Leading Worship

Last post I wrote about needing to be at church at 7:45 to help lead worship. Well we didn't pull in until close to 8:15, but we made it! Jon helped it happen by making breakfast and loading up Ellie and her luggage and going with us. He hung out with Ellie until after practice when I took her and nursed before the service began. Jon was a bit nervous about having to keep Ellie content in a public place because he couldn't just let her cry since he needed to keep quiet. Fortunately our church just opened up a "gathering room" where the babies' nursery used to be and he took her in there and had some women help him out by taking turns holding her. They both survived the 35 minute worship service and Jon was on his way to Sunday School after I relieved him. I was planning on going to my women's sunday school but decided to just spend the rest of the service in the gathering room and then nurse Ellie when she was hungry. For second service Jon had her in the sanctuary but made a quick escape when she started fussing while Dad was talking (Dad was the worship leader). We all three made it through the sermon, though, which was great.

Church is exhausting

I had put together a crockpot dinner yesterday afternoon so I just turned it on this morning and it was ready to go for lunch. It was so nice to have a real meal after church since frequently we're stuck scrounging around for good food. After lunch Jon said he'd take Ellie for me and he went and snuggled with her on the couch for almost two hours! I was able to do the dishes, do precepts homework, and work on the Mary Kay order. It was wonderful. 

The rest of my afternoon basically consisted of relaxing and finishing the Mary Kay order. Corinne, we have officially lasted two months as Mary Kay consultants. Between us and Stephanie we kept the active status. No promises for the next time, though...

At evening church we prayed for the children's ministry. Ellie apparently didn't think we needed to pray for them so I left and nursed her and then hung out in the back to listen to the presentations. Although I haven't been able to spend an entire prayer meeting in the sanctuary it's worth it for the fellowship afterwards. I always seem to see different people in the evening than in the morning, which I enjoy. 

After church we ate some leftovers for dinner then watched two episodes of Band of Brothers. I think Ellie might be growing because she seems to be eating a lot lately! Before I put her in some more comfortable clothes this evening I took a few pictures of her. She is six weeks old! 

Below: The first set of pictures weren't very flattering so I tried to get her to close her mouth. Not looking very intelligent there, Ellie:

Sometimes everyday feels like Saturday

Yesterday morning I woke up and it was dreary out, which is never motivational for me. I had lofty goals of waking up and deciding on something fun to do for the day but definitely did not do that. Instead I decided to sleep in and take it slow. I definitely confused the day with Saturday, which happens often enough now that my days are very similar. I did my Precepts and Bible Study homework, though, which was productive. After lunch I realized I really should get out and go somewhere so I texted Mom and Kelly and we decided to go for a walk around 3.
Leaving about 15 minutes later we did our usual loop with a quick pit-stop at the church where Jon was helping rip off the roof for new shingles. I asked him if he knew what was happening for dinner (pizza at his parents) and made sure we were on the same page. Then we were off back to Mom's house. I ended up nursing and changing Ellie's diaper before heading over to Doug and Donna's for pizza. Omar had passed his license exam so we were celebrating together his success. While we were waiting for dinner we watched CBS 3 Philly at 6:00 because the Hannas, friends from church, were featured. On Tuesday Sean Hanna had delivered his son on the side of 202 since they did not make it to the hospital. What a story. I am so glad that did not happen to us!
After our pizza dinner Omar came over to our place and him and Jon dueled it out in FIFA for a good hour or two. By the time they were finished Ellie and I were sleeping. Since I never know how our nights will go I have made an effort to go to bed around 10:30. It was a good thing I did because Ellie decided to wake up at 3:00 and fight sleep until about 5:00. Jon was up for a spell with her and I ultimately took her to the living room and reclined on the couch so I could fall asleep while I waited for her to fall asleep on my chest. It worked!
This morning Jon woke up early and headed back over to the church to put shingles on. Ellie and I went back to sleep after he left until 9:30, when I got up to get ready. Of course Ellie realized it was time to wake up so I ultimately just laid her on the bed so I could jump in the shower. I knew when I left her there that she was working on something stinky but I was surprised when I returned to find that her diaper had leaked and she had made a mess of the sheets. Fortunately I had placed her on Jon's side of the bed so I'm golden.
When I was changing her diaper I decided to just quickly give her a bath since tomorrow is church and she really did need a bath. Of course the bath was not as quick as I anticipated since I scrubbed her scalp in attempts to rid her head of cradle cap. I made some progress!

At 11:00 we left home and headed to Mom and Dad's for worship practice. Ellie was good for the first thirty minutes and when she started to protest about being stuck in her car seat, Pops took her out and held her for the duration. When people see Ellie sometimes they say that she looks like her Pops!

After practice I ran up to the farmer's market and picked up some cheese and an iced toddy. I don't know how much longer they'll be making them, so I thought I should get one before it's too late! I then hung around with Mom until it was time to head over to Doug and Donna's. Today they were having an open house for Grandma Mountz, who is turning 95 on October 8th. They had it today because some out of town relatives were visiting. Donna had a spread of pies, cheese & crackers, vegetables, and beverages. It was a very nice time. Ellie and I were there from 2:00 until 4:45, not really abiding by the open house "drop in" rules. Jon didn't come until after he finished on the roof, which was close to 4:15 by the time he ran home and showered. Ellie didn't mind, though, since she was being passed around and held the entire time! 

