Author: Michael Pellegrini

Yesterday I took the day off work so Jessica, Elise and I could go to Whidbey Island for Jessica’s friend Melissa’s wedding. Ava stayed home with Grandma for the weekend but we decided to bring Elise because there are going to be four other newborns at the wedding, three of which are girls whose names start with the letter ‘E’. We have Evelyn, Ellie, and Elise, all of whom are less than 6 months old. Pretty funny.

Friday was pretty much the perfect day. For those who aren’t familiar with Whidbey Island, you drive north from Seattle for about a half hour to a town called Mukilteo, then you catch a ferry ride about 20 minutes out into the Puget Sound. Whidbey Island is probably most well known for the mussels that come from Penn Cove, which is north in a small town called Coupeville. It’s got a nice laid back vibe with beautiful views all around of the water and neighboring islands.

After getting off the ferry we drove a few miles to the center of town on the island. Jessica and I were starving, but so was Elise, and that takes precedence. We walked down to the beach and sat on a picnic table while Elise ate. Once it was our turn to eat we went to a little French bistro we found on Yelp called ‘Prima.’ The ratings were good so we decided to check it out, and I’m so glad we did because the meal was excellent. We started off with cocktails, snails cooked in garlic butter, and the brochette du jour, which ended up being a beef skewer with grilled onions and a tomato compote. For our main course Jessica had wild prawns with truffle honey and I had a reuben sandwich with fries. We also shared a bowl of Penn Cove mussels cooked in lemon, white wine and shallots. Every single thing we had to eat was delicious! We sat outside so we could enjoy the nice weather and Elise was as perfect as can be. She was awake the whole time but never made a peep. This ended up being the highlight of the day. I would definitely recommend Prima to anyone on Whidbey Island looking for a nice meal with some French flair thrown in.

After lunch we checked into our cottage, which was about 3 miles north from where we had eaten. It’s on a section of the Island called Bells Beach, and it’s absolutely beautiful. It’s a small cottage owned by a local resident that has been remodeled and turned into a bed & breakfast. I took a couple short video clips giving a tour of the place that can be found at the bottom of this post. If you watch the video you’ll see that there’s a nice mix of old–world charm and modern amenities. You’ll also notice the incredible view we have! There’s a nice big deck out front, a huge lawn, and our own private tram that takes us down to the beach.

We were pretty tired after getting checked in so the three of us took a nap, then watched a little TV before getting ready for dinner. We went into town to pickup a few groceries and a pizza, then came back to the cottage to eat. After dinner we went up the road about a mile to the house where Melissa, her soon–to–be husband Jaime, and several of their family members were staying. They were having a pretty big party with deserts and drinks so we thought it would be fun to stop by and say hello. As usual, having a baby in your arms at any kind of social situation means you will quickly be engaged in conversations, mostly with mothers asking how old she is and whether or not she’s normally awake at this time of night. We weren’t there for too long but it was nice seeing everyone. I think the wedding later today is going to be a lot of fun. They seem like a great group of people.

After that we went back to the cottage and finally enjoyed a bottle of champagne that was given to us by Johnny, my old boss from the Tractor Room in San Diego, as a gift when Ava was born. It’s a nice bottle that we’ve been holding onto for a while now so it was good to finally get to enjoy it. We fell asleep watching a movie and had planned to sleep in today, but the bright beautiful view woke everyone up at 8:00 and we decided to stay up. We’ve got several hours before we head out to the wedding so I think we may take a walk on our private beach. We’ll be staying here again tonight then heading home tomorrow after breakfast. I’m hoping to be home by 1:00 to watch the Seahawks game but we’ll see how it goes.

We got a couple updates from Grandma yesterday and it sounds like they’re having a great time. Ava has been sick for the first time this week so it was hard to leave her, but she seemed almost 100% by the time we left. Earlier in the week she had a fever and stomach ache, which was a first for her, but she toughed it out like a champ. She really is a tough little kid. She takes all kinds of spills at home but always dusts herself off and keeps going. She’s definitely a lot tougher than I was as a kid. I’m sure my Mom could attest to that.

