Dear Ella . . .

Oh baby girl! You're getting so big! Yesterday we had a mommy-daughter shopping day and we had so much fun! I just love spending time with you. We went to Plano to The Posh Petunia and picked out your birthday dress and a cute party hat. Then we had a little lunch date at Chick-Fil-A. You ate chicken nuggets and drank apple juice from a juice box straw like a big girl! (I guess we'll need to find you a sippy cup with a straw soon!) Then we went to Hobby Lobby to buy supplies for your first birthday party.

You and I were both wiped out after that, so we came home and snuggled and dozed in our chair until it was time to go to Relay for Life. We got to see Bumpaw and Grandma, Aunt Trishy and Taylor and Sarah, and Aunt Carrie, Uncle Al, Lucas and Nicholas. You even got to hear Mommy sing with our church band! What fun!!

I just loved our day together, my sweet big girl! You light up my life!!

Love, Mommy

Dear Ella . . .

You have a precious new game. In the mornings when we're nursing, you will randomly unlatch, look at me with your big blue eyes, and say "Hi!" It is the cutest thing ever! I could just melt!

Dear Ella . . .

You busted your lip last night. You were playing around in your bed and popped it good. It bled, you cried, Daddy freaked out, and Mommy had to stay calm for all three of us, but it absolutely broke my heart. It is so hard to see you hurt! If I could, I would have taken that pain away for you.

It hit me while I was snuggling and comforting you last night that I was getting a tiny glimpse of the cost God, our Father paid when he sent his son to die for us. Being a mom has put Jesus's story in a whole new light! Oh how he must have hurt and how he must love us to have willingly let his child suffer and die to save us! What a humbling thought. But the best news, baby girl, is that after Jesus died, God was able to bring him back! He rose from the dead and he is alive still today! He lives in my heart and Daddy's heart, and one day, I pray, you will ask him to live in your heart, too.

Sweetheart, don't ever forget God's love story for us. Yes, when it's Easter time we have lots of fun, like we did today. We hunted for Easter eggs, saw the Easter bunny (you LOVED him and wanted to poke his nose!), and when you wake up in the morning, you'll have a special gift in your Easter basket! But all of that is meant to remind us of God's great love and how he makes all things new. I can't wait to share more of that story with you as you get older!

Happy 1st Easter, little bug!
Love,
Mommy

Dear Ella . . .

In one more day you will be 11 months! Wow!! Month 10 has been a busy month for you. You're turning more and more into a toddler and less of a baby every day. It's another one of those Mommy-Joy feelings - deep sadness that the sweet baby days don't last forever, but pride, amazement, and joy at getting to know you even better and the new things you accomplish every day.

Here are a few sweet memories and milestones from your 10th month.


• You can talk! You can say ball, dog, quack, woof, uh-oh (sort of), hi, and daddy. You still babble all the time too and that's when I occasionally hear a precious "mama" come out!
• Your very favorite word is ball! And boy do you get excited to see one! On the floor, at the Easter egg hunt, in the produce aisle at the grocery store - you find them everywhere!
• You were regularly wearing size 4 diapers but you had a growth spurt and got a little taller and thinner so we're back to size 3s for now.
• You are in between clothes sizes right now. Some of your 9 month clothes still fit well and quite a bit of 12 month clothes are working for you too. It depends on the brand and the style (an issue even is grown-up girls have!).
• You are a speed crawler! You can go anywhere you want now and you love for us to chase you!
• You cruise around on all of the furniture, you can walk holding only one hand or finger, you can stand up without help (sometimes), and you can stand on your own for long stretches at a time. I would not be surprised to see you walking before your birthday!
• You now have tooth number 7 and 8 on either side of your two front bottom teeth.
• You love to feed yourself now - to the point that sometimes Mommy and Daddy have to sneak in spoonfuls of your other food around what you're trying to eat!
• Your favorite big girl foods are Gerber Puffs (boy, do you get excited when you see them come out!), freeze-dried yogurt melts, whole grain toast, bananas, avocados, cheddar, and recently rotisserie chicken. I also may have found a way that you like peas and carrots! The frozen ones just wouldn't get soft enough for you, but we tried them from a can last night and you gobbled them up!
• You're still nursing 4 times a day (or
two nursings/two bottles on weekdays when I'm at work). It's still a struggle to pump enough for you while I'm away but I am confident at this point that we'll make it to your birthday!
• You got to be in your first wedding! On March 9 you were a beautiful flower girl in Uncle Jonathan and Aunt Olivia's wedding! You walked down the aisle holding Mommy's hands right next to Evie Bearden and her mommy. You were so precious!
• Your independence is starting to take off! You love to crawl/cruise away from me, but then after a minute or two you come crawling back and lay your head down on me to "love on Mommy". You do the same thing to Daddy too, and it just melts our hearts all over again.
• You are so loved, baby girl, and I love that you are really starting to show that back to us. You are beautiful inside and out! And as immeasurable as our love is for you, don't ever forget that there is One who loves you even more!

