Happy New Year and Happy Birthday Padre!

We are a little behind on blog posts this week but that's okay! Since returning from NYC it has been a crazy few weeks. Lots of work, lots of new friends, lots of family stuff - good times. 

The New York adventure was a great success on many levels. Ella and I took the train up and she did fantastic! It was a little crazy actually getting on the train but once we were settled she was wonderful. Actually - we ended up getting a free one-way train ticket because the conductor yelled at Adam for helping me get my bags on the car. Then she yelled at me for catching my breath in the disability section for a moment before we found a seat. Rude people suck. Ella took two naps, ate and played the whole ride up - so much better than driving. Mom and dad were there to greet us. 

Once at Nanni and Gampy's house Ella made herself right at home by displaying her toys everywhere and filling the house will her happy screams. She got her taste at "real" food - sweet potatoes - which she loved.

Dad's birthday was a lot of fun. He got a bunch of pictures of the family and grandkids, an iPhone holder for his car, gift cards, a run with Adam and lots of nice cards from the family. He was a happy man. Matty helped him blow out all his candles so I'm sure his wish will come true. 

Unfortunately the weekend ended in a hurry when Ella decided to protest sleep on Saturday night. Instead of fighting her all night, we left NYC at 11 p.m. and got home at 2 a.m. She slept the entire way and transferred perfectly into her crib. Although we were tired Sunday, we we were home. 

Great weekend! We will be doing it again soon for Mia's first birthday <3 

Ella enjoying her fist real food - sweet potatoes! 

The beautiful Aunt Luci and adorable cousin Mia 

Matty showing Ella  how it's done 

Double trouble 

Distracting Matty from his dinner

The birthday boy and his bride 

Gampy making a wish! 

Yum yum!

It was time - Ella popped two teeth, she is sitting up on her own, and she has been showing a lot of interest in food....it was time to give this solid food thing a try.

We went back and forth on starting her on the typical breast milk and cereal or a veggie. After some discussions with my sisters, we decided to start with the rice cereal. At first she seemed to like it - see video below - but soon after we stopped filming she decided this was not for her. She was making horrible faces, gagging, turning her head, and spitting up. We are going to try again tomorrow night - hopefully we'll have better luck.

Ma - What's the big deal? 

 Playing like a big girl

Don't worry - I'll be here if you need me! 

 Getting ready for her first solid food!

This is going to be fun!!

Ahhh - what was that!?

Hummm....I don't know if I love this.

Alright - can we be done now?

Yay - it's over! 

It started out nice...

Wonderful Weekend

We are having a fantastic weekend - filled with mommy/daddy time, Ella time and family time. On Friday night Adam and I went to the Bruce Springsteen concert at the Nats stadium which was unbelievable. Bruce is such an incredible performer.  He played for 3 1/2 hours - high energy the entire time.

We arrived home from the concert around 1:30 a.m. but it was about 2:30 a.m. by the time we were in bed. Unfortunately miss Ella decided to wake up at 4:30 a.m. the next morning. I kept her in the crib until 6:00 a.m. but there was a lot of crying and back and forth with the paci. More on that later.

Saturday was a perfect family day. We took Ella on a bunch of walks and just played together at home - it was very special. Here are a few pictures and videos from Friday night and Saturday.

Today is the Jewish New Year so we are celebrating at Jonathan and Jaime's house tonight. We are really looking forward to seeing them and the kids.

Ella is doing great these days! She has settled in nicely at Adrienne's on Mondays and Thursdays and is ALL smiles, everyday. She is rolling all over the place which is a pretty good way of getting around. She is also sitting up by herself now so we will be starting solid foods shortly. I'll post a more detailed update on her developments later.

The Concert

Beautiful baby

I love sitting up like a big girl now

Just hanging with my dad

Practicing standing - She was really doing a great job before I got the camera out. I think her legs started to get tired. But this video is really funny.

My 30th Birthday Weekend

What a wonderful, wonderful weekend. Thank you to my family and friends for making my 30th birthday so special. The big family dinner, arts festival, massage, nails, dinner at 1789, camera shopping, BBQ, surprise brunch with my BFF....everything was perfect. I feel so blessed.

Maybe the best part of this weekend was all the quality time we got to spend as a family. Adam has been working a lot lately so this long weekend came at the perfect time. We were so sad to see him leave this morning :(

Ms. Ella had a birthday of her own on Saturday - she turned the big 5 - 5 months that is. To celebrate she continued to pop her two bottom teeth, started using her new big girl stroller and had a very cute 5 month photo shoot.

I am still a bit tired but glowing from a wonderful weekend.

Two at once! 

Best stroller in the world!!

