One Month!

Ella is one month old today! It's amazing how quickly this month has passed. So much in our lives has changed. We've spent the last four weeks getting used to new schedules and ways of doing things. It's been fun just to spend so much time watching our little girl. She has certainly captured our hearts!

First Bottle

Ella had her first bottle today! She did very well taking the bottle from Pete. She was four weeks old as of yesterday, so we thought it would be a good time to try it. Of course, we fully recognize what this means... We can have a babysitter! I think it will make other outings a bit easier as well. And yes, she drank that bottle just like Daddy drinks: incredibly fast.

I experienced "a Mom moment" for the first time last night. After Pete got home from the hospital, I headed out to run some errands. Ella stayed home. While I was at Target, I saw another young woman who had a baby carrier in her cart. As she passed me, I turned to look at her baby who looked to be about the same age as Ella. Immediately, I missed my little girl. I wanted to skip the rest of my shopping and drive straight home. I had heard of this happening to other moms, but it was a first for me. Not that it will prevent me from running errands on my own in the future (I'm sure there will come a time when I will appreciate those solo shopping trips), but for now I'm taking my wee one along. This afternoon's destination: the grocery store.

4th of July

Ella's first holiday! I couldn't resist getting a patriotic little dress for her to wear for the day. To celebrate, we went to St Anthony Main. There were lots of people and numerous bands playing along the street. At 10 they set off fireworks from Nicollet Island over the Mississippi River. They were fantastic! Ella was happily tucked in her car seat inside the Jeep and slept through the display while Pete and I sat on the hood to watch. We had a great time!

Going Home

We're catching up on pictures, so here are a few from our trip home from the hospital. It was all of eight blocks. Quite the trek! We got home Sunday afternoon and had to be ready for the moving truck on Wednesday morning. Fortunately, Pete's parents met us at our house. With Pete's RPAP final on Tuesday and my doctor's order not to do any packing or moving, we needed a lot of help. We definitely wouldn't have been ready in time for the move without Grandma & Grandpa Olsen's help! THANK YOU!

We successfully moved to Minneapolis on July 1. Settling is taking a while since we'd much rather spend the time with Ella exploring the city and the many walking paths. We'll eventually get out of boxes!

Ella's going-home outfit. She was already growing out of it!

Visitors

We had a lot of visitors during our stay in the hospital after Ella arrived. We loved sharing our little bundle with everyone! Here are pictures of a few of our visitors. (I'm sorry if you came and we didn't get a picture!)

Grandma Scott

Grandpa Scott

Westin & Jessica

Ang's Aunt/Godmother Julie (Auntie Bue!)

Dr. Jason's little girls

Dr. Jason (Pete's preceptor in Owatonna)

Uncle Jake (Ang's brother)

Matt, Kristi & Charlotte Florek

Charlotte was proud of her own baby, too.

A Quick Update

It's finally time for an update! I apologize for not updating sooner, but things have been a bit on the busy side for our little family.

Ella is now 17 days old. The time is already going so quickly! We're completely in love with our little girl and all the things she does. I don't even know how many pictures we've taken already. A lot. We'll post them very soon.

When Ella was just 6 days old we made our big move to Minneapolis. Fortunately, we were able to hire movers to pick up our boxes and drop them off at the new place. We're still living out of those boxes. Soon enough we'll be out of them. It's just that we'd much rather spend time with Ella than unpack. We enjoy our new place very much. It's just a block from the Mississippi River, which provides great walking paths. We're surrounded by little shops and cafes and are just a block from the U of MN campus. We can actually see the new Gopher stadium from our front window! They'll be lots of fun outtings coming up.

Like I mentioned, I'll get the new pictures posted as soon as I find a few extra minutes. They'll include highlights of our stay in the hospital, visitors, the first days at home, Mommy & Daddy's anniversary (a picnic in Stillwater!), and many other firsts. Check back soon!

Ella Kristin is Here!

We are beyond excited to finally announce the arrival of our little girl Ella Kristin Rehema Olsen. Ella was born on Thursday, June 25 at 6:25am at the Owatonna Hospital. She weighed 8lbs 11 oz (a surprise to us all!) and was 21 inches long. The three of us came home from the hospital today and are settling in to life with a new born. It's amazing to watch all of the incredible things she does that absolutely melt our hearts.

What's in a name?
The name Ella came from Ang's adopted grandma when she was younger. "Grandma Ella" was a resident of the nursing home where Ang's mom was working. Ang's family spent years visiting her, taking her to piano recitals, bringing her baskets of kitties and puppies to play with, and listening to her stories of growing up on a farm in the early 1900s. Grandma Ella lived to be just six months shy of her 100 birthday and had a love for her family (all passed away before she did) and had a strong faith in Jesus.

The name Kristin comes from two very special people, both of whom are sure to have a loving influence on Ella in the years to come. Kristin is Ang's mom's name as well as Pete's sister's name. Pete's sister is also Ella's godmother.

Rehema also carries great significance. It is the Swahili word for Mercy. It is a reminder of the calling that God has put on our family, no matter where He leads us. He has designed each member of our family, as well as our family as a whole, to specific purposes. We are excited to see Ella grow in God's love and to discover His purpose for her life in the years to come.