Christmas Vacation

I am finally getting around to uploading all the photos from Christmas. We had a really good trip to Evansville and it was so wonderful to see good friends and relatives. It was kind of like National Lampoon's Christmas...complete with a trip to the ER, reading of "The Night Before Christmas," watching 8 millimeter home movies, and plenty of Wii karaoke (highly reccommend Glee for Wii). Elliott did very well on the 6 hour drive there and back! My Grandpa Gross was admitted to the hospital on Wednesday for stroke-like symptoms. Based on his condition, it did not look good for him, but miraculously, he had a great recovery and was back to his regular self by Tuesday. It was just a reminder to all of us how fragile life is and don't take anything for granted!

Piekos Family Christmas

Grandmas and thier grandkids!

Can you tell who uses hair product?

Gross Family Christmas- 4 Generations!

Train goes by the Windemere Farm snow village

Piekos Family Christmas

I had quite the adventure on Friday, doing last minute Christmas shopping.  While I ordered most gifts online, it was necessary to go to the mall for a few things.   Elliott and I had a great time and usual, he did not make a peep!  We used the stroller for the first time, which I found also doubled nicely as a place to store bags.  Shopping with a baby is totally different than alone, which includes figuring out where the elevators are, the best restrooms with changing tables, and which stores have good carts to put the car seat in!  I found that Von Maur's third floor ladies lounge is amazing and extremely mom friendly.

On Sunday, we celebrated Christmas with the Piekos Family. This was Elliott's first time visiting Grandma Liz and Grandpa Bob's house and I'm pretty sure he had a lot of fun. We had yummy food and played the game of "Things", which I would highly recommend. One of the rounds asked "What do you wish you could purchase from a vending machine?" Our answers included, "fried chicken, tires, dental floss, balloons, diploma and a jury!"... to give you an idea of how funny this game can be. Thanks for a great time Piekos Family!

1 month old!


Elliott is 1 month old!   Time is flying by! Elliott had his 1 month pediatrician appointment and is doing excellent.  He is the 50 percentile on all of his measurements, putting him at 9 pounds 11 ounces.  He behaved  well at the doctors' office, except he didn't really like having his ears poked at or getting the hepatitis shot, which he shed his first real tear from crying.  I have been trying to get Elliott on a better schedule called "EASY", from the baby whisperer book.  It is not "easy" to do, but basically is a routine that means he eats, then plays, then sleeps, and this is supposed make the baby happier and to help the mommy feel better.  As you can see, mommy is very tired these days- I didn't even know the picture below was taken until I was just looking through the files. 

This week has been fun!  We started off with cookie extravaganza and Bears game on Sunday- thankfully baking went better than the Bears game.  I went to ladies night out on Tuesday and Chris babysat.  I have also been visiting some of the other mom's in the neighborhood during the day, along with watching CNN- probably too much!  For all you mom's out there, all drop side cribs are now banned... more information on that to come.

Passed out after too much CNN!

 

1 month old!

Sleep?! Really, what is that?

Elliott has been growing a lot and is unable to fit into his newborn outfits.  I played Wii Fit with him and according to Wii Fit Elliott has gained 2 pounds (Elliott's Mii is a dog and I can "weigh" him by holding him- it is really not accurate, but fun!).  He has a one month check up next week, so I will confirm the real weight gain after the visit.  I brushed Elliott's hair straight back after a bath one day this week, giving him sort of a Donald Trump hairstyle- Chris was not a fan.  Check out the pictures and recent video featuring "bounce around game."  We are not getting much sleep- it seems like Elliott sleeping through the night was a random occurence and it is not happening anymore.  Mommy is extremely tired from waking up for nightly feedings!  I have been getting out for errands and working out.  My goal is to get the weight off by the big 3-0 next month.  Bob and Liz were nice enough to babysit Elliott last night and Chris and I went out for a nice date night! Thanks Bob and Liz!  It has been a wonderful holiday season so far.  I feel very blessed to have so many good things happening in our life.  Every year Chris and I buy toys for children that need toys.  Toys for Tots is a great charity to support if you are looking for some way to give back.  It is so important to be thankful for what you have and help those who are in need. 

My cool hair after a bath

3 weeks old

Lounging in my chair



Our Little Man...

Elliott is almost 3 weeks old!  We have been having a lot of fun with him the past few weeks.  He is really starting to be more alert and has even rolled over several times.  We finally caught his rollover move on video.  The past three nights have been very nice, because Elliott is sleeping from 11:30 pm to 6 am.  I took Elliott to my work to visit my coworkers and he was very good for everyone!  It snowed about 6 inches here today, it is a winter wonderland out there. We haven't invested in a snow blower yet, so Chris shoveled the driveway- all 175 feet!