Thirty-Three Weeks Old

Awww...16 more days 'til baby's first Christmas!!! But better yet 8 days until Alysia gets home (next Wednesday) and 10 days until DJ, April, and the twins arrive (next Friday)! I am SO excited to snuggle and smooch those babies and see how they all interact with each other this time.

Been keeping busy with Christmas internet shopping. Until this Friday when my mom and I are going to make a trip up to the Outlet Mall. I can't remember the last time I was up there. Although all three sets of families have decided to scale back a little bit on the gifts. Our goal is to focus more on the time we spend with family and friends rather than the "Ugh, I still have to get ____ a gift." Did I mention that I can't wait to see Alysia, DJ, April, Maya, and Zachary?!?!?

This past weekend Ella and I attended Uniland's Children's Christmas party where Ella had her second encounter with Santa...still not a big fan. Not a fan of the elf with the funny looking ears either. Then that night Todd and I went to Sodexo's Holiday Party at Samuel's Grand Manor while Mom and John stayed home with Ella.

In the meantime, Ella is pivoting much more on her tummy as well as holding herself up quite high on her hands. She is also scooting backwards, but definitely not as fast as Zach is doing the worm. Ella seems to be enjoying her food more and more each day. In fact there are some times we can't seem to 'shovel' the food fast enough into her mouth!

Finally, Todd, Ella, and I went to visit my grandfather in the Williamsville Suburban rehab center yesterday. He was just moved there after being at the Veteran's Hospital since before Thanksgiving with a severe infection that started in his leg but then spread into his bloodstream. He has made a very good recovery so far and is getting stronger and stronger each day. We think he will be up there for at least a couple weeks as the infection really did a toll on his body. Fortunately, he is in good spirits and is quite motivated to get better and get home!

I think that's it for now. I have posted a link to Thanksgiving pictures thanks to my Aunt Gigi. Funny how there's not one picture of Todd or me holding our own daughter the entire stay...ha ha ha!!

Hope you're able to take the time to enjoy this Christmas season!!!

Thirty-Two Weeks Old

Oi vey...I apologize for such a stretch between our last blog and this one and so much has gone on!!!! Since November 11th we've celebrated Mom Rassman's birthday, Ella and I had lunch with two girls from high school and their babies, I helped my mom decorate 9 trees (including two 12 footers), 5 stairways, and 6 landings in 5 different buildings, and celebrated Thanksgiving with my family.

As my dad's birthday is 6 days before Todd's dad's birthday, my mom's birthday is 6 days before Todd's mom's birthday - crazy, huh?!? Anyway, my mom spent her birthday cruising down the Danube from Germany into Austria while we celebrated Todd's mom's birthday at their house. Which means Mom Rassman is less than a year away from retirement!!!!

On Wednesday, November 19, Ella and I got together with Sarah and her 5-month-old son, Cole, as well as Shannon and her 6-month-old daughter, Ellie. Although I graduated from Nardin with Sarah and Shannon I have not talked with them since 1995 until along came Facebook. We had a good time watching the kiddos interact with each other while we chowed down on a great chicken souvlaki lunch! It was great to 'reconnect' especially since they have babies right around Ella's age too.

Most of my last few weeks have been spent helping my mom decorate the Uniland Christmas trees. Mom has been decorating these trees for about the past 18 years and I did help in the early to middle years (but that was when there were only 3 trees and a stairway). But after taking about a 10 year break, I signed up to help out again!! With Mom being the mastermind behind all the decore, I merely helped by 'dressing' the trees, stairway garland, and garland on the landing.

Ella came along with me on the days Todd wasn't home or my dad wasn't watching her. She did a fantastic job playing on her own while we worked. Although I think just about every woman (and a few men) working in whatever building we were decorating came out to say 'hi' to Ella. And Ella had a great big smile for each one of them!

