December so far

We celebrated Eliana's first birthday on Sunday, Dec. 5th.  We had Grandma Bennett, Mike & Krista, and our three girls there at the party. 

Susan ordered the cutest cake!  Ellie had her own mini-cake to destroy all by herself.

She mainly dug a hole in the side and seemed to like the taste.  She ended up with quite a bit of frosting in her hair--so she went right into the bathtub before opening her presents.
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Here is Ellie in her PJs playing with her loot!

We don't get many chances to take a full family photo these days--so I was thrilled to get this one!

And here's a random shot of Ellie asleep in her jumparoo.  (She fell asleep while I was right next to her, taking a bath.  I promise I don't just l leave her in there for hours at a time!)

I'm pretty sure that Ellie will be scarred for life. The Santa at our ward Christmas party was a little too scary, I guess.

Ellie participated in her daycare center's Christmas program.  (Well, as much as 1 year old can participate anyway.):

I was so excited to have my mom and grandma come to visit this past weekend.  Here is a 4 generation photo for Ellie's scrapbook!

We are excited for Christmas to come!  Now if it would just stop raining before half of Mesquite washes away...

Ellie's 1 !!!

Eliana Susan,

You're 19 lbs

& cute as can be.

You make funny sounds

& cuddle with me.

You love other kids

& think daycare's a blast.

You occasionally throws fits

& crawl pretty fast.

You say dada lots

& say mama less.

You twirl my hair in knots.

It's annoying, I confess.

You like to laugh and giggle

& make funny faces.

You like to dance and wiggle

& explore new spaces.

You're cute, sweet, & funny,

curious, & smart.

You've taken over our home

& stolen your mommy's heart.

Happy Birthday, Ellie!

You're my favorite baby 
in the whole world!

Love,

Mom

November News

So here's what we've been up to:

My elementary school choir sang a Veteran's Day concert for our school which turned out really nice!  They also sang at the Festival of Trees.  Susan and Krista decorated a darling tree for Ellie this year.  (She had one in the festival last year too!  She was born the day it opened last year.  Since I was still in the hospital, my choir sang without me last year.  Kind of a neat memory.)

Ellie has been doing "Sooooooo big!" a lot this month.  Here is a picture!

Dave and I celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary on November 24th.  Dave sent me flowers at work. That evening we got a couple's massage and went out for a very nice dinner.  This would count as our 3rd official date night of the year.  Let's hope we can our dating stats up this next year.  To Dave: You are my favorite person in the world! I love you!

For Thanksgiving, Dave, Ellie, Susan and I went to Joan's house (my sis-in-law).  We had the yummiest food I've eaten in a very long time!  (Thanks Jim, et al)  Here is a picture of  Dave and Ellie on Thanksgiving.

Here is a random picture of me and Ellie:

And here is one of Ellie after our Black Friday excursion:

She nodded off while eating in her high chair a couple of days ago.  I guess I throw that one in here too.

And that has been our November thus far.

Veteran's Day Parade 11/6/10

Brianna got to ride with Dave on the city's antique fire truck during the Veteran's Day Parade.  She had fun throwing candy to the crowd!

Ellie had fun hanging out with her aunts and cousins at Grandma Bennett's house.

Halloweenie

I can't believe Ellie is 11 months old already! She is getting chubby: 18 lbs and 12 oz!

We didn't want to get her cat costume dirty, so she was a ballerina for my school's trunk-or-treat.

Ellie was a pink kitty for the Ward Haloween Party.

Poor kid kept bumping into things with her hood on!

Aren't costume parades fun!

Rewind--pics of Shauna's Vegas wedding!

It took me a while to get these ordered--and I had to scan them into my computer--but here are pictures of us at Shauna & Rob's Vegas wedding!

What an amazing day it was! We were so excited to get to be there!  Hope the newlyweds are still as lovey-dovey as ever!  Love you, Shauna & Rob!

October in Mesquite-updated

We are enjoying the month of October!  The weather is cooling down and we can enjoy being outside more often.  Ellie and I marched in the Homecoming Parade on Thursday with my elementary school choir.  (They played the school fight song on kazoos.)  Ellie sure got a kick out of the kids and the crowds.  Somebody emailed me a picture of us!

