Thursday, November 25, 2010

Videos of Ella on Youtube

Here are a couple of new videos on Youtube. There are a couple of Ella walking!

http://www.youtube.com/user/EsElDingo

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

14 Months!!

Here's what Ella has been up to this past month:

~ Cabinet locks have been placed in our master bathroom so you can't get into anything.
~ You had hand, foot, mouth disease AGAIN. This time it was much worse because the sores were on your tongue instead of in your throat. We had to give you Pedialyte to keep you hydrated.
~ Some new words that you can now say: "go" "Nana" "Papa" "night-night" "eat"
~ You are officially walking.
~ We are giving you formula for toddlers for your night bottle, just to make sure you are getting enough nutrients.
~ You are finally eating more!
~ You like sucking on lemons and limes.
~ You love your da-da and get so excited when he comes home from work. You like to hug him and crawl all over him.
~ We elevated your crib because you are very conjested. This has helped you sleep better although you are still waking up once every night.
~ Still only taking a 30-45 minute naps at daycare so you come home EXHAUSTED.
~ On the weekends you catch up on sleeping by taking a 2 hour nap during the day.
~ When you get someone's cell phone you put it up to your ear and say "hi" or "hey." Sometimes you also put other things to your ear that you think are phones and do the same thing :)
~ You like to throw things like balls and food.
~ You LOVE your eyelashes and play with them often, especially when you are tired or falling asleep in your crib.
~ You like to dance when you hear music.






13 Months Old (written 3 weeks late)

Mommy did a BAD job this month and didn't write anything down. So, I'm writing this "from memory."

~ Daycare is kicking our butts right now because you are constantly sick.
~ When you are sick, you are still sweet and mostly content. We are really blessed at how well you act even when you aren't feeling well.
~ You are a social butterfly. You LOVE going out in public and can't wait to interact with people (and animals.)
~ You never meet a stranger and will let anyone hold you.
~ You can take around 5 steps on your own. You are apprehensive to try much farther. You would rather hang on to objects while "coasting" along.
~ You are slowly trying more and more finger foods.
~ You LOVE your milk. We have to be careful not to give you too much so you will eat your food.
~ We have noticed that you are getting a little more affectionate by giving hugs and cuddling. Sometimes you want a hug and then you are quickly moving along to the next activity.
~ You love swinging at the park and enjoy crawling on the bridge and other climbing things.
~ We transitioned you to your "big girl" car seat a few days after your birthday. You have done a GREAT job and seem to like facing forward.
~ Nana and Papa bought you a DVD player for the car, so that has entertained you really well :)
~ You love being outside. In fact, if you are fussy or not feeling well, we will walk outside. You will immediately stop crying and focus on your surroundings. In fact, while you were sick, there were many nights you would fall sleep outside while being rocked on the deck chair.
~ You love to explore. If you seem bored, we take you into another room and you love the change of "scenery" and have a blast exploring the new room. So far, it is still easy to entertain you!
~ You love your little wooden rocker. We have to watch you closely because sometimes you would rather stand on it instead of sit and rock.
~ You love your ball pit. Aunt Dee bought you bunches of balls to put inside the pit.

12 Month Stats:
Length- 30 inches (90th percentile)
Weight- 20.11 pounds (60th percentile)
Head Circumference- 17 1/2 inches (25th percentile)



Sunday, November 7, 2010

Fall Fun!

Fall is in the air. And at times, it feels like winter, especially these past few days! Here are some pictures of our little pumpkin!








Tired from the pumpkin patch!

Halloween

Ella was sick on Halloween, so she was unable to go trick-or-treating. Fortunately her daycare hosted a Fall Festival the week before and she was able to get dressed up! They had food, games, a petting zoo, and inflatables. Here are some pictures of the Fall Festival.






Ella's First Birthday

We celebrated Ella's first birthday at the Pelham Park with family and friends. We were fortunate to have the entire family drive (and fly) in for the big day. Here are some pictures!



