Ella Goes to Church

I had a wonderful 28th Birthday!!!!  Thanks to all of you who made my day special.  Whether it was phone calls, texts, facebook posts, or helping me celebrate in person-- everyone made me feel very loved!  Ella had a a pretty happy weekend (except when we attempted to take her to church).  She actually let Brent and I have an adult dinner at Gloria's on Friday night where we talked and enjoyed a margarita.  She slept the whole time.  We came home and watched the rest of Season 1 of Glee (I am obsessed) and had cake.  Ella gave me a precious card that she "signed"...well actually Brent signed it for her...some of the letters were written backwards like a little kid would do.  It was very cute.  They also gave me a gift card to Anthropologie!  They know Mommy loves to shop.  Saturday was another low key day.  My friend Misty had us over for dinner and we got to enjoy hanging out with some wonderful friends!  Ella is a lucky little baby (and I'm a lucky mama)...my friends carried her around and kept her happy the whole night.  They are like "baby whisperers"-- she was so content! Mommy and Daddy even got to relax a little :)

Sunday we attempted to take Ella to church for the first time.  She had been fairly calm and not really colicky this weekend, so we thought it was the time to try it out.  I think we were too cocky.  It was a no go.  We carried her in to the church in her carrier and sat it in the seat between us.  Everyone was staring at her and telling us what an adorable baby she was.  We said thank you as her eyes grew bigger and bigger.  All of the sudden, the choir belted out a tune and church began.  This is when Ella freaked out and started screaming and crying.  We promptly removed her from the church and tried to calm her.  Well...she couldn't get herself composed, so we left.  As we left, Brent said, "God knows, we tried."  Yeah,  God knew we tried.  He also knows Miss Ella Grace and probably knew we didn't stand a chance of making it through the service.  But, at least we tried...that was the good thing.  We are going to have to work with Ella to turn her into a good church goer...I wish she would have looked around at all the quiet babies around her and followed suit.  But, I don't think Ella's going to be a follower...she already has that "leader" personality even at two months.  So, we are going to have to convince her that church is fun and that there are lots of things to look around at and pretty music to hear.  I'll keep you updated.


After we left church, we met my friend Misty for brunch at La Duni...so yummy.  Ella was as silent as a mouse as she slept in her carrier.  She didn't make a peep.  We were wondering why she couldn't have done that at church.  Oh well, better luck next time, right?  There was one good thing did come out of our attempt to take her to church- she got to wear one of her church dresses and take some picture in it.  She looked adorable.  We're hoping next go round is more successful and that we can stay longer than 5 minutes...fingers crossed!!

Baby Babble and Headbands

Ella is growing and changing so fast!  The latest thing she is doing that we just love is "talking" to us!! She loves the sound of her voice.  Sometimes she coos, sometimes she yells out, and sometimes she groans.  It's so cute.  Yesterday morning we "talked" for an hour.  She had the biggest smile on her face every time she heard her voice.  We love it!  She is also starting to LOVE her mobile.  Yesterday I laid her down in her bed and turned the mobile on.... It's a cute butterfly mobile that plays "Hush Little Baby" that her Aunt Irene gave to her.  Well, she decided she was going to talk to the mobile too.  She stared at the mobile and shrieked with joy as it turned and turned.  I think she was telling it that it better keep moving if it wanted her to stay happy.  She had so much fun.  I took some pictures of her "talking" to it!!  Watching her babble is our new favorite thing that she can do!!  P.S.--yes Ella is wearing socks on her hands.  Baxter has eaten all her baby mittens and her hands get so cold.  I ordered new mittens from Amazon and they didn't come until last night so she had "sock hands" all day.  That's the scoop in case you were wondering why in the world there were socks on her hands!!

