Ten Weeks

Ten Weeks Old

What's wrong with you, Mommy?

One sick Mommy= Not many pictures of baby

This week was not my finest, and I hate that I did not get to enjoy all of Mary Ella's tenth week. Brad went to Tuscan Wednesday, so I decided to go down to Hope and stay at my mom's house so we wouldn't be alone. I hadn't been feeling well, and it's a good thing I went because by Wednesday night I had a fever of 103. Yes, I was terrified that Mary Ella was going to get sick, but the doctor said she should be protected by the breast milk. So, the past few days I have had little contact with her. I have been feeding her and passing her off to my mom. Bless her heart, she had to take care of Mary Ella and me. It's a terrible feeling not to be able to love on and take care of your baby. I feel like I have missed precious days with her. Mama got me back to Little Rock, Brad's home, and I'm feeling a little bit better now. On a good note, Mary Ella had her two month check-up this week, and she is growing right on track. She weighs 10 lbs. 1/2 oz. and is 22 1/4 in. long. Just under the 50th percentile, but that's where the little girl started out.

Napping in her foldover yoga pants and tee


Sweet hand


Curled toes


Go Hogs! Beat Florida!
(Yeah right, Mommy. You know we can't beat Florida.)

*Update: Mary Ella was right. We didn't beat Florida. Should have, but didn't.

Nine Weeks

Nine Weeks Old

What a wonderful week! Even though we were stuck in the house because of all the rain, Mary Ella and I still had a good time playing, talking, eating, and napping. She took good naps this week and was a happy girl after waking. We are really getting into a good routine. She anticipates bedtime and slept longer than ever a few nights. Getting 5 hours of sleep in a row feels almost like a full night! :) We also had three nights of visitors this week. My cousin Sissy came and spent the night Tuesday night. We went out to eat with a friend of mine from high school Wednesday night, and Thursday Julie and Trey came to visit. Julie had a class in Little Rock Friday, so Mary Ella got to hang out with her cousin Trey. He was so sweet to her. Friday morning we were up, but she was still sleeping. He was watching cartoons, but kept looking at the video monitor waiting for her to wake up. He would tell me everytime she moved, and when she started crying, he took off running to the bassinette to calm her. He talked and sang to her, gave her her paci, and they even took a fun bath together. He counted how many times she smiled at him (4), and said she said, "Hi!" to him. We went to Fayetteville again this weekend, and Trey road in the backseat beside Mary Ella and had his hand on her almost the entire time. So sweet!

You're so funny, Mommy!

Exercise time

She loves her Eric Carle Very Hungry Caterpillar.

Tummy time

Head up

Hi Mommy!

Wild thing

I just woke up.

Yawn!

Do I really want to wake up?

Okay, I'm awake!

Getting ready to go out and eat with an old friend of Mommy's

Go Hogs! Beat Auburn!

And beat Auburn we did! What a fun game! It was great to get an SEC win. And I forgot to mention last week's win against Texas A&M. Take that Big 12! Mary Ella loves game days in Fayetteville because it means she gets to hang out with Gigi and all her cousins. Thanks Rita for letting the big kids go to the game!

Two Months

I'm two months old!

I have decided to do a flashback each month, so you can see how much Mary Ella has grown. My friend Kristy does that on her blog, and it is so fun seeing how Miles changes from month to month. Thanks for the idea, Kristy! Here she grows...

8.7.09


9.7.09


10.7.09

Baby Portrait Plan

We found a great photographer that goes to our church and has a great baby package. She takes pictures of babies at 6 weeks, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months. I think that will be a great way to keep us on track and up to date with Mary Ella's portraits as she grows. We were very happy with our first session and have tough decisions about which ones to order. Here are a few, and if you would like to see the rest you can go to www.kellybittlephotography.com Enter the site, click on client proofing, and type in maryella. Enjoy!

Eight Weeks

Eight Weeks Old

It seems like Mary Ella has grown so much this week. Can you tell she is getting chubbier? She is such a happy girl. She is talking more and more. Her favorite thing to say is "ahh goo." It goes together like that over and over. So sweet! She loves to hear herself squeal and look at herself in the mirror. She's also really into sounds. Running water, the vacuum cleaner, shushing in her ear, and the hair dryer can stop her in her tracks if she's crying. She also loves to look and listen to her rattle. She will follow it all around. This week she found her hands. It is so fun to see her look at them and move them around. She's experimenting with reaching up to touch my face and hair, and sometimes she pats me when I'm holding her. She is such a busy girl sometimes she forgets to take a good nap. Really, you are still a little baby! Go to sleep already! Here's what we've been up to.

Future Razorback Cheerleader. We've been working on her try-out.


Go!

Hogs!

Go!


Yay!

High kick


How did I do?

One of my third graders gave Mary Ella this onesie. We think it's a little silly. Of course she can wear pink everyday. :)

Yes, adorable

Going for a walk

My snuggle bunny

Getting ready to go to church in Patmos

This weekend we took Mary Ella to Mia's house in Hope for the first time. She got to go down to the farm and meet her great-grandparents Nanny and Pa for the first time. My hope is that Mary Ella will get to experience some fun times on the farm like I did when I was growing up...getting dirty, riding four wheelers, making mud pies, playing with the animals, playing in the woods, jumping in the hay, picking wild berries, eating fresh vegetables from the garden, and more.

Mary Ella with Pa and Nanny

She also got to meet more family including her cousin Leslie.