Ella Grace is 2!!!

How in the world did two years go by so quickly?? I feel so very old! Ella, I cannot believe you are 2. You are an absolute joy in our lives. We wake up talking about you and go to bed looking at you. You are the greatest thing that has ever happened to me . I cannot believe God loves me so much to bless me with you. We pray for you everyday and pray that you grow up loving and knowing the Lord and all of the great things He has done. To celebrate your birthday, we had a BIG ol’ party!! On Sunday, 18th, we celebrated FARM style. We rented a pavilion and had a special tour of Old MacDonald’s Farm at Bever Park with all of your friends. This mommy was CRAZY and did way too much being 9 months pregnant. We invited about 60 people and had lots of “farm food” and lots of fun with your friends. You loved seeing all of the animals and playing in your bouncy house. The best part of the day was when we brought you to the decorated pavilion and you realized that the party was for you. You put your hand over your mouth and “gasped”, it was the cutest thing. You were less interested in the presents than I thought you would be, but definitely VERY interested in the singing and blowing out the candles, you even did it all by yourself. You are talking up a storm, telling us all what to do. You pretty much can communicate everything with the exception of a few things. There are a few words you say that I have NO idea what you are saying, but most of the time, you tell us loud and clear what you want! We got your hair cut for your 2nd birthday and you look so old it makes me sad. Mommy has been very emotional the last few days as I know my time with “just you” is dwindling. I’m also a little bit worried about rocking your world by adding a brother, BUT, I find solace in the fact that you are certainly not the only kid that’s had to go through it, and, I don’t know what I would do without my brothers and sisters. They are some of the greatest gifts my mommy and daddy gave me. I know you might not feel that way right away, but, hopefully, one day you will. On your actually birthday, we had an ultrasound of Baby Briggs who is measuring quite large. Baby Briggs, you had better not be 9lbs, I don’t know what I’d do!! You kept asking about the baby and I think at one point (based on the look on your face) you realized that the picture of the baby on the screen was the baby inside my tummy. You talk to “Briggs” all of the time and kiss him and rub him. We had a newborn over at our house the other day and you were OBSESSED, when the baby sneezed you asked, “Baby, you otay?” And when I gave you a tootsie roll, you tried to share it with the baby. SO cute! Since you can’t complete your own “2 year old” interview yet (next year you will be able to!), Daddy and I completed it to the best of our abilities about you!!  Here goes…. Happy 2 years Baby Doll. We love you more than you will EVER know. Thank you for the BEST two years of our lives!

Our favorite word that you say-
Mom: You’re Welcome
Dad: They are all my favorite, but “Uh Oh” “Oh Man” “Gottcha”
Your favorite toy-
Letters from the bath tub, play food, stickers, magnadoodle, babies
Your favorite food-
Buttered noodles and pizza
Our Favorite things about you-
Dad- when you hug us, want a “group hug”, say “ I Love You” and give kisses
Mom- how loving and caring you are, asking “are you otay?”, patting our backs, saying “I love you” or “Sorry Mommy (or Daddy)” , how you treat your babies
Things to work on in the next year 
Your patience. Currently you have NONE  you still hate riding in the car or waiting through a commercial break
What’s changed since 1 year ago?
Your language and communication. The way you can talk to us, you now throw fits/tantrums , you are so much taller, you have all your teeth (sniff sniff), and your hair is SO blonde!

Whew.

