Fall?

This crazy weather has Ellis all confused. One day she was sweating through her onesie, walking outside on the sizzling sidewalk, and the next day I was wrestling her into fall pants and fuzzy socks. She always seems a little sad when put into pants and socks. It's like I am taking away her liberty.

We enjoyed a visit to the "Robin's Nest" this weekend and thank the Martins for their hospitality. Ellis is still a ways off from being able to enjoy a dip in the pool since her trach and g-tube can't get too wet, but she loved splashing her feet in the warm water. Thanks for having us over!

Miss B also made a visit, which was extra fun this time because she and Ellis can chase each other around the living room now. I can't believe how big these little ladies are getting. Ellis loves having such a sweet playmate!

Tomorrow we will be taking Ellis for an ultrasound to check out the swollen area on her shoulder and neck. Please pray that this is something minor and easily taken care of. She doesn't seem to be in any pain in that area, and she doesn't have any problems moving her shoulder. Still, we and the doctors will feel better knowing exactly what is going on. I'll update again tomorrow evening when we get home.

Zippy!

Ellis still isn't ready to let go and walk on her own, but she is dragging me all over the house and yard by that one finger. She is also enjoying her riding toys, which she thinks are bumper cars. This week she learned to sign "tree" and "monkey." We have Curious George to thank for that last one.
Our big adventure this week was when Ellis decided to remove her own g-tube (feeding tube) this week and I had to put it back in by myself for the first time. The short version of this story is that it was NOT FUN. She was an angel through the whole ordeal and stayed pretty still while I was working on her. I was freaking out on the inside but trying to stay calm for her sake. It happened as Ellis was waking up that morning and still in her crib and at one point as I was working on her belly she started doing the sign for "Jesus," likely because we sing and sign "Jesus Loves Me" every morning after I get her dressed. But in that moment of panic I liked to think she was saying a prayer. After getting the tube back in, I also got a round of applause from Ellis and a big hug and kiss as I was having my ugly-face cry. She is fine now, and we checked with the doctor to make sure there were no problems.
In the next day or so Ellis will probably be going for an ultrasound to check out some swollen tissue at the back of her surgery site that we are concerned about. We appreciate your prayers that everything will check out fine and that this can be easily taken care of.

Ellis loves her Corvette! Thanks Blevins Family!

Ellis on Assignment

Ellis is on a modeling assignment today over at Auntie Ally's Daisy and Elm Fanpage. Check it out to see her support the troops! Speaking of troops, we are all excited that Sgt. Uncle Grant will be making a visit soon during his break from Afghanistan. It will be his first time getting to meet Ellis in person, although she has gotten to hear his voice over the computer and has seen many pictures.

Ellis's checkups went well this week. She is still 22 lbs. and 30" tall and is meeting all of her developmental milestones except for speech. We have to increase the time spent patching her eye daily to four hours now instead of the two we had been doing just to let her right eye catch up a little more. It's not an exact science, so we may have to go up and down with the patching for a while. She is still cautiously walking around holding on with one hand, and she will stand on her own for several seconds before realizing it. I have a feeling she is getting another tooth or two because she is chewing on her toys, the furniture, her hands and feet, my fingers, and anything else within reach. She now knows about a dozen signs, the newest ones being "flower," "sheep," and "music." I have been trying to record her signing and will do a post soon of a collection of those. It has been difficult for me to capture these moments because Ellis is fascinated by the camera, so whenever I try to record her doing something I actually want her to do, she wants to play with the lens instead.

Next week Ellis will make her first trip to the dentist. None of us are looking forward to that one, but we hope she will handle it as well as she has all her other appointments. She is also still scheduled for surgery on September 21st. We are so proud of our strong little lady!

Monday Funday!

I was looking through some of our old blog entries this weekend and laughed at this picture we posted one year ago:

It seems like just yesterday to me, but to Ellis it has been almost a lifetime. She thought it would be funny to try it again:

Same bucket, same baby!

We thank God for all the other things that have changed in this past year as well. Ellis gets bigger and stronger every day. Tomorrow we have three different checkups and are hopeful for good reports all around.

Hands Full!

I haven't been able to update here as much as I would have liked this past week or so because we have been settling into our new place, unpacking boxes, and arranging furniture in addition to keeping up with this very active little girl. I hope to have more time to keep up with the blog next week. The good news is that Ellis has been helping unpack:

Have a great weekend!

New house!

Ellis is thrilled to be in her new house now, with lots of room to wiggle. We have a great yard for her to play in, we are across the street from a beautiful park, and we could not ask for better neighbors. Thanks to all the superfriends who helped us move!
We are still unpacking and arranging, so there hasn't been a lot of time for photos and updates this week. More to come soon. But I will say that Ellis is on the verge of taking her first steps, and she has picked up a few more signs. At her last checkup she was 30" tall and 22 lbs. 1 oz, and she got all her birthday shots, including the chicken pox vaccine. Where was that when I was a kid? I had to catch them twice! 

Ellis says, "That's not fair, Mama!"

Ei Ei O!

This has been a busy weekend! Robin Granny visited and entertained Ellis with games and toys and hugs. She also helped us start packing and moving. We are so happy to say that we are finally moving to a larger place! Ellis will have more room to (soon) walk around and play, and we will have our own yard for her to play in and a beautiful park right across the street. Ellis has been very helpful packing boxes and cleaning out closets. And happy birthday to Robin Granny and Uncle Grant today!

Also this weekend our friends Charley and Cindy invited us for a visit, which meant that Ellis got to play with their animals. Well, she pointed and waived at the animals. Thanks for hosting!

We can tell that Ellis's ear tubes are already doing their jobs because some of the swelling that has been around her right ear since she was born has gone down a little. We are also in the process of transitioning Ellis to her new formula, which is specially made for babies over one year old who are tube fed. She continues to take small tastes of baby food and other fun things, and we know it won't be long until she can ask us for what she wants. She already signs "eat" and "candy." Maybe I should work on teaching her "vegetables."