Growing & Growing

We recently took Ella to the doctor for her latest check-up. She passed! :) As we all suspected, she's grown by leaps and bounds since her last visit. In fact, she needed to be measured twice to determine if she really could have grown as long as she had. Ella is now 27 inches long, which is the 97th percentile, if you're curious. She weighs nearly 15 pounds, putting her in the 75th percentile for weight. Everything else at the appointment went very well. She had a couple more shots and did an excellent job. That could have something to do with Mom's reaction. I did much better and knew exactly what I should do to prepare her before them and how to comfort her afterward. We're all learning!

This week we're excited to visit Grandma & Grandpa Olsen for Thanksgiving. Ella can't wait to meet her Auntie Kathryn for the first time! Before the trip, we'll be doing some sewing and baking. What better time to try out new pie recipes? Ella's a big help in the kitchen. Eventually she'll be able to be a part of the stirring and pouring, but for now she sits in a little seat on the floor and keeps Mommy company.

Oh, I Get It!

The past few days have been a bit challenging in the Olsen house. Until yesterday, I couldn't figure out why our usually content little girl suddenly grew quite cranky. She only seems to be happy when I'm actively playing with her. She doesn't easily fall asleep during naps. She's woken up a couple times in the night, but only wanted her pacifier. That's unusual, since she doesn't typically wake up at all. She's already a drooler, but seriously, you should see the front of her shirt the last few days. And then, two days ago, I noticed that she's been sticking out her tongue a lot.

Moms and dads, I'm sure you're catching on to this. If you put these symptoms together and add in the fact that next week she'll be five months old, you'll most likely come to the conclusion that I did after talking to a few mom friends.

Our baby girl is teething.

It make so much sense now that we've figured that out. As I held her last night to try to calm her, I just wanted to be able to be the one with the sore mouth so she could feel better. We've been giving her baby Tylenol, which she loves. It seems to be helping. I also have a little freezable toy for her to chew on, although she hasn't really figured out what to do with it yet. I'm not sure what else to do. I know this is the beginning and some things just have to happen, but if anyone has any suggestions, I'd love to hear them.

Laughter

I have to say that one of my favorite things to do right now is simply sit and watch Ella. She's learning so many things and has so many expressions! She laughs all the time. One story: A week and a half ago we were in Duluth and went with Pete to his residency interview. She did really well for most of the time (yup, she attended with us) but got a little antsy in the afternoon, so I took her out of the room for a stroll down the hall. We looked out the window, which usually satisfies her, but she was still a bit fussy. I sat down in a chair and saw a three-ring binder on a nearby table with pictures of doctors who had gone through the Duluth program. I flipped it open, and Ella laughed and laughed! I don't know what it was, but something about the pictures must have struck her as being pretty humorous. Her laughter was adorable. The people in the offices within earshot came out to see why she was laughing. Isn't it amazing the way a baby's laugh can affect people?

Cartoons!

Last week, Ella saw cartoons for the first time and LOVED them! We don't typically let her see the TV, but she was feeling under the weather and we wanted something to distract her for a few minutes. Her reaction was adorable. I caught a moment on video.

Water Bug

Today is the last day of our three-week hotel stay in Duluth. Pete had a great time during his family medicine rotation. He met lots of people and made many connections that we hope will be beneficial in our effort to get back to Duluth for residency. We won't find out where we'll be moving until March, so we're doing all we can to up our chances.

It's been an adventure living in a hotel with a four-month-old for three weeks! We were really fortunate and were able to stay in a room with a sleeping area on one end and a sitting area on the other. Ella definitely knew that we weren't at home and had a hard time sleeping many nights. I think she's used to it now and has been doing much better. I feel a little bad that now that she's getting used to it, we're moving to a different hotel. We'll be down in Canal Park for two nights. Sunday we head home.

The hotel we've been staying in has a huge water park, so we knew this would be a perfect time to take Ella for her first swim. We ended up going four times. I think her favorite part was the lazy river. We put her on top of an intertube while we floated. With all her time in the water, she never fussed once. We've got a little water bug!

Trick or Treat!

Ella's first Halloween! We dressed her in an adorable giraffe costume, complete with a little pink flower on her ear. That way everyone could tell that our little giraffe was a girl. Her pumpkin was just her size from a farmers' market in Minneapolis, and she carried her little pink giraffe blankie. The three of us first visited Pete's parents and sister, Kristin, who were in town for Ella's dedication on Sunday. Then we took Ella to Hillside Church for Fall Fest, where we got to see lots of our Duluth friends. Afterward, Ella's godfather, Anton, arrived so we showed off her cute costume again. We didn't collect any candy this year, but I'm sure they'll be plenty next year!