Just Like Mommy and The Towel Game

This kid seems to have a lot of her mommy in her... her looks, her stubborn attitude at times, and now how much she loves to "talk" to people. Ellie loves to play "The Towel Game" as Nick so lovingly named what he calls when he brushes Ellie with her burp cloths. This is one of our favorite activities to do with E right now. She will squeal and give huge smiles when her face is touched with one of these cloths. I made a video so that I will be able to remember those sounds that melt my heart:
I always want to remember her finding her voice :)

Reds Heads Kids Club

A little known fact (haha) about the Lawrence family is that we LOVE the Cincinnati Reds.  I definitely married my father when it comes to this, as I have been cheering on the Redlegs just as long as Nick has and some of our best memories have come from the ballpark.  We are trying to instill this love into Eliot at an extremely young age, as she already has quite the plethora of Reds gear.  Nick got a great Father's Day present from his brother and sister-in-law, Brandon and Amy; a membership for Ellie into the Reds Heads Kids Club.  We hope to take her to a game later this year to one of the autograph sessions and a run the base day so that Nick can fulfill a couple of dreams, with the help of a two month old :)  As a member of the club, Ellie got: a really cool backpack, a jersey (adult small, hilarious!), dog tag necklace, sunglasses, and a coupon book.  Thank you, Aunt A and Uncle B!!

Ellie and her gear!

This was taken a while back, but the first time she wore some of her Reds stuff.

Two Months!

How has the summer gone by this fast?  I am loving all of this time that I get to see Ellie grow and boy, has she!  She can focus on so much more for longer periods of time, and doesn't sleep as much (both a happy and sad thing for Mommy :)).  At two months, our little girl:

*weighs 11 lbs., .5 oz.- 50th percentile
*is 22 1/2 inches long- 50th percentile
*has a case of acid reflux (which we are going to try some new things to help with it)
*is extremely healthy in all other areas and is developmentally strong
*wearing mostly 3 month clothes (Mommy was in tears packing away most of the newborn clothing :/)
*wears a size 1 diaper
*eats 3.5 oz. of formula at a time, eating every 2-3 hours during the day and between 3-6 hours at night
*loves to spend time in her monkey bouncer.  She just recently learned how to hit the toys that dangle from the bar and this makes her giggle!
*has went to the YMCA daycare and the Northside daycare.  As hard as it was to take her, I know that I need that time in each of those places to make me a great mom :)
*is grabbing items such as blankets or burp cloths and holding onto them for longer periods of time.
*loves having floor time, especially when her Daddy is home.
*will track you with her eyes when you are moving about.
*is adjusting to Penny and will even squeal when Penny licks her now :)
*is an absolute joy and the reason why my heart is overfilled with love each and every day. 

She hates posing for these monthly pictures, but I love them!

I randomly took this picture on my phone the other day and love the joy on her face.  It makes my heart melt.

Thumbsucker?

These days, E has been doing a lot of thumb/finger sucking.  I am trying my hardest to teach her how to use a pacifier, but sometimes she just wants those fingers.  Although I don't necessarily want her sucking her thumb (much harder to take away than a Nuxy), it is too cute to watch her try.  Watching her discover her hands has been so much fun to witness.  Here is a shot that I took to capture this:

This headstrong little girl might just get her way with the thumbsucking...

First Trip to the Zoo

E and I were invited to go to the zoo with our friends on Tuesday for Amie's birthday!  I didn't renew my zoo membership this summer because most days were too hot to take Ellie out, but we enjoyed the somewhat cooler temperatures and hanging out with some of our favorite people.  I think Chris and I will always remember Ellie's first zoo trip because of the turtles "hugging" as Riley says :)  I got a video but since the blog is PG rated, it won't make the cut!

Here is my little monkey ready for the zoo (although she slept most of the day :))...

Cammie's First Sleepover!

On Thursday, we were so lucky to be able to have my C Monkey all night!  Chris and Amie went on a much-needed and awaited trip to Chicago to watch the Cubbies.  Although I have to admit that I was a little jealous (baseball is one of our favorite things to experience as a four-some), I was thrilled to be able to watch Cammie.  She is at SUCH a fun age.  She is always wanting to explore and discover and she loves our Ellie-Bell more than I even could have imagined.  On Thursday night, we ate ice cream and played outside until we couldn't see anymore.  I was a little worried about how she would handle not having her mom during bedtime, but she did great!  We got to FaceTime Amie, which was too cool seeing C react to "seeing" her mom and telling her good night.  (Sidenote:  What did we ever do before iPhone technology?!)  She then went to bed with me and Nick (with Ellie in the bassinet), and after a couple of episodes of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, she was out for the night. 

Getting ready for bed with Nick, A.K.A Dick, one of her best buddies

The next day was filled with bubbles (before it reached 102 degrees), watering the flowers, coloring, blocks, and eating some of our favorite foods (Froot Loops, chicken nuggets, pretzels, and Oreos dipped in milk).  It was such a fun time, although I will say that I plan on having my kiddos more than 22 months apart :) 

Eating some Loops while watching Oso in the morning

Love, love, love this one :)  She is like her Aunt C and loves Oreos and milk!

And I had to throw one of E in here... I know she looks a lot like me, but this one is the first time I have taken a picture and said, "Woah!"  How can you not love that little grin?