Ella Loves Her Bath

You might be asking yourself how Ella's little face got so wet. Surely her mommy doesn't pour water over her face when she's washing Ella's hair. No one could be that cruel!

Actually, this is what happens. I recently have started putting Ella in the tub while the water is still running. She used to love to stick her fingers in the stream and marvel at how the water felt. Now...

she doesn't waste time sticking her fingers in. She heads face first into the stream and tries to lap the water up like a dog. She always ends up with a wet face, but usually has a big smile at the end of her "playtime."

Eating Like A Big Girl

Ella has been learning to feed herself. I thought it was too soon, but her pediatrician and our Parents As Teachers advisor both encouraged it. It's one of those things that's hard for me to let her do, because it involves a big mess!

This is a great shot of Ella doing it the right way! Now if it just makes it to her mouth without falling off the spoon!

Success! She's so proud of herself when all goes well. Mealtime can take a little longer now, but that's OK.

I gave Ella a few long spaghetti noodles to play with while I was getting supper on the table. She didn't have much luck eating them, but it was funny to watch her try to stuff it in her mouth.

If she could just learn to slurp up the entire noodle, it would be hysterical!

Ooh, almost! Slurp it up, Ella! It won't be long. Disclaimer: I didn't make her eat long noodles for dinner. I cute them up very small like a good little Mommy!

Ella's Last Day at Gena's

Today we had to say good-bye to Ella's babysitter Gena. We had been driving Ella to Cairo on Wednesday and Thursday when I worked so that Gena Robuck could watch Ella. She goes to church in Moberly with my parents, and I've known her...forever, I think. Someone in Macon from our church finally had an opening, so we had to take advantage of it even though we loved having Gena watch Ella. Paige was one of Ella's buddies at Gena's house. She didn't mind Ella following her around or stealing toys from her.

Ella really liked being at Gena's. She was probably spoiled rotten, but as a parent it's better to think that instead of the alternative. We just hope our happy girl will adjust quickly to her new sitter, Brenda Roberts. We went for a visit last week, and it's very different from what she's used to, but she had fun on our visit.

Ella got oodles of one-on-one time with Gena. She only watched 5 kids, and they were seldom all there at the same time. Brenda has more kids which will limit one-on-one time, but at least Ella's more independent at one year old than when she was a newborn.

Giving those last kisses! They are juicy ones at this point, but we like them anyway.

I could almost cry just looking at these pictures. I told Brent, it will probably be harder on me to change sitter's than Ella! I like Brenda very much, so it has nothing to do with her personally. I just got very comfortable with Ella being at Gena's. Change can be hard, huh?!

Good-bye, Gena! We'll see you when we visit Timber Lake. Thanks for all you did for us!

And We're Off!!!

Ella has been walking for a few days now. It's amazing how quickly they pick up speed and distance. She is going from room to room now without falling, so I'd say she is enjoying her independence.

I just had to post this, even though I'd probably sue if someone ever posted a picture of me from this angle. I just loved Ella's pudgy little legs in this shot. Not only can she walk, but she is a climber as well.

What a doll! My big girl is such a good sister to Ella and helper to me!

Another pose from my sweet 5 year old daughter. The rest of the pictures are just some random shots of Ella during meal time and playtime. She is a fun baby, and Gracie and Ella together are so much fun to watch!

A Big Birthday Bash

Today was Gracie's birthday party. She wanted to have a princess party again, but wanted a princess, ballerina, fairy, queen, prince, castle and a dragon on her cake. Poor me! Somehow we managed to squeeze everything on the cake (minus the dragon). I know it's blurry, but this is the only picture I have of Gracie blowing out her candles.

Nana Kaser gave Gracie a devotion book for Princesses. It's really cute!

A Barbie Christmas ornament that Gracie had been coveting was one gift she was excited to receive.

Gracie hated receiving 3 Barbies for her birthday! That was too many. Yeah, right! She loved them all.

At five years old, Gracie apparently understands the power that comes with money!

Cousin Kalyn was helping Gracie open her birthday presents. Gracie usually "helps" Kalyn on her birthday too.

This was one of Gracie's birthday invitations. You can't beat a good dollar store find!

Our lighting must be horrible throughout the whole house. My pictures always look dark. Anyway...this picture shows the castle tablecloth that we earned using our Disney Movie Reward points. It was absolutely free, and was a really neat interactive game as well as a tablecloth. It would ask you a question about a princess, and you had to touch the correct princess on the tablecloth and it would tell you if your answer was correct. No one could understand how it worked. It was absolutely amazing.

Gracie proudly stood by her cake that she decorated. It was a crowded cake, but it included some of her favorite things. She had fun decorating it.

Valentine's Day Party and Gracie is 5

Today our little girl turned five years old. Gracie woke up very excited because not only was it her birthday, but we got to go to school for her Valentine's Day party. She helped me make her box and was very proud of it.

Why does she have to grow up? I tease her all the time about getting so big, and how she needs to quit it. She always giggles and says, "I can't."

Ella stayed busy mothering the baby dolls in Gracie's class. She kept putting them in her own car seat and covering them with her blanket.

The craft at their party was to make a Valentine's Day necklace with beads.

Zachary was delivering his Valentine to Gracie. She liked it very much. He made little ipods out of boxes of conversation hearts. Too cute!

I spied one of Gracie's papers on display in the room, so I took a picture so we could share how good her writing is getting!

A shot of the whole squirrely crew!

Happy Birthday, sweet Gracie girl. We love you and our glad you are our girl!

Grandparents Night at Parents as Teachers

Tonight our Parents as Teachers group had a Valentine's Day party and asked us to invite our kid's grandparents to come if they lived close. That exempted Brent's mom, although I'm sure she would have loved to come. My parents drove up from Moberly and we were glad they could come. There were many activities, including making the beautiful heart mobile you see above.

It was a really great evening, because Brent is never available on when these nights pop up, but for some reason he could come tonight. He spent some time reading to Ella...and some complete strangers who just like to be read to.

Gracie got to make a few valentines to give out to special people in her life.

Ella couldn't really participate in any of the crafts, so she spent a lot of time cruising around the room and reading books on the mat. Thank goodness she loves books!

Gracie made a family tree with hearts that had family member's names on them. She came home and taped it on her wall, so I think she was proud of her work.

My parents and Ella

This was "wiggle time" where the kids were given various instruments and ribbons to shake and move around while music was playing. I didn't see Brent doing much wiggling!

A good time was had by all, although you couldn't tell it by this picture. Gracie had just been scolded by her daddy for running around the room, so she chose to pout for the picture. Ahh...4 year olds!

No comment necessary! Nana just loves holding little Ella.