shy girl

Ella has started this new thing where when you say hi to her and I am holding her she will lay her head down and look up at you with these sweet shy eyes. She will turn her head and then look back at you with the sweetest smile!

I just love watching her personality develop. So fun!

Happy Wednesday!

6 1/2 months

Ella is 6 1/2 months old and I cannot believe we are closer to one year! AH! She is growing like crazy and it seems like her personality is developing more and more every day. She is a petite little one, but healthy and sweet as can be! Her eyes are still looking like they will be blue, so we will have to see if any changes come along.

She LOVES...I mean REALLY loves to snuggle. During my pregnancy I prayed and asked that the Lord for a baby that would love to be held and snuggled and am so grateful for this sweet gift from the Lord. Sometimes I wish I could just freeze time when I am rocking her. 

Ella started sitting up the day before her 6 month birthday. She had been trying for awhile, but it seemed like overnight she just decided to sit up. We still put pillows around her because every now and then she will decide to fly to the floor. She is full of smiles and talks SO much (I wonder where she gets that from!)

She is also eating solids twice a day. This girl loves her solids! She gets so excited when it is time to eat and it is quite the messy event! Some of her favorites are avocados, mango, watermelon, and sweet potatoes. She really loves almost anything though! Right now, I am making most of her food, but definitely use the pouches when we are on the go. I was able to make her organic homemade food for much less than what it would have cost to purchase pre-made. I also look at the dirty dozen list for help on what to buy organic and still be mindful about the cost. 

We also got her a little pool for the backyard and this girl loves to be in the water! Whether it is pool time or bath time she is loving the water! We usually have to hold on to her in the pool because she wants to eat the water and go flying into the pool!

We are so grateful for her development and the Lord continues to teach us to trust Him as we raise Ella and remember she is ultimately His. I am loving getting to see this sweet personality the Lord gave her develop. 

Hope everyone had a great weekend and maybe I will get back on track with 7 months :) !

5 1/2 months

So this month I somehow forgot her monthly post...oops! I am working on a baby book for her first year and each month we write her a letter and take pictures, then I save them, so at the end of the first year I can compile them into a book to give her. I love taking these pictures and can't wait to see the whole book come together!

Here are her 5 month pics (and a few extras that are super cute!)

 She is one happy girl!

 Oh how these pictures have changed! She was over it real fast and ready to roll around.

 This is from a couple days before she turned 5 months. She looks like such a big girl!!

 Sill girl always moving those arms and legs. 

Love her so much!

This month has been so fun! Ella is rolling all over the place and pushing up on her arms all the time. If you try to sit her up she leans all the way forward and then will push her arms straight for a few seconds. She is always smiling and giggling and such a content baby. We have started teething big time and there is drool EVERYWHERE! Ella also loves her solids! She has tried tons of different foods and so far has loved it all! She really likes avocados and her oatmeal with apples. 

I am loving being home to see all of these milestones and so grateful to be here to watch her grow! 

Father's Day Cards

(source)

I am sure with pinterest and facebook everyone is getting their hands on some great (and free) Father's Day crafts and ideas. This year Ella and I are very excited to celebrate James' first Father's Day. I wanted to pass along this deal in case you have not seen it. If you order your card today from treat.com, it will be here by Saturday. Enter FREETREAT at checkout and it is completely FREE! Such a fun keepsake for Dad! 

Also, they have lots of cute ones to pick from!

Happy Tuesday!

Ella's Baby Dedication

Last Sunday we had Ella's baby dedication and it was such a wonderful celebration of this sweet blessing God has given us. The focus of the dedication time was spent with family and our community group. Our hope for Ella is that one day she will come to know the Lord and until then we are blessed with the opportunity to teach her about Jesus and raise her in a way that constantly points to her Creator. We know that we will make good and bad choices as parents, which is why is was so wonderful to have family and our community group there to partner with us as we raise Ella....it takes a village and we are grateful to have one! 

James led such a sweet dedication for Ella and had each person read a "gift" that they hope to pass along to Ella. Watermark provided us with an outline to lead the dedication and we tweaked a few things in terms of wording and the certain scripture that we chose. It was truly such a sweet time for our family. 

Here are some pics from the ceremony...

 James welcoming everyone 

 Family pic with our baby girl

 Beautiful cake with her initials on the center of the cross

Our sweet family and community group celebrating Ella's dedication

Psalm 127:3-5

Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from Him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one's youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them, they will not be put to shame when they contend with their opponents in court. 

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! 

instaLOVE

Here is a little bit of our summer days via instagram...

1. Ella being cute with her lovey

2. Rainy day snuggles

3. Jaxon got his summer cut

4. This is the face I get when I take her foot out of her mouth....

Happy Summer!

A New Normal

I am so thankful that a new normal is setting in. We were incredibly blessed with a wonderful woman who watched Ella while I finished working and I am so grateful for a great school that I was able to be part of for 3 years. With all of that being said, I am so grateful to be in my dream job and get used to this new normal. I know that every job has its ups and downs, and I know that being a stay at home mom will come with some very difficult and very rewarding days, but I could not be more excited to buckle up for this journey. 

Yesterday, Ella and I went to "Baby Bounce" at the Bookmarks store in Northpark with some wonderful friends and their little ones. It was really fun to bounce around with Ella and play with all of the fun music toys. It had it fair share of cheesiness, but we just embraced it! 

Her personality is developing more and more everyday and I am looking forward to being here to see her continue to grow. 

Here are some fun pics from recently...

 She loves to play airplane! 

 Anytime I turn the iphone camera around where she can see herself she usually giggles..it is pretty funny!

 In her swimsuit and ready to go swimming!

Sweet giggles!

So, other stay at home mommas...what are some of your favorite things to fill your days?