Looking forward to a nice afternoon/evening with everyone later today. Although we’re only an hour from home it definitely feels like we’re on vacation. I love little weekend getaways like this, especially considering how many fun places there are to visit in the vicinity of our home.

Happy in her car seat

Feeding Elise on the beach

Click here to watch part 1 of the tour of the Bells Beach cottage

Part 2 of our cottage tour

Today Jessica is working a private event for El Gaucho at the University of Washington. This is her first time working since having Elise so it’s a big day for us. She won’t be going back to work on a regular basis for another month, but they needed help today and she stepped up. What we didn’t realize until last weekend was that they were going to need her there at 1:00pm. Luckily my manager at work is super cool and allowed me to work from home today. In the end I wound up working 11 hours, which is more than I would have done had I gone into the office, especially on a Friday.

For the past week I’ve been writing software tests at work, which isn’t something I normally do, but it needed to be done in order for us to get some new features ready for the application we’re building. Software tests are little programs that test the various different functionalities of an application. Before you can release an application you need to know that it’s working correctly, and software tests are vital in making that verification. I volunteered to do it, knowing that the tests needed to be written in a language that I have no experience writing. There was a pretty steep learning curve but after a couple days I pretty much had the hang of it. I didn’t really think much of it, and ended up enjoying the work quite a bit, but my manager was really impressed and gave me some nice public praise. One of the software engineers who reviewed my work told me I should consider switching career tracks and focus on writing software tests. He meant it as a compliment but I thought it was funny. Although I love what I do as a web developer, and don’t plan on changing career paths anytime soon, it’s been nice to learn something new and know that I have other talents related to the tech world.

With Jessica being gone all day that meant that I had to take care of Ava and Elise while working. I was a little nervous about how this was going to play out. The three of us haven’t spent this much time alone together but everything ended up going great. There were a couple funny moments where I found myself holding Elise in my left arm, feeding her a bottle which I was using my lips to hold steady, while typing work emails and coding with my right hand. It was challenging but I think its important to cherish times like these and not get too caught up in the moment. No matter how difficult having two very small children can be, I know it won’t be long before Jessica and I find ourselves longing for the days when the girls were so young. It’s important to enjoy every stage while you can because it won’t be here for long.

In addition to getting a ton of software tests written today (284 to be exact), I was able to unload the dishwasher and clean up the play room. I still haven’t found the time to shower or make dinner for myself but that’s how it goes. Jessica told me she expects to be home around midnight, and I’m going to do my absolute best to wait up for her and see how the event was, but I can’t make any guarantees. Coding for that long makes your eyes hurt and your brain numb. After I finally eat dinner it’s going to take everything I’ve got just to keep my eyes open.

Since today was all about work, tomorrow will be all about school. As expected, the further I go with school the more challenging it becomes, but I’m starting to learn some pretty cool stuff. I can finally say that I’m actually enjoying the curriculum, plus it’s starting to help me out at work, so that’s good. Now that football season is here I’m doing everything I can to keep Sundays completely free. I don’t care how many hours I have to work Monday through Saturday, I just want to be able to relax at home on Sundays with my family and watch some football. One of my favorite Sunday traditions during football season is to start a crockpot with something delicious in the morning, let it cook all day while I’m watching games, and then have a nice dinner at the start of the night game. Although Jessica doesn’t love watching games like I do, she’s always very considerate and wants me to enjoy my day off. I don’t think she minds the home cooked meals either…

Next week we’ve got more visitors coming into town. Amy and Tom are flying in from Florida on Wednesday, then Amy’s parents arrive from Iowa on Thursday. We don’t have room for four visitors so they’re staying at a hotel nearby. I’m sure everyone is getting excited to see the girls, especially Elise since none of them but Amy has seen her in person yet. I think their visit lasts a week, but Amy is sticking around to watch Ava the following weekend while Jessica and I spend the weekend in Whidbey Island for her friend’s wedding. We’re bringing Elise with us so that Ava and Grandma can have lots of fun playing together.

