Videos as promised...

Well, I thought I had some video of both kids on my phone, but it looks like I only have Ella in these (Wesley is taping the last one, at least).

I don't know what it is with children & appliances, but Ella loves messing with the dishwasher. Just the other day she figured out how to crawl up on the door, stand up & hold onto the top basket.



Anthony insists that Ella hasn't really said her first word yet, but I'm convinced her first word was 'bye' followed very closely by 'dada' as evidenced below. She had woken up from her nap & he was gone so she went to the door & was looking for him. I was trying to keep her from seeing me so it's kind of dark, but you can hear her calling for him loud & clear.



Swinging in the backyard swing. This swing has had lots of love because it was Wesley's when he was a toddler. She gets so excited when we walk around to it & will just laugh & laugh sometimes when she's swinging. The girl loves being outside & loves to swing.



All these are from March. I guess I need to get the video camera out a little more. Wesley's playing baseball again so I'll try to remember to get some of him to post here. He's doing so well & has become so much more coordinated just in the last year.

My stint as a model...

Did you know I was once a model? No? Here I am on a billboard ad.



Oh, you don’t believe me? How about this…

Here I am in a gallery display.



Still don’t believe me?

Here I am again…



And, finally, I present to you proof that it was not really Thomas Jefferson in Mount Rushmore, but me. :)



The above photo fun is brought to you by Photofunia. Check it out for a little time-wasting amusement.

And, along the same lines…

Have you ever had people tell you that you look like so and so? For instance, in high school I was told a LOT that I looked like Alanis Morrisette. Must have been the crazy long, wavy hair.



In college it was Ashley Judd. Maybe it was the chubby cheeks?



In the last few years it has been Katherine Heigl. Chubby cheeks, again? Well, I never really saw the resemblance with any of them until I saw Ms. Heigl in 27 Dresses as a curly-headed brunette. I present exhibit A (a shot of her at one point during the movie where I paused it & went, "Oh, now I see it.")


...and exhibit B (a similar photo of yours truly from photobooth tonight).



Well, hot diggity dog, sign me up for my next job as a movie star look-a-like!

Disclaimer: I’m really not a shallow person – I just think it’s funny when I’m told I look “just like” someone, because I usually go, “Huh?” and have no idea what they’re talking about.

Come back tomorrow for a slew of videos of the kids.

I love texting...

Because I have no time lately to upload pictures & form coherent sentences to entertain you with the goings-on of our clan, I bring you a brief video from Comedy Central (which amazingly is perfectly safe for innocent lil' ears save for a quick comparison to being like an 'attentive lover'). I confess I don't ever watch Comedy Central & found this on someone else's blog. Even if I currently had that channel in our vast repretoire of 2 1/2 channels (another very boring story for another day), I couldn't watch it for fear that Ella's first word would be of the cursing variety.

Comedy Central Presents	Friday 10pm / 9c
Paul F. Tompkins: Text Messaging
comedycentral.com
Joke of the Day Stand-Up Comedy Free Online Games

Guess who took her first step(s) yesterday?

I'll give you two guesses, but I bet you only need one.

Yay for Ella! And Yay that Daddy & Mommy (& Wesley) got to see her take her first step(s) (she took several towards her daddy in the backyard)!

She also got in her sixth tooth, visited the doctor to find out she has bronchitis & an eye infection and got to swing in her toddler swing that Daddy put up for her (which she loves). It was a big day for Ella.

Sorry, no pictures with this post. The little toot decided to revolt against bedtime, so I'm trying to wrangle her and get her to settle down and get this posted at the same time.

As promised...

Pictures of Ella's birthday party...

Some of the decorations - this was after the party. Wesley was in such a rush to get things cleaned up (can't remember now why) that I didn't get a picture with all of it up.

She opened presents first (in her pretty party dress). Don't mind the red mark on Ella's cheek - she had a run-in with a shelf at daycare the day before & the shelf won (perfect timing for her party).
Of course we had to play with some of her new presents for a few minutes...

Wesley was doing more playing with them here than Ella - for some reason she wanted to sit on my father-in-law's feet & posing for the many cameras pointed at her.

Her cake *before*

Ella *before*

During... She wouldn't grab a handful (only little ladylike pinches of the frosting) so I helped a little. She thought it was some good stuff. (Click to see larger)

Ella *after* - She had a little cake facial going on.

