4 months

Miss Ellie is 4 months as of yesterday!

I know I sound like a broken record with each of these monthly posts, but seriously, how have 4 months flashed before my eyes so quickly?!? Our sweet girl is changing so much and while I love each new development, time needs to slow down. She's getting SO big, SO fast and there's only so much this mama can take!!
 

 

 

 

 

 

As of lately, Ellie....

is officially sleeping in her crib (more to come on this later)

grabs and plays with toys

occasionally rolls over from tummy to back

loves tummy time

smiles all. day. long.

survived Mama's 2 weeks back at work (we won't discuss how well Mama survived)

is still nursing like a pro

loves hanging out in her jumperoo

wears size 3-6 month clothing and size 2 diapers

still wakes up twice a night 

takes 3-4 naps a day (usually an hour each, sometimes longer.. if I'm lucky)

LOVES standing and sitting up

is outgrowing her blooming tub

loves watching and laughing at the puppies

is becoming a little chunky monkey with rolls on her thighs

talks to herself

likes to copy mama's sounds and daddy's laughs

licks - everything!

sucks on her hands like it's going out of style

Sweet girl, it's hard to imagine life without you. You've changed our lives for the better and truly have made me a better person. We love you so much and thank you for being the sweetest, most precious, and adorable baby I know. We're SO lucky to call you ours.
 

Top Baby Blogs reset, so we could really use the love!! Please vote! :)

Linking up with the Friday Baby Shower



Mother's Day

Today is not only my very first Mother's Day, but this day holds a very special place in my heart.

It's the anniversary of the BIG fat positive pregnancy test!

 

It's incredibly hard to believe that just a short year ago today we found out we were expecting a little baby and here we are today with the sweetest, most gorgeous, happy, and healthy little one.

 

 

I couldn't have asked for a more perfect baby to call mine.

It truly is my calling in life. I love being her Mommy and cherish each and every moment that

I get to spend with her and my little family. I really am SO blessed!

 

Let's take a little trip down memory lane....

 

 

 

 

 

And to the other fabulous Mothers in my life.

 

 

My mom has been such an amazing and wonderful mother over the years. She has the biggest heart and can never say no, something I love her for. While things haven't always been easy, she's always done the best she can and has continued to be a great role model throughout the ups and downs. She has now been promoted from Mama to Nana and she couldn't be more thrilled, which she never fails to remind us. :) We love her and are so thankful to have her in our lives.

 

 

 

My mother-in-law is equally as wonderful and I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful woman that I can also call Mom. She raised a handsome, intelligent, funny, kind, genuine, and chivalrous man that I not only call my husband, but now the BEST father for my sweet girl and for that I am grateful. She is a wonderful Mom and Grandma. We love her!

 

 

 

Finally, but certainly not least are all of the Grandmas in our lives. We have quite a few and each and every one of them holds a special place in our hearts. We love you all!

 

To all the other Mamas in my life, I'm so thankful to call you friends. You're amazing mothers and I hope you have a super fabulous and special day celebrating with your littles.

 

Happy Mother's Day!!

 

On My Heart: The Working Mom

The time is coming.

 

The time in which I will head back to work and leave my sweet girl in the care of someone else. It's so much different than leaving her with Daddy for an hour to run errands or for a few hours with Nana so that we can have a date night. I can't explain it, but it's different.

 

While I know JP and my mom are fully capable of taking care of Ellie, there's a (very selfish) part of me that still feels like I take care of her the best. We have yet to leave her in the care of anyone else for these same reasons. It all comes down to the fact that I'm terrified.

100% terrified of what will happen when I'm gone.

 

I worry that she'll wake up from a nap and be sad because it's not me showering her with kisses and giggles, if she even naps for that matter. I worry that she'll learn to consistently roll or really giggle for the first time when I'm gone. Don't even get me started on the anxiety I feel about her saying her first word or taking her first steps in the eyes of another. Such a large part of me feels I'M entitled to be the first to witness these precious first moments. The thought of someone else other than her parents taking those from us breaks my heart. I feel like someone is stealing time from me. MY time. I hate the thought of her crying endlessly because she wants nothing more than to be in the arms of her mama. She won't understand why I'm not there every day. Will she feel like I've abandoned her? While I know I'm not the only one that can take care of my perfect little sweet pea, I'm her mother. I feel as if I am the best equipped at taking care of and meeting her needs. Will she sleep well? Will she get enough food? Is she going to be happy? Will she smile and coo? Will she feel loved and taken care of? Will she be soothed when she's sad? Will she get enough interactive time throughout the day? Will she be played with rather than being left to play on her own? Will she be talked to and engaged throughout the day? These thoughts consume me. I know it's not healthy, but I can't stop.

 

I'm her mama and I wish more than anything in the world that I could stay home with her, full time. I know it's not for some, but I really, really wish that was in the cards for us now.

 

Don't get me wrong, I am SO incredibly grateful that we've been able to have me stay home for the past 15 weeks almost completely unpaid. But here we are. Next week I'll head back to finish out the last 2 weeks of the school year. Then, I'm off again for summer, another 2 months that I get to spend with my little. As much as I'm really struggling with the idea of leaving her for the next 2 weeks, I am so happy that JP and my mom are able to take the time off to spend with Ellie rather than sending her to day care. I look at it as my practice run. It's the time I need to learn to let go and trust that she will be taken care of. I know that I'm going to fail miserably at this task, but I have to try. Really hard. There isn't any other option at this point. Yet, here I am, just a few days away from going back for a measly long two weeks and I'm already stressing out about how I'll be able to handle this come August. I'm leaving her with people I trust for the next two weeks, how in the world am I supposed to do this come August - with people I don't know well or fully trust?

Linking up with the Friday Baby Shower

New House

JP and I started glancing around at houses last summer, then began officially looking in October.

7 months later and we've found our home!

We close on May 31st.

Hallelujah!

It's a 4 bedroom/3 bath home. Huge backyard that will have a pool come summer 2014. The size, crown molding, attention to detail, custom cabinets, appliances, all of it. We're in love!

Front views - we'll be redoing the front yard.

In love with the front door!

This is our favorite room in the house!

Formal dining and living areas.

View of the family room and upstairs.

Views of the master bedroom.

Master bathroom/walk-in - my second favorite room!

Upstairs and downstairs guest bathrooms.

Views of the yard, which we'll also be redoing some.

There ya have it, our new home! :)

On another (quick) note, we plan on renting out our current home. If you know anyone that needs a 3bedroom/3bath place in Tempe (5 minutes from ASU!), it will be available July 1st, after some minor renovations! :)