Yesterday was also the day that we received the package we had been waiting on...Ella's "trendy" headbands.  Let's be honest...Ella is not really growing hair at a rapid rate!! My mom told me I was practically bald until 6 months, so I don't know if she will be growing hair anytime soon! I decided that headbands are a great way to break up the baldness (You've probably noticed she wears a lot of headbands in her pictures)!  The new headbands are really cute.  You can mix and match the headbands that are multicolored to the flowers that are multicolored. Brent thinks I'm being silly, but he does think they look cute on her (even though he hates to admit it and was more concerned with how much they cost)! I think she's adorable either way and  I don't put her in them all the time, but I think they give her a little girly touch and she looks precious in them!   

Brent's Birthday Weekend!

Brent's 28th Birthday was Saturday!  Ella ran a fever the night before from her shots, but was up and at 'em feeling great the next day.  She wasn't going to let vaccinations get in the way of celebrating.  We had a great weekend.  Brent's parents (Mimi and Papa) also decided to come last minute for Brent's birthday! They arrived Saturday around lunch.  We ate some great food...for you Dallas people...The Porch and Breadwinners!  We grilled out too...Eddie grilled some delicious steaks...my mouth is watering just thinking about them.  I know it was a special weekend for Brent with everyone here and a new milestone...his first Birthday as a Daddy!!  Ella gave him an adorable card, a picture frame, and a coffee mug with her pictures on it (we are still waiting for it to arrive).  Of course, she picked all the gifts out herself :) All in all, it was a laid back weekend of visiting, celebrating, and, of course, making over Ella!!

 It may have been Brent's Birthday, but Ella was the true star of the show.  I don't think her Mimi and Papa could be anymore proud.  They held her and loved on her the entire time.  Here's the best part...she didn't really have any colic spells this weekend.  This was a true miracle...We'll have to get their secret.  Brent and I were laughing after they left.  We've decided we are not sure if she has colic or just wants to be held at all times in a certain position and when she wants to change position you better do it...Or else.  Lucky for her, Mimi and Papa were willing to do WHATEVER it takes to make her happy!  She is definitely one loved little baby.  I know she enjoyed spending time with her grandparents.  We have such joy in knowing how loved she is by both of them.  I have no doubt that they will spoil her rotten!!

Things have changed A LOT with Baby Ella around.  Even Birthdays seem less about "you" and more about her...but Brent didn't seem to mind at all.  I think Brent's best Birthday gift was being able to hold his little girl and see the gummy smile on her sweet face.  The icing on the cake...having the people he loved around him!

Two Month Check-Up!

Boo for two month shots!  Ella had her two month check up today.  She's doing great...50th percentile in weight, 50th percentile in height, and 25th percentile in head circumference (she has a small head like me). I talked to the doctor about her colic and she said it should be passing soon.  I wanted her to give me a magic pill to take it away ASAP, but she said we have to ride it out!! Bummer.  Now for the shots...Ella did pretty well with the shots.  She screamed for a minute.  After all, the nurse ambushed her.  Then she was fine.  We went on a walk when we got home and she was still fine.  Well, when we got home from the walk...she wasn't fine.  She cried for an hour and couldn't be consoled.  She wouldn't even eat...this is a big deal for the baby who went from 5lbs after she was born to 10.5 lbs now!!  The girl loves to eat.  So, I rocked her.  She's asleep now.  Poor thing.  I feel so bad for her.

Here's the picture I took of her sleeping.  Look at the two little band aids on her chubby little legs...I just hope she feels better soon!  I don't like seeing her in pain :(

Two Months: Time is Flying!!

Ella is two months old!! She was having a rough day so
I couldn't get the best picture. But, I think she looks cute!

Ella as a newborn...1 day old

Ella- two months old.  Check out this adorable outfit
Thanks Leslie and Elham for the dress and Meghan for
the socks!! :)

The house is completely silent except for American Idol on in the background.  Brent had a meeting tonight and Ella is sound asleep in her swing.  It's so quiet that I'm not sure what to do with myself.   As Ella rocks back and forth I can't help but watch her.  She's two months old today!!  The days are flying by.  She's gone from being a teeny tiny newborn to a BABY...who is starting to hold her head up, smile when she's talked to, and trying to push her body up when she's on her stomach.  Where did my newborn baby go?

