The Welch Tales: July 2016

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

It's been a while since I've done a post and that is because my days and weeks are flying by over here. I start school in just 4 weeks so Ellie and I are soaking up all of the time we have together until then. So rather than rambling on in paragraphs I will bullet point what we've been up to lately. And in no particular order.

Elli is already four and a half months old. Where has the time gone?
At her last well baby visit she received her second round of shots and reacted so differently this time. She was extra fussy, clingy and drowsy seeming which was not the case last time. She also woke up that night with a fever of 101.4 which about freaked me out. She was herself again within 2 days.
We have started her on rice cereal and it's going well. She loves it and sounds like she is saying "mmm" when feed it to her. We also started her on purred bananas today- she loved them!
She loves to hear her own voice. She makes all different sounds and at all different pitches. My favorite sound she does is her growl. I am not sure how she figured that one out but it is our favorite.
She giggled for the first time in front of both Brian and I. We were so excited we got to hear it together! We got it on video the next day when my sister was over visiting. The cutest little giggle we ever did hear!
She has the most delicious leg rolls. She is weighing about 13 pounds now and she is looking good ;) Now that we are giving her solids I anticipate those leg rolls getting even bigger which I love.
She is very playful these days. She has really started liking her toys. We bought her a Jumperoo but she is still figuring that one out. She likes to lay on her play mat at grab at all the toys that hang. She also goes crazy on her teethers ("Kiki" the elephant in particular) as well as her mini books that make noise.
She went through a phase where she absolutely hated being in her carseat. I honestly stopped going places as often because it was more of a chore than anything for me to lug around a screaming baby. She now has started to enjoy her carseat and will easily fall asleep in it while I'm driving.
We went to her first story time at the public library last Friday. She was the youngest baby there. She did really well and liked to hear all of the songs and books. The end of story time is play time with all the kids, but since she was the youngest one we didn't stay too long.
I bought her an amber teething necklace off Amazon. I know they say the necklace needs to be real amber but the reviews for the necklace were really good. Ellie has not really worn it that much because it is sort of a pain to take it on and off when she is sleeping throughout the day and night. I've tried putting it around her ankle but she always manages to take it off. For the 2 days she wore it I honestly didn't even notice a difference in her behavior/drooling.
We have almost mastered sleep training. It was the most difficult thing for me to do at first. I hated hearing her in there screaming her head off. I learned I needed to keep myself busy during that time and remind myself that she's ok. She is always fed and changed before I put her down and she is always safe in her crib. It took her about a week to get used to soothing herself to sleep. There are days now that she will lay there and talk to herself. Cutest thing EVER. And she even sounds like she is singing at times.
Like I mentioned above, she loves making all kinds of noises. She will also attempt to repeat noises she hears us make.
She is the best cuddler when she wakes up from naps where she is fully rested. She will gently lay her head on your shoulder and have the sweetest look on her face. Those are some of the moments I look forward to when she is napping.
She has pretty much been a great sleeper at night from the start. She would wake 2-3 times a night in the very beginning. Then it went down to 2 times per night. She is now at once per night around 1-2am to nurse. I try to keep her asleep during this otherwise she thinks its party time.
She is the worst napper on the planet. She sleeps for 20-30 minutes max. And if I get a longer nap than that out of her it is on a very rare occasion. Those are heavenly.
She is happiest in the mornings and then gets cranky during the late afternoon.
She loves going in any type of water so we are making it a point to visit the pool as much as possible while it is still nice out!

Our little water baby :)

Well that's about it for tonight. I plan on doing more posts like this as a fun and quick recap of what's been going on and to look back on one day.

Hope you're enjoying your week!

Thursday, July 07, 2016

Eloise: 4 Month Update

Today I am 4 months old. I am starting to love my toys. I smile a lot. I love when mommy sings to me and when daddy makes silly faces at me. Instrumental music soothes me. Sometimes my cooing sounds like I'm saying "heeey". I blow bubbles with my mouth, coo a lot and make gurgle noises. I am a happy girl, except in the car. I scoot in circles while on my back. My cry is starting to get louder. I went on my first airplane ride to Chico. I weigh 13 lbs ♡

Eloise Mae...how is it possible that you are already 4 months old?! Mommy loves spending all of her days with you at home right now. Some days are definitely harder than others but I am so thankful I get to bond with you because this is time I will never get back. One day you will be such a busy girl, you may not want to snuggle me as close. Your daddy and I love you to the moon and back. Thank you for showing us so much love and bringing much happiness to our lives. You are one beautiful girl!

mommy

4th of July Trip to Chico

We made our first big trip with Eloise to Chico, CA where my older sister and her family live. And I have to say it was a success! I was nervous about the plane ride because I didn't know how she would do. I figured I would just nurse her or keep the paci in her mouth and both ended up working. I don't think the pressure bothered her at all. She was such a good girl the entire time we were up there. Even on the last day when she caught her cousins' cold- she was still trying to be a happy baby.

I love going up North to visit. They just bought a new house and it is absolutely beautiful. There is a swimming pool so we were sure to jump in each day. Eloise loved the water! She seemed so calm and content the whole time she was in there. Looks like we will be doing a lot more swimming in the future!

We went on a nice walk to a local park where Ellie was able to sit in the stroller without being in the infant seat for the first time. She is such a big girl! She also went in a swing for the first time too. It was so much fun being able to have her try all of these firsts with my sisters there to see it.

My sister hosted a fun 4th of July BBQ at their house with some of their friends and kids. It was such a nice time- we didn't want the next day to come because we knew that meant we had to go home.

We will definitely make more trips up there to visit.