New Beginnings

It's been a really long time since my last post. Alot has happened since then. Ryan recently accepted a position as an assistant coach at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), in Richmond, Virginia. He left yesterday for 4 weeks. The 4th week, I'll drive up to visit and look for a place to live. Then he'll be home for another 4 weeks and then back to VA. I promised him I would do a better job at blogging since he would be away so much. I know it is so hard for him to be away from us, especially Ellie for so long.
This morning, when I went to get Ellie up, she had thrown up in her bed, and continued to throw up the rest of the morning. It was so sad and pitiful! I took her to the doctor around noon and he gave her a shot to help with the nausea. She seemed better this evening, but the only thing I could give her was pedialyte and crackers. She is in bed now and I am hoping and praying that she gets some good rest tonight and feels so much better tomorrow. What a helpless feeling it was to see her feeling so bad and not be able to do anything more than just hold her.
Hopefully tomorrow I will have better news to report. In the next few days I'll hopefully be posting that I've got our house up for sale. There are still some things I need to do to get the house just right. I may need to call in the reinforcements to get some extra hands (especially since Ellie's not quite herself).
Sorry, no pictures today. Maybe tomorrow :)

Fish Face

So Ellie has a new trick....she sucks both sides of her top lip in and makes a fish face. It's hilarious, and I have tried over the past several days to get a picture of her doing it and the one we got was of half a fish face and the end of another. Here is a video too of me trying to get it. She sort of does it at the very end.

It's been a busy last 2 days. Friday Ellie, Nonna and I went shopping! We went to get Addi's birthday present and also found some really cute things at a little boutique in Patton Creek. We were pretty exhausted after a day of shopping and running errands. We went for a walk when we got home and then that was it! Lights out! Today, Nonna left .... after babysitting us for a week! Thank goodness she was here because I did NOT want to stay home by myself. Plus, she and Ellie got to spend some good time together. After she left, Ellie and I took off for Addi's birthday party. She had a great time watching all the big kids play. I got one picture of her while we were there in her party dress. She was pretty pooped after that and slept all the way home. When we got home she napped some more while I started packing for Mom's. Then we went over to Dad's house for dinner. After going to Emma's to get her mail we came home. Ellie is now in bed, I have finished packing (except for the few remaining bottles in the dishwasher washing) and I am getting ready to go to bed. Tomorrow will be another busy day...getting Sam settled in his dorm. He and Dad moved the big stuff today, but they haven't decorated or anything. After that, Ellie and I are BEACH BOUND! (But not before we see Jordan at Bid Day!) Ryan, we are sooooo ready for you to come home! We love you and miss you! We are also looking forward to seeing the pictures from London! Be safe!

Thursday

Well, I am a slacker and didn't post what we did yesterday. So I'll do it today. Nothing too exciting to report, just normal everyday things. Ryan, yesterday was my first day working in the office for Haven Homes. It went good, so that's a relief. Ellie did good during the night, only getting up one time, ending up in the bed with me though. She went over to Casie's while I was at work and your mom did some things around the house. I got home with Ellie about 6:45 and Same came over and we had tacos and taco salad for dinner. Your mom made it. Because Ellie has been staying up an hour past her bedtime, I thought it would be ok to take Sam shopping at Bed Bath and Beyond for some school supplies. Of course we get in the car and Ellie zonks out! Poor little thing, I felt so bad dragging her out. But she slept the whole time we shopped. We were there for about an hour and got lots of things for Sam. Then we came home and I put her to bed. Sam stayed over for a litte while and talked and then he left. I was pooped so I went to bed about 11:00. Ellie woke up around 2 am and then I fed her and fell asleep with her....I know I have got to stop doing that. I fully intend to do it every night and I think I am just out of it when she gets up and am not thinking clearly....I am GOING TO DO IT RIGHT TODAY! So anyway that was pretty much it for yesterday. Ellie's new thing is making a fish face. I am going to try and get a picture of her doing it and I"ll post it if I get it. It's so funny! She sucks the sides of her top lip in and she looks just like a fish! I'll post some pictures tonight so you'll have something to look at! We love you and miss you!!!!!

Libby and Ellie

Hey Daddy, We Miss You!

