Florida: part 2

Saturday morning, Tim and I treated ourselves to the hotel's amazing breakfast buffet and then headed to my parent's house. Elliot was bright eyed and greeted us with big smiles! She slept an 8 hour stretch that night! So she was ready for pool time in the backyard. Tim relaxed on a raft while Elliot and I hung out in the shaded side. Later, Kim came over to hang out poolside. After a couple mosquito bites, we decided to head inside. Tim and I were hanging up wet towels when we heard Kim say "Um, I think she's peeing on me!" Way to make a good first impression baby girl ;)That night my mom, Tim, Elliot, and I went over to Jessica's gorgeous new house. It is right on the river and the bottom level houses the boat! After catching up with some friends from high school, we went to church for Marlee's baptism. Marlee is the granddaughter of Elmer, my childhood pastor who married us, and the niece of my good friend Leah. It was nice to see some families from the church that I've known forever. Then we picked up some Dakine Diegos, the best burritos ever, and settled down for a quiet night. Little did we know how quiet! After I put Elliot down for the night, we had one of our famous storms (Brevard is one of the lightning capitals). Then we promptly lost power. While my parents dutifully got out the candles, flashlights, and battery powered fans, Tim and I ventured to the grocery store for Sunday's lunch menu and beer. Tim, my mom, and I weathered out the brief storm with a couple of beers and good conversation.
Sunday morning was Elliot's big day! It was the day of her baptism and meeting lots of family and friends. Elmer, as mentioned above, performed Elliot's baptism at the beginning of the service. Elliot was great! She only whimpered a little when the water was sprinkled on her head. Tim and I are so excited and proud to be chosen as the parents for the precious baby girl! Sometimes when I really think about it, it still takes my breath away. After the service, my mom put together a casual reception with breakfast foods. Tim and I were so touched by how many people came by to meet Elliot! Our family is truly loved by so many amazing people!After the whirlwind of the baptism, we retired to my parent's house with my grandfather and his wife, my uncle and his fiance, and my parents. Tim and I provided lunch for the group and enjoyed catching up with family. After lunch and saying goodbye to family, the four of us and Elliot celebrated Father's Day! Elliot got my dad a frame with his favorite picture of her, and she got Tim 3 different kinds of genuine beef jerky and 2 bars of bacon dark chocolate (if you haven't had it, it's amazing). The guys also humored us by opening several cards and remarking on how "cute" each one was. Tim and I ended our vacation with one last walk with Elliot to the beach and then went to bed early.
It was a wonderful vacation! And it actually felt like a vacation this time! Usually when we visit family it isn't relaxing and we feel like we're pulled in all directions. This time Tim and I got to enjoy our family and friends without sticking to a schedule :) I look forward to our visit next summer!

Florida: part 1

On Wednesday, Tim and I took Elliot down to Florida! I of course was my anal self about traveling, and had everyone packed the night before. We had a car seat, stroller, diaper bag, purse, backpack, and 2 checked bags. This was difficult for Tim and I because we haven't checked bags in over 2 years! We usually travel light and pack well, but with Little Miss that wasn't going to happen. So that morning our dear friend Diana drove us and all our stuff to the airport. Elliot was AMAZING at the airport! Of course I wanted to get there really early for a number of reasons, and she slept until we got to the gate. Then she charmed everyone on the plane until take off when I started to nurse her. She didn't seem bothered by her ears popping and went right back to sleep.My dad greeted us and his new granddaughter at the airport and drove us home. This was the first time he met Elliot, minus the Skype dates. My mom basically jumped out of her skin when we arrived and quickly took over her grandmother duties by showing her off to her friends and neighbors. Then she showed Elliot her Disney toys. I mean, she had to have some Disney toys since we were in Florida! Winnie the Pooh, who sings, was a big hit and was smuggled back to VA.On Thursday, we made the much anticipated visit to MY grandmother's assisted living center. I call her Abuelita ("dearest grandmother" in Spanish). She is pushing 100, and seeing Elliot has been her goal to live toward since last year...seriously. Abuelita could not take her eyes off of Elliot and even noted that "Elliot is adorable. Deanna wasn't that adorable when she was a baby!" Swarms of nurses, staff, and residents came to see the Prodigal Great Grand baby as my Abuelita beamed and held her gently. She made sure that everyone agreed that Elliot was the cutest baby ever :)
Thursday night, my parents watched Elliot while Tim and I had a date night and stayed at a beachfront hotel. It was the same hotel we, and many of our guests, stayed at during our wedding. We were so thankful to have that time, especially since Elliot gave my parents a hard time that night. Apparently she was gassy and didn't go to bed until 10:30 and the proceeded to wake up every 2 hours!!

Friday morning, I greeted the tired grandparents and baby, and drove my mom to work. That day, Tim and I hung out at the hotel with Elliot. We took a walk on the beach and played in the pool. I bought Elliot a sun proof body suit that is supposed to protect her like 50+ sunscreen. She also dorned her sunhat and sunglasses for extra protection and cuteness. Elliot was a little unsure about the pool and made sure to have a close eye on mom and dad. After a much needed nap by all, my parents met us on the deck for pick-me-up happy hour.
That night after putting Elliot to sleep at my parent's house, Tim and I joined some of my girlfriends for dinner. Jessica, Alexis, and Kim then took us bar hopping around downtown. We had so much fun catching up and reminiscing. Tim was a wonderful husband and friend the whole night :)
More to come...

Just a little busy

Sorry I haven't posted in awhile! I think about it daily, but for some reason life gets in the way. Funny how that always seems to happen...

Things are getting busy as the end of the school year approaches and we get ready for summer. Elliot and I have swung by school a couple times to help out with the end-of-the-year preparations; however Tim has to remind me that I am on "leave without pay"and I shouldn't do too much.

One task that I've been dreading for months now is finding a daycare for Elliot in the fall. I return back to work at the end of August, and since good daycares are a hot commodity, I knew I needed to get on the ball. So after a tearful start, I called 10 daycare facilities and Elliot and I visited 4. My favorite one was the gorgeous facility that had everything a nervous new mom could want, but it was just a tad expensive. If you call $2030 a month a TAD expensive!! I mean what could they possibly be doing to cost that much?! Are they going to have Mother Teresa's ghost watch my child? Needless to say we did not pick that center. Instead we signed Elliot up for an in-home daycare only 2 minutes from my school! It came highly recommended and was within our budget. I feel like a giant weight has been lifted that I found a wonderful place for my baby girl.

So now we get ready for Florida! We leave Wednesday and return Monday. We have a lot of things planned, including Elliot's baptism and reception, but are also leaving room for relaxation. Tim and I are going to stay 2 nights at a beachfront hotel so we can have a mini vacation and be adults. When we return I will have loads of pictures to share :)
To all my Florida friends: I am going to try my best to see a lot of you!

See you again in a week!!