1 Month Old

March 3rd: One Month Old

I cannot believe how quickly this last month has gone by!! I feel like we had been waiting and waiting for delivery day, and now a whole month has just flown by!! It has been a great month. Better in fact than I could have ever imagined. Katy Ellis is a great baby and very easy going. In a lot of ways having Katy Ellis has not slowed Blakely and I down at all. We still go to the park, the mall, the zoo, the playgrounds, the museum; we just have Katy Ellis with us now. I feel like Katy Ellis has really enriched Blakely's life and made it better. I am so glad that my girls have a build in best friend for life!!

Katy Ellis is currently "sleeping through the night" by Baby Wise standards, meaning that she sleeps for 6-8 hour stretches at night. Bedtime is a 7pm, and she usually only gets up on time to nurse at 5am. She is then up for the day at 7:30am.

She has acquired a LOT of nicknames in her short time with us: Cuddles, Cuddler, Buggles, Katy Girl, Katy-did, Dreamer, Sleepers, Beautiful Dreamer, Sleeping Beauty, KE.

Katy Ellis is already on a great Baby Wise schedule!! She eats at 7am, 10am, 1pm, 4pm, 7pm, and once overnight. She takes 3-4 naps per day. She has been on an eat, play, sleep schedule since birth.... mainly because she basically just eats and sleeps. HA! Girl you are making Mommy look like Super Mommy, but in reality I just have a great baby!

In Charleston and in Lexington, Katy Ellis still sleeps in our walk-in closets. This is to keep her close to me for night time nursing sessions. Now that she is only getting up once per night, it may be time to consider moving her into her own room!! This means we need to get Blakely out of the crib and into her Big Girl bed!!

Katy Ellis favorite things right now: cuddling, mommy, sleeping, eating, car rides and eye contact.

Katy Ellis' least favorite things right now: diaper changes, cold wipes, baths, wet diapers.

Currently, Katy Ellis hair is a very, very dark brown (like mine) and her eyes appear to be gray-blue (like Richard's). She still looks a lot like Blakely, but I think there is more Tober in this girl. (Blakely is a total Monk baby. She is like GrandAnnie's mini me!)

This Onsie is the same one that Banks wore for his 1 month pictures. Gigi made a whole 12 month set, and hopefully we will be able to get all the Grandbabies pictures (except Blakely) in the same ones!

Katy Ellis loves to be swaddled really, really tight when she sleeps. She even likes to be swaddled in her carrier. She also likes to go to sleep awake, and then fall asleep in her bassinet. I know I am always comparing, but they are just such different babies! Blakely HATED to be swaddled! She always wanted to be stretched out with her hands over her head.

Hello there surprised girl! She is not smiling yet, but you can definitely see her trying. I cannot wait for those first big baby grins and giggles! They are some of my favorite developmental milestones!

Monthly Statistics:
8lb 4 oz at 2 weeks old
9lb 8oz at 4 weeks old

Major Milestones:
-Eye contact and starting to track
-Bats at toys
-Sleeping through the night
 

Katy Ellis it is such a pleasure to be your Mommy!! I cannot wait to see what the coming months and years have in store! I love you little Cuddle-bug!

First Bath

February 13th: Scrub-a-dub

Katy Ellis' umbilical stump came off way earlier than Blakely's, which means way less stinky days!!Time for her first bath.

Proud daddy getting his girl ready for her first tub time.

Look how greasy your hair is girl! Can't wait to get some shampoo on the mop!

Katy Ellis did not like this first bath. We had warmed up the house and used warm water, but she was not into it. As a result, this bath was brief!

Poor girl! She is so sad and confused in this picture. Don't worry girlfriend, it will be over soon!!

I sometimes forget how tiny she is!

She looks so relieved in this picture that the whole ordeal is over. Thankfully subsequent baths have been much more enjoyable for her, and now she even likes her baths!

Back to Charleston

February 18th:

After two glorious weeks in Lexington with Richard, we had to head back to Charleston. While we were sad to say good bye to Lexington and our future home, we were excited for Katy Ellis to get to see our "Sea Side Shack!" HA! The BIGGEST downside to heading back to Charleston was saying goodbye to most of our extended family and Rich going back to work. On the plus side, Katy Ellis finally got to meet her Uncle Ryan!!

Uncle Ryan had unfortunately gotten a stomach bug the Monday that Katy Ellis was born so he did not get to meet her at the hospital. Needless to say he was pretty bummed, so we made sure he got to meet his new niece as soon as we got home.

 

Uncle Ryan, you look pretty good with a baby!! HA! Just kidding Gigi!

Richard calls her his "Beautiful Dreamer." She is probably one of the sleepiest babies I have ever known! Thankfully she is a good eater and growing well, so I guess we will just have to let the girl sleep. She'll wake up eventually.
Our little "Sleeping Beauty!"

This is a picture from Lexington, but it is one of my favorite things from our time in Charleston. Every morning at 7am when the girls woke up, I would get Blakely and put her in Mommy and Daddy's bed with her milk. I would then get back in bed with Katy Ellis. Both girls would have their milk, and then the three of us would snuggle. *BLISS*

I love snuggling this girl! She will just curl up on my chest and snuggle!! I call her Snuggles, Snuggler, Buggles, Cuddly Bud, Love Bug, Katy Girl...etc.
She is just so different from Blakely as a baby. Blakely was born wide awake, alert, curious, and wanting to see the world. She never wanted to be held like a baby; she wanted to sit up and look around.
Katy Ellis is the complete opposite! She is a sleepy, cuddly baby who just wants to curl up on your chest and take a nap. There could not be two other babies that are so different, who look so much a like!
LOVE MY GIRLS!!

