happy 3 months ella belle!

ellery is growing into such a sweet, joyful, FUN baby! this past month, she has grown oh so much - and not just physically (though, she still is in the 90th percentile, packin' on the pounds!). she is starting to develop such a cute little personality, full of coos, smiles, and funny faces.

be sure to click on the picture above to read all about her favorite and not-so-favorite things this past month. also, below is a little update of all things ellery. enjoy!

eat: like i said, baby girl is steadily packing on the pounds! i don't have an eating schedule for her, just let her call the shots & eat when she's hungry. it works out pretty well! thankfully, we haven't had any trouble with breastfeeding and i love that it's such a special time for e & i to share. as she's learning to use her hands more, it's funny to watch her tug at my shirt or my hair (ouch!) as she's eating. and she definitely likes to wiggle and make lots of noise, too! oh, and she's also gotten pretty good at letting us know when she's hungry or tired - she sticks out her bottom lip, starts to quiver a little, and busts out in this big, shrieking cry. the girl knows what she wants & when she wants it!

sleep: again, ellery isn't on any kind of sleep schedule, but going with her flow has really worked out! she transitioned really well into her crib - before she was even 2 months old, which i thought she would be in our room at least until 3 months. her normal bedtime is around 10pm and then she normally sleeps until 4am. i feed her for 15-35 minutes, then she normally snoozes until about 7am, sometimes waking up when daddy gets up at 5:30am. most mornings after daddy is up or leaves for work, e will come in bed and snuggle with me while she eats & dozes off again, normally until about 9am! i can definitely deal with that sleeping schedule!

she's getting better at naps, slowly but surely. she used to only nap in our arms. anytime i put her down anywhere, she would wake up after 20 minutes obviously still sleepy but wanting to be back in my arms! we've just trued to be diligent at helping her go back to sleep & laying her back down. it seems to be working - she's been taking about 45 min naps every few hours. which is a huge help to mama!

ellery still loves being all swaddled up like a burrito, though she is quickly outgrowing her sleep sack. some nights she'll sneak her hand out, but then cry for me to come wrap her back up! and she is starting to try & roll over, which means when she finally gets that down, no more swaddling so she doesn't get stuck on her tummy with no arms to roll back over. i'm kind of dreading transitioning to no swaddling since she sleeps so well with it. any tips & suggestions are welcome! (i've tried no swaddle for naps & she quickly wakes herself up my flinging her arms around).

poop: we are using the cloth diapers and we have slowly learned to love them! we use the bumgenius one size pocket diapers, and they're pretty user friendly. starting off, i was a little overwhelmed with the whole washing process. you essentially do 2 1/2 loads of laundry to clean one batch of diapers. and i do that about every other day. yikes. it seemed so time consuming and a bit wasteful of energy/water. and for the first few times, the diapers still came out dirty! but once we found our own method for laundering them and got in the flow of a schedule, it hasn't been so bad. and even better, we haven't had diaper rash or a single blow-out (aka poop up the back, exploding out of the diaper) with cloth diapers. using disposables, we definitely have had some days with multiple outfit changes. though, the cloth do make her booty look so big, especially in leggings. we still have some disposables we use, so on days where she's wearing her pants a little tighter, i put a disposable on her to minimize the backside :)

play: like i said, ellery is just so FUN nowadays! she is cooing & making noises. she is starting to roll - both from her belly to back and her back to her side. (sometimes at night, i'll find that she moved herself a full 90 degrees in her crib. she looks as confused about how she got that way as i do! though, all that moving has left e with quite the bald patch on the back of her head. pics to some in another post). she has also found her hands, which has opened up a whole new world of batting at hanging toys & reaching for them on her play mat, and also eating & sucking on her hands. she is still rocking tummy time, and can turn her head a full 180degrees and back as she holds herself up. she also loves to stand while we hold her and move those legs! (she almost looks like she's hula dancing!) also, no longer does she like to be held in a cradle position (unless she's eating, and watch out, she'll try to find a food source on you even in you aren't mom!). instead, she likes to face out or be high on our shoulder so she can look out and see the world. she loves silly songs that mom makes up (like changing the words to the song b-i-n-g-o to fit ellery's name) and she adores staring & smiling at her daddy!

yay for reading!