A few seconds after this shot she wiped her eyes with her hands like she does when she's tired & got icing in her eyes & started crying so cake time was over.

The cake *after*

Many thanks to my sister, Megan, for taking these photos & Sunny for shooting the video so Anthony & I could focus on Ella.

Pearl off a string...

One of my favorite quotes (which I have posted over to the right & keep forgetting to update to a new one) speaks to how life is lived best in the small, everyday moments. This video is one of those moments that makes life so enjoyable - a moment in my day that most people wouldn't think all that spectacular but to me is precious & fleeting. It is so worth being captured & treasured.



She just figured out how to rock on her own this weekend. She also just figured out how to 'click' her tongue (she does it around 15 seconds into the clip).

P.S. Don't mind the mis-matched shoes with her pj's. I was checking to see which pair fit her to go with her party dress for this weekend.

EDITED: I know some people were having problems with the video playing. It should be fixed now.

It's all happening way too fast...

I cannot believe Ella will be one year old one week from today. I just can't wrap my brain around it. Every time I think about it I feel like I'm on a runaway horse & I just want to pull back on the reins to slow it down. Like it or not, ready for it or not, she'll be a toddler in just a few days. So, we're having a party for her. I made some cute lil' invites to send to our family (I erased our address & my phone number - don't want the whole internet to see that info.). I made the mistake with Wesley's first birthday of inviting too many people & stressing myself out with all the preparations. This time around we're just having a simple gathering of the people who love her most so she (and I) don't get overwhelmed. I promise at least pictures of her with the cake.

Ella's spot...

One thing I didn't know when I became a mother was that I was essentially giving up bathroom time alone. You can't just leave a baby alone so you can go take care of business. So, they come with you & you try to occupy them while you use the facilities. Well, Ella has her spot in the bathroom now where she plays. It's just perfect for a little person like her.




















And, here's a little video of her playing there - she likes to practice standing on her own.

A message from Ella...

Dear Grandpa G,
I'm sorry, but Mama & I are rooting for the Arizona Cardinals today.


I know you really like that other team, the Steelers, but I just don't look good in yellow. Oh, and I really like Kurt Warner, too - he's awesome. But, don't worry, Wesley & Daddy will be cheering for the Steelers.
Love,
Ella
Edited to add: Oh so close

Missing in action...

If you have ever wondered why Wesley seems horribly under-represented in the 5,372,804 pictures I have taken over the past year, this is why...

La, la, la - Just taking some everyday pictures of Ella - nothing going on here.



Hmm... Wesley's watching her, maybe I can sneak in a picture of him.

Okay, that first one wasn't so great, but maybe I can get another without him noticing. (#1 & 2 below - click to see it larger).
Well, stink! I'm caught.
And, this is what ensues from that point on - an elaborate attempt to escape without being photographed successfully.



He did give up this one, and it would have been pretty good if it hadn't turned out blurry.



Oh, well, the mamarazzi lives to stalk her son another day. At least now you know what I'm up against.

Three Reasons...

Three Reasons
1. You need to have a reason to get up in the morning.
2. You need to have a reason to be proud of what you do each day.
3. You need to have a reason to go home at night.

What are your reasons?

I saw this on Carrie Colbert’s blog (something one of her professors said in class) & it got me thinking. I’ve been considering my future a lot lately – looking at some possible changes to be made & praying God would show me His will & guide my decisions. Just wanted to share this little tidbit & ask you – What are your reasons? You don’t have to tell me, just think about them.

A very obvious one for me is no. 3. I have three very good reasons to go home at night (a place I love to be, in spite of its tendency to look like a tornado has ravaged it) – they are a boy, a girl & a man – three people that I love more than I could have ever imagined possible. Three people who I strive to love more fully & unselfishly each day for the rest of my life.

Crawling queen...

This first video is from Dec. 4th (she had been crawling for exactly a week)



And, this one is from Tuesday.



She can really cover some ground these days. Oh, and that slapping noise, that's her hands hitting the floor. It sounds like a duck walking through our house when she's crawling around. Anthony thinks it's so funny that she does that.

Baby picture comparison...

