Happy Halloween!

This past weekend we traveled to Iowa to celebrate a few more birthdays - our good friend, Nic's, and our niece, Ava's. We also celebrated Ella's first Halloween, enjoying trick-or-treating with her cousins. I'll let you be the judge (see below), but I think she's definitely the cutest duck anyone has ever seen. Tomorrow we'll hit a few more houses in the neighborhood. Ella is hoping to score some more candy - she has a pretty big sweet tooth:)

Bath time!

Cutest. Duck. Ever. Not a chicken.

Trick-or-treating with cousins Ava and Reid.

All that trick-or-treating pooped her out!

Posing on the pumpkins and Grandma and Grandpa V's.

Ella and Ava.

A joint effort with Grandpa Al.

Ella loves her cousins!

Beags the dog patiently waiting for Ella to drop something.

41 Weeks and Another 30th Birthday

This week brought Jeritt's 30th birthday, and lots of celebrating. Despite his attempts to hijack his birthday plans, I was able to pull off a surprise party on Saturday night. We had a great night with friends and family - Jeritt's dad even came! Ella had her first swim class on Saturday morning. It's an eight-week program designed to expose babies to the water gradually. Everything was going 'swimmingly' until about 10 minutes into the class when the instructors stopped everything and made everyone get out of the water - they'd spotted a floater. Yep, nothing shuts down a baby swim class faster! Thankfully, Ella was not the culprit, but it was pretty funny to see every parent panicking while they checked their baby's diaper to ensure they weren't to blame. Finally, Saturday also included my best friend Allison's baby shower, which I was honored to co-host. What a fantastic - and exhausting - weekend! Maybe Ella will let me catch up on some sleep tonight:)

Testing out the new car seat - despite this face she does seem to like it.

Happy birthday Jeritt!

Another cake at the surprise party.

Allison's baby shower - her baby boy will be born in January!

Growing Like A Weed

Last Friday was Ella's nine-month appointment. This was the first time we'd gone three months between check-ups, so we were anxious to see how much she'd grown since July. At 19 pounds, 9 ounces and 29 inches tall, Ella is in the 75th percentile for weight and 95th for height. Surprisingly, she sat very quietly and still while the doctor examined her. I almost laughed out loud when he told me that "I know it's nice to be able to hold her a lot, but the best thing for her development is to put her on the floor and let her explore." I guess she fooled him with her little act - Jeritt and I joke about picking her up in the middle of the night just to hold her, as she never sits still long enough for us to get those snuggles during waking hours!

Trying to reach the ipod dock.

Helping Dad put away the Napa wine.

Go Hawks!

Testing out her 'big girl' car seat.

Wine Country

Even though this blog mostly focuses on Ella, I thought I'd post a few photos of our first weekend away from our baby. We love Napa Valley so much that we just keep going back, and we thought our 30th birthdays was as good a reason as any to drink great wine and eat wonderful food.

Squishing grapes with the winemaker.

The main room of one of the wineries. Talk about great views!

The fog outside Chateau Montelena.

Chateau Montelena.

 The classic one-handed photo.

9 Months Old!

"Sock Dog" has been hanging out on the top rail of Ella's crib since she was born, and after eyeing him for months, she finally figured out how to knock him down. She's so excited to play with him, she scampered over to him before I could even get her dressed after her bath. It's like being reunited with a long-lost friend!

Ella has discovered how to pull the toilet paper off the roll. Yay.

Strolling with Grandma C.

With Grandma C. at the park. Thanks for the Hawks outfit Aunt Jill!

Conquering the straw!

Checking out her favorite friend.

Helping with laundry folding. She likes to pull everything out that I've already folded.

Today Ella is nine months old, and is seeming older every day! Her fourth tooth is now coming in, this one on top, and she's starting to also pick up on the few signs that we've been teaching her. What a big girl! She even spent her first weekend away from mom and dad... This past weekend Jeritt and I traveled to Napa Valley, California, for some great wine, fantastic food, and tremendous weather. Ironically, it was just as warm if not warmer in Chicago while we were gone, but you can't beat those California views! It was my first time leaving Ella for more than a few hours, and despite my anxiety, she had a wonderful weekend with Grandma C. We were glad to be home last night - coming home to a baby sure makes the end of vacation much sweeter! And we really appreciate Grandma C. coming out to stay with Ella, as well as Aunt Erin, for keeping them both company.