Glamour Shots

Ok, we've embarrassingly become "those" parents. What I thought would be a simple photo shoot to capture the first few precious moments of Ellie gave me a glimpse into the world of Toddlers & Tiaras. I can assure you that my daughter's diva days end here (if I have anything to say about it).

A 3+ hour photo session, dozens pf accessory changes, and converting Ellie's room into a studio complete with a sound machine and space heater brought us these gems...

Month 1

How in the world did a month go by already?! It seems like just yesterday that we were welcoming our daughter into our lives, and now she completely dominates our lives (in a good way, of course). While she's only been a part of our family for a month, we cannot imagine life without her. A few observations from the past week:


: Ellie is sprouting more hair, but not all over, just on the crown of her head. I think she might start to look like a Fraggle if this growth pattern continues.

: Despite the fact that Justin and I eat meals at different times each day, Ellie invariably wants to eat the minute we sit down.

: Showers have become quite the treat. When I get more than a haphazard 30 second shower, I consider my hygiene beyond successful.

: Ellie is weighing it at a whopping 9.6 lbs today - we love the cheeks, chins and rolls and hope that she can hang onto them for now.

: Our daughter is full of noises - low pitched grunts, groans, and heavy breathing... she now has a new super cute high pitched coo.

: We attempted to have a dinner party for 9 on Saturday night. I think Ellie could sense that people were honing in on her turf because she was a pill the entire night. While it was a fun night, we realized that entertaining with a 4 week old was an overzealous attempt at social normalcy.

Big milestone today - 1 month old!

A little freaked out here...

Burrito Baby

Ellie LOVES her car rides

Proud Papa

When we don't have her in her straight jacket (swaddle), Ellie sleeps with her hands up. We just realized that she was in the same position for all of her sonogram pics...

Will came over for a visit - this shot was taken seconds before a diaper explosion in Will's hand. Thank God for leak-proof diapers.

Sneak peek of Ellie's newborn photo session at 10 days old

Auntie Visits

Ellie had a full dance card this past week. We had visits from Lacy, Danielle, Katie C., The Greagers, The Schwartzes, Erin, Aunt Sally, and Aunt Katie. Just when we thought our daughter couldn't be more spoiled, Aunt Katie comes to town. During her visit, we went on lots of walks, ventured down to the art festival downtown, went shopping, and out to eat. What a fun and busy week...

Auntie Erin came to visit from Chicago - she's a natural with Ellie.

Our Bathing Beauty...

Aunt Katie came to visit from Naples. What a treat for Ellie, she was spoiled rotten.

The Thomases at the art fair

Snuggle time with Aunt Katie

Aunt Katie brought us darling matching "E" bracelets. So cute...

Ellie getting some face time with Great Great Aunt Sally after she slept through our entire Ladies Lunch.

Ellie loves her car rides

Hangin' with Aunt Katie

Twinkle Toes

Hello Ellie!

Life with Ellie

How did 2 weeks go by already? It seems like just yesterday that I was waddling around the neighborhood trying to induce labor. In the blink of an eye, our lives as we knew it changed... for the better, of course. We are experiencing all of the cliche new parent changes - time running in fast forward; sleep deprivation; figuring our what makes Ellie tick, only for her to change the very next day; constantly worrying that our daughter is happy, healthy, and comfortable; changing a diaper, then hearing a loud diaper explosion 30 seconds later; non-stop laundry running trying to rid our textiles of  poop, pee, spit up, and germs.

Despite all of the various changes and stress, we are loving life with Ellie. Her personality is definitely already starting to blossom. We've learned that she loves to snuggle, embraces constant stimulation, eats more than any newborn I've ever known, hates the confinement of a swaddle, has the most aggressive rooting tendencies, enjoys holding hands with just about anyone, and like a true Austinite baby, she LOVES music. Her favorite tunes to date are anything by Jim James/My Morning Jacket.

We had a big week with Ellie:

: Nana visited this past week from Kansas City - Ellie and Nana even hung out solo while we ventured out for our first date night post-baby.

: Great Great Aunt Sally and Uncle Jim visited from Georgetown - how lucky is Ellie to have "great greats" in her life (and in Austin)! However, Aunt Sally insists on just AS because adding a G would make her "GAS."

: We went to the doctor again this week, and Ellie is up to a whopping 8 lb 3 oz.

: We've been on many walks in the neighborhood and also had a date with Nora Dennis, who was born the same day as Ellie.

: Goodbye umbilical cord, hello bath time!

We are soaking in the last 2 days of Justin's paternity leave. Thank God for FaceTime because I don't think Justin will be able to go more than a few hours without a pictorial update on his daughter. Ellie already has Daddy wrapped around her tiny little fingers;)

The newest member of the Thomas household - our very own power washer

Now that Justin has a daughter and a power washer, I think it's safe to say he's fully domesticated.

Miss Ellie - 2 weeks old

Nana brought my baby pictures from KC, and it's obvious that we have a mini Sarah on our hands;)

Ellie, just minutes after birth

Ellie loves her Nana;)

First walk in the neighborhood

Great great Aunt Sally & Uncle Jim came for a visit. Ellie's lucky to have them so close - just a 45 minute drive from South Austin.

4 generations!

Ellie loved her first real bath

Our Bathing Beauty:)

Breakfast date (or sleep date?) with Nora Dennis and her parents, Mark & Elisa. Ellie is only a few hours older than Nora...

Ellie showing Nana cheek tricks. Lots to work with here...