Wednesday, November 27, 2013

There's No Place Like Home

I figured the day before Thanksgiving I should try to hurry and put up Halloween.  This year McKae had some idea of what was going on, so it was super fun!  We went to our ward trunk-or-treat and then on Halloween hit up some ritzy neighborhoods to get the good stuff, since we all know who would really be eating the candy :)  She loved it and would run from one door to the next, anxious to knock on another door.  She would say "trick-or-treat" and hopefully they would just hand her the candy, because if not, she would willingly take handfuls.  She had a sucker that night from all the loot and was one happy  and exhausted camper.

Here is our little Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz saying "Cheese".

Monday, September 23, 2013

Baby, Oh Baby!



Baby boy is due February 3rd and we couldn't be more excited.  McKae may not completely understand it right now, but she sure knows what a baby is when she sees or hears one crying she signs "baby".  What a great sister she will be to our lil' man!  We are ready to add some blue to our family :)

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Her first word was "da da"

Doesn't every little girl hold a special place in their heart for their daddy?  Well our lil' miss sure does.  Actually I am pretty sure those two had a connection while she was still in my tummy.  Before we had found out the gender of the baby, Jordan knew for sure it was a girl through an experience he had.  I on the other hand thought it was a boy.  And boy was I wrong.  Then from the moment she was born she has had her daddy wrapped around her finger.  Every morning she wakes up she says "daddy" and starts looking for him.  ANYTIME we hear a knock on the door, she assumes it is dad getting home from work and runs to the door, all smiles, saying "daddy".  These are just a few pictures I couldn't help but share of the two loves of my life.
Jammin' to some tunes... Just like dad

 Bike shopping with dad
Grocery Shopping with dad (yes she is strapped in for extra comfort with the paper towels)
 Riding the carousel at the zoo
 His face is blurry, but golfing with dad
packing her up

We consider ourselves the luckiest!

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

I'm not afraid of hard work!

I learned an important lesson last week, or maybe more like 2 or 3.
Sometimes being a mom is HARD.
Up to this point there have been a day here or there that can be hard, but this was incredibly different.  McKae was super sick this week with a fever between 100 and 105.  I felt like each day was a cycle... nap, spiked fever, medicine, lukewarm bath (anything to get the fever down), and then repeat for a week.  Lets just say that I learned a whole new definition to the word hard.  I wouldn't say the week was necessarily hard because of the taking care of a sick child, but mainly because I would have an emotional breakdown when she would scream or cry and an emotional breakdown from worry and the unknown.

I think I have had my eyes opened to the true love a mother has for her children.  It is infinite and when your children are in pain, you too are in pain and would do absolutely anything to make it better.
    
    I also learned that when possible, a family is best when there is a mother and father.  I truly could not have survived this week without the prayers of family, but most importantly Jordan.  He is my rock.  He is the one who can keep me feeling positive and confident.

  I am so grateful for the priesthood in our home.  With a worthy priesthood holder in our home McKae was able to receive a powerful blessing and one that strengthened my faith and the belief in the Savior.  

Luckily McKae's fever disappeared after a week and now we are just getting back to a nap schedule, actually eating food, and venturing out of the house.  Despite the fact that being a mom is hard, I wouldn't trade it for anything and am grateful for the opportunity to be the one to hold baby girl when she is sick and laugh with her when she laughs.

Friday, July 19, 2013

It ate my finger

Yup, It's true.  The sewing machine ate my finger. 
Went in one end and out the other
I still remember junior high school when my friend put her finger through the sewing machine and I always wondered... how do you even do that?!
Well, I still don't know how, but I know it's possible.
If you have a sewing machine...use with caution.

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Take me out to the ball game

Cause' its 1,2,3 strikes you're out at the old ball game.

Some of our awesome friends from Utah bought us some baseball tickets to the Houston Astros when they found out we were headed to Houston.  We have been looking forward to this game for a long time.  We had a blast!  McKae was actually one of the stars in the crowd... she caught a fly ball!  Who knew we had a baseball prodigy on our hands.

and we have a walker on our hands. This girl has been walking around non-stop for awhile and she loves it!  She did awesome holding dads hand to walk around the stadium while we went looking for our snacks.  The Astros colors are orange, blue and white, so naturally the biggest BYU fans in Texas decided to wear our BYU shirts to represent both teams.

Our future baseball star... taking after her daddy! 

Thanks Hodges for the tickets!  We just wish you guys were with us at the game.  The Astros ended up losing, but it was just fun to relax and sit in the air conditioned stadium.  


Friday, May 17, 2013

some things never change.

some things never change.

#1  Today the baby was napping and i was doing my hair with pandora playing in the background and suddenly a really good song came on and next thing I know my phone has become a microphone and i'm singing in the mirror.  Embarrassing as it was I still had a blast.  I love that girls have the wonderful talent of turning any object into a microphone and singing/lip syncing at the top of their lungs.  It brought back some good times.
(when i was an efy counselor)
 #2  Girls are tight, pretty much forever.  Missing the besties today and have had a couple of "internet play dates" with them.  I know it has been only about 2.5 weeks, but it's awesome how girls stick together and can pick up right where they left off.  Thankful for girlfriends :)

(missing all my girlies... sad I don't have a pic of everyone)

and.... some things do change!

#1  We are Texans, yes it's true.  We have texas license plates and drivers licenses.  It is pretty official.  We are loving Houston and getting to know new people and most of all partying with family almost daily.  We have already made it to the zoo, the pool, and eaten a lot of ice cream just to stay cool.


