Ellis at 18 months

We have a 1 1/2 year old! Wow has the last year and a half flown by. If you would've told me when Ellis was born that in 18 months we'd have her and a 3 month old I would've thought you were crazy. Oh how our plans are not always THE plan. And even though it's crazy, we're loving it! Ellis is so much fun right now and Matt and I can't get enough of her. She talks all the time and is constantly on the go. She'll do anything for a laugh and continues to LOVE attention. I'll try to list most of the things she's doing right now but she's gaining new skills so quickly that I'll probably forget something.

Ellis you:

• Weigh 24 lbs and are 32.5 inches
• Love to read books and will sit in your room "reading"
• Love to sing. You are starting to sing the words to your favorite songs, even when they're not on. Some that you like include: Old McDonald, The Wheels on the Bus, Head Shoulder Knees & Toes, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
• Like to put bows & headbands on yourself and your "babies"
• Feed, rock, pat and put your "babies" to sleep
• Talk/Jabber non-stop
• Like to sit on the potty but haven't gone yet
• Tell us about your day at "school". You tell us the friends that you play with and are especially fond of Hannah
• Can answer most questions with a yes or no, mainly no
• Like to play with your shape sorter and puzzles
• Like for people to quiz you (about their names, items in the room, etc), you always ask for "mo" (more)
• Have started stringing words together. I have a feeling you'll have some sentences pretty soon. 
• Are really trying to communicate your wants and needs. You'll repeat the same thing over and over until we understand what you're talking about. 
• Are a great eater. You love meat and fruit and still eat a good variety of veggies
• Say your prayers. You always say "Amen" after your prayers and we've been working on you saying more of the prayers. At school last month you missed the prayer before lunch and started crying. They thought you didn't like your food until you put your hands together. They prayed with you and then you were happy and ate lunch.
• Are very helpful. You like to get sissy's paci and softie for her when she's tired. You also give her toys all the time.
• Are very affectionate. When you get on a roll with kisses you keep going and going!

Our big girl 

"Mom, I really think the picture would be better if the chair were over here..."

 "See? Perfect!"

Everyone needs a hair bow, even the "babies"

Ellis really enjoyed decorating the tree

Miss Serious (she'll smile all day, until the camera comes out!)

Ellis,

Everyday we are amazed by how much you know and your little personality. You are such a joy to be around and every day with you is so much fun! We love listening to you read and sing and play with your toys. You are turning into a big girl! You are so sweet and we're so blessed to be your parents. We love you!

Love, 

Mommy & Daddy

Nora at 3 months

Nora turned 3 months on Friday, November 29th. This month was a bittersweet one for me because I was trying to enjoy every moment with her before returning to work on Monday. I think that it's been harder for me to leave Nora than it was to leave Ellis. By this age Ellis was on a good sleep/eat/wake schedule and Nora is still a little unpredictable. I think that this has made me a little more protective of her and that she's been held (aka spoiled) a little too much. I was dreading sending her to daycare because I didn't know if they would be able to take care of her like I do. So far they've said that she's the perfect baby and is always content. It helps that she's a lot happier now that I've figured out that dairy and wheat really seem to bother her.  The allergy tests we did all came back negative but the doctor said she could still be sensitive. As long as I stay away from dairy and wheat she's a pretty happy girl. Here are some facts about Nora at 3 months and of course some pictures!

Nora you:

• Weigh 10 lb 4 oz and are 23 1/2 inches long
• Are awake more during the day (sometimes for 3-4 hours)
• Are consistently sleeping 5-6 hours at night, eating at 8, waking around 2 and then eating again around 5 (I wake you up for the 5:00 to get in as many feedings before daycare as possible)
• Still eat every 2-2.5 hours during the day
• Wearing 0-3 month clothes but some of the pants are getting short
• Cooing and smiling
• Love your big sister, every time she talks you smile and coo back, it's really sweet
• Have rolled from your tummy to back a few times but I think it was an accident (we have to start somewhere, right?)
• Love to cuddle. You would be content to sleep on my chest for all naps and at night if I let you
• Only want your paci long enough to fall asleep and then you immediately spit it out
• Have your very own softie that you love to grab and hold next to your face 

Nora,

You are such a joy to our family. You have the sweetest smile but also seem very serious. You keep a close eye on what's going on around you (I don't blame you, sometimes Ellis can be a little wild). I can already tell that you and your sister are going to be very best friends. It seems like you already have your own language and way of understanding each other. We are so glad that God gave you to us. We love you!

