Easter and Grandma Koko!!

April 20th: Happy Easter!!

Rich was going to have to work on Easter, so we threw a big Easter party here at our house the Saturday before. The kids had a ton of fun opening Easter baskets from Gigi and PopPop and hunting for eggs in the yard.

I say "was going to have to", because  Rich ended up NOT working Easter. The last week of April was a disaster. First, Blakely and I got a terrible, no-good stomach bug with fever for 48 hours (did I mention that the washer is still in Charleston???). NO ONE could come to our rescue- Alyssa had just found out she was pregnant, Richard was on call and Gigi had Grandma Koko visiting (84 yo, recovering from a respiratory illness, experiencing new onset chest palpitations). Thankfully, Katy Ellis managed to squeak out without getting sick (go, go breastmilk!!). Rich got someone to cover his call, and came home to rescue us.... which meant he did get to be here for Easter morning, not that ANY of us were going to go to Church (ever heard of Typhoid Mary?).

Secondly, Katy Ellis and I took a lovely ride in an ambulance and got to meet Aunt Alyssa's co-workers. The Monday after Easter, I tripped on the stairs with Katy Ellis in my arms. She hit her head on the wooden steps and I completely lost it. She was totally fine. She only cried for like 2 minutes and then was smiling and happy. I, on the other hand, totally freaked out. I have seen too many head injuries and traumatic brain injuries to sit at home. The rational side of my brain said, "she's fine. She is exhibiting no worrisome symptoms. You just need to observe her at home for 4-6 hours." The mommy side of my brain said, "this is MY baby, and I will not let anything bad happen to my girl. I want the full court press!" Thankfully, by the time we arrived in the ER, my rational side had won out and I refused CT/X-ray as these would have been unnecessary radiation. Rich and I stayed up most of the night watching her on the dropcam, and the angel slept through the night as usual. No worries. Praise God!!!

Thirdly, the DVD player stopped working in the car. I know this sounds minor, especially when compared to our health scares, but at that time it was a complete disaster! Since the move in November, I have driven I-26 two to three times per week. It was no big deal when it was just me, but since February I have had Blakely and Katy Ellis with me. We NEED that DVD player to work!!!

Finally, I returned to work. I'll leave the details of that for the next post.

Blakely and Banks LOVE a good Easter Egg hunt!! There wasn't even anything in these eggs, but they ran after them anyways! We even kept the eggs out for a week or two and had daily Easter eggs hunts.

Banks and Blakely love to hold hands. When you ask them to "hold hands," they usually try to hold both hands. Always funny to watch them try to walk into a store sideways.

At first, I was a little disappointed that Blakely had on a Minnie Mouse dress in this picture (courtesy of Gigi's Easter basket surprises). I had her in a really cute pastel outfit which would have been super picturesque... but I feel like this is typical of who Blakely is today, and I know that someday that is EXACTLY what I'll want to see. Not a beautiful picture, just Blakely as she really was. Future Lauren, You're Welcome!



I thought Banks was eating Chocolate in this picture. Unfortunately, that is actually a sweet gum ball. You're Welcome, Future Alyssa!!

The kids got these great Easter baskets from Gigi and PopPop which are really stylish laundry hampers. So cute.

Gigi also made these adorable bunnies!! She is super talented!! I cannot believe that these were made on an embroidery machine!!

Blakely is MAJORLY into princesses and all things girly right now, so her Easter basket was a MAJOR hit!!

She pulled this out and yelled "Princess dress!!"

Gigi also made then Cousin T-shirts!! So adorable. Thank you Gigi!!



Yes... this is her response to the Minnie Mouse dress!!

She IMMEDIATELY wanted to put ALL of her gifts on- big bow, "pretty dress", and "nu shoos!" Gigi really knocked this one out of the park!!

The best part of the party was Katy Ellis got to meet her Great Poppy!!

Poppy with three grandkids and three (four?) great grandkids!!

Easter Morning: This year the Easter bunny didn't wrap anything. He just had to throw it out there as fast as she could!

That hair... what are we gonna do with it?

One of the saddest things that happened with our GI illness was the loss of Puppy. During Toddler week at Edventure, Blakely got to decorate this small, white puppy (see above). She was SO, SO, SO proud of "Puppy!" She slept with it, ate with it and carried it around. Puppy even led to a health scare due to some of his water soluble, purple paint coming off on Blakely during her nap (can you say weird purple bruises on neck and chin?). During our illness, Puppy became soiled and had to be washed. All of the paint and decorations Blakely had lovingly applies to Puppy came off in the wash. When we tried to give her a now clean, white Puppy back at bedtime, she yelled "not my puppy!" It was heartbreaking!