I get asked a lot who I think Ella looks more like, me or Anthony. I don't have any pictures handy of Anthony when he was a baby - I think he's about two or so in this one. The back of mine has my age as one in this pic. The picture of Ella was taken this past fall at seven months. Sorry for the bad scan - I was too tired to find a dust rag to clean the scanner (shhh... don't tell anyone or I might lose my good housekeeping award). Anyways, the point to this is - you decide who she looks more like (as always, click on the picture to see it larger). Feel free to leave a comment & let me know what you think.

Photo shoot progression...

Sometimes people ask me how I get such good pictures of Ella (not trying to brag on myself) & I have to tell them the truth...I take a Lahaaaattt (translation: LOT) of photos to get one good one. Case in point: I wanted a picture of her in her ultra-cute Christmas dress that my sweet friend, Sunny, sent for her, so I started shooting (click on the pictures to see my little comments)

Awww....now that's the smile & the well-behaved girl I'm looking for. Then...

It can take lots more shots than just ten to get a good one, but I thought you might enjoy the progression of a typical shoot with Ella.

What cha' up to?

That's what a friend of mine always asks me when he calls.

Me, I'm sitting at my desk at home reading blogs (a rare occurrence these days - the sitting while at home part & the personal computer time part) & helping Wesley review his spelling words. I just finished feeding Ella so she is in my lap taking turns prying open the desk drawer & dragging out some object she shouldn't be playing with (she just started wailing because I took away the screwdriver that she was about to stick in her mouth) & grabbing Wesley's weekly newsletter with his words on it & crumpling it up so she can stick it in her mouth. She LOVES paper & plastic - I think it's the sounds they make. I have to wrestle the now soggy & crumpled paper from her hands each time he needs the next word. He came up with the idea last week that instead of just writing the words as I call them out that he will write sentences with them. My favorite one from last week was, "My sister is pretty." This weeks it's, "My mom is strict." (I had to explain the meaning of strict) Yes, buddy, she is.

Wow, it's been a long time since I posted. The very night that I posted last I discovered Ella's first tooth (one of the bottom front ones). She now has the two top front ones as well as both the bottom ones. She crawled for the first time & pulled herself to standing on her own the day before Thanksgiving & has been becoming more & more mischievous ever since :) With your first you are so excited about them getting more & more mobile. I have discovered with the second while you are excited at their accomplishments, it is tempered with the knowledge that there's no going back (& that you haven't yet 'baby-proofed' a single room in your house) - no more plopping them down in the middle of the room with a few toys & looking back to find them in the same spot. So, it's a little sad - she's much more a toddler who wants to get down on the floor than a helpless infant who likes nothing more than cuddling with momma for hours.

So, anyways, that's what I'm up to at the moment.

A little note about Christmas cards - if you usually receive one with our yearly newsletter & a picture, you won't this year. The downturn in the economy can be blamed for that. I have most of my regular card recipients' email addresses & will email it instead. If you're not a regular card recipient & would like to see our family's smiling faces & hear a little about our past year, feel free to leave a comment with your email address & I'll make sure to send it to you as well.

You can see E.G.'s two bottom teeth in this picture from last Saturday
(click on it to see it much larger)
(her daddy is fond of calling her by her initials)

Tag Game...

I've been tagged, again. This time by Haley. Here's what I had to do:

Pick the 4th picture folder on your computer.

Pick the 4th picture in that folder.

Explain what the picture is about.

Tag 4 blogging friends to do the same.

Here's my photo:


And, an explanation...

This is a picture I took in April for a scrapbook page that has yet to be created. It will be titled, "Ode to Coffee." Just kidding - or maybe I'm not. The idea was to journal about how I owe pretty much any productivity I had for the first four months of Ella's life to caffeine, because I felt like a walking zombie until she started sleeping through the night (translation - for longer than 3 or 4 hours at a time).

Seriously though - I never liked coffee all that much until I discovered mocha lattes (Yum!) when I was pregnant with Ella & I had to choose between horrendous nausea all day, every day or taking phenagran & having to prop my eyelids open to maintain conciousness. My favorite coffee treat is the mocha java chiller at Sonic (pretty much a coffee milkshake). If they didn't cost so much & I didn't care about the size of my backside, I'd have one every day :)

And, I'm tagging Sunny, April, Laura & Karen - I know most of you don't have time to do this - my feelings won't be hurt if you don't :)

This one's for Grandpa G...

