A New Home & A New Ride!

Well, Ella Ann has recently moved into her new "home" and hitches a ride with Dad to get there! Santa brought her the house and car and she is now old enough to somewhat enjoy it! The house does all kinds of neat things....we ring the door bell, turn on the porch light, listen to dogs bark and cars honk as they drive by, listen to the weather on the radio along with fun music and we can one day work on telling time and numbers. It's very fun! She even has mail! ha! Ella Ann just chews on it, though...good thing it's plastic! Her car lights up and has a handle on it so it will help her when learning to walk.

Ohhh and in case you were wondering we do dress our little girl sometimes but right now it's easier to keep her in just a diaper because she likes to save whatever she eats on her for later and Ella Ann doesn't like to get dressed, so why bother?!?!

Beep, Beep! I'm headin' home!

Helllooooo? Anybody want to come over and play with me?

Come on in!

On the other side of Ella Ann's house!

Chewing on her housekey while taking a breather from all the fun on her stoop!

First Father's Day

We celebrated Spencer's first Father's Day this past weekend. We were truely blessed because he actually had the entire weekend off! Nana and Papa came for a visit too! It was so great to be able to spend Father's Day weekend with them.

Ella Ann gave her Daddy a plate with her footprints on it (see below)! Jana and I took our girls a few weeks ago to a pottery painting place and had their feet stamped on a plate and then Jana and I tried our best at decorating the rest of the plate. This is a very difficult thing to do.....write perfectly with a tiny paintbrush with two active girls trying to get our attention! I have to say it was SO much fun! We will certainly go back to make more memories with Mara Kate and Ella Ann! Just maybe we'll bring the boys along next time! Anyone in need of some more dishes?

Ella Ann posing in her new outfit from her Nana this past Saturday

This was taken before church on Sunday. Too bad few people got to see her in her beautiful dress because I was called out of the service to rescue Ella Ann who was screaming her head off in the nursery!

Ella Ann with her Nana and Papa

Ella Ann's gift to her Daddy

New Teeth & Tricks

Ella Ann has recently cut her two bottom teeth! They have been in for a little over a week, but I just took the below picture this morning. When I went to get her up this morning, she was sitting up in her crib waiting for me. It was the first time she has pulled herself up to a sitting position and I missed it! However, she did it three more times this morning, so I was able to see it. Yesterday she started screaming after I laid her down for a nap and when I went in her room after a few minutes to see what the problem was she was standing up in her crib leaning over it! Let me also mention that the crib is still in it's highest position! Yikes! This was also the first time she has pulled herself up without assistance from Spencer and I! Needless to say, Spencer lowered it as soon as he got home!

Ella Ann has a few more new tricks these days. She does an "army crawl" by scooting herself on her elbows and belly with her knees to follow. The only way I can describe it is that she looks like an inchworm when she does it! She gets VERY frustrated still when on her belly, so even though she puts herself in this position about every 10 seconds, she still yells until one of us rescues her!

I have also tried giving her some finger foods recently. We have tried dry and buttered toast, which she hates; a slice of cheese, which she also hated, and today I gave her a little bit of egg yolk (babies under 1 can only have yolks so don't think I'm being strange), which she actually liked!

Ella Ann's favorite toys these days, besides a bright pink girraffe that my friend, Molly, gave her, are a spoon, pot, an empty formula container, toliet paper roll and the cat! No need for the grandparents to buy anymore toys, just bring some trash or anything from your kitchen cabinets when you visit! ha!

So, for all of you many, many people who don't see us often, you must soon make a trip down to visit us so you do not miss out on all this fun! :)

Ella Ann & Mara Kate

Ella Ann and I went over to Jana and Mara Kate's house today for another fun-filled playdate! Actually, it was just a chance for Jana and I to do some major catching up! Since the girls were pretty good about entertaining themselves, we were able to do just that. I promise we really don't plan to dress the girls alike........it's just that great minds think alike! Ella Ann and Mara Kate enjoyed some quality time together slapping one another and taking toys right out of the other's hand, but it was all in good fun!

Connie, can you tell Ella Ann has on the pretty green dress you gave her? It fits her perfectly now! Thanks again!

Ohhh and today is my Dad's birthday, so happy birthday!!

They seemed to always want whatever toy the other had, especially Ella Ann! We are going to have to work on sharing immediatly!

Ella Ann, as you can see, just loves her little friend. It is soooo sweet to watch them together!

She Wore An...

itsy bitsy teeny weeny little pink and fruit bikini!!! With watermelon sunglasses to match!