As usual, the train keeps chugging along and we rarely find ourselves with any dull moments. My Mom is planning on coming out for a visit in October, then again in November when we celebrate Ava’s second birthday. It was great seeing Rick and Chris last week and I’m looking forward to seeing more family next week. I’m sure there will be plenty of new pictures coming soon.

Yesterday Rick and Chris flew back to Iowa after spending four days with us. It was a great trip that flew by too quickly. We had a really nice dinner at El Gaucho on Friday night, then spent the day Saturday roaming around downtown around the market. Family trips to the city can be pretty challenging with a toddler but we made the most of it. Ava got lots of attention due to her face being covered in melted chocolate.

Rick built a really nice gate for our front patio, so now we don’t have to worry about Ava falling down those concrete stairs. We also have a swing in our front yard, plus he did some other helpful home repair type stuff that neither of us know how to do. It’s always really nice having him out for a visit and I hope we get to see more of them this coming year. We definitely appreciate all that they do.

Today has been a very nice relaxing day. The whole family slept in late, then we went to the park so Ava could run around. The time at the park was short lived, mostly because Ava wants to cruise around in her wagon. We had no idea she would love her wagon so much but its turned out to be a huge hit. Thanks again Jim and Brenda.

Looks like the rest of the day will be pretty relaxing. I’m going to spend some time on homework, then we’re going to make dinner and watch a movie. Back to the grind tomorrow morning, but at least its a short week. Speaking of work, Jessica is working a private event that El Gaucho is catering at the University of Washington on Friday evening. That will be my first night home alone with both girls. I’m going to try to move my homework around so that I don’t have anything to work on that night. Jessica won’t be going back to work regularly for another month but this event looks pretty cool so it should be a good night for her.

We got lots of cute photos during Rick and Chris’ visit. Here’s a few of our favorites.

Elise napping with Grandpa

Happy Grandparents

Elise and Grandpa

Ava and Daddy playing in the yard

Ava throwing a fit at the market

Elise is getting big

Today I woke up early with Elise and made breakfast for everyone. Last Sunday we decided that we were going to make Sunday morning breakfast a family tradition. It’s nice to get everyone together for a morning meal and there’s so many different directions you can go with breakfast. This morning I made oatmeal with brown sugar and French toast with maple syrup and powdered sugar. It was my first time making French toast and I was happy with how it turned out. I’m not sure how this never came up during the last 6 years but I found out this morning that Jessica hates oatmeal. She tried to eat a little of it but couldn’t do it. I love it and was happy to help out.

After breakfast the four of us headed down to Idylwood park in Redmond. A couple guys that I work with brought their wives and kids down to the park and we all had a nice time hanging out and playing on the beach. Ava wasn’t very interested in being a part of the group activities, which meant I spent the majority of the time there following Ava around and keeping her out of things. I was glad that Jessica got a chance to meet some of my co–workers wives and hang out for a bit. Elise drew a fair amount of attention today, including random strangers that came over to say hi and ask about her.

Since we had lots of fresh produce from yesterday I decided to make a nice dinner for Jess and I before I had to leave for the soccer game. Brenda showed me how to make kale chips in the oven yesterday with a little olive oil and salt, so I made those, plus some breaded cod and a warm corn salad with heirloom tomatoes, basil, garlic, lemon, cayenne pepper and brown sugar. It turned out really tasty and we were able to have a nice early dinner before Ava woke up from her nap.

Speaking of cooking, Jim had a great idea yesterday of doing a family recipes website that everyone could contribute to. I really love the idea of having a central location to share everyone’s family recipes and it sounds like a fun project, so I’m slowly going to start working on that in my free time. Obviously there isn’t an abundance of free time available right now, so the project will progress slowly, but it will be a lot of fun and more than worth it in the end. If you’re reading this and you have some great family recipes in mind be sure to write them down. We’ll be asking for them soon enough.

