And She's Off......

I know it has been forever since I last posted. Where oh where does the time go? Oh I know- chasing a toddler who is fast and into everything! But I am enjoying EVERY second of it :) She is learning so much SO fast. It amazes me daily what she understands, figures out, remembers, says, signs, does... Overall I think she has a ball every waking moment, except when I take something away she should not have (such as Ally, the cat). For those of you that still check-in, thank-you for not giving up :) So, Ella had been taking steps forever, but being the turbo crawler she was she knew crawling got her places faster! I do believe she was waiting for the perfect moment to walk. We went home to Winchester Labor Day weekend and had a little party to celebrate BT's 30th B'day. Ella decided it was her time to shine. She had an audience of mom, dad, both sets of grandparents, great grandma Swimley, Great Uncle Johnny and Janet. Too much attention was on the b'day boy, so she was off! First a few steps, then a few more, then down the hall.She has only picked up speed since.

Here is some recent pics and I am working on uploading a video of her walking, but I'm having technical difficulties.

The Power of Cheese

Quality time with the animals

Ella and Skye have shared a lot of special moments with each other. They have also shared- many kisses (germs in my opinion), food-mostly food Ella drops from the high chair, but sometimes a snack that goes in Ella's mouth to Skye's mouth and yes sometimes back into Ella's (lovely). Ella thinks the dog's water dish is a sink just her size and likes to regularly wash her hands. Skye generously shares her fur, which Ella likes to pull out in clumps. But if she just looked on the floor all around her she would find an abundance of fur there (hence why I have to vacuum EVERY SINGLE DAY)!

Frisco on the other hand, just knows to stay away from the baby. He just knows for a year now whenever he gets near that thing he gets scolded. So when Ella comes over to pet him he gets away fast. Unfortunately he forgets that when he is excited. We then have to scold him (but not too mean or he will piddle) because his super-tail, which he has zero control over could take Ella out in one stroke.

Ella's favorite animal to be near though is Ally. The one thing that really no one should be near unless they have on those gloves that animal handlers wear that go up to their shoulders is Ally. Ella sees that cat and drops everything to go get her. Most cats would run away, but not Ally. Surprisingly enough she is very tolerant of Ella, but we don't trust her for one second, so the cat gets shut upstairs a lot. BT just loves this because a) he is allergic of cats b) she lays on his desk or laptop (which is great for someone who is allergic) c)she likes to play this game where she knocks things off his desk and then he has to search for them days later and d) he really can't stand the cat but Oh the sacrifices you make for your child!

Finally a place to sit around here...

Grandma Sue got Ella her very own sofa for her birthday. I think she likes it!

Fun at Gymboree

These pics are about a month old, but it gives you an idea of what Ella gets to do during free play at Gymboree. Since we are signed up for music class we get to use the open gym during certain hours of the week. A nice way to get some energy out :)

Happy 1st Birthday! (picture overload :)

I can't believe a year has gone by already! Here are some pics of the birthday girl!




























All her tricks
Signs: dog, more, all done, daddy, book
Words she says: mama, dad, hi, dog, up, book, bye-bye, yeah, all done, ki(kitty),uh-oh, oh wow!
She snorts when we ask her what a pig says and says Mmmm for a cow.

*It brings her teacher mommy much pleasure that she loves to turn the pages in her books and usually gets them herself to read.
*She is still a turbo crawler, but is getting braver with her steps.
*Her standing lasts longer now and she cruises along everything.
*Doors and drawers are suddenly fascinating and have to be repeatedly opened and closed.
*I still think anything involving music is her favorite activity. She loves to dance, clap and shake. It is hilarious to watch her tap her foot and pat her leg like she is keeping the beat. Unfortunately she is not fond of all genres of music (like ours). So, now 4 out of 6 CD's in the car changer are kids music :)
** She has taken over all aspects of our life, especially our hearts.

Grandma Sue

Grandma Sue came for a visit and we had a blast. Ella got lots of attention and I got some alone time :) We went to the beach, played in the pool, went shopping and went to a preview Gymboree music class. Ella LOVED the class! She is signed up now for every Tuesday morning this month. The ages of the babies in the class are 6 months-16 months, so I feel like she is the perfect age. I was SO happy to see her join in the activities and explore without hesitation. Here are some recent pics







.

11 months!

Anytime now I believe we will have a walking baby! I don't think I am ready for that since it is further to fall, BUT she is getting SO heavy to carry. She has stood up on her own not holding onto anything several times and loves to push her leapfrog push walker. I have to get a video of that. It is so funny to see this little person just trotting along.
Her latest accomplishments are signing "all done","more" and says "hi" all the time. The last pic with her hands above her head is what she does when I say "ta-dah" Anyway, I could go on and on with her many tricks, but I don't want to be one of those moms :)

Pool Fun

Fun in the Pool

Ring - Ring Telephone

Grandma Gini got Ella a phone almost identical to the one I had has a kid-rotary dial and all. When you turn the number dial it makes a ringing noise and I say, "phone is ringing Ella who is it?" She now picks it up and holds it to her ear and says, "ooh" -which I believe is hello. For some reason the receiver cord is really short, so she basically has to pick up the whole phone to answer it. I think we will have to get a cordless phone after she masters this one and then of course we will move on to a cell phone.

(note-Ella is not really kept in a cage all day (gate in background of pics). We gate off an area of the living room that is not safe with a big gate and leave it open most of the time. She does occasionally go in the corral(closed up gates),so I can take a break from chasing her. Of course I sit in the corral with her :)

Ella signing dog

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