Wow oh wow. A LOT has happened in the last couple of weeks. For starters, Ella had her FIRST boat ride this weekend. She loved it. Yelled “Here fishy fishy fishy” over the side of the boat. It was a great time until about 30 minutes into it when you realized you could “jump ship.” And… you almost did. Daddy and I had to watch you like a hawk. Finally, mommy (9 months preggo and all) got into the lake and you jumped in with NO hesitation and swam until your heart was content. You LOVED every minute of it, laughing and rolling on your back and on your belly, it was so much fun to watch you in the lake. Since the last time we updated, you can also READ. No, I’m not kidding. You read these site words and it is the most amazing thing in the whole world to watch. Words like play, is, it, of, that, and…. you get them all right and you are so proud of yourself (and we are VERY VERY proud of you as well!). The first time you did the flashcards, you did them all right the first go around and then you looked at me and you said, “Otay mommy, sucker.” Because you knew you did something sooo good you should get a sucker! HA! That’s my smart kid!  Let’s see, what else has happened. This weekend was really busy. Daddy and Auntie Re threw mommy a very special surprise birthday party for my 30th birthday. You did NOT know what to, your friends were running around, my friends were running around and grammy, papa, boppa and grandma were all there along with EA (Olivia) and Re and Rad and Uncle Tin Tin. You were loving life. You were sooo tired though and at the end of the party we were laughing hysterically at you because you were SO excited about the moon. You kept saying, Mommy, Papa, right there, the moon, right there. It was so funny. You talked about it the whole way home until you passed out from exhaustion, and, in the middle of the night, you woke up STILL talking about it. You’re so stinkin cute. Saturday you and I hung all day while Daddy had to work  and then, we went to some friends’ house to have a bonfire. I made you share cookies with another little girl who is your age (2 weeks younger). She was not saying thank you, at least not good enough for you. So after about the 5th cookie you gave her, you said VERY loudly for everyone to hear… “You’re Welcome.” It was hilarious. We were laughing until we cried. Daddy and I wanted to crawl under a rock, but you were so adamant for her to tell you thank you. I’m glad we’ve taught you well my dear  Sunday morning is when we went on the boat and Sunday night we had another birthday party for Dex. It was an Elmo party. Let’s just say that you, ahem, loved to open the gifts and blow out the candles, even though they weren’t yours. You’re crazy kid. You are also totally into singing, the ABC’s, Wheels on the Bus, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, This Little Light of Mine and Happy Birthday To You. I cannot believe this week I’m going to be 30 and you’re going to be 2. I’m so thankful I have a birthday buddy to share my birthday with. I love you with ALL of my heart. I’m a little wistful about the fact that your life is about to change upside down with the impending birth of Briggs. BUT, I know you’ll do great and eventually you’ll forgive me  You certainly aren’t the only kid that’s had to go through it. Just know that Mommy & Daddy cherish your every hug, kiss, laugh, naughty moments, everything we do, is for you sweetheart. We love you.

The Dog Days of Summer

Well, the dog days of summer are upon us, meaning that it's time to go back to "school", back to a "normal" routine, blah. We did a lot of fun things this summer and celebrated the end of the summer with a mini-family-getaway. This summer Ella went to a new summer sitter (since Sara only takes 1 day a summer). Ella you did great. At first you weren't so sure, but you loved Miss Erin and her 4 kiddos. You loved to play. It's amazing to think about the difference of dropping you off on the first day of summer vs. the last. You are so much more confident in your words, communication and knowing who I am, who Daddy is, who Miss Erin is, etc... It was fun to watch. This summer I also got to take 1/2 day off every week for "Summer Time." I appreciate my work VERY much for allowing me to do that! Ella we got to spend afternoons at the pool or taking a nap together or in the garden, it was a lot of fun to spend that extra few hours with you. It seemed like this "summer" was actually a "school summer" for you and me. I took a lot of time off (with the help of 'summer time') and for about 2-3 weeks you didn't go to daycare at all, just hung out. I think you love routine, so I think you'll be glad to be back at Miss Sara's for the start of fall, but, you definately liked the chill out days of summer too! Ella took swimming lessons for 2 weeks this summer too which was fun, we'll do that again next year or maybe the year after. We did LOTS of activities in the community like Drive in Move Night, Farmers Markets, Downtown Getdown, Music in the Park, Disc Golfing, all kinds of things. I think you're sort of like me and like to be on the go! This last weekend we went camping for the first time as a family of 3 !! Let's just say that your mom is a trooper, going camping 7 months pregnant, in a tent, with a 2 year old. You did as well as we could of expected, probably a lot better! We went with friends and Marie & Brad, and you had a blast hanging around the campsite, playing in the kiddy pool and eating all kinds of junk! The first night when we put you to sleep in your pack n' play in the tent I'm not sure if you knew what to think. You cried just a little bit and then laid there and went to sleep like a champ. Of course a couple of hours later, you could hear us, and I came to bed to cuddle with you on our air mattress where you slept the rest of the night!! Night two you didn't cry at all, but still came to sleep with us on our bed. On Sunday, we packed up and headed to Madison, WI for a few days. I had some training on Mon, Tues & Wed, and we thought it would be fun for you and Daddy to tag along and play in the hotel. You had a GREAT time at the hotel pool with your "floaties" and asked to go to the "poo" all the time! You thought the hotel room was like a huge play house I'm pretty sure!! You did get in trouble a couple of times for running out of our room to the elevators and pressing the RIGHT buttons and then almost going down to the lobby before Daddy or I could catch you. How in the world are you so stinkin' smart?! You crack us up!! We took you to the zoo on Wednesday before heading home. I will NEVER forget the look on your face when you realized that the bear you were looking at was real. You were so excited. You fed some goats (you loved them!), got scared by an otter than swam real fast by you, and loved riding the mini train they had there. You asked for the "choo choo" over and over again! Whew, what a whirlwind couple of days. You sure were excited when you came home too! Last night, you said, "Mommy color" and I said, "Ella, you know where the colors are, go and get one if you'd like." You walked over to the colors, picked one out and said (with a grunt), "Got one Mommy" walked over to the table, proceeded to color on the notebook that was on the table and exclaimed, "Mommy Mommy M" and I looked down and sure enough, you drew an M. Whether it was by accident or not, it was incredible! Then I asked you to draw a circle and you did that too! Unbelievable!! Daddy didn't believe me, I had to show him the papers!! (I saved them too FYI!). In some other big news, Miss Sara annouced that she's having a baby in Feb/March. We are very excited for them, but I also know that this will change your world upside down. You will go from being an only "kid" at Miss Sara's in eary fall to being the oldest of 2 babies. I know you'll handle it amazingly and I know you'll be a HUGE help! Love you Ella Bella and cheers (as you like to say) to fall, may it be a great one!! Oh, one other new thing... you LOVE LOVE LOVE saying the word "Ma'am"- you call everyone "Ma'am"-hilarious!