Going to the soccer game tonight is something I’ve been wanting to do for years. I can’t believe its taken me this long to get to a Sounders game, but I definitely picked a good one to start out with. As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, we were playing the Portland Timbers, which is a big rivalry, and we’ve now got Clint Dempsey on our team, who is a true superstar in soccer. It turned out to be the biggest soccer game in Pacific Northwest history, with over 67,000 in attendance! Although I’ve never been to a college football game, I imagine that tonight’s crowd was more inline with that type of event than any other pro sporting event that I’ve ever been to. There was such an incredible energy amongst the crowd and surprisingly little tension between Sounders and Timbers fans.

Seattle ended up winning the game 1–0 on a corner kick header by Eddie Johnson. It was such an exciting play and the entire stadium went nuts. There were several close calls going down to the last minute, but we were able to hold out for the win. After the game I ran into an old restaurant friend that I hadn’t seen in a long time. It was definitely a lot of fun and Sean seemed to have a great time. His birthday is a couple weeks away and he’s a huge soccer fan so this seemed like the best way to celebrate.

Time to call it a night and get ready for another busy week at work. This was definitely a great weekend that I will not forget. Looking forward to the company all–hands meeting this Tuesday. We do them every 6 months so this will be my second one. It’s pretty exciting to see all the cool new stuff that is going on throughout the company. Also looking forward to Rick and Chris arriving for their visit this week. We should be in for another good weekend with them in town.

I’ve had a lot of great times with my Uncle Jim and Aunt Brenda over the years but today has to be right around the top of the list. Jim and I have been talking about going to the shooting range for a while now but today we finally went and did it. It was a treat for my birthday and ended up being so much fun. I’ve only gone shooting twice before, most recently a couple years ago with Tom in San Diego. I’m not going to lie, I’m mostly into shooting because I’m so into watching the Tv show Top Shot. Jess and I have seen every episode and its sparked an interest in shooting for me.

Jim brought a couple revolvers, most notably a Smith & Wesson Performance Center .357 magnum, plus he rented the Smith & Wesson .50 caliber revolver. This thing is an absolute hand cannon with a 10 inch barrel. Unbelievable gun. Most of the time was spent shooting Jim’s .357, and I’d say it was my favorite of the 3 we shot. That thing is so smooth and accurate… I totally want one now. We also shot a little snub nose revolver and surprisingly enough, that little gun hurt your hand way more to fire than either of the big ones. I definitely want to get back out there with them again sometime soon. I told Jessica this morning when we woke up that all I wanted to do was shoot a bullseye with the .50 caliber. Mission accomplished.

Not only did Jim take me shooting, but the three of us went to lunch at Arturo’s Mexican Restaurant in Des Moines. I designed and built the website for Arturo’s about a year ago when we were living in San Diego. Until today I hadn’t met him or been to his restaurant. We ended up having a great lunch and it was really nice to finally get to meet him. When it was time to go home Jim and Brenda sent me with a bag full of my favorite chocolate mint cookies, a red wagon for the girls, and a bag full of fresh produce, including sweet corn that was picked in the fields that morning. This was so nice and thoughtful of them and we all appreciate it very much. You’ve always been so good to me and it means a lot.

While I was gone today Jessica took the girls downtown for a visit with Laurel. They spent time walking around Belltown, Queen Anne, and got to go to the sculpture park. Jessica stopped by El Gaucho for the first time in quite a while and got to say hello to a couple people. It sounded like they had a really nice time. We had to try out the new wagon with Ava tonight so the four of us did an evening trip to the park. Ava ran over to the wagon the second she saw it and was more than happy to get in and go for a ride. I have fond memories of my Dad towing me around in a little red wagon so I’m glad to be doing it now with the girls. A wagon is one of those things that has to be a part of every kid’s life so I’m glad that Ava is so into it.

