This time last year Ella amazed us with her dancing to Jingle Bells. As soon as the music started, she just started bopping to the beat and spinning circles. For a trip down memory lane, watch it again here.
Yesterday she discovered the same Jingle Bell doll and these videos show the crazed dancing that ensued!
Showing off for the mirror...
A forward roll for good measure...
It was just hysterical, I cannot get enough of her silliness!
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Monday, December 14, 2009
Ella is 23 Months
Ella turned 23 months last Friday, December 5. Here are many random tidbits about Ella this month for her 23 month update!
One of the funniest things about Ella right now is how she notices, and gets VERY concerned about, things that are out of place. She will point out the problem and talk about it no less than 50 times.
Here is a conversation from last week - We're driving in the car and she finishes the cup of milk she's drinking. She shakes the cup at me but since I'm driving, I can't see, so instead she starts signing "more", which I STILL don't see (again, b/c I'm driving and mostly facing forward), so then she says out loud "more." I turn around and say "You need more milk. We're on our way home and as soon as we get home, we'll get some more milk". Ella, nods, happily: "tay, home" (tay means okay). 2 seconds later, as if she just ran out of milk and realized she needs more this minute - "More?" (repeat above...)
She now wants us to be a part of her playing so she'll tell us what to do, where to sit, etc., while she's playing. She tries to do the same thing with the pets but they're not as willing to go along with the rules! She says "mom-my, mom-my, mom-my" (always 3 times) and points to my assigned seat.
No new teeth this month, so she's still at 11 teeth altogether. 4 up top, 3 on the bottom, and 1 molar on each side, top and bottom. She's doing great with letting me brush her teeth because I started a new routine of singing songs while I brush her teeth, but stop as soon as she closes her mouth. It works like a charm!
She's still a size 4 in diapers, 18M in clothes, and 5 in shoes.
We still go to Little Gym every Saturday and after class she always gets stamps on her hands, feet and tummy. Last weekend it was cold and I put her in a long-sleeve onesie under a sweatshirt and it was the first onesie in a while. After class was over, she got her hands and feet stamped like always, but couldn't get her shirt up to get the stamps on her tummy. She kept tugging on it, trying to figure it out, but it wouldn't budge. I got her to come over and put her shoes on, but knew she'd still be thinking about that stamp. A minute or two later, she walks up to Miss Shellie, climbs up on her lap, and starts playing with her hair, then gives her a hug. I was just waiting for her to start talking about the fact that she didn't get stamp on her tummy. Wouldn't you know, a second later, she's pulling on her shirt again wanting that stamp! Miss Shellie gave her a sticker that she could put on her tummy on the shirt, but it just wasn't the same. She didn't cry or fuss at all, but just talked and talked and talked about it (in Ellanese of course).
Lately she hates it when I wear a ponytail. She will point at it, be very upset, and fuss until I take it out, then gets really happy. I have no idea where this came from, it's quite an odd behavior.
Now that she is such a big girl, she likes to point out babies and say "baby" when she sees them.
Her new favorite food is clementines, she can eat an entire clementine and has even eaten 2 at a time. She also loves apples, rice, pasta, corn, cottage cheese, yogurt, cookies, crackers, and macaroni and cheese.
I started giving her a Flintstones vitamin every day and she loves it. The only problem is she always wants more and I have to say every day that she can only have one a day.
Her favorite books right now are Very Busy Spider, and a little people School Bus book. In that one, she is amazed by a picture of a tambourine on a shelf and wants to look at it over and over. She likes pointing to all the things that she can name and me asking her questions and her pointing to the object.
At the risk of jinxing my luck, I'm happy to say that she has not hit me, or anyone else, in several weeks (small victories!).
She can't pass by a wall-mounted hand sanitizer without an overwhelming urge to have her hands cleaned, and the same when she sees hand soap - she rubs her hands together to show that she wants me to wash her hands.
I've given her some chapstick before and call it lipstick, and there is some in the nightstand next to my side of the bed. She'll head right over to the drawer and start motioning to her lips that she needs some 'lipstick.'
Now she can walk up and down the stairs by herself holding on to the railing and often wants to do it by herself - when I try to hold her hand she says NO, NO, NOOO!
She has such a funny way of saying goodbye now and it's like "BWHY, BWHY" and she says it many times in a row.
She can be soooo silly - she'll do such funny things and then when we start laughing it just eggs her on and she'll start laughing and do it over and over.
