At the park

Ellie and I went to a park that is just outside the gate to base.  It's a really lovely park, with lots of gardens and water features, a small amphitheatre shell, and even a water fountain show at night.  But those weren't the coolest part to Ellie.  We waited in the playground area for Ben to get out of school, and Ellie discovered...

DIRT! yeah...

Between the dirt and pushing her stroller around, she was in heaven.

Then Ben got there and showed her how to play with a few of the toys.

Good times all around.

A New Toy!

I'm a big of a scavenger.  So when I saw this sitting in the trash outside, I snatched it.

Here she is reading books.  Usually she like to put things in the seat and then push it around.  Sometimes she actually uses it as a chair.

That was quick...

Well, we move into our house today!  Hooray!  We won't really have internet until Monday, so I'll post pictures then of our new place.  Granted, none of our stuff has arrived yet, so it'll be pretty empty.  Ben and I both think it'll be pretty funny to get our stuff since we haven't really used it in over a year (while we were living with Ben's parents it was all in boxes in the garage).  It'll be like a giant Christmas!
In the meantime, please enjoy this video (recorded at the request of Grandma Lewis).  We knew that once Ellie tried walking it wouldn't take her long to get the hang of it. 

Some Steps

Please forgive the quality of the video.  We are on the hunt fora video camera (any suggestions?).  In the meantime, please enjoy this cute milestone with us.

Ka-wa-i!

It means, "So cute!"  And we here it everywhere we go.  Obviously they are talking about Ellie.

This is us in front of the local shopping complex "Daiei"...I think.  See, there is Japanese writing behind us. We are in Japan.

While we were walking around the mall, we found a 100Yen shop, like a dollar store basically.  Ben got all excited; apparently he frequented them as a missionary.  This was my favorite find.

Don't you want to buy this?

We are hoping to get a house soon.  We will be living off base, especially since we learned that the on base housing still has lead paint and asbestos.  No thanks.  

As for housing, we want the first house we looked at (5 bedrooms! though the biggest will only fit a queen), but we are second on the list for it.  We'll see.

In the meantime, I'll keep my (angry) thoughts about military bureaucracy to myself...for now.

Reasons to Love Texas

Every once in a while there are things I really miss about living in Utah (I can't really say too much about Nevada since I haven't actually lived there since graduating from high school in 2000).  Besides family and friends, I miss the Macey's grocery store, being able to walk to two large and wonderful libraries, mountains, and having just about everything within walking distance.  But I really do love living here in Melissa, Texas (google that, it's about as big as it sounds).  Ellie and I went grocery shopping the other day (couponing is a new favorite pasttime), and to do so requires visiting a few other towns since Melissa doesn't actually have a grocery store.  The trip prompted some thoughts about a few things I really enjoy about Texas.  So here is my list:
1.  Feeling like you're a foreigner living abroad.  Not because Texas is so different, or even because it thinks it's really big (hello Alaska!).  But because everyone has such wonderful Texan drawls in these small Texan towns.  As I was carrying Ellie in the carseat into the grocery store in Anna TX, one of the employees was pushing in a cart and offered it to me, saying(imagine the drawl), "Doya needa buggy?"  To which I replied, "What was that?"  "Doya needa buggy?" he said, pushing the cart towards me.  "Oh, yes, thank you."  Yeah, a cart is a buggy.  Love it.

2.  Everyone wants to be your friend.  Or at least they act like it because everyone waves when they drive by (on small streets, obviously not on the freeway or there would be significatly more accidents).  This fact is especially true when you have an adorable baby in tow. 

3.  Being polite is a way of life.  Yes, sir; yes, ma'am.  On this particular trip we went to two different grocery stores.  At both they didn't even bother to ask if I needed help with my bags to the car.  They just picked them up and followed me, chatting it up about my adorable baby (I was advised not to "go crazy" like one particular lady and have five.  I then informed her that I came from a family of seven, so five doesn't seem so crazy).  It was so nice because I really did need the help.  Previous to Ellie's birth, I always said I was fine with the groceries, even when I was 8 months pregnant, because I really felt that I was.  But it is rough going carrying a carseat with baby and transferring groceries and returning the cart and then putting the baby in the car...you get the idea

Those are my top three reasons to love Texas.  Number four is the generally nice weather.  I love the snow, but I'm kind of glad that winter is basically over here.