These past two months have been wonderful even in spite of the "colic monster".  Some days she will cry most of the day and there is nothing we can do.  It's so frustrating.  But, even though she hasn't been the easiest baby, she couldn't be more loved. When she's smiling and cooing with contentment, it melts your heart. We still think she hung the moon just like we did the day she was born.  She's still our little miracle...colic and all!  With these two months going so fast, I know we need to savor every moment- she won't be our little baby for long.

Until next time...that's about all, friends!

Valentine's Day: Then and Now

 Valentine's Day has come and gone. Hope everyone had a GREAT one! This was our eighth Valentine's as a couple.  Wow, time really does fly!!  You may not know this, but our first official date was on Valentine's Day our Sophomore year of college at UGA (2003).  If you've never heard the story of our date, please ask me to tell to it you the next time I see you.  It was a wonderful and UNIQUE first date to say the least.    It started @ East West (for those of you familiar with Athens), carried over to Scott Carter and Alan Brown's downtown apartment where we all had a Valentine's Day dance party and Italian champagne (courtesy of Brent's dad's costumers in Italy), and ended with a cab driver reaching in my purse for more money and the police being called (by the cab driver) saying we owed him more money.  The police promptly took our side and explained to him that it was illegal to reach in a person's purse to get more money.  That is just the very abridged version.  It's too long to type out.  But, I would love to tell it to you sometime.  The reason I am reminiscing about our first Valentine's Day is to give you a reference point of how far we've come.  Last night wasn't marked by a fancy dinner, we certainly didn't have a dance party, and no police were involved (thank goodness).  We had a quiet night in with our little baby girl!  I think we've grown up A LOT since that first date!!

Last night was great!  Ella's colic didn't set in until almost 10:00, so we got to hang out from 7-10 without a screaming baby.  A major plus.  Brent brought home flowers, sweet cards (one for me, one for Ella), and gave me a gift certificate for two massages!  He's always very thoughtful and I think a massage is just the thing I need right now.  We were on the same wavelength because I got him a gift certificate for massages too and a Red Velvet Cake from Cheesecake Royal that was absolutely delicious!!  Luckily he shared his cake with me!  Brent picked up tasty Greek food on the way home from a meeting at the hospital and we ate a quiet dinner out of a Styrofoam to-go box.  It was delicious and perfect.  After that, we ate cake and watched The Bachelor.  The Bachelor was a MAJOR LET DOWN....very boring this week.  But, it was great to spend time together.  Right when our DVR ended the show, Ella began crying and cried until 11:30, then cried some more at 2:00 a.m.-- but I can't complain too much, she slept from 2:00 a.m. until 9:00 a.m.--LUCKY ME!!  So the day was just super.  We got to spend time with Ella and each other.  For us, that was what this Valentine's day was all about- appreciating the gifts God has blessed us with!

As far as Ella goes, she enjoyed Valentines day too!  She played with me in the morning and was very smiley :)  She napped throughout the afternoon.  Brent was able to come home for a couple hours in the afternoon, so we took a walk.  Ella loves walks...she falls into a deep sleep.  It's really funny.  When Brent left for his meeting, she helped me pick up the cake.  I'd say she had a great day. She even got some presents--both grandparents sent her some cute Valentines clothes...I think she already loves fashion!!

Reflecting back on our first Valentine's to now, I see how much has evolved and changed since then.  Brent and I enjoyed two and a half years of college together, finished undergrad at UGA, I got my masters, we got married, bought-renovated-sold a house, Brent graduated dental school, we moved to Dallas, TX, Brent has almost finished his pediatric dentistry residency, we have a little girl (our greatest accomplishment), and we are preparing to move to Savannah for Brent to work in a wonderful dental practice.  When you think about it, we've accomplished so much together since our first Valentine's day.  Honestly, what I think is most important is not WHAT we've accomplished, but that we've accomplished it TOGETHER.  We've stuck by each other through good times and bad, kept a good sense of humor, and have always remembered how much we love each other.  I am so blessed to have Brent as my Valentine each year and couldn't imagine what my life would be like without him.  Today we have Ella to share our love with and it's just amazing to see how our love has bloomed and expanded since that first Valentine's day eight wonderful years ago.  Happy Valentine's Day, once again, to my fabulous husband and our bundle of joy, Ella Bean!  Thank you, God for these blessings- today and always.

