WOW .... Where did the time go?

Sorry for the lack of updates ... I don't know where the time goes! So lets see so much has happened since I updated the last time.

We spent Thanksgiving in Spokane with Andy's family. Ella got to play with her cousins ... and she loved the attention. Once again she did very well traveling.

She will be four months old on Sunday. She has rolled over a couple times from her stomach to back. She smiles all the time and is just starting to understand the concept of laughing. Darin and Dylan are her favorite entertainers. The crazier they are the funnier she thinks it is... A little scary if you ask me! She continues to love her bath. She is actually notorious for falling asleep in the tub. She had her first sleep over with Grandma and Grandpa last weekend. She did very well sleeping ... grandma on the other hand may have been awake all night listening for her! She is constantly grabbing at anything and everything ... and of course everything she manages to grab goes straight into her mouth.

Here are a couple random pictures!

Ella was borrowing Jack's (Jen & Brandon's son) horse!

Hanging out in my crib.

My cousins Halle and Faith

Hanging out in my new Jumping Horse from Aunt Carol and Aunt Jennie

Hanging out in my bouncy ... my aunt Michelle is the best at getting me to smile for pictures.

'Tummy Time'

At Ella's one month check up her doctor said it was a good time to start 'tummy time' ... so I tried ... and she hated it! So at her two month check up, I reported back to her doctor that she really could care less about tummy time and that I was not really forcing the issue. Her doctor said not to worry, her neck and muscle tone looked great ... Therefore, I stopped worrying about not doing it, but nevertheless continued trying. Well it became the standing joke how long it would take her before she started raging when I rolled her over ... Usually it was five seconds tops ... and when I did roll her over she looked like a little limp doll sprawled out on the floor... Well, her BFF Alyse was over on Thursday and showed her how tummy time should work (Alyse rolled over last week!). Alyse laid there, held her head high and seemed so proud of herself...Ella continued to show off her limp doll skills. So yesterday I was playing with her on the floor and had the TV on. She was in a great mood so I thought I would ruin it and roll her over ... it seems our little limp doll does knows how to hold her head high ... that is if there is TV to watch! She must have forgot she was on her stomach because she laid there for several minutes basically staring at the TV... Unfortunately mom and dad have a few rules in the house ... one of them happens to be no TV for the little munchkin!!!

Back to Work!

I knew the inevitable would come ... I had to go back to work last Monday. I am pretty sure going back to work was easier on Ella than me. I did really well Monday - Wednesday ... by the time Thursday was over, I wanted to be done for the week. However, I made it through today (Friday) and I am looking forward to sat and sun more than ever. We have a lot of snuggling to catch up on. On a positive note, I do enjoy my job... so returning was also very positive. Additionally, Andy, Ella and I are very lucky. We have family that watches her while I am working so she is getting a lot of love every day!

Spokane!

Ella, Andy and I visited Spokane two week ago. Andy was planning on flying up for the night by himself for his brothers surprise birthday party. Ella and I decided to join them at the last minute to surprise grandma and grandpa Price with a visit. We arrived on Friday and returned home on Monday. Ella was amazing once again on the airplane both directions. I was a bit nervous for the return flight because I was traveling alone with her. She proved to be a very good traveling companion. I did have to laugh at her ... the flight from Portland to Medford was very bumpy ... she was sitting on my lap holding onto my finger ... every time we hit turbulence she would squeeze my finger a littler tighter!

Ella was able to meet the rest of her family for the first time. Great grandma and grandpa Walker thought she was pretty special... she gave them a lot of smiles and even left great grandma Walker with a little stain on her pants (she had a major blow out!). Abby, Walker, Halle and Faith enjoyed her as well and will be looking forward to 'playing' with her while we visit during Thanksgiving.

Pumpkin Patch & Halloween

Ella enjoyed her first Halloween!

First we visited the pumpkin patch with grandma, grandpa, Darin, Dylan and 'aunt' Jennie. The weather was a little wet but she still had fun. She was dressed up in the outfit grandma Price gave her.

We carved pumpkins at 'aunt' Jennie's and 'uncle' Donnie's. I carved Ella's pumpkin ... very traditional! Andy did something a little more complicated ... unfortunately, he did not have it finished in time for the photo. Check out the photo of Ella screaming ... I may have been trying to put her in the pumpkin ... she did not think it was funny! Too cute!

I found this cute little BEE costume at Pottery Barn ... I could not resist! We visited grandpa at work, Moss Adams, and Bapa and Edie.

Two Months!

