. We were very happy to play such an important part in this milestone. It was great to hang out with Traci and Peter and their parents, Lauren and Ike, and all the kids!

I got a few good pics while were were there, too. The first one is Ella and Ike. I was hoping Ike would crawl all over the place and inspire Ella, but no such luck today! They just chatted, instead.

The second one is Ella and Benjamin. Benjamin is holding my keys and right after I took this picture, I got a series of pictures showing Ella going after the keys. She eventually gave up and settled for Benjamin's shoe instead. It was really funny!

Jumping Around

2009-10-18T21:25:00.002-04:00

Danielle was nice enough to lend her Jumperoo to Ella. Ella is very thankful to Dani, as this is Ella's new favorite toy. Ella wanted to tell Dani just how much she loved the Jumperoo, so I got it on video for her!

Pretty Kitty Plays with Pumpkins

2009-10-18T20:22:00.006-04:00

We took Ella to Berry Patch Farms today, after I got home from the hospital. They have a huge pumpkin patch and it's only 15 minutes from our house! Ella had a blast, even though it was a chilly day. Grandma Peggy came with us and helped keep Ella entertained. It was a great start to my homecoming! There were so many pictures, that I had a hard time choosing just a few for this post. If you'd like to see the rest, shoot me an email and I'll send you the link to the photo album. I can't wait until Halloween - Ella will be trick-or-treating with her cousin Danielle and some of Dani's friends. It will be so much fun!

I remembered to bring the video camera with us, and managed to get two videos of Ella in the pumpkin patch. The first one is really shaky, b/c I was holding the camera and Ella.

Do the Hustle, Sort of...

2009-10-04T14:18:00.003-04:00

Ella is desperate to be on the move, but she hasn't quite mastered the crawling yet. The other day, we watched her scoot on her back to get where she wanted to go. Today, I was able to catch her doing it on video. It is absolutely hilarious!

Ella's 6 Month Stats

2009-10-02T13:41:00.003-04:00

Ella had her 6 month well-baby check-up on Wednesday. She weighs 16 pounds, 6 ounces (53rd percentile), is exactly 26 inches long (54th percentile), and her head is 17 inches wide (67th percentile). She definitely takes after her daddy with that big head of hers. She did really well with her shots, she only cried for about 30 seconds or so.

The pediatrician told us that Ella is ready to move on to stage 2 foods, which means more texture, so we'll be trying that out soon. He also told us to start introducing her to a sippy cup with water. She took right to it!

Ella is Six Months Old!

2009-09-24T19:55:00.003-04:00

Monday was Ella's 1/2 birthday. I can't believe that she has been in our lives for 6 months already. These last three weeks have been especially hard on me, since I haven't been home to see her. I miss her so much! Tom still made sure to take her six month picture on Monday afternoon so that I could do a post and so that I could get an extra peek at her! She has her 6 month appointment at the pediatrician next week, so we'll post her latest height and weight then.

S'not for Public Consumption

2009-09-04T07:36:00.002-04:00

Ella woke up yesterday with a very runny nose. The poor little thing was so stuffed up, I suctioned out her nose 4 or 5 times. I took her to the pediatrician's office to make sure she didn't have an ear infection or anything else. Good news is that it's just a cold, bad news is that I still have to clean out her nose every few hours.

While we were at the doctor's office, the nurse weighed her. Ella weighs 15 pounds, 7 ounces (give or take since she was dressed when weighed).

I am spending as much time as I can with her this morning, as I have my surgery this afternoon. I am looking forward to the procedure, but not looking forward to being without my little girl for 2 or 3 days.

Eat Your Vegetables - Or Just Talk About Them

2009-08-26T18:25:00.004-04:00

Tom was convinced she would hate green beans, so was really surprised when she made happy noises when I fed them to her last night. I gave them to her again this afternoon and she decided to tell me just how she felt about them.

It is amazing how much more she is talking these days. Last week, she was talking every now and then. Today, she is talking constantly. She definitely has some great stories to share!

Are You Ready for Some Football?

2009-08-26T18:19:00.003-04:00

Ella is! The Atlanta Gator Club has a kick-off party every year just before the football season starts. We took Ella to her first AGC event and she had a great time. We stopped for dinner at Goldfish before the event (the party was at the restaurant right next door). The weather was so great that Tom and I decided to sit on the patio. Ella was enjoying herself before she decided to take a nap.

Ella is Five Months Old!