And now after 10 days and close to 100 people hours, the trees are now done! If you ever get a chance I encourage you to check them out (100, 300, & 500 Corporate Pkwy; 6400 Sheridan Dr; 285 Delaware Ave) - each tree is different varying from traditional to very funky! I have to say my mom is one talented decorating cookie!!!

We had a wonderful time celebrating Thanksgiving with my side of the family this year down at my Uncle Carl & Aunt Carol's chalet at Kissing Bridge. Aunt Gigi and Uncle Bill came in from Williamsburg, VA; Natalie flew in from Durham, NC; and Michael Sean visited from Redbank, NJ. My other cousin, Michael Paul, came home from Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh too.

The holiday started with a lasagna dinner Wednesday night at my cousins' Carl & Wendy's house. We then packed up and headed down to Colden early Thursday. Since there was close to 2 feet of snow on the ground, our traditional Thanksgiving Turkey Bowl football game was traded in for some good ol' sledding. Ella's feet managed to never hit the ground as she was successfully passed around to every family member! We then stayed overnight to help Ella's schedule and also give us more time to visit with the out of towners.

The weekend ended with a private tour of the Darwin Martin House on Jewett Pkwy in Buffalo. My cousin, Michael John, was recently elected to the Board and, therefore, invited us all on a tour of the magnificent Frank Lloyd Wright masterpiece. If you haven't taken a tour, I highly recommend it!! For more info see http://www.darwinmartinhouse.org/

Finally, Ella has been doing wonderful. She just received 3 more shots and is now all caught up (until her 1 year visit). She weighed in at about 16.5 pounds and approximately 26 inches long. Ella is getting close to growing out of her 6 month clothing and working into 6-9 month as well as 9 month clothes.

She sits up very well on her own (although she will need pillows behind her for a few more months) and officially sleeps on her tummy. Although Ella has mastered rolling onto her tummy, she is still learning to roll from her tummy to her back, pivoting while on her tummy, and propping herself up higher on her hands.

Ella has finished the box of rice cereal and is moving on to oatmeal cereal. She has tried carrots, acorn squash, and sweet potatoes. We'll continue introducing veggies and then move onto fruit. Right now she is still primarily nursing but eating about a tablespoon of cereal in the morning and a tablespoon of veggies in the afternoon and evening.

Oh!! And Ella's second tooth just came in today too!!!! She continues to be very smiley and quite a talker cracking us up all day long with her sounds!

And now the countdown begins to when Alysia, DJ, April, and the twins arrive...just 15 days!!!! Can't wait!!!!!!

200 Days Old

This past Saturday marked Ella's 200 day old birthday!! Woo hoo!

In more exciting news, last Thursday we visited her hematologist/oncologist where she was deemed "a picture of health!" Dr. Ambrusko was also the first one to spot Ella's first tooth!!! I swear it must have erupted as we were waiting (we were there awhile). Ella will continue to go every other month for her hem/onc check-ups. The doctor also said that we could start doing her blood work every other month instead of once a month. Although the more I think about it I'm not sure I'm ready to let two months pass between blood draws.

Thanks to our families, Todd and I had the opportunity to venture out on our own twice this week. On Saturday Todd's parents came over for breakfast and then stayed with Ella while we went to the mall for almost 5 hours! And then on Wednesday, Dad and Heather came over for dinner and then Todd and I went to the Sabres game. Do you see the pattern? If we feed them they will stay!!! We're so fortunate to have them able and willing to help raise Ella!


On Wednesday Ella and I also had a lunch/play date with Megan (a girl from school) and her 4 month old, Emily. Joe, Megan's husband and also a kindergarten teacher, made yummy Mediterranean chicken breast with a balsamic reduction and mozzarella cheese sandwiches for us before going to work. Emily and Ella enjoyed their time together (as did Megan and I)! We can't wait to play again!


Physically Ella keeps getting stronger and stronger! She is now able to play in a sitting up position on her own...at least for a few minutes before leaning too far that she is unable to 'right' herself back up. Even though she takes her falls like a champ, we surround her by pillows to cushion her tumbles. And because Ella is now sitting up, Carol (her physical therapist) says she is most likely ready for a front facing stroller, to sit up in shopping carts (of course with a shopping cart cover), and to sit in restaurant high chairs!