Ella turned two months old this week! We had a well baby check up this morning. She weighed in at 12lbs 5oz and measured 23 1/3 inches. She is in the 80% for her weight and off the charts for her height! 'Aunt' Jenni captured this great picture of her smiling ... which she is doing more and more of! She is a very happy baby until she wants to eat (which is pretty much all the time). She is becoming more alert each day. She is starting to reach and grab at things. She hates tummy time ... it is the running joke as to how long she will last before she is in a complete rage... it is usually less than 5 seconds. Her favorite time of the day is her 'naked' time right before her bath. She continues to sleep through the night. She is somewhat of a nightowl ... just like her dad. She will typically go down between 10 - 11 and get up around 7 - 8 ... can't complain about that one! :-)

Grandma Cheryl ... did you notice my pj's! :-)

I will update later with pictures of her in her halloween costume ... she is going to be a little bee!

Love Ella and Brenda

Hawaii - Continued.....

We returned from a week in Hawaii ... We enjoyed the company of Jim, LeAnn and Megan (my other family) and my parents. We stayed in Maui at the Westin where we enjoyed all the resort amenitities. This would mark our first major family vacation since Ella was born. Andy and I were nervous taking her on the plane (see the outcome of her first plane ride below) as well and traveling with a 7 week old. All in all she did great.

The first day she was not so sure she liked the hot humid climate. She was a little out of her eliment ... However, by day two she was back to her normal self. She slept like a champ the entire time. We tried to keep her on local time ... which resulted in her waking up around 4-6am. :-) The hotel had a crib that reminded me of something out of mental institution. She did not mind though. The best part is ... grandma and grandpa gave up the large bedroom so Ella could sleep in her crib in the bedroom ... which resulted in my parents sleeping on the hide a bed couch! Of course Ella would have slept just fine in the living room ...

Steve, Debbie, Alyse, Alan (Debbie's dad) and John (Debbie's brother) were also in Hawaii. It was a lot of fun vacationing together. Not to mention hanging in the shade at the pool was a lot more fun with company! Both Ella and Alyse did great hanging by the pool. They were pretty content feeding and then chilling in the BOB.

Here are some pictures. Enjoy!

Thank you Megan for the pretty flower lei! Also, check out the sunburn I got while sitting in the SHADE!

I was not happy ... the wind was in my face! Notice my buddy Alyse ... she was a trooper and loved the wind. We looked pretty cute in our matching swimsuits!

I was not a huge fan of the hats ... they made a pretty cute picture though.

Hawaii 2008 - First Plane Ride

Andy, Ella and I went on our first 'real' vacation this past week. We braved the skies, sun and all other things that come when traveling with an 8 week old!!!


The Plane Ride - to Hawaii ~ Ella was a angel on her first plane ride. She slept most of the way and never said a word. She aggressively sucked on her pacifier going 'up' and 'down' so no issues with the ears. We landed in LA after leaving Medford (50 minutes late) so needless to say we missed our flight ... best news ... the next flight available was at 5:30pm ... it was 10:30am at the time! So for the next 7 hours we got to hang out. We decided to get a day pass to the American Airlines board room ... I could not stomach changing and feeding her all day in the dirty airport! The board room offered us a few more luxuries and a much cleaner bathroom. We hung out for several hours ... she pretty much just slept and ate. We finally boarded our flight to Hawaii ... again she was an angel. She slept for an hour or so, woke up, ate, went back to sleep and never made a sound. I must say traveling with an infant definitely adds a new element. :-)



The Plane Ride - home ~ not much to report except for ... she slept the entire way home. We had the red eye flight so it was bedtime for her. She had her own seat so I was able to lay her down between Andy and I. She did not mind at all. On the last leg into Medford she slept most of the way ... then I smelt it ... how bad could it be right??? She had a major blow out! It is important to note that this has only happened two or three times ... so ... when I went to change her I was not expecting it to be up her stomach and all over her back! Of course I was panicking and she was loving being naked! I got her all cleaned up and she just hung out the rest of the way.


Andy and I were truly blessed. She was an angel!

Here is a picture of her sleeping on the plane.

First Shots!

Two weeks ago Ella received her first shots. She took them pretty well. She only screamed for a brief moment. Her dad held her and made it all better! She did not have any major reactions. She was a little fussy and wanted to be held (more than usual :-)) for about three days. She weighed 11lbs 6 oz.

This picture was taken at Aunt Carol's. She fell asleep on the floor after we got home from the doctor's.

Busy Week

Ella was six weeks old on Thursday! Wow how time goes by.

We were invited to our first dinner party (that was not family oriented) on Friday. Thank you Jason and Cassie! Ella and Alyse (Steve and Debbie were invited as well) were the life of the party ... they pretty much just ate and slept!

Grandma and Grandpa decided to go camping this weekend so we joined them for the day. Ella and I rode up in morning and Andy came up late in the afternoon after work. Ella enjoyed being outside. We went for a long walk and sat around the camp fire. The best part is she fell asleep and must have thought that she should be down for the night. Check out the pictures. She is sleeping on my lap. I kept trying to wake her up, but she wanted nothing to do with it! Ironically she slept all the way home as well ... and then wanted to stay up half the night! Not so cool after I have been spoiled with her sleeping through the night. :-)

Sunday was a lazy day at home. We do not have a lot planned for this week. We leave for Hawaii a week from today so I am going to try and get organized and packed in the next couple of days ... I will keep you posted if I actually do it ... Those of you who know me well ... know that I never pack until the last night and then pack way to much!

