Ella and Paige | Weeks 25,26, and 27

I am SO behind on my weekly posts and with the holidays coming up I will probably only get worse.   Better late than never! Over the last month or so I have felt like our life may be getting back into some kind of normal. It's still busy and exhausting, but we have managed to hang out with some friends which is good. There for awhile it seemed hard or just too much work to do anything. I have started running consistently again which in turn makes me a happier person. Even though I'm tired and would rather sleep in most Saturdays, I still go do it and am glad I did when it's over.  Ella is already well into the second quarter of school which I can not believe. She is chugging right along. It is so obvious that she is on the verge of turning seven. She is maturing and getting so independent. I love the stage she is in, but I'm holding onto that last little bit of innocence she has left.   Life is not slowing down and with the holidays approaching I'm sure it will only get busier. 
Here are a few pictures from the past couple of weeks!
Adam has been a guest on a show on twit tv (geek central) a couple of times lately, and Paige was so into watching him. I get the biggest kick out of it too!

Is there anything sweeter than a sleeping baby? I think not!

Ella lost another tooth! She locked herself in the bathroom one night and pulled out her other front tooth. It was ready, but it definitely took some work. I am so glad she did it, because teeth just gross me out. 

I seriously have a thing for cute winter hats. These trapper hats are my favorites!

Adam went on another week long trip a couple of weeks ago. I was worried how it would go, but it ended up being a pretty easy week thanks to my mom. She stayed with us all but one night, and it made things so much easier. Not sure how I would survive without her sometimes. 

The one night my mom didn't stay with us Ella and I had a slumber party together. She thinks it is so special to sleep in our bed, because it doesn't happen often. 

Paige is still happy as a lark when I pick her up from Mom's morning out. I am so glad I have that morning every Monday to run errands by myself. I get everything done, and then I don't have to drag her out very much during the week. 

I still haven't figured out how a baby can be as happy as she is. 

 They were all smiles picking up Daddy from the airport. We were so excited to have him home. Unfortunately, Adam came home feeling pretty crummy. He picked up a cold while he was at his conference and was down for a couple of days after he got home. It never fails! 

 Paige was happy to have him back!

The following Monday after Adam got home Ella was sick. She got his cold and for some reason ended up throwing up as well. While she was throwing up I heard a loud bang. Our closet shelving fell off the wall for the second time. I had to laugh about it. This was the second time this has happened. The wire shelving has seen better days and is going to be replaced with wood shelving pretty soon. Thank goodness!

Paige started sporting her Thanksgiving outfits. She is so proud! 

She wakes up this happy every single day! 

I have been trying out some baby food lately. I am still unsure if she likes it or not. She willingly opens her mouth, but most of it ends up on her chin. I'm not sure if it's the taste or texture she doesn't like. 

This past Saturday Sarah and I ran the Drumstick Dash. I thought we would take it slow, but we ended up running five miles at a 9:40 pace. I haven't seen that pace in a very LONG time.  I wanted to quit many times, but I wouldn't let myself.  It was a great five miles of good conversation! Next up is the Hot Chocolate 10 mile run in St. Louis!!

Fall Family Pictures

I have a love/hate relationship with family pictures. I love them once they are finished, but I am not a fan of all the planning that goes into them. I had these scheduled since June and changed the time at least five times. It was so hard trying to figure out what time would be best for Paige. I planned our outfits around my shirt, which ended up being full of static. You win some, you lose some. October finally rolled around, and we had a beautiful day for pictures.   We used Captured Studios, and her pictures never disappoint. I love love love how they turned out. These were our first pictures as a family of four so I will always treasure these. 

Paige || 6 months

Paige is six months old!!

How can it be!? Where did the time go!? Last year at this time I think I was 14 weeks pregnant. We had no clue if she was going to be a boy or a girl. I was scared to death and worried about every little thing imaginable. I never in a million years could have guessed how much joy and happiness Paige would bring us. 
We were blessed (seriously blessed) with a very content, happy baby. I expected the worst, and we given the best. I have never seen a baby as happy as she is. She is always smiling. All you have to do is look at her, and she will shoot you the biggest grin ever. 
She has fit right in with the family. Sometimes I often wonder what we ever did without her. We have only had her for six months, but some days it feels like an eternity. She is and always will be the best surprise we have ever received. 
This is Paige at 6 months old:

Height: 

Weight:

Clothes: Paige can still fit into 3-6 month clothing and size 6 months. Some six month pants seem a little long on her. We have a feeling she will be shorter than Ella, but time will tell! 

Diapers: Paige is in size 3 diapers. 