Just had to share this one - Babies look so cute in jean jumpers

The official 5 month photo

Outtake 

Laughing at daddy

 My beautiful baby

FoUr mNnths

4 months = FUN

What a difference a month makes. Over the last 4 weeks Ella has really increased her ability to communicate what she wants, play, respond to our silliness, and show us affection (my favorite milestone).

When it comes to playing Ms. Ella likes action! She loves her new exersaucer (see video below) and anything involving standing up or lots of movement. She still enjoys tummy time but she has been practicing rolling over frequently so she is able to move on if she wants. She grabs at everything now so I have to be more careful what I carry around when I’m holding her. She will dive her hand into my morning coffee if I’m not careful.

Everything must go in her mouth of course so cleaning toys (and our hands) is happening a lot more often now. She has even sprouted a little tooth, which seems to not be bothering her yet. She still loves to bite our knuckles so we have been following its growth that way. Attempting to actually SEE the tooth is very hard.

The best development this month, in my opinion, is her new ability to give us kisses! She pulls our faces towards her and drools all over our checks – it’s messy and adorable.  It looks like she is trying to eat us but I’m sure this is her way of returning all the millions of kisses we give her. We are also getting hugs and earth shaking smiles when she sees us. Sometimes it feels like my heart can’t take it – it’s that cute!

Well – maybe a close second to her kisses are her belly laughs. It has been so much fun getting this girl to crack up! Below is a video of me cracking the code to her funny bone one morning.

She has a little stranger anxiety – mainly with men. Truth be told, she really only wants her dad when it comes to guys. However, Uncle Nick really got her laughing the other night and she’s pretty sure Jonathan is Adam x 2 so the local uncles are in safe territory.

She is very much aware when mommy and daddy are not around and gets a little fussy until we return, then it’s back to happy baby. It’s amazing to watch her with other people – as long as we are close she does okay. But you better believe she is watching to make sure we are there.

Naps have become much better – thank God! I know I wrote a while back that Adam saved the day and got her on the path to sweet dreams. Well – I didn’t update the blog that this went to hell in a hand basket quickly. She HATED naps and I began to feel the same way. It was always a fight. This too shall pass – and it did. She now goes down nicely. She still only sleeps for 45 min. at a time but I think that will change once she gets older and expends more energy. She is still sleeping 11-12 hours at night (has been since 2-3 months).

Now that I am back to work with a contracting job I am working full days twice a week – Monday and Thursday. Adrienne watches Ella in her daycare center and I work from their house so I can see her and breastfeed. The first week was rough but this last Monday was great – she loves Adrienne but needed to get used to being away from me and hanging in a new environment.

Our little miss is becoming such a big girl now – it’s amazing. I know this is only the start of big changes for us as she grows from infant to toddler. It’s sad and exciting at the same time.

Here are some pictures and videos to enjoy! 

She loves to play airplane 

One happy girl!  

Ella Rolls...

Just two days after her four month birthday Ella decided it was time to rollover. Our cute little girl has gotten so close MANY times but never made it all the way. Thankfully I had the camera ready so I was able to capture this magic moment ;)

Please excuse my annoying voice - I got super excited. Ella on the other hand, didn't know what the big deal was.

Miracle Daddy

(Ella - 15 weeks / July 21st)

What a wonderful weekend! Believe it or not, this was our first weekend in almost 6 weeks without any major plans or visitors. As much as we have enjoyed all the trips, people and b-day parties, we were ready for a lazy few days at home.

Since we were hanging around the house we decided to work on two areas Ella has been struggling with – bottle feedings and naps. These two issues have been hard for us but with Daddy’s help everything went smoothly.

Miracle Daddy on Bottles

Oh the bottle – why didn’t I start you sooner. I didn’t start pumping until 5 weeks postpartum and Ella’s first bottle was around 6-7 weeks. Let’s just say it didn’t go very well. She completely rejected it and cried bloody murder. Several bottles (all different types) and attempts later left us discouraged and tired.

I was totally prepared for another round of fighting, crying, kicking and screaming but we had to do it. I am going to be returning to work soon and I couldn’t let this go any longer.  After only 3 min. of crying she started to take the first bottle and she never looked back! Adam and I could not believe it, she was totally happy! We proceeded to give her all her subsequent meals as bottles and she did great. Ella did so well that I even felt comfortable enough to leave Adam and her for the last bottle of the night and hit up a movie with my girls.

I think Ella picked up on Adam’s clam and determined energy and decided it was time to trust and just enjoy. Adam loves feeding her of course so I am also confident that she felt relaxed by him.

To ensure we don’t slip back to the dark side of the bottle, Adam will be giving her the final meal of the day each night. This will surely become a special time indeed.

Well-done Adam! I feel so relieved that this is no longer an issue.

Miracle Daddy on Naps

Ella is not a big fan of naps. She is so excited by all her new toys, sounds, and activities that naps are just not that appealing anymore. Unfortunately she needs them (so does mommy) so these last 3 weeks have been hard.