2009-08-21T17:22:00.003-04:00

Today is Ella's five month birthday! I can't believe that she has been a part of our lives for five whole months. It really feels like just yesterday that she entered our lives! Ella decided to mark this milestone by getting stuck in the corner of her crib twice last night. I went in the room to check on her and found her face planted in the bumper. I rolled her over and moved her back into the middle of the crib both times. I decided to take the bumper off the crib this morning to be safe. Of course, during nap time, she managed to get BOTH of her legs stuck between the bars on the crib. UGH! So, Aunt Robin has (hopefully) saved the day by lending us her breatheable bumper. Hopefully, this will solve both of our issues and allow me to sleep easier at night.

Ella Loves the Video Camera

2009-08-20T16:22:00.004-04:00

Actually, she stares at it whenever I turn it on which makes it hard to catch her doing anything on video. Today, I made funny faces over the camera and managed to get her to laugh at me. The video is really shaky b/c I'm holding the camera and making funny faces at the same time - a talent I haven't yet mastered!

Tom took this next one. Ella's newest thing to do in her bouncer is to grab the monkey and swing it back and forth as hard as she can. She hits it pretty hard, too!

Sitting Up with Help

2009-08-16T17:01:00.004-04:00

We have been putting Ella in her Bumbo seat for a few days now, trying to see if she's ready to sit up in it. Last night she stayed in it for the first time without flopping over to her side! I got it on video and took some pictures earlier today.

Butternut Squash and Rolls

2009-08-12T20:29:00.004-04:00

Tom was finally able to get Ella rolling over on video yesterday. She's playing with her favorite froggie blanket and having a great time!

We have moved on from rice cereal - Ella wasn't too thrilled about it. Last week, Ella tried sweet potatoes, which she liked, but her tummy didn't agree. Unfortunately, they made her very gassy and she had a really hard time passing it. We have never heard her cry as hard and as long as she did that night. It was very sad. The next day she was all better!

This week, we've moved on to butternut squash. So far, her tummy is doing much better with the squash. She ate quite a bit of it this evening. It was actually the first time that she opened her mouth really wide when I put the spoon in front of her. She was very talkative and smiley tonight, too.

Lights, Camera, Action!

2009-08-07T18:24:00.005-04:00

I got a new video camera today. It is the Creative Vado and I got a fantastic deal on it from Dell.com. I tried it out in an attempt to get Ella to roll over on video. The good news is that the quality is much better than my Blackberry, the bad news is that she wouldn't roll over for the camera! I did manage to get Ella to talk to the camera and play with a toy. She also rolled onto her tummy and I got her pulling up. So, here is what we have so far!

Rice Cereal!

2009-08-03T21:27:00.004-04:00

We started feeding Ella rice cereal last week. Of course, we took some pictures. She still isn't sure whether she really likes it or not, but she has learned to open her mouth when the spoon comes her way. Next week, we'll try sweet potatoes or carrots - yum!

Ella Meets Bella

2009-08-03T21:21:00.003-04:00

After Stacey's birthday party on Saturday, I met up with an old friend from middle school! We realized that we hadn't seen each other in almost 20 years. Annie now has a 4 year old daughter, Isabella. I made sure we got pictures of the two girls together.

Ella is Four Months Old!

2009-08-03T20:35:00.002-04:00

Ella arrived at her fourth month on July 21st. Since Ella and I were still in Florida then, we took her picture a little later than usual. Her four month appointment with the pediatrician was on Tuesday, July 28th, so we took her picture that day, too. Ella now weighs 14 pounds, 4 ounces, is 26 3/4 inches long and has a really big head!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Stacey!

2009-08-03T19:12:00.003-04:00

My niece Stacey turned 3 while we were in Florida. Her birthday was on Tuesday, July 21st, and her birthday party was on Sunday, the 26th. My sister, Debbie, bought some cupcakes on Tuesday to celebrate her actual birthday.

Her party was at My Gym in Coral Springs. Stacey started out having fun, but was so exhausted that she ended up in a very sour mood by the end of the party.

By the end of the party, Stacey finally fell asleep in the middle of the room, while everyone else played around her. It was really funny!

Where's My Cow?

2009-08-03T19:01:00.004-04:00

First, an explanation of the post title, in case you don't read Terry Pratchett books! In his books, Pratchett has a character that reads a book to his son. The book is called Where's My Cow? Pratchett actually decided to write this book as a children's book and Tom often reads it to Ella.

On July 10th, Chick-fil-a had their annual Cow Appreciation Day. For those of you that are not familiar with this holiday, the idea is that you dress up as a cow and get a free combo meal. Chick-fil-a even has a cut-out cow costume on their website that you can wear if you don't have your own costume. So, naturally, we dressed Ella in cow ears and went to Chick-fil-a for lunch.

Oh, and if anyone is wondering, yes, Tom and I wore our cow costumes, but, no, we didn't take any pictures of us!

Rockin and Rollin All Night Long!