Ella continues to be a rolling champ (we often find her on her belly in her crib) but still gets stuck on her tummy. We are currently working on getting Ella to push herself up to a sitting position.

I can't express how thankful I am that we have a physical therapist and occupational therapist working with Ella. And I'm not talking about the fact that they are helping Ella catch up physically. I am thankful because they are teaching ME so much!! Even with the books I have been reading and the talks I've been having with other mothers, I still would not know to do a quarter of the 'exercises' we do with Ella if it wasn't for Carol and Teresa. They have really taught me how to play and interact with Ella so that it benefits her motor skills development!

In the meantime, Happy Birthday to Uncle Brian on the 10th, Yia Yia on the 12th, and Grandma Rassman on the 18th!!

Twenty-Eight Weeks Old

Oh no...I missed a week!! Ok, ok, ok...where to start with our lots of exciting updates! Let's see...about two weeks ago Ella visited her GI doctor and was officially discharged!! That's right...we no longer need to see the liver doctor!


Then the weekend before Halloween, Todd's family's friends, Craig and Fay, came into town for a visit. We had a great time! They both loved meeting Ella and Ella loved snuggling with them too.

On the 27th Ella also had her 6 month check-up where she weighed in at 15 pounds (almost tripling her birth weight) and 25 inches long!! Ella's pediatrician also proclaimed that she is a healthy six-month old! You have no idea what a wonderful phrase that is to hear!


Dr. Trask also gave us the go ahead to start her on rice cereal while pushing breastfeeding to every 4 hours. Ella is doing great waiting for the four hours. Eating the rice cereal is not her most favorite thing to do, but she is getting the hang of it. Todd seems to do better feeding Ella than I do!

In addition, Dr. Trask encouraged us to try to have Ella go without eating for 8 hours at night. She suggested that I feed her before I go to bed around 10:00pm and then let her go until 6:00am. So you know what that means...a good ol' cry-it-out session!! She woke up around 1:30am the next night and I decided at that time that I would lie on the floor while she wailed away so I could peek in on her if I wanted to without disturbing her. Ella successfully cried for 2 hours until 3:30am. At that time she fell asleep and did not get up until 5:30 or 6:00am...she (we) did it!!! The next night she woke up at 4:15 and 5:15 but got herself back to sleep each time before waking up at 6:00am to eat. Every night is not a perfect 8 hours, but as long as I'm getting up only once, I honestly don't mind. So in the end her sleeping schedule looks something like this...

~6:00pm - begin nighttime routine...feed cereal, bath, pjs, breastfeed
~7:00pm - in bed
~10:00pm - wake up to breastfeed
Some time between 4:00-6:00am - wake up to breastfeed
~8:00am - wake up for the day (although she is known to sleep in until 9:00 or 9:30 some days!!)

Ella's naps still are not hours long, but I've come to the conclusion that since she sleeps pretty well at night, her two 45 minute naps and one 30 minute nap late in the day must be working for her.


On Tuesday the 28th, Ella and I attended the Elm TWIG Women's Auxillary Dinner for Women and Children's Hospital. I was asked to say a little bit about our experience in front of the 300 attendees. I took this opportunity to thank all the donors from last year since with their donations the TWIG group was able to purchase medfusion pumps (which were used on Ella to administer the chemotherapy, blood products, and antibiotics) and a Giraffe Isolette (the bed Ella was placed in to keep her in humidified air and to keep germs away from her while going through chemo). We had a great time especially since my step-sister-in-law, Barb, won two baskets and Mom Rassman won a basket and a wine fridge with a dozen bottles of wine!