We left the open house at 4:45 because we had been invited over to dinner at the Fenton's. Josh showed off his cooking skills for us all and we had a delicious meal of rice, ham balls, green beans, and pumpkin pie. Clark was in good spirits, as usual, and Jon was very entertained by Clark's laugh and tricks. We all really enjoyed ourselves and were so thankful to be invited over! Thank you, Fentons!

Tomorrow we are going to attempt our first involvement in the worship service since Ellie has been around. I'm thinking it's time to figure out what everyone is wearing, pack up Ellie's diaper bag, and get ready for bed since we will have to have an early start if we will make it to church by 7:45! I'll let you know if we're at all successful...

Napping at Mimi's

Granny-Lynn

This week was a week of doctor's appointments. Fortunately mine was not scheduled until 11:00, so I was able to sleep in a bit. Ellie woke up at 11:15, 3:30, and 6:45. So she's staying consistent with her improvements! Generally at her wake up between 6 and 7 I don't try to put her back to sleep. Well this morning I was feeling particularly tired, as was Ellie, and she went back to sleep. Jon asked if I wanted a bagel -I said yes. However I never got up and joined him for breakfast! He left for work and I ended up sleeping until 9:00. It was wonderful. I woke up and prepared my breakfast and ate it in Ellie's room, since I new she'd wake up. Sure enough she did so I fed her while reading the other blogs and eating breakfast. We slowly started moving and ended up rushing out the door at 10:30 for my appointment. How is it that when I have plenty of time I still end up rushing?
We arrived 5 minutes early and were in and out in twenty minutes. I told my doctor that I missed him at Ellie's delivery and he told me that we broke the rules by going early. Ha. I'd give you my stats but they didn't measure my length or head width or my percentage compared to the general population, so I won't bore you with my weight.
I was very tempted to stop by Chik Fil A for lunch and run into Target or Babies R Us, but I went home instead. I didn't think a 20 minute appointment warranted a $9 lunch or a shopping trip. Ellie and I decided instead to head home, eat lunch, start the laundry, and do my Bible study homework. Ellie cooperated by taking a nap with only a short interruption for a snack. Day 1 after my Bible studies and I did my homework for both. We'll see how that continues.
Jon came home for dinner and we ate some leftovers before heading out to small group in New Holland at Brock and Nebin's house. This was our first meeting with our new group and I think it went well! We will be studying Ecclesiastes and our group consists of the Brock & Nebin, Mark & Nelah, Dave & Joie Culbert, and Paul & Sarah Rus. Dave will be leading and he did a great job tonight. After the study Jon and I went through a McDonalds drive thru for a pick-me-up for the 30 minute drive home.

This afternoon we found out some sad news. Jon's mom's mother, Granny-Lynn, passed away. Her health had been declining these past several months so Ellie actually never had the opportunity to meet her. The memorial service will probably be next Saturday. Granny-Lynn will be missed!

Ellieisms: 

Ellie wore her last newborn diaper today. She has officially graduated into size 1. 

Below: I am trying to get Ellie to smile without success. You may want to watch this video on mute, my voice is quite obnoxious. You have been warned. 

Below: Jon discovered a trick Ellie can do. If you rotate her side to side, she goes cross-eyed! It works the first time.

Bible Study Day

Since I graduated college in 2010 I wanted to join Mrs. Garner's precepts Bible Study class. However, for the past two years my teaching schedule conflicted with the course. Having retired from teaching classroom music, my Wednesday mornings are open. The study begins at 9:15 so I tried to get Ellie and myself out the door around 8:45...which ended up being 9:02. I walked into the room right at 9:15 to see it mostly empty. Apparently the first day is a pass on arriving on time but from here on out I better be there! Ellie was a stinker during introductions and prayer and I actually left the room during prayer. When I came back in Mimi asked to hold her and she fell asleep for the remainder of the class. Hopefully she will start asleep in the coming weeks!

Sleeping on Mimi

Mom asked Kelly and I over for lunch so we headed there afterwards. Mom made sandwiches and heated up some tomato tortellini soup, which was delicious. Clark was ready for a nap so Kelly put him down and the rest of us hung out in the family room and watched an episode of Downton Abbey. After Clark woke up we hung out until about 4:30 until I went home.

This lasted about 2 minutes

I prepared dinner and was close to finishing when Jon came home. He had been asked to host prayer group at the last minute so we ate dinner then cleaned up the kitchen. Fortunately the living room was relatively clean from Mrs. Snyder's visit so I just picked up a few items and wiped down the bathroom and we were set.
I had snack for Ellie and my second Bible Study for the day at Brittany's house so I sliced some apples and threw caramel, cheese, and crackers into a bag and off we went. The study was very enjoyable and has a few new girls, which I am looking forward to getting to know better. We are doing a study of Colossians, which should be good. Once again Ellie was a bit fussy but she survived. She finally fell asleep after prayer was over and we were just chatting. What a stinker! I told Brittany if it doesn't work to bring her that I would understand. I'll let you know if she gets kicked out.

Feeling like a rich girl with her name on her shirt!

Ellieisms:
I think Ellie might be having a growth spurt. I feel as though she was either sleeping or eating all day today.