Talk to you soon. Love Brenda, Andy and Ella.

Ella's Room

For those who have not seen her room, I finally took some pictures! I think it turned out pretty cute. She seems to enjoy her crib and changing table. We have a pretty good book selection started as well ... Her dad reads her a story (or two!) every night.

Another week gone!

Wow ... how time flies! I do not think I am ready for Ella to grow so fast. She was five weeks on Thursday, I can't believe it.

We had a low key weekend. Ella had her first photo session on Friday with Alyse and Kate (one of Debbie's friends daughter 5 1/2 mnths). Then we enjoyed lunch at the Roadhouse. I think the waiter wanted to change tables when three girls walked in with three carseats and at one point in time were all three feeding at the table ... poor guy! :-)

Sat we just hung around the house. My mom had a BBQ for my dad's side of the family so they could meet Ella. She enjoyed being the party girl ... and of course I had fun dressing her up! Today Ella experienced her first football game...we went and watched Dylan play ... she slept the entire time so I am not sure she will remember that one.

Ella is becoming more alert each day. She has an incredible smile. One of her favorite things to do is lay on a blanket and just 'talk'. She loves being talked to ... and the best part of her personality is ... when she is done on the blanket she then wants to walk & talk ... no sitting down! Grandpa thinks she is a little spoiled ... but she even gets to him too ... they spend Thursday nights together when Andy and I play volleyball ... and guess what ... they walk and talk! It is actually incredibly funny because she can be passed out in your arms while walking and the minute you sit down she wakes up... it makes me laugh because Andy will try and watch TV with her ... but she will have nothing to do with it and makes him get up and walk! As for sleeping, we consider ourselves very lucky. I don't want to jinx it, but the last couple of nights she has slept from 10:30ish until 6/6:30am... :-)We are definetely blessed. Andy and her have quality father/daughter time in the morning. He gets up with her before work and they just hang. I think she is getting a little introduction to ESPN as that is the channel that I find is on when I get up!

Andy and I are doing well and adjusting to our new lifestyle. We are having a lot of fun with her and learing new things daily. Hope all is well with everyone.

Love ~ Andy, Brenda & Ella

Oregon Coast

Well ... we did it! We took our first overnight trip with the munchkin ... and she did very well.

This past weekend Andy, Ella, Steve, Debbie, Alyse and I headed to the beach house in Gold Beach. It was the first overnight trip for both girls ... and they both did great. The weather was absolutely beautiful on Sunday, no wind (which does not happen often) and it was about 70+ degrees. Debbie and I were able to take a long walk on the beach. Andy, Steve and the girls took a walk but the dads got a little warm, so they headed back early. We were def. blessed to be able to share this time with friends, and thank God for the girls every day.

Ella had her month check up on Tuesday. She weighs 10lbs 9oz, 23 inches long. She is in the 97% for her height and above 50% for the other measurements. The doctor said she is doing great! We are thankful for a heathly little girl.

We don't have a lot going on this week, Andy is working and Ella and I have just been hanging out. We spend a lot of time with 'Aunt' Jennie, Darin, Dylan, Aunt Michelle and Aunt Carol... We also spend a lot of time with Grandma and Grandpa ... We miss all our other family who lives far away ... but we do talk about them often.

Talk to you soon! Love Brenda, Andy and Ella

Week Three

Hello everyone...Just thought I would drop in to say HI!

Mom and I have been busy these past couple of weeks. We really don't like to stay home so we usually find somewhere to hang out during the day.

We had our first official playdate with Alyse (Steve and Debbie's little girl ... who happens to be my best friend). Alyse and I did not really get the chance to play much because we were both either eating or sleeping. We also had our first lunch date yesterday at my mom's favorite place - the Bella Union. I am getting pretty good at going to restaurants - Bapa and Edie took us out for my first outing to Mexican.

I am still sleeping pretty well. I usually try and sleep for four to six hours at a time at night. I like to wake dad up around 6 or 7 every morning ... mom and I are going to work on sleeping in a little more!

We have big plans for this upcoming weekend. The three of us are headed to the Beach house. Hopefully Alyse and her parents will join us on Saturday. This will be my first overnight trip... should be fun.

Got to go ... it is time for my favorite thing! Eating!

Love Ella

Week Two

Well, Ella is doing very well. She is becoming more alert each day. So far she has been an amazing sleeper... until last night ... when she thought dad and I should be up every two hours just because!



We continue to have many visitors which she loves. I don't think she has been put down for more than ten minutes during the day since we brought her home.



She seems to be a good eater and appears to be gaining weight. We will go back to the doctor in a couple weeks for a check up.



Andy is going to stay home for a couple days this week so we will have to find something fun to do.