The Incredible Shrinking Becky!

Becky has been giving me a hard time about never posting anything to OUR blog when it was MY idea in the first place. I have a feeling she will stop giving me a hard time about it after this post!

She is way to modest to ever make a big deal about it, but I would like everybody to know that Becky has lost over 56 pounds on her Weight Watchers program! She realized the other day, that 56 pounds is like an entire Kona! And that 56 pounds doesn't even count the weight she lost between the time Felicity was born and she joined Weight Watchers. I'm not sure exactly what that number is, but the bottom line is that she's doing fantastic and it's all been in the last 13 months or so.

Those of you who know Weight Watchers know you have to set a goal weight to shoot for that is within your healthy body mass index range for your height. Becky was smart, she set her goal for the upper end of that range, and therefore has already become a lifetime weight watchers member even though she still has a couple more pounds to lose to reach her personal goal. And because she's a lifetime member, she can go to the meetings and continue to lose weight for free! I like that part!

Make sure you call her or email her and tell her how great she looks. She deserves some recognition for all of her dedication and persistence. I know I am certainly proud of her!

Whoa...We're Still Here

Yikes, it's been a long while since we've posted anything. Thank you to our loyal visitors who keep reminding us of that fact! :) Just kidding.

One of the big highlighst of the past few months has been Felicity's 1st birthday. She turned 1 on September 17 and already thinks of herself as a very advanced toddler...including some of the "terrible twos" tantrums.

Of course every day has some new milestone or development for Felicity. So by my estimation, we're only about 60 milestones behind on this blog! I'll try to hit a few of the cutest and perhaps biggest developments of the last couple months.

I think Becky has written about teaching Felicity a little sign language. She is getting good at "more", "please", "doggie", "milk", "nap", "eat", "drink" and that's about all I can think of right now. She's also mastered saying (not signing) Daddy, Mama, Hi and she's working on matching our inflection for about a dozen other words/phrases that we say even if she hasn't mastered the words yet.

She is of course practically running around the house now, she loves her books and frequently dissappears into her room for long periods at a time reading by herself! And Kona has become one of her best friends, she loves hugging her and chasing her to grab her little stump of a tail. Both Kona and Hoover are doing very well putting up with Felicity's tail grabbing, pinching and sitting on their paws/head/etc.

I think that at least gets you somewhat caught up on Felicity. As always, we'll try to make more regular posts to keep everyone up to date.

Attention, we have a walker!

Yep, that's right Felicity is now walking all by herself. She took her first steps and decided to make the leap into walking both when Randy was home from his trip to Globe. Randy came home on the weekend of the 12 and 13 and on that Sunday she took her first 3-4 steps by herself. For the next week she perfected those 3-4 steps and even began standing up, without any help, and taking 1 or 2 steps. Then when Randy came home on Monday the 21, she decided that walking was actually pretty cool and started taking 8-10 steps or walking across rooms!!! Her preferred method of transportation is still crawling because she can move a lot faster, but if she's not in a hurry, then she will walk. Daddy is very happy that they both happened on days when he was at home to see it. The first picture is of her taking her first steps and the next ones are of her walking by herself.


She has even received her first "walking war wound" yesterday. We were at my Weight Watchers meeting and she was walking towards a table. I thought she was tall enough to reach it, but I was wrong. She missed the table and the table cloth was not strong enough to catch her so she fell right onto the leg of the table. Unluckily her forehead broke her fall and now she has a huge bruise on her forehead. I think it was a lot harder on me than it was on her. So, here's a picture of the "bump."

Tooth #2

A little over a month after her first tooth came, Felicity finally has a second tooth. It is the one right next to her first one on the bottom. It finally broke through on Friday and it looks very cute next to the other one. Pictures are pretty hard to get, so I don't have one yet. When/if I get one I will post it. Check back later.

10 Months

Wow, can you believe it. Felicity turned 10 months on the 17th. She is really growing very quickly! Everyday you can see how she is just understanding more and more of what we say to her and she is really learning a lot.