1 Month Checkup

This morning Ellie had her one month checkup at 10:15 so we wanted to get a good start on the day. Ellie woke up around 6:30 hungry and Jon graciously brought her to me. I can tell that Jon is sleeping better because he handed her to me saying "Ellie did much better last night. You only had to wake up that once to move her." (We had her in the pack'n'play in the living room where she was still sleeping when we went to bed). No, Jon. You just slept through the 3:30 feeding. She did do better, though. I think her first leg was 4 1/2 hours and her second 3. Progress! For breakfast Jon brewed some coffee and I threw some cinnabon things in the oven. I like to keep a tube of those in the fridge for days where we need motivation for getting up. Somehow it helps. 

Jon was a champ again when he hung out with Ellie so I could enjoy a shower without wondering if Ellie is alone crying. I was out of the shower shortly after 8 and Jon was on his way. Ellie and I got ready for the doctor, put lotion on her, finished up the grocery list, picked up the house a bit, then packed up. We pulled up with five minutes to spare so I put on a bit of makeup before heading in. Ellie did well and her stats are great: nice and average! Here are her numbers (if I remember correctly): 

1 month:

Weight: 9 lb 1 oz

Height: 21 1/2 inches

Head width: 14 3/4 inches

So the nurse taking the measurements wasn't a perfectionist. First of all, she didn't say that Ellie needed a clean diaper (I know for a fact it was at least wet, if not stinky too). Then with her height she gave up with pulling Ellie's leg straight and just decided 21 1/2 seemed good. And lastly with her head, I saw quite a bit of slack. So no wonder her head is so huge! But oh well. These stats aren't going on her college application or anything. If it seems as though she shrinks by next month, though, we'll know why! She was in the 50th percentile for head and height and about 45ish for weight. The graph she draws it on is confusing looking and I never get a good look at it. 

After her appointment we went over to Mom's house. Mom wasn't there so we made ourselves comfortable. I snuck into the pantry and grabbed a granola bar and then nursed Ellie. After a quick diaper change we left and headed over to Walmart for some groceries. Now Mom doesn't think that Walmart should count as a grocery store, but it is just so convenient. After I get my act together perhaps I will try traversing out to Amishland for "real" groceries at Yoder's. I don't even know where that is! Walmart did great for this week - they even had steaks on sale! I grabbed a good looking steak and a potato for dinner (change of plans - who wants to cook when Jon can grill?) as well as numerous other items not on my list. But hey, I used coupons on some cleaning supplies so I was just using up the money I saved on other stuff. 

We went home and emptied the groceries then ate some lunch. Ellie had the usual while I pulled out a treat for me - Cocoa Puffs. So good. After lunch I vacuumed and made the house look a bit more decent for our company coming later. We headed over to Elverson for....guess what? A walk. 

Kelly and Clark met up with us around 2:30 and the five of us went for our usual loop. I had to be home before 4:00 so we actually cute it a bit short, cutting through the office. Mom, Kelly and I all took turns with the strollers so that we all get equal exercise. However somehow Mom seemed to have her hands free during the more intense hills...the perks of being a grandmother. 

Ellie and I arrived home at 3:45 and prepared the potato for baking. So that took about two minutes but we made ourselves busy until Mrs. Snyder arrived. Mrs. Snyder was the sixth grade teacher at High Point and had asked to come by and meet Ellie. It was so nice to catch up and hear about HP and her family. She brought Ellie some hats as well as some sleepers for when she's a bit older. It was so nice! She also took some pictures, which she tagged on facebook if you want to see them. Mrs. Snyder stayed for about 45 minutes and left in time for me to set the table and prepare the steak for Jon. Jon grilled and we feasted on steak, baked potato, and salad. Ok, so I skipped the salad. But I ate the raspberries that were on top! So good. 

Jon had a mission's committee meeting so Ellie and I camped out on the couch and tried to figure out how to put videos on the blog. I finally figured it out (I think) so here are two videos from today. I tried to give perspective of Ellie's size with the doll, if I put the correct video up. 

Ellieisms:
Ellie is outgrowing newborn clothes. She only fits in the separates - the onesie outfits are too short!
I think Ellie smiled at me this evening. Well, I was looking at her smiling and talking to her and she looked away and smiled. We'll work on that...

Easing Back into Teaching

Last night Ellie had a pretty good night. She slept 4 hours followed by 2 hours or so. Even with her better sleep pattern I brought her to nurse in bed in the morning and we hung out there until I realized she was not going to fall back asleep. Jon had left early to go running with Mark D. so he was long gone by then. In the morning we hung out, ate breakfast, then took a nap. You know you don't have much going on when you can take a nap before lunch! I was trying to just put Ellie to sleep but every time I'd put her down she'd wake up. But hey, I'll take the excuse for a nap.
We slept until lunch time when Jon came home for lunch. I put together some tuna salad for sandwiches and Ellie decided she was famished right when we were ready to eat. Oh well! Such is life. I had only two goals for our afternoon: shower and be ready to teach Abby at 3:00. About a week ago Aunt Carol emailed and asked if she could not only bring us dinner at Abby's first lesson back but if she could hold Ellie while I taught. I said, sure! My plan was to start teaching my students in October, but since she offered dinner and babysitting I decided to start a bit earlier. I fortunately was showered and able to pick up the house a bit before they came and then I told Aunt Carol that she likes her belly and if she wants to rock her she can go in her nursery. Ellie held herself together fairly well (she was fighting sleep, like usual) and she even gave Aunt Carol a stinky diaper to change.
After Aunt Carol left I put Ellie to sleep and spent some time figuring out the menu for next week. Life continues and now I need to figure out how to get back into grocery shopping for a week's worth of food. Jon came home around 5:30 and we ate dinner followed by a walk in Summerfield. Jon knows that if I stay home all day I might be cranky, so it's best to get me out! We parked at his parent's house and ended up walking 2.8 miles. I know these random numbers since I have a neat app on my phone where I can figure out routes and see how far we go. Now I'm supposed to be writing my grocery list but instead I'm reading blogs while Jon is down installing the shower controls. I should take pictures of his progress and send it to you.
I apologize for the lame pictures. I'm trying to figure out how to put videos on the blog...I don't think it's the blog but my computer that's giving me trouble right now. Oh well.
Ok, I'm hungry. I think it's ice cream time!

