Weekend Project

Both Saturday and Sunday Spencer had to work from noon until 8. Unfortunately, he had to spend what little time he had at home putting together our new patio furniture. It took forever but luckily he had 2 amazing helpers! A pregnant wife and a 2 1/2-year-old! I do have to admit, though, I put the umbrella stand together all by myself! Ella Ann just wanted to carry around the little wrenches that came in the boxes and hand them to Spencer about a million times! That afternoon Ella Ann and I just ran a few errands. I went to Michael's and got her a ton of dinky craft stuff so she can do arts and crafts to her hearts content at home now. The scissors (safety ones) were her favorite thing ever! By the time she was finished with her project she had made what looked like a frayed rug out of a piece of construction paper! She was SO proud of herself! She also loved the glue stick. At one point I caught her rubbing it on her lips because she thought it would double as her chapstick too!

On Sunday morning Spencer finished putting the furniture together and then we went to relax at Starbucks and enjoy some coffee before we headed to church. Last night I recorded "Peter Pan" for Ella Ann and we're going to watch it this afternoon. I'll pop some popcorn and we'll enjoy a girls afternoon in! Since Spencer said he hated to miss out on the fun we may have a repeat showing tomorrow night!

Daddy's little helper! He was NOT happy that this furniture took so long to put together!

"Here ya go Mommy!"

Ahhhh...it's finished! Now I think we're going to have to buy a cover for all of it because it sits under a tree that goes through our deck and drips red stuff all over it.

Ella Ann cutting away! I can't tell you how many times I heard "Look Mommy!!!!"

Ella Ann before church this morning in her pretty new dress that Grandpa and Mimi gave her.

A shorter version of my old haircut from the front....

and back. You really can't tell what it does look like because Spencer refused to take the time to take a good picture this morning!

It's Time to Chat and Play

On Wednesday Ella Ann had our crew over for a play date, minus Jana and Mara Kate. I had so much fun with the girls and the kids had a good time too! I think they managed to drag out every single toy we owned! Diego, Anjuli, and Ella Ann put on a concert for us, which was super cute! I plugged the microphone into Ella Ann's keyboard and they would just sing up a storm! Ella Ann also got to get some "baby time" in with little Keona, Anjuli's little sister, and Henry, Luke's new little brother. Unfortunately, Ella Ann had to show her crazy side after she got to hold Henry and threw a monsterous tantrum when I told her he needed to go back to Miss Megan! She just wanted to sit and hold one of the babies forever! She did calm down and ended up having a great time with the big kids.

She loved the fact that she got to play with Alexia too...her favorite little one! On a side note, she is obsessed with socks and wants to wear them 24/7 which is why she has some hiked up purple ones on with her summer dress!

Henry is just a couple of weeks old!

Ella Ann's turn at the mic....

then Anuli's....

and finally Diego's. How cute is he?

I went to get my hair chopped off this evening and when I got home this hilarous video was waiting for me! Ella Ann LOVES to pretend to talk on the phone to anyone, including Mickey Mouse and any one of her stuffed animals. To give you some background information, she still sleeps with her bobbie/horsey but we keep it in the top of the closet during waking hours or else she would drag it around sucking her thumb all day. Listen closely to what she is saying and you will understand why she is talking about the closet. Oh and she ends the converstation exactly the same way I end mine with my mom! Maybe not as loud, though!

While Sitting On a Bench...

I realized how fast Ella Ann is becoming her own person. The two of us walked down to a big playground down the street from our house on Friday morning and while I sat on a bench Ella Ann simply took off and played.....without my help! Several funny moments happened as I watched her, but the thing that stood out in my mind the most was that I was actually sitting! This is the first time my little girl didn't need my help to climb up and down stairs, go down a slide, make her way across bridges, up ladders, etc. I've been looking forward to this moment forever but it was sort of sad at the same time. The other incidents that caused me to get sentimental, okay so maybe it's just my hormones being pregnant that caused me to get sad, was when this little girl that Ella Ann had made friends with came up to me and said, "Hi Katie." Katie? Ella Ann had told this little girl my name, not Mommy, but Katie! That's another thing, Ella Ann is now making friends with other little girls at a playground. Anytime we go to a park and/or playground, she always just stares at a child if they approach her and try to talk to her and they eventually give up but this time I watched her carry on a conversation not only with Mia, the little girl that talked to me, but with another girl, probably around 6, and her little sister that was probably 3. The 6-year-old took Ella Ann under her wing and helped her down a slide, only after I approached the slide and asked her if she needed any help and Ella Ann shouted, "No! I want her (pointing at the little girl) to help me!" Ohh I nearly shed a tear! I said okay and walked back to my bench and sat back down. The older girl was walking with Ella Ann and she said, "I like your shirt." Ella Ann's reply: "Thanks, I like yours too!" The cutest thing was another little girl approached Ella Ann and introduced herself and Ella Ann replied, "Nice to meet you!" It was surreal to hear Ella Ann actually carry on conversations with new little friends and it all made sense....no gibberish! I enjoyed myself so much by just being a fly on the wall that morning. Even though the twos have often been extremely difficult with Ella Ann it has quite an upside too. The good always outweighs the tantrums!