Developmentally wise, Ella is doing many new 'tricks.' It's been neat to read, see, and hear how the twins are developing and then see Ella do the same things a few weeks later. Ella officially rolled over on her own today!! The first time she did it was in her crib early this morning. I could tell her cry was muffled but I thought it was because she was sucking on her Flatophant. But when Todd peeked in on her, she was on her tummy! Ella then proceeded to roll many more times today all by herself!! Although she originally seemed like she was better at rolling from tummy to back, she now rolls back to tummy easier. And, therefore, has difficulty getting back to her back without help.

Ella has also been sitting up pretty much on her own (with someone spotting her from behind) for a couple weeks. She loves to watch Maggie or knock down blocks while sitting. Ella's arm and hand control improves by the day! She also now loves to feel the texture of just about anything that is within hands reach. Therefore, I have gotten out the touch-and-feel books to read together too.

Ella is also much more interested in her feet than before. It's so interesting because Carol, her physical therapist, had said that when she started to bring her feet up to play that it would help with her rolling over...and it sure happened that way! In fact, Ella now loves to roll all over the place especially when we are changing her!

Finally, we celebrated Halloween by going in to Ledgeview to visit for the afternoon. I was able to show-off my little flower to many of my friends, students, and their parents! We then spent the trick-or-treating hours at one of our neighbor's house (we are humbuggers when it comes to passing out candy!).

I think I've caught you all up on our doings. New pictures are now posted to the left. Don't forget to click on the speech bubble next to the word 'share' while viewing the slideshow. In the meantime, don't forget to vote!!!!

Six Months Old

Holy cow! Our baby is 6 months or a half a year or 26 weeks old! I can't believe it was six months ago that all the madness began. On one hand it seems so long ago, yet then it also seems like just yesterday!

Well I couldn't be more happy with Ella's progress. She has her 6 month well visit on Monday. I'm guessing she weighs 14 pounds or so. On Friday she will visit the GI specialist in Batavia. I am anticipating that he will discharge her from his care seeing that all of her liver function tests (as well as her other blood tests) have been coming back normal for at least a month now! Yeah for Ella!!!

Ella is making gains physically as well. She is able to sit up on her own (with someone behind to catch when she leans back) for a few minutes at a time especially when she watches Maggie play. Carol, her physical therapist, has also been having Ella practice kneeling against her leg and putting Ella up on her hands and knees with support. She looks like such a big girl!

Now that Ella is six months and just about sitting up on her own, we are starting to feeding her rice cereal. I intend to breastfeed as long as possible, but it will be fun to begin supplementing here and there with new foods for Ella to try. Besides, I know Todd will get a kick out of feeding her.

We are getting ready for a visit from Todd's family's friends, Craig and Fay, this weekend. They are visiting from Ontario. We are excited for them to meet and play with Ella for the first time!


In other news, my college friend, Michelle, and her husband, Matt, just had their first baby. Bidget Cannon was born on Friday, October 17th - the day before Michelle's birthday...what a great gift!!

Finally, I have written and am practicing the little 'speech' I have been asked to give at a Women and Children's Hospital Elm TWIG benefit dinner on Tuesday. So wish me luck!!

Twenty-Five Weeks Old

It's been 125 days since Ella has been born and she continues to amaze us everyday! We got home from California just about a week ago. Ella was a champ throughout the whole vacation - plane rides included!! She continues to receive ooh and ahhs everywhere we go - especially when she's riding shotgun in the MetroWrap.

Ella picked up a lot from the twins. She is rolling from belly to her back more and more on her own and is on the verge of rolling from her back to belly too! She is a fierce kicker as we can hear her banging her feet down on the mattress when she wakes up. With the leg kicking she is now noticing her feet. They haven't quite made their way into her mouth, but they are fun to play with. Carol, her physical therapist, is very impressed with her reaching skills and she even showed a transfer skill (passing a ring from her right hand to her left hand) today too. We are now working on sitting and reaching without the support of the Bumbo chair. One way we practice is by having her knock down Tupperware containers we stack in front of her. This makes her reach as well as strengthen her torso.