2009-07-31T11:18:00.006-04:00

Well, not really all night long, but Ella has finally learned how to roll over. She did it for the first time on Wednesday morning while we were playing in her room. I had her on her back on a blanket on the floor. I went into her closet to get something and heard a thud. I figured she had kicked something over, since I was emptying a suitcase of toys and reorganizing her room. I turned around to look and found her on her tummy off of the blanket. I was so excited, but sad that I didn't get to see her in action! I turned her back over and put her back on the blanket. She was so proud of herself.

I then turned her on her tummy on the blanket and she pulled up on her arms (something she hadn't done before b/c she HATED being on her tummy). I turned away for another minute to continue organizing and looked back to find her on her back. I couldn't believe that she had rolled over twice and I missed it both times! Of course, all the videos I took were on the Blackberry so the quality isn't that great, but at least you can sort of see what's happening! Tom did get some video with the video camera last night. Hopefully, we'll have some time this weekend to download those so I can put up some real footage!

In other news, Ella had rice cereal for the first time last night. She wasn't really into it, but I think that may be partly due to the fact that she had just eaten a bottle about 20 minutes before we tried to feed her. I'm going to try again later today to see if she'll eat any of it. Pictures and video of that will be up soon!

A Very Special Post

2009-07-19T13:51:00.005-04:00

We lost a very special person last week. My grandfather, Jerry Brass, was truly a remarkable man and is already missed by many people.

Grandpa was always there for all of the major milestones in our lives and that did not change with his great grandchildren. I am very thankful that he was able to make the trip to Atlanta for Ella's baby naming last month. He got to spend some quality time with Ella that weekend and we will cherish those moments forever.

Here are some of the pictures that were taken with Grandpa/Great Grandpa that weekend. We love you very much!

Happy 4th of July!

2009-07-06T15:47:00.004-04:00

Ella really seemed to enjoy her first Independence Day. We met up with our friends Steven and Brandi and their two daughters at Wills Park for the evening. We arrived around 4:30 PM, set up camp in a shady spot and enjoyed our afternoon/evening. Ella was fascinated by everything around her. She hasn't really spent that much time outside all at once before, so it was a new experience for her. We got some great photos of her at home in her first outfit and some others at the park in outfit number two. You didn't actually think she only had one 4th of July outfit, did you? She is my daughter, after all! Seriously though, all 3 of her Grandma's bought her adorable outfits for the day. One is still a bit too big on her, so she'll be wearing that one on another day.

Ella actually did really well the entire time we were in the park. She played for a few hours and even went to sleep about 30 minutes before the fireworks began. Of course, the fireworks did startle her awake, but she didn't cry. I took her out of the stroller and held her in my lap so she could watch. They were really loud, so I covered her ears, but she was mesmerized by the show!

Since we had the camera with us anyway, I figured I might as well get a rare shot of Tom and me in here, too!

Catching Some Rays

2009-07-03T15:44:00.003-04:00

Monday afternoon was so beautiful that I took Ella out onto our deck to enjoy the weather. Here is what she had to say about her getup...

I also got one cute one without the sunglasses.

New Milestones Caught on Video

2009-06-28T10:29:00.004-04:00

I mentioned last week that Ella laughed out loud for the first time. She hadn't done it again since that first time until yesterday. I had Tom grab my Blackberry so I could catch it on video. Again, not the best quality, but really cute!

She has been cooing for quite some time now, but Friday night, started to really talk up a storm. I had to get this on film, too! Tom took out the real video camera last night to charge the battery, so hopefully, we'll be able to get some better quality videos up here soon!

Ella is Three Months Old Already!

2009-06-22T19:51:00.003-04:00

Tom got the best Father's Day gift ever yesterday - his baby turned three months old! Neither of us can believe that she came into our lives a whole 3 months ago. The last 3 months really have flown by! We cheated a little and took her official Gator chair picture on Saturday since she was all dressed up for Temple.

What a Weekend!

2009-06-22T18:12:00.010-04:00

We had a very eventful weekend with lots of family visiting. On Friday, we met up with my Mom, Robin, Debbie, Mark, Stacey, and Danielle at the bowling alley. The kids had a great time, Ella slept most of the time we were there.

That evening, we had dinner at Robin and Mike's house. The kids made the brownies. Surprisingly, they were pretty yummy.

Saturday was Ella's big day. We went to synagogue where she received her Hebrew name. Ella's Hebrew name is Chavah Shoshanah after my Grandma Eva (Chavah is Eve in Hebrew) and my Great Gram Sadie. We sponsored the kiddush luncheon at the temple following the morning service. The food was really good and the cake I ordered from Kelly Kakes in Roswell was fantastic! My Aunt Barbara took some pictures of the family, the food, and the cake so I'll post those once I get them. Here are a few that we took ourselves and one that our friend Lauren took of Tom and Ella.

