Over the weekend...

Little Ella did share...so yes what I thought might be the beginning of me getting a cold...indeed resulted in me getting a cold. Luckily with Ella's cold she hasn't had the breathing problems that she did last time...but she has been sleeping with a humidifier every night - so that I am sure is helping. Ella and I have had a few days of staying in our PJ's - I've been so drained with this cold...I haven't wanted to get off the couch or bed...so poor Josh (or he probably thinks lucky!) had to go out for lunch and dinner yesterday as I wasn't up to cooking anything. I did venture out to the grocery store to pick up a few things as we really didn't have anything! And in the crockpot now is a pork roast to make into pulled BBQ - thanks for the recipe mom!

Ella's friend Neko this week got to go into her jumperoo/exacauser (I really have no idea what the difference between the two are) - and I can't remember which one it was! Neko's mom told me this and said that Neko loved it....so of course Ella had to try it out! We have a jumperoo that Ella's Nanny from Vermont let us borrow - so I set it up and cleaned it up on Saturday....and put Ella in it...well I don't know if there is a setting on it to make it shorter...if there is I couldn't figure it out...so I put Ella in it...hmmm she's too short - her feet don't touch the ground! So I hunted around to find something to put under her feet so she could touch....

Lets see - Ella's reaction...well she loved it if I sat next to her and helped her bounce...but she didn't want to do it on her own! I thought she would love it - because everytime you hold her she is trying to push herself up so she is standing on your legs.

I left Josh in charge of Ella while I ran out to the grocery store...I left and she was playing in her boppy on the floor...and Josh was playing video games...and I told him if she starts getting fussy you need to stop playing your game to take care of her...this is what I came home to...



We get our pictures back tomorrow from the photographer - she is dropping them off at my work...I can't wait to see them!!!

Slowly on the Mend...

Well the little girl is in the midst of her cold...she just seems to have the stuffy nose now...hopefully it's almost over! However I think she may have shared :( I have been sneezing away today...and that's how it always starts!

Our Wednesday night excitement...the smoke detectors chirped at 12:30am...only once and then it stopped. It of course woke me up...thankfully not Ella! About 30 minutes later...chirps again...grrr...I drag Josh out of bed to do "something" to make it stop...I have never changed a battery in them so I didn't know what to do...we have 3 of them right in a row...1 in the office, 1 in Ella's room, and 1 in the hallway between the 2 rooms...I couldn't tell which one it was...so he changed the battery in the hall and Ella's room. No more chirps :) Well that is until 6:45am...it chirps once and that was it. Then a few minutes after 8 - I hear my mom pulling in the driveway (she came to watch Ella on Thursday) - as she is pulling in - the alarm starts to go off!! Not just the chirp...but the LOUD alarm...the dogs go ballastic...so I run to the door to open it so they can run outside as I'm sure it was hurting their ears. Ella is looking around with huge eyes like what?? I run into the kitchen and grab a chair so I can reach the detectors...and then it stops...again I don't know which one it was...so I take the battery out of the one in the hall. Well that just makes it chirp every 2 minutes...that's not going to work...I put the battery back in and nothing...(now I'm late for work!) Sorry mom....I tell her that if it goes off again...call the Fire Department...I don't know what to do! :) Thankfully it didn't go off for her...it did however go off again at 8:00pm last night...Josh ran and yanked both of them and completely unplugged it from the ceiling...hope we don't have a fire! :) Although there are more in the house that are working...but I guess getting new batteries will be on the agenda this weekend. The alarm was so loud it gave both Josh and I a horrible headache...I went to bed with my head having a dull ache...and I had to get up in the middle of the night and take motrin because I woke up with a really bad headache. My stumbling around while half asleep woke Ella up :( So I got her up and gave her a little bottle...her vaporizor had turned off - so I refilled it and set it back up as well as the poor thing was really stuffy.

Today Ella and I got up and went to a little meeting at my work. Ella got passed around and got lots of love :) We came home and we had the best time...we laid on my bed and read lots of books...and then I was showing her videos on my cell phone...it was so funny...I wish I could have recorded it...she was holding 1 side of my phone, and I was holding the other...and I have I think it was 5 videos on my phone of Ella...so I played the videos...and they are of her laughing and "talking"  - she watched with great interest...and would look at me and smile...and then she would look back at the phone and I would replay the video and everytime she was laughing in the video she would turn to look at me and just laugh away! She loved hearing herself laugh!