Physically Ella seems to be growing longer each day. She has grown out of her 0-3 months clothes as well as most of her 3 months outfits. So we are now in 3-6 months and some small 6 months clothing. Ella's hair is beginning to fill in a little more finally. However, my mom said I had very little hair until I was about year old (and then DJ cut off what little hair I had)!!

Just before we left CA Ella, Mom, and I drove down to Monterey (about an hour from DJ) to visit the Pratts. Chris and Todd were college roommates and in ROTC together. Todd was also Chris' bestman. Chris is still in the Army but going to school in Monterey. Although I didn't get a chance to see Chris, we had a great afternoon spending time with his wife, Jennifer, and three kiddos - Riley (5), Nathan (4), and Ronan (2). Jen took us to a wonderful restaurant named Hog's Breath in Carmel - boy was it yummy!!!

Now that we are home we are getting back into a routine which I'm hoping will transfer to Ella's naps and sleeping habits. All I will say is that somehow this girl is happy no matter if she gets tons of sleep or very little - thank goodness!!!

We made the most of our Columbus Day weekend. We started the weekend by visiting with my Aunt Marilyn, Uncle Jon (my dad's brother), and cousin, Matthew. They drove in from New Fairfield, CT with Arvee (their RV - that's my uncle for you!). We met up at the Anchor Bar Friday night where we polished off 100 wings and a large pizza. And then hung out again on Saturday for a picnic dinner. It was so great seeing and hanging out with all of them - especially since they were able to see Ella for the first time!!

On Sunday we took Ella on her first hike to the Eternal Flame. I felt as though I was pregnant again with Ella in the MobyWrap making sure I walked very carefully, using Todd's help to step up and down over rocks. It was an absolutely gorgeous fall weekend!!

Then on Monday, we packed a picnic lunch and drove to Letchworth State Park. We picnicked and then walked from the middle falls up to the upper falls back down to the middle falls and up to the Glen Iris Inn and back to the Middle Falls.

Now it's time to get back into the swing of things!! Keep checking back as it may take me a few days to post all of the pictures from CA. Speaking of photos - I'm trying out Snapfish (easier and cheaper to order from BUT you will have to sign in). To see the captions during the slideshow you may need to click on the speech bubble next to the word 'share' below the picture in slideshow mode. Enoy!

Ella Won!!!

THE OFFICIAL RESULTS ARE IN!!! As confirmed at http://photogenicbaby.com/winners/buffalowinners.html ...

Infant Category Voters' Choice Overall Winner: ELLA RASSMAN

Buffalo's Most Photogenic Baby 2008 Voters' Choice: ELLA RASSMAN

That means Ella raised the MOST money in the infant category and out of all the participants - ages 0-5!!! According to Todd, there were 84 contestants and approximately $3,900 was raised...about $900 of it was raised by Ella's fans! That means Ella raised almost 25% of the total! That's crazy...you all are the BEST!!!!

In addition, she also was the Judges' Choice Winner for the Beautiful category!! This was determined by a panel of judges made up of local show business professionals.

Thank you once again for all of your support in raising money for Children's Hospital!! As we all know, Children's Hospital definitely deserves it!!!

Once again Ella would like to send a BIG thank you to...

Laura & Mark Chriswell
Great Aunt Margy & Great Uncle Tom Montante
Grandma & Grandpa Rassman
Poppy Radder
Great Nona Montante
Laura ZaepfelAmy & Chris Capalbo
YiaYia Montante & Papa John Roba
Heather "Mops" Cullen
Debbie & Ken Jones

Kathe & Michael Rickert
Aunt Susan & Uncle Chris Carpenter
Aunt Sally & Uncle Chip Moore
Emily & Larry Kordasiewicz
Gretchen & Chris Eckert

Laura & Kevin Galvin
Aunt Kim & Uncle Jeff Rassman
Aunt April Saks & Uncle Deej Radder
Darlene & Gene Leahy
Peggy & Dale Berghorn

Laura & Steven Tripi

And everyone who made a trip to the Galleria to donate

...for your VERY generous donations!!!