The only exception to these is something that Ben would like me to point out, and I tend to agree.  Numbers 2 and 3 are thrown out the window once they get behind the wheel of a car.  They do not care if you have right of way, or even if it's just polite to let someone on the freeway whose lane is ending, or if you are getting cut off by a semi.  It matters not to them whether your life is in peril or not.  They were there first (or so they believe), and their truck is probably bigger so you should get out of the way.  Because everything is bigger in Texas.  To which I reply, if Alaska was cut in half then Texas would have to settle with being the third largest state.  So HA!

And here is the obligatory cute picture of Ellie.  She's laughing.  She has a big mouth like her father and a loud, raucous sort of laugh like her mother.

And she's going here from down-dog to plank.  We do yoga in the morning.  Really she's trying to figure out crawling and thinks her toes ought to be involved.

Father/Daughter Greeting

Ben and Ellie hanging out together tends to go something like this...

Late Night Snack

I'm so proud of Ellie for being on such a great regular schedule.  Well, I'm also proud of me for helping her get there too!  She usually goes to bed around 6:30 and then wakes up sometime between 8 and 10 for a little late night snack and then back to bed.  Last night it was business as usual.  I laid her back down and though she clearly wanted to play, it was bedtime.  I kissed her goodnight and left the room and went to brush my teach.  She was talking to herself a bit and then all fo the sudden I hear a little screech, and then another.  I quickly finished and then went to check on her.  She had rolled over (as usual) and I picked her up and saw a little puddle of spit up.  I laid her in on the changing table and flipped on the light and was greeted by this cute little face!

I guess the snack was so good she wanted it twice.

The Dangers of Reading

Before Eleanor was even born, my dad picked up this book to give to her called "I Already Know I Love You" by Billy Crystal (which is really a fantastic book).  So the other day we sat down to read it together.  Like many babies, Ellie is enamoured with paper.  She wants to grab it and put it in her mouth-like everything else.  So it's a delicate dance to read her a book without letting her destroy it.  This time, I lost.

I didn't notice anything until she was trying again to grab a page as I turned it and I saw a little red spot on her finger.  She'd gotten a paper cut.  She didn't cry or make any fuss about it.  We went and rinsed it off and got a bandaid from Grandpa Lewis.  She got her first owie and didn't even complain, until I was trying to hold her hand still to get the bandaid on.

It was a cool one with Sesame Street characters on it. 

Which she promptly tried to put in her mouth and chew on. 

What a girl.

Six Months Old

It is sometimes hard to believe that six months ago I was struggling through 20 hours of labor in order to bring Eleanor into the world.  It was completely worth it.  My only regret is that I didn't shower before leaving for the hospital (not a mistake I will make again).  She is such a wonderful baby, even when she is cranky I think she's cute. 
I was at a funeral yesterday, and had to take Ellie into the foyer because she was getting way to exhuberant during the eulogy, and there were two other mothers out there with tiny little newborns.  I sat Eleanor on the ground on her blanket and gave her my mom's old cellphone to play with and looked in wonder at how much she has grown.  As I looked at the newborns I couldn't believe that she was once that small.  But she was.  And she isn't a terribly big baby still, but she has grown so much.  She sits up on her own perfectly and rolls over lots, though gets stuck on her stomach trying to crawl and then screams about her inability to do so.  It's okay by me.  As soon as she starts crawling I know I'll have to be better about picking stuff up.

She recently discovered the joys of a cardboard box.  I poked some holes in the flap and threaded some rings through and voila!  her new favorite toy.

There is just so much to explore with a diaper box!

Plus it can double as a car.  I pushed her around the living room in it and she was thrilled.

So that's what's up a the Lewis home.  We're just the proud parents of a thrill-seeking, box-loving six month old.  We couldn't be happier.

Eating Food

The older Ellie gets, the more it is clear that she is kind of an independent little creature.  For example, we started solid foods this week.  Initially she was more interested with holding and gnawing on the spoon than anything else. 

(PS, Tiffanie, do you like the bib? )

But today, she finally ate some.  See how it went.

A Winter Day

Today is a big day for the Melissa Ward.  We are having our open house for the new chapel (yeah for not having to drive a half hour to church anymore!)  and we had a float entry in the Melissa Christmas Parade.  Surprisingly, we were the only church with an entry and the only one with anything having to do with Christ on it.  Some of the seminary kids were Mary and Joseph and they asked my in-laws to be a modern family gathering their family together for the holidays (the theme was "Home for the Holidays" though no one else's entry seemed to have taken note of that fact).  At any rate, they asked us to also be part of the float, as well as another family who looks like they could be Lewis's.  So I made Ellie a hat last night so she would be warm.  Here she is all ready to go!