Tonight we’re going to make a nice dinner with a bunch of the fresh produce, then tomorrow we’re meeting some of my friends from work at Idylwood Park in Redmond. It’s a beautiful park on Lake Sammamish and its only about 5 minutes from our house. Several of the guys I work with have young kids so we thought it would be fun to get the families together before the summer officially ends. I’m not sure who all is going to show up but as long as the weather holds out it should be a lot of fun. Then tomorrow evening I’m taking my buddy Sean to the Sounders game for his birthday. I’ve never been to a soccer game before but I love watching the World Cup, so it should be a lot of fun. It’s a huge rivalry game with Portland and I heard they were expecting 60,000 people!

There a link down below the pictures to see my first shot with the .50 caliber. Here’s a few pics from today.

Ava loves her new wagon

Guess which shot was last…

First time shooting the .50 caliber –– click here to see

Jessica and I both had busy weeks this week so now we’re enjoying a nice relaxing weekend at home. At this point I think she’s got it down watching two babies all day but it can still be challenging at times. I had a pretty crazy week at work, which I’m sure will resume tomorrow morning, but it’s all good. Although the novelty of my new job has worn off, I still enjoy the work and the people on my team very much. Having Garth, my web development mentor, join my team and become my direct co–worker a couple weeks ago is going to be very beneficial for my career. I’m already learning lots of new things just from being able to spend everyday with him.

Next weekend is going to be the opposite of this one, meaning that I have a lot going on. Saturday my Uncle Jim and I are going to the shooting range to fire a few different hand guns, then we’re going to have lunch at Arturo’s Mexican Restaurant. It’s about time I finally eat there considering I built their website a while back. Sunday night I’m taking my good friend Sean Beavers to the Sounders game for his birthday. The timing worked out perfect because Sean is taking a few weeks off work and there’s a home game that Sunday night. I’ve already got my Sounders jersey and am getting really excited. The only soccer game I’ve ever been to, other than ones that I played in as a little kid, was back in High School. I’ve certainly never seen professional soccer in person so it should be a great night.

Our little girls are both doing really well. I hate to compare Elise to Ava all the time but I’ve never spent much time around babies before having my own, so Ava is all I have to compare her to. Elise turned a month old this week and is doing great. She had a checkup with her doctor on Thursday and everything looked good. She’s definitely a bit more needy than Ava was at this age. By that all I mean is that she likes to be held all the time. She’ll be crying about something, then as soon as you pick her up everything is fine. I don’t remember Ava being that way as a newborn, although she’s a bit more like that now.

Elise is still officially the loudest baby I’ve ever seen/heard. She’s sleeping better at night, but she grunts a lot and makes funny noises. She’s definitely got a big appetite just like Ava, and she’s spending more time awake everyday. I think her vision is starting to improve because she stares at me now and seems to react a little when I change expressions. I haven’t figured out how to calm her down as easily as I did with Ava. For some reason I’ve always been able to soothe Ava and get her to stop crying easily, but that hasn’t been the case so far with Elise. I’m sure that will all change once she gets a little bigger, but for now there are plenty of times where the only thing that will calm her down is eating, or pretending to eat even when there is nothing left.

Jessica is doing really well in terms of recovery and is almost back to her normal self. We’ve been going on long walks again and she’s getting a little exercise in at home. We’re hoping to start exercising more frequently here pretty soon, it’s just always tough to find time. Generally I come home from work and have to jump right into homework, then make dinner. Doesn’t leave a lot of time for exercise or fun activities but that will all change when I finish in June.

Speaking of school, everything is still going smoothly. The second half of the summer quarter starts today so I have two new classes to focus on. I like how they split the quarters up in half, meaning that you only have to focus on two classes at a time, but at an accelerated pace. I got A’s in both classes during the first half of the quarter so hopefully that will continue on.