LOVE this picture - look at the concentration on that face!!

i shared this when i was pregnant, but one thing i imagined ellery and i doing together is reading lots & lots of books. growing up, i loved loved loved reading and couldn't wait to see if ellery would enjoy one of my favorite pass times, too! well, her first few weeks, that girl wanted to be on the move, so getting all cozy in the rocker and reading was out of the question. e had to be on the go: bouncing on the ball, walking around the house. so i set the books aside and got bouncin'.

but lately, baby girl has started to change her tune. when i show her books, she loves to check out the pictures. each morning, we normally rock and ellery eats as i read to her from her jesus storybook bible. and lately, she has loved to do tummy time in her crib while gazing at some picture books. two of her favorites: kittens (she's trying to keep up with jackie's tricky ways) & pass the celery ellery (we were SO excited when we opened this gift from jon & cara! we can't wait to play "pass the celery ellery at the dinner table when e is older!) i love that ellery is starting to enjoy books and can't wait for many many years of reading to her & with her!

e's first road trip

ellery's first road trip - off to lisle, illinois we go! ellery was so excited to not only see aunt keri's new townhouse, but also meet uncle mark, aunt mary & grandma roe!! momo and papa even drove in from indianapolis, just for the day, to snuggle with ella belle - and see every one else, of course :)

e did a great job on the drive down - she slept the whole time! we were hoping she wouldn't be shy and show everyone all her new tricks - smiling, and our favorite - cooing/hooing :) well, the babe did not disappoint! she was full of smiles and "talked" up a storm! she only fussed a little, just when she was tired. the rest of the time she happily was passed from person-to-person. we had such a great time, and though it was quick, loved each second of our visit! thanks for hosting us aunt keri!

enjoy some pictures from our visit:

no matter who was holding her, ellery always knew where daddy was! :)

she loved cuddling with uncle mark...

until uncle mark had to have some carrot cake!

no worries, she loved having grandma roe hold her, too!

i'm not sure who enjoyed this more, ellery or momo :)

papa time!

doing more baby modeling... showing off her valentine's coat from momo & papa.

we think this pic is hilarious!

e even caught her first firework show at keri's complex!

some cute pics aunt keri took:

bumbo baby

now that ellery's holding her head up pretty well, we thought we'd give her bumbo chair a try. really, this used to be giacomo's chair, but as sweet as he is, he let ellery have it :)

the bumbo's supposed to help babies with learning to sit upright. for little e, it's quite the work out! not only does she have to hold her head up, she's working her little abdominal muscles as well. she seemed to really like it, though! it was as if she had a whole new view of her world!

she didn't last too long in it… like i said, it's a big work out for such a little babe. it wasn't long until she ended up back on the floor for some play time!

(by the way, she still fits into this outfit, the one she came home in. it's getting a little snug - and short in the legs. ellery is one long baby :)

our mohawk baby

little e has a minor case of cradle cap... it's pretty mild and mostly just looks like she has bit of dandruff. our pediatrician said that before bath time, we could rub a bit of baby oil on her scalp, gently scrub with a toothbrush to loosen the dry skin, then rinse & shampoo her hair as normal.

so, we decided to try it out. the whole toothbrush thing sounded a little odd, and i thought it might bother e but she really didn't mind at all. and she loves bath time, so she enjoyed that part. until we were done and i dried her off... normally, i just have to gently give her head a few rubs with the towel - and voila! hair is dry. well, it wasn't drying... and looked pretty greasy... and i quickly realized the baby oil didn't get rinsed out all the way.

well, we went for hair wash round 2. and still, her hair was just a bit greasy. well, we decided to roll with it. and being the cool baby she is, ellery rocked a little mohawk the rest of the day. and might i say, she looked like one cool chick :)

"please mom, no more pictures!"

still bouncin'...

while i was pregnant, we bought an exercise ball to help with back pain & labor. well, i really only used it a hand full of times. little did we know how much ellery would love it once she was born and out in the world! from the time we brought her home, she has loved bouncing on the ball - it has calmed her down and put her to sleep many a nights.

well, she still loves bouncing! and i love that it's become kyle's "thing" to do with her. if she 's being a little fuss... to the ball daddy takes her! ellery's waking up for the third time in the night ... to the ball she goes with daddy!

now, that ball has become a permanent piece of furniture in our living room. and we may be kicking ourselves later, but for now it works. so bounce on daddy & ellery, bounce on!

