Ella {16 Weeks}

We had another chilly but fun week around here. 

Earlier this week Ella was playing on her mat just like usual... kicking the keyboard, looking in the mirror, grabbing the dangly toys. Then several minutes later she had kicked off a sock, spun almost 180 degrees around and rolled onto her tummy! She still isn't doing it consistently, but now she has done it twice all by herself! 

And this weekend she went to her first home men's PSU hockey game. She had a great time, and [mostly] didn't freak out when the goal buzzer went off.

Other than that, we had a fun week playing...

 And sleeping! [she normally doesn't sleep with a blanket, except for an occasional chilly day nap. snuggling with her puppy blanket!]

Ella {15 Weeks}

Not much new going on around here! Just patiently waiting for warm weather. 

Ella is still growing and giggling! We're working on Tummy Time more in hopes of learning to roll over soon. She's eating less this week (they say that's normal around now), so waking up once or twice a night to eat. She still loves bath time an a few certain toys, which make their way quickly into her mouth these days. And she got to meet Mary, a friend of mine from high school who lives in DC. She rode the train here from DC, so we ventured to a new town and experienced an Amtrak station.. that was kinda fun. She even brought Ella an Ellaphant [haha] all the way from Africa! Of course she loves chewing on its ears.

first visit to a sports bar restaurant to watch some college basketball

**The week-by-week pictures will be posted when Rachael gets back from London, if you're wondering where they are for the past couple weeks!

Ella {14 Weeks}

We've had a fun, relaxing week around here.  It's been rainy, windy and too chilly to do anything outside yet, so we've just been hanging out.  

Ella has been playing, pooping & outgrowing clothes.  She has learned how to grab a toy with her hands and bring it to her mouth, and she's interacting with toys more. She now recognizes things as familiar to her, so she gets so excited when she sees certain things. Right now she's playing with a ball that's easy to grab, she LOVES a little rattle bug that she got for Christmas, and she has just started sitting in her jump-jump-walker-thing. [what on earth are those called, anyway?] She can't sit up in it very well, but we put a pillow under her feet so she can push with her feet, and a blanket in front of her as extra support. She just loves being upright and looking around.

She doesn't have a doctor's appointment until she's four months old, so I'm not sure how much she weighs.. but she's definitely growing! She's sleeping through the night most of the time [knock on wood], and her hair is even starting to calm down![a little anyway...]

Holding onto the ball

I'm not sure if it will work, but this is a funny video of her newest friend... a phone jack! She smiles every time she sees it

Sitting in her walker and playing with keys

She's three months old!!

Ella {13 Weeks}

It's been another fun week in our house! The biggest even was Friday morning when Ella rolled over for the first time! She rolled from her back to her belly but couldn't roll back, so she got mad. I think she did it on accident and she hasn't done it since, but it's only a matter of time! Now we just have to get her rolling from her belly to her back so she doesn't get so mad.

Another fun thing she's learned how to do is look toward a voice and find that person. She seems to recognize Mike's and my voices, which is fun, and she'll look towards a sound that she recognizes, like a rattle.

She's also [pseudo-]standing with help, [pseudo-]sitting with help, and holding her head up much better. She's slobbering like crazy, but no sign of teeth. She's chewing on her hands but really nothing else. She loves bath time but hates to get out. She's smiling and giggling a lot, and making more sounds than ever before. She enjoys reading books and now looks at the pages. She's awake much more of the time, and she's again sleeping for [usually] 8 hours at night! She's so much fun!

A friend of Mike's from St. Cloud brought his girlfriend to town for a basketball game and New Year's Eve. We joined them for the game and dinner, then we came home to watch the Jays game and barely stay up until midnight. I think we're officially old and lame.

That's about all we've been up to this week. We've done a lot of relaxing and playing and avoiding the cold weather. We're really not sad that we're going to miss Minnesota's state-wide shutdown due to the frigid weather tomorrow. We hope you're staying warm wherever you are. Sending hugs from us all!

Ella {12 Weeks}

It hasn't been long since you heard from me, but we have finished our 2013 Christmas Adventure and we're home safely. We had a fantastic trip, though a quick one. It was wonderful to see so many friends and family. Ella was a fantastic traveler, but it does take more equipment to travel with an infant than I would have thought. 

The last few days have just consisted of finishing our trip. Penn State was playing in a hockey tournament in Pittsburgh, and since we were flying back through there, we stayed for a couple days. 

When we got to the hotel to check in, they upgraded us to a suite. Nice! It was great because then we had a fridge for Ella's milk and extra space for her Pack-n-Play. We did a lot of relaxing and a little walking around downtown Pittsburgh. Ella took plenty of naps and was a trooper the entire time. We went to a couple hockey games, and Ella took it all in. She was a champ, once again! 

What a fun trip we had! Let's see where the next year takes us....

Ella & I outside the Consol Energy Center, where the hockey tournament was being played

Ella being ridiculously adorable in her bear suit

Walking around downtown Pittsburgh

Ella enjoying breakfast at the hotel

at the hockey game

Ella {11 Weeks}

It has been quite a week for this clan! We've been traveling for Christmas, and it has been a wonderful trip. I'll add some pictures when we get back home.

As I said a couple weeks ago, Mike and I decided we would go home [midwest-home] for a week over Christmas. We weren't sure we'd be able to because of flights being so expensive over the holidays, but we were able to find reasonable flights. We were excited to see everyone again, and everyone was excited to meet Ella. 