Saturday night we grilled out at Robin and Mike's house. We didn't take a whole lot of pictures, but I did manage to get one of Ella with her Uncle Brian.

Sunday, we had brunch at our house. Everyone came over to celebrate Father's Day and say goodbye to the family members that were heading home to Florida. Mark really enjoyed playing our Wii games and even got on the Playstation 2 for a bit to try Guitar Hero Aerosmith. Aunt Barb took some pictures of Ella and of Mark and me playing Guitar Hero. I don't have those pictures yet, either, but Tom did take some pictures of Ella in the bumbo seat. She's not quite ready for it yet (notice my hand holding her head up), but she is almost there!

This IS a Laughing Matter!

2009-06-20T07:53:00.002-04:00

Tom and I always put the bear sponge on top of our bathroom vanity while getting Ella ready for her bath. She loves to stare at herself in our mirror when she's up there. Last night, we put her up there and proceeded to play with her, as we often do. She started to smile up a storm and the next thing we knew, she was giggling. The giggles turned into a full on laugh. We were so excited for this milestone! She is a laughing cutie!

I have taken some new photos, but haven't had a chance to post them. Ella and I have been busy with Debbie, Mark, and Stacey (my sister, nephew, and niece from Florida) the last few days. Once the weekend passes, and the rest of the family goes home, I should have time to catch up on the last few days!

Ella's First Pool Party

2009-06-13T22:59:00.002-04:00

Our subdivision had their annual pool party tonight. Ella started out in a party mood, but eventually, the noise got the best of her. She cried for about 10 minutes before we calmed her down and she fell asleep.

I'm ready to party, Mom!

Oh, so sleepy!

You'll find a few more great shots from the pool, here.

Catching Up

2009-06-13T22:42:00.005-04:00

My friend Kim came over last Friday with her son Nate. I got a few decent pictures of their visit. Nate was more interested in Mom's cell phone than Ella, but, hey, he's 1 - we'll forgive him this time!
Doesn't Nate have the most gorgeous blue eyes?

Also, I took a few cute shots of Ella the night before that I just had to share! I can't get enough of her adorable face! You can see the whole album here.

Ella's new favorite place to hang out is on her tummy on her Boppy.

Ella Smiles for the Camera

2009-06-11T18:20:00.004-04:00

Ella was all smiles earlier today so I decided to get it on video. How cute is this?

Also, I took out a whole bunch of toys that have been sitting in her closet so that she could have something to play with. There is one toy that she absolutely loves. It is a dragonfly that makes sounds and lights up when you pull on it. We were playing with it this afternoon and she reached out to try to grab it. It's a little big for her hands so I helped her out by placing her hands on the dragonfly's wings. She proceeded to pull it towards her and attempt to eat it! I had my Blackberry nearby, so I snapped a quick photo. While the quality isn't that great, it's still really cute to see her trying to eat the dragonfly.

Ella Finds Her Voice

2009-06-09T19:34:00.003-04:00

At about 3:30 AM on Saturday morning Ella scared the crap out of us. She screamed so loud that I shot out of bed and ran into her room (keep in mind that I was only 14 days post op at the time). When I got into her room, I found her fast asleep and smiling in her sleep. She had apparently had some crazy dream that made her scream. I think it took about 30 minutes for my heart rate to return to normal. Tom said he was up for at least an hour after that. Talk about scary!

On a happy note, Ella is cooing up a storm these days. She loves to lie on her play mat and talk to the animals. She also loves to talk to the froggy and monkey on her bouncer. She even talks to us when she's in a really good mood. We try to have a conversation with her in coos. It's quite amusing!

Ella Loves Her Grandma Peggy and Grandpa Andy

2009-06-04T18:23:00.004-04:00

Since I am still recovering from my surgery, Grandma Peggy (aka Aunt Peggy to me and Tom) is staying with us this week. Grandpa/Uncle Andy joined us for dinner on Tuesday night and spent a lot of time with Ella. You can see how enamored they are with Ella in these pictures! Ella thinks they're pretty neat, too! Of course, you can see the rest of the pictures here.

Ella's First Shabbas

2009-05-30T10:36:00.006-04:00

The caring committee from our synagogue has been really helpful after my surgery. Twice this week, someone from the Temple has brought us food for dinner. Last night, we were given a Shabbat dinner of chicken, mashed potatoes, and a challah. I decided we should light the candles and eat at the table like a true Shabbas dinner so we moved the swing closer to the kitchen so Ella could join us. She hung out the whole time and looked all around.

Good Shabbas everyone!

She's Even Prettier When She Smiles!

