Elena is 1!!

 Today marks Elena's first birthday.  At 2:38 this afternoon, Elena will officially be one year old.  Right now, I can picture myself in my hospital room with Juan just laying and watching some It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia and Friends.  If I remember correctly, by this time, the pitocin had started to kick in, but it's hard to remember time frames...all I know is that once I got that epidural, I was able to rest...and boy, did that feel nice!!  My parents and Juan's parents would come in periodically and check on me, but there was nothing to really report until the nurse said it was time to "have this baby!"  Then, reality set in and our precious baby girl was here.  Time sure did fly this year.  Juan and I are blessed to say that Elena has been healthy and MOSTLY happy :)  She has met all of her little milestones along the way and we are SO excited to watch her meet many more in the coming years.  Today, I stayed home from school to enjoy the day with E. But, at about 8:40 this morning, she just looked at me and said "niiniii" which means "night night" at our house, so I gave her a binkie and she just laid down in her crib.  I haven't heard a peep from her since then...she must have been extra tired!  I guess if napping is what she wants to do on her birthday, then napping it is!  It just gives me a little extra time to get ready for her little birthday party tomorrow and sit here and type a quick blog note.  There is so much I could sit here and type about Elena's first year, but really, I could just go back to each month along the way as I have written this blog to reminisce about our first year together with this girl. I am so happy I have been able to make time this year to write about E growing up...I hope to continue for years to come, but I know it's just going to get busier and busier.  No excuses, though!  I love doing this kind of thing...
Well, here's to Elena...our beautiful baby, Elena.  How did we ever manage without you before you came along?  Life seems so much more joyful, meaningful, and loving since you entered our lives.  There is not an hour that goes by that I don't think about you when I'm away from you.  There is nothing more that your dad and I would rather do than spend hours and hours with you.  Don't ever forget that (especially someday when you don't want to spend time with us :)  We love you to the moon and back, Elena Elizabeth.  Happy Birthday!!!

Nostalgic...

So, here I am on this Tuesday evening before Thanksgiving with plenty of things I should be doing like some laundry, baking some cookies for an upcoming special 1st birthday, picking up toys, or doing the dishes among other things, but for some reason I just can't seem to bring myself to do anything tonight!  I have been catching up on some shows that I haven't watched in weeks and figured a little blog post was long overdue.  Although I have been trying to keep busy with everything lately, I can't help but be a bit nostalgic this evening as Elena's first birthday approaches.  Last year at this time, today was my "target day" to make it to at school before Elena's birth.  I remember the feeling a year ago of such accomplishment that I had made it to Thanksgiving break without baby girl, although my doctor never thought I was going to make it to my due date.  I am remembering tonight my thoughts a year ago of how I wasn't returning to school until February.  It seemed like everything "got real" the Tuesday before Thanksgiving last year.  Juan and I were not allowed to travel far at this time last year due to Elena's due date being so close, so knowing I was going to be home for the long haul was honestly wonderful.  I am truly looking forward to sharing a first Thanksgiving with Elena.  She is honestly one of the things I am MOST thankful for this year.  God blessed me as a mother with a healthy, beautiful baby girl almost a year ago and for that I will be eternally grateful.  She brings a joy to Juan and I's life that we never knew existed.  It's hard to explain, but the feeling is there.  It almost brings me to tears at times when I think about how much love I have for this little human being.  So, as I sit here tonight getting my feelings down in writing, I can't help but feel a little sad about how fast this past year has gone by and how our baby girl will never be her small little self ever again.  Is it weird to say that I already miss her?  I am looking forward to SO much ahead in her future, but there are so many things that have happened in her short little life so far that I don't want to ever forget!  We love you so very much, Elena Elizabeth, and can't wait for all the many wonderful things to celebrate ahead.

Friday Fun!

Elena had some fun today with her grandma...my mom comes to watch Elena for us on Fridays and my mom caught Elena enjoying some lunch :)

Our First Halloween and 11 Months Old!!!