The end of summer is just around the corner and we’re honestly not ready for it. Ava is determined to go outside and play everyday and Jessica isn’t sure what she’s going to do once the rainy weather arrives. I guess that’s something the girls are just going to have to get used to growing up in the Pacific Northwest. When the weather is good here, it’s really good, and it never gets very cold or snowy, but we get more than our fair share of rain. It’s times like these where you can’t help but miss San Diego, but that’s okay. We love it here and are so glad to have moved back. I think Rick and Chris’ visit for Labor Day weekend will mark the end of our summer, but that mean’s that football is starting, so I’m good with that.

The girls have a fun week to look forward to, including visits with friends and possibly a trip to the zoo. Jessica is working on getting all of Elise’s nursery letters together. Hopefully we can put them up soon. I haven’t had to travel for work in a while and love being home all the time. Time to make breakfast and get started on some homework!

Today the four of us attended our first annual Amazon summer picnic. I’d heard that this was a really fun family event with games, shows, live music, and food, so we thought it would be fun to check out. This year the event was held at Century Link stadium, which is the home of the Seahawks and Sounders. There was a big stage with a band playing right on the field and everyone was welcome to go out there. They had games and obstacle courses setup everywhere so Ava and I ran around for a while. As a football fan it was cool to be out on an NFL field looking up at the stands.

There were games and rides, a toddler zone that Ava enjoyed running around in, and lots of different types of food to choose from. This definitely puts all other company events I’ve attended to shame. I think it will become a fun family tradition that we’ll look forward to every summer. I ended up buying a Sounders jersey at the team store so that I can wear it to the game Sean and I are going to on the 25th. I’ve never been to a professional soccer game and we’re playing Portland, which is a big rivalry, so it should be a lot of fun.

Both of the girls did really great all day. Ava didn’t get her normal nap but she was a champ the whole time. I don’t think we’d made it 5 blocks in the car before both of them passed out. Probably going to lay low for the rest of the weekend. Here’s a few pics from today.

Elise already loves reading

Ava and I playing on the Seahawks field

I don’t think I’ve ever seen Ava have this much fun

Today we had a visit from Uncle Jim, Aunt Brenda, my cousin Kristy and her daughter Madi. They came up to see us, meet Elise, and deliver lots of toys to the girls. I’m not kidding when I say lots of toys either. We’ve now got a Harley Davidson scooter, a bike, a drum, etch–a–sketch, toy phones, and so much more. Now that Madi is getting so big she’s decided it was time to move on from a lot of stuff and was so kind to give it all to us for Ava and Elise to enjoy.

Ava was a little out of sorts when they first arrived, mostly because she’s not used to having many visitors, but she quickly warmed up and we soon all found ourselves downstairs playing in the kids room. Of all the new toys in there Ava seemed most interested in the drum. I remember her playing drums on her high chair with plastic spoons, but now she’s got an actual little drum and two sticks to play with. The musician in me is hoping that she will take a genuine interest in any instrument, even if that means banging your head against the wall every now and then while they learn how to play it.

It was really nice having everyone over and I want to make a point to get together more often. Kristy and I live about an hour apart but Jim and Brenda are right in the middle so that helps. Jim and I were talking more today about going to the shooting range so I’m hoping to do that within the next few weeks. Madi was very excited to get to hold a baby and she did a great job. She held Elise 3 or 4 separate times and looked like a natural. Elise even fell asleep in her arms a couple times.

We’ve been getting spoiled by having so many family members and friends coming over to visit. Everyone has been so kind and thoughtful. We definitely appreciate all the love and support we’ve been receiving from everyone. Their visit was definitely the highlight of our weekend. We’re planning on just relaxing at home tomorrow and getting ready for another busy week starting Monday. It seems that we’re getting more regular traffic here on the site so I’m going to try to write more frequent posts. It’s always nice to hear that people are enjoying the updates. Here’s a few pics from today’s visit, as well as the ‘Happy Birthday’ message I was greeted with after work on Tuesday.