Napping

Heading out

This expression cracks Jon & me up. What a stinker.

Mom and I were talking the other day about how we are excited for Les Miserables. Well, it comes out 12/12/12 so we were thinking that all the girls should go together to see it over Christmas. Sound like a plan? Good. Here's a trailer (if this works) to help get you excited!

The First Days of Fall

Fall has come! Yesterday was the first day of fall and today it really felt the part. But let's begin with yesterday.

Jon always looks forward to a Saturday at home. I suppose I do, too, since it means progress. On Saturday Jon wanted to hang the drywall in the basement bathroom and figure out the vanity light fixture situation. He hung all the drywall besides the final piece, which goes behind the vanity. Showing me where the mirror will hang we determined a light would not fit above the mirror or to the left. The mirror is shaped like a rectangle with a triangle on top, so it really did not leave us any choice. I decided I would prefer a light to the right of the mirror, even if we couldn't have one to the left. We ran to Home Depot and Lowe's to look at our options and decided on a simple sconce from Lowe's. While we were at Home Depot we picked up the rest of the door hardware for our kitchen cabinets (it was about time! I've been trying to choose these for months). I also scouted out the slate tiles for a potential flooring down there. We will see.

We came home and I decided to try to mow the lawn while Jon worked in the basement and Ellie slept. Boy was it sticky out! I probably went for about 20 minutes before going inside to ask Jon a question. Ellie was stirring so I decided to stay in so Jon could continue working in the basement. Jon ended up not only mowing the lawn, but going to Chik Fil A to pick up some dinner. He decided to work until 8:30 and then he cleaned up and we watched another episode of Band of Brothers. Ellie thought it best to sleep during the movie so we could enjoy it and woke up just as we were ready for bed at 10:15 and staid up until after midnight. What a stinker! Now you know why I didn't write the blog yesterday. By midnight I was pooped.

Sunday: On Saturday evening, we aspired to get all three of us to church by 9am.  Unfortunately a long night for mom and baby left a weak willed husband with no other choice than to allow them a much needed extra hour of sleep.  Around 10am Jon cut short his quest for authentic manhood at the community center and ran back to Geigertown to pick up the two remaining family members of his female dominated home.  Ellie fussed a little in church right after we sang a song no one knew, and Kim had to take her out to nurse and change diaper.  After coming back into the sanctuary she was pretty relaxed, making the occasional contented "reptile" noises, which Jon so affectionately refers to them as.  After church, the afternoon was one big long nap.  Everyone needed it!  6pm prayer meeting was organized to pray for all new parents and soon-to-be parents.  We got to share to everyone how having a new baby has changed our lives and how clueless we are about the whole parenting thing.  It was very nice and very encouraging to be prayed for.  We love our little baby :)

So that pretty much sums up the day from Jon's perspective. That is Jon's guest appearance on this blog (Don't count on it happening again). The only thing he missed was Ellie's bath. While he went to Sunday School I woke up (just in time to hop in the shower before he left) and readied myself and Ellie for church. I hadn't bathed Ellie since Monday night so she was due! After her bath when I was drying her off I noticed her head was all flaky! Bummer. I didn't have enough time to take care of it this morning so I might work on that tomorrow sometime. After I lotioned her up and got her dressed it looked a bit better. She wore a dress from the Canche's today! She's starting to fit more comfortably in 0-3 month clothing rather than newborn. It'll be a sad day when I pack up her little newborn clothes! 

I just put her to sleep so I better go to bed, too. Knowing Ellie, she'll be up in about 3 hours. Goodnight!

Ellie loves her hands up by her face

Napping. She thinks that doll is my hand.

bath time! (whoops...the washcloth didn't cover as much as I thought...)

