Happy First Birthday Ella

Last Saturday we celebrated Ella's first birthday at our house with friends and family. From a 4.14 oz preemie to a healthy and happy 20 something lb (going to the doctors on Monday) baby, it's hard to believe that a year has passed already. Often we sit back and wonder where the time has gone. It's truly amazing how much Ella has touched our lives. We honestly couldn't imagine our lives without her - she makes life worth living. She's the perfect combination on mommy and daddy and we just think the world of her. Ella has grown a lot as well as learned a lot in the past year which is also true for both Erik and I.

As far as Ella's milestones, I'm sure I've missed some but here's what comes to my mind at the moment:

• Is crawling all over the place and is furniture and toy walking
• Has 2 teeth (bottom two)
• Is completely off the pacifier
• Is eating dinner and meals with us and is not really interested in the baby food anymore
• Will be transitioning to whole milk very soon
• Says mama, dada, dog, Ella, hi, baba, what's that, and grandma
• Is completely attached to her Pooh Bear blankie
• When someone says "Oh my goodness" she puts her hand on top of her head (the cutest thing ever - she saw mommy do this one day and she just picked it up)
• Babbles pretend sentences
• Tries to copy everything we do, words and gestures
• Fake coughs and sneezes
• Claps, especially at the end of her favorite songs
• Knows how to turn the lights on and off
• Waves hi and bye when you say "wave" (she doesn't even need to see you do it) or "hi" and "bye"
• Smacks her lips together and kisses when you say "give me kisses"
• Responds well to commands we give her (for example we say "go get that toy" or "where's Pooh Bear" or "where's you hair" or "press the button" or "open and close")
• Dances when you say "dance"
• Knows how to shake her toys when you say "shake"
• Knows how to bang her toys when you say "bang bang bang"
• Loves to play peekaboo
• Looks for hidden toys and objects
• Puts her shape toys in the right slots (for the most part)
• Turns pages when we read books
• Has separation anxiety when we leave the room (it is getting much better now that she knows how to crawl and she can crawl her way to us)
• Loves to put toys on her feet, especially the rings

One of My Favorite Photos

Do I have to say anything else?

Guess Who's Turning One???

Boy does time fly when you are having fun with a little one! We can't believe Ella will be turning one next Saturday. We'll be celebrating by having friends and family over to share this special day with her. At this time last year I was confined to the hospital for several weeks awaiting for Ella's arrival. She was just so eager to make her entrance into the world and we are so blessed to have a sweet, healthy little girl in our lives.

As far as new developments, Ella cut her first tooth a few weeks back and has another one on the way. We didn't ever think that poor girl would get any teeth. On another developmental note, she finally figured out how to crawl. I guess she got sick of rolling and slithering her way around. She is also furniture walking and will be doing it on her own in no time. I guess we're going to have to brace ourselves for what's to come - ready or not!

On my vacation with Ella, we both decided that it was time to get her ears pierced. She cried at first but then was fine shortly after. I must say that they really look adorable on her.

My First Christmas

We had a quiet but lovely first Christmas with Ella. It was so much fun to see her open her gifts and play with all her new toys. Her favorite toy is the Pooh airplane ride on toy Santa got her. She loves to stand behind it and walk and she also likes it when we push her around on it.

My cousin Alyssa along with her boyfriend and two girls came up from North Carolina and we were able to spend Christmas Eve with them. It was so great to see everyone and it was so cute to see all four girls (Kayla, Madison, Ella, and Hailey) play together. We took a group shot of them all together at my parents house and I'm just waiting for them to send me the photo so I can post it.