Family Time

This past weekend we went to the lake with my family. It was pretty crazy because there were 5 kids 4 and under spending the night, but it was fun to have my family together.


Ellie was SO excited that everybody was there!

In the paddle boat

My niece Gracie floating in the water

Noah trying to work the courage up to get in the water

Rileigh James is SO proud of herself because she got a whole cookie

Ellie and Rileigh playing together

Ellie and Jenna playing in the baby pool that we put on the pier.
These girls loved it!

Anna Claire tyring to escape the family jet ski ride!

Momma and River on the "mower" as River called it.

Melissa and Rileigh

Miss Rileigh had already had enough fun!

Riding the jet ski

Jenna relaxing in the pool

Anna- Claire swimming.

She loved the water.

She swam all under the pier.

She is very brave because I don't even like to do that!

Miss Rileigh trying to cool off after a busy hot day!

Sassy Bows

Sassy Bows

Matt says that whenever Ellie has a hair bow in her hair that she acts different. She is prissier, more temperamental, and more demanding. He says she knows she is cute with them in so she just acts more ...sassy. I guess we will just have to start calling them her sassy bows!

Pear Juice and Sippy Cup

Pear Juice and Sippy Cup

The other day when I was in Babies R Us I was looking at the sippy cups just to get an idea of when I could start giving her one. I found a Playtex one for four months and thought I would give it a try. I wasn't sure if she would be able to do it, but she did drink sweet tea out of a straw the other day ...so I was hopeful.
I put pear juice ( very diluted) in it because I figured that was a better choice then apple juice.

Well it took her a few minutes to figure it out, but she did! And she loved it.

She made the funniest face when she first got a sip of it.

After she figured out that it actually had something in it that she liked she started gulping it!

Trying to figure it out...

Yum!

This is what she did when I took it away!
Poor baby...

Happy Birthday Anna-Claire!

Happy Birthday Anna-Claire!

Last night we went over to my sister's house to celebrate Anna - Claire's 4th birthday. She is having her "real" party in a few weeks at Chick-fil-a, but since yesterday was her actual birthday we had to celebrate. We went over and wore princess crowns, ate pizza, cupcakes, ice cream, and drank our drinks out of silly straws.

What more could you ask for when you are 4 years old?

I cannot believe that this sweet girl is already 4!
She is growing so fast.
It seems like just the other day when she was born.

We love you sweet Anna-Claire!

Ice Cream Anyone?

Ice Cream Anyone?

So lately I have been wanting AND eating tons of ice cream...cookies and cream ice cream to be exact. I guess just because the weather has been SO hot and miserable, it seems that ice cream is one of the only things that will really cool me down. I really like eating it in a cone too. The cones that I bought this time are very small and so I can justify eating at LEAST 2 of them. I sure hope that when this weather finally cools off that my infatuation with ice cream will go away too!

Hooray for Ellie!

Hooray for Ellie!

With a little help Miss Ellie has gone from this ( sitting with help)....

To this....

Our sweet Ellie Reese is getting so big!

We were over at my sister's house when she first started sitting up.

Her cousin Jenna, who is 3 months older than her was sitting on the floor and I put Ellie down next to her.

I helped her sit next to Jenna for a little while, then I let her sit it herself and she did it!

She was so proud up herself. She just kept smiling.

It was like she was waiting to show her cousin her tricks!

Yummy!

Yummy!

When I took Ellie to the doctor for her 4 month checkup last week he asked me when I wanted to start solid foods. I told him that I thought that I would wait until 6 months. I wanted to wait because I already feel like she is growing up so fast and waiting until 6 months is one thing I can do to keep her a baby longer. He said that I could start whenever but he also said that if she starts waking up more in the night and wanting to eat it may be a sign she needs more calories. So the last 2 nights she has been waking up two times instead of her usual one time wanting to eat, so I decided it was time for some rice cereal at night to help fill her little tummy up.

This is here in her high chair getting ready to eat her rice cereal for the first time.
She has started reaching for everything.
In this picture she is reaching for the camera!

The rice cereal...

Eating...she did really good with it. She didn't push it out all over the place like I though she was going to and she kept reaching over to the bowl like she wanted more.