Sleeping Beauty

I couldn't resist taking a couple of pictures of Ella Ann sleeping SO peacefully this afternoon. She slept for 2 1/2 hours curled up in her pretty little dress. So sweet! I guess she is still trying to recover from our long trip to Kentucky this past weekend where she spent all of her time entertaining Mimi!

Ella Ann Floats!

We took Ella Ann to the pool this afternoon for the first time and she seemed to like it! We put on her cute swimsuit from her Aunt Andrea, hat and sunglasses and she was ready to go! The water was a little cool, but she didn't seem to mind it. She eventually figured out how to splash and thought that was pretty fun! The last picture was the best....she enjoyed lounging in the pool!

Ella Ann's Nemesis

Grandpa got Ella Ann an inflatable toy for Christmas that she absolutely hates right now! It is supposed to help her learn to crawl, but it's not really doing it's job because every time we roll it towards Ella Ann or even if she just sees or hears it (it has balls in it that ring) she gets this huge, bug-eyed look on her face and then looks to Spencer and I to figure out if she should start screaming immediately or wait until we torture her by rolling it! It is SO funny! I tried to capture this look in the first picture, but really the picture doesn't do this face justice. I sat with her in the last picture to try and help her out but it didn't work, she was still very upset!

Spencer and I have taken pictures and video of her with this toy because we have to be able to show her this when she is older! We have gotten some pretty good laughs out of making her cry! I know, it sounds horrible, but if you were here watching it and seeing her poor, little face you would probably get a big kick out of it too! I promise, we won't do it again.....for now! :)

Spencer Turns 27!

The family celebrated Spencer's 27th birthday this week. We took Ella Ann to the park earlier in the afternoon to enjoy some time outside. Then we ordered yummy Thai takeout from a fantastic place here in town for dinner. We thought it would be best to order in and enjoy a meal together after we put Ella Ann to bed rather than take her to dinner with us at 5:00 p.m. and eat with the old folks!

I made a cream puff cake for Spencer that was really good. I tried to get Ella Ann to help me sing Happy Birthday to Spencer, but she wasn't too interested. She was mesmorized by Spencer digging into his cake and she helped him open his gift. The tearing of the paper scared her half to death, but then she decided that eating the paper would be better than getting upset over the whole situation.

Our First Playdate

Ella Ann had her first playdate with her bestfriend, Mara Kate! Jana and Mara Kate came over to our house yesterday to enjoy some play time. The girls were so cute together, dressed alike may I add, but I think Jana and I had the most fun laughing at them, taking pictures and video! Jana and I just surrounded them with pillows, since they both have a tendency to be very wobbly, and tons of toys to keep them occupied for a couple of hours. They did manage to take some swipes at each other, but no harm done! It was neat watching them interact and check each other out.

Ella Ann and I had so much fun with you, Jana! We are already looking forward to our next playdate!!!

Viva Las Vegas!

As you may have read from my previous post, my Mom, Dad, Spencer and I spent a few days in Las Vegas last week. We had such a good time going out to eat at fantastic restaurants, especially Joe's, a seafood restaurant at Caesar's Palace. A couple that is good friends of our family, Jimmy and Bridget, were also out there at the same time as us. One of Spencer's really good friends from Kentucky, Clay, was in Vegas this past weekend too. We went to dinner with him one night at the Wynn and did some gambling. It was great to see him!

My Mom and I nearly killed ourselves on Friday doing some serious power shopping! Thanks again Mom, I had so much fun with you! My Dad spent some quality time at the Flamingo pool everyday, while Spencer enjoyed winning some money at Blackjack and Craps! It was so nice to also spend some time with just Spencer. We got to just hang out with one another and not worry about bottles, bedtimes and naps! However, we missed Ella Ann SO much and were so happy to return home and see her! Her Nana and Papa kept her while we were gone. They had a great time with her and Ella Ann also got to see her great grandmothers, aunts and uncles in Kentucky. She also went to Nashville and spent some time playing with her cousin Carter. He is almost 15 months old and doesn't really know what to think of Ella Ann. From what our family told us, they were very cute together and Spencer and I were sorry we missed them playing!

We are happy to be home again and busy trying to get back in the groove of things. Thanks again to my Mom and Dad for taking us to Las Vegas! Spencer and I really appreciated the trip and all that we did, especially seeing Jerry Seinfeld! That was great!