Winter Weather, Rats, and Prune Juice...Oh My!

Blaaaaahhh....that's how I'm feeling today.  We've had another spell of winter weather.  It's just icy and cold.  The benefit to this is Brent has been home today which is always nice :-)

Now comes the part about the rats (ugh).  We have been hearing sounds coming from the attic for several months now.  We keep calling our landlord to come fix it... that's suppose to be a perk of renting right? Someone else has to deal with it.  Well, the landlord FINALLY came today to investigate.  Turns out we have rats in the attic AND one that has come up from under the house into this little furnace closet.  Thankfully, they have not entered our actual house (yet).  SO DISGUSTING.  They set traps to catch them, but it's just so unsettling.  My imagination is running wild and I keep thinking...what if one falls through the vent on Ella or gets in her crib...I'll just be glad when they are gone; we're not into sharing our home with rodents.

On to the next one- Prune Juice.  Why is it that no one tells you about the challenging side of being a parent?  For example, some breastfed babies can go 10 days without a bowel movement and it's perfectly okay.  Or babies can strain and turn red, but aren't necessarily constipated.  Just general things that are good to know up front.  Well, Ella has not had a bowel movement in 8 days.  She's been wincing and straining for days now acting like she has to go.  I know she's miserable and we are miserable too because we feel so sorry for her.  We went to the doctor yesterday and she said to give her 3 oz. of juice a day to shock it out of her system.  She had apple yesterday and NOTHING!!  So, today we were forced to move on to prune juice.  If this doesn't make her go, then I'm at a loss (and growing more concerned).  We will definitely be going back to the doctor on Friday (Day 10) if the prune juice doesn't work. Anyway, we are thinking that the juice has to be the ticket and hoping that this resolves soon for our little Ella Bean.

 I never knew babies got constipated and never imagined I'd be blogging about Ella having a bowel movement...but such is motherhood.  What I've learned in Ella's 7 and 1/2 weeks is simple yet so complex- you love your child from the moment you lay eyes on her and want everything to be perfect for her.  It is going to be a struggle for Brent and me to accept that we can't always fix things for her the moment she is in pain, is sick, or her feelings are hurt.  I've been really worried about this bowel movement  and really stressed about her being in pain. Brent has been worried too, but he's a little more calm about it (imagine that).  I finally get how much parents love their children now that I have one of my own.  You just can't stand for them to be hurt, sick, or upset.  We are learning many lessons in this journey.  I think the one that has shocked me the most is how much we love this little girl. I knew we would love her (obviously), but I cannot describe how much we do.  It's surreal sometimes to think such a little baby can change your life so much.  Just wild!

By the way, Ella's colic is much improved!!  We've had several days of Happy Ella back and it's been a lot of fun!  She's smiling and cooing at us (when she's not vigorously straining).  Once we get her "regular" we'll really be rollin'!

Stay warm, friends, in this winter weather!!  And a Happy Birthday to Lauren Fisher...hope you had a great day!!


****This just in...while I was editing the blog post, Ella finally went number two.  Prune Juice works and she's no longer straining!  Who would have ever thought a bowel movement could be so exciting...LOL.  I guess patience, prune juice, and a little blogging therapy pay off!

Super Bowl Sunday!