Ellie and her Daddy after she got done eating

Construction Zone

Construction Zone

The other night Ellie was inside with me and she was being so fussy so I decided to let her go outside and sit in her walker so she could watch her daddy work...

This is what she was looking so intently at...

I know. It is a very scary site! We are buidling a deck and Matt had to take out our old one to build the new one.

So she watched him while he labored away!

She really loved being out there.

I can't wait until our new deck it finished so we can all sit outside and enjoy it!

Our dog, Jack was also very excited to have Miss Ellie outside with him. He is still not really sure what to think of her, but I think that in a few years they will be best friends!

Thats my girl!

Thats my girl!

The other day when I was making brownies for our small group, Ellie was in the kitchen watching me. I turned around and she was after the Hershey's Fudge... I guess the girl knows what she wants!

4 Months

4 Months

I cannot believe that our sweet baby girl is already 4 months old. It seems like thing went SO slow when I was pregnant with her and now time is just flying by. Before I know it she will be grown!. We went to the doctors office today for her 4 month checkup. She had to get 4 shots...she was so pitiful. After the shots were over she would stop crying for a minutes, then its like she was thinking about the shots again and she would just burst out crying all over again! It was so sad.

Her stats for 4 months were:

Weight: 16lbs and 4.5 oz (93 %)

Length: 26.5 (98%)

Sweet thing we don't want to forget about you at 4 months:

~ The way you have found your feet and toes. You are SO cute when you reach down and pull

them up to your face with your hands.

~How you have started to LOVE your bath time. You just kick and splash!

You are so impressed with yourself.

~ You rolling over. It is your new favorite thing! As soon as we lay you down there you go.

~ Pushing yourself up when you are on your belly

~ The way you have started talking and making lots of new sounds.

~ Your BIG smiles whenever people talk to you

HAPPY 4 MONTHS SWEET ELLIE REESE!

Let me see you roll that thang!

Let me see you roll that thang!

This past weekend Miss Ellie learned to roll over...both ways. We were at the lake and I was in the bedroom and Matt came in and laid her down in her pack and play. I thought that he had put her on her stomach ( which by the way she hates), but when I turned around to check on her she was on her back. I went into the living room and asked Matt if her had left her on her stomach or back and he said "stomach"! Then I told him she had just rolled over. Then everybody came running in there and I flipped her back over to her tummy.

This is a picture of her right when she rolled over for the second time. She looked so surprised. Surprised that she had actually rolled over and surprised to see such a big audience watching her. We started clapping for her and she looked so pleased with herself!

Then when we got home from the lake Sunday morning Matt put her in her crib while we got ready.He stepped back and watched her for a few minutes before he walked out and while he was watching she rolled from her back to her belly! What a smart girl we have!

The Lake

The Lake

This past weekend we went to the lake. It was actually Ellie's second trip to the lake but it was her first time to get in the water. I had to buy her a new bathing suit for her because her others were too small. Her new one is 12 months but it fits really good.

Ellie in her life jacket

She really like the water but she did not like her life jacket at all and I cannot blame her for that. It wrapped around her neck and I know she was thinking...what in the world is this thing doing around my neck like this. So she did not stay in the lake for very long, but I sat on the pier with her for a while and Matt splashed water on her feet. She loved sitting there watching everybody else swim and watching the water.

Matt and Ellie swimming

Me and Ellie hanging in the lake

Sitting on the pier

Ellie sitting in her big girl chair that her Mamaw got her. We had to wedge a few towels down in each side so she could sit up in it. She liked it for about 10 minutes, then she was over it.

Ellie hanging out with her daddy.

Sweet Ellie Reese in her pack and play

Little Piggies

Little Piggies

This week Miss Ellie Reese found her feet! They are now her favorite thing. Everytime we lay her down she starts reaching for them. It is so cute. The other afternoon when she was asleep, Matt put her now in her crib and she was reaching for them in her sleep. She thinks that she is so talented now.

She also has a new trick and I am not really sure where she learned it from. She stiffens up her legs and pokes out her belly and starts growling! It is really funny to watch her. She takes it so seriously. It sounds like something her Daddy would teach her!