Trying to figure out Mr. Boyer's confusing directions

Alebrije

Today was a fairly full day for Miss Ellie and me. She woke up around 8:00 for the day and we had breakfast, read the blogs, and texted Mom and Kelly to see if they wanted to go on a walk. I also spent some time filling in a review on a product I was testing for IM. Considering Ellie hadn't improved her sleeping at night, she decided to try to stay awake as much as possible. She was probably awake a good two hours or more this morning. She was awake while I made Jon's lunch, packed the car, drove to IM, drove to Mom's house, and were on our way to Summerfield. I'm not sure when she finally fell asleep, but it was late! We decided to extend our walk and went 2.81 miles. I don't know about Mom and Kelly, but I think we're getting faster, too! Mom did inform me that she will only be walking for as long as the weather is enjoyable. Fair weather fan...
Kelly ordered lunch at the deli and stuck around Elverson for lunch but Ellie and I had plans already set. We went home, Ellie ate, and we relaxed until Steph and Ainsley came over. Steph brought us lunch and then hung out, picking out her Mary Kay order, until she had to go to school to pick up Perry. She had been wanting to come and spend some time with us for a while and just finally got around to making it happen. It was nice!
Ellie decided again, after a brief nap following her lunch, to try hard to stay awake. She comes so close to sleep and then, boom, her eyes shoot back open again. I really needed a shower and some time to get ready for tonight so I was thankful when she finally fell asleep. I really didn't want her to wake up so I placed her in her car seat. For whatever reason she stays asleep easier in there than on the flat crib or pack'n'play. I think it's because it holds her close as if a person is holding her. She sat in their during my shower and woke up when I was starting my makeup. I nursed her and then Jon fortunately came home so I could quickly finish getting ready.

Fighting sleep!

Sleeping while I get ready.

Doug and Donna had asked if we would go out to dinner with them for Jon and Omar's birthday. Omar's birthday was July 27th, but they were in Africa, so they decided to just couple it with Jon's birthday. We arrived at their house around 5:30 where we had a toast and appetizers. Jon and Omar also opened their gifts before we headed off to Alebrije. 

The proud father with his daughter, ready to go eat Mexican!

Alebrije is a small chain (3 locations) in our area that Jon and I ate at during our first year of marriage. We had a good experience so when Donna asked Jon where he wanted to go, he brought it up. Jon and Omar both got the same dish which had a sauce that Puebla is known for, Mole. I personally can't stand the stuff but they love it. I got chicken, beef, and shrimp fajitas. It's one of those dishes that comes out sizzling on a miniature pan thing. I personally believe my meal was the best and that everyone was a bit jealous! Ellie was an absolute gem and stayed in her car seat the entire time. It was the first meal I ate while taking my time or not holding Ellie in a while! After dinner Omar came over to our house and the two of them played FIFA and Kinect Sports. Jon actually just returned from running Omar home. I suppose that means it's time for bed! 

Ellieisms:

Ellie must be growing or something. She ate a lot today and also pushed it right back out just as quickly. She had so many messy diapers! 

Happy Birthday, DAD!

This was Jon's first birthday as a Dad. Ellie decided to wake up for the day around 6:45 in time to greet him before he left for work. I wish I could say that I had a nice breakfast made for Jon or that I even ate breakfast with him, but I failed! He did go to Twin Valley Coffee and Lynne gave him a free Toddy for his birthday, so that helped. Ellie and I were scheduled to go into work at 11:00 to have Ellie sit in a car seat for some engineers so we got up around 9:00, ate breakfast, prepared for the day, and cleaned up the house until it was time to leave. Ellie did fairly well for the first 15 minutes but had enough after we picked her up and put her back in about 5 times. She doesn't mind her car seat as long as it was moving so I think she was just sick of being in the car seat they were working on. After she started crying Jon came over since it was a bit distracting (we were meeting in the large room where all the engineers' cubicles are). Ellie and I headed out about 10 minutes later and ran to pick up Jon's last gift before meeting up with Jon at AJ's Pizza. Since it was his birthday we decided to let him pick where we should eat.

Father & Daughter at lunch.

After lunch Ellie and I went home to clean up a bit more. I had let the house get a bit out of hand and Jon always appreciates a picked up home, so we did our best. But then I became distracted by the laundry, wrapping his gifts, and bringing out the fall decor. We made progress, though! It may not be noticeable to an outsider, but I can definitely see more countertop.
Around 2:15 Mom and Linda Smith stopped in to spend some time with Ellie. Linda had just met her yesterday but today she was able to hold her. They stuck around for about an hour and even took a self-guided tour of the basement.
In the late afternoon Ellie and I finished wrapping the gifts and continued with our cleaning endeavors. Jon came home around 5:30 and we sat him down to open some gifts. I think I enjoy his birthday more than he does - it's just so much fun to buy gifts, wrap them up, and then see what they think. It's weird! I think I might get that from Mom. Jon opened all but two of his gifts. He got work lights (for construction work, not office work), khaki pants, shorts, a bottom-up shirt, and socks from us and Sequence from Mom and Dad. He will open his last two gifts tomorrow when we go out to dinner with Doug, Donna, Omar, and Grandma Mountz.

Waiting for Dad to come home to open gifts

Since I didn't have to make dinner and Jon would be at church at the Men's dinner, Ellie and I went to Mom's house to eat and hang out. Mom graciously offered to feed me and we had a linguini casserole, Mom-mom's bread, and ice cream. Then we went to the basement and Mimi held Ellie while we watched some DIY shows before The Office and Parks and Recreation came on. Dad and Jon came home and we continued to stick around so Pops could get some snuggle time with Ellie.
I asked Jon how he liked his first birthday as a Dad and he said it was wonderful.

Snuggle-time with Pops

People have said she looks like Pops. Do you agree?

She loves laying on her belly!