Sleeping: I'm still missing my days of sleeping all night, but I know they will come again..Someday. Paige stays on a really good schedule. She typically wakes around 6:15/6:30. She is ready for a nap around 9 and sleeps until 11. She is ready for a nap again around 2 and sleeps until 4 and is ready for bed at 6:00. I have transitioned her into napping in her crib which was no big deal at all since she has been sleeping in her crib since she was a week old. She loves sleeping in her zipadeezips. My friend told me about them, and they are wonderful. She can move freely, and they keep her warm. She knows when I zip her up it's time for sleep. She is still waking up once per night to eat. It's always around 1:15 or 3:30. On rare occasions she will wake at 5:00am to eat, and I definitely consider that all night. That is very rare though. I can't complain too much. In the past six months she has never once been fussy at night. She always eats and goes right back to sleep. 

Eating: Paige takes a 6 ounce bottle usually every 3-4 hours. I have noticed she is going longer between bottles. She always takes a 7 ounce bottle when it's time to nap or go to bed at night. I have tried some baby foods, and she doesn't seem very interested yet. It won't be long!

Milestones: She has come such a long way in the past month. She grabs her feet and loves to play with them constantly.  She can roll both ways. She also can sit up but not for very long. She can tell who a stranger is and starts crying if she doesn't recognize someone. If she does recognize you you better believe she will give you the biggest grin and start waving her arms with excitement. 

Likes: There isn't much this girl doesn't like. She loves baths, playing with her hands and feet, playing in her exersaucer and play mat, stroller rides, watching the dogs, being sang and talked to, swinging outside, watching Ella, and smiling at anything and everything. 

Dislikes: Strangers, being out of the house close to bedtime, loud noises

Thoughts from mom: My life has changed so much since Paige has come along. I'm busy and tired most days, but it's definitely worth every single second. I never thought I wanted to have another child, but I am so thankful for our little surprise. She fills my days with plenty of smiles and laughter. I am living up every day I get to spend with her, because I know she will be in kindergarten before I know it. 

I can't believe how much Paige and grown and changed in the past six months. I know the next six months will fly by as well. 

Halloween 2015

I am not one to wish away time, but I am glad to see October go. I don't know why, but I have never been a fan of October. Maybe it's because I love, love, love the holiday season!? As of November 1st, I can feel the excitement start to build. This year is even more exciting, because we have two kiddos to celebrate with. There is something so special and fun seeing your kids enjoy the holiday season. Before the holiday season starts I better recap Halloween!
This year I had a ninja turtle and pumpkin...

This picture didn't take any bribery...yeah right! I'm not sure why, but Ella is still a little unsure of holding Paige. It sure looks cute when she does though! 
Halloween was on a Saturday this year so my family came over and we trick or treated in our neighborhood and ordered pizza. It was so fun! We thought it might rain, but the weather ended up cooperating with our plans. 

It took the girls a little bit to get in the trick or treating mood. They were both a little nervous to go up to stranger's doors. Once they got going there was no stopping them. They had so much fun! 

Paige had a wonderful time watching from her stroller. She made it around the whole neighborhood without a peep. Such a good girl! 

I'm pretty sure Autumn was excited that they gave out whoppers at this house!

This is by far my favorite picture of the night. 

Ella had a visit from two boys from her class that live in our neighborhood. We trick or treated at their house as well. Their dog gave my mom quite the trick that night. She bent down to pet the dog, and he hiked his leg on her leg. Seriously!? It was the funniest thing I have ever seen. 

It was a fun Halloween, but November is a welcome sight in my book. I am already seeing Christmas decorations at every store, and I have even have heard Christmas music. Bring on the holiday season! I am ready!! 

Ella and Paige | Week 24

Last week started out with a bang. Poor Ella did not feel good. Monday night she started sounding stuffy. She woke me up five times, because she couldn't sleep. She was ready to get up at 5am and ended up falling asleep again around 6:30/7 after I figured out she was running a temperature. Once she woke up she felt a little better but definitely couldn't go to school. You know Ella doesn't feel good when she is still crying after telling her she doesn't have to go to school. She loves school but still welcomes a day when she doesn't have to go. Ella is a good little patient and laid in bed all morning. I tried to keep Ella and Paige separated as best as I could so Paige didn't get her germs. 

 Paige obviously had no idea what was going on that day! 

This was Ella by mid afternoon. After I changed Paige's diaper I looked out the window to see Ella with her skate board out on the sidewalk. She was obviously feeling better. Needless to say she was back to school the next day. :) 

I have been having so much fun dressing Paige in her holiday attire. This is one of my favorite outfits, EVER! 

She has also been working on sitting up. She definitely prefers sitting up to laying down these days! 

How can I keep this sweet face a baby forever!? 

Paige loves to roll around and grab her feet. 

Sweet Ella is growing up SO fast and looking so much older these days. We have all loved seeing her with that snuggle tooth that sticks out when she smiles. Little did I know this would be one of the last pictures I have of her with that snuggle tooth!

My mom got these for the girls. They had fun ramming into each other after school one day.