Love, 

Mommy & Daddy

Family Fun

These are a pictures from a few weeks ago when it was still warm and sunny. Ellis loves playing outside. I'm glad that we had a warm fall so we could enjoy it as much as possible. 

Halloween

Halloween this year was so much fun with our two girls. We went trick or treating out at the Promenade after eating dinner out there. Rob and Kaye were in town so were able to go out with us. It was kind of chilly so we only "trick or treated" in one section of the Promenade. Ellis wasn't too sure about it at first but warmed up by the time we got to the last shop. We finished off the night with Bliss Cupcakes, which were wonderful! Here's a few pictures of our little owl and zebra and a video of Ellis dancing at Bliss. She LOVES music and will sing and dance whenever she gets a chance! 

(Video may not show up on iPad or phone. I have tried reloading unsuccessfully. I have been able to watch it on the computer. If anyone is having trouble viewing it I can try e-mailing it to you.)

These photos are a little smaller because they were taken on a phone. 

I tried to enlarge them but it distorted the picture too much.  

 Wild hair when we took her hat off at dinner

We might not be looking at the camera but I had to include a family picture 

Nora at 2 months

Little Miss Nora was 2 months on October 29th. As always it has just flown by. In October Nora had the ECHO at the Children's Hospital Satellite clinic in Lowell. I took her by myself because Matt was home with Ellis, who was sick. Nora did great during the procedure (which was just an ultrasound of her heart). It took a little while to get the results but she has a patent foramen ovale (PFO). A PFO is a small hole in the heart that is normal in utero. It normally close at birth but Nora's didn't. There's still a chance that it will close but if not then she'll just live with it and most likely will never have a problem. 

In the last month I've also changed my diet (pretty drastically) to see if it would help with some of Nora's fussiness, constant gas, and what looked like eczema. Well, guess what, it's like she's a different child. I have cut out wheat, gluten, dairy, soy, peanuts, eggs, citrus, and certain vegetables. Since the diet worked so well we decided to do allergy testing with her. We went last week and should get the results by the end of this week. While I do not want her to be allergic to anything it will be helpful in adding foods back into my diet. 

So that's all the medical stuff going on with Nora so now for some fun things that our big 2 month old is doing.

Nora you:

• Weighed 9 lbs, 1 oz  & were 22 inches at your 2 month appointment
• Are starting to smile and coo
• Are sleeping 4 or 5 hour stretches at night between feedings
• Like watching your older sister play
• Are wearing 0-3 month clothes
• LOVE being in the Moby Wrap

Nora, 

You definitely have your own personality. You are getting to be pretty predictable in your eating and sleeping patterns. When you're ready to sleep you let everybody know and sometimes it can take a little while to get you calm enough to fall asleep. We've discovered that you like white noise while you sleep, which has made things easier. You also don't like to be alone in a room or to be put down for very long. Mommy thinks that's something you'll have to get over when you go to daycare in a month. You are a sweet little girl with a serious but fun personality. Your daddy said it best last night: You look just like him but might act more like mommy. Your sister looks like me but might have daddy's personality. So you're both a good mix of the two of us. We love you!

Mommy & Daddy

Nora at 1 month

Nora is one month old and I feel like we're getting used to being a family of four. We're definitely busier than we were before this newest little girl came along but we're having so much fun. Nora went for her one month check up on Wednesday and is doing well as far as growth. However, when the doctor was listening to Nora's heart she heard a murmur. She says that they're fairly common but wants us to get it checked out anyway. So she sent an order in for an ECHO to Mercy Hospital. Mercy should contact us sometime this week to schedule the appointment. We're praying that it's nothing and in the meantime are trying not to worry about it. Here's what Nora's up to at one month:

Nora you:

• Weighed 7 lb 12 oz & were 20.5 inches long at your one month check up
• Eat every 2-2 1/2 hours during the day and every 3-4 at night. You've had one night where you went 6 hours and it completely freaked me out because you've been so consistent about waking up!
• Are getting into a pattern of eat, play, sleep but definitely aren't on a regular schedule yet. 
• Are happiest when you are being held. You're not a big fan of being put down when you're awake and if you are put down you like to be on your stomach with a pacifier
• Sleep on your tummy. We've tried putting you on your back and you just won't sleep that way
• Are still sleeping in the pack n play in mommy & daddy's room. I know that we'll have to move you at some point but I'd like for you to be sleeping longer stretches so you don't wake your sister.
• Are affectionately called "sissy" by Ellis. She loves you so much and likes to give you wet, sloppy kisses
• Have reflux so we started Zantac this week and it seems to be helping

Nora,

Life with you is definitely different than before. You are already a little opinionated and truly love being held. (Some might call it needy but I'll call it "cuddly"). We are so happy that you are eating and sleeping well and are a pretty healthy little girl. We love you so much!

Love,

Mommy & Daddy 

Nora at 1 week

(I've had this written since 9-11-13 but didn't publish it! Oops! Oh well, better late than never)

On September 5th Nora was one week old! Even though this post is a week over due the pictures were taken on the right date. (I think that's pretty good for this new momma of two). Nora went to the doctor on Tuesday the 3rd and weighed 6 lb 2 oz, only losing 5 ounces since birth. We went back Tuesday the 10th for a weight check and she weighed in at 6 lb 8.5 oz! It definitely made this nursing momma's day for Nora to have gained 6.5 ounces in a week. It definitely makes all those late night feedings worth it! Nora is such a content little baby, so far. I think that she might have her days and nights a little mixed up because she sleeps all day and seems more awake around 11 pm and 4 am. She's not fussy during those times but is just bright eyed. She's pretty easy going though and doesn't seem to mind the noise that her older sister makes :) We love having 2 little girls!

Here are some pictures of Nora:

This one's a little blurry because it's from my phone. 

But it was taken today, 9-19-13, of our big 3 week old!

Nora,

You are such a wonderful addition to our family! You are content to lay and listen to your big sister play and are very tolerant of all of her kisses. You just go with the flow and are so sweet. Every day we get to know you better and love you more!

Love,

Mommy & Daddy

Introducing Nora Grace!

On August 29th at 10:54 a.m. little Nora Grace made her appearance. That morning I woke up around 4:30 with contractions every twenty minutes or so. I didn't think anything of it and went back to sleep. By the time I got up at 6:00 they were every ten minutes. I told Matt that I thought we should just go about our morning as usual and that I would let him know if they got closer. When I left for work at 6:45 the contractions were 5 minutes apart. I called Matt and told him that I was going to drive down Hwy 102 to go to work in case I needed to go to the hospital. His response was," Do you just need to go to the hospital?" I told him that would probably be a good idea. Thankfully Ellis has stayed the night with Rob & Kaye at the lake house so I didn't have to worry about taking her to daycare. 

Matt met me at the hospital, as he was already at work. (for a whole 4 minutes) We got checked in by 8:00 and I was at 6 cm! They started some IV pain meds and that was enough to cut some of the pain. By 10:00 the pain meds were wearing off and I was a little panicked because my water hadn't broken yet. The nurse had told me that if I got to 8 cm I couldn't have any more IV meds. So I told the nurse that I just needed my water to break. She said that she couldn't break it but that she might have to put a fetal monitor on Nora to check on her heart rate. She said that the monitor would pass through the membrane and break my water. So I agreed and once she put it in and my water broke she took it right back out and never attached it to Nora. After that things went pretty quickly. I got more medicine and within 15 minutes was ready to push. I pushed four times (12 minutes) and Dr. Fry walked in on the last push and then Nora was here!

She weighed 6 lb 7 oz and was 18 inches long. She looks a lot like Matt and doesn't really look like her sister. She has a ton of dark brown hair with her own unique little cow lick right in the middle of her forehead.  We're adjusting well to being a family of 4 and big sister is warming up to Nora more every day.

Last picture as a family of 3 the night before Nora was born

Waiting on Nora (in between contractions)

Nora Grace DeMott

Daddy & Nora

Mommy & Nora

Mommy & Daddy with Nora

Ellis waiting to meet Nora

Ellis didn't quite know what to think

Sisterly love

Daddy & his two girls

Look at all that hair!

Going home

Home sweet home