11 months old

Ella turned 11 months old this past week! We really can not believe it!  It's so exciting with all the new things she is doing, but it really is bitter sweet because our little girl is getting so big so fast!  I can not even think about the fact that she is going to be 1 next month!  We are definitely in party planning mode and are looking forward to celebrating her first year!

Here are a few of her milestones from this past month:

·         Took first steps holding onto her baby stroller and now walks all over the house with it. 

·         Got her first pair of big girl shoes from Stride Rite

·         Starting climbing stairs - not a good thing.

·         Started eating whole eggs and loves french toast!

·         Stands by herself without holding onto anything!

·         Makes her “ugly” face when she is not happy! (You'll see an example in one of the pictures below)

·         Still crawling everywhere, but she really likes to cruise on the furniture.  We think she is very close to walking! 

·         And, my favorite thing she started doing is blowing kisses.  She smacks her lips together and makes a cute kissing sound  - such a sweet girl!  

This is her "ugly" face - she is starting to do it often - uh oh!



She loves being chased around the house (and she loves chasing Lexi).



Happy Easter!

We had a wonderful weekend celebrating Ella's first Easter. It started with the neighborhood Easter egg hunt on Saturday. Ella had a wonderful time "hunting" for the eggs. She loved looking at all the other kids running around with their baskets and is looking forward to running around with them next year!

Sunday we had a relaxing family filled day and had a wonderful dinner at our friend Kate's family's house. Everything was delicious and the company was so perfect! They made us feel very welcome and we feel truly blessed to have meet such wonderful people in the short time we have lived her.

We want to wish all of our family and friends a very Happy Easter! We are blessed to have you all in our lives and want you to know we are thinking of you all! Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter! 

Ella with the Easter bunny...just before the meltdown.

 

On her way to the Easter egg hunt in the neighborhood.

 

Ella and her friend Gianna "hunting" Easter eggs.

 

They loved shaking them b/c the candy made a fun noise!

 

The Easter egg hunt with the big kids in the neighborhood.

Mommy and Ella

 

Mommy, Daddy and Ella

 

Ella in her Easter dress.

 

Ella and Lexi looking through their Easter baskets.

 

Ella loved her Easter goodies!

 

Lexi and her Easter basket.

PaPaw's Visit

This past weekend PaPaw came to visit!  We went to the park and had a picnic while enjoying the beautiful weather and swung on the swing!  PaPaw also installed a gate at the top of the stairs so that little Miss Ella would be safe! We had a wonderful time visiting and are looking forward to seeing him again soon!

The Becker's Visit!

Last week Tripp, Robin and Hugh came to visit us for a long weekend.  We had a great visit and stayed busy.  We went to Napa for the day on Friday and visited Rubicon, Silverado and Rutherford Hill.

 Saturday we went to the Farmer's Market to get some food for dinner and then went to feed the ducks at Blackhawk.

Sunday we went into the city and had an action packed day! The weather was beautiful and the temperatures were record breaking highs - it was perfect!  We stopped for a photo-op at Treasure Island and then headed over to Pier 39 (where the kids rode the merry go round) and had lunch at Ghiradelli square.  After lunch we took the cable cars to Union Square and walked over to the Ferry Building before having dinner in Pacific Heights. 

Riding in the cable car - I can not believe she was eating the bars!

 

Monday we had a great time shopping in Danville while the guys played golf. It was so great having them visit us and we hope they come back soon!

10 months old

Ella turned 10 months old last week! So much has changed this past month and things have been so exciting!  She loves to explore in the kitchen and the bathroom cabinets.  Her most recent thing is climbing up the bottom stair and the stair in the bathtub.  Here are a few of the milestones since her 9 month update:

·         Started brushing teeth - it's more like eating the bubble gum flavored toothpaste

·         Loves fish, spaghetti, and blueberries!

·         Claps for herself when she does something – so cute!

·         Loves going to the park and swinging on the big girl swing!

·         She is taking her 2^nd semester of music class and is quite outgoing now.

·         Pulls up on everything and likes cruising around the furniture (or whatever she can hold onto).  She loves climbing up into her Ella chair to sit. 

·         She now takes her baths in the big tub.

·         She has 4 more teeth (all on top)  - that makes a total of 6!

We tried to change up the photo shoot location this month and went outdoors to enjoy the beautiful weather! It was a little impromptu so my outfit doesn't quite match my sticker!

Trying to get up that first stair...

 Playing tug of war with Lexi

 Loves playing to keyboard after music class with the other kids.

Helping mommy bake!