During the day I have been dealing with an overly tired baby who will just not rest.  I have tried everything – catching her before she gets too sleepy, laying her down awake, rocking her to sleep, playing white noise, etc…nothing seemed to work. If I did manage to get her down she would wake up 15 min. later crying her eyes out.

So this weekend I recruited daddy to help me figure this one out. We decided I would try to lay with her in our bed to help her fall asleep. After 15 min. of screaming we were up again frustrated. She was clearly over tired and needed a nap.  I tried again but this time daddy laid on her other side in the bed. She started to freak out again so daddy held her hand – boom – she stopped crying and looked over at me – I quickly grabbed her other hand – she passed out immediately. So there we were, all in bed together and holding Ella’s little hands as she took a nap. HAHA. It was a very cute moment.

But unfortunately we cannot always nap this way so the next few naps had to be in her crib.  Surprisingly, she has done much better since that little family snooze. She still doesn’t have a nap routine but she has been more accepting of quiet time. Sometimes she relaxes in her crib and talks for a 10-15 min. before settling down – it’s very sweet.

Thank you so much daddy for all your help! We love you :) 

Ella 14 Weeks

Our little girl is changing and growing day by day. The biggest update is Ms. Ella is now officially sleeping through the night: 7 p.m. – 7 a.m. give or take 30 min. in either direction. She goes down very easily - we lay her down awake after her bath and last feeding and she drifts off to sleep. She occasionally wakes up for some reason and wants to suck on her paci so we have to go in and pop it back in. But the other night she found her thumb and I heard her sucking away on the monitor around 10 p.m. – it was so sweet.

She is now playing with her toys and trying hard to rollover. I have a very cute video of her attempts below. She cracks me up. She is still making amazing eye contact and smiles big for everyone who gives her attention. She is talking a lot more too, especially when I read to her. I think she wants to join in on the conversation.

We are still trying to figure out her nap schedule. She used to simply fall asleep whenever she needed a rest but now the world is so much more exciting and she needs some help settling down. I really have to be careful not to let too much time go by without a rest because then she gets overtired and then it's REALLY hard to get her down. We are now on a routine of trying to get her to rest every 2 hours, with one longer morning and mid-afternoon nap. She HATES leaving the action behind for her quiet room but she is getting used to it.

That’s what is happening in Ella’s little world! 

10 weeks

Ella is becoming more and more alert and playful by the day. She is making fantastic eye contact and reacts to our sounds and kisses, she loves watching the fan in all the rooms, and even has some favorite toys. We are still waiting for that elusive laugh but I sense it coming soon.

During the day she is really easy going. She is all smilies from the moment she wakes up to bedtime (most days). Her play time right now is simple - tummy and mat time. She kicks like crazy when she is on her mat and has started to swing at the hanging toys. Tummy time is always a bit of a challenge - she enjoys it for the first 10 min. and then can get frustrated. Its hard work holding up those big cheeks! Below are some cute pictures I captured before the good mood changed.

She is sleeping most nights from 10 p.m. - 7:30 a.m with one feeding around 5 a.m Occasionally she will wake up around 3 a.m. but those nights are becoming more rare. ONCE she did 10 p.m. - 7:30 a.m. so I know she can do it. We are going to start sleep training her soon if she doesn't get back there on her own.

It has been so rewarding watching her grow.

Taking a break to look cute for the camera...

On April 1, 2012 our sweet baby girl decided to play the ultimate April fools joke on everyone by arriving early! It was so much fun calling everyone at 4 a.m. and promising them this was no joke - my water broke and Ella was on the way. We felt so fortunate that she arrived before Nick/Cindy and Jaime/Jonathan left town. We will be forever grateful that our families were there to celebrate with us.

I will write up her detailed birth story later but for now I just wanted to update this blog! It's horrible that it has been 10 weeks already and I have not touched it!

More to come!

Our first family photo.

Less than two weeks to go…

Where do I even begin catching up on March? It’s been an educational, fun and tiring few weeks. I’ll start with educational. We started our 6-week birth/labor class towards the end of February and we have been attending every Tuesday since. We have a great instructor who has been an L&D nurse for more than 20 years. She is extremely knowledgeable and fun. Our last class is this coming Tuesday and I will miss it.

Fun – Adam turned 30 on March 21^st so we celebrated last weekend with a surprise birthday dinner (hosted by Lauri and Bill) with both families. It was great having both sides together to celebrate everyone’s favorite Uncle Adam. Mom and Dad put together a very impressive dinner at a cool new Italian pizza place in Bethesda – thank you again. Adam was totally surprised. On Adam’s actual birthday his Wednesday hockey team won their semi-final game, and will play in the finals this week – exciting! Last night we celebrated with Adam’s best friend Matt and his sister Cindy. The Rangers were playing Matt’s team the Sabres so we hit the bars (haven’t said that in a while) and had a great time with our friends.