Winter Woes - it feels like winter is here! It was in the 70s yesterday...and the temperature is reading 40 degrees right now...eeewwww!! And I kid you not...I saw just a few white things land on my deck...now they did melt immediately...but I was not happy about it! I hate being cold!

I'm not sure what is on the agenda for this weekend...I think laying low...let Ella get back to feeling normal...and I have a feeling I will be battling my own cold :( Guess we'll stay away from Josh and hope he doesn't get it!

Sick Again :(

Poor little Ella isn't going to even remember what it feels like to NOT have a cold! Poor little thing just got over one to come home yesterday with the start of another cold! I got home around 6:30 last night...Josh had picked her up when he got off from work at 5...I walked in the door and I was talking to her...and she was sneezing and sneezing...and I all I could do was say...ughhh not again!

I laid her in her crib...and she went right to sleep...no problem. Around 10:30 I woke up to hear her "choking" - she wasn't really choking but those were the sounds that she was making...I ran and grabbed her...she stopped making that noise and I laid her back down. She never once opened her eyes...she flopped around for a few minutes and went right back to sleep. Around 12:30 I woke up to hear her sniffling and making a little cough...so I got up and went and filled the humidifier up (yes the one that I just put away last week!) and I filled it up and set it up. Then I went and got her swing and carried it into her room...I scooped her up out of the crib and set her in her swing...again never opened her eyes! She slept fine from that point until 7:30am..I however did not...I was paranoid and was constantly waking up and going over to peek at her...

Today she has just been a miserable mess...her eyes are really glassy, her nose is a mess, and she's just a touch on the cranky side. Grandma and Grandpa were planning on coming over for a visit today as they were already coming to Lynchburg to get their car inspected at the dealership...so after that was done they came over...unfortunately Ella wasn't all about visitors today...she did do 1 or 2 smiles. She was very interested in Grandpa's goatee...and kept putting her hand up to feel it...and look at it. She took an hour nap as they were leaving...and once she was up she had a bottle and then we read about 15 books...she does really like story time. She loves to hold one side of the book...always the left side...and looks at the pictures...and often she will turn to look at me as I read (especially when I change my voice to go along with the book)...or when I make animal sounds (we have a lot of those books!)

She's been going to town on those teething rings. She knows just what they are...I will take one out of the fridge..and hand it to her...again grabs it with her LEFT hand (just like her daddy again!) and brings it right up to her mouth. I just looked over at her (she's taking nap #2 in her swing) and she has in her left had a teething ring, and in her right hand she is holding on to Miss Piggy...and she is just snoozing away!

I'm not sure what I am going to do quite yet for tomorrow...I am going to wait to see how Ella feels a little later on this afternoon....Grandma might be coming tomorrow to spend the day with Ella while Josh and I go to work...I hate to send her to the sitter's with a bad cold...

I was grouchy last night after I discovered that she was sick AGAIN...and Josh said, "Are you mad at me?" I laughed and said nooo...I wasn't even mad...I was annoyed that she was sick again...now I know that it is bound to happen she's around other kids...not only at the sitters, but she was in the church nursery, and she was at the YMCA childcare over the weekend when Josh and I worked out on Saturday...if parents know their kids are sick - why do they send them to be around other kids!?!

Well while Ella sleeps I better get a few things done around the house! The laundry pile has turned into the laundry MOUNTAIN!

Few Things...

I had a few things that happened this week that I forgot to post and I didn't want to forget about them again...

1) Ella loves to rub my hair...maybe she's getting me confused with Bella and Brinly :) When I hold her up close and she can reach my hair...she rubs her hand through my hair over and over...very cute!

2) The reason I say that maybe she gets me confused with Bella and Brinly is....she now will hold her hand out when the dogs are near her so she can "pet" them. They tolerate it for a few seconds...but then they usually get up and move away.

3) She has REALLY found her voicebox...so yes she had already found it by last Sunday during the dedication...but besides that...normally her "talking" is pretty quiet...except for the last few days she has really learned how to turn up the volume! Josh said what is wrong with her...why is she so upset...I said I don't think she is upset...she "yells" but then she laughs...I think she just might be realizing that she can be loud!