She has learned to play peekaboo, which is really cute. If you ask her "Where's Felicity?" she will put her hands up to her eyes, backwards (with the back of her hands facing her eyes). She usually leaves them there for a while before she pulls them away. She thinks it is really fun. She even likes to play peekaboo with a towel or sheet or anything cloth thing that can be draped over her head.

She is really into eating foods that she can pick up and feed to herself. In fact, when we try to feed her baby food, she usually throws a fit until bits of food are placed on her highchair tray. She knows what she wants!! She is really up to trying new and different foods. She will eat just about anything you give her, but sometimes it takes her a few tries before she likes it.

She is walking around anything that will stand still. She even tries to use the dogs to help her walk, but most of the time they walk away before she can even stand up. Her newest thing is to just let go of whatever she is holding on to and just stand there for a few seconds. Then she realizes what she is doing and usually reaches for something to hold on to again. It seems like everytime she does it she stands for just a little bit longer than she did the last time. Before you know it, I will be blogging about her first steps. Hopefully they don't come when Randy is in Globe or we will have one sad daddy!!

A couple of Saturdays ago our friends and their sons came over lunch. Felicity had a great time playing with "her boys," Mikey, Luke and Jackson and we had a great time just hanging out with Mike, Lisa, Angie, Joe, Jake and Carey. It was fun to watch the little ones playing together knowing that there will be many more days like this!

First Tooth

At just a week over 9 months old, Felicity's first tooth has finally broken through, with a second one very close behind. Her first tooth is her front bottom tooth on the right hand side. It is really a cute little tooth. It is not all the way through yet, but you can certainly see the little part that is through. We bought a toothbrush for it and she really likes it! After the brushing session she gets to play with it for a while and it has already become one of those toys that if you take away from her, she starts to cry.

My brother Kenny had his DPS Academy graduation this past Friday, so we were up in Phoenix for that and we stayed with my sister and her family. They have a 2 story house and over the weekend Felicity taught herself how to climb the stairs. She is very good at it! Uncle Louie told us to show her how to get down the stairs on her butt, so she learns that that is the way to go down the stairs instead of trying to walk down them. Which I am sure you can imagine would be quite dangerous.

While we were up there we also went to visit Felicity's new cousin, Shannon Joy. Her mom, Sharon, is Randy's sister. Shannon is Sharon and Mike's 5th child and 1st girl. She was born on June 8 and came in at 8 pounds, 10 ounces and 22 inches long. She is really cute and has a full head of dark hair that you could just tell that Felicity was jealous of! :)

We came back home on Saturday and on Sunday our friends Jennifer and Justin came over (on their way home to Phoenix) so that we could meet their 10 month old girl Brenna and so they can meet Felicity, both for the first time. She is really cute and the two of them seemed to have a good time together. Interaction at this age is still very limited and more about stealing toys from each other. But it was very nice to get them together to play.

Felicity just had her 9 month checkup and she is weighing 18 pounds 1 ounce and is 29 inches tall! She is getting very tall and for sure has her mom's long legs. Her 9 month sized clothes fit, but her 9 month sized pj's do not! Her legs are just too long.

Busy May!

May has been a very busy month. As I said in the last post, she started pulling herself up into a standing position and now she does it on everything that she thinks is standing still! She has now added some steps to her standing. She can walk around her table activity center and the coffee table. If you hold her hands she will walk with you. A while ago we bought her a push toy that she can either ride on or walk behind and yesterday she started to walk behind it. The only problem is that it gets away from her sometimes, so we have to hold it and walk with her. I can't believe how quickly she learns how to do things.

She has also learned to clap her hands, feed herself her little finger foods and wave bye-bye. She is also starting to figure out that she can wave hi too. It is really cute when we leave or walk into a room, if the dogs or daddy are in that room then she will wave bye or hi to them.

The day before Mother's Day we went up to Flagstaff for my best friend's (Beth) baby's first birthday. It is strange that Kendall is already one! Kendall and Felicity had a great time together. They even took a bath together. What great blackmail picutes!