Funniest Kid Ever

So, this weekend has been kind of a blur. Friday night we did nothing, which is kind of unusual for us. We did buy a double jogging stroller in preparation for Baby Briggs, Ella, you thought that was awesome, did NOT want to get out of it, only got out of it by kicking and screaming. Oh yeah, Friday night, you were horrible. Now I remember, how did I forget?! It was like the terrible twos hit and you were throwing fits about everything. Man, it was rough. Saturday wasn’t a whole lot better, you were still in this funk of a mood, but we did go to The Young’s house to celebrate Auntie Re’s Bday. They have cows and horses galore at the back of their lot and Ella was OBSESSED. How obsessed you ask? When we went over to pet the horses, you just started calling one of them Bubba out of the blue. “Bubba, come here.” “Bubba, I pet you.” “Bubba, Bubba, stop it Bubba.” HIL-arious. Where in the world you got that from we have no idea? You were so funny about it, Daddy and I are still laughing. Yesterday, we took you to the Sweet Corn Festival. It was a bust. They were even out of sweet corn (your favorite!), sooo, we all came back to our house with friends. You LOVE to show off for people. You kept telling Mr. Aaron “show” (that’s what it sounds like, it’s your short cut for “Let’s Go”) and kept taking him by the hand. You finally got him in the living room with you and gave him a sword to play swords with you and you kept saying “Hiiiiiiyaaaa.” What a riot. You’re CRAZY, I tell you that 100x a day! Today is your “Daddy day” the day you and Daddy get to stay home together and play. Mommy’s sad to be at work, but happy that you’re at home playing with him making the place a disaster.  Speaking of disaster, on Saturday morning, Mommy and Daddy were trying to catch a few extra winks of sleep since you woke up at 7 AM, so we turned on the TV for you. I caught you, out of the side of my eye, running into my closet with something. Daddy got up and chased you down, you had my lipstick EVERY-WHERE. Lovely. You are so obsessed with my makeup. Yesterday was also our last day at our current 46th Street location for New Covenant (insert tears here). It makes me misty eyed and said because that’s the aisle I walked down to meet your daddy on April 22nd, 2006. That’s the church we’ve come to love and cherish. Good news is that there’s a new building that’s big, beautiful and will become comfortable to us with time. I know it’s a good thing. Briggs, I think you liked the music a LOT because you sat there kicking me in beat throughout the entire sermon. Daddy could even see you kick sitting next to me. FYI, it hurts. You’re gonna have some strong arms and legs boy!

Nothing like your kid to show you your faults...

This morning as I was getting Ella ready to go to the sitter, she was in a delightful mood, and bossing me around (as usual). She told me, “Mommy Mommy get Dora”, “Go get it Mommy” (you were on a table so you couldn’t get down to go get it), so I went and got you your Dora night light (which you are obsessed with). You held it up to your eye and said “Picture mommy, cheese” “Say cheese Mommy”, so I posed for you, said “cheese.” And then you made a “clicky” sound like you took the picture. THEN…you said, “Mommy Mommy, one more, one more.” We went through this routine about 50 times. Do I really say “One More” after EVERY picture I take ???!!!  (The honest answer is yes). So sorry baby doll that I always make you take “one more.” Good thing I do though because you’re so dang cute I can’t get enough pictures of you!