Photo Shoot and Major Milestone!

7:15am...Ella's awake...so she was up a little earlier then what I wanted. I was hoping for closer to 8. I wanted to make sure she was happy for the photo shoot! So she got up and ate...and I put her back in her crib while I finished getting myself ready and doing some last minute cleaning. I was hoping maybe she would catch a quick nap...no such luck!

I got Ella bathed and dressed just a few minutes before 10...hoping the drool wouldn't soak through her outfit! :) We kept the bib on til the very last minute!

The photographer came - she was very sweet. She set up in Ella's room and we did most of the pictures in there. I have to say...she had Josh and I in more shots than I had thought there would be...I didn't really pay attention to our outfits...I had just focused on Ella...thinking oh we'll just get a couple of family shots...I mean I would have gone and gotten my hair done and a new outfit...annnddd hit the gym a few times! :) I still have 20lbs to get off! So hopefully her editing skills are good! :)

Well Miss Ella realllly wasn't a smiling girl! She wasn't unhappy...she was just very serious. She was puzzled by the camera right up in her face! I think there were a few half smile shots...she did show us a few...and they were looking good on the camera...so hopefully they turn out well! We did the majority inside and a lot of family shots outside...we had a few outfit changes...and we did some with her wearing just a headband (and a diaper of course) but you only saw her upper half. Sooo...the big milestone happened during the photoshoot (however wasn't caught on film). Ella has been on her tummy multiple times...but has never rolled over. We had transformed our table to a platform with a blanket on the top of it (the nice furry ones from Christmas last year!) and Ella was laying on that on her belly and she was propping herself up with her arms and she was looking all around. Then boom - she just rolls over! It was so quick and we didn't expect it...and the part that scared us all was she rolled over and was right on the edge of the table. Josh ran and grabbed her! He moved her closer to the other side and I kneeled down and propped her up to make sure she didn't roll off...and Josh was on the other side...and sure enough...she rolled over again! That's it...photo shoot on the table is done with! :) By this time an hour had passed and Ella was done! She started getting cranky...and I gave her a bottle and she was out!

Later on in the afternoon - I had Ella on the living room floor (a much safer place) - I wanted to capture her rolling over! Of course she did it twice and both times I missed it! The first time I was recording and recording...and she didn't roll over so I turned the camera off...boom she rolls over! The second time - I swear I hit record...but yeah I didn't...missed it again...I tried for a 3rd time...but Ella was done with being on her tummy...she likes her back better. So I'll try again tomorrow for that video!

Lots of great pictures!

Well Ella has had her share of pictures taken this week...and her photo shoot is tomorrow...hope she's ready to smile!!

Monday/Tuesday I worked...9am til close each day (7 on Monday and 6 on Tuesday)....I was tired out after that! Ella went to the sitters...it was cute...on Monday I walk in to drop her off and the kids all start yelling...Ella! Ella! Ella is here! They were very happy to see her! It was all boys...hmmm hope that's not a sign of the future! :)

On Wednesday Ella and I went to our friend's house to see Erin, Xavier, and Neko! Well Xavier is 4 so he isn't as interested in playing with the little girls. Neko is 4 months, and Ella is 5 months....

Neko on the left. Ella on the right.

Ella trying to take Neko's hand.

Ella can't keep her hands to herself!!

I love this one...looks like Ella is saying, "What??"





Wednesday night...Ella kept making the funniest faces at Josh....we tried to catch it on camera:

She was going back to a bit of the tongue thing again!

Today we had to get all bundled up again before going outside...it was chilly:

Well I have got to start picking up a little bit...as the photographer is going to be here at 10:00am...praying that Ella is a happy girl!! :)

Perfect Weekend...

If we could have days like this year round...it would be the best place to live. It was in the mid-70's during the day and cooled down to the 40's at night...Josh and I just love this weather!

Friday evening we went out to dinner...just to Jersey Mike's and split a sandwich. Then we went to Sweet Frog for a sweet little treat (it's frozen yougurt with about 50 different toppings to choose from)...it was our family date night! Someday Ella will like family date night...now she's just along for the ride :)

Saturday it was more beautiful weather...Josh did some outside projects while Ella and I went to a baby shower.

