Name...

I have had several people email me and ask me how we will pronounce Ellyotte's name. It is like the boy version of Elliot - sounds just the same way.

We chose to spell it with a 'y' so that it is more feminine when written. And her name is also derived from the Hebrew spelling of Elijah which is Elyahu, also meaning "the Lord is my God." That is another reason why we chose to spell it with a 'y.' Just some clarification!

Ellyotte's Bedding

Here is what we chose for Ellyotte's bedding. I chose the Scalloped Pique bedding in Light Pink. We got it from Pottery Barn kids and I just fell in love with the simplicity of the set.

My mom's side of the family put a quilt together when I was born and it was used in my nursery when I was born in 1979. That same quilt will hang over Ellyotte's crib in her first nursery. Once I am a bit closer to her birth and get things a bit more organized, I will take some pictures of her room to share how it is coming along with you all.

She Has a Name

For those of you who know us, you know that it is Beall family tradition to choose a Biblical and a family name when naming your children. We followed that tradition when naming Noah and he was named for Noah in the Bible and for his great-grandfather (my grandfather) Everard Flude Grindley. We wanted him to have a name that was strong and we wanted him to be named after someone he would always have to strive to immulate.

This time around it was no different. I have known for years what I wanted to name our daughter but once we found out she was indeed a girl, we both wanted to make sure that that name was definitely meant to be her's. So we hit the books again and did some research on other family names yet still returned to the "Katie and Dan Favorite."

Our first daughter's name will be:

Ellyotte Pierce Beall

Ellyotte is a derivative of Elijah and her name means "the Lord is my God." Pierce is Dan's middle name and he was named after his beloved great-grandfather Travail Chester Pierce. Pierce was also Dan's paternal grandmother's last name and we wanted to honor her in naming our daughter.

I don't think that we will call her Elly. I am sure that many people will lovingly refer to her as Elly, but it will be my preference to call her Ellyotte.

We are so excited to meet her - to know if she will have red hair and long eyelashes like her big brother or if she will be tall like her daddy.... We are overjoyed to have chosen her name and honored that we have that privilege. Naming another human is a huge responsibility so we wanted to make sure that she has a name she can be proud of throughout her life.

We hope you like it!

6 Months

As soon as I said "I can't believe how fast this pregnancy is going by!" things started changing and slowing down for me. Just in the last few days, I have started to feel and look incredibly pregnant. The "glow" only lasts for so long before it is replaced with bloating and discomfort! I noticed my feet were swelling a little at the end of a really long day this past weekend. Ew! But, she's worth it.

By all accounts, I still feel really good. I am sleeping a bit less because she's moving around so much - especially at night - and because we are having some teething and sleep issues with Noah right now. But I try to "sleep when Noah sleeps" as much as possible. Sometimes that means papers that need to be graded add up extraordinarily and laundry doesn't get done right away, but I am trying to take advantage of any and all down time Noah allows me so I can give this new little one - and myself - some time to rest and grow.

I haven't been craving certain things too much. But what I do crave this pregnancy are: Subway sandwiches, pudding cups, SODA (I don't normally drink it but this time around, I am craving Coke and Dr. Pepper), bananas, corn, Eggos with peanut butter, and chocolate milk. Maybe not the healthiest of cravings, but at least I am being honest! And these last few days, my appetite has increased a lot and my tummy is tightening a bit too. I add that up to mean she's having a growth spurt - and my stomach is starting to look like she is as well.

We will have another doctors appointment next week and by my request, we are going to have an extra ultrasound done. We weren't totally happy with the pictures and (short) length of the last one we had so since we'd been given false diagnoses with Noah's feet last time around, the doctor is allowing us to have an extra ultrasound or two to put our mind at ease.

Her nursery is slowly coming together. We bought her bedding and have started collecting pink items here and there. And Noah loves to go into her room and whisper "Shhhh, shhhh, baby sister's sleeping, shhh." It is precious! He's getting really excited and loves to hug my tummy and kiss it. He's gonna be a great big brother.

I think we will schedule the c-section at our next appointment. I will let you know which date we choose!

Beach time!

This past week, Noah and I made a trip home to be with my family as we roasted and honored my father and his 20 years of service to Troy University. We had a great trip and were able to head to the condo in Panama City Beach, Florida. Dan, Noah and I haven't been able to get down there since last summer so it was a nice break.

There is no coast on the planet - in my opinion - more gorgeous than the Gulf Coast. We saw dolphins, played in the sugar sand, looked for sea shells - it was incredible.

All my life I have traveled there maybe hundreds of times and the beauty of it never gets old. And when you add in the precious sight of our baby boy running in the sand with his red hair sparkeling, it becomes all the more spectacular.

Time's A Flying By

On February 12, Noah turned 2. I meant to post my thoughts then, but to be honest, I was getting ready for my ski trip to Breckenridge with the girls and didn't want to really face my feelings about my boy growing up.

So, I am "biting the bullet" and putting them on paper now.