Ella pretty much runs everywhere instead of walking - her run is so cute because she puts her arms out straight to get started, and it's more up and down then moving forward, but she just bustles all over the house at top speed.
She loves playing outside, especially in her new sand table and slide from Grampy Glenn. A lot of her outside playing is just wandering around the backyard, but it keeps her amazingly entertained. She says "out" over and over in case we've missed the message that she wants to play outside. If that doesn't work, she says "Shoes" so that we'll put her shoes on, which she knows is a precursor to going outside.
She loves helping - she'll throw things in the garbage, clean up spills, pick up toys and things off the floor, carry things to the fridge, etc. When I ask if she wants to help, she yells "TAY" and runs right over.
I know I say it every month, but she just gets more and more affectionate. She has times where she's in the middle of eating even and leans forward and puckers her mouth for a kiss. It's the sweetest thing ever. When I kiss Steve goodbye in the morning she starts smacking her lips together so that I'll come give her a kiss (like I'd forget that!!) Her hugs and kisses are like little treats.
She likes singing and will sing funny songs that only she understands. She also thinks it's funny now to say "meow, meow, meow" when I ask her a question. It makes her laugh to do it. I'll say something like "alright Ella, let's go change your diaper" - she'll look at me and grin and say "meow, meow, meow" and crack up laughing.
New words this month (in reverse order):
bottle (bah-bah)
on
mine
shampoo
football
Nola
play (pway)
bubbles
home (she says this every time we pull into the driveway)
TV (Vee-Tee)
Ella
I want
tea (for her teaset)
okay (TAY, always said with great flourish)
woof-woof
banana (anana)
mama see (= mommy, let me see)
want dadda (= I want daddy to hold me)
hide
apple (app-app)
poo (pooh bear)
cory (coer)
three (fee)
baby
phone
please (peease)
beebee (how she says binky now)
light
off
potty (pah-ee)
pop - for popsicles
elbow - she was hugging my elbow when I was changing her into pajamas and kept saying "belbow"
where'd it go?
For a while when I asked her "what's your name?", she'd point to herself and say "me" or "I'm me". She now says "Ella" but pronounces it so deliberately - like "ll-la" and rolls her tongue. She'll point to pictures on the fridge and say "dada", "mommy" and "Ella" for who she sees in each one.
It's so fun communicating now and trying to talk back and forth. Something that's really amazing is how much I understand what it is that she's trying to say without her really saying it. There are definitely times when she gets so frustrated because we can't understand her, but also times when I surprise myself with knowing what it is she's trying to say.
Some 23 month pictures:
One of the funniest things about Ella right now is how she notices, and gets VERY concerned about, things that are out of place. She will point out the problem and talk about it no less than 50 times.
Here is a conversation from last week - We're driving in the car and she finishes the cup of milk she's drinking. She shakes the cup at me but since I'm driving, I can't see, so instead she starts signing "more", which I STILL don't see (again, b/c I'm driving and mostly facing forward), so then she says out loud "more." I turn around and say "You need more milk. We're on our way home and as soon as we get home, we'll get some more milk". Ella, nods, happily: "tay, home" (tay means okay). 2 seconds later, as if she just ran out of milk and realized she needs more this minute - "More?" (repeat above...)
She now wants us to be a part of her playing so she'll tell us what to do, where to sit, etc., while she's playing. She tries to do the same thing with the pets but they're not as willing to go along with the rules! She says "mom-my, mom-my, mom-my" (always 3 times) and points to my assigned seat.
No new teeth this month, so she's still at 11 teeth altogether. 4 up top, 3 on the bottom, and 1 molar on each side, top and bottom. She's doing great with letting me brush her teeth because I started a new routine of singing songs while I brush her teeth, but stop as soon as she closes her mouth. It works like a charm!
She's still a size 4 in diapers, 18M in clothes, and 5 in shoes.
We still go to Little Gym every Saturday and after class she always gets stamps on her hands, feet and tummy. Last weekend it was cold and I put her in a long-sleeve onesie under a sweatshirt and it was the first onesie in a while. After class was over, she got her hands and feet stamped like always, but couldn't get her shirt up to get the stamps on her tummy. She kept tugging on it, trying to figure it out, but it wouldn't budge. I got her to come over and put her shoes on, but knew she'd still be thinking about that stamp. A minute or two later, she walks up to Miss Shellie, climbs up on her lap, and starts playing with her hair, then gives her a hug. I was just waiting for her to start talking about the fact that she didn't get stamp on her tummy. Wouldn't you know, a second later, she's pulling on her shirt again wanting that stamp! Miss Shellie gave her a sticker that she could put on her tummy on the shirt, but it just wasn't the same. She didn't cry or fuss at all, but just talked and talked and talked about it (in Ellanese of course).