Ellery's 2 month appointment

on valentine's day, ellery and i celebrated by going to her 2-month pediatrician appointment (she was actually 11 weeks old...) what a way to celebrate, right?! well, even though we knew e was going to have to get some shots, we still get her decked out in her valentine's day finest (thank you gg & grandpa frank!) and headed to the dr's office.

once again, ellery is in the 90th percentile (you go, girl!) weighing 12 bs 12.5 oz. obviously, she still loves breastfeeding, and actually, i do too! it's such a special time i get to spend with her. She measured 23 3/4 inches long - hard to believe she's already grown over 3 inches! she jumped up to the 75th percentile for head circumference. had to make room for that growing brain of hers :)

i have to get how many shots today?!?

and then the not-so-fun part came... the shots. this time, she received two shots, packed full of multiple vaccines. she also had to take one orally. i gave her some tylenol before the appointment to help with the pain & fever. and thankfully, the nurse let me nurse ellery while she got the shots, which is supposed to help. as soon as she received the shots in her little thigh, she let out a few little yelps, like hey mom, i was eating lunch! i didn't know this was happening! then she went right back to eating. within a few seconds of putting her into her carseat she was fast asleep (not without a little bit of crying...see video below. she sounded so very sad!)

needless to say, ellery spent most of her valentine's day asleep, waking up for a quick snack before she went back to sleep. though i really do very very strongly dislike her getting shots, it was nice that she snoozed most of the evening away so kyle and i could relax and spend time together for love day. thanks baby girl :) we're so proud of the little girl you are, and are amazed at how fast you are growing. we are loving every second!

love day - craft day

if ellery is anything like her mama, she is going to be one crafty girl. i thought i'd start her with arts & crafts time a little early :) and what a better reason than to make valentines for e's daddy & grandparents??

ellery actually loved stamping her footprint for me. especially since she has some ticklish feet! it just took her mama a few tries to get her little feet lined up on the card to look like a heart. then, i gave ellery a sewing machine lesson. my mom bought me a sewing machine, and i always loved the fact that she could sew - whether it was a halloween costume or curtains for my dorm room. so i'm hoping ellery will pick up sewing too someday! (i didn't start until after college!)

we had quite the set-up: ellery on my lap, supplies scattered across the table, and we even had the bachelor playing on the lap top so i could get caught up on episodes :) ellery took a little swing break and spent some time hanging out her play mat. she actually reached for one of her toys for the very first time! it was so fun to see her working and thinking so hard to move her hand toward the toy. i was so proud of her, all for one simple little movement that was such a big deal for her!

after a hard days work of crafting, we sent off our valentines, filled with little toes and lots of love. momo, papa, mawmaw and pawpaw mark were very excited to receive them! and daddy loved his special valentine from his little love bug :) i'm happy that our first mama-ellery craft day was such a success!! here's to many, many more!

thanks ellie!

our sweet friend ellie, who had her son liam just a little over a week after ellery was born, sent some super cute onesies for little e. they are absolutely adorable, and she especially loves her personalized "ellery" shirt - even more since it matches her humongous flower headband :) thank you so so much ellie!

bonjour!

bonjour!!

i got this little outfit for ellery while i was pregnant and thought the little beret was hilarious. ellery definitely pulls it off. and seeing as sophie the giraffe is from france, she was the perfect accessory to e's outfit.

i love the pic of ellery snuggling sohpie... too cute :)

au revoir!

workout time for mom & dad!

we've posted plenty of pictures of ellery doing her "baby workout" - tummy time. she thought it was about time to whip her mama and daddy into shape. we grudgingly agreed - she's one tough cookie!

little did we know, she's the perfect little workout buddy. in the middle of busting a sweat, thinking no way i can do another crunch or push up, all we do is look at ellery, and we can't help but smile. and be reminded we better work out now, because it won't be long until she's on the move and we're chasing her all over the place! (don't get any ideas ellery, take your time learning all that crawling & walking business!)

she even joined her daddy, doing some tummy time while he did his "insanity" workout. really, she just wanted to watch the tv - she loves staring at it! so she didn't really mind!

thanks for getting us back in shape, ellery! we love you little babe, though you are one tough, cute trainer :)

daddy's vikings girls

at e's "baby class" - the mom's group at elmbrook memorial we attend every wednesday - they had a special dress-up day in honor of the super bowl. we got to dress our babes in our favorite football team's gear. and though we live in packer country, and could get in big trouble for being vikings fan, ellery wore her purple and gold loud & proud! and very cutely, if i may add. dad was so happy :) and thankfully, she was too adorable to catch any guff from the other babies who were packers fans!

like mama, like daughter...

when my mom came to visit while i was pregnant, she brought some very special gifts along. she had held onto some things that were mine from when i was a baby, just waiting until i had a baby of my own. she saved some outfits that she loved and also a few blankets her grandmother knit for me. i couldn't wait to get ellery in them!

the blanket ellery is playing on was mine, and what's great is it matches her nursery perfectly! and this little peach outfit was one of my mom's very favorites. the ruffles on the butt... almost too much cuteness to handle. i think little ella belle pulls them off very well :)

thank you for such special, special gifts mom! i'm sure you can't believe that's my daughter and not me wearing that outfit!! thanks for helping to make such wonderful memories :)

love you mawmaw!