My baby shower was the Sunday after Adam’s birthday and I am still glowing from all the attention, love and gifts given to me (us) by my dearest friends and family. Eric, Luci, Matty and Mia made the trip from NYC, which was the ultimate gift from them. It’s not easy taking two kids under 4 on a 5-hour (one-way) trip, especially when you know you’ll want to do it again in a few weeks.

Cindy, Adrienne, Jaime, Luci, Mom, Betty and Clarice pulled together a beautiful brunch. It was just what I wanted – amazing food, lots of time to speak with everyone, special touches and no cheesy baby shower games haha. Cindy really went out of her way to order special New York Rangers and Mets cookies from a cookie-maker in NJ – unreal. The theme was “It’s not a Boy,” which as you may remember was how we told the Onders the gender on Christmas Eve. It was fun re-telling that story to my friends.

The gifts that we received were quite generous and very thoughtful. Our family in particular really out did themselves. I got “all my favorite things” from my sisters who all have impeccable taste – how lucky I am. I have started writing my thank you notes and it feels great to express all my gratitude.

After sorting, cleaning, putting things away Adam and I made a final list of the things we needed for “Miss E.” We hit BuyBuy Baby today and got all the remaining essentials. Everything in her room is washed and organized. We just need our little bundle to arrive now.

Adam even took it upon himself to assemble the car seat caddy this evening – with little to no frustration! Good job bear. Seeing the car seat really hits home. We are getting it installed next Thursday, which will surely be a reality check. You would think seeing her completed nursery would hit me harder but no – the car seat takes the cake in that regard.

I’m sure I’ll write again to share some final thoughts on her arrival before the big day. Until then – enjoy some pictures of her 99% completed nursery :) 

A happy place. 

Her Bassinet (thank you for the loan J&J!) and Crib

A spot for her trusty dog to keep watch. 

Henrik loves hanging on his bed while we're in there

Can't wait to start reading time.

Ready for that little tush!

Proud daddy

Coming home in style...

What can I say – I’m a sucker for Adam. He hasn't made many requests during the pregnancy other than asking me to rest and not push myself. So when he asked for our little peanut to come home from the hospital in New York Ranger gear, I was happy to make this happen for him. It took some searching but I was able to find this adorable newborn outfit. April will still be a little chilly so I got a cute little pair of pants and matching top to put over it. And since I call Adam Bear, I thought it would be appropriate to add this adorable hat to the mix.

Coming home – pretty in pink!



Only 8 More Weeks to Go!

If you asked me last week how I was feeling I would have told you time is creeping by and I wish I could fast forward to April. But over the last few days I have started realizing just how quickly things are actually progressing and I should stop trying to rush this special time and enjoy it. 

Nesting with Adam, weeks before our first baby arrives, is such a lovely time. We haven’t been going out much these last few weeks/weekend, but we’ve been enjoying fixing up the house, reorganizing our lives and savoring the peacefulness of these last few moments without a baby.  We talk about her all the time, which I think is a healthy process of mentally preparing for her arrival. I am thankful that I have stopped ‘living 8 weeks from now’ and started really enjoying the moment, for god willing we will never experience life without her again.

Work on the other hand is trying to shove as many projects into the next 8 weeks as possible.  I am on a fast track to complete all my 2012 goals and help the department get stable before I leave. Thankfully my temp starts in 2 weeks – set to shadow me for an entire month (unless you know who comes early). This not only will help ensure she is set to go once I leave but having another pair of hands for 4 weeks while I’m 8 months pregnant is going to be very helpful. I am looking forward to slowing down and taking leave. Physically I feel good at work but I have taken a few sick days here and there. If I push myself too much or get a bit of a cold it really wipes me out.

In more exciting news – the baby furniture arrived this Saturday! Everything looks great and is exactly what we ordered. There are a few divots in the crib wood but they took some pictures and will replace those sections for us. You would never be able to tell unless you were really searching for it but it’s worth fixing.  Today, Sunday, Adrienne and I went through all the 0-3 month clothing gifted to us from Nick and Cindy. Adam and I feel extremely blessed to have such an amazing family pass down all these gifts.  Thank you Cindy and Nick for saving all your girls’ clothing, toys, blankets and stuffed friends.

The room is a bit colorless at the moment but I have big plans to fix that ;) We have a lot fun things in the works!

Enjoy some prelim photos of our nursery J

This angel picture arrived the evening my mom passed away. She choose it as the cover of her book. 

It's very special to me and was in my room as a child. 

Most of the 0-3 months aren't hanging items but boy are the 3-6! 

We are going to tackle those boxes next weekend. This closet will be filled before we know it.

Little shoes are so adorable...

Packed - So fortunate.