Again today - just perfect outside! Today was Baby Dedication at our church. So we got Ella all dressed up looking cute...and my parents were coming over for the service and to our house for lunch afterwards. So we get to church and Ella was a little antsy so I'm holding her trying to entertain her before they call up all the parents with babies who are participating in the service. She stays entertained for a few minutes. Then we are called up...and she starts crying. Her whimpering subsides and there is a few minutes of silence...then the WAILS begin! My little quiet mellow girl is wailing at the top of her lungs in front of the whole church (yes I was squirming big time!)...I whispered to Josh that I was taking her out...he said no no it's ok...she's fine...then I don't even know how it was possible...those wails got louder...that's it she's out of there...so yes Ella made a scene :) I'm sure it won't be the last time! Here's a picture before the wails began:

So I take her out...and lay her down on the nursery floor...immediately stops crying. Now she wasn't all smiles or anything...but she was MUCH happier! So I left her in the nursery and I went back to church...she fell asleep with one of the girls holding her in the nursery...and after church I went and got her and she was still asleep...never even opened her eyes while I got her buckled in the carseat and then slept all the way home.

We grilled for lunch. And Ella got lots of "presents" from Grandma and Grandpa....her wardrobe is just about complete for Fall/Winter. Lots of great outfits and even a little winter coat (which matches her "mushroom" hat perfectly!) Grandma and Grandpa left and Ella went down for another nap...after an hour and a half, I went and woke her up...I was ready to go out for a walk! So we all got ready (Bella and Brinly too!) and off we went for a nice walk! When we got back...I was saying how nice it was outside and that I didn't want to go back in...Josh said well lets open up the windows and the doors going out to the deck...so we did! We had the windows all open and the door open...it was so beautiful! Ella had her bath and then she sat in her boppy and played with her toys and "talked" quite a bit! Now she's fed and tucked away in bed (which she was asleep in about 2 minutes flat!)

Hard to believe tomorrow is already Monday again! The weekend flew by!

Friday Fun

It's another day of Ella and I together...

We put Ella in her crib last night instead of her swing since she was sounding much better...and she did great. She did wake up in the middle of the night to eat again...I guess those, "12 hour sleeping through the night," nights are taking a break. She did the same thing as the night before...didn't want her bottle before bed...she kept pushing it away and rubbing her eyes...so I had a feeling she would be up! She was up at 2:45am this morning...she ate and I put her back in her crib...she ususally goes right back to sleep...but not last night...she wanted to "talk." And talk she did for about 20 minutes...with a few little squeals in there too!

I've noticed that one thing she does when she is tired...(and this has turned into a consistant trend)...is she takes her left hand and rubs the back of her head or the side of her head. She does this before bedtime every night and when she does it during the day I know nap time is around the corner.

We've been keeping a bib on her every day now as she has turned into a drooling queen....eeewww! A bib plus a little cloth to keep her face clean. Must be those teeth will be coming in any day now!

I got a little video of Ella laughing this morning...I was trying to take the video and make her laugh...so no it is not high quality! And yes poor Ella's face keeps getting cut off...and you'll have to ignore the drool at the end...I tried to end it before the drooling began and I don't know how to edit a video to cut that part out :) I was kissing her hand and she was just laughing away!

On the mend...

Ella is on the mend...she's still quite stuffy but definitely feeling a little better. I brought her to the sitters yesterday and told her that Ella was just on the tail-end of a cold...and she said it's that time of year...2 other kids came down with a cold on Saturday (which is when Ella's started.) So obviously they were sharing the love at day-care!

On Monday, Josh was off...so it was another day of Daddy Daycare! I asked him how it went...he hesitated and then said, "it was ok." The main thing is they both survived! At least he gets a taste of what it is like to be home with her all day by himself...it's good for him :) We shared a car on Monday as we had to bring his in for an oil change...and then it needed a new Water-Pump as well...it's never-ending!