So the Easter bunny made sure to load Blakely's Easter basket full of the same art supplies they had at Edventure, and then she got to decorate Puppy all over again!! Puppy was again restored to his former glory!!

Katy Ellis getting to meet her Great Koko!! This baby loves to get snuggled by her Koko!!

This picture is a miracle!! The fact that we got all 4 to look at the camera (Grandma Koko included!!) is miraculous!!
All three kiddos are rocking their Gigi creations and looking super cute!!

Spring has Sprung!!

March/April: Warm weather here we come!!

This has been an extremely long, cold winter y'all!! And I don't know about you, but we have been itching to get outside!! We bought our new home in November, and one of the big selling features for us was the backyard. We have an nice house with an AMAZING backyard!!! Seriously this thing has a screened in porch, big play set, fenced in 1/2 acre and stone patio with outdoor kitchen.... what more could you ask for? So..... now that the warm weather is here we are outside non-stop, because this is South Carolina and eventually it'll be TOO HOT to enjoy the great outdoors outside of your bathing suit.

Katy Ellis LOVES to stretch and kick on the back porch. She has a minor obsession with ceiling fans... weird, but true.

One of the most exciting things about buying a house in winter is discovering new blooms in your yard.

So far we have had daffodils (February), Cherry Blossoms/Tulips (March), Azaleas (April) and our yard is lined in Crepe Myrtles, so I know we will get more blooms this summer!

Someone LOVES all the flowers in the yard. We have a strict "eyes only" rule when it comes to flowers, but if it has fallen on the ground it is fair game!

She is starting to look more and more like a little girl, and less and less like a toddler. Slow down time!!

A MIRACLE is starting to happen as well!! Like an honest-to-goodness, call-the-Vatican miracle!!
Blakely is starting to smile for the camera again!!!
Hallelujah!! Hallelujah!! Hallelujah!! (to the tune of the Hallelujah Chorus)
For those who have faithfully followed my blog will know, Blakely stopped smiling for (ie even looking at) the camera around 8-9 months old. Mere words cannot express how excited this picture-snappin-mama is about seeing that sweet face in print again!! HURRAY!! HURRAY!! HAPPY DAY!!

In April, Auntie had a conference in Charleston so we brought all 3 kiddos with us to the "abandoned warehouse" (ie the townhouse) and went on some Charleston adventures.

KE getting some snuggles in with Auntie in the morning.

Most tourists come for the history, the fine dinning, the night life and the beach. While we did make it to the beach, the rest of our adventures were not exactly tour guide worthy.
2 Chick-fil-as, 4 consignment shops, 1 beach trip to Kiawah and 2 trips to Costco. All the things I will miss most!

We absolutely are in love with our porch!! Mommy's favorite activity if coffee and a good book. This is Blakely's version: Jamberry and a sippy for juice. Rock on girlfriend!

One of the most difficult things about living in two cities is leaving Daddy behind for days on end. Blakely and her Daddy are best buddies, so when he's not here she constantly asks me "Mama- Where Dada go?" It just about breaks my heart!!
Less than 100 days until we all live here FULL TIME!!! WAHOO!!!

Fencer Pose

Peek-a-boo!

2 Months Old

April 3rd: Katy Ellis is 2 Months Old!!

I have said it before, and I will probably say it a thousand times.... I cannot believe she is already 2 months old!! Time really does fly when you are raising babies... I need to remind myself to stop, take it in and enjoy these days (even the rough ones), because before I know it these girls won't be little anymore and I don't want to miss it.

Big Milestones for this month:
-Smiling
-Tracking
-Eye contact
-Alertness
-Cooing

Two Month Well Check:
-Perfect bill of health from Dr. Kate
-10 lb 15 oz (36%)
-22.5 inches long (46%)
-38.5cm OFC (54%)

Loves: Mommy's voice, singing and cooing, bouncing in the bjorn, stretching, kicking her feet.

Dislikes: There is not much this girl does not like... she is a super chill baby and rarely cries.

Biggest change from 1 month to 2 months is her level of alertness. She is now able to stay fully awake for 90 minutes before her next nap. Perfect little Babywise baby!! Everyone joked during the first month that "when she woke up, she would wake up with a vengeance." Nothing could be further from the truth. This girl is just as sweet awake as asleep. Love this little cuddle bug.

