12 weeks old

Our little baby is 12 weeks old today. I really cannot believe it. She's getting soo big and changing every day. Elliott always asks why I take so many pictures and I tell him because she changes soo much.

12 week pictures:

Sophia got these Halloween buckets filled with goodies (not candy) from her Nana & Poppy (pink bucket) and her Grandma and Grandpa (orange bucket). I dumped out all her stuff and here it looks like she's looking for some candy:

Sophia loved her outfit from her Auntie. Daddy brought her into work to visit me on Friday and everyone loved her outfit.

She also loves her new baby from Grandma Sharon:

We've been trying alot of tummy time this week. She's holding her head up so well in this picture. She loves looking at all her toys.

She's still eating her hands alot:

Sophia loves her cousin Addie

This weekend we went to Misty and Ricky's to hang out. The girls had soo much fun together. Addie gets soo excited every time she sees her "ofie." She'll run up to her and wants her out of her carrier.

Addie showing Sophie her baby:

Addie wanted to lay right next to Sophie. Then she wanted a headband just like Sophie. Here she's saying "headband."

Now she's reaching for Sophie's headband:

Then she went over to Sophie's diaper bag and grabbed a pink headband (which matched her outfit) and put it on her head all by herself. We couldn't believe it. Then she laid next to Sophie:

Addie just loves her Sophie and Sophie loves her:

2 month appt.

Last Wednesday we had Sophia's 2 month check up (even though she's almost 3 months) and it went really well. She was such a big girl getting her vaccinations. First was the stuff she had to drink and we weren't suprised that she LOVED it. She was kind of mad when it was all gone. Then, was the first shot, she didn't cry...then the second....she cried for a minute until daddy gave her a bottle...then she was fine. We were soo proud of her. :)

Dr. Behrens said Sophia is doing great. She was shocked at how she held her head up and how great she did when she laid her on her stomach.

Here were her stats:

Height: 23 inches - 48th percentile (shorty like her mama)
Weight: 13 pounds 12.5 ozs - 91st percentile
Head: 15 3/4 inches - 61st percentile

After talking to Dr. Behrens Elliott and I decided we should both get the flu shot and Tdap which includes protection against whooping cough amongst other things. Elliott got both of his on Friday and I got the Tdap today and i'll get the flu shot on Wednesday at work.

Sophia's First Halloween Party

This past Saturday we went home to Piqua for my aunt and Dexter's Halloween party. It was Sophia's first Halloween party and she had a blast. Everyone loved her watermelon costume.

Great Auntie and Sophie:

Sophie and her cousin Bradley:

Sophie and her cousin Macy:

Sophie with some of her cousins:

Sophie and her cousin Olivia:

Towards the end of the party we changed Sophia into her Halloween jammies.

Sophie and her great grandpa Elders:

Sophie and her cousin Gabby:

11 weeks old

Sophia is 11 weeks old today. She's getting soo big. We're excited for her doctor's appt. on Wednesday to see how much she's grown this past month. She's wearing some 6 month clothes depending on the brand and eating 5-6 ozs. Last night she slept over 8 hours. We couldn't believe it. We're not sure if it was a one time thing or not. We'll see tonight. :)

11 week photos:

She loves stretching out on her blankets:

She also loves the tutu I made her:

I put Sophia on her mat everyday and she loves it. I'll walk away from her and come back to find her off the mat. She somehow gets off of it every time. She wore herself out playing soo much:

Sophia and teddy:

Meatball...

Yesterday was an awful day....we had to make the hardest decision to put our baby boy Meatball down. It was very hard but we know in our hearts it was the best thing for him. We will always love Meatball and we'll never forget the past 8 years (almost 9) with him.

We got Meatball my junior year in college. It all started shortly after Elliott and I first started dating. He asked me why I had never had a dog growing up and I told him how my mom was super allergic to dogs. He couldn't believe I'd gone soo long without having a dog. Being a dog lover he said that had to change ASAP. Elliott started visiting the Humane Society because he wanted to adopt a dog. They told him it would cost $50 to adopt a dog. Being poor college students Elliott and I started to save up....or we joked about saving up the $50 bucks plus food, toys etc. It didn't take too long before we had enough money to get everything. Then one day Elliott went back to the Humane Society and saw a bunch of puppies. Someone had found a box by the Toledo River with all the puppies. They were all girls that were tan and one boy that was tan and black. At first Elliott thought he wanted one of the tan girls but when he saw Meatball (the tan and black boy) fighting with the girls...he knew right away he wanted that one. So he adopted Meatball and brought him home with him.

Meatball was my first dog so I didn't know what to expect. He was peeing all over Elliott's apartment and biting people (not hard) and chewing up stuff. He was a puppy and that's what puppies do. We fell in love with Meatball right away. Despite him chewing things (mostly my stuff) he was a really good dog. Elliott got him potty trained really fast.

We had Meatball for acouple years before we moved into our house. Once we moved into our house and out of apartments he became a new dog. He loved having a backyard to run in. He went from a super hyper dog to a calm and chill dog (unless people came to visit him, then he was excited).

I can't say enough good things about Meatball. He was a great dog. If you were sad he could sense it and would come up to you. I think most people will remember him as the dog who loves people, loves to have his belly rubbed, loves car rides and he also loved to sit on our couch like a human.

Meatball especially loved his little sister Maya and his human sister Sophia. He acted like a mother to Maya and cleaned her face and ears daily. He looked after Sophia and would always lay near her.