We also had some firsts this month. Felicity's cousin Lauren graduated from 8th grade and that night Lauren's sister Becca spent the night. The next morning we all went to our community pool for Felicity's first time swimming. She had a great time, but I think the water was still just a little too cold. We will have to try it again soon.

This past weekend we went on Felicity's first camping trip. We went up to the rim north of Payson. We think she had a good time. We went up with my sister Margaret, her husband Louie, Louie's son David, their new baby Elisia and some of their friends. She enjoyed crawling on the blanket to the edges and playing with the dirt, pinecones, pine needles and tree bark. She probably ate about a pound of dirt. But as Uncle Louie says, a little dirt never hurt!

Don't forget to check the website for more pictures.

We have a crawler!

Last Tuesday Felicity would get in to a crawling position and moving her hands forward. I figured she was getting close, but that she was still a few days away from figuring out how to move both her hands and her legs to get anyway. Boy was I wrong! The very next day she was crawling all over the room. Now a days she crawls all over the front room and the office, but limits herself to just that . . . for now. Hoover and Kona are not sure what to do anymore and have quickly learned that they just need to get up and move away when she comes closer.

On Monday night Felicity also pulled herself up using the couch without any help from dad and then later pulled herself up trying to climb on mom. She is getting so big. It is really hard to believe that she is already 7 1/2 months old!

This past weekend we went up to Phoenix and stayed with my sister Margaret, her husband Louie and their new baby Elisia. My younger brother graduated from the police academy and went up there for the ceremonies. Friday morning there was a flag raising ceremony and final inspection of their uniforms and Friday night he was sworn in as a DPS officer and received his badge. We had a great time. My grandma and grandpa (my dad's parents) came out from Indiana and my sister Ann, her husband Erik and their two boys, Tristan and Hayden came down from Vegas. Of course my mom and dad also came down from Sedona. It was really nice to have the whole family there and really special to have 4 generations of the Ellis family all in one place. We are so proud of my brother. He looked so great standing there in his new uniform! Keep up the good work Kenny!!!!

6 Months!

Wow, can you believe it? Felicity turned 6 months old on Friday. Crazy how time flies! She is doing so many new things now. We went to the doctor today and she is 15 pounds, 7 ounces and 27 inches long. She sits up perfectly and is doing really well catching herself if she starts to fall. Every once in a while we have a big crash and loud screams and cries follow, but she is quick to get over it and continue playing. She loves to just sit and play with her toys!

We have also started her on solid foods. She has been eating rice cereal and oatmeal for the past two weeks. She really likes both of them! She is eating really good. It is almost like she knows exactly what she should be doing already.

Her most recent thing is getting back down on the floor from a sitting position. She will lean over to one side and kind of ease her down. Most of the time she will end up rolling on to her back, but sometimes she makes it to her tummy.

She is also getting more mobile. She scoots a little. She will reach in front of her, from a sitting position, and ever so slightly pull herself forward. It is really cute. She also likes to be on her back and push herself around with her feet. I guess it is getting close to start baby proofing the house!

She has also found her thumbs. She really likes to suck them now! It is so cute. I'll try to get a picture of that soon.

Well, that's the latest. Check back soon!

Cool new toy

Okay, so it has been awhile. Sorry about that! Anyway, this month Felicity turned 5 months old, celebrated two more first and found a new toy!

One Saturday at the beginning of the February, we went for Felicity's first hike. Grandma and Grandpa Post, Aunt Mary, cousin Rachel (and Rachel's friend), Uncle Peter and cousin Becca were also there. We went down to Wilcox and hiked back to Fort Bowie and after the hike we had a picnic lunch. We had a great time. Felicity was really good, sleeping part of the hike there and all the way back.

The other first was her first Valentine's Day. Randy and I didn't do much that day, just a nice dinner and some cookies. But Felicity made sure to tell the world whose Valentine she was (if you can't see what her shirt says, it says "Daddy's Little Valentine")!