Just last night I was complaining about my hand breast pump and Jon called this afternoon and said someone at work needed a mom to try out an electric breast pump and give feedback on the product. My compensation: to keep the breast pump. It's a Mii brand that is hoping to be sold in the USA under the Nuna brand so they want to do some research first. They wanted a mom that has not used an electric pump yet - which I fit in that category. It's a $499 pump - so it should be nice! He brought it home this evening (happy birthday to me) and I opened it up and it was missing only one part - the plug to give it power. Whoops! Hopefully they have it at work somewhere...

Dunkin Date with Dad

Jon thought that it would be fun for us to go on a family Dunkin date before he needed to head to work. I really could use some practice waking up and getting out the door so I was all for it. It really helped that I had taken a late afternoon shower the day before and I was planning on "exercising" so I could dress casual. Jon woke me up before he hopped in the shower around seven and Ellie woke up about 15 minutes later hungry. Well, we probably finally got out the door around 7:45 so the date was a bit shorter than Jon intended, but it happened! The "boss man" was at Dunkin (some sort of supervisor that comes periodically through the year) so everyone was on their toes working to make the place look extra clean and organized. It's funny how different the atmosphere is when the boss is at Dunkin! It works, though, because we're always charged the correct amount and receive a receipt without requesting it when he's there.

Ellie's breakfast of choice

After Dunkin we dropped Jon off at work then headed over to Walmart for a few groceries. Dinner would be my first meal to cook since Ellie has been born so I wanted to go all out: spaghetti. At Walmart Ellie decided to start not enjoying her car seat so every time I would stop to pick out an item she would start fussing. It definitely helped speed up the decision process! If I would change anything at Walmart, though, it would be the Deli. Man are they slow! I think they get the oldest, fattest women they can find and put them in there to work at a nice slow pace. It's amazing. And Ellie's crying didn't speed her up - instead she started asking me how old she was and whatnot! It's crazy.

While we were at Walmart I texted Kelsey to see if she would be up for a visitor at all this week. Well today worked so I offered to bring lunch. Kelsey said she had leftovers if I'd rather eat them (yes) so I was off the hook! I picked up fruit and lemonade instead. After Ellie and I dropped off the groceries at home I fed her, changed her diaper, changed her outfit (we got boo on her first outfit), changed her diaper again (she must have a fast digestive system) and headed over to Frisco's around 11:00. We ate lunch, hung around, heard about the labor, delivery, and recovery, then said our goodbyes.

I had asked Kelly and Mom in the morning if they wanted to go for a walk again. And they said yes! At 3:00 we embarked on our 2.64 mile hike through Elverson. It was a beautiful day for a walk since it was sunny yet cool enough that you didn't roast. On South Pine Linda Smith drove by so she stopped and chatted a bit with us, which was a nice break before hitting the hills of Summerfield. Mom and Kelly interchanged pushing Clark - it's amazing what a workout a stroller with a 16 month old is! He's such a trooper - he only made a complaint when we were standing around too long talking with Linda. He was ready to go! We went back to Mom's and Kelly and I hung around a bit before Kelly went home and I went and picked up Jon.

Clark emptying the groceries for Mimi

Tomorrow is Jon's birthday. However, instead of an elaborate birthday meal made by me he is going to a men's dinner at church. Hey, I didn't argue. I don't know if he would have had an elaborate meal from me anyway, so I decided to go with his favorite staple of spaghetti with Texas Toast. After dinner he asked if I'd want to go on a Lowe's date to pick up drywall and some cement board stuff for the bathroom walls and shower walls. Sure! We had to use his Dad's truck so we left Ellie with Grandma Mountz and went to Lowe's. Ok, so Donna was there, too. Perhaps Grandma just supervised...

Ellieisms:
Ellie had her second blow-out diaper to date. It's quite impressive.
Ellie loves to sleep on her stomach. She now sleeps on her stomach at night unless she is overtired and needs to be swaddled - then she sleeps on her back.

Shocking!

Clark comes a-visiting

I forgot to write in yesterday's post that Ellie great the night before! As far as I knew, she had a four hour stretch followed by her two-ish hour stints (yes, that is a great night for her). However, I found out later from Jon that I am not a very attentive mother during the nights. Apparently I first fell asleep with Ellie on my chest (Jon had stayed up later than us working in the basement so he came up and found us asleep). So he took her and put her in her crib. Then I slept through Ellie's cries a couple times and Jon decided to go tend to her instead of waking me up. I have no recollection of this!

Jon decided last night that he would try sleeping with ear plugs in because he was really feeling his lack of sleep. Plus, we were heading to bed around 12:30 (first bad idea). The first time Ellie woke up crying Jon heard her before me. With ear plugs in. Oh my word.

Well Ellie did not mentioned my shortcomings when she woke up bright eyed and bushy tailed this morning at 6:15. After trying unsuccessfully to put her back to sleep after feeding and changing her diaper, I finally brought her into our room since Jon was getting ready for work anyway. After about another hour Ellie fell back asleep so I took a nap after setting up lunch with Kelly and Clark. It was a rainy, yucky day so I thought it'd be nice to take it easy...again. Kelly and Clark were scheduled to come around 11:00 so I got up at 10:30 to clean up the kitchen a bit and vacuum. I like to vacuum for Clark because it becomes blatantly obvious how dirty my floor are after a few go-arounds with his scooting bottom. So vacuum we did. Ellie snoozed in the pack'n'play while I worked. 