Well, it got pretty windy and just too cold for Ellie, however seriously bundled she was.  So Ellie and I watched the 15 minute long parade and then waited in the car for Ben. 

She was completely worn out by the time we got home.  Don't worry, I picked up candy in her stead...yum!

Things I'm Thankful For

1.  My wonderful little family.  I have an awesome husband who works so hard at everything he does and is a good man.  And my little Ellie is such a joy.  It is a wonder to look at her and think about where she came from and how much is ahead of her, and a little daunting to think about the important role I play in that, but still the most exciting thing I've ever done.

Seriously, how can you not love these two faces?

2.  A wonderful extended family.  I married into such a great family.  They are so talented and generous!

3.  And food...because it's Thanksgiving!  Last Thanksgiving I was 8 weeks pregnant and very nauseous all the time, so I didn't get to eat as much as I wanted.  This year...well,  let's just say I want to start training for a 5K.  Just kidding, I didn't over do it, but I do want to start training for a 5K.  It's my newest goal.

That's all.  Happy Thanksgiving!

Silly Faces

Yesterday I put a bright yellow dress on Eleanor and took some pictures, trying to get one that I liked enough to blow up to a 5x7 to give to grandparents.  Mostly I got some seriously silly faces, and her trying to eat her dress (everything goes into her mouth these days).  I did get some nice ones, but I love the silly ones maybe even more.

I think this is the one below I'll print out, unless I can get a better shot today (though it may not be in the yellow dress because she spit up all over it...at least it wasn't anything out the other end!)

Helping Dad

The other day Ellie started fussing after Ben and I had finished eating dinner, so Ben volunteered to go up and get her out of her crib and play with her while I finished loading the dishwasher.  Since Ben isn't able to be home very much while she's awake, it was a great arrangement ("doing the dishes" isn't so bad when a machine actually does them).  So I filled up the dishwasher and then went upstairs to get Ellie and feed her.  I walked into the computer room and was greeted by this sweet sight.

She was a happy camper just sitting in Ben's lap watching him work on the computer.

These are definitely my two most favorite people in the world.  Heavenly Father must really love me to have made them part of my family!

And a token picture of happy Eleanor at 4 months.  She was trying to grab the camera...silly munchkin.  Oh, I meant to include this in the last post.  We have a lot of little nicknames we call her (like munchkin, or chica), but my personal favorite was first uttered by my brother-in-law Aaron when we told him we were having a girl and naming her Eleanor and calling her Ellie--Ellie, Ellie, Jelly Belly.  Now, I happen to love Jelly Belly Jelly Beans, so sometimes I call her my Jelly Bean.  I'm totally making that as her costume next year...

4 months

Ellie is officially no longer a newborn.  That's what my mom says anyway.  But she certainly is bigger and smarter too!  For instance, today I was working on the computer but she sure wanted some attention and was squealing to get it.  So I got a blanket and I tossed it over her, holding onto one end and slowly pulled it off, playing a kind of peek-a-boo.  She grinned as it came off and started kicking and quickly realized that she could kick it off.  So we just kept doing it over and over.  I'd through the blanket on her, and she kick and kick till it came off and then grin at me.  She's a pretty quick learner, I think anyway.
I'll get a better picture of just her soon, but in the meantime, let me do a little bragging.
Here are things that 4 month old Ellie loves to do:
squealing-not necessarily our favorite thing, but sometimes it's cute and she KNOWS she'll get attention if she does it.
blow spit/milk bubbles-this is cute, until there are so many that they are all over her clothes.  But she get a big kick out of it
playing with her toes-this is by far the cutest and never annoying, so she can do it all she wants.
playing with toys-she's progressed a lot in holding onto things, bringing them to her mouth, switching hands and the like.  She just doesn't do a good job of picking them up on her own yet.
sporadic rolling over-she's gone from tummy to back a few times now, and even from back to tummy.  She's mostly good at getting onto her side and then sucking her hands.
trying to crawl-when she gets tired of laying on her tummy she puts her face down and tries to scootch forward by doing a crawling action with her legs.  It's frankly not very effective and just makes her more frustrated.  But she gets points for trying
standing-obviously assisted by a grown-up, but she holds her own weight and she loves it!  It seems to be her favorite vantage point because she can see so much more from up there!
laughing-usually this are kind of silly-not-exactly-laugh-sounds, but every once in a while we get a soft chuckle or a nice real big laugh.  It's my favorite noise in the whole world.