We packed our bags and loaded everything in the car, and began our trip. We flew out of Pittsburgh because flights were cheaper, so we had a 2 1/2 hour drive to get there. On the way, we hit downtown rush-hour traffic and missed our flight. Ella had slept the entire drive, so of course she was hungry by the time we made it to the airport... and crying as we were rushing through the airport. We quickly got re-booked onto another flight - thanks to a super-helpful Delta ticketing agent. The new flight even got in an hour earlier and we were able to sit together. Best flight that was ever missed! Once we re-booked, we had enough time to get Ella changed and fed, then we headed to security - where we were selected for TSA Pre-check. Let me tell you.. that was a blessing. We didn't have to take off jackets or shoes, or take out liquids. It made our rushed security check with Ella SO much easier. [thank you, pittsburgh tsa]

After getting through security, finding our gate, and getting a couple glares from a guy in a pinstriped suit, we were on our way. Ella was a little fussy while we were waiting to take off, but she did great on the flights. She ate, slept, and played. She only made a few peeps, and we didn't even make any enemies! The flights attendants were amazing. They gave Ella wings since it was her first flight, and they were extra accommodating. [kudos, delta]

We safely made it to Kansas City, where we stayed with Mike's parents for a few days. Ella met Mike's two brothers, we spent some time with my good friend Sasha and her family [including my godson jakob who is getting so big!], we tailgated and went to the Chiefs football game [ella's second tailgate - she was amazing!], and we spent some quality time with Mike's family. 

Next we headed to Omaha to meet some friends for lunch. It was a quick stop, but Ella was able to meet some of our good friends. Then we were off to Corning for a few days. My dad, Deb, and my grandparents hadn't met Ella yet, so they were very excited to see her. We spent some time with everyone, ate entirely too much food, saw a few friends.. and Santa even found us there! 

After what seemed like a very quick week, it was time to catch a flight back to Pennsylvania. Ella was a little fussy on our first flight then slept the entire second flight [that seems to be her trend], but did a great job flying. We are currently in Pittsburgh where we'll finish our trip with a couple Penn State hockey games before we head home.

We have had such a wonderful week, and of course Ella is getting bigger and stronger. It will be time to retire some 3-month clothes when we get home in a couple days. They're getting a little snug! Ella is holding her head up better than she was a week ago, and she's using her hands even more. She seemed to be purposely reaching for some toys we were playing with.. and of course her hands are in her mouth all the time [but she still hates a pacifier]. Her legs are getting stronger too - she gets so excited to "stand" with help. And it seems that she's just a couple weeks away from rolling over! As always, it's fun to watch her grow and change. 

If we were lucky enough to see you in the past week, thank you for spending time with us! We miss you already, and we can't wait to see you again. We hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas [or Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Festivus, or whatever you might have celebrated]. Love & hugs from us all! 

A little photo montage of our trip [in no particular order...]

On the plane, ready to start our trip!

Ella & I in the airport -- she's sporting her wings!

Mike & Ella at the North Pole when we went to see Santa

Mike, Ella & me at the Chiefs game

Joe Papa used his baby magic to get cranky Ella to sleep

Randy & Shirley (Rachael's parents) meeting Ella after Christmas Eve church

Ella meeting Grandpa Dave for the first time

and Grandma Debbie

and Uncle Mike

and Great-Grandpa Don

and Great-Grandma Colleen (Marie)

Four generations of Awesome

Also meeting Uncle Dave for the first time

and Uncle Joe

Mike & me tailgating at the Chiefs game

Ella was a tailgating champ! And probably the warmest person there

The three of us at the Chiefs game

with Grandma Marie & Grandpa Dennis at the Chiefs game

Ella and me with Sasha and Jakob. 

When Ella was crying, Jakob gave her a blanket to make her feel better. He's going to be such a good big brother!

Ella {10 Weeks}

It's crazy, but Ella is now 10 weeks old and it's almost Christmas. 

Seriously, where does the time go?

Here are a few pictures and fun things Ella has been up to this week. 

I almost don't want to say this one because I don't want to jinx it, but... First and foremost, Ella has been sleeping for 8 hours every night for the past week. It was almost like a switch flipped. We put her in her crib and found a schedule that she likes, and kazam -- instantly 8+ hours of sleep. It's like a Christmas miracle!

This week we got our Christmas tree. It was a cold, snowy day that we went to the tree farm, but now it's situated warmly in our living room. 

Last Christmas, Mike and I had just moved so we didn't get a tree. But this year it was a must.

And of course we're enjoying nightly snuggles by the tree :)

Ella is starting to learn how to use her hands. They are finding their way into her mouth much more easily these days... Dad isn't a fan. She is starting to use them purposely - like to hit dangly toys. She's just getting the hang of it, but it's fun to watch her learn.

She's still doesn't love it, but we're continuing to work on tummy time. Gotta keep strengthening that neck!

Saturday was a big game for the Penn State men's basketball team. They were playing at their old arena, Rec Hall. They hadn't played there for years, so it was quite an event. The place was packed; there was standing room only. We didn't have much space and Ella wasn't a fan of such loud music and cheering. But we had a great time... even though they lost in overtime.

We're very excited -- next week we'll be posting from The Midwest! It might be a short post, but I'll try to get something up. Until then... safe travels and stay warm!