We had grilled cheese and tomato soup for lunch. Well, Kelly and I did. Clark had crackers and yogurt. Then Clark spent some time crawling up into Ellie's Bumbo then needing help out. We tried our best to teach him how to say "Baby" and "Ellie" but it wasn't happening. Next time. Kelly and Clark hung around until around 12:30 when Clark was starting to ask for his nap by way of clinging to his mother.
In the afternoon Ellie and I did the dishes, packed up my maternity clothes, and went through my dresser drawers and put aside clothes that need to be donated. Oh, and I showered. Better late than never!
Tornado and flood warnings were in affect this afternoon so we stayed home for the rest of the day. We ate Mom-mom's chicken noodle soup that she gave us the week Ellie was born (and I froze) for dinner. It was perfect for this dreary day!
Since I didn't take any pictures today, here are a few from Ginner from work. Check out the motion machine Jon worked on! It'll be neat if we can "test" it out at home when it's closer to production.

Sick Days and a Portrait

Well I apologize for the lack of posts Saturday and Sunday but Jon and I were sick. Well, Jon got sick Friday night and was up throwing up a few times. On Saturday he laid low trying to feel better. Meanwhile I went with Mom and Ellie to a Beth Moore seminar at a satellite location at Hopewell Community Church. During the afternoon break I started to feel pretty gross myself so Mom helped me pack up Ellie and her stroller and I went home and went to bed. Poor Ellie probably didn't know what was happening to her that night since I was very unaware of what was going on and poor Jon was still struggling. It was a very long night, to say the least. 

Beth Moore

On Sunday I was still not feeling well so I stayed in bed until 9:30 when Jon had breakfast ready. After two bites of toast and about that many sips of orange juice, I was back in bed. Jon was feeling much better by lunch time and he made us some soup. It's amazing there was soup to be made with the lack of groceries around here! I basically was a bum while Jon worked on mission's committee items, picked up the living room and kitchen, and cleaned out our junk drawer in the kitchen. It was great! It almost makes me want to get sick more often....well, at least time my sickness to the weekend so Jon is around.  In the evening Jon, Ellie and I watched the first episode of "Band of Brothers." We are borrowing the series from Ben and Jess, so we'll be watching that for the next few weeks. 

Today I had a nice and slow morning that involved keeping Ellie alive and taking a shower. When I feel unproductive, I remind myself I kept a baby alive. Ha. It kind of helps. Jon came home for lunch and Ellie was able to get some snuggle time in with him. In the afternoon Ellie and I went birthday shopping for Jon, so I won't disclose where we went. She did well besides getting a bit fussy in our first store, so I held her a bit. People act so strangely when you have a baby. I thought they were weird when I was pregnant, but they are even more so with the baby in your arms! They come up to you and ask how old the baby is, ooh and aaah, then talk in their weird voice to the baby. Well, mostly to me but pretending to be asking the baby. It makes for interesting shopping trips! I nursed Ellie in the car before the second store and then we headed home and were back before Mimi called and asked to stop by. Mimi bought Ellie a letter "E" for her nursery so she wanted to see her bedding for inspiration of what to paint on it. We're excited to see the finished product!

Jon worked late and then picked up some random groceries at Walmart. Random = crackers, diapers, an oil filter and oil for my car, and tortillas. We had leftovers from Wednesday's dinner from the Palladinos - Mexican! So good. After dinner Jon changed the oil in my car while I wrapped some of his gifts. I love birthdays! (His birthday is on Thursday, in case you're wondering). 

Since we had Mexican food I told Jon he could harvest the peppers from the pepper plant I had in our back yard. A few months ago Caleb gave me a pepper plant from Dan Sack in a plastic cup. I never got around to transplanting it and I haven't watered any of my plants since Ellie was born almost a month ago, so I was shocked to see it alive and seemingly thriving. Jon picked them and ate them - all two of the tiny boogers. But he said they were good! Perhaps next year I'll actually plant them and we'll have a real garden going. 

After dinner Jon and I did some computer work before deciding to watch the second episode of Band of Brothers. After it was over, Jon snuck in a quick game of Fifa. Ellie slept during both events on Jon's chest:

I told Caleb that Ellie was ready for her portrait, since she can stay very still for long periods (while she sleeps). He said, DONE:

Last Minute Model

This morning Ellie and I stayed in bed until around 8:30 (well, I stayed in bed while Ellie stayed in crib). After Kelly and my walk yesterday I had mentioned it to Mimi and she couldn't believe we didn't call her. So I decided it would be best to have a walk for her benefit. I texted Mom and Kelly asking if morning or afternoon would work better and they didn't have a preference, so I voted for morning. We all met up around 10:30 at Mom's house and we walked to Grandma and Grandpa's first. Grandma was at the hair dresser getting a perm so we visited with Grandpa while we drank some water. Then we continued on through Summerfield back up to Dad's office to pick up the mail before heading home. Ellie met Deb Slye but it seemed as though everyone else was out of the office, so we will have to stop by again soon. 

When we arrived back at Mom and Dad's house Mom made everyone sandwiches. I mapped out our walk and it came to about 2.65 miles. I felt pretty good about that. Hopefully we'll keep it up through the fall!

Ellie playing in the woods on the way back from the office.

