North GA State Fair / Auburn and Georgia Football

This past weekend was so much fun. Dave's sister, Dena, and our little nephew, Josh, were in town for the week due to Hurricane Ike hitting Houston so bad. Chris, Dena, and Josh just recently moved to Houston and I am so excited about them living there since I have other family that also lives in the Houston area. As soon as Ella Kate gets a little bit bigger Dave and I plan to make a trip to Texas and visit both sides of the fam. I have to take a minute to brag on my brother-in-law Chris. As some of you know Dena and Chris have lived in Washington D.C. for quite some time - in fact they helped Dave spring the big surprise proposal at the Lincoln Memorial. However due to a huge job promotion they now live in Houston where Chris is the Bureau Chief for Reuters. He was an energy correspondent for Reuters in D.C. and I thought he was a big wig there as we frequently saw him on CNN, etc. but now he is an official big wig and we are so very proud of him. Poor Chris had to work all through the Hurricane but his stories made the front page of Yahoo, Comcast, etc the morning after Ike hit Houston. While Chris did not get to come in town to visit this weekend it was fun having Dena and my sweet little nephew to play with.

On Saturday afternoon Dave, Ella Kate, PaPa (my father-in-law), LeLe(mother-in-law), Dena(sister-in-law), and Josh(nephew) all met up at the North Georgia State Fair. Ella Kate and Josh did great at the fair and Dave and I snuck away for a minute and rode a couple of crazy rides. I felt like a 12 year old kid again standing in line getting nervous about getting on the ride. But it was so much fun!!! LeLe took tons of pictures of all the farm animals, rides, etc. - as she plans on making Josh and Ella Kate a picture book about what you do at the fair. In fact she even took a picture of a hot dog to show what you eat at the fair. Such a cute idea. I really hope that Ella Kate gets some of the creativity genes from the Elliott side of the family.

My mom came into town around 3pm Saturday afternoon and Ella Kate and I both were so excited to see her. It had been far to long so I had a great time showing my Mom (Nanna) all of Ella Kate's new tricks. Saturday evening we all went over to LeLe and PaPa's for dinner. Ella Kate and Josh of course kept everyone entertained. Josh is the sweetest little boy and sat in his high chair so very well mannered and ate chicken, peas, etc. and Miss Prissy Pants literally googled and gaggled for 30 mins straight. It was by far the most I have heard her talk. My mom and I were sitting across the table from each other and Dave's Dad (PaPa) said well "She definitely came by all that talking naturally." My mom and I do like to talk :)

Saturday evening we all watched the Auburn and Georgia games and Ella Kate was all dressed up to support her teams. I have attached some pics.

Sunday morning we went to church and then my mom and I went to a Baby Shower that some sweet ladies at our church hosted. The shower was so much fun and Ella Kate got some precious things.

My mom was able to stay in town until Monday evening so she got to spend alot of quality time with Miss Ella Kate and it was really nice to have a little extra help.

Ella Kate's Sweet Smile - 12 weeks

Miss Ella Kate has the sweetest smile and it just makes my day everytime she grins. I am always trying to capture her smile on camera and I finally did this morning. Her absolute favorite time of the day is first thing in the morning when I pick her up from her crib to change her diaper. Attached are some pics from this morning.

Shopping with Becca and Baby Ty

Well this has been a great week!! Ella Kate and I have just been little social butterflies visting friends/family. On Tuesday afternoon we met one of my college roommates (Whitney) for lunch. It is always so much fun to catch up with Miss Whitney and she held Ella Kate and put her right to sleep during lunch which was so nice!!! Wednesday we went to Carrie Beth's, one of my co-workers, baby shower and then met Dave for lunch. Today was an especially fun day as Ella Kate had her first official playdate with Baby Ty. Becca and I met around 10am this morning to go to a big Children's Consignment Sale at the Smryna Civic Center. It is just so much fun to shop for little girls and boys clothes. We both got such cute things for great deals. We carried them in their Baby Bjorn's so we could have two hands to shop and they did great. After shopping we went to Gabrielle's (the best bakery/deli in the world) for lunch. It is my absolute favorite place to go for breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, etc. It is right down from our house and I just love it!!! I have attached pics of Ella Kate laying on our bed while I was putting my make-up on this morning and then pics of Ella Kate and Ty sitting in their carriers while Becca and I were eating lunch.

After lunch Ella Kate and I headed home and I decided to put together the Jumperoo that we had gotten as a shower gift. I was thinking that she might be ready for it in the next couple of weeks but oh no she loved it now. It is amazing how mobile she is getting these days. She has definately discovered her hands and particularly likes grabbing at the whale and rattles that I hvae hanging from her play mat. She just kicks her little legs like crazy and oh boy she is definately going to be a talker. She just coos and coos and everyday it gets a little louder :)

11 Weeks - First Hike to the Top of Kennesaw Mtn / MHS 10 Year Reunion

This past weekend was so much fun as we spent alot of time visiting with friends and family. Friday afternoon when Dave got home from work we took Ella Kate on a hike to the very top of Kennesaw Mtn. We had taken her up Pigeon Hill and Little Kennesaw Mtn when she was around 6 weeks but this was the first trip to the top of Big Kennesaw Mtn. Attached is a pic with her foot touching the marker that marks the top peak of the mountain. She did great on the hike and it was a fun for Dave and I too.
Saturday was Dave's 10 Year High School Reunion. We had a lot of fun at the reunion and it was great to get to see everyone. Ella Kate spent her first night away from us on Saturday night at Dave's Mom and Dad's (Ella Kate's LeLe and PaPa). It was nice to have a night out but it sure was hard to leave her. Although I knew she was in great hands I just missed her so much - needless to say we were back over at LeLe's and PaPa's around 8am the following morning. The other picture I have attached is of Ella Kate's Great Grandmother (Dave's Dad's Mom) giving her a bottle on Saturday afternoon.

