11 Months Old Today!

Only one more month until Ella Ann turns 1! It's hard to believe it has almost been a year since she was born.

Ella Ann hasn't been feeling well lately, so we haven't gotten to do anything fun that would cause me to take pictures. She has had a bad cold, but is feeling better today. We have to get her on the mends before her Nana and Papa arrive to take care of her Thursday through Sunday! I am going to Kentucky to be in a friend's wedding and join in all the festivities on the days leading up to it. I love Ella Ann to pieces, but I am VERY much looking forward to 4 whole days with just my friends! I know I will race home on Sunday to see her and Spencer, though!

We did, however, snap a few pictures of Ella Ann recently. The first two are of her reading "New Baby New You" to Spencer. She was taking notes on their latest article, "Baby Weight". I think she ripped a couple of pages out to review later.

The last two pictures I took today before we went for our walk downtown. It's not THAT cold outside, but I thought I would put her in some warmer clothes since she still is a little sick and it is overcast. She hates wearing any type of clothing, so I am not looking forward to the colder months because it means I have to fight her even longer to put more layers on!!

Ella Ann catching up on some upside down reading! Isn't she talented??

Ella Ann getting some good advice about baby weight!

Ella Ann even gets to sport some pink shoes nowdays!

Ahhhh...so nice and cozy!

Quality Time With Grandpa & Mimi

This past weekend, Grandpa and Mimi came down from Kentucky for a visit. They hadn't seen Ella Ann since mid-August, so they couldn't believe their eyes when they saw how much growing she has been doing. Ella Ann got to show them her latest and greatest "tricks", which include standing unassisted, pointing at every single thing and recognizing people and objects by either pointing at them or going to "fetch" them, such as her beloved blanket and duck! She also gives lots of open-mouthed kisses and hugs!

They brought Ella Ann a much-coveted Tickle Me Elmo for her to play with; however, she was very afraid of it when she first saw it, but has now started to warm up to Elmo and will even laugh at it. Once you press Elmo's belly, the crazy thing falls over hysterically laughing and rolls around on the floor and then stand itself back up. Spencer and I don't understand what the Elmo hype is all about after seeing it, but Ella Ann seems to enjoy it! She will sit in front of it and pet it's belly, grab it's nose and give Elmo a kiss!

We went to the mall on Saturday and did some major Christmas power shopping! We wore Ella Ann and Grandpa, who tagged along for the ride, out! We went to a neat restaurant downtown that night called Pitty Pat's Porch, that featured southern-style foods. We all chowed down, but Ella Ann out did us all in the eating department! Let me tell you all that the child downed some black-eyed peas, collard greens, gravy-infused biscuits, cornbread, salmon, mahi-mahi and a truckload of fruits and veggies! Strange, I know!

All in all, we all had a great time this weekend and wish we could have extended our time a little more! Thanks again Mom and Dad for everything! See you soon!

Ella Ann posing with Mimi

Ella Ann giving Grandpa a kiss on his head!

Ella Ann is checking out Elmo.

Grandpa, Mimi and Ella Ann before church on Sunday.

Ella Ann's First Vacation!

Spencer, Ella Ann and I spent this week in Hilton Head with Spencer's family. This was everyone's first trip to Hilton Head and we rented a home in Palmetto Dunes (for those of you that know the area). We had SUCH a good time with everyone and we were sooooo sad to leave!!! We loved the area and did all kinds of things during the week, such as bike riding, playing in the ocean or our pool, ping pong, board games, sitting in the hot tub, going out to eat, shopping, etc. Our house backed up to a golf course, so the scenery around us was so nice. Hilton Head itself was beautiful and we toured around our planation often looking at the homes and the landscaping. Most of the trees had moss hanging from them and there was greenery everywhere, so it was exactly like you would picture it to be.

Gary, Gayla, Craig, Kasey and I went to Savannah on Friday to sight see and eat at Paula Dean's restaurant, The Lady & Son's. I love the Food Network, so I was so excited to be able to eat at Paula Dean's! The line to just put your name down for lunch at 11 a.m. started at 9:30 a.m.! Crazy! We were able to get our name down at 9:30 so we ate an amazing southern style buffet for lunch, complete with fried chicken, fried catfish, collard greens, black-eyed peas, grits, hoecakes, etc. We all chowed down! I posted a picture of Jelly Roll (the woman who makes their jelly roll biscuits) who stood in the middle of the street and yelled, "Is everyone was ready to eat dinner?", and then rang the dinner bell! That was worth the trip in itself! Needless to say, Craig hated going to Savannah and complained the entire time! Good thing Spencer didn't go! ha! The rest of us enjoyed walking the scenic streets and admiring the beautiful historic homes and squares.

