What do Stay at Home Mom's do all day anyway?

For anyone wondering what I (and other stay at home moms) do all day, check this out. Very well said.

Ella Bella

Ella had a few nights last week of going to bed really late (a couple nights she showed no signs of being tired and wanted to play and another night she was at a Latin Dance party at a friend's house with my mom and apparently danced more than everyone else!) But, this week she's back on her night time schedule but sleeping really late in the mornings (fabulous!). So, Chris and I went in to wake her up at about 9am the other day and found her in our favorite sleeping position ever so we had to take a picture. She slept in this bottom-in-the-air position a lot as a baby so it was very nostalgic for us. We oooed and ahhhed and took a bunch of pictures before we woke her up.

This Ella's new Kitchen! Thanks Aunt Amy! It's pretty high tech. The burners light up when you turn them on, the microwave "dings," the faucet makes running water sounds when you turn it on and "Chef Tony" talks to you when you look at the recipe book. She really enjoys pretend play lately so this is perfect! (My friend Jen got us another smaller kitchen for $2.50 at a thrift store today! Yay for cheap toys and generous friends!)

It was a beautiful day so I took a few pictures of Ella outside. Here's one that is really cute and a horrible one that I think is pretty funny :-)

Doritos and Dogs

Here's Ella knocking (relentlessly) on Chris' office door. It's definitely the sad part of him working at home.




Then she gave up at started eating Doritos out of a bag that's almost bigger than her.





And now, a picture of last night's tragedy. Ella's hearing aid fell out while she was playing in the living room and within seconds Brooklyn (the dog) got ahold of it and chewed it up. Her other hearing aid is currently out getting repaired because the microphone got wet. Will we ever have both hearing aids and no issues for more than a week at a time?? An active toddler and a super-expensive, very tiny, not very durable device are a bad combination.

Pudding Baby

no explanation necessary

18 Months Old!

Ella is 18 months old!! She had her 18 month doctor's appt this morning and it went really well! She was not a fan of the doctor at her 15 month appointment and cried even when they were weighing her. This time she was happy as a clam, marching around the room in her diaper, reading herself The Foot Book, and playing with a purple plastic glove the nurse gave her.

Her 18 month stats are as follows:

Weight : 22lbs 13 oz

Height : 31 1/2 inches

She's in the 40th Percntile for height and 25th for weight but the doctor said that she doesn't seem underweight at all (she still has a little bit of that baby buddha belly) and is doing well. We talked about her picky eating habits and the doctor said goldfish and peanut butter really aren't bad staples for her diet and to continue slipping in the fruits, veggies, and dairy wherever I can. We also talked about vitamins so I'll get her on those soon.

Ella only needed one shot today. She cried for less than 10 seconds and then was so fascinated by her bandaid she promptly stopped crying and then waved and said "bye bye" to the nurse. I snuck in a few pictures after that while I got her dressed.

PS: I've experienced this a number of times now but when people notice Ella's hearing aids they assume she doesn't talk or can't hear (let alone understand) what's going on around her. I know that's reasonable for someone who doesn't know her but I always enjoy the surprise on their faces when she starts talking. So, I was quite the proud parent when the doctor was asking me questions like "does she like bread and cereals?" and Ella answered "yes," very clearly and nodded her head and then went back to pointing out everything she recognized in the book she was looking at. Then the doctor asked me if she was using a sippy cup and Ella walked over to the diaper bag, pulled out her cup and handed it to the doctor. She even walked up to the doctor picked up her stethoscope and held it up to her ear (I have no idea how she knows to do that). The doctor then went to write down notes about Ella's "advanced speech and cognitive development" and proclaimed her "a very smart child." Yay Ella! Those hearing aids won't hold you back at all!