What a day!

Mommy! Can we go outside and play?

Showing off in the driveway...

Ella in her new ride. Mommy loves it!

Trying really hard to grab the camera.

Someone once said little babies in skirts are not cute. I beg to differ! Come on... admit it. She's way cute in her new skirt. Here she is helping with dinner.

Hooray for the weekends! We all have so much fun being together as a family.

New Tricks

Ella is now really, really good at zooming around on her dog walker. Steering is still a bit tricky, but she gets up on it and moves... FAST! Almost like she's running to keep up with it. It's so cute to watch. :)


Her other trick is climbing stairs. Again, she does so really well now! She goes all the way to the top and does so at record speed! She's so entertaining. :)



I wonder what else she has up her sleeve!

First bike ride!

Ella had her first bike ride today. She had mixed feelings on her first outing. :)

Daddy strapping her in.

Checking out her new (much too big yet for her tiny head!) helmet.

Feeling good about her new ride...

A brief moment of panic!

Calming down...

Ready to take off!



And a couple others from today, just for fun...

I'm so cute, aren't I?

Mommy just likes this picture for some reason. She's always got her new camera in my face. This one caught me off guard!

Happy Memorial Day!

We have an 11 Month Old!!

Oh my gosh....one month away from turning 1 year old! Does that mean my little baby won't be a "baby" anymore!? :(

Happy 11 months sweet girl!






She was enjoying getting her picture taken, so she was hamming it up for the camera. She wouldn't stop clapping!

Loves to laugh

Ella laughing from Susan on Vimeo.

A New Look

As some of you may know, my wonderful husband gave me a brand new camera for Mother's Day. I love it! Though I'm still learning how to work it. :) Here are some pictures taken with it today.

Why does mommy put me in grass???

Here I am climbing on mommy!

Here I am deep in thought, pondering the universe.

This reminds me of being in my crib!

Favorite Things

Here are Ella's latest favorite things: (a short list)

1. spinning the toilet paper off the roll
2. saying mom mom mom mom all day long. (music to my ears!)
3. shrieking like a pterodactyl (her happy scream!)
4. clapping
5. giving high fives and low fives
6. taking everything off shelves or tables and throwing them on the floor
7. getting her tummy razzed
8. falling asleep on grandpa m
9. teasing gramma m
10. eating spaghetti and meatballs (and basically anything...)
11. climbing up and down on everything
12. reading books
13. fake coughing
14. laughing, and laughing, and laughing
15. opening and closing doors
16. telling everyone "no" by shaking her head

Happy times...

from the past week.

Grandpa holding his two grandkids.

This picture just makes me laugh. Aidan looked at Ella like she was a little snack for him! Don't they look so cute in their overalls??

Grandma and grandpa holding the little ones.

Sweet moment

Last night Ella woke up at 11:30pm crying for some reason. Usually we let her cry herself back to sleep (in a matter of a few minutes typically) as going to her to attempt to soothe her usually just upsets her more and prolongs her going back to sleep. Last night, though, I just wanted to go to her. I found her standing in her crib, in her sleep sack, whimpering away. I rubbed her head and kissed her before picking her up. She immediately quieted down. We sat in the rocking chair and I put her on my shoulder and rubbed her back. She scratched at the chair with her fingernails as she fought to lay her head down on my shoulder. In a matter of minutes though, her head was snuggled into my neck and she was asleep. I sat there rocking and rubbing her back as I prayed for her. It was strange to have her be so still. So sweet feeling the warmth of her little body as I gently rubbed her tiny back. I listened to her breathe and felt her body rise and fall. I sat there for a whole 30 minutes, not wanting to put her back in her crib. I hadn't had a moment like this since the very early months. Ella absolutely refuses to sit still now and almost never falls asleep on me anymore. Dave finally came into the room to check on us and after 10 more minutes, convinced me to lay her back in her crib. Usually she wakes when we put her down and sometimes cries. Last night though, she just rolled onto her side, sighed deeply and went right back to sleep.

Perhaps I was a little more emotional last night since my beloved grandmother passed away just a few days ago. Life seems to go so quickly, and the years are only moving faster and faster. For those 30 minutes I held Ella life seemed to stand still. I wish life would slow down. I'd love Ella to stay 10 months old for a little longer. I'm not ready for her to be a 1 year old, which is rapidly approaching.

I pray every night that God blesses her abundantly; that her life is filled with love, happiness and faith. She continues to amaze me with each day. I've never known love like the love I have for my little girl.

I love you so much Ella!!

Little firecracker

Ella can be very feisty! When she wants something, she wants it right. now. And if she doesn't get it? She lets us know! She's been boycotting naps lately and despite the new sleep sack, it's not holding her down! My thought was, if she's not going to sleep in it, at least it'll keep her from climbing around the crib and trying to get out. Unfortunately, that's not the case!

Her new thing is also to scream, shriek, whatever you want to call it, REALLY loudly! She does it when she's happy. In the car, occasionally in church, in her highchair, when we're playing... it's really cute. To me anyway. She's also getting a little braver in her walking. She's now walking around boldly, only holding on to my one hand. Ella's into everything now, I can only imagine what it's going to be like when she no longer needs my one hand.

Here's how we're now finding Ella in the morning and after "naps."

Chewing on daddy's toothbrush... tasty!!

Ella really gets into her dinner. Then gets to enjoy a bath afterward!

The face. Her serious look.

I don't remember why Ella looks surprised here... :)

Playing in the sink with the mirror.

Ella was a good girl today. We went out early to make it to a funeral and she was great for it. It was a tough morning, but she helped her mommy get through it. I can't help but smile when she smiles and "talks" to me. She seems to be a magnet for lots of people. Being out and about, everyone seems to love talking to her. She gets so many compliments! It makes me so happy how many smiles she brings to other people's faces. She seems to light up a room.