Lately she hates it when I wear a ponytail. She will point at it, be very upset, and fuss until I take it out, then gets really happy. I have no idea where this came from, it's quite an odd behavior.
Now that she is such a big girl, she likes to point out babies and say "baby" when she sees them.
Her new favorite food is clementines, she can eat an entire clementine and has even eaten 2 at a time. She also loves apples, rice, pasta, corn, cottage cheese, yogurt, cookies, crackers, and macaroni and cheese.
I started giving her a Flintstones vitamin every day and she loves it. The only problem is she always wants more and I have to say every day that she can only have one a day.
Her favorite books right now are Very Busy Spider, and a little people School Bus book. In that one, she is amazed by a picture of a tambourine on a shelf and wants to look at it over and over. She likes pointing to all the things that she can name and me asking her questions and her pointing to the object.
At the risk of jinxing my luck, I'm happy to say that she has not hit me, or anyone else, in several weeks (small victories!).
She can't pass by a wall-mounted hand sanitizer without an overwhelming urge to have her hands cleaned, and the same when she sees hand soap - she rubs her hands together to show that she wants me to wash her hands.
I've given her some chapstick before and call it lipstick, and there is some in the nightstand next to my side of the bed. She'll head right over to the drawer and start motioning to her lips that she needs some 'lipstick.'
Now she can walk up and down the stairs by herself holding on to the railing and often wants to do it by herself - when I try to hold her hand she says NO, NO, NOOO!
She has such a funny way of saying goodbye now and it's like "BWHY, BWHY" and she says it many times in a row.
She can be soooo silly - she'll do such funny things and then when we start laughing it just eggs her on and she'll start laughing and do it over and over.
Ella pretty much runs everywhere instead of walking - her run is so cute because she puts her arms out straight to get started, and it's more up and down then moving forward, but she just bustles all over the house at top speed.
She loves playing outside, especially in her new sand table and slide from Grampy Glenn. A lot of her outside playing is just wandering around the backyard, but it keeps her amazingly entertained. She says "out" over and over in case we've missed the message that she wants to play outside. If that doesn't work, she says "Shoes" so that we'll put her shoes on, which she knows is a precursor to going outside.
She loves helping - she'll throw things in the garbage, clean up spills, pick up toys and things off the floor, carry things to the fridge, etc. When I ask if she wants to help, she yells "TAY" and runs right over.
I know I say it every month, but she just gets more and more affectionate. She has times where she's in the middle of eating even and leans forward and puckers her mouth for a kiss. It's the sweetest thing ever. When I kiss Steve goodbye in the morning she starts smacking her lips together so that I'll come give her a kiss (like I'd forget that!!) Her hugs and kisses are like little treats.
She likes singing and will sing funny songs that only she understands. She also thinks it's funny now to say "meow, meow, meow" when I ask her a question. It makes her laugh to do it. I'll say something like "alright Ella, let's go change your diaper" - she'll look at me and grin and say "meow, meow, meow" and crack up laughing.
New words this month (in reverse order):
bottle (bah-bah)
on
mine
shampoo
football
Nola
play (pway)
bubbles
home (she says this every time we pull into the driveway)
TV (Vee-Tee)
Ella
I want
tea (for her teaset)
okay (TAY, always said with great flourish)
woof-woof
banana (anana)
mama see (= mommy, let me see)
want dadda (= I want daddy to hold me)
hide
apple (app-app)
poo (pooh bear)
cory (coer)
three (fee)
baby
phone
please (peease)
beebee (how she says binky now)
light
off
potty (pah-ee)
pop - for popsicles
elbow - she was hugging my elbow when I was changing her into pajamas and kept saying "belbow"
where'd it go?
For a while when I asked her "what's your name?", she'd point to herself and say "me" or "I'm me". She now says "Ella" but pronounces it so deliberately - like "ll-la" and rolls her tongue. She'll point to pictures on the fridge and say "dada", "mommy" and "Ella" for who she sees in each one.
It's so fun communicating now and trying to talk back and forth. Something that's really amazing is how much I understand what it is that she's trying to say without her really saying it. There are definitely times when she gets so frustrated because we can't understand her, but also times when I surprise myself with knowing what it is she's trying to say.
