Steve and Ella's Trip to MD - 3/24 - 3/26

Steve took Ella up to MD several weeks ago to visit his Dad and Carole and they had a really nice trip. They have an amazing backyard for a nature lover like Ella, so Ella was in heaven and got to have plenty of fun with her grandparents and do lots of exploring and fun outside!














With Tio Carlos


They had a really nice time and I'm glad they got the chance to go!

I love...

I have been waiting anxiously for the day when Ella would say "I love you." She is super affectionate and always gives tons of kisses and hugs and other sweet things, but whenever we say "I love you" to her, she just smiles and nods. Sometimes she'll blow a kiss, but that's it. When I ask her "how much does Mommy love you?", she will say "SOOOOOOOOOOO much" - but still, no "love". Well - all that has changed!

On Saturday night, I was getting ready to drive Ella back home and Mom was saying goodbye to her in her car seat. Mom said "I love you Ella" and I said to Ella, "can you say 'love you Grammy'?" and Ella said "I do!". We were so excited and I said - "awww, you love Grammy, that is so sweet!" and then Ella said "luffff" - it was AWESOME, I could barely believe it! She kept saying it "love, love". Be still my heart!

The next day she started saying "I love", and then today she is saying "I love Mommy" - aaah, I do not think there are 3 better words out there!

We are still waiting on the "I love you" combination but in the meantime we are "luffing" the "I loves"!!

Easter

On Easter Sunday it was my Sunday to work in the cafe at church which I do at the 8:30 service every other week, and on those Sundays I need to be at church early, and then Steve gets Ella dressed and ready and brings her to church.

Because it was Easter, I didn't want to miss the chance to dress Ella in her Easter dress and get her ready so I ended up going early to do my cafe stuff, then came home so that I could get Ella all dressed and ready, and we went to the 10am service instead.

Some pictures of my sweet girl in her Easter dress before church









After church Mom and Glenn, Dad and Donna, and Erin and Josh all came over to our house to celebrate Easter. We set up an egg hunt for Ella in the backyard and she loved it!

























She found all of her eggs and then we went inside and she got many Easter goodies from everyone!

Discovering the joy of her first Robin's Egg (yummm)



Ella got pretty sleepy and wanted her nap, so she slept while the rest of us ate brunch. Everyone headed home in the afternoon but Ella kept wondering where all her buddies went!

Dying Easter Eggs

Ella was so much fun for egg dying this year. She thought it was pretty amazing and really liked the whole thing. The only problem she had was cracking just about every single egg she got her hands on - she just couldn't seem to help herself. She'd be carefully handling the egg and then all of a sudden just slam it against the table or knock 2 eggs into each other. It was as if she forget every time, and then she got really sad that she had done it.

Ready to go


Steve showing Ella how it's done





Is it ready??


Oh my, I can barely believe it!!


Can't help but hugging Daddy!



Coloring an egg



Hmm, not so sure about the dye on her fingers!



Good stuff!


Erin's prized egg


Ella checking out the prized egg (...and then she cracked it!)



Getting sleepy



All done and escaping her smock



Little lovebug




It was really neat, I still love dying eggs, and it's so much fun with Ella here to show her everything and see how much she enjoys it all.

Easter Weekend

We had a really fun Easter weekend. We had beautiful weather all weekend and got to spend some great time with family.

Here are many pictures from the weekend!!

Big hugs for Grammy


Telling stories





Cheeeeese!



On Saturday it was almost 90 degrees so Glenn put up Ella's froggie pool and she loved it! There was none of the hesitation that she had last year, she just got right in and enjoyed herself. She's been saying "froggie pool?" almost every day since, so I know she's dying to get back in.

She's in!









Daddy in? (this is how she asks us to get in wherever she is)






Nice hands for Jossssh





Drying off and snuggling with Aunt Erin (who Ella now calls "Ame" - she will say "Ame please" as if I can just produce her on command)



Flying a kite with "Gee"





We all headed inside and got ready for some serious egg-dying!

Nature Woman's Kryptonite

Ella has finally met a foe in the great outdoors - BUGS! It's gotten really warm in the last week or so and with that has come - bugs...which Ella has decided she does not like.

The other day when we were in the greenway there was a little cloud of bugs that really bothered her and she wanted to be carried the rest of the way home. She also says "it's bees" about most any bug, even non-bees, and wants to be carried as well when there are "bees" around.

Here she is being interviewed by me on a milk break after our bugs encounter!

Good for my ego...

Who knew I was so funny or such a talented juggler??