From Sunday night...



Wesley can always make Ella laugh easier & louder than either of us can. He entertains her on a regular basis & she LOVES it. This is just a snippet of normal everday life in our home (and a hello to Grandpa G. who lives all the way down on the Mexico border in Texas).

And a few things I don't want to forget about Ella...
-She holds her tongue between her lips all the time (must get a picture of this)
-She stops what she's doing to watch intently when I eat (following the fork with her eyes back & forth from my plate to my mouth)
-Her favorite new toy at the moment is one of her big brother's mini-basketballs (he's not too happy about that - keeps trying to re-claim it)
-Her bottom two teeth are almost poking through (her brother didn't get his first tooth until he was a full 9 mos. old - looks like she's following suit [should that be suite? I don't know])
-She is becoming oh-so-wiggly & is this close *picture my thumb & forefinger just a hair apart* to crawling. Her very protective brother is constantly saying, "She's about to fall off the [insert piece of furniture I've sat her on for a few seconds]." I have to remind him that he's still alive & intact so I might be able to handle it.
-She loves being gently tossed in the air.
-She didn't inherit her mamas genes in some areas, because she is very much a morning baby - generally wakes up smiling & kicks her little legs & giggles on the way to daycare in the mornings.
-She has recently developed separation anxiety (normal for her age) & I usually have to sneak out of daycare quickly so she doesn't realize I'm leaving her. She's fine if she doesn't see me go. I remember bringing Wesley back to daycare at 8 mos. old after being home for the summer where my mom had kept him while I was in school/at work & having to hear him cry as I walked away from him to go to class each day - tears this mama's heart up just remembering it.

Loads of Ella videos...

In an effort to make myself feel better for neglecting our blog, here are a few videos from the past few months...

Me tickling her. She wouldn't laugh for me like she usually does.

Aug. 23rd

Ella 'talking' to her favorite toy - Bessie, the cow, hangs over her changing table.

Sept. 4th

Eating green beans for the first time (which you can see she likes)

Sept. 4th

Eating applesauce tonight for about the 20th time (which you can see she dislikes)

This is the reaction we used to get when we tried to feed her anything remotely sweet (applesauce, peaches, sweet potatoes...) She has started accepting peaches mixed in her cereal, but as you can see she acts like you have placed some awful, foul substance in her mouth instead of yummy applesauce. She will NOT close her mouth with it in there either. She'll stick her tongue out until it finally slides out of her mouth, or she has started spitting it out by blowing raspberries. This is a little foreign to me since Wesley gobbled up pretty much anything you put in his mouth at that age, but it's pretty funny to see her doing it.

I've been tagged...

My friend, Laura, tagged me, so now I have to post 6 facts about myself, then tag 6 other people.

Here's my six:

1) If I eat ice cream too fast it makes me cough (still one of my very favorite foods).

2) I was the first person in my fourth grade class to learn the multiplication tables.

3) I make the best 'shark fin pie' - according to my hubby.

4) My middle name (Rose) is after my dad's name (Ross).

5) I love the smell of fresh, clean laundry straight from the dryer but hate putting it away.

6) I kill plants - the only plant that has survived in my house for more than a few weeks is one little flowering plant that Wesley gave me in a hand-painted flower pot for Mother's Day (from daycare) 3 or 4 years ago (outside plants are okay as long as they can rough it on their own).

So here are the rules if I tag you...
1. Link to the person that tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Write six random facts about yourself.
4. Tag six people at the end of your post.
5. Let each person know they have been tagged.
6. Let the tagger know when your entry is up. I am tagging...

Sunny, Haley, April, hmmm, I'll have to come back & add three more later, I'm drawing a blank on friends that blog...

All things boy...

You know you have a boy when you look in his backpack & find a couple rocks he has brought home to add to his collection. Or, when he sticks his head out his bedroom door to show you his two rubber snakes (when he's supposed to be in bed asleep). Or, when you get two (yes, two) calls within one month from the school nurse saying he has hit his head on the playground, but "don't worry, he's fine. We put some ice on it. He didn't even cry." Oh, I could keep going... But, I love 'the boy' (as Anthony & I affectionately refer to him) & wouldn't trade all his boyness for anything in this world.

He's not too fond of having his photo taken by the mamarazzi (me) these days, but here's a few from last week...