Love and joy,
Mommy

Dear Ella . . .

I've hesitated to add this to your journal but I want us both to be able to look back one day and see how God brings us through this.

Mommy's struggling to pump enough milk for you to eat while I'm at work during the day. I have been taking supplements for about a month now and they seemed to be helping until this week. I'm not sure if I need to try something else or if you're just eating less right now because you've had a stuffy nose.

I try not to worry over it (I know that stress makes it worse), but it absolutely breaks my heart to think about not having our sweet snuggly feedings anymore or to not hear you singing to me while you eat.

My ultimate goal is still to make it to at least your birthday and then a little into this summer. Short term goal? To make it to my spring break (a week and a half from now) so we can nurse all day for over a week and I can pump each night and hopefully build up our supply. I'm praying that will give us the momentum we need to get to your birthday.

I'm giving this over to God day by day (sometimes moment by moment) and trusting that His plan for you and me is best - whatever that may be. It's hard, but I'm trying. :)

I love you sweet baby and I cherish every little moment we have together - nursing, singing, snuggling, playing.

Love always,
Mommy

Dear Ella . . .

We've had a few milestones here lately.

•You are now a speed crawler and are starting to get into things - especially Gizmo's things.

•You are becoming braver and letting go of things as you're standing. You can stand by yourself (only when you're in the mood) for several seconds at a time).

• Yesterday you walked and were only holding on to my pinkie for support! You did it several times through the day and are getting more and more confident on your feet. I think you'll be really walking before April rolls around.

• You ate baby yogurt with bananas for the first time yesterday. You weren't too sure about it at lunch, but you gobbled it up for supper!

• We put your hair in pigtails yesterday and OH MY GOODNESS it was cute! I didn't think you could possibly be any more adorable than you already are but boy was I wrong!

• You are asleep (and ever so lightly snoring) in my arms right now and it's the most beautiful sight. You haven't been napping well lately and it's starting to affect your nighttime sleep too. My plan right now is to enjoy this warm, sleepy, snuggly Sunday morning and let you get the rest you need.

I love you precious little love!
Love always,
Mommy

Dear Ella . . .

I love you so much, sweet baby. Your open mouth kisses, your sweet baby smell, your squishy kissable cheeks, everything about you just makes me melt. You are the most precious gift, Ella baby. :)

My favorite thing right now is the way you "sing" to me when you're nursing. You live to use your singing voice and you sing long beautiful "ahhhh"s everywhere - especially when we're in the car or concentrating on something (Grandmommy says I did that as a baby, too, but I said "ehhhh"). When you're nursing though, you have a special "ahh" that you use. You unlatch, and look at me and sing like you're communicating a deep truth. The look in your eyes tells it all. I love our special mommy/daughter songs.

Dear Ella . . .

I can hardly believe how quickly you are learning things right now! At this rate, you'll be ready for Kindergarten by the time you're 2!

Today you showed us that you have developed a great passive vocabulary. You now wave, clap (especially when we say,"Yea, Ella!" - which is pretty much all the time right now), and show us your tongue on command! I am so proud of you!!

You also hit another big milestone tonight. I sat you in your crib so I could get your pj's ready and when I turned back around you had pulled up to your knees. You then pulled yourself all the way up to a standing position (with mommy watching carefully)! Daddy and I will be lowering your mattress first thing in the morning (if not in the middle of the night!).

I can't believe you're already big enough for that! It wasn't that long ago that you were sleeping in your crib for the first time. Oh how precious and tiny you were all swaddled up in there!