Guess who?

I know I already posted something today, but I couldn't help doing another one.  I found some pictures of Ben and I as babies and I can't believe two things: 1.  How much we look like each other, 2. How much our daughter looks like us.  The question is, who does she look more like?  Now taking votes.

Happy Halloween!

Halloween is probably my favorite holiday, because you get to dress up.  Last year I was going to make Ben a ninja costume (he was really excited), and I was going to wear a kimono my Brown grandparents brought back from their mission to Japan.  But it never happened because I was stage managing a show at BYU, and we had our first night on stage on Halloween.  Sad.  We'll have to resurrect that costume idea next year or something.

But this year we had a family theme.  My best friend Tiffanie Player gave us a Tinkerbell costume for Ellie at my baby shower.  I dyed her cap from the hosptical green and tied it with some yellow ribbon, and voila!  a weatherized Tink! 

So I made Ben a Peter Pan costume and I dressed up as...Peter's shadow (all black, very easy).  I didn't want to be Wendy and wander around in a flannel nightgown (especially since I don't own one). 

Some of you may know, but I've got a thing for Peter Pan.  I directed the a shortened version of the original script for my senior direcing project at BYU and it was pretty great.  I had to do tons of research on the play, J.M. Barrie, and the likes.  And Tiffanie was my roommate at the time, so she knows it all. 

We went to our ward Trunk or Treat and gave out candy and let everyone see what a cute baby we have, and admired all of the other kids in their costumes.  I really love Halloween because you get candy and you get costumes.  What more could I want?

Some pictures

Nothing very new or creative here.  I've just taken a couple photos of Eleanor I found amusing.  She's gotten very good at laying on her tummy and holding her head up.  She even rolled over three times in a row one night, but hasn't done it since.

We went to the little park next to the house and enjoyed the fall weather.  I love how her eyes turn into little crescent moons when she really gets grinning.

Because every baby needs a naked picture (mostly to show to potential boyfriends to embarrass your child).

And Ben playing with Ellie.  It's so fun to watch the two of them watch each other.  These are definitely my two favorite people!

Ellie, Conference, and the love of God

I haven't always loved listening to General Conference, in fact,  I didn't really "get into it" until I was in college.  But now I love it.  This October session was no exception.  I may have spent a lot of it rocking Ellie, but it was absolutely worth it.  In fact, having a child now gave additional meaning to my Conference experience.  I just want to share one example.

Elder Callister gave a wonderful talk on the restoration of the gospel, specifically about the truths restored about God and Christ in the First Vision.  One point he elaborated on was that God the Father and Jesus Christ are two seperate beings.  He explained how this is confirmed in the Bible and in the life of Christ.  Christ submitted his will to the Father's will, the ultimate example of obedience for us to follow, in taking upon himself the sins of the world.  And we are taught that "God so loved the world that he gave his Only Begotten Son."  If God and Christ were the same being, he would simply be offering up himself.  This really made me think. 

We all agree that it is a truly awesome thing for someone to give up their life for another.  But I think I better understand now, as a mother, what it must have been for God to sacrifice his Son.  I know that I would give up my own life for Eleanor, without hesitation.  But I don't know if I could do as Abraham was commanded, and offer her up for a sacrifice for others.  The thought breaks my heart.  How much then must God love each of us as his children to be willing to let Jesus suffer and die for our sins.  I know he did, and was resurrected because of his perfect obedience to the will of the Father, his perfect sacrifice for us.

I guess I had just never thought of the Atonement in this light.  I know that I will never be able to fully comprehend God and Christ's love for me in this life, but I see a small part of that now as a mother.  What a great blessing from my Heavenly Father to have the opportunity to be a mother and experience a fraction of what He feels for me.  And for that I am eternally grateful.

*I just thought this was too funny.  We packed a picnic and stayed in between sessions on both Saturday and Sunday.  It was rainy on Sunday, so we ate in a classroom off of the foyer, and Ellie took a little nap on the picnic blanket we brought.  Now if only she had napped more during conference.