Stormy Weather means No School!

Little Ella,

We all got a treat today! Last night it rained and stormed and lightning-ed and thundered...so much, that today Mommy didn't have any school and Daddy didn't have work! It was bad for Houston because it was really bad weather, but it was good for us because we got to spend the whole day with you!! We lost power off and on, and the rain in the pond in the back got really high. The highest we've ever seen it. Northwest Houston saw 11 inches of rain! Crazy!

Fortunately, we found lots of things to do around the house with our favorite little girl!

Love, Mommy

PoOoOoO PoOoOo!!

ELLA!!

Picture it! This past Thursday. In the evening.
You are playing in your playpen, while Mommy is picking up around the house. I look over at you because you got mighty quiet, and I see you playing in something. It's dark and your patting your hands in it....I get a little closer, and I see it is a puddle of POO POO!!!
Eeeeewww!!

Well, I just about died! I ran over to you, and picked you up under your arms. I called for your daddy from upstairs. He called down and wanted to know what you were doing. I said, "PLAYING IN POO!!" He ran down to help me. We put your straight in the tub - dress, diaper, sandals and all. I hosed you off and started stripping you down. Meanwhile, daddy started hosing off your toys, playmat, and sandals. It was sooooooo nasty!

But you got a great bath out of it, and we got everything nice and clean again. But wow!
What a stinky situation!!

Speaking of "Picture It," another Golden Girl passed away today! Bea Arthur, the lady who played Dorothy Zsbornak died of cancer. So sad.

Ella's New Tricks!

Here are just a few shots of your latest and greatest moves. Yesterday, you came home from daycare clapping your hands! You do it all the time now. And you also learned how to shake your head NO. You do THAT all the time too, but sometimes when you shake your head, I think it might shake off your shoulders!! You are a character. You've been crawling a lot, and your favorite thing to do is still pull yourself up and stand. You can stand for a while!

Mommy's been feeling ok. Already, I definitely think it's a boy because all the wonderful things that happened when I was pregnant for you, it's opposite now! I have pimply face - what's up with that?? Daddy says they're really not that bad, but eww....I think they're gross. Pizza face, as Jenny called it when she was preggers for Briggs. And I am sooooo tired. When I was pregnant for you, I felt GREAT all the time! It must be a boy!!

P.S. Make sure you check out BOTH videos on this posting!

You're Gonna Be a Big Sister!!!

Yes, in case you have not heard yet, your Mommy is pregnant...again! Mommy and Daddy were not planning to give you a little brother or sister quite so soon, but wow...here we are! So, the two of you will be approximately be sixteen months apart. I'm really excited because I think that the fact that yall are close in age will make yall best of friends one day. Mommy is 7.5 weeks pregnant today, and the approximate due date is December 3rd. Maybe the baby will come early so we won't have THREE December birthdays!! (mommy and daddy's birthdays are in Dec!) I feel great...no morning sickness. Every once in a while, I get a wave of nausea, but it is definitely nothing major. For the most part, I feel great!

And most of all, I can't wait to see if you will have a little brother or a little sister. Either way, I hope they're just as wonderful as you are!!

Love, Mommy

Ella is Crawling!!!

ELLA -

I was playing with you on the floor tonight, and you looked up at me, put your booty up in the air, and started crawling! Mommy couldn't believe it! Since then, you've done it three or four times. Soooo exciting!!!! See for yourself!!

Good Friday

Hey Poopsie,

Today we spent the day visiting with friends in Louisiana. We came in last night and stayed at Paw Paw's. This morning, Aunt Mary, you and I went shopping. The minute we said shoes, you perked up. And since you were sooo good, Mommy bought you a new pair of sandals. They are sooo cute.

After that, you and I went see our friends Aunt Stina and Andrea. You and Andrea played and played...yall were sooo cute. Yall were like best buds!! Andrea is getting so big too, and it was a hoot to see you two side by side.

That evening, we went to Aunt Anna and Uncle Travis' house for a Farrell Family Crawfish Boil. Uncle Travis boiled the BEST, biggest crawfish. It was sooo yummy.

Mommy and Daddy ate so much!! We were in heaven!! After that, we sang Happy Birthday to Paw Paw.

He has a really big white beard right now, and I think you have him confused with Santa right now.

So, occasionally.....you cry.

But he is growing on you. Ha ha.

It was a great day, and everyone was so excited about the big news.

Love,

Mommy

Ella's Big Shopping Weekend

Hey little Ella,
First things first, you are a standing machine. Daddy will pull you up to a random toy, and you will stand there for a while and play and play. You LOOVE to stand...still haven't crawled yet though. I just know you'll be walking first!

You've been doing great. Besides standing, you've been eating solids great, drinking juice from your sippy cup, and even though you're not crawling, you are reaching around like a little trooper. If you see something you want, you go and get it - even if you have to flip over and over to get to it.
The weather has been GREAT, so Mommy has been taking you and Zoe for walks around the neighborhood every day. You LOVE to be strolled.

This past weekend, Nanny and your cousins Leslie, Courtney and Christina came to visit. Leslie needed a dress for her carnival ball, and since Houston has so many Quinceanera dresses, I told them this was the perfect place to look! Saturday, we shopped till we DROPPED!! You were SOOO good considering how many dress shops we went in and out of. After a whole day of shopping, we still hadn't found a dress. Sunday after church, we went to one last place that was open on Sundays. And what do you know....we found a BEAUTIFUL dress for Leslie. She looks like a princess in it, and she looks so grown up in it. Mommy wanted to cry.

So, Nanny and the girls got the dress and it was a successful trip. It was also great for Mommy to catch up with your Nanny and spend some time with her (plus your cousins loooved seeing you too!) We almost got your ears pierced today, but the place we went was out of the earrings Mommy wanted for you. Maybe you'll have earrings for Easter.

Anyway, you had a great time. Mommy was sooo tired when Nanny and the crew left, and so I put you in the jumper and vegged out on the sofa. I closed my eyes for one second, and when I woke up - this is what I saw!!! You were obviously pooped out too!!

I love you, my little sunshine.

Love, Mommy

Sicky Ella

This is just some old news that I wanted to include.

Two weeks ago (the Thursday after our Spring Break) you woke up with fever. It was high, which really scared Mommy but you were holding your mouth so I thought you were teething. At one point the thermometer said 105! I gave you some Tylenol, and it went down to about 101 for a while. When we called the pediatrician, they said to monitor it but if you still had it after a day, we should probably get it checked out. I stayed home with you Thursday, and you slept a lot. Friday, you still had fever, but it was around 100 all day. Daddy stayed home with you that day, and he said you seemed to be feeling better. You weren't sick, just had fever.

Saturday morning, you woke up with fever again and when I took you temperature, the thermometer said HI!! I freaked out. The thermometer wouldn't even tell me what your temperature was....it just said that it was high!! I was so scared! We called the doctor, and we got you an appointment for that afternoon. After doing a little blood test, the doctor said you had a bacterial infection!! I don't know how you got it, but it made you feel icky!! You were sooo tired and lethargic and docile. Very scary. The doctor put you on antibiotics, and Sunday you still had a little fever. Finally, Monday it seemed to stay down. Daddy stayed with you in the morning, and Mommy stayed with you in the afternoon. By Tuesday, you were back at daycare but TALK ABOUT A SCARY EXPERIENCE. Thank God we took care of it early because the doctor said it could've been even worse!!

Love, Mommy