Since Spencer went to Toccoa this weekend Ella Ann and I just hung out around the house and did our usual errands to Kroger and Target. When we lived in our condo, it was so dark in the rooms and we couldn't get outside unless it was warm and we went to the pool (which is a lot of work) so I would separate my errands so I would have somewhere to go every single day. Now that we've moved, I don't have that urge at all and Ella Ann and I happily sit at home or get out and about in our neighborhood. Earlier this week I thought it would be fun for Ella Ann to ride her tricycle around the Virginia-Highlands square and down some neighborhood streets. Well now it's her favorite thing to do and she asks to go every morning when she wakes up! This is what she says to me (with very huge eyes right in my face), "Mommy!!!!! Can we go outside annnn...annn....annnd ride my tricycle VERY FAST, VERY FAST down da...da....da... STREET by the shops????!!!!" And let me tell you, fast she does go! The first day I kinda moseyed along while she slowly peddled but each day she goes faster and faster and today I thought I might have to jog! She wears her little helmet, sweating to death under it, and just peddles like crazy and does so well turning corners and watching out for people and pets! Everyone we pass just smiles...or laughs! She does look funny with that big blue helmet on!

On a side note, I have to tell you a very funny thing Ella Ann told Spencer the other night. Spencer put Ella Ann's dinner plate in front of her and told her to get up in her chair and fire away. Her reply to Spencer's "fire away" was this: "Don't say that Daddy! It's nauseous." How funny is that? She got nauseous from me because during my first trimester anytime I laid down on the couch, or floor for that matter, Ella Ann would always ask me what was wrong so I would tell her I was nauseous. She would often walk around the house and tell me she was nauseous, but she hadn't used that word in a while until "fire away" made her nauseous!

While at Target yesterday I was shopping around for a lunchbox for Spencer because I have to pack his lunch everyday now and with all the back-to-school stuff out I couldn't find a lunchbox that wasn't for a child. I did manage to find a patch of "normal" lunchboxes and I was trying to see if the square container I was going to buy to put his sandwich in would fit in it, Ella Ann kept shouting over to me, "Mommy, Mommy! The Dora lunchbox will fit! Get that one!" I told her, as I was laughing, "Ella Ann, I don't think Daddy wants to carry a Dora lunchbox to work." Her reply "Ohhhh yes he does! He likes Dora! It fits buy it!" Ohh the kid gets funnier every day.

I mopped the floor yesterday while Ella Ann napped and left the mop out so I could do her room when she woke up. When she did get up from her nap I was in the kitchen and I go back into the living room and this is what I found! She mopped a little in every room and when she was finally done the mop was dry! :)

Off she goes! Don't worry, I just took this picture really fast and then ran to catch up with her!

She can barely look at me without having the helmet flop around...even though it's super tight!

Birthday Pool Party

On Monday we were invited to a very fun pool party to celebrate Anjuli's 3rd birthday. Ruth, Anjuli's mom, is one of my friends from church, as are the 2 other moms that came to the party. Boy did Ella Ann have fun! Since we no longer have access to a pool, I haven't taken Ella Ann at all lately and you can tell she missed the water dearly! The greatest thing about the huge pool was that the most shallow part was only 2 feet deep so after about an hour I finally got Ella Ann all the way in and she was SO thrilled that she could touch the bottom and walk around by herself or with her little friends, who by the way, jumped in the pool, went underwater, and were swimming around like fish! She is such a cautious child and with all the other kids at the pool I didn't think she'd get in at all. She was so cute when she got to touch because her face lit up and squeals just started coming out of her mouth! I honestly couldn't get her out and she was so mad that we had to leave! I promised her, though, that we'd be back soon with Ruth!

The little lunch party we had was great too! We brought food for the kids and Ruth was so sweet and brought enough food for the mom's to munch on too. She also brought some fantastic cupcakes! Ella Ann was pooped, though, when we got home and took a loooong nap!

A big highlight for Ella Ann was having Alexia, Andria's daughter, there to play with. She sure loves babies, which I hope will prove to help me out a lot in the future! She just patted Alexia while she ate her lunch and each time she'd drop her cow Ella Ann would drop everything and retrieve it. After Alexia dropped it a good 6 times, Ella Ann said to her, "Alexia, this is the LAST time I'm going to pick this up for you!"

Look how proud she is of herself!

Climbing back in with Emma Grace.

