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Last week Elia had her 4 month check up. She is hanging out in the 37th percentile for both height and weight at 13lbs 4 oz and 24 inches long. So, she is still smaller than her big sister and brother at the same age, but not doing too bad either! Otherwise, we are still struggling with a few eating and reflux issues, but are trying a few new things to hopefully get a handle on the problems and make eating more comfortable for her! She again had 3 shots and was not a fan, but other than a short outburst right after the shots, slept the rest of the afternoon away and was fine by evening!

Besides her unhappiness at feedings, she continues to be a happy baby and smiles and smiles and smiles. She has started to truely giggle now and thinks it is so funny when you hold her right at eye level and proceed to have a very important conversation with her about something (why, just tonight I was reminding her of the importance of mommy getting a full night sleep and she dared to laugh right in my face ). So, as you can guess, I am still waiting for her first sleep-thru-the-night night and am hoping that it will happen any day now! She also really enjoys laying under her baby gym and grabbing onto the toys dangling down and laying directly under the ceiling fan is still another favorite activity.

Elia seems to be growing in front of our very eyes and every morning I look forward to walking into her room and seeing the cutest toothless grin in the world smiling back at me!

Another month has quickly passed and Elia has continued to grow like a weed! In the last few weeks she has really started to interact and smile with those around her. She really enjoys being outside and looking up at the sky–which is a good thing since we are outside a lot with Anya & Josiah. She is still waking up about once a night to eat, but otherwise is a great sleeper and still loves to be swaddled all nice and cozy at night. She is just starting to giggle at things but I think it startles her when she laughs and she usually ends up gasping and throws herself into a cough attack.

It is just amazing to see how much she has changed and grown in 3 short months. What a precious little girl she is and what a lucky momma I am!

Here are some more of her 3 month pictures we had taken today.

My 2 beautiful girls!

Elia had her 2 month checkup last week and got the thumbs up in all areas. She weighed in at 10 lbs 4oz and is 22 inches long, so she is growing growing growing! She hasn’t quite caught the other two yet (Anya was over 12 lbs and JP was 11 lbs at 2 months) but she is headed in the right direction. She was so happy during her appointment and LOVED looking at herself in the mirror that they have in the exam rooms (does she get that from her dad?? ) That all quickly changed once she had her shots. She wasn’t a big fan of the poke (understandably so) but got over it quickly and hasn’t had any bad effects from them. Here is a picture of her with a bandaid from her shots.

I think Anya was more upset about the fact that Elia got shots than I was–she cried when she first saw the bandaids. All I can say is that I am so glad Anya wasn’t with when she actually got the shots–that might have pushed her over the edge!!!

Just in the last few weeks, Elia’s little personality is really starting to come out. She will smile whenever she is being talked to (and with Anya around, that is mostly all the time) and has even let out a few tiny chuckles. I am afraid we might have a drama queen on our hands though because when she does cry, which isn’t often thankfully, she really lets loose and all out throws a fit. I chalk it up to her knowing already that, as being the 3rd child around her, if she needs something, she better make herself heard or she might get overlooked .

I am still waiting for her first sleep through the night, but most nights she is only up once or twice, so it could be much worse. Otherwise, she loves to be rocked and pretty much demands that when she is awake, she be sitting somewhat upright so that she doesn’t miss any commotion around here. She has been doing great at daycare since I went back to work and I think she gets alittle spoiled there as well from the other kids and our daycare providers. It is hard not to spoil a girl as sweet as she is!!

Guess who is happy to be 2 months old?

Anya is still head over heels about her new baby sister.

IMG_9812.JPG, originally uploaded by farmboymac.

But then again, I guess we all are!!!

Today Elia is 6 weeks old. She started her day by cuddling with Anya & Josiah in bed:

Taking a little cat nap this afternoon:

IMG_9769.JPG, originally uploaded by farmboymac.

And snuggling with daddy tonight:

Looks like she had the perfect day!

IMG_9726.JPG, originally uploaded by farmboymac.

Hard to believe that our baby girl is 1 month old already! Elia has been a dream baby so far (hope I am not jinxing myself by saying this) and Anya & Josiah are really in love with their new baby sister. She is sleeping good, eating like a champ and starting to fill out which makes her look more and more like Anya did as a newborn. It is also fun watching her become more alert and interactive. What a gift she has been to our family–hard to believe a few months ago I was having anxiety about becoming a family of 5 and now I couldn’t imagine it any other way.

Here are a few more of my favorite pictures of Elia’s first month. Happy 1 month birthday Elia!

Tomorrow Elia will be 1 week old. What a fast 7 days that was! So far she has been another easy baby–eating good, sleeping good and filling her diaper good!!! We had a small hiccup in the road today when her billirubin level had went up enough to warrant treatment, so we came home from the doctor’s office with a billi-blanket. Pretty much par for the course around this house since both Anya & Josiah were on it as newborns as well. We head back to the doctor tomorrow for another blood test to make sure her levels are going down instead of up.

Otherwise, everything else has been going pretty good. Jeryl & Joni were here through Sunday and now my mom is here to stay this week–it is amazing how much an extra set of hands can help out. Anya & Josiah seem to have adjusted well to having a baby around, although I think the true adjustment will come once all our help has gone home and it is back to just the 5 of us (holy cow…there are 5 of us now…..yikes)!!

Here are a few pictures of Elia’s first week.

Jason & I are over-the-moon excited to introduce Elia Kay!

IMG_1627.JPG, originally uploaded by farmboymac.

She was born yesterday, April 12th at 4:26pm and is our littlest peanut entering the world at 6lbs 5 oz and 18 inches. We are so thankful that she is here and is healthy—and extremely grateful to all that were praying for her and I.

Due to my long, complicated labors with Anya & Josiah, Elia made her entrance via c-section and I seem to be recuperating right on schedule. We will be in the hospital until at least Friday and are looking forward to joining a very anxious big sister and big brother at home.

Here are some pictures of Elia’s first 24 hours. What a blessing she has been already!