Friday Favorites



Do you see what I see?

The constant hand-gnawing and drool clued us in.

So many pictures. So many memories to record.  So many changes.  Our little boo is already five months old/twenty-one weeks old.  Growing like a weed, we have gone from measuring Ella's feedings in "ml's" to "whole bottles full."  She sits.  She tries to escape from all bouncers, carseats, and cribs.  She is constantly sharing her thoughts with us in her gurgly Chewbaca language.  She loves her feet, the song "Let it Go" from Frozen, and watching people brush their teeth.  Oh, and she has TEETH!  Two tiny chompers in the bottom middle that totally caught us by surprise.  I can hear her future teachers already: "Mrs. Granados, I'm sorry to tell you this, but Ella... well, she bit a classmate today."  Below are some of my favorite pictures from the last week or so. 

Whenever I put Ella in her carseat, I squeal, "We're going on a trippy!" and she gets so excited, regardless of whether we're going to do laundry or see Nana.  She even gets excited to go to the doctor, and rarely cries during any of those trips.  Best errand buddy ever.

Still her favorite part of the day.  



We have hours and hours of fun together.  I love being this special girl's mom.  She is constantly making me smile... laugh... cheering me up if I'm down.  And, of course, she has come to love the camera.  Just look at what a little showoff she is!  Until it gets to the one on the bottom left, and then she's sooo over it.  

Foot-obsessed.  

Sometimes, I look at her and think, "There is no way that huge child is my baby Ella!"  Being the overly-emotional person that I am, I cry about it regularly.  Above, she's taking a nap next to me while I worked on homework.  Oh, that potbelly...! :')

This week, I finally had to start strapping Ella into her bouncer, swing, etc. (don't worry, I always kept a close eye on her when leaving her unstrapped) because she has gotten to the point of sitting up and trying to pull herself out.  She was not too amused with her restraints.  

That Parenting Moment When...

That parenting moment when...
... you realize you're about to take a long, delicious sip from your daughter's bottle.
... you peek over the edge of your daughter's crib, praying to see a peacefully sleeping infant, and all you see are those big, wide-awake, terrifying eyes.  Watching their prey.  *music from Psycho*
... you realize why your daughter is so easily calmed when you sway her from side to side while she stares at her favorite lamp -- you are hypnotizing her.
... you also realize that she smiles at the aforementioned lamp far more than she smiles at you.  
... you have to choose between eating and sleeping.
... you find yourself in tears while listening to the soundtrack of Disney's Tarzan.  This song has taken on a whole new meaning to me.  *sob*  

... your daughter takes a two hour nap strapped into her carseat after you've arrived home because you really, really, really don't want to wake her up. 

... everyone suddenly becomes a potential babysitter.  

Ella and my slightly reluctant younger brother Matthew.  She loved every second.

... you convince yourself that your daughter looks just like you at her age even though, fortunately for her, there is no resemblance.  

Me at birth.  Oh, that forehead....

Friday Favorites

I would like to start off by saying the following: You know you're a mom when you're happy to have someone spit up on you.  After feeding about thirty minutes ago, Ella had a pretty big spitup all over me.  I was thrilled simply because I was swimming in it, yet none got on her outfit.  It's the little things....  Anyway, here are my favorite pictures from the week. 



That outfit, though!  I can't get over it.  Granted, it came off after about an hour when I realized that the tutu style, although utterly adorable, was not conducive to changing poopy diapers.  This dress will be reserved for church, doctor's appointments, trips to see family, etc.  Trust me, I learned this lesson the hard way.  RIP, cute and ruffly chevron romper. 

Yes, this is how my child sleeps.  She is not the cuddly, hold-me-close type of sleeper.  She is the I-must-not-have-my-arms-or-legs-covered-by-even-a-centimeter-of-fabric type of sleeper.

I was getting ready to change her diaper and she brook out into the hugest stretch.  This is a habit with Ella; she's done it since day one.  Which I guess partially accounts for all the movement I felt while pregnant. 

This is I guess what you could call a non-favorite.  I think she's getting too big for the infant insert in her bouncer.  *tear*  The first step is admitting it.... at least I'm out of the denial stage.  





Friday Favorites

These are the pictures taken during the week that I adore.  I want to do one of these posts every Friday so that I can have that wonderfully alliterative title... so work with me here and pretend it's still Friday.

This week, Ella became obsessed with the animals hanging over her bouncer (left) and swing (right).  Not to the point of trying to reach out and touch them yet, but she legit will stare at them for hours with that same face of amazement plastered over her face.    

This outfit would have made for a cute enough picture.  The hand gesture was a bonus.

Spending time cuddled on the couch with me and daddy.  There is no one in this world who can make her light up like Edwin. It melts my heart.  As you can tell from the picture on the left, she's glued to his every move and word.   



Let's be real, even though every piece of newborn literature tells us not to, sometimes we nap with our babies.  There, I said it.