2009-05-28T13:38:00.003-04:00

Ella started to smile here and there about a week ago. Daddy got the first smile and Aunt Robin got the 2nd one. I didn't get a smile for a while, but finally got one before I left for my surgery. By the time I got home from the hospital 3 days later, Ella was smiling up a storm for Grandma. She even smiles once in a while for me now!

Ella Is Two Months Old Today!

2009-05-21T15:17:00.007-04:00

I can't believe that Ella has been in our lives for 2 months already! She had her 2 month checkup yesterday and the doctor said she is doing well. She weighs 10 pounds, 4 ounces and is 21 3/4 inches long. She is in the 40th percentile for weight and the 32nd percentile for height. Her head circumference is 15 inches, which is also in the 40th percentile. I can't believe how big she has gotten. Ella has nearly doubled her birth weight. Here's her official 2 month photo and a few others that we took today. You can also see a few more photos from today here. There are also other photos from the last few weeks here.

Our Little Houdini

2009-05-18T11:39:00.003-04:00

Ella has a new trick. Every night, we swaddle her in her Miracle Blanket (a gift from cousin Stephanie that really rocks!). For anyone not familiar with the MB, it is truly a miracle. We tried swaddling her in regular receiving blankets, but she always found a way to wiggle out of it within minutes. The MB is supposed to keep her from wiggling out of it. Or so we thought! The last couple of mornings, we come in the room to get her and this is what we find:

If it's not her arm that comes loose, it is a foot. One morning, she even had one arm and one foot out. It is truly hilarious!

Ella Gets a Taste of Alpharetta

2009-05-14T23:01:00.003-04:00

Tom and I met Robin and Danielle at the Taste of Alpharetta (ToA) this evening. Our plan was to get there by 5:00 PM when it first started, but that didn't work out so well.

I had my 8 week post-pardum appointment with my OB this afternoon. The appointment was at 2:45 PM. I was finally called back to a room at 10 minutes to 4. She saw me at 4:15 PM and I still had to stop by another doctor's office in the same building to pick up some medicine. I didn't even make it home until 5:30 PM.

We arrived at ToA right around 6:00 PM and found Robin and Danielle. Ella was doing great in the beginning. She was sucking on her pacifier and looking all around. At 7:00 PM, I sat down to feed her, while Tom and Robin went off to eat more food. Ella was such a good girl! She even let Tom change her very poopy diaper in the grass (don't worry, we didn't actually put her on the grass directly, she was on her diaper changing pad!).

As for ToA itself, we were all sadly disappointed this year. Most of the restaurants that had booths were either fast casual, pizza places, or dessert. We finally found the "good" restaurants as we were leaving. Bummer that we didn't get to try anything we were really impressed with. But, we were very happy that Ella did very well on her first outing with thousands of other people!

Go Gators!

2009-05-12T18:01:00.006-04:00

I'm thinking this post doesn't really need any explanation...

Not Her First Bath

2009-05-12T12:24:00.007-04:00

We have been using the "blue" bath tub for all of Ella's baths but yesterday was the first bath without using the hammock (it's an attachment that hooks to the top of the tub until the baby is big enough to sit in the newborn part). Ella is now such a big girl that she now fits comfortably, and without sliding, in the tub itself. She really loved her bath for the first time yesterday. She is usually very squirmy and it takes both of us to hold onto her so she doesn't fall under. She was so happy yesterday that she actually sat still. If she was smiling yet, I'm sure she would have been smiling from ear to ear the entire time. Here are some pictures where you can really see how happy she is:

Enjoy even more pictures from her bath and other things here.

Play It Again Sam...

2009-05-12T12:13:00.005-04:00

We tried the playmat again yesterday and Ella was a bit more receptive this time. She still isn't crazy about it when she's on her tummy, but she is looking at all the animals hanging from it when she's on her back. When she's on her tummy, we put her in front of the mirror and she will look at her reflection, but hasn't really taken to it yet. She can also lift her head a little more than 45 degrees when she's on her tummy. She's so strong!

From Sleepy Time to Play Time

2009-05-12T11:58:00.008-04:00

Ella's new favorite place to sleep is in my lap on her Boppy. It is really cute to watch. Of course, she tends to fall asleep about 30 minutes before she's supposed to eat or right before I need to get up. And, of course, if I try to move her, she wakes up and complains!

We have also taken out the Tiny Love Play Gym mat for Ella. As you can see from these pictures, Ella's not so sure whether she likes it or not yet.

Who Let the Cat Out of the Bag?

2009-05-12T11:53:00.002-04:00

Er.... Okay, so this one has nothing to do with Ella, but I had to post it! No, we didn't purchase a new cat at Publix last week, Weasel just thought the bag would be a fun place for him to play! He is so silly! The best part was when Tom picked up the bag with Weasel in it. Weasel just hung out in the bag!