Anjuli, Ella Ann, and Diego. Ella Ann wouldn't have anything to do with the cupcakes, she just wanted to eat all of Ruth's grapes and strawberries!

Anjuli's fun little party!

Travelin' Girls

On Monday Ella Ann and I packed our bags and headed to Kentucky to stay with my parents until Friday. We had a great time! Ella Ann was so excited to get there that she never fell asleep in the car! Great for me! :) I have now realized the older she gets, the more she is aware of what's going on, where we're going, and that she may miss something if she goes to sleep so why sleep? In fact, she was up at all hours the first 2 nights needing something or other and then up for the day around 5. I can handle being tired, but pregnant and exhausted and having to severely limit the amount of caffeine I drink is not a good combination for me. I was not a happy camper but my parents were there to do everything for me so I couldn't really ask for more! Fortunately she slept better the last 2 nights. She was in a good mood, except for one day, most of the time because she was totally entertained all waking hours by my parents. The first day we were there my Dad bought her a little playground for outside. She loved it! They will bring it down to us when they visit in August and I look forward to being able to sit on our deck and watch her play! On Wednesday we drove to Evansville, Indiana and shopped around at the mall and a few other stores and went out to eat at an awesome Italian restaurant. It was so great for Ella Ann because as soon as we got to our table they handed her crayons to color with on the paper tablecloth and a little appetizer plate full of healthy foods that she loved! It is rare when she actually eats more than a few bites of restaurant food (because it doesn't look like what I make at home for her) but she ate a ton of her spaghetti!

We also went to a friend/relative's house so Ella Ann could play with their daughter, Morgan. It was good to catch up with Ashley while Morgan and and Ella Ann played together. Ella Ann loved her baby doll and all her accessories!

On Friday afternoon we drove down to Tennessee to stay with Zach and Mandy. Gayla (Gary is in China) also drove down from Kentucky to see all her grandchildren in action together. As soon as we got there Carter and Ella Ann took off with Seth, now walking, close behind! Zach and Mandy moved to a new house too last month so it was fun to be in a new place! On Saturday morning we all went, including Craig, to the zoo. Boy was it hot and humid! We all had a really good time, especially the kids, who were absolutely worn out by the time we got home for naps! Ella Ann never really got out of her cranky/tired mood after her very long nap and asked to go to bed at 7:15. However, I put her in her bathing suit and she joined Carter and Seth in their spacious backyard for some fun in the pool, Elmo sprinkler, and jungle gym. Only Seth got in the pool and Carter ran through the sprinkler while Ella Ann watched and whined! :) What made the mood even worse was that she fell out of the swing on her head! Poor kid. I know it hurt and so that was it for the outdoor fun for her. We enjoyed a great meal together Saturday night and Ella Ann and I left early Sunday morning to get home to Spencer. We really missed him and on the way home Ella Ann kept saying, "I want my Daddy" over and over and even said it numerous times on Friday as we drove to Mandy's house. We drove through torrential downpours when we left Tennessee and driving into Atlanta. I was going 25 mph on the interstate, as was everyone else, with my flashers on. I've never been so nervous driving in my life and I was so thankful to be home!

I took quite a few pictures since we were gone for a week so click HERE to view them.

A Fantastic 4th

Spencer and I hadn't made any plans at all for the 4th of July. We just thought about just grilling out for the two of us but nothing other than that. Jana called me as I was baking cookies Friday morning and asked what we were doing that day. Her sister and her family were supposed to come for the long weekend but because of sickness they were not able to make it. Jana had made pounds, literally, of food and no one to eat it so we set a time for them to bring themselves and all their food and we would combine all that we had for a big holiday feast! The men grilled the awesome hamburgers, the girls chased each other around as usual screaming and hollering (thankfully this time outside!), and Jana and I chatted like hens while we prepared the rest of the food in the kitchen. We enjoyed our great meal together and had tons of food to spare too! After dinner the girls continued playing while the four of us played Bonanza, a card game that Kane and Jana brought. It was really fun! I honestly couldn't have asked for a better way to spend the 4th! I remember my Dad has told me several times about how they used to get together with a bunch of good friends on weekend nights to eat and play games while the kids played together because none of them had a lot of money and it was good, cheap fun. I thought of them while we were with Kane and Jana and what good memories we were making that will last a lifetime. Thanks again, Kane, Jana, and Mara Kate for spending the evening with us and especially for all the good food you brought! We look forward to the next time we do it.....very soon!

Ahhh...the continual running and squealing!

They just love each other so much! Jana was standing beside me and got a way better picture!

Kane supervised Spencer while he grilled! :)

Both girls took about 3 bites of food and insisted on getting down to play!

As you can see, we had a good time together!

To get them to calm down later that evening we put on VeggieTales. Ella Ann is holding Mara Kate's beloved penguin. They share so well...really!