Ellie and I are wearing our matching shirts at the Homecoming game on Friday.

Dad was happy we won the game!

This weekend, Brianna and Brooke carved their own pumpkins and roasted the seeds.  Yummy.  The house is decorated inside (thanks Krista!) and out (thanks girls!).

Brooke's Jack-o-lantern

Brianna's Jack-o-lantern

Here's a random picture of Ellie playing with a flower on her bed.

Ellie just got her Halloween costume.  She's going to be a pink kitty-cat!  Grandma Bennett got her a cute pumpkin trick-or-treat bag.  Does that mean I get to eat all the candy she gets trick-or-treating?  Sweet!

Happy October!

Fall Picture Day at Day Care

Ellie was just shy of 10 months old at this photo.

Ellie, at 10 months you:

* Refuse to stay on your back while we change your diaper.  We believe you have a strong future in gymnastics.

*Are starting to point to things.

*Wiggle your bum whenever music is playing.  You even "dance" when mommy sings your favorite songs.

*Are exploring the house and getting into places you've never been before.

*Prefer to be held by mommy. :o)  Although Daddy has the magic touch to get you to fall asleep, and can be pretty entertaining, too.

*Are a chatterbox.  Goo goo.  Mama.  Dada.  Eeee.  Oooh.

*Like to blow raspberries and grind your teeth.

*Adore your own reflection.  How come your reflection gets more kisses than your mommy?

*Like to watch Baby Einstein, Baby Signing Time, and cartoons on TV.

*Like to play with keyboards, mice, remote controls, phones, cords and cables more than your toys.

*Are fascinated by the ducks, geese, swans, and birds down at the pond.  Love dogs & cats, too.

*Like crackers, bread, most kinds of Gerber baby food, and yogurt.

*Get great reports from daycare about how well-behaved and independent you are.  How come you are so needy at home?

*Are my favorite baby in the whole world!

Its a good thing she's cute!

'Cause she can be a stinker!

 

 

 We decorated the house with these "Princess" balloons for Brianna's & Brittany's birthday party.  When we took them down, we left a couple for Ellie to play with.  She'd never seen a balloon before and thought it was pretty hilarious when her dad hit himself on the head with one and said "Bonky, Bonky!"  She laughs herself silly when we "Bonky, Bonky" her on the head, too! 

Moments like these make the tantrums, midnight wakings, hair pulling, and diaper changing acrobatics all worthwhile.

The Power of Moms

I thought I'd share something I've found to be super helpful to me as a new mom.  I am a member of a Power of Moms learning circle.  It meets once a month, and there is an article to read before you go, which is discussed at the meeting, along with whatever tangents the group goes on.  It meets at a different member's house each month.  It has really been a great experience for me.  We vent about our struggles, give each other ideas about what works and doesn't work for us, and generally laugh ourselves silly.  If you've never heard of Power of Moms, check out their website at: http://powerofmoms.com.  You can start your own learning circle if you don't know of one in your area.  Our learning circle will be held at my house this month, so I'm looking forward to playing hostess (which I rarely do)!

Sorry for the testimonial.  On a completely different note, I got Ellie a Jumparoo since she's getting tired of her exersaucer.  (Thanks for the idea Hannah!)  It has taken her some time to warm up to it, but she's finally starting to figure out the jumping part.

"What are these contraptions for anyway, Mom? Aren't you supposed to be holding me right now?"

Where we live

Most of my family have not seen where we are living nowadays, so this post is for them.

Dave and I are currently living in this house:

We love it! It has enough room for all six of us.  Brittany, our 16-year-old even gets to stay in the "casita" which has it's own bathroom and mini-kitchen. Ellie has her own room. Brooke and Brianna share another room.

Here is a picture of the back of the house:

And here is our view:

We feel very blessed to live here.

This is Eliana's bedroom:

 

 

Decor courtesy of Susan Bennett (the Pottery Barn linens, Disney knick knacks, and the butterfly/flower wall hangings), Hannah Robinson (the bow board above the twin bed), and Krista Bennett (the letters above the crib,and glass block with Ellie's birth information on it, and general decoration of the room). Are Ellie and I spoiled, or what?