Some 23 month pictures:
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Little Einsteins
I mentioned last month that one of Ella's favorite songs is the theme song from Little Ensteins. Tonight after dinner she surprised us by climbing up on the couch, tapping her legs and saying "Ein-stein" really clearly. I didn't get it at first but Steve realized exactly what she was saying. He said "do you want to see Little Einsteins?" and she got so excited and said "TAY", which is how she says yes. She loves it when we understand what she's trying to say.
So we put on the theme song, and this was the result...
All I can say is WOAH!!!
So we put on the theme song, and this was the result...
All I can say is WOAH!!!
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Hoppers House
Ella and I met my friend Christine and Dominic last Sunday for some fun at Hoppers House, which is like Monkey Joe's but much less chaotic, and a lot more to do besides just jumping because there are plenty of other activities as well. We were there for several hours and Ella had so much fun.
Mommy, let's go!!!
Checking things out
Video of going down the slide
Climbing video
Dominic looking completely adorable
Train table
Getting hot...and attempting to take her sweater off
More bouncing (side note: notice how her hair gets crazier as these photos progress? that is how you know she was having fun!)
Not surprisingly, my little hopper was asleep about 2 minutes after getting in the car on the drive home!
Mommy, let's go!!!
Checking things out
Video of going down the slide
Climbing video
Dominic looking completely adorable
Train table
Getting hot...and attempting to take her sweater off
More bouncing (side note: notice how her hair gets crazier as these photos progress? that is how you know she was having fun!)
Not surprisingly, my little hopper was asleep about 2 minutes after getting in the car on the drive home!
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Night-night
One of my favorite parts of the day is putting Ella to sleep at night. Since Steve is home with her during the day, it's almost always me who gives Ella a bath and then does the nighttime routine.
First we say goodnight to all the animals downstairs - here's a video clip from a month or so ago, telling Nomar good night (I'm not really sure why goodnight involved a washcloth on this particular night..)
She loves the bath and is always in such a good mood after, super silly, and lots of fun. She smells so yummy and her hair is so cute when it's all wet and she is totally adorable in her jammies. She runs to give Steve a kiss and hug (or several) goodnight, then runs back into her room, picks up a book, and taps the chair for me to get into it so she can climb in my lap to start reading.
At some point during reading, she decides she is getting sleepy, and asks for her "beppy" - which is her binky. She now needs TWO binkies to go to sleep, one to hold and one in her mouth, plus her favorite purple blanky. So, I load her up with both binkies and purple blankie, then we read some more.
Once it's time for her to get in her crib, I put her in there and she stands up, gives me a great kiss and hug, then gets herself all settled in.
Here's a video of some pre-sleep preparations
And saying "night-night"
Happy little girl
Air kisses
Could she be any sweeter???
First we say goodnight to all the animals downstairs - here's a video clip from a month or so ago, telling Nomar good night (I'm not really sure why goodnight involved a washcloth on this particular night..)
She loves the bath and is always in such a good mood after, super silly, and lots of fun. She smells so yummy and her hair is so cute when it's all wet and she is totally adorable in her jammies. She runs to give Steve a kiss and hug (or several) goodnight, then runs back into her room, picks up a book, and taps the chair for me to get into it so she can climb in my lap to start reading.
At some point during reading, she decides she is getting sleepy, and asks for her "beppy" - which is her binky. She now needs TWO binkies to go to sleep, one to hold and one in her mouth, plus her favorite purple blanky. So, I load her up with both binkies and purple blankie, then we read some more.
Once it's time for her to get in her crib, I put her in there and she stands up, gives me a great kiss and hug, then gets herself all settled in.
Here's a video of some pre-sleep preparations
And saying "night-night"
Happy little girl
Air kisses
Could she be any sweeter???
Friday, December 4, 2009
Decorating for Christmas
We decorated for Christmas the weekend after Thanksgiving, and put up the tree and inside decorations on Saturday, and did the outside lights on Sunday.
It was so much fun with Ella because she was very interested in the whole process and was oh so helpful.
Giggling on the couch with Cory
Heavy lifting!!
Checking out the tree
Hanging an ornament
She was really pleased with the lights - here's a video of her approval!
All done!
Ella loves the tree and loves saying "on" (onnnn) and "off" (offsh) for us to turn the lights on a off. In the 5 days it's been up we've had to already move just about all the lower ornaments higher on the tree, she is quite thrilled with the whole thing. We've got our stockings hung on the fireplace and everything is looking Christmas-y!