Outside Margaritaville in front of Caeser's Palace

At the Wynn with Clay

Inside Caesar's Palace where we saw Jerry Seinfeld

Visiting Our Family

Yes, it has been a week since I have posted! Spencer, Ella Ann and I have been out of town all of last week and we returned home last night. Spencer went hiking in the Grand Canyon earlier last week with his dad and brother. Yes, they survived, but nearly killed themselves and hiked out of the canyon a day early and headed to Vegas for some R&R! My Mom, Dad and I met up with Spencer last Thursday in Las Vegas (his dad and brother flew home the morning we arrived). We spent the rest of the weekend having a blast in Vegas.

Before my family and I left for Vegas, Ella Ann and I spent some quality time with my Mom and Dad in Kentucky. Ella Ann did so great adjusting to a new place to sleep (a dark hallway in the basement!) and meeting new family members and friends. She was quite a ham for everyone! She enjoyed playing on her little blanket surrounded by a ton of toys, taking walks with Mimi and I, going to eat Chinease at my favorite restaurant (nope, no fried rice for Ella Ann yet!), taking long naps and playing outside in the front yard.

Ella Ann with her Grandpa and Mimi before church

Ella Ann met her Great Great Aunt Sue

She also met her 3rd cousin Cindy

As you can see, Ella Ann REALLY enjoyed playing at Grandpa & Mimi's!!!!!

Ella Ann and Her Avocados

In case you were wondering just how Ella Ann maintains her babysoft skin, she applies a thick layer of avocados to her face and scalp daily. Please see her demonstration below! I know it's hard to tell, but she does enjoy eating her face mask too!

Lazy Day at the Park

Spencer had today off, so we decided to take advanage of the beautiful weather and take Ella Ann to the park. She loves being outside and immediatly starts cooing and talking the minute we leave the house, so she enjoyed sitting on the blanket in the grass. Ella Ann has recently started to dislike being pushed in her stroller, but today she didn't mind it and was happy as a little clam. She didn't know what to think of the birds that were walking around us and she loved pulling up the grass!

As you can see, Ella Ann is now sitting up on her own unassisted. However, we have to stay close and catch her when she decides to throw herself backwards!

I took this picture before we left for the park just in case she ruined the outfit before I was able to snap her picture!

Looking up at her Dad

Ella Ann and Her Sweet Friend

Below are a couple of pictures from yesterday of Ella Ann and her friend, Mara Kate. Jana, Mara Kate's mom, and I love to take our girls to the park as much as possible. Mara Kate was born 11 days after Ella Ann, so Jana and I always have loads to talk about when it comes to babies! I honestly don't know what I'd do without her!!!

The girls were enjoying the day with their shades on! Too bad Ella Ann decided to throw hers on the ground where I proceeded to run over them! They are just so cute so I have to go back to the mall and get another pair!

All Smiles

I wanted to post this picture because it was just tooooo cute! I plopped Ella Ann down on the couch and just took this one picture and she smiled SO big for me! It usually takes me 8-10 tries to get one good picture, so I guess she is recognizing the camera now (since she has so many admirers that are always snapping her picture, i.e. doting grandparents!) and is all smiles!

Her Aunt Andrea gave her this outfit and she looked adorable in it and will wear it often!

Spencer has the entire weekend off, yeay! So we are going to the park tomorrow for a picnic. I will post those pictures soon!

A Weekend in Kentucky

This past weekend we went to a wedding in Kentucky. One of Spencer's medical school friends was the groom, so we were able to spend time with a few of his buddies. It has been almost a year since we've seen everyone and we miss them all SO much. It was so great to spend some time with them and do some catching up!

My parents stayed with Ella Ann at the hotel all weekend and took care of her. My Aunt Betty stopped by to meet Ella Ann, as did my two friends, Laura and Katie. They were all so excited to meet her and it was wonderful to be able to introduce Ella Ann to them. We really miss out on being near our family and friends, especially with a baby. They don't get to see her much, so I load them down with pictures via email all the time! I really, really enjoyed going to dinner with Spencer, Katie, Laura, her fiance and his son. We had such a fun time catching up and since Katie and Laura are engaged I loved hearing about wedding plans and seeing their beautiful rings!

It was a very quick trip, but it was worth every long mile on the road to see everyone, including my parents. Ella Ann was quite a trooper and hung in there and smiled the entire time, even though naps were missed! We were thrilled she was sooooo good with all the new faces! We even took her to the wedding reception for about 30 minutes and she loved the music and being outside. She wore a beautiful dress my Mom bought her and her monogrammed bloomers from her Aunt Mandy. She looked adorable, as you can see from the picture!

Thanks again to my parents for babysitting and sending us home with a truck load of food, diapers and formula!!!

Outside the wedding reception

Spencer and I with our friends, Chris and Jen

Ella Ann with her great aunt Betty

Katie, me and Laura