New Nicknames: Squanky, Squankers, Pudge and Pudge Pig.
Squanky comes from these funny little, happy faces she makes where only 1/2 of her face is smiling and she is kind of winking. It is about the cutest thing. She is one Squanky baby.
Pudge Pig comes from those chubby little cheeks and double chin. I still think she looks a LOT like Blakely except for those chubby cheeks! They are about the cutest thing I have ever seen.

Current schedule:
Wake up at 7am, bedtime at 7pm.
Sleeps from 7-7 almost every night.
Eats at 7, 10, 1, 4, and 7. Takes 4 naps per day.
Eating just Mommy milk.

Loves to be on her back and look at ceiling fans. Apparently they are very entertaining.

Still living in 2 houses and having to drive up and down 26 twice a week. KE is a great little traveler and never puts up any fuss. As soon as we get in the car, Little Bit just drifts off to sleep like magic.

Blakely is finally taking notice that there is a baby in the house. I can honestly say that there has not been a moments jealousy on Blakely's part. I don't think that Blakely views KE as a baby though. She keeps putting tiaras and bracelets on her, and if Blakely is playing babies she brings KE a doll to hold. Blakely even picked out a "Grey" for Katy Ellis at the store. I pray that these sisters continue to love each other and play together as they grow up.

 

Happy 2 Month Birthday Katy Girl!! We love you so  much. These have been the best 2 months ever, and it just keeps getting better and better!!

March Fun!!

March 2014: Let's Explore the Midlands!!!

The month of March was so, so, so much fun!! I think I am really getting the hang of this mommy-of-two thing (famous last words?).... and I am just not one to sit quietly at home. So most days we (either me and Gigi or me and Auntie) load up the swagger-wagon (IE the minivan) with all three kiddos, two strollers, two diaper bags and a plan, and we hit the road! So far this month we have explored the zoo, Edventure, Saluda shoals, Virginia Hilton, the mall and ANY indoor playground we can find. I am absolutely loving being home with my girls 24-7, I am going to be sad when my maternity leave ends. Thankfully, I only go back to work for 5 weeks, then I am taking an extended break to raise my girls. No idea how long that will end up being... right now I am thinking 6-12 months, but we will see.

Being a stay at home mom is the hardest jobs I have ever had, and I thought residency would be the hardest I ever worked (30 hour calls in the PICU, call every 4th night, 14 hour night shifts, etc). But this is a whole new level of challenging. First, there is no post-call day. If I am up all night with a sick kid, I don't get to leave at noon and go sleep it off. Secondly, I care infinitely more about the outcome. I thought I cared a lot for my patients, but with your own kids you panic about things you KNOW are no big deal (IE random fevers, splinters, boo-boos, boogers, etc). You only get one shot with your kids, and you don't want to mess them up. Third, when the kids are crying I can't say "I'll be right back," I have to stay there and be the one to calm the howling.

Some days (the crazy one's where nothing goes right and everyone is crying), I long to be back in the office and just be a doctor. But most days, I LOVE LOVE LOVE being these little girls mama and being with them everyday. While I was in residency, I thought about doing a NICU or PICU fellowship, and I had to ask myself some hard questions. At the end of my life, am I going to say "I wish I had done that fellowship" or "I wish I had more time with my kids?" When stated that way, it became a no brainer, so I took a part-time (3 days a week) job in primary care. Now, I am asking myself these questions again. Work? or More time with my kids while they are little? They keep growing and changing so fast, and I don't want to miss a moment of it (even the tantrums). So for right now, I think I know where I want to be.

Man, when did this post get so serious? Back to some pictures of our adventures!!

At the zoo with Daddy. Not sure who loves the super load monkeys more...Blakely or Daddy?

This was Katy Ellis first trip to the zoo.... look quick because she slept the rest of the trip.

Yes, I blinded my baby (briefly) for a picture. Sorry Katy Ellis.

Exploring the botanical gardens.

Looking at the tigers.

Play that guitar Blakely!



One of our favorite quick outings is Mt. Horeb's playground. We can walk over from Banks house and the kids love a change of scenery.

Blakely the daredevil. If there is a good chance that Blakely is going to fall and bust her chin on it, that is the first thing she attempts at any playground. Maybe she'll be braver than her Mommy (I'm a bit of scaredy cat. I won't even jump off the high dive.)

Banks the safety man. Banks slides down the slide on his tummy every time; he will not slide down on his bottom.

Typical. Tongue hanging out as she climbs. I am afraid she is going to bite that thing off. I think this is one of those life lessons you have to learn the hard way.

This is what Blakely does when I ask her to smile for the camera. Sadly, this is a dramatic improvement.

Love being Blakely and Katy Ellis' mama. There is NEVER a dull moment.