It has been a few weeks since I've been able to find a good time to sit at the computer and write about our little girl.  She is one busy body, let me tell you!  I can no longer just let her play in the room or watch an episode of Sesame Street while I type for a bit.  Elena is walking all over the place and getting into anything that will open...cabinets, drawers...you name it, she will find a way to get it open!  Life has been great, though.  Our little girl is growing up right before our eyes and sometimes it makes me so happy and other times it makes me somewhat sad...and when I say sad, I mean that our monumental first year together is almost over...Elena turned 11 months old on October 30th and is on her way to becoming a one year old.  Seriously, I don't know how to take that some days.  I miss my little 7 pounder that came home with us last year!  All the nights sleeping on the recliner because that's the only way she'd fall asleep for more than an hour or two, checking facebook at 2:30am just to see if I was the only one awake at the time, and holding E's binkie in her mouth until she fell asleep are just a few of the memories that will live on with me for a lifetime.  I remember thinking back then how frustrated I would get but would look back on all of it with a smile on my face and here I am doing just that. Juan and I find ourselves just smiling at one another when we look at her playing so innocently by herself.  She is just so smart and knows how to play.  We marvel at her and still can't seem to comprehend that this little human being is our own. I feel like we have been doing a fine job raising our first baby so far.  Elena's first birthday is less than a month away...

Over the last few weeks, Elena has been eating a lot of new foods!  She is loving her shredded cheese still, but has now moved onto string cheese too.  Elena enjoys mozzarella, colby jack, and cheddar cheeses.  I'm sure there are more that she likes, but we are sticking with the ones we enjoy most too!  Elena tried her first french fry (which she loved), mashed potatoes, pieces of bread, yogurt bites, and even macaroni and cheese.  I'm sure there are other foods we have given her, but I can't remember them all! She is still eating her regular baby foods, but her tastes are definitely evolving.  She is gagging on the foods she doesn't like anymore, although, I have found that if I add a little extra bit of water to some of her food (especially the homemade ones), the texture is a bit smoother and she likes that more.  She couldn't be more like her mama :)  Elena still takes her bottles of formula daily and we have been working on that sippy cup, but it still isn't going that great.  I'm going to give her this month and then hit the sippy cup hard after she turns one.  I've been reading up on how to make a smooth transition, so here's to hoping it goes well!

Below are lots and lots of pictures from the last few weeks...starting with a NLCS championship day picture before school and ending with Elena and I's little outing to the park the other day.  We continue to stay very busy with school and Elena, but Juan and I couldn't be more blessed.  We are so thankful everyday for this beautiful family of ours and only hope to continue to grow closer together as we move into our first Thanksgiving together later this month. We have so much to be thankful for and are looking forward to all the blessed times ahead the next few months!

 Wishing for a Cardinal win...

 Just waking up...you got that bottle coming yet?

 Attempting some mac n cheese

 Elena's pumpkin glowing on Halloween night

 Ugh, can we go yet?

 Mmmmm...tootsie rolls...

 This is the best one I could get...she won't stay still!!!

 Just swingin'

I can say "book"!

Elena's Tia Oly caught her saying book!

Fall!

We have been enjoying our first fall as a family!  Elena got to go to her first pumpkin carving party last night out in Hartsburg, MO.  It was a wonderful evening full of pumpkins, apple cider, food, and mummies...we had a blast with our friends!  I only wish I would have remembered our camera :(  We have been playing outside a lot in pants and sweatshirts, too.  Elena just loves to be outside looking at everything and making lots of noises.  She loves to go for walks in her stroller...especially now because she is sitting up and enjoying the view like a big girl! 
On Friday night, we went to watch the Hickman High School homecoming football game!  It was, again, our first one as a family and it was a great time.  Juan saw lots of people he knew, of course, and we got to show off our beautiful baby girl. Last year, I remember being at Hickman watching the Homecoming game and I had a HUGE belly full of baby girl :)  What a memory to bring her back this year and cheer on the Kewpies!  Elena was a trooper and we stayed at the game until about 8pm...we came home and put her straight to bed...it took her a bit to fall asleep (cried A LOT since she was SO tired), but once she did fall asleep, she slept great until about 6:30 the next morning. 
Elena has also been eating a lot more foods lately that she has to chew.  We have tried some lasagna, which she is liking a lot, hot dogs, cheese, and bread!  As long as everything is in itty bitty pieces, she will chew on it for awhile instead of spitting it out.  Elena is also starting to show us which foods she does not like.  Up until now, she has really liked anything we feed her.  But, in the last few weeks, she has started gagging a lot when it comes to foods she doesn't like.  Usually, it's baby food that has meat in it, so we have been stirring in extra veggies that she likes to help with the taste.  I have continued to make home made pears and peas as often as I can, and Juan's mom makes Elena's sweet potatoes and carrots.  Elena REALLY loves abuela's home made fruit she makes.  Even Juan and I have stolen a bite or two because it is SO good.  We all love applesauce in this house and that is what the home made mixed fruit is like, only way better!
Elena is starting to develop a very strong personality...she is the sweetest thing in the world, but boy can she be loud!  We even had to leave church early this morning because she wouldn't behave herself!  I guess we are in that phase where Juan and I will have to take turns going to church for awhile without baby girl.  She just screams and yells when she's playing with a toy or wants to get on the floor and play.  Obviously, we won't have that in church ;)  Elena and I also made a quick stop at Walmart this afternoon for some last minute groceries and I let her sit up in the cart for the first time and she LOVED it!  She smiled and laughed the whole time we were walking around the store.  I need to get a shopping cart cover because all I kept thinking was how many germs were all over the cart, but we had fun anyway.
Guess it's time for another week for us all!  Here's to a good one!