Happy 4th Anniversary

My my how time flies. Yesterday was mine and Dave's 4th wedding anniversary. It is hard to believe that we have been married for four years and have known each other now for 10 years. Dave, Ella Kate, and I went to a nice dinner last night where I quizzed Dave on all of our firsts.. (i.e. where did we go on our first date, when was our first kiss, etc.) It was funny watching him squirm but he passed with flying colors. Ella Kate was just perfect at dinner. She just smiled and laughed through the first part of dinner and then fell asleep like a little angel until we got home. Everyone has been telling me how much Ella Kate looks just like Dave and when I was watching her smile last night I realized that they were right. You think that your daughter is supposed to look like you but oh no she is a spitting image of her daddy. People have also told me that I look like my dad and my sister looks more like my mom. While I have a beautiful mom I am proud to look like my dad and Miss Ella Kate sure is lucky too.

10.5 Weeks - Dinner with Friends

Last night we had Scott and Julie (who is expecting Baby Caroline any day now), Tyler, Becca, Emmi Grace, and Baby Ty over for dinner. It was so much fun to see everyone and Miss Emmi Grace who is almost 2 kept us all entertained. Ella Kate is only 2.5 weeks older than Ty so it is going to be so much fun to watch them grow up together. And of course little Caroline will only be a little over two months younger than both Ella Kate and Ty. Becca and I both have a "slight" obsession with clothes so she is a great shopping buddy. In fact we have a shopping day planned for next Thursday.

I also went to the Healthplace gym again yesterday and left Ella Kate in the nursery for about an hour. I am so thankful that they have such a good nursery so that I can have an hour to myself to workout. I have to call and make a reservation anytime I want to use the Healthplace nursery which can be a little challenging at times but it is totally worth it b/c they have a 1:1 ratio for babies. So I know that Ella Kate is getting their full attention. When I came back to pick her up after my workout she was just smiling and batting at her little farm animal friends on her carrier which made me feel so good that she was having a good time while I was away.

Ella Kate is making real progress on rolling over. Well I think it is big progress at least :) She likes to sleep on her side even though I religiously lay her down on her back for naps and bedtime. When she is playing on her play mat she gets on her side and basically gets her tummy and feet rolled over but her head and one arm continuously get in her way. It is so fun watching her try to figure it out. I definitely think she may have a tinge of my stubbornness b/c when I try to help her rollover she gets mad every time - but if I leave her alone she is more than content struggling. It is like she is telling me I will figure this out for myself Thanks :)

She is still sleeping great. She actually slept 12 hours last night. I usually get up before her and then hear her squirming around and go get her. As soon as I pick her up in the mornings I immediately lay her on the changing table to change her diaper. When she first opens her eyes she always smiles and giggles - I of course think it is b/c she is so happy to see me. It just makes my day - in fact the last few days Dave and I have been racing to pick her up in the morning b/c it is so fun to see how excited she gets when she sees us.

I know that this was a long blog post but hopefully when Ella Kate looks back and reads this one day she will see how much her Dad and I love her and what a perfect addition to our family she is.

10 Weeks - Labor Day Weekend

Ella Kate was 10 weeks old yesterday and I attached a picture of her dressed up for church in one of my old dresses. It is so neat to think that 28 years ago I was probably wearing the very same outfit. My mom did a great job of preserving some of my old baby clothes and I just love dressing up Ella Kate in them. Dave, Ella Kate, and I had a fun and relaxing Labor Day weekend. Friday night we went out to dinner with friends and Ella Kate was just an angel. She sat in her car seat at the restaurant and just stared up at the lights. On Saturday we took her to the Marietta Square for the Art Festival. It was fun but oh so very hot so we did not stay to long. Dave got up at the crack of dawn on Saturday morning and smoked brisket, salmon, and a duck so we had quite a feast for lunch and dinner. We visited more friends Saturday afternoon and then came home for an early evening to watch the Alabama vs. Clemson football game. Even though I am an Auburn fan I sure did enjoy watching Alabama beat Clemson. On Sunday we went to Church and then out to lunch afterwards at Applebees. Now Ella Kate is normally very good in restaurants so I think we had gotten a little spoiled. However in Applebees lets just say that we were "Those People." We ate as fast as we could and got outta there.

Since I am about to go crazy if I do not fit back in my clothes pretty soon Dave and I went to the gym on Friday and Sunday afternoons. They have a nursery at our gym where one of our friends works so it was nice to be able to leave Ella Kate with a friend for an hour while we worked out. We had a great couple of workouts but boy am I sore today. My goal is to get back in shape so that I can run the ING half marathon with Dave next Spring - so we will just see. I hate it that he can out run me now :) I told him pretty soon he will be eating my dust again.

Let's see as for Ella Kate's milestones I think we are doing good. She is sleeping great - between 10 - 11 hours every night. I am feeling really good about the sleeping and oh so thankful to have a full nights sleep again. We are also making progress on Tummy Time which until recently she absolutely hated. She is smiling all the time which absolutely makes my day and does the "accidental" rollover when on her tummy. She lifts her arms and leans her head which makes her roll over. I think it is just her ingenious way to continue to avoid tummy time. She is now very attentive with her toys and bats her hands and feet at them. She just stares at the intently and then every so often smiles at them.

Ella Kate is taking a nap now and Dave is fishing with his Dad so I better get caught up on a little laundry before the chaos starts all over again.

Love ya,
Trina