Around Here

Well, Mommy has had the last few days off to spend with Ella Bella and boy oh boy am I tired and is my house a DISASTER. Funny how that works. Ella came down with a case of impetigo last week- we seriously win an award for having the strangest diseases hit our family. She looked awful for a few days, but now looks EXTREMELY better. Ella, you handled it with grace, like always  Glad you are such a loving child. This week you TOOK OFF with your speech. You do NOT stop talking and it’s mostly demands like… “MOMMY….drink (or eat, or sleep or diaper or insert any other demand here)” or “DADDY… stop it or come on or Dora” or any other command. Miss Sara mentioned today that your speech has just gone crazy over the last couple of weeks. It’s so fun to see. This week we fed the ducks. Daddy and I were laughing at the other Daddy that was there with his kiddos, because he had a stick to ward off the ducks. Daddy turned to you and said jokingly, “Now Ella, don’t be afraid of the ducks.” You ran straight for them, tried feeding them by hand, and then when I turned around to look about 2 minutes later, realized we were surrounded, literally stuck by about 100 ducks/geese. I started freaking out (not you) and Daddy was getting a bit panicky too (mainly because one geese bit your finger, you told him to “Stop it.”), so Daddy had to go get a stick to ward them off, it was so funny!! You crack us up daily. If you are upsetting us and you know it, you will look down and roll your eyes up to the top of your eyes, but not look at us. SO funny. Last night, we went out for Mexican. Eating out with you is a pure disaster right now, not gonna lie. There is NOTHING remotely relaxing or enjoyable about it. BUT, you were actually being pretty decent for the beginning part last night. You LOVE LOVE LOVE chips and salsa. So you were dipping one chip in about 2 cups of salsa and eating it straight like that, and it was spicy stuff. This went on for about 20 minutes until finally you must have gotten a big wiff of something, because you started yelling “Hot Hot, Mommy Hot.” “Drink Mommy, drink drink.” Then you tried crawling out of the high chair to run, when I yelled at you to sit on your bottom, you said, “uh, Daddy, triangle, triangle Daddy.” You looked down, saw a triangle shape and knew that if you started saying your shapes we’d be happy with you and you’d get out of trouble (which happened). So stinkin smart! This morning, Daddy wasn’t feeling very well. You knew it because he was home still and in bed, which he normally isn’t by the time you wake up, you looked at him and said “Daddy, Daddy, you otay? You otay Daddy?” as you patted his back. The cutest thing EVER. Mommy took a bad fall on Sunday with Brigg’s in my belly and Ella in my arms. I tried to protect both babies (and did so successfully), just managed to badly damage my knee in the meantime. Briggs, your mom looks stellar walking around 7 months preggo while limping everywhere- awesome. Anyway, we had to go to the doctor and the nurse could NOT believe how Ella knew all of her numbers and letters. SO funny to hear you say them all. So proud of you for that. You also have been way into singing. The other day we caught you singing your first recognizable song all by yourself….to NO one’s surprise it was “Happy Birthday to You.” Thank you, Grandpa Colton! You LOVE to sing songs and its fun that you sing along with me now. Briggs, you have been kicking me so hard that I’ve about fallen off of my chair a couple of times. You get really excited when I eat ice cream (because its’ cold!) and really upset when I lay on my side and invade your space, you kick me until I give in and move, which makes me wonder if you’re going to be like Ella. I won’t lie, I’m hoping you’ll be a bit more laid back  Daddy and I bought lockers for your room to paint and we’re looking for a dresser and double stroller. The fun never stops!! We love you both more than words! xoxoxoxo

Baby Briggs & More

Well, I must say, as excited as I am about the impending arrival of Baby Briggs in October, he sure did pick an outright FABULOUS time to come. These last two weeks have been the HOTTEST on record since 2003. Lucky, lucky me. Our energy companies are saying we have surpassed energy usage records (by a lot) and the power keeps going out due to too much air conditioners, etc… running. I’m a bit concerned about our electric bill for next month. Eek. So far I’ve been doing okay, though I did through a pity party for myself on Tuesday. I just felt miserable. Hot, icky, sticky, miserable. Even though our air and fans are running galore, the temp is still about 78 wherever you go. HA! Briggs you are a mover and a shaker. Seriously. I can NOT believe how much you move inside of me. I’m a bit afraid you’re like your sister too, you are picky about how I sit and what side I lay on. It’s now getting more and more difficult to maneuver myself in the middle of the night to get comfortable. You are kicking me so hard that I jump and that others can see it. Strong little devil you are. We’re excited to meet you and get LOTS of compliments on your name! Ella Bella, mommy had to go to Chicago this week overnight. I missed you so much you little booger. When I came home you kept taking me by the hand and this morning when we cuddled in bed before I had to come to work, you kept your hand on my face just to make sure I was there. You know ALL of your letters and you can count to 10 by yourself AND you can name all your shapes. You’re so smart and I have no idea how you picked up on all of those things. You LOVE to sing songs like “This little light of mine” and the “B-I-B-L-E” are your favorites. You know ALL of your body parts including your knees and your eyebrows and your favorite words right now are “See it?” “stuck” “hot” “ouchie” “Thank you Mommy” or “Thank you Daddy” or whoever is giving you what you want  HA! We love you both and I still can’t believe how much God loves me to give me gifts like you two.