Ella is really beginning to become "miss independent," she likes to try to do things by herself. She really wants to hold her own bottle...she does well until it's time to tip it up...we haven't mastered that yet! She also has been making little faces...her personality is coming through! When I dropped her off at the sitters yesterday morning...she had fallen asleep in the car on the way there and when I got there I had to take her out so it made her stir and her eyes flew open. Beth looked at her and laughed and said she looks so angry! Her little eyebrows were furrowed, her cheeks were pooched out, and her lips were pursed...I wish I had a picture of it...but she didn't look happy that she had been woken up! Her other new face is "fish lips."

When we were at the Doctor's the other day...he looked at her gums and showed us that her teeth are right there...so very soon they should start peeking through...so we bought some more teething rings. She was going at it this morning:

She's still been sleeping in her swing due to her stuffiness...probably a few more days of that and then she will go back to her crib. We did set up the humidifier for her at night and that seems to help.

Another milestone that she hit was sleeping through the night...12 hours! She has done it for a little over a week now. Last night was the exception...and I actually expected it. She wasn't really taking her bottle last night...so I had a feeling that she would be getting up in the night...and sure enough...4:00am she was hungry! She ate and back to sleep she went.

Today it's just Ella and I. I was going to run a few errands but the forecast is, "heavy rain." So I am rethinking those errands! Instead we'll have an inside day and do some cleaning and picking up!



Video is now working...

This was Ella feeling a little better today...we were able to get some smiles out of her!!

Oh and an update...she now weighs 12lbs and 8oz...that was her new weight at the Doctor's today!

A Trip to the Doctors...

It is JUST a cold...but last night I wasn't convinced! So poor little Ella had such a rough day yesterday with coughing and sneezing...her little eyes were so red...you could just look at her and tell she didn't feel well.

Josh went to the cook-out as planned and I stayed home with Ella..she was doing ok when he left...but as time went on I felt she was getting worse...I turned the shower on HOT and steamed up the bathroom...and then brought Ella in there to help open her up...I did everything that I could do to make her comfortable...but then I started getting worried about her breathing...it was becoming more of a struggle to breathe...so I called Josh - no answer...I texted one of my friends who was at the cook-out and asked her to tell Josh to call me...so he did...and I asked if he could come home as I was concerned about her breathing...he came home and I said, "well what do you think?? Am I over-reacting?" He didn't think I was...she was definitely struggling to breathe. We did the shower thing again and I sat with her in the steam...it helped some but not enough to make me feel more at ease...I was getting more worried as time went on...so I called the pediatrician...and they have an on-call Doctor that the nurse has to page with my number and the Doctor will call back...so I do that..and about 10 minutes go by...and I said that's it - we're taking her to the ER. We talked about it and decided that was the best thing to do. So I packed a bag and we were ready. I was getting irritated that the On-Call Doctor hadn't called yet...so I called again and spoke to the nurse again and asked how long does it take to get a call back...she said usually just a few minutes...I told her that it had been almost 25 minutes with no call...so she said she would page her again...in about 2 minutes my phone rang. I talked to the Doctor and explained why I was concerned, that Ella was almost "panting" trying to breathe...she asked a few questions and said that she thought she was fine and to come into the office at 9am. I wasn't really impressed by the Doctor - she was very short on the phone and didn't seem very friendly...I said that to Josh and he laughed and said...well she is getting a phone call at 9:30 on a Saturday night about a kid that has a cold :) Ella was only happy if she was being held and being walked around...so that was what we did...taking turns doing that...finally she got sleepy and we put her in the swing around 11pm. We both slept upstairs on the couch and loveseat....I told Josh he could go downstairs and sleep and that I would be fine with her...and he said no no I'm sleeping upstairs too. I woke up at 12:45am...Ella was still sleeping, Josh was sleeping and the dogs were too! I repositioned and went back to sleep...around 3am I wake up to Ella coughing...she did fine though...she stirred for a while and then went back to sleep...and oh yeah...Josh had moved to downstairs...and he didn't wake me up to offer me the couch...instead left me crammed on the love-seat :) So I made my move to the big couch and fell asleep until 7:30am...

I woke Ella up and fed her and changed her...and off to the Doctor's we went. She was actually doing MUCH better when we left compared to last night....but we still wanted to go for peace of mind to make sure she was fine. We met with Dr. Stewart...someone we hadn't met yet...he was very nice and gave Ella a good thorough examination and said that she certainly has quite a bad cold...but she was checking out ok...lungs were clear, ears were clear, he checked her oxygen levels...all was good! We came home and Grandpa and Grandma were here (they were coming into Lynchburg so they stopped by to see their little girl! - Ella that is!).