Noah's little life is going by so fast. I feel like I blink some days and he's an inch taller, saying another sentence, reaching another milestone. Then there are days that crawl by; days I feel that are endless and I think "are we SERIOUSLY adding another child to this crazy life we have?!"

At 2, Noah is exceeding so many of my expectations. He's speaking in full sentences, counting to 20 (straight through), reciting his ABCs (albeit a bit slurred in some portions!), reading books and using his imagination, playing ball - and all kinds of improvised instruments - day in and out (he's currently fascinated by putting the ball in "the bucket," AKA the basket that we gave him for his bday), and randomly giving me hugs and REAL kisses throughout the day as he says "I love you, Mommy."

Dan and I want to freeze this time in our life - but when we think that parenting Noah couldn't get any better, it seems to. He's so smart, so affectionate, so compassionate towards others. He shares his toys - but we are sort of going through a "mine" stage that will hopefully pass soon. He loves to play with "friends" - he calls everyone his size "friend."

My favorite is how he reaches out for our hands to pray before his meals or before he goes to sleep. He ends each prayer with a hearty "AMEN" and then says "I love you, Jesus." Those are words I prayed I would hear from my children.

Noah loves to look through photo albums over and over and point out "baby Noah" or other family members he has grown to love in his short life. He loves hugging his doggie, Piper, or asking to "hold it" meaning that he wants to hold Gumbo Kitty and drag him all over the house (which Gumbo foolishly allows).

He has a little red car that he likes to get into on the back porch. He will throw his arm over the side of it and say "ummm, chicken nuggets and french fries" like he's ordering from a fast-food restaurant! Where he got that, we have no idea. But we laugh so hard when he orders his meal.

Noah likes to point out random boo-boos - which he seems to always have an abundance of being a rough-playing little guy - and say "kiss it, kiss it." He also loves, loves to snuggle before bedtime or for naptime. At this point in my pregnancy, I sleep any chance I can get so sometimes, I curl up next to him and we will cuddle/sleep for 2 hours. I realize that the days of him being a snuggly baby are passing at lightening speed and I want to relish every minute that he wants to be curled up by my side.

I love this little boy more than I can bear sometimes. There are many nights that I am overcome with emotion as I say goodnight to him or say prayers with him; he's everything I could have dreamed he would be. He's an absolute angel - a challenging child sometimes, but manageable and so willing to please - and I am overwhelmed that God deemed us worthy to be Noah Beall's Mom and Dad for our short time on this earth.

Noah at 2 days old - Honolulu, Hawaii

Noah, 1 year old - Troy, Alabama

Noah, 2 years old - Louisiana

Our March

We are having such a great month: Dan is home from being gone for 2 months, his 2nd month long TDY was canceled, we found out we are going to have a baby girl, and we are enjoying EVERY moment we are able to be back together as a family. As I type this, my sweet husband and boy are cuddled up watching "Shrek" together and I am overjoyed by how blessed I feel right now.

21 Weeks

We still haven't 100% decided on Baby Girl's name yet but are in the depths of the decision process. I will let you all know when we figure it out!

My belly is growing by the day. Her heart rate was 143 at the doctor a few days ago and she's doing well. I am too - I feel great and have had a wonderful pregnancy thus far. Over halfway there!

Big Boy Room!

Noah is ready for his role as a big brother: he's officially moved into his big boy room! We got his bed last weekend and put him in it straight away. He's done great - there has been the occasional wake-up that has required one of us to go in and lay down with him but we don't mind. We understand that it will take a little while to get used to being in a big bed and certainly love the cuddle time it allows us to have with Noah.

I went with the surf theme because we had collected several pieces of surf art from Hawaii that were in his nursery. And Dan insisted that his actual surfboard be a part of the decor! It turned out SO cute - and the bed is way comfortable. He has one of the OneStepAhead safety rails to keep him from falling out but it slides under the mattress so that is why you don't see it pictured.

We love Noah's big boy room!

Snow Baby

I have been meaning to post the cute pictures I took of Noah experiencing his first snow ever! He loved it - and ate handfuls of it. He's such a precious boy.

New Addition

We had our ultrasound today and I will start by saying that this baby is a very healthy one! We are joyous: the ultrasound revealed a normal brain, the heart functioning well, straight feet (much different from Noah's 20 week ultrasound, Praise God) and a beautiful skeleton.

We also learned that Baby Beall #2 is a GIRL! I thought for sure it was a boy but Dan's final call going in was that we were having a girl. We are indeed surprised but overjoyed at the same time.

Dan is in a definite state of shock; you should've seen his face when the doctor first told us. When we walked out, he told me how happy he was but that his next thoughts were of boyfriends and a wedding! I guess that is every father's first line of thought. And my sweet friend Janel told me to get ready for the drama! I know from experience (me and Kelly) that we were never short on drama in my house growing up. So now this Beall house is preparing for some of our own as we get ready for this sweet baby girl.

Now, the next big question is: "Will she have red hair?!"