Backtracking a Month

We are WAY BEHIND in blogging. I blame it on business, sickness, and pure exhaustion. Ella is 13 months old, but I never blogged about when she turned a year old, so here goes...

~ This was the month of two more ear infections, so we were referred to see an ENT specialist.
~ You cut two more teeth...the ones on both sides of your two top teeth.
~ Some new words are no, uh-oh, bye-bye, hi, hey, Dingo (although it is unclear, we know you are referring to him).
~ You YELL when you don't get your way.
~ Putting more things in your mouth, even things on the floor! You finally enjoy eating puffs.
~ We have to keep Dingo out of the kitchen when you eat because you like to feed him.
~ When we pat your back, you sometimes pat our back too :)
~ You still aren't walking on your own, but will cruise while holding on to things.
~ Even though being in daycare is making you have many sicknesses you love your friends there.

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Cowboys Cheerleader

Here is our favorite Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader. She's the cutest of them all.

Monday, September 6, 2010

ALMOST a year old!

Well, this is Ella's last month before turning the big ONE. Time flies by...I know I say that often, but it really does. This past month has probably been my favorite!

~ You started daycare for the first time and you seem to really like it. All the workers rave about how you are a sweet, good girl who makes them laugh. The main comment I hear when I pick you up is how you entertained them with your MANY facial expressions.
~ You can hold your own bottle, although you don't always choose to.
~ You are still not wanting to try finger foods.
~ You do a better job eating your baby food in public and not as good while at home. You put up more of a fight at home...
~ Now that you are in daycare you will take a bottle anywhere without getting distracted.
~ You LOVE your daddy and get very excited when he comes home from work.
~ You have started being bashful/shy when meeting people for the first time (or if you haven't seen them in awhile). You put your head on our shoulder and hide your face from people.
~ You suck your toes more often this month.
~ A few times we have caught you crawling behind the couch. You start giggling and then pop your head up by the coffee table where I sit. You are very proud of yourself when you did this! But, because of safety, we have had to baracade your "entrance" so you don't get stuck back there.
~ You are walking really good while holding onto things.
~ You cut three more teeth. (Your two top teeth and bottom left.)
~ You got your second ear infection in the same ear as your first infection (the right one). Your pediatrician says you seem to have a slightly smaller ear canal in that ear.
~ You are much more cuddly now and we LOVE it! Maybe that's why this month is my favorite. You will let us hold you longer and you will give hugs and slobbery kisses.
~ You still love Dingo and want to cuddle him by laying next to him or sometimes on top of him.
~ You can crawl fast! Sometimes you will lift one leg up like you are walking while the other leg is crawling. It looks quite interesting and funny!



Saturday, August 21, 2010

Hiking

Last weekend we spontaneously went to Oak Mountain State Park for a few hours. It is less than 10 minutes from our house! We weren't sure how Ella would do since she was recovering from an ear infection, but we were willing to take the risk. She LOVED it! Vinny used the Jeep Carrier to hold Ella and she enjoyed facing out and watching everything. She loved seeing people on the trail we hiked and got REALLY excited when she saw a dog!!! We hiked down to Peavine Falls and back, which was about a mile. Then we headed to the petting farm in the park. Ella stayed in her stroller and watched all the animals. She was very calm...I think she was fascinated by all the different animals she had never seen before. Here are some pictures from our day trip!