Happy Mother's Day!

2009-05-10T15:20:00.003-04:00

I have the most advanced daughter in the world. She got me a card and wrote me an entire note about how much she loves me! Her spelling needs a little work, but her handwriting (in crayon) is pretty darn good for a 7 week old! Apparently, she doesn't like when I use the nasal aspirator on her though, as she felt the need to write a P.S. about why she didn't thank me for cleaning out her nose every day!

Daddy made pancakes for breakfast and is making Alaskan king crab legs and scallops for dinner. Mommy is very happy about this meal and can't wait to eat it! In a little while, Robin and I are going to get our nails done, sans kids. The dads are in charge today!

Last night I discovered that reading out loud to Ella puts her right to sleep. It doesn't keep her asleep long, but it does get her started. We read The Very Hungry Catepiller three times and read a nursery rhyme book and a Berenstain Bears book. We never did finish the Berenstain Bears book, but we'll try again tonight!

What's in a Name?

2009-05-08T14:54:00.003-04:00

I have come to realize that not everyone understands the play on words reference in my blog title. So, if you don't keep up with Sesame Street these days, you probably don't know Elmo's theme song. I'm guessing you've at least heard of Elmo, since he is the most marketed character these days! If you'd like to hear the theme song, watch this video. If you still don't understand the reference after watching the video, I simply can't help you!

Do Redheads Have More Fun?

2009-05-07T12:56:00.008-04:00

We were wondering whether Ella would have dark brown hair like me or be a tow head like her dad was as a kid. Well, it looks like we may be wrong on both accounts. While she is losing a lot of hair, what's left appears to be turning red. Yep, I said red. Talk about a recessive gene!

You can kind of see the red hair in this picture.

Ella and the Boys

2009-05-07T12:56:00.007-04:00

Ella and I met up with Lauren and Ike and Traci and Benjamin last Friday at Land of 1000 Hills Coffee Shop (LOATH). Here are a few pictures that I took of Ella and her "boyfriends." Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get a picture of all three of them together (Ella, Ike, and Benjamin) because Benjamin is a little monkey and doesn't like to sit still very long!

Ella and Ike

Benjamin

Sweet Sleepy Baby

2009-05-07T12:01:00.012-04:00

Ella is sleeping better and better every night. She has been sleeping anywhere from 4 1/2 to 6 hours each night. I feed her around midnight and then Tom feeds her in the morning. We're hoping she'll move closer to that 6 hour mark on a more regular basis in the next week so that it will be easier on everyone helping out after my surgery.

There is nothing like watching a baby sleep. Ella is so adorable when she sleeps. Especially when we let her fall asleep on her tummy (only during the day when we're around to keep a close eye on her). She puts her tushie up in the air just like her cousin Danielle!

Surgery - again :(

2009-05-07T00:01:00.003-04:00

So, I know this blog is supposed to be about Ella, but this one is about me. Again, I'm copying a post from another place. This time it's a note from Facebook (no sense in rewriting all this stuff, right?).

Back story: 9 years ago I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis (UC). After 9 months of continuous flare up, I had to switch GI specialists for insurance purposes. The new GI specialist decided to try an aggressive treatment and put me in the hospital over the weekend. The treatment didn't work and that Monday afternoon, she recommended surgery to remove my colon. After talking with the surgeon for over an hour and then meeting with a young girl that had the same surgery, I decided it was the best thing for me. So, eight years ago, I had a total colectomy with a j pouch. The pouch is actually made from 2 loops of my small intestine and keeps me from having a colostomy bag (that's the non TMI version). I have been fine since the surgery other than a few infections here and there over the years. Nothing that a dose of antibiotics couldn't fix.

Fast forward 4 years when I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA). I have been on medication since then to help keep the symptoms at bay. The medication also keeps the UC in remission.

Now that you're caught up, here's what's going on today. When I became pregnant, I had to stop taking the medication for the RA. I was very fortunate that my body produced some mad hormones that kept the RA from flaring. Unfortunately, during the 3rd trimester, I started having issues with the UC. I now know that it was not b/c I was pregnant that I had these issues, but b/c I was not able to take the medication.

So, my surgeon had been treating the issues during the pregnancy and wanted to do some more exploration after Ella's arrival to see what was causing the issues. That was the reason for the CT scan last week. On Friday, I found out that the issues are coming from my pouch. It apparently has a hole in it that is the root of the issues. When I asked the surgeon what may have caused the hole, she said she would know more after surgery, but she is almost positive that I actually have Crohn's Disease (the difference between UC and Crohn's is that UC only affects your large intestine or colon and Crohn's can affect both your small and large intestine).

