October is here and fall has finally arrived here in Happy Valley. This month is packed full of so many wonderful things that I had to take the time to write my blog post. 

The month started out with the weather changing and the temps dropping. the leaves are falling and already mom and dad are coming up with photo opporuntities involving piles of leaves. There are so many great things happening this month that our social calendar is very very full! To start off with we had our trip to the pumpkin patch with the Wollford Family. We got to pick pumpkins and mom and dad took lots of picture with me in the bins (see the October photos). It was fun, I guess. I'm just not sure what the big deal is, but mom and dad say that they are fun to carve up and set on our porch. After the patch we went and had dinner, and it was pretty fun. 

Our next big event was the Penn State Homecoming. Mommy went and bought me some cold weather clothes for PSU so that I would be ready to support the team in the cold weather. On Friday night, mom and dad bundled me up nice and warm and we went to the parade. I had some dinner and took a quick nap, but boy when those Army cadets marched by, I came awake and watched the rest of the parade. Take a look at me all bundled up in the photos page. Right after that was baby Eli's baptism and party. I got dressed up in one of my party dresses and momma and daddy and I went to the church and watched him get baptised and then we were off to the party. Momma made some salad and a bunch of deviled eggs so we packed in the cooler and then had a whale of a good time with Uncle Geoff and Aunt Mya and all their friends. And Mr. Eli looked so handsome in his outfit!!

In other news I had my 4 month check up with Dr. Coggins. He says that I am right on track with my growing! I am 13 pounds and 26 1/4 inches long. Mom says I am twice the girl I used to be!! And in the most exciting news, I am moving to eating baby food twice a day. For now, it's just a few spoons after my bottle to get me used to the spoon, taste and texture. But by my next check-up, Dr. Coggins says that I will be eating a whole container of baby food at each sitting which is pretty exciting. I thought apples were ok, but I really like bananas!!!

The month is busy, so keep checking back to see what we're up too!! PEACE!

Can you believe it is already September? I know I say it every time, but time sure is flying by! It's already fall here in PA and I knew it was time to sit down and get a blog written! 

With fall came all kinds of new experiences. First, mom had to go back to work and I started going to day care. Mom cried the whole first day and part of the second, but now she seems to be getting more ok with leaving me each day. Plus we still hang out together every Thursday. My care giver is a lady named Heather and all seems to be going quite well so far. Miss Heather has a daughter exactly the same age as me, and so we hang together all the time. For now, I am the only kiddo with Miss Heather, but soon, Uncle Geoff and Aunt Mya will be taking Baby Eli to Miss Heather so it'll be the three of us together. 

I have also experienced my first football Saturday. You can see pictures of me dressed up in my Penn State cheerleader outfit on the photo page. Who knew that people could get so crazy watching a game!! Mom and Dad had to share tv time the other weekend because Penn State and Texas A&M were playing at the same time. It was a fight to the death for the remote control. I slept through most of the games, but when I was awake I was pretty entertained. Mom and dad say that for awhile each Saturday we'll be watching football, and then Sunday we watch NASCAR. It seems to be a routine that they enjoy and I have to say that mom and dad are pretty funny to watch!

A few weekends ago we had my Baptism celebration and it was just beautiful. Uncle Michael and Aunt Melissa came to be my Godparents and Grandpa Dan and Gramma Pam also were here to spoil me rotten. The day was just beautiful and mom and dad put on a lovely celebration for me. I was glad that everyone came and spent time with me. To see pictures of the day, take a look at the photos page. Also, keep a close eye out for video of the day as well coming soon on the videos page!

I am still growing and am now almost double my birth weight. As you can see in the September pictures, I am a pretty smiley happy kid! I love to laugh and am cooing and giggling all of the time with mom and dad now. And I LOVE to talk!! Dad says he can't wait until I'm talking all the time... but sometimes I don't think he means it seriously. 