After lunch Ellie and I stopped by the Gibson's since Ellie hadn't met Steph yet. Owen and Ainsley were also there, but the other kids were at school. We were there for a bit before heading home and I noticed I had missed some calls from Jon. So I called him back and he said that a baby had cried through his whole photo shoot so they could use another baby, if Ellie wanted to be a last minute model. Ok! We'll never so no to photos. 

The photo shoot felt really official, with a big backdrop, lights, and a nice camera. Ginner Saint was taking the pictures and another lady was advising. Jon came down and helped out a bit since it was his product and also is his daughter, which was fun (This item was what Jon went to China for earlier this year). They kind of wanted a boy but they didn't have any boy clothes small enough so they were fine with the pink outfit I had on her. Ellie did not perform as well as she did for the model testing, since she cried quite a bit. The first time I took her out and nursed her and that kept her calm for a bit while the second time I gave her the pacifier which she took before falling asleep and dropping it out of her mouth. I never know when she is going to take the pacifier - she's very sporadic and usually acts like I'm poisoning her when I put it in her mouth. Ginner said that she would send Jon some of the shots, so I will post any cute ones in the future!

My view

Check out Jon's work

Well I hadn't been planning on going to Iron Mountains so I quickly ran to Walmart to pick up salad supplies for dinner. Then I went back to IM and picked up Jon and we headed over to Churchtown to the Culbert's house.  I felt bad just bringing the salad ingredients but Joie didn't seem to mind. It was a nice dinner of lasagna and she made some sort of lemon tart pie. Dave and Joie have three kids who are 8, 6, and almost 3. Our small group is merging with their and we were just going over to talk over more details and make it more "official." Before we left their daughter, Alex, held Ellie some and then we played a rousing game of Uno at Will's request (their 8 year old). Jon and I were home by 9:00, which is a definite perk of hanging out with people with young children!

After Ellie's photo shoot Jon said we should go ahead and sign her up for Toddlers in Tiaras.

Stopping to Smell the Roses.

The wonderful part of not having to work at all is having the flexibility to sleep in and plan my days as they come. On Wednesday morning I spent some time shopping online (Hartstrings was having a sale) before getting ready for the day. Grandma had asked us over to her house for lunch so we headed that way around noon. Clark, Kelly, Mom, and Grandpa were all there as well. I know I've said this before, but lunch at Grandma's house is better than lunch anywhere else in the area. So yummy! Ellie doesn't know what she's missing. We ate then heard a bit about Mom's time in Texas. Ellie and I hung around for a bit after everyone else left so that Grandma could get some time in holding her. Ellie always stays so quiet in Grandma's arms! 

Clark checking Ellie out. 

He rocked her car seat back and forth

And made himself comfortable on her diaper bag.

Grandpa holding Ellie, his seventh great grandchild

 After Grandma's Ellie and I needed to run some errands. We went to Lowe's to purchase the shower controls (finally) then to Walmart to pick up a few items. This week is our last week getting meals from church - we will miss them so much! It has been so wonderful to not have to think about meals at all these past 4 weeks. I have been spoiled!

Ellie shopping at Lowe's

I think that our weather has confused our roses, because they are in full bloom right now! (Unless that's typical - I really don't know). So when we came home from the grocery store, Ellie stopped to smell the roses. Why rush, anyway? We've got all the time in the world. Really, we do.

Then I asked her to put away the groceries. She asked if she could supervise. I thought that was a good compromise.

Naptime!

 Jon was hosting prayer group so Ellie and I hung out upstairs while the men prayed in the basement. Peter Mountz had used dry ice at school and had extra, so he did a demonstration for everyone after prayer was over. It was pretty entertaining! Ellie was not impressed - she slept through the entire thing.

Speaking of sleeping, Ellie sleeps in her crib at nights. She wakes up every 2-3 hours to eat. At one point last night I fell asleep in the rocker because I looked at my clock and over an hour had passed since she had woken up. Whoops!

Today was a slower day than yesterday. It was difficult to wake up but I think that's due to skipping naps the last few days. It worked out, though, because today was an extra slow day. Ellie and I took out the trash in the bedroom (ok, so I just take the trash and put it in the kitchen trash can...), gathered the laundry and put it down the chute, changed my sheets, emptied and loaded the dishwasher, dropped off lunch for Jon, made a fruit smoothie, and stopped by the post office. I may just go into shock next week when I have to actually plan meals, go to the grocery store, cook the meals, and keep the house clean. I really need to stop using Ellie as an excuse to be behind in housework! Jon hasn't seemed to notice, yet, so I think we must be doing an ok job. If I am not getting everything done in a day I do blame it on Ellie - she's just so much fun to hold!

Holding a sleeping Ellie this morning.

 This afternoon Kelly and Clark graciously met up with us in Summerfield to go on a walk. I just mapped it out and it was a little under a mile and a half...but it felt like longer! It was pretty warm out, so we broke a sweat. Well, Clark and Ellie shouldn't have.

Ellie checking out the park.

 After our walk Ellie spent some time in her pack'n'play watching the elephants than taking a nap. The pack'n'play looks dangerously full of blankets - it's not, really. She is safe I promise.

Tonight Jon was working on the basement so Ellie and I went to Mimi and Pop's house to hang out and watch some TV. Ellie didn't perform very well and instead slept through everything - not very exciting! Perhaps next time she'll wake up and show off her tricks.