Wild thing...

I dressed up Ella today as the Wild Thing monster. She was so cute. Storming around with her horns and tail. LOL. I will post a picture later. Way way too cute ; )

I DON'T WANT TO!

Well you can't say I didn't try. I got Gabriella all dressed up in the dress Grandma made, drove across town to Target, took her to the portrait studio. I'll bet you can guess what happens next....
Yep, a major fit. The photographer came too close to her and touched her dress. That was it. The tears started to flow and the screaming started. She refused to calm down for the pictures. No luck. and no photos.
sigh. I guess its a good thing Uncle John bought us that nice camera.

Gabriella's day.....

Ella video

Yay for friends...

Gabriella is finally warming up to friends. She had a blast at school today. She clapped along with the song and played instead of cried during free-play.

Yesterday, we went to visit Joey. She wasn't quite sure what to make of him. She got close to him and smiled but that was about it. She really LOVED Daisy (Joeys dog). She laughed and kissed her right on the face. She was screaming with excitement whenever Daisy was around. I'm guessing it was because of the adorable bow Daisy had in her hair...... She also took a real liking to Mary Ellen. She had a lot of fun and wore herself right on. She fell asleep in the car almost immediately after we left.

Mom Book!

Ella is a sponge. Today she learned "book" and "snack". I taught her book the same way I taught her other words, not giving in until she stops whining and tries to say something. It worked for book in about 10 minutes. We all know how much she loves books. She's currently pestering her Daddy in her room "book" "book" "book". Ha-ha-ha it's his turn. She even sleeps with three in the crib. Last night I heard her reading to herself at midnight. : )

The picture on the left is from this weekend at the pumpkin patch. Yes, I made William buy me a 24 pound pumpkin because my pumpkin is 24 lbs this year. Unlike last year, I got it on the first guess. : )

Books, books, and more books.

I guess what goes around comes around. My mom said that I was obsessed with books as a child (well it's been true my whole life, to this day). As a teacher, I'm so glad that my daughter has a love of words and a love of books. The only thing is she likes the same book over and over and over. She would read all day if I let her. I keep encouraging playtime too. She immediately crawls over to her bookshelf and pulls books down. She hands me one of three or four choices. I've read "Binky" five times so far today (it's only Noon). I'm ashamed to admit I've hid "Moo, Baa, La, La." I just couldn't take it anymore. My mom said she read me "The Little Engine that Could" until we wore out the pages.....

Off to school we go

Well we are off to our third session of school. I'm hoping she will do better today. She is talking a lot. She can say, "oh no" ,"Daddy", "Mom", "blankie", "baby", "more", "all done", "nite nite", "hi", "bye", "wheres Daddy", "bow-wow", "oh wow", "yummy", "yucky", "up", "no", "yes". But still no walking......

Talk or Whine?

Ella has been doing some seriously whining lately. It's frustrating for her not to be able to express what she wants or walk. I can see it making her mad. We've been practicing words. Patience, patience, practice, practice. As much for me as for her! Today we learned nite-nite (she says nanite). I've been ignoring all whining and crying for attention, I repeat the word, "nite-nite" or "all-done" calmly and walk away. As soon as she says it (or anything really) as long as it's not a whine I give her what she said. It's working. Well, toddler-working. Nothing is 100%, sometimes she whines, especially with Daddy (he is a major sucker for her) but she is asking as much as whining. two steps forward one step back.

Dresses, Bows, and all things girl.

I've created a monster. (the cutest monster ever!) I've been dressing her in dresses and hairbows since she was born. And o.k. I admit it the occasional tutu with ballet shoes. Now she throws temper tantrums if we take out pants. She will pull on them and scream. Whenever we go into a dress shop she says, "OH WOW!". This isn't a figment of my imagination! She really loves fancy dresses. The problem comes when I try to take her to the playground or school. She just has to wear the tutu.......

I admit it I purchased a brown and pink polka dotted bow to make it 56 bows today! : )

Sweet Dreams....

William and Ella bought me a video monitor for mother's day this year. I absolutely love it! I can spy on her anytime I like..... it's too bad that I won't be able to use it when shes a teenager. Tonight William and I were hanging out watching Law and Order in the living room, and I was spying on Ella. She was laughing and laughing in crib in the middle of her sleep. It was so cute! I wonder what she could have been dreaming about. If I had to venture a guess I would guess it was Lilly. Everything Lilly does is just SOOOOOO funny to her.

YUMMY

Ella has had a busy week. Mostly non-stop playing, moving, and snacking ; ) She loves to eat whatever Willliam and I are eating. She has been known to say YUMMY to salmon, basil, shrimp, scallops, spicy BBQ. If I'm eating it she wants it right away. If I'm drinking it, she must have it. I try to sneak candy bars, but she has this sense that I'm eating. As soon as she senses it she crawls at mock 10 towards the food. It's no wonder she is in the 75 % for weight.