Here is Ella feeling better...she has a new "hat!" Ok...so this video won't load...so I will try again later!

Round 2...

Well "cold and flu season" is here! Ella is now experiencing her 2nd cold. I read that there are over 200 strains of the cold virus...and children typically get 6-10 colds a year...I told Josh that statistic and he looked at Ella and said please aim lower! Poor little girl has got it pretty bad...I made the statement to Josh yesterday that Ella was sneezing quite a bit and she was just FUSSY all day...I chalked it up to maybe teething?? But at 10:30 last night when she began her coughing fits...ohhhh so not teething but the beginning of a cold! :( She did fairly well sleeping last night...was up at 10:30 and had lots of sneezing, snuffling, coughing fits throughout the night...she managed to go right back to sleep, while I stood over the crib watching her to make sure she could breathe ok! I'll spare you the details but the poor little thing has just about gone through her own box of tissues in one day...ok and maybe I am a little, "type A," I can't stand anything on her face and am constantly wiping away!

Poor Josh says..."I feel bad - do you think she got the cold while being outside last weekend at the orchard?" I assured him that you can't catch a cold from being cold, but it's germs that instead are the cause of a cold. So yes I do believe it must have been another "day-care kid."

To catch you up on our week...Wednesday we went over to Micah's house and got to see Jackson and 2 other kids she watches. Today is actually Jacksons 2nd birthday and it was going to be Ella's first birthday party she got to go to...however...since she has this miserable cold...I certainly wasn't going to take her around other kids. I was a little bummed - I think she would have had a great time (had she been feeling well) - it was held at Romp N Roll - a little kids gym...with all sorts of fun play areas!

Thursday it was back to the same - I worked and Ella went to the sitters.

Friday - Josh had the day off as did I. I had thought about going to get Ella's second round of shots...however Josh wanted to go "gun shopping" - so that was what we did instead! Then the afternoon began and Ella was just a little fussing machine! We had made plans to do an early dinner with friends...but in the end we backed out as I didn't dare take her out...she would be happy and fine for like 30 minutes and then nothing would make her happy for 15 minutes...and then she would be happy...and so on and so on...I wasn't chancing it at a restaurant...no one wants to go out to eat and hear an unhappy child!

Today was a pretty low-key day...Josh took the dogs to get pedicures! And while they were at the vets they told him that they both needed a shot to be up-to-date...so that pedicure got pricey real quick! Then we switched...he stayed home with Ella while I went grocery shopping. We watched a movie this afternoon. And he is off to a cook-out tonight that we had planned on going to. With Ella not feeling well I said that I would stay home with her and he could go.

I took a few pictures this week of the little girl sleeping...I just love her many poses when she sleeps...everytime I peek in to check on her she is in a different position...

What to wear??

I do love Fall in Virginia...but I do dislike the vast change in temperature throughout the day. We start our days with 40 degrees and end it in the 70's...what do you wear for that?? Layers that's what...and winter hats for little baby girls going out in the cold!!!

So this was Ella's first day ever in a hat...she wasn't that impressed. I kept trying to get her to smile for me...yeah she wasn't having it...she kept giving me this stare. And what made it even better was Bella kept barking at her....you see Bella has this thing with hats and helmets. I don't know what she has against them - but she does NOT like them. If Josh puts on a hat or his helmet...Bella will bark and bark until he takes it off and then she immediately stops. So I put Ella's hat on her and Bella looks at her and starts to bark...it didn't faze Ella one bit...she just looked her...again still no smiles! Off to the sitters we go (after I wrapped a fleece blanket around her legs in the car seat). So we get to the sitters (it's about a 30-35 minute drive to get there)...and I get out of the car and open the back door and burst out laughing...poor little Ella's hat had worked it's way down and her eyes were completely covered...thankfully she was asleep...well to her it was night-time...someone had turned out the lights!! :)

Ella had a great day...she is SO close to rolling over...any day now!

Another little trick of Ellas is to move in her sleep...I can lay her down one way and go back to check on her and she will have completely rotated 180 degrees...so her head will be where her feet were.

