Hilton Head 2014

Two weeks ago (omg, sorry it took me so long to get this up!), Travis and I (and Ella!) loaded up our car and headed for Hilton Head! 

We got there just as the sun was setting, making for a very pretty drive in!

My friend Angela (a Hilton Head regular) helped us pick out a place to stay that was in a convenient location....we were in the Forest Beach area, right across from the beach and a block away from a bunch of shops and restaurants!

Our condo!

We dropped our bags off really quick, and then headed to Bomboras, a restaurant nearby, because we were STARVING!

Ella was so excited to be at the beach!!

I had shrimp and grits and it was amazing, of course!

The next day, both Travis and I decided to go for runs before it got too hot. BAD IDEA!

In case you were wondering what running 4 miles in extremely high humidity and a heat index of 95* looks like, here ya go:

True life, I was this emoji: 

After a freezing cold shower, we enjoyed the alligators and turtles from our balcony! Ella loved sitting out there every morning!

{whale bubble}

Then, we hit up the store for some beach essentials!

One thing we didn't need? Swim suits for Ella. 

Yes, I brought 8 swimsuits for my child. And we were there for 3 days. Would you expect anything else from me?!

Although the beach was right across the street, the walk took a little longer than expected due to our chairs, umbrella, cooler, stroller and multiple bags! Also? Our stroller does NOT move in the sand (should have gotten a BOB!) so Trav and I had to carry it across the beach. In 100*+ temps. Ugh. By the time we set up camp, Ella was asleep.....and stayed asleep for 2 hours, haha. 

So I stayed busy by dumping ice cubes on my self, and making her monogram in the sand. 

When she woke up, we had to take a picture! 

{swimsuit / hat / blanket}

She HATED the sand!

All in all, Ella didn't mind the water of the ocean, but she did not like that sand one bit. She freaked out every time her feet touched the ground. Poor thing.

That evening we decided to take a sunset dolphin cruise!

It was Ella's first time on a boat, and she loved it!

Our future home...

We saw lots of dolphins, which was insanely exciting to me, for some reason. I took no fewer than 100 pictures of them! They eventually even came pretty close to the boat, so I didn't even have to zoom in to take pictures!

The cruise ended about 8:45....Ella was such a trooper!!

The next day, I decided skipped my run (no thank you 90* before 9AM) and we took Ella down to see the animals in the pond outside our condo.

Then we got ready for the pool!

{flower swimsuit}

It wasn't hot at all...

Don't worry, we stayed nice and cool in the pool!

To say this girl loved the pool would be the understatement of the year! She could have spent all day in her little floatie thing....she is such a little water babe for sure!

{towel}

For dinner that night, we ate at A Lowcountry Backyard Restaurant. 

Trav found it online (it had gotten really good reviews) and we both agreed this one of the best meals either of us had ever eaten. Like, in our whole lives! The food was AMAZING. 

I got crab cakes, grits and mac & cheese.

Definitely recommend this place if you are in Hilton Head!

After dinner, we headed to the beach for some pictures!

{Ella's dress}

It was still insanely hot, but Ella liked the sand this time!

On Sunday, we packed up and headed home. On our way (kinda), we stopped at Palmetto Bluff, which is Angela's favorite place and where she got engaged!

It is SOOOOO pretty there!! Everywhere I turned looked like a postcard!

{Ella's dress}

We ate lunch at Buffalo's, which is in the picture below...

It kinda reminded me of Charleston a little bit. 

I got some yummy tacos for lunch...they were delish!

Then we headed back to Charlotte! 

Thanks for a great time, Hilton Head!

Ella Grace {7 months}

Dear Ella,

The picture above just sums up your little personality perfectly! You are another month older today, and while 7 is my least favorite number, I want you to stay this age forever! You are SO fun!

Height: 26 inches (30 %ile)

Weight: 15 pounds, 12 ounces (30 %ile)

Head circumference: 16.75 inches (46 %ile)

Clothes: You are pretty comfortable in all of your 3-6 month and 6 month clothes. There are a few 0-3 month things that still fit you (a few dresses, and the onesie you're wearing in these pictures), but for the most part you have outgrown those things. At night, I will occasionally put you in 6-9 month pajamas, because I don't want your feet to get too squished! You are still in size 2 diapers, although I think we may move up to size 3 soon.