She has recently found her feet and she thinks they are the coolest toys ever. She loves to lay on her back and bring her feet up to her hands. Sometimes she even brings them to her mouth (which is where ALL of her toys end up). Ahh, to be as flexible as a baby! Anyway, she does this so often that it is starting to make changing her diaper a little hard to do. But hey, she likes them too much!

On February 17, she turned 5 months old and it is really hard to believe. Before you know, I'll be blogging about her first steps. Yikes.

As of today, there are new pictures up on the website. Go check them out.

New development?

I know it hasn't been that long since my last post, but I vowed to be better. Just a few minutes ago Felicity rolled over from her back to her stomach. She rolled over to her side like usual then kept going. She even did the tricky part, she pulled her arm out from underneath her. Mom was so excited! I clapped for her and told her that she did a good job. Then she smiled! She knew that she did something good.

She is also taking her her mastered skill of grabbing at things and holding them to the next level. She can now take a toy from you in one hand and then grab with the next hand while she lets the first hand go. She is getting so big! It is so amazing to watch her grow.

4 months

Well, last Tuesday Felicity turned 4 months. She is doing really well. She still has some rolling over issues, but is really content to just hang out on her tummy or her back. She really likes her back and now her left side is starting to be really cool to her. When she lays on her back she will bring her knees up to her stomach and then roll on to her side and hang out for awhile. She has officially mastered the skill of grabbing things and bringing them straight to her mouth. That is where everything ends up! She is really starting to babble a lot now. It is so funny to just sit and listen to her "talk." It is so cute.

On Saturday we went up to Sedona for my sister's baby shower and had a great time. It was nice to be able to show her off to people and to show them how she is growing. My sister is having a girl in March. That will put Felicity and her (Elisia is her name) about 6 months about. We can't wait to see them grow up together. It will be so much fun to watch the two of them play, share, fight, etc. It will be just like sisters.

A couple of weeks ago we had a picnic lunch with our friends Mike, Lisa and Mikey Urbanski. Mike and Randy grew up together going to both elementary and high school together. Lisa and I think that Mikey and Felicity are going to become best friends and get married when they get older. We always joke around about it and Lisa even calls Felicity Mikey's "girl." It is really funny and I am sure our husbands think we are a little crazy, but who is going to be the crazy ones when they do get married?! Anyway, this cute picture is of their first kiss! So cute.

New Year, New Post. . .Finally!

Okay, okay. I know it has been 2 months since I last posted something. I am sorry! Anyway, lots of things have been happening with Felicity. She is a week away from being 4 months and growing so much! She had her 4 month check up on Friday and is 12 pounds 4 1/2 oz. and 24 inches long! She is laughing and smiling a lot and overall is just a very happy baby. She is learning to grab things that we hold out for her and bring them to her mouth. Her hands are so exciting right now as she is figuring out how to use them. Her new thing is to bring them together and sort of ring them in front of her chest, like she is worried about something, and just stare at them! So cute.

In November she rolled over from her stomach to her back everytime she went down. In December, she stopped. I was worried, but she is now pretty content to lay on her tummy, pick her head up and look at everything! Yesterday, she starting doing it again! She is also starting to try to go from back to tummy. She hasn't figured it out yet, but she has gone as far as one of her sides. It is so fun to watch her learning so much every day.

Her first Thanksgiving was spent with daddy's family in Sierra Vista. She met Uncle Mark for the first time as well as Great Aunt Marge and Great Aunt Phyl. We spent her first Christmas in Sedona and had a great time. In Sedona she met Uncle Erik and her cousin Tristan for the first time. It was nice to be able to share her with more family members!

We also took her on her first plane ride in December. Randy friend from elementary school got married in Texas and we went. She did really well on the planes and in the hotel. We had a good time.

That's about it from the Post family. I promise to be better about my posts! The website is update much more frequently than the blog is, so be sure to go look at the pictures whenever you can!