Special Treat

Being a mom of two is a challenge in the best sort of way! I love both my babies so much and want to make sure they get all the love and attention they deserve. This can be challenging when life is so busy, but lately I've made this my focus. So, the other day Griffin and I (with a little help from Daddy) made cookies together while Ella was napping. Griffin loves to use the mixer and is such a good helper these days. I think I enjoyed it was much as he did!

Pouring in the eggs

A little taste test

Daddy helped spread the icing

Now for the sprinkles

YUMMY!!!

I think this smile says it all!

Sweet smiles

Not a very good picture, but I finally caught Ella's smile on camera! Love her precious dimples!


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Whose been sleeping in my crib?

Look whose in Griff's crib!



Sweet Ella


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Splish Splash

When we were at the lake over Spring Break you couldn't keep Jack and Griff away from the water. When the dog bowl just wouldn't do, we blew up a swim pool and let the splashing begin!

Park Buddies

There...That's Better

Finally downloaded my iphone pics so now I have some new ones of Ella for your viewing pleasure :).

6 weeks

I can't believe this little angel is already 6 weeks (and two days) old! Ella continues to be the sweetest, most content baby. We had her doctors appointment and everything was just perfect. She had to get three shots :( and screamed pretty loud but stopped as soon as I picked her up. She had a reaction to the vaccines and has been running a mild fever for the past couple days. I know this is a pretty bad picture, but it's hard to find time to take pics (other than with my phone) with two kiddos! At least it shows how much Ella has grown!!! Here are her stats:

- Weight 10 lbs 14 oz (72%)- I'll have to get a good pic of her rolls soon..such a chunky monkey

- Height 22 in (63%)

- Head (52%)

- Ella is eating 4 oz every three hours during the day

- We have one good stretch of sleep from about 9:30 to 3:00 and then she's usually up by 6:30...not too bad.

- She's still pretty sleepy and usually stays awake for about 1-1.5 hours before needing another nap

- Likes the pacifier but is trying really hard to find her thumb. I know I may be crazy, but I'm hoping she does...Griffin has been the best sleeper since he always has his thumb with him. I'm weaning her off the swaddle so she can find her hands.

- Starting to like her swing more

- Smiles and tries so hard to coo...she makes the cutest little noises

We love you so much Ella and thank God every day for blessing our family with you!

Let's go fly a kite...

This past weekend made our first Stephens Family of Four road trip to the lake with Jason's family! We had a wonderful time, and I have some more pics to post from our trip but wanted to get this out first. There's a great park down by the lake with a huge grassy field, perfect for flying a kite. Papa J and Uncle B (Daddy has been sick with strep again :( ) helped Griffin get the kite in the air and taught him how to fly it. He LOVED watching his kite fly and we had the best time just enjoying the fresh air. Jackson liked watching the kite up in the sky too! Griffin woke up the next morning and said "fly kite Papa J" about a thousand times before we left. Then I was putting him down for his nap and he said "momma fly kite tomorrow"...hahaha! I love that our families can create such special memories together!

LOVE LOVE LOVE this picture

Lucky Charm

This was the cutest but of course it's blurry (look at those rolls)...

Haha...this one just cracks me up!

Sweet little Ella

Rodeo Fun

Elijah, Griffin, RJ, and Cousin Jack

On Wednesday we took the boys to the rodeo! We didn't realize that kids get in free on Wednesdays which was nice for saving money, but combined with Spring Break, made for a big crowd. We headed to the petting zoo first. Griffin loved all the animals and kept trying to feed them wood chips..haha! After that, we saw the animals in the barn and then checked out the carnival. Griffin was just a little short to ride the rides alone but we found one lady that let them ride! I thought he would be scared, but he had a BLAST! For the rest of the day he kept saying "airpane go round and round FAST"! Too precious! We ended our rodeo day with a big corn dog, fried curly potato chips, and a lemonade. What a great day!!!

So happy Aunt LaLa and Jack came with us!

"What is THAT Mommy?"

I think I'll give him a hug

Jack and Griff checking out the goats

Such a big boy!

Ella's newborn pictures

Two of my friends from high school (April and Amy Rankin) are photographers from Austin, but their parents live in Katy so I was lucky enough to snag them up to take Ella's newborn pictures. There website is www.twintyphotography.com, and we love how the pics turned out. On another note, they are also on their way to becoming country music super stars and their band is called The Rankin Twins. They play all around Texas so if you ever get a chance to check them out, you should! Here are some of our favorite pictures (minus the ones on our announcement since I want those to be a surprise) :

Sunday Morning Snuggles

Snuggles with Uncle J

Love this picture so much! Cousins just make me happy...guess it's because I am so close to my own, I can't help but want the same for my kiddos! Love you Jack!

Happy 1 month Ella Kay!

Ella is 4 weeks old today! She is SUCH a good baby, and we are loving every minute with her! We have been venturing out of the house more, and Tuesday I was brave enough to take both kids to the library for story time. Luckily, Ella slept the whole time in her car seat and Griffin had a blast with his buddies. Ella has started staying awake for longer periods of time, and she even gave me a little smile today which melted my heart. She hit the three week growth spurt and as you can see from the pictures, she's grown a lot! The nights are going really well, Ella usually goes to bed around 8 and eats at 1:30 and 5:30. We love this little girl more than we ever thought possible, and we thank God for blessing us with Ella!

Some Kinda Wonderful!!!

Jason is the BEST Daddy, and Ella already has him wrapped around her tiny little finger.

A kiss from big brother

I asked Griffin if he wanted to hold Ella for the first time and climbed right up on the couch to try it out. He was so cute looking at her and then me. It didn't last long, as most things in a two year olds life don't but it sure was wonderful!

Happy 3 weeks Ella Kay!

I can't believe my baby is already 3 weeks old! She has been the best baby, so sweet and loves to cuddle. This has been our first week home without help, and things have been wonderful. We are settling into a good routine and Ella fits perfectly into our lives. Here are a few special things she's been up to:

- Eating every 2.5-3 hrs during the day

- She hit a little growth spurt and went back to eating every three hours at night, but last night she had two four hour stretches. Can't ask for more than that!

- Ella has settled into a good routine during the day of eating, awake time, and then napping until it's time for the next feeding. I brushed up on Baby Wise before she was born and she seems to be right on track. I don't agree with everything they say, but this routine works for us and makes things more predictable. :)

- Has started trying to make faces and sounds when she's awake

- Sleeps in her pack and play at night and for naps during the day when we're not out and about

- I've been pumping a lot during the day and Ella takes a bottle great and still breastfeeds at night or when we're home

- Loves to sleep with Daddy in the morning when I'm getting brother up and ready for the day.

Ella, you have completely stolen our hearts and made our family complete. We already love you more than we could have imagined!