Friday, August 6, 2010

10 Months Old

Today Ella is TEN months old. This month went by very quickly! Here's what Ella has been up to this month:

~You love to play peek-a-boo.
~You still like the same toys, along with Panda Bear that your Aunt Barbara bought you and the musical table we bought you.
~You enjoy climbing all over mommy, daddy, and even Dingo when we are laying on the floor. We are your personal jungle gym!
~You love books and they can entertain you for a little bit longer now.
~You are officially done with the swing. The past several months you would only go in it maybe once a day for a little while after you woke up in the morning, but this month we have put it away.
~You are VERY observant to fine details in everything.
~You started clapping you hands all by yourself.
~You had your first temper tantrum. It was a bit dramatic because you threw you hands over your face and down to the ground. Then looked up at us, gave us a huge pouty lip, and threw yourself down again. It was a bit comical...
~You have begun to torment Dingo and most of the time he could care less about you. We used to have to watch Dingo around you (we still do) but lately we have had to get onto YOU for annoying Dingo. You love him!
~You also love every other type of animal. You squeal in delight when you see a dog. You were introduced to your first pet bird this month and you were very intrigued by it. You wanted to touch it so badly and didn't understand why it had to be in a cage. You definitely didn't get your animal lover feelings from your mommy!! :)
~You took your first trip on the airplane to Pennsylvania and New Jersey. You did GREAT on the plane and so many people commented about how wonderful you were. All the family up north doted on you and you were incredible at the wedding.
~At the beginning of the month you were wearing 9-12 month clothing. Now you are mostly wearing 12 month size.
~I don't think I've ever mentioned your gag reflex on the blog, but you have it bad. If you cry for too long you will automatically make yourself throw up, so we can't have you cry yourself to sleep. Also, you are very particular about the texture of food and will not eat anything that is in solid form (othere than Stage 2 baby food). You will gag or throw up. The doctor said you will eventually grow out of it, but that it may be a frustrating process. It seems you will be a picky eater! We are hoping that going to daycare will help because you will watch other kids eating "real" food and want to mimic them.
~You are still not interested in the sippy cup...

End of the month stats (You didn't have your 9 month check-up until 2 days before turning 10 months):
Length: 29 inches (95th percentile)
Weight: 19 pounds 12 ounces (50th percentile)
Head Circumference: 17 and 1/4 inches (35th percentile)


It was so hard trying to keep you still for your 10 month portrait.

Obviously you didn't last too long.

Tormenting Dingo.

Watching Dingo play outside.

Playing with the dishwasher.

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Big Milestone Month ~ 9 Months






I'm a little late in posting this...Ella turned 9 months on July 6th. This month, by far, has been the biggest month for Ella. She experienced many "firsts."

~ Sat up by yourself a week after turning 8 months.
~ Less than a week later you started crawling.
~ Less than a week after that you started pulling up on anything you could reach up and pull on.
~ You cut your first tooth.
~ You had your first big sickness, which landed you in the emergency room at the Children's Hospital. You were diagnosed with coxsackie, which is "hand, foot, mouth syndrome." Your temperature went up to 103, you had little red spots on your body, and you had ulcers in your throat and mouth. You were miserable and the sickness lasted a week. We had to alternate Tylenol and Motrin every 3 hours. While at the hospital we were able to get your new weight of 18.7 pounds...you sure did grow!
~ You are saying "mama" and "dada" all the time and are now saying it in reference to the correct people :)
~ You dislike having your diaper changed or putting clothes on or off. You used to LOVE the changing table.
~ You are starting to have a little separation anxiety with mommy. It mainly happens at home when I am in a different room than you. You have no problem being dropped off at the church nursery, so that's good.
~ You have somewhat of a temper...this may be a sign of things to come!
~ You love magazines, especially when you rip them up! Haha!
~ You like to play with your shadow on the carpet when the sunlight come in.
~ You now have realized that their's a bow in your hair! Sometimes you will yank it out and throw it on the floor.
~ You love playing with door stoppers.
~ Your favorite toys are: Tickle Me Elmo, stacking rings, glow worm, toothbrush, empty water bottles, toys that make music or noise, and toys that are interactive.
~ People always remark about your blue eyes and facial expressions. The two "ella faces" are: the bottom pout lip and when you pucker up both lips.
~ You are wearing 9-12 month size clothes.
~ You take just two naps per day and they are normally short...anywhere between 45 minutes to an hour and a half.