While back in Charleston, Blakely has gotten REALLY, REALLY in to Ballerinas and dancing. She literally dances and sings from sun up to sun down... everyday!

When she gets up, she immediately wants her tu-tu on... and off she goes! She will spin and spin until she falls down. She also refuses to keep her eyes open while spinning which tends to lead to some injuries. I didn't manage to capture it on my camera, but her "ballerina face" is hilarious! She furrows her brow and makes the most serious face; it is probably one of the funniest things I have ever seen!

Ballerina blur! Can't get this girl to slowdown.

 

Katy Ellis is starting to be a little more alert as she gets closer to 4 weeks old. She will now stay awake for about 15-20 minutes after she eats!! Go KE! Love this beautiful girl!!

Snow, Again?

February 12th: Katy Ellis First Snow

It NEVER snows in Lexington. Like NEVER, EVER. So the fact that is actually snowed TWICE in the same winter is just crazy! It snowed the week before Katy Ellis was born and the week afterwards. Who would have thought she would have her first snow the same year as Blakely. Crazy, right? Rich had been working the week before Katy Ellis was born, so he missed out on playing in the snow with Blakely. This time he was here with us, and he was not about to miss out on the fun this time around!! Such a blessing that he got a make-up snow day with his girl!

I love Blakely's face when she wakes up and realizes it has snowed... AGAIN! She says it like a whisper... "snow."

Our little snow bunny in a Kissy Kissy with snowflakes on it.

The 1st snow had been really dry and fluffy. You could hardly make a snowball out of it. This snow was very wet and icy. The ground crunched as you walked across it.

Hi cuties!

It was still sleeting when we first woke up, so we had to find an umbrella just to be able to get a picture in the snow.

She is loving this!

It is so funny how different the winter that we brought Blakely home was. Blakely was born in one of the hottest winters on record. We wore shorts and went for walks outside everyday! With Katy Ellis we are trapped inside and it is record colds. Our family in Indiana has only been to school 5 times in the last 2 months on account of all the weather. So crazy. So, so cold!! BRrrrrrr.

Best day ever! These buddies had a great time playing in the snow! Yeah for Daddy being here in Lexington!!

First Week Home



February 5th-10th: One Week Old

 

I had a lot of fears and trepidation during my pregnancy regarding having a newborn at home again. I remembered with Blakely feeling exhausted and super busy every day when she first came home, and life with a toddler was already pretty full and pretty exhausting. How could I possibly care for both and maintain my sanity? Thankfully all of these fears were unfounded, mainly due to the fact that Katy Ellis is a very sleepy, chill baby. This week anyways, I have found that having 2 is better than 1! I feel that Katy Ellis has richly enhanced Blakely's life. Let's just hope that I am saying this in a couple of months!!

 

Sleepiest baby in America! I have put ice on her neck and feet just to get her awake enough to eat sometimes! So different from Blakely! Blakely was born wide awake and wanting to see the world... whereas this little snuggler was born wanting to sleep and cuddle! So fun getting to snuggle and love on this little one!

Our first night home, CeeCee and Uncle Time brought us an amazing dinner of fillet Mignon! They also got to meet this little cutie. Needless to say, they were immediately taken with her.

Thank you guys for an amazing dinner! They pulled out all the stops!!! There were pink candles, pink flowers and pink balloons. It was such a wonderful surprise to come home to!!

Gigi getting her snuggles in with Katy Ellis.

 

 

Katy Ellis hanging out with her PopPop.

Our second night home, Uncle Matt finally got to meet Katy Ellis. He had planned to come to Charleston to meet her, but Banks got sick that week and so super Daddy volunteered to stay home with the boy.
Katy Ellis if you are anything like your sister than Uncle Matt will be one of your absolute favorite people!!

I absolutely love newborn baby yawns!! They are so adorable. Must be rough doing nothing but sleeping and eating.

Our newest little hanging out with her Dada.

This is what Daddy comes up with when hanging out with the girls. Very Ann Geddes, Rich!

Daddy multitasking and taking care of 2 girls at once!!

 

This picture was a complete surprise. While Auntie and Banks were over playing, we attempted to take a picture of the girls together. Up to this point in time, Blakely had never held Katy Ellis and even seemed kind of fearful of her. Auntie was brave and said lets just see what happens.... the pictures are priceless.

Yes, there is a wooden carrot in Blakely's hand. I did not expect this to go well, so it all happened really quickly.

Major, major shout out to Gigi for this precious BIG sister/ LITTLE sister sleeper and tunic. The girls look absolutely adorable. I love your new hobby!!

I am so excited to be these sweet girls Mommy!! I pray that these sisters are as close as Alyssa and I are. Don't be confused... we fought growing up over barbies, clothes and our joint cell phone (ha!), but she is my absolute best friend and I could not do this whole mommy thing without her. I feel so blessed that we get to raise our kids together!!