Nicknames: Elle Belle, Peanut, Peanut Butter, Peanut Butter Cup, Stinky/Stinkyhead, Lovebug, Sweet Girl. Also, Daddy's friends are trying to bring back Munchie Yolo from my pregnancy days. 

Milestones: You are SOOO close to crawling! You want to move BAD! If something is within arm's reach, you usually can push yourself toward it....but if it's too far away, you get frustrated on how to get there. Which is fine, because we still need to baby proof our house! :) You are an excellent sitter and can sit on hills and in the bathtub now. You love to stand while holding onto someone's hands. You are also cutting your very first tooth as we speak--I just noticed it starting to pop through yesterday! A not so great milestone? Separation anxiety! It has hit us hard in the last 2 weeks or so, and you need to know: it will be ok if I am not with you every second of the day, sweet girl! 

Sleep: Thanks to our pediatrician, Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, and the Moms on Call app, I've finally got you on a schedule! You take 2 naps a day: one from about 9:30-10:45 AM and then in the afternoon from around 1:30 until 3:30. Sometimes, you have slept for up to 3 hours in the afternoon! It has been so nice knowing I have that time to catch up on stuff around the house...I miss playing with you, and it sucks not being able to run errands all afternoon, but once you wake up, you are such a happy camper, so its definitely worth it! You still sleep amazingly well at night--you go down a little after 8 PM and most nights will sleep straight until 8 the next morning (give or take a half hour)!

Best Moment: Taking you to the beach and your first football game! It's so much fun to experience things in a different way through you. You loved both so very much and your joy was contagious!

Worst Moment: Once again, setting up my classroom for those 2 days when your babysitters had already gone back to school. You just do not like where Mommy works, do you?!

Likes: Any and all remotes, iPhones, iPads and computers. Ha! Watching football (College GameDay made you kick your feet in an especially excited manner), or Bravo shows. Crinkly toys, putting everything in your mouth, bananas, sitting in your highchair, walks in your stroller, swimming in the pool (and water in general), making this clicking/smacking sound with your mouth. Oh, and you're still obsessed with your wubbanubs!

Dislikes: Mommy's school, the YMCA, being away from Mommy or Daddy, the NoseFrida (I know! You used to like it!), avocados, jumping in your Jumperoo if I'm not sitting right next to you (if I'm in the room with you though, you still love it!), when it gets dark outside (your fussy hour is generally around 7-8PM).

Health: I think I may have jinxed myself last month, because this has been the most unhealthy month of your life! A few weeks ago, while Daddy was out of town, you got your first fever. A low grade fever at that, but enough to panic me into calling the after-hours nurse! We blamed teething and gave you some infant tylenol, which helped! Also, since working at the Y, you've been exposed to a lot more germs than you're used to, and because of that, you've picked up some sniffles and a cough. Nothing terrible, but it breaks my heart to hear you coughing at night in your sleep. We've turned on your humidifier in your room and NoseFrida you frequently; so hopefully this little sickness will be gone soon!

Eating: This has been such a fun month for eating! Your first "real" food was bananas, and you love, love, love them (although you weren't totally sure about them at first)!!! You've also tried avocados (not a fan), peaches (like!) and applesauce (homemade by your grandma--yum!). On a good day, you eat food at lunchtime and dinnertime, but sometimes if we are busy, you just eat once. You are nursing 5 times a day now, instead of 6. Your bottles are between 6-8 ounces, but when you are nursing, I don't think you're getting that much! You get very distracted and you're kind of over it...and to be honest, I am too. BUT, I'm proud of us making it this far and I know it's the best thing for you...let's see if we can get to a year so you don't have to drink formula! 