Up until September 25, Meatball was a healthy dog. We never had to take him to the vet (except once when he got a stick in his eye). We always joked and said he was soo healthy because he's a mut. Then, after a wedding we picked Meatball and Maya up from Jim and Sharon's and they told us he had a seizure in the middle of the night. Meatball had never had one before so we were a little worried. The next couple days he acted weird. Elliott decided on that Wednesday to take him to the vet. The vet told us he was blind in one eye and he thought he might have a brain tumor and that we should take him to OSU to get some tests taken. We took him to OSU the following week and they told us the bad news...Meatball had brain disease which caused the seizure. They also told us he had a tumor on his lungs. We were devastated.

We then had to decide what to do. We could do chemo but that wouldn't solve both issues...the brain disease and the tumor. We could put him to sleep...but that wasn't an option for us. Unless Meatball was in pain, we weren't going down that road. So we decided to just let things pan out. We wanted him to be comfortable (not on chemo) until the end. So a week went by and he had another seizure. This was the first one Elliott and I saw. He was awful. I've never seen anything like it. We called OSU and they gave us some meds for Meatball. We really thought they were working. He was like a new dog (or how he was before all this started). He was getting excited to see people, to go bye bye and he was eating again.

While we knew he still had brain disease and a tumor, we were happy to see him back to himself. Then he had another seizure yesterday morning. I was getting ready for work when I heard a thud. I ran into our bedroom and Meatball was having a seizure. We tried to comfort him. The seizure only lasted about 5 minutes which was alot less than before. So we thought it was just a one time thing. I went to work and Elliott called me around 11 a.m. to tell me he had another one. I was scared and worried. I came home from work and he was having another one when I walked in the door. I think Elliott and I both knew then that he wasn't doing good. Three seizures in one day was awful. He then had two more for a total of five when we looked at each other and knew. I told Elliott to call the vet and make the arrangements. We knew we had to take him in right away. We didn't want him to suffer or be in pain. Meatball was running into things and wasn't himself.

I called my sister right away and asked if Ricky could come and take Meatball. Elliott decided he could take him with Ricky. So Ricky and Elliott went together.

I think yesterday was one of the hardest days for us. We have loved this dog for almost 9 years and won't see him again. As I write this I continue to cry. I don't know how we'll get through this. Even though Meatball is gone...he will never be forgotten by us. We will always love and think about him. :(

Teething...or not teething...that's the question...

We started to notice Sophia putting her hands in her mouth on Tuesday. She would literally naw on them every chance she got. So at first we thought she was hungry, so we'd feed and burp her. Then, after her feeding she'd start putting her hands in her mouth again. Being new parents we asked acouple people, my sister, my mom and El's mom. "Can Sophia be teething at just two months?" I think everyone gave us the same answer "I doubt it, but every baby is different." So we thought we'd just monitor her. So on Wednesday, Elliott took Sophia to our babysitter Jasmine and she said "Is Sophia teething?" Since she's a mom we thought for sure that she would know. El asked her why she thought she was teething and she said she's been drooling alot. So we thought she was teething. Then, yesterday (Thursday) Jasmine said Sophia's gums looked puffy and red. So we confirmed...she's teething. Then today, (Friday) I got on Google and it said she could or could not be teething. They said she'd probably be fussy if she's teething...well she's not fussy so we don't think she's teething. Heck, we're new parents so we don't know. I guess we'll know for sure if a tooth pops. :)

Here's some pictures of Sophia eating her hands this week:

Soo close to rolling over

Sophia LOVES mat time...I think because she can roll from side to side, kick and pull her toys that hang down. She is soo close to rolling over but not quite there yet. Hopefully in the next couple weeks she'll make it. I'm hoping baby yoga on Saturdays will help her. :)

Here's some pictures of her trying to roll over:

10 Weeks Old

Sophia will be 10 weeks old tomorrow and since I have to work, I thought I'd take her pictures a day early. :) I've seen soo many people talk and post things on Facebook about baby legs (leg warmers for babys) so I went to the website and saw how cute baby legs are. Soo...I thought I'd make some myself instead of buying them. I already made her 3 pairs and I LOVE them.

Sophia's 10 week photos and her showing off her new baby legs:

Sophia sitting in her AOII Panda chair from her Auntie Kushie:

This past weekend we were in Cinci for Brian and Tracy's wedding. After their reception we went back to Jim and Sharon's house and hung out with the family.

Sophia standing up with Grandma Sharon's assistance:

Sophia and her cousin Makenzie:

Sophia and her cousin Ellee and Uncle Brian (Sophia is in her "extra outfit" that stays in her diaper bag...it's been in there for 2 weeks and no longer fits her now):

Sophia using her neck muscles during tummy time:

Every night before I go to bed I lay out Sophia's outfit for the next day since Elliott gets her ready for the babysitters house. One day last week I laid out the outfit below and told Elliott if it was too small to put her in the second outfit I laid out. When I brought her home from the sitters I noticed the outfit was too small. I felt bad for Sophia and how she wore an outfit all day that was too small, she must have been soo embarassed. Elliott still thinks it fit her haha.

Sophia taking a nap in her crib (she always has her legs in the air lol):

Sophia's First Wedding

On Saturday (Sweetest Day) Elliott's brother Brian got married in downtown Lebanon at The Golden Lamb. They couldn't have asked for a better day, the sun was out, it was warm and the Fall colors were so pretty.

Brian and Tracy getting married by Mr. Reebok:

Sophia, Me and Grandpa Jim Jim after the wedding at The Golden Lamb:

Sophia and her Aunt Lindsay (just before Sophia had a blow out)

Sophia was mommy's girl that day:

The bride and groom being nice:

Family photo: