Tessa Elaine

My new neice, Tessa Elaine, was born to Jani and Dan on Wednesday, August 27! She weighed 8 lbs, 13 oz! I HAD to be at work Wednesday morning for a meeting and it killed me to not be at the hospital when Dan came out to announce what she was! I finished what I had to at school and then Ella and I headed to Redlands to meet our newest member! It's amazing how HUGE Ella looked compared to her...I can hardly remember her being so small! Jani and I got a couple hours at the hospital together which was really fun for me! They are both home and doing great!

Proud sister and brother!

Tessa Elaine

Day One

Today was my first full day back at school. It was filled with meetings but it was fun to catch up with friends and see everyone again! Ella was with Eric all day and was an angel! It was not nearly as hard leaving her this morning as I thought. When she's with Eric, I know he knows all her quirks pretty much as well as I do and I just don't worry! Tomorrow she's with Eric's parents and I really hope she's an angel for them too! I worry more when she's with other people...not that I don't trust them or think they can take good care of my baby, but more because I want her to be just as good for them as she is for us. Does that make sense? Anyway, I'm sitting patiently waiting for her to wake up from her nap so I can see her! She's been sleeping since I got home and KNOWING she might be grumpy this evening if I wake her, I've let her sleep, with just a peek or two! But, man, I can't wait for her to wake up! I missed my girl today!

Ella's Baptism

I am finally loading pictures from Ella's baptism last week. It was such a nice service and what really made it special was having my brother-in-law, Dan, baptize her. Both families came which also made it meaningful. We had our families along with some close friends over for lunch afterwards. Lots of kids running around but very fun!

So, if you're wondering why we baptized Ella as an infant, here's a summary: Eric and I grew up in and still attend a Christian Reformed Church. One of our church's beliefs is that the Bible teaches that God extends His promises to the families of believers. An example is that Noah's family was saved on the ark because of Noah's righteousness. In the Old Testament, God's covenant (promise) sign was circumcision. In the New Testament, circumcision was replaced with Baptism. This is not to say that Ella's baptism guarantees her salvation, rather it's a symbol of God's faithfulness to our family and to her. I am really not looking for a theological debate here on my blog but did want to summarize a topic that is often misunderstood. If you really want the nitty-gritty details, talk to Eric!

The New Bachelor

I am a big fan of the show The Bachelor. I know, I know, they never work out and the couples always break up but still...there's something HIGHLY entertaining about the show. Not to mention all my friends at school watch it and we all discuss...we even had a party for the finale during lunch last year! Anyway, last season, DeAnna rejected Jason who really seemed to be the better catch. Well, ABC has released that Jason is the new Bachelor! I have mixed feelings on this one! One on hand, I really like this guy and really hope he can find a good girl. However, he is divorced and has a 2 year old son and I don't like the idea of him leaving his son again for 6 weeks! AND, should his son really have to be involved in all this? Maybe his son will be living with him in the mansion...who knows! I guess I'll just have to wait until JANUARY to watch and see!

Playdate

Friday Bethany hosted a playdate! Ezekiel and Bekah Jane welcomed us with such a nice sign!

I really became friends with Jen and Bethany through Kristen. We had a stint of living together after college in the "Il Pompeii" and we have spent time together whenever Kristen is out. It was so fun to hang out with them, catch up and get to introduce them to Ella and have her play with Caden, Bekah Jane, and Ezekiel! I look forward to doing it again sometime! Here are the babies...all about 3 months apart!

Jen with Caden, Bethany with Bekah Jane, Me with Ella

Caden and Ella

Thanks again Bethany for such a great day!

3 months...

Dear Ella,
Happy 3 month birthday! I am so thankful for you and SO glad you are my daughter. Daddy and I love playing with you every day and we have been so spoiled being home all summer to just get to play and get to know you! I love that you smile and giggle for us and all your faces make us laugh! I think it's so funny that you snuggle into Daddy's armpit to fall asleep. I love that you go down for bed at night and naps during the day so nicely! I love that you grab things with your fingers and kick all the time! I love that you play with your moose, giraffe, and monkey and I really wonder what your favorite animal will be! I am REALLY happy that evenings are getting better for you and you don't dislike them so much! They can really be quite pleasant! I really love that I know your quirks and that I know what you like and what you don't like (for now!)! I love going for walks with you and see you look around at all the things in nature. Ella...I thank God for you every day! I'm so glad he gave us you 3 months ago...you really were the best surprise in the world! I love you!
Love,
Mommy

Sea World

Yesterday we went to Sea World! We had such a great time and Ella did very well (except for a short stint in the car on the way there...aren't kids supposed to like car rides and just sleep the whole time?). Anyway, we didn't get there until 3 which was great because it was starting to cool off...any earlier would have been WAY too hot and we all would have been miserable. We spent some time just walking around and seeing some things before watching the Shamu show. We especially wanted to catch the 2 night shows which are different from the day shows so we saw the night Shamu and the night dolphin show. Both VERY neat! One of the best parts of the day was that we didn't end up having to pay the $12 for parking! We have these fun passes from the last time we were there which means we get to go the rest of the year for free. Well, at the parking entrance, it says, "Ask about upgrading your fun pass to include parking." Distance is a deterrent from going there often but so is paying for parking so we asked the guy about it. He didn't know, called the front, and told us it would depend on when we bought the pass. Eric said, "OK" and handed him the money to which the guy responded, "Oh, don't worry about it." WHAT?!?! We could hardly believe it! When does that ever happen?!? So, that started our day off right! Toward evening, we got Ella all cozied up in some warmer clothes, put her in the Baby Bjorn and she slept! So sweet!

Today I went into school for a while to kind of set up my classroom. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be to be back. It kind of felt good to get some stuff accomplished. I would rather do some now and feel more ready at the beginning then have to put in long days when we have meetings and stuff to go to! I also got my hair done today and gave it a nice chop! I'll have to take a picture and show you sometime!

On another note, about a week ago, I got a ticket to go up and visit my friend Kristen in Washington! I am SO excited to go see her and introduce her to Ella! It was an amazing deal on Alaska (like less than $200) so I truly could not pass it up! I can't wait!