The surgeon has decided that the best course of action is to give me a temporary illeostomy for 3 months, which will give the pouch time to rest and hopefully heal itself. If it hasn't healed itself after 1 month, she will go in and repair it herself. The reason she doesn't want to go in and repair it right away is b/c it's a much more invasive procedure to do that. The ileostomy only requires 3-4 days in the hospital and hopefully no more than a week recovery time.

The ileostomy (first surgery) is scheduled for May 22nd at 12:30 PM. The only thing that keeps my mind off this dreaded date and what will come afterwards is knowing that I get a little extra time at home with my Ella Bella. I'm really looking forward to that!

More from Ella's First Month

2009-05-06T22:22:00.022-04:00

As many of my friends and family know, I have an "addiction" to a certain website's chat boards. Fortunately, that addiction is now coming in handy. I posted a lot of stories and questions over the last six weeks and I am now able to go back to those posts and put the really important stuff here. I'm going to post them in date order, word for word as I posted them then. Some of them are pretty funny looking back now (as if they are so old)!

From March 25, 2009: Ella is a Little Piglet!

Ella is only 3 days old and is already drinking 2 oz. Tom fed her at 7 this morning and she sucked down the whole bottle. Meanwhile, an hour later, she is STILL HUNGRY!

It seems like so much food for such a little peanut. Do we feed her more now? She isn't crying, just won't go to sleep and is "fussing" a little bit. If this keeps up, we are really going to be poor from all the formula!

My little peanut in the hospital.

From March 26, 2009: We're Still in the Hospital :(

I was supposed to be discharged yesterday after I had an outpatient procedure to fix the fissure that I had issues with in December and January. While I was in recovery, I spiked a fever of 103. I was stuck there from about 3:30 until 9:30 when they finally released me back to my room. My poor Mom and Tom had been in the room waiting for hours with no word on what was going on with me. We were all very frustrated.

I thought I'd be going home today, but no such luck. The fever came back at 4AM and then again at 11:30 this morning. My surgeon told me that as long as it stays below 101, she'll let me go home tomorrow.

I know that my health is important, but I've been stuck in the hospital since Saturday and am really antsy to get Ella home!

Keep your fingers crossed that my temperature stays down!

Fortunately, my fever did stay down and we were able to take Ella home on March 27th.

Ella poses on her last day in the hospital.

Welcome home, Ella!

From March 28, 2009: Ella is Already to Funny!

We really want to get her on a feeding schedule as fast as possible (who doesn't, right?). So, we've been trying to hold her to a feeding closer to every 4 hours since yesterday morning. Today, her schedule got a little screwed up time-wise, so my mom tried to feed her at 9PM (after 3 hours instead of 4). Ella was not having it! She was so not ready to eat. She is proving to us that SHE makes the rules now, of course!

Hanging out in the crib.

From April 10, 2009: Frustrated

The last 2 nights, Ella has not been sleeping well in her crib. If she is already sound asleep when we put her in there, she's fine, but if she's just starting to fall asleep when we put her down, she'll wake up and start fussing. So, we discovered last night that she will sleep soundly if we put her down on her tummy (figured this out because I brought her into our room and decided to give her some tummy time. She immediately fell asleep and stayed that way until I moved her back to her crib an hour later.

She obviously prefers sleeping on her tummy to being on her back. I am, of course, really nervous about putting her on her tummy in her crib, when we are not right there to watch her, since she is so little. At the same time, I haven't slept at all in the last 2 nights, b/c I keep getting up when she starts fussing. I know that my nephew and both of my nieces would only sleep on their tummies, as well, so I am not totally surprised about this. I'm just not sure what to do.

From April 13, 2009: Update to Frustrated Post

Thanks to all you wonderful ladies for your advice on our fussy Ella! We decided to start putting the gas drops in her bottles and swaddling her in the miracle blanket at night in her crib. So far, it's been 3 nights and she has been much better. No fussing in between feedings. I hope that this trend continues, as I am much less worried now and actually sleeping for a few hours at night now!

Ella continues to do well in her crib, as long as she is swaddled in her miracle blanket. She even sleeps anywhere from 4 1/2 to 6 hours at night now!

From April 17, 2009: Ugh, I think I'm sleeping in the guest room tonight!

Tom went to sleep before me because he is taking Ella's middle of the night feeding. He is snoring so loud, I can't take it! The breathe right strip is worthless! Do you think I'd be totally rude if I slept in the other room after I feed Ella in an hour?

I did sleep in the guest room that night and Tom actually slept in there for the next few nights. He was so exhausted and his allergies were so bad that he was snoring exceptionally loud. Thank goodness that went away!

From April 18, 2009: Ella is a Piglet!