I guess this is yet another "mommy-joy" moment. It's heartbreaking and heart bursting all at the same time.

I'm so proud of you, baby love!

Dear Ella

You've had a busy week, kiddo! On Saturday, Jan 13 you hit two major milestones! You crawled on all fours for the first time (though you're still not going everywhere just yet - and Mommy's ok with that) AND you started clapping!

Oh how you love to clap! You've been clapping for everybody all week (you had a play date with little Audrey Khoury on Thurs and Fri and even clapped for her when she burped!).

On Thursday, January 17 you figured out how to wave! You can wave hi and bye on command (and whenever else you feel like it) now! We made a happy birthday video for Granddaddy yesterday and waved to him too. He thought it was the best present ever!

On top of all of that, we are getting you over the flu. Yep, even after getting the flu shot, you ended up catching the flu. Thankfully the fever only lasted a couple of days, but we're still battling the leftover congestion. I am officially a believer in the flu shot! That could have been so much worse!

You are growing and changing so fast, little one. It seems you reach another milestone every day. Through it all you are still the happiest, most loving little girl I've ever met. I am so blessed to be your mommy!

I love you!

Dear Ella . . .

Here we are, just a few days from turning 8 months old and you just got your 6th tooth! I'm hoping we're done with the teething for a little while - I don't see any more ready to come in soon. Whew!

Dear Ella . . .

Tooth #5 showed up yesterday (7 months, 18 days). This is your front right tooth. I guess we'll have to stop telling people that all you want for Christmas is your two front teeth! I wonder if it's too late to change Santa's list . . . Christmas is only a week away . . .


(Tooth #6 is ready to pop out any day now, too!)

Dear Ella . . .

Occasionally I catch a glimpse of the little girl you will become and it blows me away. You are so beautiful, so sweet, and so happy.

Then there are times when I still see the precious tiny newborn that I brought home from the hospital over 7 months ago. You sweet baby cheeks and little button nose steal my heart just like they did the first time I saw you.

You are truly the most wonderful thing that has ever happened to your Daddy and me. What a blessing we've been given!

Love,
Mommy

Dear Ella . . .

A 7 1/2 Month Update:

Tooth #4 made its grand entrance yesterday! It's your top front tooth on the left. 7 months, 15 days

You also started babbling with your B's yesterday! You love to say, "Babababa!" And you're still chattering away with "Mamamama" and "Dadadada".

You weighed just over 18lbs last weekend when we went to the doctor. You are wearing mostly nine month sized clothes now and are have been in size 3 diapers for 2 months! That's the longest you've been in any diaper size yet, so I finally took all of the other sizes that you've outgrown and exchanged them for size 3's. I'm so thankful for Walmart!

You got to meet Santa last week. Daddy and I were afraid that you would be scared, but you loved him! You smiled and talked and even read a little book with him. Santa said you were so good that you should stick around and show all the other sweet babies what to do!

We're getting ready for your first Christmas and you are really enjoying yourself. You love the lights on the Christmas tree and the adorable nativity scene Grandmommy and Granddaddy sent you. (You love to eat/gum/slobber on the cow and Mary).

You are sitting up so well now! I still try to put a pillow or the boppy behind you when you sit on the floor because you like to throw yourself backwards, but I don't have to sit with my hand behind you ready to catch you anymore. You're getting so big!

You also took your last bath in the baby tub right before Thanksgiving (which was technically when you were still 6 months). You LOVE sitting and splashing and playing in the big girl tub! Mommy has learned not to wear any long sleeves or shirts that shouldn't get wet since I end up almost as wet as you by the end of bath time!

You want to crawl so bad but you're not quite there yet. You can get up on all fours but your back legs slide out from under you and you end up scooting backwards. You can also turn yourself around in circles. You love doing that in your bed and you get so proud of yourself.

You've had a nasty cough and cold for the last week that I'm afraid is turning into an ear infection. I found scratches in your little ear this morning from where you've been tugging on it. It breaks my heart when you don't feel well. Even when you're sick though, you're still such a sweet and happy baby.

You're adorable little personality is shining through more and more each day and everyone you meet falls in love with you. Your Daddy and I are totally smitten. We love you so much sweet girl!

Dear Ella . . .