(my niece wanted to hold the baby)
#2  McKae is starting to walk more and has gotten rid of bottles and her pacifiers (except for at sleeping times - pacifiers).  She can say "cheese", and will smile big for the camera.  She climbs on everything and crawled all the way up a slide by herself at the park.

#3 My scripture study has changed... for the better.  Jordan has some crazy work hours and so I have been waking up a little earlier to have quiet time to read and it has been amazing.  I can see the biggest difference about reading in the morning.

#4  School vs. work-  Jordan is working about 12 hr. days, but works hard and looks like a super professional.  We are so proud and grateful for his job and his desire to work to provide for the family, but we always look forward to when he comes home.

#5  Before we left Utah, we had to go to McKae's 1 yr. check up with the cardiologist.  They did an echocardiogram again and she was amazing!  All 4 of her holes in her heart have closed up.  We are so grateful and happy that we have a healthy baby.

I have always been so afraid of change, but I'm finding out more and more that change isn't always bad.  Sometimes it can be great and it sure provides for a whole lot of rollercoaster rides, but hey, who ever turned down the chance to go for a little adventure :)



Monday, May 13, 2013

Look Whooos turning one!

How does one go from this...
 
 
to this?!?! in what feels like a day.
 
 
McKae is 1!  She is our big, grown up girl who has got some tude' and quite the personality.
At age one...
-she loves to play hide and seek (and she's good at it)
- she is miss independent and likes to feed herself with a spoon
-she has taken 10 steps, but prefers to crawls b/c it's faster
-she won't take babyfood and is a bit of a picky eater
-favorite foods: pickles, beans, olives, and crackers
-she loves to laugh, most of the time politely
-she LOVES books
-she has 7 teeth
-she will raise her hand when you ask her a question... (i.e. "who loves daddy?" hand will pop up, but only if Jordan asks the questions)
-she loves "Jesus wants me for a sunbeam" (probably just watching mom and dad make a fool of themselves while jumping up and down
-she will clap her hands to "if you're happy and you know it"
-she loves to chase the vaccuum and have the blow dryer blown in her face
-and she is just the smiliest, happy baby girl that we love!
 
 

We celebrated McKae's 1st birthday about a month ago and it was a blast... and a bit stressful! We were in the process of packing up our house to move to Houston the next week, but we still wanted her to have a party. So we had just a few close friends and family over and played games.

 
 
Little owl cupcakes 
 
 
McKae's Bestest Buddies
 
To our amazement, McKae was quite the 'delicate' cake eater.  She would eat one sprinkle at a time and maybe dip her finger gently into the frosting.  She never really dug in, but she still enjoyed all the sugar.

Jordan and I truly consider ourselves the luckiest people.  We are so happy and grateful for our sweet McKae!

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

"You are loved"

So, I don't usually like to write a whole bunch on our blog.  I often leave the pictures to do most of the telling of our most recent adventures, but this time I just wanted to share something that has kinda hit home lately.  Hopefully I won't sound too "churchy" or like i am writing in my journal, but I am so grateful that the Lord truly understands what we need and when we need it and who he is going to use to be an instrument in his hands to accomplish it.  Last week I was feeling a little bit down and that same day I received a phone call from one of my besties.  Later to find out she had been prompted to give me that call.  Later I found 3 "love notes" (we write these for sisters in the ward and put it in an envelope in the back of the binder) that were anonymous, but they told me exactly what I needed to hear.  Lastly, last night I found a bag with chocolate (which for me, can almost solve any problem) and some quotes explaining once again just what I needed.  So to whomever wrote those "love notes" or dropped a bag off on my doorstep, thank you for being willing to be an instrument in the Lord's hands whether you knew you were or not.  It has made all the difference to me. 

Those i love mucho!

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Oh Mr. Sun

The sun is shining and you can see the clouds and sky (...finally!)
The snow is melting and I can finally see the grass
Today was such a great day!  
I was able to go outside and on a walk with the roomies and the babies while wearing just a jacket.

The SAD news... tomorrow's forecast is 80% chance of snow.  
Well, here's to remembering that yes indeed it is still winter in Utah and it will be fun to have a new layer of beautiful snow.  Here are some pics to help me look forward to some new snow (McKae's 1st time experiencing it over Christmas break.  Snow angels, sledding, eating it and all).

Woo, isn't he handsome?


 Man! I love my family!

Monday, January 21, 2013

2013 - Let's Party!


My dad has a favorite quote that has become one of my favorites.  When I was in high school and college I used to keep a copy of it hanging in my closet.  I feel like it has explained the Ellingson's 2012 year perfectly.  Here it is. 

"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming 'WOW What a Ride!'"
    

This past year has been quite the ride for us to say the least. We have had both had ups and downs, as I am sure everyone did.  But we thoroughly enjoyed every bit of our life this past year. There were definitely days that Jordan and I both went to bed completely "worn out" - mainly because of grad school or our newest addition (which we love), but also found time to keep our life a constant party.  We decided to compile our top 12 of 2012.

1. We had our beautiful baby girl McKae.
2. Jordan started his last year of school EVER in his MBA.
3. Jordan got an internship with Proctor and Gamble.
4. We moved to Cincinnati, Ohio for the summer and loved it!
5.  Kaitlin refurbished a coffee table, lamp, and end table.
6. We moved into a new apartment and it has WINDOWS and a W/D (yes, we are in heaven)
7.  Jordan got put in our ward Bishopric.
8.  McKae traveled on an airplane 5 times before she was 4 months old.
9.  Kaitlin learned how to crochet using youtube videos and made McKae a beanie.
10.  Jordan got offered and accepted a job with Goodman Manufacturing in Houston, Texas
11.  McKae learned how to crawl.
12.We celebrated our 3 year anniversary!

Bring on 2013!