Elle Belle, you are developing SUCH a fantastic little personality!! I could just eat you up! You continue to charm everyone you meet, and people can't help but smile around you! You are into everything, which is so funny to me. You were trying to help Daddy with his work on his laptop the other night, and you kept trying to touch it like it was an iPad. It was hilarious. Just little things like that, that you do everyday, make me laugh! You continue to bring so much happiness to mine and Daddy's life. We can't even remember what life was like before you, but we are not complaining one bit! We can't wait to see what the next month brings for you, sweet girl! 

Life with Ella {week 30}

We have had quite a busy week!! 

Sorry I still haven't posted our pics from Hilton Head, but I promise those are coming soon! 

In the meantime....

{Flag dress (I was determined to get one more wear out of it for the summer!) / Bow}

Monday was the first day of school for the kids here in Charlotte (and would have been for me, too if I had gone back to work!), so of course we had to have a photo shoot!

{Apple dress / apple clippie}

Yes, Ella is in "0 grade." And yes, she tried to eat the markers. 

We also babysat for one of my favorite families...

And we went to Whole Foods to get some peaches!

Tuesday, we continued our grocery shopping adventures with a trip to Trader Joe's, where it was apparently baby hour and everyone just ooohh-ed and aahhh-ed over Ella!

I had to work at the Y on Tuesday afternoon and Ella decided to eat everything there.

The above picture would by exactly why she is super congested now! Ugh...I guess it would be worse if she was in daycare all day, but I just hate when she is not feeling well! Breaks my heart!

Anyway, Wednesday we had our little playgroup...

{Strawberry romper}

...and that evening Ella helped me with my fantasy draft for the all-girls league I'm in. 

Hey, Dana, you only said husbands couldn't help, right?! ;)

Thursday, we finally tried those peaches! Not a huge fan at first, but after the first few tries, she actually enjoyed them!

{bib}

I also went to the dentist Thursday, and someone (not mentioning any names, cough, cough, Ella) decided to pitch a fit while I was in the chair. The dentist came in to try and calm her down (he is the sweetest older man...and the official dentist of the Hornets! If you need a dentist in Charlotte, I highly recommend him!) and then finally, the receptionists had to come and hold her! Good grief! High maintenance much?! 

She had been having such bad stranger anxiety lately. Anyone have any good remedies for that?! 

{dress}

At least she enjoyed the bag of goodies we got at the dentist...including a Disney princess toothbrush, that she can use when she's, oh, 5.

Throughout the day on Thursday (because, believe me, this took several tries), we had to decide on an outfit to wear to Ella's first UNC game Saturday. We had an embarrassing amount of options... 

{1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9}

...and don't worry, there's more "winter options" in her closet. I clearly need help. 

So what did I do the next day?! Hit up a consignment sale and buy more clothes, naturally. No more Tarheel stuff, but I did find a Panthers outfit for $4! 

We also read one of my favorite bedtime stories to prepare Elle Belle for the magical land that is Chapel Hill!

Saturday we headed to Chapel Hill!! 

{UNC bubble}

Ella was in love as soon as we got there, even though it was 30587298 degrees. She stayed in the shade and played with all of her boyfriends. 

Yes, all of my friends decided to have boys, leaving Ella to be the only girl at our tailgate. However, she was such a little ham all afternoon (and in my opinion, the sweetest, cutest, best-behaved baby ever) that I'm thinking some of my friends wish they'd had girls ;)

Ella also loved the actual football game (and everyone at the football game loved her, of course). She was not scared of the fireworks after every UNC touchdown, and she kicked her legs whenever they scored. She smiled when they made a good play, and only got fussy for a little bit when Carolina was majorly sucking it up. She is clearly her father's daughter!! It was a fabulous day, and Travis is so relieved his daughter loves football.

Sunday, my parents came to town and we went to Matthews Alive. It is this big festival nearby Charlotte with lots of food and art vendors. My friend, Kathryn's company sponsors the whole thing, so she had to work at it all weekend. So we went to visit her, and Ella met her first mascot (we had not seen Ramses at UNC the day before, unfortunately), Lugnut from Hendrick Motorsports! Haha, she was not impressed. 

{plaid romper}

Ella did manage to get some adorable bows (did I mention I have a problem?!) and we all survived the heat! 

Come back tomorrow for a 7 month update!! Where is the time going?!?!