Keep checkin for pictures all of the time-- mom and dad are still taking a billion pictures!! It's time for me to get to bed though...so until next time...PEACE!!

Last Friday, I had my 2 month well baby visit. It went really, really well. I am indeed growing like a weed. The doctor told mama and daddy that my head circumfrence is exactly where it's supposed to be (bumps and all), and I am 9 pounds and 4 ounces, both of which are right along the growth curve, on target! Then the doctor got a bit surprised about the fact that my length is above average (I had a 20% increase since my last well baby check up a month ago). Then he looked at mama and daddy and said- "Oh, I'm not surprised". I'm 22.25 inches long already! I am moving into bigger onsies because the ones for my age aren't long enough for me anymore! I also got my first shots, and mama said that I was a champ (she hid behind the nurse because she didn't want to watch, but daddy was right there with me)! I got to take some Tylenol to help with sleeping Friday night (I was a little sore), but I'm 100% better now. 

In other exciting news, I am sleeping through the night almost every night now! It made mama nervous the first night, but both she and dad are both pretty excited about it now. Mama and daddy are thinking it might be time to have me move into my own room, but I might be able to squeak a few more weeks out of them, I think! 

Lots of big things coming up in the next few weeks! At the end of the month, I am getting baptised. Everything is all set up and mom and dad are even going to have a reception for me afterward. I am very excited to meet my God parents Michael and Melissa!! They are Aggies like my mama, and so I am sure Michael is going to try to get me to whoop or gig 'em! Gramma Pam and Grampa Dan are coming to visit that same weekend and so it's going to be a big old time for us. 

Mom and dad just bought a new camera and new camcorder and so I am planning to be a tiny movie star in the coming weeks, so keep your eyes posted for new photos and new videos coming soon!! 

Until next time... PEACE!

WOW! Where has the time gone?? Time sure flies on the outside, and life has been anything but boring since my last post. Here is a quick update...

After I was done with my Billi Blanket, mom and dad had a few days to catch their breath and we really started to get into a good routine. Then, mom noticed that right after my belly button cord fell off, my belly button was kinda red. Mom and dad took me to the doctor, and sure enough, it was infected. I had gotten oomphalitis. It's a pretty serious thing, and since I was such a little kid, the doctor decided that I should spend some time in the hospital getting well. Mom and dad took me right away and I spent 5 days at Mt. Nittany Medical Center (the same place where I was born), getting some pretty strong antibiotics. Before I left the hospital my belly button was almost all healed, which was really great, but mom and dad still had to give me antibiotics here at home. I'm all done with them now, and the infection is all gone! On a great up note, the entire time I was in the hospital and since mom and dad brought me back home, I have continued to gain weight and get big and strong. In fact, I am almost 2 pounds bigger now than I was when I was born!! I just want to say thank you to everyone who called, sent cards, and stopped by the hospital to visit while I was there. Momma, daddy and I really appreciate it. 

A big highlight of the last two weeks are all of the visits that I have had. After Gramps Rudy left, we had a short break and then Grandma Sheron and Great Granny P came to visit. That was exciting and I got pretty spoiled while they were here! Aunt Mya and Uncle Geoff came over to visit right before baby Eli was born and brough momma and daddy yummy pizza. Aunt Tiff brought over her momma, sister-in-law, our friend Deb and my buddy Miss Nora for a visit and mom learned some baby massage to help me with the hiccups. Last weekend, momma's sorority sisters Aunt Julie and Aunt Wendi, Uncle Chad and my buddy Sydney came to visit and we had a hoot of a time. I especially enjoyed watching all the big people play with mom and dad's video game-- who knew people could get so silly over a game??

In the coming weeks I am really looking forward to being at home with momma and daddy! I'm growing like a weed and already momma is putting away my premie clothes because they don't fit anymore. I have found out the joys of rice cereal, and intend to make sure mom and dad keep lots of that coming in my bottles. I also am looking forward to more visits from family and friends and of course, my baptism which is coming at the end of August!!