We did the outside lights on Sunday
Ella, meet Frosty (pretty much the closest she will get to a real snowman living in NC)
Outside lights
I've always wanted to have icicle lights and this year we got them. I think they're so pretty and love having our house decorated and ready for Christmas. I can't believe Christmas is right around the corner!
It was so much fun with Ella because she was very interested in the whole process and was oh so helpful.
Giggling on the couch with Cory
Heavy lifting!!
Checking out the tree
Hanging an ornament
She was really pleased with the lights - here's a video of her approval!
All done!
Ella loves the tree and loves saying "on" (onnnn) and "off" (offsh) for us to turn the lights on a off. In the 5 days it's been up we've had to already move just about all the lower ornaments higher on the tree, she is quite thrilled with the whole thing. We've got our stockings hung on the fireplace and everything is looking Christmas-y!
We did the outside lights on Sunday
Ella, meet Frosty (pretty much the closest she will get to a real snowman living in NC)
Outside lights
I've always wanted to have icicle lights and this year we got them. I think they're so pretty and love having our house decorated and ready for Christmas. I can't believe Christmas is right around the corner!
Monday, November 30, 2009
Thanksgiving
We hosted Thanksgiving at our house and it was such a fun few days. We had Len, Carole and Teresa, Mom and Glenn, Erin and Josh, and Steve's cousin Rich and 2 boys Iain and Shane. It was awesome having everyone at our house to visit and a fun filled several days.
Many photos from Thanksgiving Day -
Ella helping to season the turkey
Luckily she knew just the right amount of seasoning that we needed!
Getting a ride in a box from Grammy, and Iain and Shane
Ella and Carole
Whew - Ella needs a water break - cooking is hard work!
Mom & Glenn carving the turkey
Before dinner
Sleepy Iain
Erin made some outstanding appetizers, and everyone enjoyed them while we cooked. Dinner was great - we had turkey, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, green bean casserole, corn, stuffing, fresh cranberry sauce, and corn muffins - and apple and pumpkin pie for dessert!
After dinner pics
Reading a book with Aunt Erin
Breaking the wishbone
Woooah, look what I've got!
Ella did not get the memo that the wishbone is NOT a post-dinner snack
Enjoying some apple pie!
Snuggles for Sammy
Whooo, long day, everyone is full and getting verrrry sleepy
It was a wonderful Thanksgiving. We've got so much to be grateful for, and it was nice to reflect on it for the day and enjoy such a great time with family.
Many photos from Thanksgiving Day -
Ella helping to season the turkey
Luckily she knew just the right amount of seasoning that we needed!
Getting a ride in a box from Grammy, and Iain and Shane
Ella and Carole
Whew - Ella needs a water break - cooking is hard work!
Mom & Glenn carving the turkey
Before dinner
Sleepy Iain
Erin made some outstanding appetizers, and everyone enjoyed them while we cooked. Dinner was great - we had turkey, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, green bean casserole, corn, stuffing, fresh cranberry sauce, and corn muffins - and apple and pumpkin pie for dessert!
After dinner pics
Reading a book with Aunt Erin
Breaking the wishbone
Woooah, look what I've got!
Ella did not get the memo that the wishbone is NOT a post-dinner snack
Enjoying some apple pie!
Snuggles for Sammy
Whooo, long day, everyone is full and getting verrrry sleepy
It was a wonderful Thanksgiving. We've got so much to be grateful for, and it was nice to reflect on it for the day and enjoy such a great time with family.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Wild Women
My friend Amber has been attending our church for several months and got baptized on Sunday night. We had her and John and Ryanne over after for dessert and some ice cream pie at 8pm transformed our sweet little ladies into WIIIILD WOMEN!!!
We heart Sammy!!
Pushing the shopping cart
Ahhh so much fun!!!
Pausing from their crazy playing for approximately 1 millisecond
They seemed to have boundless energy and just ran wild and crazy and had so much fun together. It was great to see them enjoy each other so much and my stomach hurt later from laughing so hard watching their antics. Needless to say, Ella slept very well on Sunday night!
We heart Sammy!!
Pushing the shopping cart
Ahhh so much fun!!!
Pausing from their crazy playing for approximately 1 millisecond
They seemed to have boundless energy and just ran wild and crazy and had so much fun together. It was great to see them enjoy each other so much and my stomach hurt later from laughing so hard watching their antics. Needless to say, Ella slept very well on Sunday night!
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