Ella Mae: Weeks 30 and 31

 

I am 7 months old!

I am 7 months old!

January is wrapping up, and so is our little 7-month old.  Over the past two weeks, Ella Mae has begun to crawl…or army crawl (marine-crawl, in favor of her daddy?)  Her vocabulary has grown to include “baba” and “mama,” and though I’d love to say that she’s referring to her mother, she’s referring to anything in front of her.  She continues to eat solids, especially loving carrots, apples, pears and chicken!  We have been letting her grab the food, which turns into messy but fun meals.  Our favorite new part of eating is that she now can eat dinner with us, grabbing at her food and snacking at will as we are able to sit down and eat together (“hallelujah” chorus in the background).

I can sit up strongly now.

I can sit up strongly now.

And after school I play with mama!

And after school I play with mama!

We have fabulous conversations...

We have fabulous conversations…

Sometimes she tells me the most surprising things!

Sometimes she tells me the most surprising things!

I also love to stick my tongue out

I also love to stick my tongue out

...and be adorable.

…and be adorable.

Ella Mae LOVES bath time.  She gathers all of the toys possible in her little arms and talks to them.  She also has discovered the joy of splashing and is confused why she gets so wet after.  It’s hard to take her OUT of the tub, but at least she’s clean!

Love me my baths!

Love me my baths!

Don't really love the drying off part...

Don’t really love the drying off part…

Check out Ella Mae’s first crawl!IMG_2623 and IMG_2607 (one of them…).  Should it surprise us that she was going after an iPhone?  Further attempts include getting Nola dog, the vent, and anything within reach.  Everything has been chewed on at this point.  We should own stock in clorox wipes…

The vent!  She plays it like an instrument, snuggles next to it when it's blowing heat, and talks to it.

The vent! She plays it like an instrument, snuggles next to it when it’s blowing heat, and talks to it.

I'm sure she's found lint...

I’m sure she’s found lint…

..and the chimney sweep.... (now removed)

..and the chimney sweep…. (now removed)

...and Nola dog!

…and Nola dog!

Another snow-day this week.  We spent many hours cuddling and snuggling.  Ella Mae has experienced a great first winter!

Snowy home!

Snowy home!

Snow-day snuggles!

Snow-day snuggles!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ella Mae: Week 29

 

I am 29 weeks old!

I am 29 weeks old!

Ella Mae has experienced her first -60 degree (with windchill, of course) day!  This past week, the governor shut down schools and advised no one to venture outdoors for two days.  Snow day with mom and dad!  She spent her time on tummy time, reading books, sitting up, and trying out all sorts of new foods!

The windows in our home, -40 degrees during the day with the sun

The windows in our home, -40 degrees during the day with the sun

Snow day!  Time in pi's reading books and sipping tea

Snow day! Time in pj’s reading books and sipping tea

Ella Mae reads her board book with mommy

Ella Mae reads her board book with mommy

More books!

More books!

 

..and loves to look at her own face!

She loves to look at her face!

Another fun snow-day idea: play with daddy's computer!

Another fun snow-day idea: play with daddy’s computer!

so fun!

so fun!

Ella met Dee!

Ella met Dee!

Ella now weighs just under 15 pounds and is quite healthy and happy.  She also went to the library with her nanny, helped with laundry, and had many cuddles.  Because of the cold, she got a little runny nose, but recovered quickly (and passed it on to mom and dad!)  This week, she tried peas, pears and chicken.  She also discovered the fun of sticking out her tongue!

Ella Mae can now reach for food and (sort of) stick it in her mouth

Ella Mae can now reach for food and (sort of) stick it in her mouth

Messy!

Messy!

...but oh so good!  Ella Mae likes sweet potatoes and apples.

…but oh so good! Ella Mae likes sweet potatoes and apples.

sweet naps

sweet naps

Ella Mae can hold her own bottle of milk.

Ella Mae can hold her own bottle of milk.

IMG_2485

Playing with peas (not eating them)

Playing with peas (not eating them)

(what a cute smirk!)

(what a cute smirk!)

...and offering them to us!

She’d rather offer the peas to us!

We think she'd rather have what he's having.

We think she’d rather have what he’s having. 

Oh that tongue- we see it often

Oh that tongue- we see it often

Ella Mae is also standing up against other objects.  We have to keep a close eye on her, due to those wobbly legs.

Ella learning to stand

Ella learning to stand

This week, she enters turns 7 months!  Wow!

 

Ella Mae: Week 28

The week of New Years!  Happy 2014!

We still had the week together, as school’s winter break was until January 2nd, 2014.  Ella Mae spent many hours cuddling and playing with her parents this week.  We had a little jet-lag issues with sleeping schedules, but she recovered quite nicely.

This week, Ella Mae went bowling with our friends Maddy and Maia.  She was excited to talk to the nearby bowlers!

Ella Mae and Maddy at the bowling lanes

Ella Mae and Maddy at the bowling lanes

Ella Mae also had play time with Kalen Lavelle.  It is so exciting to see friends’ children growing alongside Ella.  Sweet times.

Ella Mae and Kalen

Ella Mae and Kalen

Though she got many gifts for Christmas, Ella was more excited to play with pots, pans, and the occasional hanger.  Silly girl!

The most exciting toy ever!

The most exciting toy ever!

Continuing to work on her muscles, our little girl sat up often during the week.  We leave pillows behind her, but she rarely nose-dives into them.  She enjoys talking to her toys from her perch, as well as grabbing anything nearby.  She’ll also squeal loudly to the rest of us no matter where we are, expecting us to squeal back equally as loud.  We’ve become a noisy home.

IMG_2341 IMG_2344

Ella sitting and playing

Ella sitting and playing

Jeff discovered that she is a great mimic this week.  Watch the clip of him waving his arms, and Ella copying! IMG_2349

Ella continues to chew on anything in site.  Whether it’s bath toys or her new sippy cup full of water, this chewing should usher in those new teeth any day now!

She loves bath time now that she can chew on all of the toys!

She loves bath time now that she can chew on all of the toys!

Ella loves her sippy cup!  We're not sure if she drinks the water or just lets it pool in her mouth, but it's cute!

Ella loves her sippy cup! We’re not sure if she drinks the water or just lets it pool in her mouth, but it’s cute!

The last exciting moment of the week: she’s pulling to stand!  We’re not sure where she’s at with crawling, but Ella began to grab hold of our shirts and pull herself to a standing position.  Once up, she proudly squeals and wobbles.  As an experiment, I set her arms on the edge of the excersaucer.  Check out the video!IMG_2383

Ella learning to stand

Ella learning to stand

Until next week, we’ll keep snapping pictures and loving up our growing girl!