We traveled back to Alabama for your first Thanksgiving this week and had so much fun seeing Grandmommy, Granddaddy, Aunt Anna, and Uncle Jonathan (Aunt Olivia had to work so we missed seeing her).

You ended up getting your first ear infection while we were there (brought on by the nasty cold you had all last week) so you were extra clingy to Mommy most of the time. We also discovered that, like your Mommy, you are allergic to penicillin. You broke out in a rash all over your tummy and legs. We won't do that again.

You are becoming more and more aware of your surroundings every day now. You're constantly looking around and reaching for things - you love Mommy's glasses and Daddy's hair. You are also talking all the time! I think we left for Alabama with a baby and came back with a chattering magpie! I just love hearing your little babbles! :)

Dear Ella . . .

Tooth number 3 has officially poked through! It's your top left tooth (between your front tooth and your incisor). I felt it for the first time last night (though I'm sure you've been feeling it quite a bit longer). 6 months, 9 days

Dear Ella . . .

We had a bit of an adventure this weekend. We got up early Thursday morning and drove to Grandmommy and Granddaddy's house in Alabama to visit and let Mommy go to her 10 year high school reunion. We had so much fun!!

You watched Mommy ride in the homecoming parade and went to the football game on Friday night. You looked so cute in your little Fayette Tiger outfit! On Saturday we went to Hanceville to visit Big Grandma and PopPop then that night Grandmommy, Grandaddy, and Aunt Anna got to babysit you and put you to bed while Mommy and Daddy went to the reunion dinner. They all love you so much!! I wish they could see you more often. Today (Sunday) we're on the road again heading back to Texas. The good news is that we'll be back in just a few weeks to celebrate your first Thanksgiving! I can't wait!!

Dear Ella . . .

Tooth number TWO has officially popped through! You now have two bottom teeth and they are so cute!! They are not out far enough to see with the camera yet but I'm sure we'll get a picture very soon. :)

Dear Ella . . .

You have your first tooth!! It officially sprouted overnight (I KNEW you were teething)! It's your bottom left central incisor, in case you were wondering.

How is it possible that you're big enough to have your first tooth?!? I know I say this all the time, but you are really growing up so fast!! My heart can hardly keep up with all of these changes and the surge of joy and love that comes with every new day.

I love you so much sweet baby bug!!
Love,
Mommy

Dear Ella . . .

We've had a busy few weeks around here! Two weeks ago you tried rice cereal for the first time. Daddy and I both got to feed you. You weren't sure about it at first but I think you liked it. You ended up wearing about half of it!

Your little tummy didn't like it too much though and you ended up spitting up all weekend. Daddy and I decided we would wait a week and try again.

Viral rash  :(

Unfortunately, you came down with a tummy bug and ran a fever for the first time at the end of last week - so we had to wait on trying cereal again. You even broke out in a fever rash. It just broke my heart. Your sweet little personality still shined through though. Look at this beautiful smile.

Sweet happy baby, even with a fever.

You felt better on Monday and by that night your rash was totally gone. We had some sweet snuggle time Monday night - I think your little body was tired from being sick. We rocked and talked and sang in our rocking chair most of the evening. You even found my face and lovingly patted me over and over. I think we both needed some good mommy-baby time.  What a sweet memory.  :)

This is Daddy's busy season.  He was gone last weekend to play with the Midland Odessa Symphony and Chorale (where we used to live).  This weekend he's in Abilene and next weekend in San Angelo (and the weekend after that we get to go home to Alabama to see Grandmommy and Granddaddy!).  We both miss him a lot - I'm so thankful that you have him for a daddy (and that I have him for a husband).

This morning it's just you, me, and the Gizzy-bear around here.  You woke up happy and talked to yourself and squawk for a little while until you decided you were hungry.  Then you nursed and we tried cereal again.  You are really getting the hang of eating from a spoon!  I'm so proud of you!

Dear Ella . . .

Twenty weeks old. At twenty weeks pregnant with you I felt like I had been pregnant forever. The thought of twenty more weeks before we could meet you was unfathomable and seemed like a lifetime away. But, the past twenty weeks since you were born have blazed by!

My life for the last year has been chomped up into 20 week segments. These last 20 have been by far the quickest and best!

I love you so much!
Mommy