Antique photos

Last month I had some photos taken of Elly. There was a company advertising for "Antique Photos" in the PX mall. I would pay a small amount and get one 10x13. I figured I would go and get just the one. Unfortunately, Elly ended up not liking the photographer and cried throughout the session, so I didn't think any of them would be great.

Wednesday I had an appointment to go look at the pictures. I went knowing I was only going to get the one photo since every sheet after that was $40 or the lowest package started at $100. I knew it was their ploy to get people to buy more pictures and I was convinced I could keep from caving in.

After seeing the pictures though I just hated to walk away from them...but I did with just my one 10x13. It was a very busy afternoon and evening and when I finally got home that evening I couldn't find that picture anywhere. I figured I must have left it in the cart somehow.

I gave the PX a call on Thursday to see if anyone had turned in my picture, but they didn't have it, so I went back to the photo table (this was their last day) and asked if anyone had turned in a photo. Sure enough someone had, but the picture was pretty messed up. It looked like it had been run over and there were scratches on Elly's face.

Given the circumstances I asked to look at the photos again and decided to go with the cheapest package. It was a difficult decision, but I figured out what photos I would buy and once the transaction was finished the sales person said she would sent off for a replacement 10x13. Of course, she didn't tell me she could get me a replacement until AFTER I bought the package. Oh well....I'm really glad I have the pictures, but would have rather not spent so much.

These pictures are not the greatest quality because I took pictures of the photos, but at least you can see what they look like. I really like them and have been happy that I got them all even if it did cost more than I planned. Sam really liked them too, which made me feel a little better about spending so much. Anyhow, here they are ~

A summer evening

Now that we're having warm weather, I try to take Elly out through the day. She absolutely LOVES being outside. There is so much for her to see and get into. One evening last week we were out enjoying the back yard. Here are a few pictures from that evening.

Out for a walk

We love taking walks around town in the evenings. Here are a few pictures from one of our evening jaunts. Elly loves being outside and seeing all the airplanes flying overhead.

Mother's Day

Mother's Day this year happened to be the same day as both my and Ellyanna's birthdays. It was a pretty low key day though because of having Elly's party the day before.

After church we had lunch reservations at the Romerhof. Sundays are hard for Elly because church starts just when she's ready to go down for a nap, so she was fussy at the restaurant. I ended up taking her our for a little bit. She finally fell asleep with me holding her, so Sam cut up my meal so I could eat one handed. He's such a sweetheart! :)

As we were heading into the restaurant (which is also a hotel), Sam asked a housekeeper if she would take our picture. She was in a room the next floor up and took the picture out the window, which explains the angle of the pictures.

Flowers from Sam :)

Ellyanna's 1st Birthday

This is the invitation that was ordered, but didn't come in time for her birthday.

They came a week later.

Ellyanna turned one year old last Sunday. I just can't believe a whole year has passed since she was born. It went way too fast. That same day was Mother's Day and I also turned 35. It was interesting sharing my birthday with my daughter. May 9th has always been "my" day, but this year it was more about my baby turning one....as it should have been.

Since everything was falling on Sunday this year, we decided to celebrate Elly's birthday the day before. We had some friends over and cooked burgers and wursts on the grill. We had 14 other people here in addition to us. For our place that was pushing it. Our house is not small, but having the space split between 4 floors makes space a little tight. Thankfully, the weather held out and we were able to sit outside to eat. We moved inside after that though because it was getting quite cloudy and cool.

Elly usually sleeps until 6:30-7:00 and goes back down for her nap by 10:00, which is why we had her party starting at 12:00. She would be rested and ready to party. Of course, it went nothing like that on Saturday. For whatever reason she never really went back to sleep after her 3:00am feeding, so we finally got up with her around 5:00. At that point I knew it wasn't going to be a good day for her. She was tired and went back to sleep at 6:30 and slept until 9:00.....all that to say she should have been going back down for a nap around 12:00....right when her party was starting. That didn't happen, so she was a very tired little girl. I wonder why that happens on important days?? Any other random day it would have been perfectly on schedule...but not that day.

I was going to have someone make Ellyanna's birthday cake, but we don't have alot of choices here. There are a couple of American's that advertise cake decorating, but I just wasn't impressed with what they had to offer. In the end I decided to make her cake. Not because I'm any good at decorating, but because I figured I could make something at least as good as what I'd seen and not have to pay $50 for it. I was happy with how it turned out in the end. I made a big cake for eating and a little one for Elly to have fun with...and she did :) Anyhow, here are a few pictures ~ (I'm a little frustrated that I didn't get pictures of all the guests. I got some of the first ones here, but got too busy later and didn't think to :( )

Me with the cakes

Ellyanna's birthday cakes

The cake/gift table

Nicola and Megan with Elly

We set this pen up in the backyard (using a thin carpet to cover the grass).
It was great for keeping the babies contained.

Nicola, Marika, Sam and Nona

My sweet girl was so tired

Daddy and Mama with our little one year old

♫♪♫ Happy Birthday ♫♪♫

Elly was tired, but after we sang Happy Birthday to her she really got into the cake. She didn't eat much of it, but enjoyed smooshing it in her fingers.

She really enjoyed her cake Here is a short video of her with the cake ~

Time to open gifts

Elly's cake after she was done with it ☺

She received some really nice toys. She has plenty of clothes, but was lacking a little in toys so it was nice to get some more to keep her busy.

Playing with her farm

She loves the musical table from Grandma and Papa Hosier!

When people left I tried to put Elly down for her nap and that girl could not be still. She didn't have that much cake, but it sure did have an effect on her. I brought her downstairs and we all laid on the loveseat (both sides recline). She was being so silly. She really had me laughing because I'd never seen her like that. She was just rolling and could not sit still. She was like that for at least an hour...then she just crashed.

Since Elly was born she has never slept through the night. A couple of times she slept for 5 hours, but that happened maybe 3 times in this whole year. Most of the time she was up every 2-3 hours wanting to nurse. It's gotten to where she gets up about twice through the night, so recently I began weaning her from one of those feedings. It was so hard to hear her cry, but I knew it was necessary. I'm happy to say that from the night of her birthday until now she has been sleeping 7-8 hours during the night before waking me. That is a huge milestone and one I'm very happy to have made.

In the past week she has really taken off walking. I would say she now walks at least80% of the time. It seems like it happened fast once she got the hang of it. I absolutely LOVE watching her walk. It's just the cutest thing!

Here are a few pictures from the past week. Trying to get Gabby who escaped behind the couch