She is obviously going through a growth spurt right now. Tom and I both got on our scale last night and then got on the scale again with Ella in our arms. She weighs 8 pounds. She's gained 2 lbs. in 2 weeks! She's been drinking 4 oz. for about the same amount of time and the last few days she's been fussy 5 minutes after we finish feeding her. Tonight, there was no consoling her so Tom made her another ounce and she drank the whole thing! I can't believe my daughter is not yet one month old and she already wants to drink 5 oz. She's going to be a porker if she keeps this up!

I took Ella to the doctor's office to get an official weight on April 29th. Sure enough, she weighs 8 pounds, 5 1/2 ounces. We did learn that the reason she was drinking so much was because we were stretching out her feedings too long. We were really feeding her on demand at that point, which was ever four hours. Apparently, Ella is such an easygoing baby that she wasn't fussing until she was really starving! We have now gone back to feeding her on a schedule (every 3 hours until bed time) and she is back down to 4 oz.

From April 21, 2009: Ella is 1 Month Old Today!

Our pediatrician doesn't do a one month appointment so I am going to bring her by the office to weigh her myself sometime next week. According to our scale, Ella weighs 8 lbs. already, but I'd like to know the exact amount!

I took her 1 month picture with Tom's help this afternoon. We plan to sit her in this chair each month to see how much she's grown.

Ella's Birth Story

2009-05-06T22:12:00.005-04:00

I was scheduled for a c-section on April 3rd. My only fear was that our baby would decide to come early. Well, yesterday morning, my fear became reality.

I woke up around 8:15 AM to my water breaking. I woke Tom up and told him that our plans for the day have just changed (yesterday was my niece's 2nd bday party). He grabbed my cell phone so I could call my OB. Of course, my OB was not on call this weekend and neither were her partners. It was a doctor from another practice taking calls for her. Dr. Anderson said to get packed and get to Northside.

Meanwhile, our project for the morning was going to be to go ahead and pack my suitcase so it would be ready to go, just in case. That suitcase did get packed, but it went a lot faster than planned! About an hour later, we had everything together and were on our way to the hospital.

Upon checking in with admissions, I found out that the charge nurse for labor and delivery that morning was actually one of my friends from synagogue. I was so happy to see her, I almost cried! She assured me that I would love Dr. Anderson and that everything would be fine. And, she said she was positive I was having a girl! :)

I was put in a room and they hooked up the monitor, had me fill out paperwork, took my labs, etc. I met the anesthesiologist and Dr. Anderson. Dr. Anderson had already spoken w/ my colo-rectal surgeon who was going to come in, even though she wasn't on call (I love Dr. Schertzer!).

The anesthesiologist came back and put in my epidural. As soon as I lied back down, my heart rate dropped into the 40's. They were still trying to readjust the baby's monitor at the same time. My heart rate came back up pretty quickly, but then the baby's dropped. So, we went from a very relaxed environment to full panic mode.

I heard a nurse tell Tom to get into his gown as they were wheeling me out of the room. They literally ran me down the hall to the OR. I was doing fine until that point. I started to get really nervous and panicky!

As soon as they moved me onto the OR table and hooked up the monitors again, baby's heart rate went back up. Apparently, Ella had decided that the doctors were GOING to stick to the scheduled time (I was scheduled for 12:30 PM, but they were running a bit behind, of course).

Meanwhile, Tom was still not in the room with me. They finally brought him in. The anesthesiologist asst. at my head took some pics of us and then Tom sat down and held my hand. About 2 minutes later they said do you want to see? Tom looked over and told me it was a girl! It all went so fast!

Ella did great on her first day. She was pretty feisty (as she was inside the womb) and cried until after her first bath. After the bath, she only cried when the nurses took her temperature.

She is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen and we are looking forward to loving her forever!

So, I finally did it!

2009-05-06T21:52:00.004-04:00

I've been saying I was going to start a blog for about 2 weeks now. Tonight, I finally broke down and did it. Yay, me! Okay, now that that's out of the way, why did I start a blog, you ask? Well, because what they say about "Mommy brain" is totally true! I can't remember anything these days, so the only way to remedy that is to write it down.

Right now, I really want to remember everything I can about Ella as she grows. Also, everyone is always asking me, "What's new with Ella?" or "When are you going to show us new pictures of Ella?" This way, you can just check the blog and keep up with her comings and goings. Hopefully, you won't start asking, "When are you going to update Ella's blog?" because that would mean that I'm really slacking!

My goal is to update the blog at least once a week. I am going to start by importing Ella's birth story and then try to add some of the things that have happened over the last six weeks. I hope that Tom will help write some of the posts now and then (what good is having a writer for a husband if he doesn't ever write?!) so that you can get a different perspective occasionally.

So, to wrap it up... welcome to Ella's World! I hope you enjoy reading about her life.