Ellie Pulling Up

Pine Knoll Shores 2009

Ellie asked me if she could tell everyone about her experience at the beach this week...

I loved it when my dad did this...

But, I was not so sure about the water this time.
In fact, when my mom put my feet in the ocean I was not a happy camper.

The water was too cold and it scared me!

I didn't like putting my feet in the sand either...it felt weird.

But, I did love sitting in this tiny chair,

and hanging out with all of my older cousins. Here I am with Grant.

They were all so sweet to me and I loved watching them. I can't wait until next year when I can run around with everybody!

Under the Sea

mesmorized by the sea turtles

Ellie checking out the alligator's mouth

Here we are learning about the Horseshoe Crab

A good shot of the Sand Tiger Shark

Here she is wondering why the otters are sleeping

Ellie may be like her Aunt Leah...she loved the snakes.

She really wanted to get her hands on this rattlesnake

My two favorite people

Our little crab

We have been enjoying our time at the beach this week together as a family. The weather has been better that we had expected and we are loving every minute of it. Today we took Ellie to the Pine Knoll Shores Aquarium. It was so fun to see her looking at all kinds of different animals for the very first time. We had a nice trip and are already looking forward to taking her back again next year.

7 Months

Lately Ellie has been growing like a little weed. She has mastered the art of sitting up and looks like such a big girl sitting on the floor playing with her toys. One of her favorite things to do these days is to throw her toys. Ellie is now working on pulling herself up into a standing position. She has done it a few times in her bathtub and on her changing table. It looks like we will be lowering her crib in the very near future just to be on the safe side. She has been on her hands and knees a little bit, but her little arms just aren't strong enough to support her weight for very long yet. I am not rushing the crawling stage so this is fine with me!

Ellie is still eating well and is loving her baby food. I have recently started giving her fruit puffs and she is getting good at putting them in her mouth. She is still nursing 4 times a day and eating 3 meals. She is napping twice a day 1-1 & 1/2 hours. Ellie has definitely began to show a preference for her mama, especially at bedtime. When I am not at home to put her down (every Tues. night for Bible study) she won't go down with out letting her daddy know she is not happy. Brad has tried everything, but usually has to resort to giving her a few ounces of breast milk to calm her down so she'll go to sleep. I am thankful for a sweet husband who in spite of this encourages me to go out for some "me time."

Swinging

This morning I took Ellie to our neighborhood playground to see if she was big enough to swing. She loved every second of it! I am so glad I thought to bring my camera with me..these pictures are so sweet!

Wow! I love this!

She kept sticking out her tongue...so funny!

Wolfpack Girl

In honor of NC State's first football game tonight I put Ellie in her State attire for the first time this morning. Go Pack!

Ellie and Piggy

Ellie loves her little piggy. It has been in her crib from day one but she has recently started playing with it. One night last week I went in to check on her before I went to bed and she was holding him by the leg fast asleep. This shot is from yesterday when I went in to get her from her afternoon nap. How cute!