Time Flies!

It had been 6 months from when my family had seen Elinore last. Time flies! Kids grow! ....



....And some things never change.

Watching golf with Grandpa.

Vacation Swim Pics

The Peterson family just got back from a much-needed and much-enjoyed vacation in Idaho. The sun, fresh non-humid air, and family was just what the doctor ordered for all of us!

Ellie had her first swimming pool experience at Gram and Grandpa's neighborhood pool, and she took to it like a fish. She loved splashing and kicking her legs, and loved to lounge out in the little boat that G & G had. Consequently, she also loved trying to drink the pool water, and the moment we would looked away her face was in the water with her little tongue extended... By the end of the week, Ellie's tan seriously rivaled Jeremy's and mine.

Here are some pics of her pool palooza:

Getting ready to go to the pool: Swim diapers? Check. Hat? Check. SPF 50? Check. Movie-star sunglasses? Check!

Hanging out in a boat with Daddy.

Swim lessons with Gram...all you need is a big noodle!

Post-pool wind down complete with the "gangsta in the hood" look.

Cold Spring Morning

The Carnivore

Well, as of today, Elinore is no longer a vegetarian. She had "Chicken with Vegetables" for dinner tonight. Although, prior to this, I guess she did dabble in munching on some...

...fish...

...and seafood...

...and, of course, beef.

Sadly, today was another of Firsts for Elinore: She was sick for the first time in her 7 months with runny nose, raspy cough and low fever. Poor baby. She was not herself today, but I am hoping that she kicks this bug quickly and starts feeling better!

New Quirk

Everyday, Elinore is revealing more and more of her personality (I think we will have our hands full...). Lately, her newest quirk is to look like this one moment:


...and then look like this the next moment:

This face is always accompanied by pursed lips and fast, rapid breathing through her nose. We crack up every time, which I think, spurs her on even more!

Finally!

A little white nub can be seen just below the surface of Ellie's lower gum. Let's hope that these first teeth pop up quickly, with as little pain as possible...

Everybody Loves Bubbles!

Roadtrip

Last weekend, we took a road trip down to Richmond, VA so that Jeremy could get a weight lifting certification, and also so that we could visit our good friends the Gaubatz family. With the exception of our flight back to Idaho for my postpartum recovery when she was 5 weeks old, this was Ellie's first trip away from home.

We were a little trepidatious about how she would do eating- and sleeping-wise, as she is not the best at either under even the most ideal conditions. The trip did not head off well in that she would not go to sleep or eat for 6 hours (!). However, praise God, by the second day she was eating and sleeping very well, much to our astonishment and relief. Actually, she slept better than she often does at home!

Unfortunately, my camera batteries died early in the trip, and having had to pack a UHaul-worthy load for the Little Miss, I forgot to bring our charger. So, here are very little pictures for a very full weekend:

Elinore was ready to rock and roll in her new car seat!

Sharing a snack with Mommy...(Don't be alarmed: She just licked, drooled and gummed the apple)

Little (big!) Jeremy and Big Sis Bethany

Ellie and Bethany, who is trying to hold her "gently"

And YAY! Jeremy passed his training course with flying colors, and is now a certified weight-lifting trainer. He keeps saying that he is going to have Ellie be an Olympic weight lifting champion, and now it looks like he could officially help her meet this goal (over Mom's dead body).

"She is not big at all..."

"...for an average 12 month old," our pediatrician stated with a laugh at Ellie's 6 month appointment.



6 MONTH ELLIE STATS, in no particular order:

• 17 lbs., 2 oz. (she dropped to the 75 percentile), 28.5 in. (um...off the charts!)
• She is sitting up without any help -- this makes grocery shopping so much easier, as I can just plop her in the cart and both of my hands are free. This also makes bathtime more fun for her as she can sit in the big girl tub and play in her floating toy land.
• She can stand up if she is holding onto something for brief periods of time.
• She can roll front-to-back, back-to-front quickly and like a pro. No more leaving her unattended on the bed, etc.
• She hangs out on her tummy quite a bit now, but still shows no interest in crawling (which is fine by Mom, at this point!)
• She is almost certainly teething as she drooly, drooly, drooly. Also, she gnaws on her hands and anything that is in her path. Baby Motrin is our nighttime friend.
• She is a Chatty Cathy. Her favorite consonants are "Ba ba ba" and "Ga...ba." She still loves trilling spit in the back of her throat too.
• She is still attending physical therapy, and her neck muscles are getting much better. Although the PT said, "Well, now both sides of her neck muscles are a bit tight...I think it is just because she is so...active and wants to grab at everything." Yes. That would be our Girl.
• Her reflux seems under control, and her appetite is fantastic now! That is certainly a relief, although considering her size, she was never in the "failure to thrive" category, now was she?
• She is obsessed with the cats, and desperately wants to be their friends -- particularly Thomas'. However, she expresses this by lunging and shrieking at him, and also by lurking over him in her jumper while he eats. He is not ready to make a commitment to her yet.
• She is growing up too quickly.

There is more than one way to skin a cat...

Elinore figured out a clever way to get more longevity out of her tummy time...even if she was tired, and finding it difficult to hold up her head:

"What? Doesn't every baby do this when they're tired?"

"Dad, you crack me up!"