Ava playing with Kristy

Aunt Brenda holding Elise

Madi did a great job holding Elise

Happy Birthday message from my girls

My Mom flew out to spend the weekend with us. It’s my birthday weekend, but more importantly it was her first visit with Elise. Bella and I picked her up Friday afternoon at SeaTac after spending the day at the office. I brought Bella to work for Amazon Doggie Days and she seemed to have fun. There were tons of dogs there doing photos and obstacle courses. Jessica was mostly happy because Bella got her nails clipped during the festivities. Laurel was over at the house when we returned and was nice enough to bring us dinner. We spent the evening making San Diego style fish tacos and playing with the kids.

We had a nice relaxing weekend at home and didn’t do much besides go on walks and take the kids to the park. The weather has been beautiful lately so we tend to find ourselves hanging out outside as much as possible. My Mom and Denny both finished their letters for Elise’s nursery and they both turned out great. My Mom’s letter has so many family photos that she shrunk down and pasted on. If I had to pick a favorite it would have to be hers. It’s like a visual history of our family.

Tonight I’ll be taking Mom back to the airport, which means we are officially on our own starting tomorrow morning. We’ve had help from Grandma’s for the last few weeks but this is a whole new ballgame. Elise still seems to have her days and nights mixed up so the last few nights have been a little rough. I’m a bit worried about Jessica watching both of them alone while she is still recovering but I know everything will be fine. Whatever phase we’re currently in won’t last long enough for us to get used to it before the next phase starts. It’s most important to not take anything for granted and enjoy it while it lasts. Before we know it we’ll be talking about what it was like when the girls were babies.

The month of August should allow us to get into a groove. School is cruising along and I’m within 11 months of graduation. Work is going great as well so I have no complaints. We’re all feeling very fortunate and loved lately. It’s been great seeing and talking with friends and family and we’re looking forward to seeing many more very soon. Next weekend we’re visiting with Jim, Brenda, Kristy and Madi so that should be a lot of fun. Then we have Rick and Chris coming out for Labor Day weekend. Finally, there will be a visit from Larry, Sherry, Amy and Tom in September. Lots of good stuff to look forward to. Here’s a few photos and videos from Nana’s weekend with the girls.

Ava and Nana playing a game on the iPad

My Mom holding Elise for the first time

Our little sumo wrestler

Smiling in her sleep

Elise and Dad hanging out after dinner

Click here to watch a video of Ava and Dad playing in the front yard.

Click here to watch a video of Ava and Nana reading ‘I Saw The Baby.’

Tomorrow morning I’ll head back to work after a week at home with everyone. It’s been a busy week full of adjustments, projects, and waking at strange hours in the night. All in all things are going well, and we’ve received a ton of help from Amy. We knew having two this young would be challenging so its been nice having her here to help ease that transition. The week has definitely gone by a little quicker than I would have liked, but its actually been pretty relaxing, all things considered. I’m sure I’ll be back into a groove at work in no time and I’m looking forward to catching up with everyone.

Ava has been doing pretty well with the transition. She seems to understand that the baby is here for good and that they have the same Mom. Ava still cries sometimes when Elise cries but hopefully that won’t go on for too much longer. There has definitely been some acting out throughout the week but I’m proud of her. Her whole world has been flipped upside down and she’s dealing with it awfully well.

Elise turns one week old today. I can say that I’ve now been pooped and pee’d on more in one week with Elise than in 20 months with Ava. I’m not sure what’s going on exactly, but every time I hold her she seems to have to go… a lot. One day we went through 4 diapers in 5 minutes. She’s still got her days and nights mixed up a bit but hopefully we’ll get her onto a normal schedule pretty soon. She’s spending more and more time awake everyday and even graces us with the occasional smile.

Jessica is doing really well and gaining her strength back. She’s not been getting the best sleep lately, due to the fact that Elise likes to eat about every 2 hours and Jess is the only one that can feed her, but she’s hanging in there. We’re starting to go on walks again and will gradually start increasing our activity in the next couple weeks. We’re hoping to be jogging at the local track by August 1st. We know that someday we’ll look back and laugh about times like these, but as usual, Jess is doing amazing. The girls are so luck to have her as a Mom.

Here’s a photo of Elise at 1 week old.