Ella Ann had tons of fun trying to keep up with her Cousin Carter! He's pretty fast, though! He would always bring her her toys that she'd drop and give her big kisses! He was very sweet to her! I believe Carter and Ella Ann had the most fun because they were entertained 24/7; although they were quite entertaining themselves most of the week! They both did great when we took them out to eat for dinner and slept pretty well each day and night.

Ella Ann LOVED the ocean too! We would just sit her in the sand and let the waves roll up on her and she would splash them and try to eat the sand! Eventually she figured out that she could crawl, so after that she was trying to crawl to deeper water. She only had one major spill in the ocean when a wave hit her and knocked her backwards, but had a speedy recovery and was back in her spot in the sand!

Gary took all of our family photos, so I don't have any of those to post yet. These are mostly of Ella Ann, so when I get the other pictures via email I will post again.

Ella Ann's first time in the ocean.

Ella Ann with her Mommy and Daddy.

Ella Ann and Carter being pulled behind a bike by their Papa.

Another day at the beach!

Ella Ann relaxing watching the waves.

This is where Ella Ann spent most of her time if she was indoors....at her treasured learning table!

Ella Ann playing on the playground. Ride em' cowboy!

Her first time down a slide....no reaction whatsoever!

Kasey and I in front of The Lady & Son's restaurant in Savannah.

Most blocks in the historic area of Savannah had squares with monuments or fountains in the center. This one had a fountain but you cannot see it in the photo.

Jelly Roll ringing the dinner bell at The Lady & Son's!

What is She Doing?

Spencer captured these pictures of Ella Ann while she was asleep this afternoon. We take quite a few pictures of her sleeping because she is always getting in these weird positions and it's very funny! She is quite a wild sleeper, as you can see, which explains why Spencer and I refuse to sleep in the same room with her or within 100 feet of her, for that matter! She is ALL over the place and is very loud!

We have been busy lately trying to get ready to go on our vacation with the Jensen family. Ella Ann and I have been running errands, going for walks, cooking, cleaning and packing....nothing too exciting which is why I haven't posted in a while.

I will be sure to post lots of fun pictures when we get back from our trip. Come back and visit the blog soon!

She often sleeps with her feet propped up on the side of the crib, but she never has her entire leg hanging out! Both legs were hanging out, but we didn't get the picture in time before she moved.

Labor Day Travels

We spent our Labor Day weekend at Spencer's sister's home in Tennessee with his family. We drove up early on Friday and spent Saturday there also. On Sunday we all drove to Kentucky so we could spend some time at Spencer's aunt's house and see his grandmothers. Well, mainly we went so everyone could see Ella Ann and Carter! Spencer's grandmother's had not seen Ella Ann since March so it was great that we were able to spend the day with them and the rest of the family.

Ella Ann also got to spend some quality time chasing around her sweet Cousin Carter! Carter is so good with Ella Ann and he likes to give toys to her.......and sometimes take them away! He is now 18 months and it is so fun to watch them together. Ella Ann is mesmorized by him and would just stare at him with her mouth wide open, as she does everyone!

Spencer and I were so glad to be able to spend a long weekend with our family. It is very hard living this far away from everyone, but it makes spending a weekend with them so much sweeter. Thanks again Zach, Mandy and Carter for having us! We always appreciate your hospitality!

Forget the broccoli Mama! I want Carter's Nutter Butter's!

Ella Ann with Carter and her Aunt Kasey. As you can see, they do not sit still for one second!

Carter tried to give Ella Ann a kiss, but she decided to chew on his nose!

They are dressed to the nines before church on Sunday.

Ella Ann's chatting with her great-grandmother, Granny.

Nana's trying to get a picture with the squirmy kids!

Weekend Pictures

Spencer, Ella Ann and I didn't do to much this weekend. Ella Ann had a runny nose, but no other problems and was her normal self. Our friends, Kane and Jana, came over friday night for dinner with their little girl, Mara Kate. Ella Ann loves Mara Kate and wanted to play with her so badly, but we tried our best to keep them separated so that Ella Ann didn't pass on her runny nose to her. We had a great time and it was nice for Kane and Spencer to see the girls together because it's always just Jana and I when we have playdates.

We snapped a few pictures of Ella Ann sleeping like a mummy with her blanket. She now sleeps with this blanket and a little duck that her Aunt Emily gave her last weekend. She sticks her thumb in her mouth immediately when she grabs the duck and carts that thing around with her wherever she crawls to! It's soooooo funny! We took her to the pool on Saturday, which is the next picture. We are going to have to buy her another new swimsuit because the one she has on in the picture is 12 months and it's too small! Yikes! The last two pictures are of Ella Ann after her bath. That's about the excitement of our weekend!

My little mummy!

Somebody please put me in that pool!

In her flower towel that her Aunt Emily gave her.

Get this off of me!!

Happiest Baby in America!