Hey Daddy! We miss you! Ellie woke up around 12:30 am (right before you texted us that you had landed). She took her bottle and then stayed in bed with me :) I needed company (no really I just fell asleep and was too lazy to take her back to her room - that's what you normally tell me to do). She woke up again at 4:30 and I think I might have woken her up and she was SOOO upset...screaming. I had to shut the door to our room so your mom wouldn't wake up. Anyway I tried feeding her the rest of the bottle and she took it and eventually went to sleep. But I was wide awake! We both ended up sleeping until around 7:30. We talked in bed for a little while, then changed her diaper and played in the living room. Your mom went for a walk early so she was just getting back as we started playing. I was supposed to be hearing from Marty today to start working for him so I was afraid to leave because I wasn't sure what I would need to be doing. I waited until lunch got a little info and then waited some more....Needless to say we never left the house and when we finally could it was storming. So I am stir crazy right now! We had a good day though. Ellie is trying so hard to crawl. Look at her in this video! She is starting to fuss but all day she was working on it and she start inch worming herself over to me. She can do it! Can you believe it!?! She has also started sucking in her cheeks like a fish face! It's so funny. I'll try and get a picture of it and post it. We really miss you! I have been showing her your picture on the calendar and our wedding picture (I don't know if that works or not, but it's worth a shot!) She ate some rice cereal for lunch and your mom got to watch her and it was really funny. Bathtime was the same as always- lots of splashing and smiling. And as always when you are gone, she knows something is up and she won't go to bed on time. She stayed up til after 9 again. She finally settled down, falling asleep on my chest and I put her down and she is currently sleeping. I have a feeling it will be an early wake up for more food since she only ate 1/2 her bottle. We are guessing you couldn't call us because you had such a busy day and probably didn't get a change to buy a calling card? I keep looking at the clock and wondering what time it is there and what you are doing. Right now probably sleeping. It's 10:30 here so I am thinking it's 4:30 or 5:30 there? We hope you are getting some rest and eating good food - you know I am concerned with what you are eating. I can't wait to hear from you and we are checking the blog constantly to see if any pictures have been added. We love you and miss you and can't wait for you to come home!!!! -Libby & Ellie

Daddy's in England

So for the next two weeks it's just us girls! Ryan has gone to England, along with Aunt Emma and Uncle Justin and the UM soccer team for their pre-season training. It's an awesome opportunity for everyone involved and we are so excited for them. But we will also miss them very much. Because it's so expensive to call and text from overseas, I have promised Ryan to update the blog daily (we'll see how i do with this)so he doesn't miss so much. For anyone else you reads these posts besides Ryan, I am just forewarning you...they will probably seem very dull and boring to you. But for me and Ryan, even the tiniest things that Ellie does are news worthy.

Day 1
Sadly, there are no pics from today. Ellie and I began the morning after Ryan left. She woke up for a bottle at 2:30 just when Ryan was getting ready to leave. She stayed in bed with me until 7:30 and then we woke up and played. As usual, she was in a great playful mood. We hung out in the den for a while and I had toast and coffee while she played in her bouncy thing. Around 8:30 she was getting a little sleepy and I put her in her swing and she slept until 10:00. After she woke up we headed over to Papa and Sam's house to help (do it ourselves) Sam go through his college stuff to make sure he had everything he needs. Tootie, Bailey, and Casie came over and played for a while and then Casie and Bailey left. Ellie and I took a great nap (much needed for Mommy) and woke up around 3:00. We stayed a little longer, finally leaving around 5 to head home. Nonna was on her way to babysit us (because I am a chicken and don't like to stay by myself). Ellie took a cat nap on my chest (she's back to liking that again) and then we went outside, came back in and took a bath, and waited for Nonna. She got here around 8 with Jim-n-Nicks in tow (yum!!!) Ellie normally goes to bed around 8 or 8:30, but not tonight! Excitement was in the air and she stayed up til around 9:20. Now she's in bed, I've had a shower, Nonna's getting ready for bed, and we're settling in for the night. Ryan should still be in the air right now. He's probably got about another hour and a half until he lands in Manchester. We are praying for a safe flight and landing. I am looking forward to hearing that they've made it safely. Aunt Emma will be the official team photographer/blogger during the trip. If you want to follow them just log on to www.umfalconsoccer.blogspot.com I can't wait to see and read about their trip. We love you Daddy - be safe and we miss you!

announcing Stella & Dot

Hello to all of my precious friends and family and blog readers I've yet to meet!!

I am beside myself with excitement to announce the launch of my new business with Stella & Dot. I have started my own franchise with the fabulous Stella & Dot Jewelry company! Designed in New York and San Francisco by award winning designers trained at THE Parson School of Design in Paris , France .


As many of you know, I have had the blessing of working in the real estate industry for the last year and a half. While I am ever grateful to have a job in this crazy mafket, I have longed for a creative outlet, a way to make some extra spending money, have fun, and meet great women! I wanted something that was truly my own. I wanted a business that I was proud of, and if I worked hard I could enjoy the rewards of my own effort. I took one look at the ADORABLE jewelry and accessories that Stella & Dot has to offer and knew that I would be proud to wear it myself and excited to share it with friends, family, and women all over the country! I was so excited to see that not only are the accessories unique and well made, but the product is so stylish and affordable, it sells itself!

You may have already seen Stella & Dot jewelry featured in fashion magazines, like Instyle, People, Oprah!





The in-home party opportunity is such a great way to meet other women, have a night with the ladies, AND shop for amazing accessories. I am so excited about this opportunity with Stella and Dot. I hope that it brings you some fantastic additions to your accessories wardrobe. Please contact me with any questions, if you are interested in hosting a party (lots of exciting perks await you), or if you are interested in owning your own business selling the fabulous line of Stella and Dot jewelry. Thank you so much for visiting my site~ My official Launch Party will be coming soon!!!! In the meantime, feel free to shop my website and let me know if you have any questions or if you would like to have your own Trunk Show!

www.stelladot.com/libbypratt

Practicing...

Ellie is practicing putting her teether in her mouth. Sometimes she gets it....sometimes she knocks herself in the head. Here is a video -please ignore the red-neck talking...I don't know who that is :)