Yesterday was Ella's first Super Bowl! I don't normally care too much about the Super Bowl, but Brent enjoys it and it's always a good time with good friends and good food! Last night we had a low key three person party- Brent, Ella, and me. Despite several gracious invitations to friends' parties, we decided it was best for us to stay put. Ella's colic plus hardcore football fans, or even the not so hardcore fans that just want to socialize, just didn't add up to a fun night for anyone. So, we had a  night in. We had a wonderful night. Ella was in a great mood and happy during the whole game! No crying!! I made hummus and Brent grilled burgers and made a beautiful gouta and strawberries platter. We had great food and great family time. I think we watched Ella more than the game because she was in an awesome mood. We are hoping that the colic is starting to subside. When it does, maybe Little Miss Ella can start to be social with others again :) Ella didn't wear any team colors- just her black lab onsie that I love! We spent a lovely evening just the three of us. Best Super Bowl to date!

One more thing- last night when Ella woke up to feed, I laid her down on her stomach when I was getting her bib. Well, she rolled from her stomach to back! I think that's pretty good for a 7 week old! We were pretty impressed. Maybe she's realizing that if she's going to wake us up in the middle of the night, she needs to be entertaining. Ha, just kidding! Or maybe she was just so worked up because she was hungry that she tossed herself over.  Either way,  I just can't believe how far she's come from that tiny 4 week early baby. We are truly blessed and grateful! :)

Snow Days

We've had some definite winter weather in Dallas.  It snowed and iced on Moday night and we got 5 more inches of snow last night.  We actually had a good laugh a couple of nights ago night.  Brent was online reading the news and said, "This is funny; this snowstorm that's hit Dallas and the Midwest is called Winter Storm Ella." That will be a random fact to one day share with Ella.   So, we have been bundled up inside as Winter Storm Ella brews outside (and sometimes inside too when our Ella has a colic episode).  We are still fighting the terrible Colic Monster- poor thing :(

It's been really nice to have Snow Day family time.  I feel like snow days are one of the only days when it's perfectly acceptable to relax and do nothing! We've been snuggled on the couch enjoying being together and keeping warm. Brent and I have watched a long TV line up of our current shows- Madmen, American Idol, Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (Brent does not watch this one with me), Jersey Shore (trashy, but so entertaining), and Lockdown ( a terrible show about hardcore prisons that Brent likes-it's very scary to think there are people in the world like that).  We figured we better watch TV while we can.  Pretty soon it will be very censored for Ella (and call me rigid, but I think kids should watch very little TV).  I think it over stimulates them- just my opinion.

As for other Herrin news, Ella is seven weeks today!  Here are some of the latest going on with her:

- She is smiling when you talk to her (if she's not colicky)

- She loves bobbing her head up and down, side to side.  She even tries to use her arms to push up, but she's definitely not strong enough yet.  She has, however, been given the gift of perseverance and and keeps trying though!

- She's grabbing my hair when she feeds and grabbing towards her mobile too.  Last night, Dolce was laying next to her and Ella grabbed her fur.  You should have seen the look on Dolce's face.  She was uncomfortable, but didn't try to bite her!  Big improvement!

-Most exciting is that she is noticing more about her surroundings.  Last night, she realized we had dogs for the first time.  I was taking a picture of her and the dogs were hovering over her as usual.  She looked up and saw them for the first time and just stared at them in amazement.  It is pretty cool to watch a little baby discover the world and we are enjoying every minute of it!
-Ella continues to love our horrible singing.  When she is crying uncontrollably the only thing that will get her to stop is if we sing some outrageous up tempo song.  We've made up tons of verses to "Down By the Bay" on the fly.  She also loves "Dancing Queen."  Whatever makes her stop crying, we will gladly do!  I told Brent one day she will be getting married and we'll be remembering sitting on the couch singing silly songs to her!

Having Brent home this week during the snow days has been awesome.  We are getting to see her do these new things together.  We wonder what she will do next, and continue to thank God for our little gift.  We also continue to pray that Ella's gas pain will be relieved sooner than later and this colic will subside. In the meantime, we are savoring the moments when she's happy and enjoying her as she discovers the world!