Honestly, I have to admit that I am the mother of the happiest baby in America! Spencer and I are afraid to have any more babies because we're scared that they won't be as easy and happy as Ella Ann! Don't worry grandparents, we aren't that afraid! :)

These are some pictures we took last night of Ella Ann. Who else would we take pictures of?!?! She is modeling some new pjs that were given to her, but she hasn't slept in them because they are too warm right now. So we thought we would at least get a picture of her in them! She is also modeling a robe that her Aunt Andrea gave her. May I add that Spencer was the one playing dress up with her while I cooked dinner! I don't think he would let her be a tomboy either, even if she wanted to be!

The last picture is of her and Spencer playing in her room. She loves to be tossed in the air and screeches with glee when she gets airborn and lands (safely) back in her Daddy's arms. I know you all know how happy Ella Ann is, but we wish you guys could really see how she is when it's just Spencer and I. She constantly smiles and smiles and laughs and laughs! It's a treat for us, but we wish she would let everyone else in on her secret happy behavior! Also, if you will notice Ella Ann smiles with her ENTIRE face and always with her mouth wide open!

On another note, I took her to her 9 month checkup yesterday and she has grown so much! Ella Ann now weighs 18.6 pounds and is 29 inches long! She's going to be tall like her Dad!

Dinner Club

A couple of months ago, I asked a few girls from church if they would be interested in starting a Dinner Club. We would have themed dinners once a month and rotate houses. The girls I asked were very interested and the Club quickly ballooned to 20 "members"! We have had new girls come each time so it has been so much fun for all of us to meet new people and catch up with good friends.

Last week we had Dinner Club at my house. The theme was Fiesta Mexicana and Jana, Jennifer and I prepared the dinner. We had Mexican dip, chips, salsa and guacamole as an appeptizer and everyone helped themselves to some fabulous maragaritas complete with umbrellas stuck in the limes and lemons. For dinner we had make your own taco salads and burritos and to finish off the night, we had chocolate chip wafer sandwich cookies, mango sorbet and chocolate carmel cake. We have copies of the receipes at each dinner for everyone to take home. I had decorated my house with festive decorations and had Mexican music playing on my television. We truely went all out Mexican style when my air conditioner quit towards the end of the evening and we all broke out in a sweat!

It was a blast, though, and I managed to cram 17 girls in my home while Ella Ann slept peacefully in her pack-n-play in my closet with a fan going 90 miles an hour to drown out the noise! Below are a few pictures that were taken of the evening. I forgot to take a picture of the beautiful spread of food we prepared!

Jana, Jennifer and I posing with some decorations from the evening.

She's Getting SO Old!

Ella Ann turns 9 months old this week and I can hardly believe it. The time is flying by and it's kind of sad! I don't know if I REALLY miss the first months, but I sure do miss Ella Ann being my itty bitty baby. Now she's my extremely active baby that always seems to have ants in her pants! I can barely keep up with her in our condo!

I took the below pictures of her this morning before church. She looked so pretty in the dress her Aunt Laura gave her at a shower her and 3 other friends of mine had for me when I was pregnant. I also posted the picture of the dress after I opened it at the shower. I guess seeing that picture and her in the dress today made me realize how quickly she is growing up. I remember looking at that dress when I was pregnant, along with the other beautiful dresses she received, and thinking it will be FOREVER until my baby can fit in this! Wow, and look at her now!

Do I have a ham on my hands or what??!!

Papa and Nana Come to Play

This weekend, Ella Ann's Nana and Papa came to visit us. We had a fun time just hanging out and they enjoyed some much needed time with Ella Ann. Spencer and I got to enjoy some time out and about minus Ella Ann on Saturday; he played soccer with some friends and I went to the salon for a haircut and pedicure. Ahhhhhhh! We went to church on Sunday and took some cute pictures of Ella Ann. She has so many pretty dresses in the size she's in right now, so I have to put her in a dress every time we leave the house, or take pictures for that matter, so I can make sure they all get worn more than once!

Thanks Gary and Gayla for coming to visit us! We appreciate all you do for our family and we were very sad to see you go home. I know Ella Ann will miss you the most! At least we get to see you again soon!

Papa captured a classic Ella Ann pose with her favorite blanket and stuffed animal.

Ella Ann with her Nana

After church on Sunday

Bathtime with Ella Ann

Ella Ann really, really enjoys taking a bath now. Once she hears the water running, she immediately takes off on a sprint crawl to the bathroom...naked as a jaybird, by the way, and pulls up on the side of the bathtub waiting for Spencer or I to pick her up and put her in. It's the absolute cutest thing you've ever seen! She gets SO excited and cannot wait to get in the tub to splash around and play with her toys. I know she'll hate us for it in the future, but I couldn't help but post these pictures of her and will, of course, keep them in her album to show future boyfriends! Just kidding! :)