It's time for some juice and some tummy time on my super awesome rainforest gym so until next time, PEACE!

 

Hi Everyone! Now that I'm here I am taking over the blog from mom and you'll all be hearing from me, from now on. I am very excited about this blogging opportunity and hopefully I will be able to do it pretty regularly!!

I am almost two weeks old now, and let me tell you, it's been an interesting time here on the outside. In just this short time, I have had to have a "billi Blanket" to help with my jaundice, an ultrasound on my head to make sure that my little bump from birth was healing alright, and three blood tests (also for the jaundice). and all this while trying to train mom and dad!! It's been exhausting let me tell you!

I am also glad to say that I have moved on from 2 ounces of formula, to 3 ounces which is exciting. I am also allowed to have some apple juice (cut in half with some water) two times each day which I really love. In the coming weeks, I am looking forward to starting tummy time (to help me grow big and strong), learning how to beat the hiccups that I get all of the time, and conitued success with training mom and dad. If anyone has good training suggestions, please feel free to send me an email or comment on my blog post!!

I have also learned to be really photogenic! Mommy and Daddy takes lots of pictures of me, and their photographer friend Drew came yesterday and took some pictures of me. Mommy and Daddy will have these pictures next week so hopefully they will help me post them here, and they will also be the pictures used for my birth announcements.

Well, it's almost time for a bottle and a quick nap. So ...Until next time.

Hi Everyone! I went to my doctor's appointment yesterday and it turns out that 68% of you were right-- looks like the baby is coming early. The doctor has moved up some of those last minute tests and so we're in full on, hair on fire, getting ready mode now! The baby celebration is on Saturday and we're so excited to have everyone over to really rejoice in this event. We've also made all our baptismal arrangements and are so blessed that Michael and Melissa Shehane have agreed to do the honors of being A's godparents. Our maternity pictures should be up tomorrow or Friday as Drew, the awesome photographer, assures me he'll have them done and electronic proofs ready to roll by then. Baby celebration pictures will be up early next week. I know many of you have asked for photos of the mom to be (lord knows why), but you'll finally be rewarded for your patience! If I'm sneeky- I may even get to post one of two of the dad to be! Danny still looks like his svelte self whereas I on the other hand am really basking in what others refer to as the "glow" of being about ready to pop! I will definitely be blogging about the baby party next week, and I promise pictures will be up, but it's time to run again-- lots to do!! Until next time...

Can't believe that we're getting so much closer to the arrival of the baby! The nursery is really coming together now! The crib is up and the bedding is on; our first piece of furniture has arrived and is now all set up waiting for us to get things put away, and for mother's day, Danny bought me the glider rocker that I really wanted, which is now also in the room! It is really looking like a room waiting on a special little person! 

We're down to every two week and will be moving to weekly doctor appointments now. The doctor continually checks to make sure baby does not intend to arrive too early! Other than some serious heartburn, I am feeling great and excited about the upcoming weeks. Next week, a great guy named Drew is coming to take our maternity photos which is pretty exciting! Then, on May 31st, friends are converging on Pleasant Gap to celebrate the impending arrival of the baby which will be so much fun! 

Lots to do to get the house and yard ready so time to go-- until next time!

So, I just had to blog about the nursery! My dad bought the crib for us, and I was waiting anxiously for its arrival since that's a huge step forward in the process of getting us ready for this little one. However, no one shared with me that it was going to weight 400 pounds and come in little bitty pieces. We actually had to cut open the box on the porch and bring things in a piece at a time. Danny is now rocking and rolling on putting it together, but I still think it's crazy that a bed for such a small person takes so many pieces!! We also just got some of our nursery decor, and so I can't wait to start getting the room really ready!!

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the baby website!! We are so proud to finally have it up and running so that we can share news and information with you all as it happens! Check back as we'll be trying to update photos and news as often as possible or when new and crazy things happen!