Finally got some 10 month pictures of E...

 OMG, I HATE this, mommy!

I like to climb on the dishwasher now.

No Babysitter Week!

Well, Juan and I officially made it through the first part of the week without our baby girl.  Elena was gone to St. Louis with her grandma and grandpa from Sunday through Wednesday afternoon.  From all the pictures and videos, she appeared to have a great time and did not care one bit that she was away from home.  She got to spend some time with her aunts and read lots of books.  She even learned a new word: "book", which usually comes out as "gook".  Elena went on walks to the park and just enjoyed her mornings in bed with grandma.  All in all, it was an absolutely wonderful time for her.  I know my mom and dad missed her when it was time for her to come back home.  I ended up staying home on Thursday with Elena and took her back to the doctor to have her roseola rash checked by the nurse and get Elena her first dose of the flu shot.  We were only at the doctor's office for about 5 whole minutes...record time!  Elena's rash will continue to come and go, but there are no worries anymore about the roseola.  Elena cried for a bit when she got her shot, but then by the time we walked out of the examining room, she was happy and smiling again.  We will go again during the first week of November for her second booster of the flu shot.  It was really wonderful to spend the day with Elena on Thursday.  I know Juan would love to have a day like that too with her during the week, but it is very difficult to plan for a substitute (and, boy do I know that), but now with the job I have as a Reading Specialist, I don't have to plan for substitutes.  If I can't make it to school, I just call and tell them I can't be there.  It makes things so much easier for me to stay home if needed. Just another one of those little reasons why I LOVE the job I have.  To end up our week of no babysitter, Elena's Tia Oly came out from Kansas City to spend the day with her at our house.  We were so thankful that Oly agreed to come out and stay with Elena for the day.  They have never been able to spend a whole day together just the two of them, so it was a memorable day. All in all, it ended up being a great week.  Elena got to spend some quality time with some very special people.
Yesterday, I took Elena up to St. Louis again for the day to visit my grandparents.  We had a great time catching up and playing.  Grandma made an awesome pepperoni pizza for lunch and my uncle Bob made a pasta casserole that I really enjoyed.  Of course, it wouldn't be lunch at grandma's without some strawberries and a Drumstick for dessert.  I love my visits to grandma and pa's house.  It's always so relaxing and with Elena on the move all the time, it was great to just sit, laugh, and talk while we watched Elena play.
So, here we are again to another Sunday...ready for a day full of football on TV and fantasy football on the computer :)  This makes me love Sundays.  I don't have anything in the Crockpot today, but hopefully later this week I'll have something good to cook...maybe a new recipe??!!  Elena will be back to the babysitter's for a normal week and grandma Keeven will be back here on Friday.  It will be nice to have a regular week ahead of us. 
Juan and I just marvel at Elena everyday because it seems like she gets bigger and smarter with each day that passes by.  She is getting better at her wobbly walk...she is starting to talk a lot and "sing" lots of noises.  Elena loves to make a mess of my dish towel drawer in the kitchen.  You always know when Elena was around when the kitchen floor is covered with pot holders and kitchen towels.  Anytime we open the refrigerator door, Elena likes to play with the beverages we have on the lowest shelf of the door (wine bottle, lemon juice, and a two liter of soda). She likes to "taste" everything...hahaha  Elena also likes to play with the things on the floor of the pantry if I happen to leave that door open as well.  My lunchbox seems to be her favorite item to play with for now...the strap especially!  Sometimes, Elena just likes to open and close the door.  She is just so funny.  She is curious about everything and Juan and I just let her explore as much as we can.  She has a very serious face when she is concentrating on something.  She is quite the thinker.
We are moving on towards Elena's 11 month mark at the end of October...seriously?  Are we almost 1 year old already?! 

 No hands...she is getting good at this.

 Glad to have my baby back home!

 She is focused.

 Playing blocks with Uncle Bob

 Those rabbit ears are delicious.

 Grandpa is tickling me :)

Oh, hi grandma!