Last night was the first night of a 12 hour sleep for Ella...yes thats right... I put her down at 7:30pm last night...and she woke up at 7:30am....yay! So one would think that means Mom got a good nights sleep...wrong...unfortunately for me...I got a migrane at 12:30am...I went to bed with just the slightest headache...and I thought ehhh I'm just tired...it'll go away while I sleep...well when I woke up at 12:37am (to be exact) - I had a full blown migrane :( I was up for about 2 hours trying to get the pain to stop...800mg of motrin later it had subsided to a dull pain and I was able to fall back asleep...it meant for a bit of a long day today though as the dull pain has stayed with me all day. Thankfully with being so busy at work it did provide a slight distraction which helped.

Tomorrow I have off...so we have a play date in the morning. On Friday both Josh and I have off...we have lots of errands to run and it's round 2 of Ella's 4 month shots.

Fall is here...

So to catch you up on our week...it was more of the same...I worked, Josh worked, Ella gets waited on hand and foot (ahhh the life of a baby!) Grandma (my mom) came and watched Ella on Thursday as Josh or myself were not able to pick her up by 5:30 on Thursday (she has to be picked up by 5:30 from the sitters). Then Friday rolls around...so normally I am off on Fridays...but I was asked to work to help cover some hours as other employees were out. So we do our normal routine of getting ready...I start running a little behind...seriously some baby clothes are hard to get on! It took me a whole 20 minutes to get Ella dressed...but she looked cute! :) So then I let the dogs out...and I go downstairs...out of the corner of my eye I see a huge dog in our back-yard...great! I race up the stairs in my PJ's...prepared to run outside to rescue my little chihuahua's...but thankfully they were standing in the front yard by the door and came bounding in when I opened the door...I get them put away, finish getting myself ready and out the door we go...I called my work to let them know I might be 5-10 minutes late...then again I might not be...there is just a possibility of it and I wanted to let them know...so off to the sitters. I get to the sitters, get Ella out, carry her up the front steps, knock on the door...and then I am greeted by a crying baby-sitter! She's crying...her dad is there...says, "I'm sorry I just can't watch Ella today." She apologized over and over (clearly something was going on)...ok on to plan B....ummm which there wasn't one since I was not prepared for that at all!! So Ella...looks like you're coming to work with Mom! :) I am all panicky and nervous...because I am not sure what kind of reaction I will get when I pull in with a baby with me...Ella isn't really just a sit around baby...she likes to be laying down so she can kick her legs...or sitting up and seeing all thats going on. So I get to my work...and Ella joins me! I apologize profusely and say I know that you're not going to want me here all day...obviously this wasn't a planned thing, etc, etc...so I did the few things I had to get done and then Ella and I came home :)

Saturday rolls around...it was kind of a lazy morning...we talked about what we wanted to do...we talked about maybe going to an orchard...or maybe we'll do that next week...then we decided no lets do that today...its 60 and sunny...beautiful Fall day! So we went to Carters Mountain Orchard in Charlottesville, VA (about an hour from our house)...it was so pretty up there (it's truly on top of a mountain!) They have a fall festival every weekend in October. We got there just in time for lunch...so we had cheeseburgers (yes I ate a cheeseburger...salad wasn't an option!) Then Josh bought Apple Cider Donuts and apple cider. So I splurged and ate 2 bites of a donut...it was tasty!! We walked around some and then went and picked some apples! If we were 8 feet tall we would have made out great as all the apples were at the top...the pro's had their "poles" with them...or whatever they are that they could reach up with and pick the apples. They had hayrides, a pumpkin patch to pick your own pumpkins, a country store, and also wine tasting. The downside to the day...it was so windy!! It wasn't that windy in Lynchburg...so I didn't even think to pack a hat for Ella...I felt bad once we got there! But we kept her pretty bundled up in a blanket in her stroller....

We did get one smile out of her....

Ella slept the whole way home...I think we tired her out! We got home and Josh took right off...it's open range day for LPD (with all the ammo provided) - he was all over that! So Ella and I got ready to go to the store...we had to get stuff for Apple Crisp!

Now we're home...and she's sleeping away in her swing..she only slept for about an hour this afternoon on the ride home...that wasn't a long enough nap!