First Holidays

All of Ella's first holidays are officially done... unless we count Cinco de Mayo and the 4th of July, but I doubt Babies R Us has onesies for those. Here are all her cute outfits! I'm hoping to make a blanket or pillow quilt out of them.

1st Halloween as a lobster


1st Thanksgivng at the Ranney's house


1st Christmas at Babcia and Dzia Dzia's in Michigan


1st Valentine's Day at home


1st St. Patty's Day -- it was 80 degrees and this long-sleeved onesie was too hot!


1st Easter with Easter basket outside in Las Vegas

Happy Easter!

We took Ella outside to take some Easter pictures in the morning light. As you can see, she was interested in everything (the birds, the trees, daddy) BUT me and the camera!

First Swing!

We took Ella to the park yesterday afternoon and she had her very first swing ride. She loved it especially because she could lean over and put the swing in her mouth. Thankfully, mommy has Purell on her keychain!

Ella also graduated to her big girl car seat on Thursday. She took it pretty well once we got everything adjusted for her!

And she stands!

Wow... we're having quite the week! This evening while waiting for dinner to cook (brats on the grill -- YUM!), Ella and I were sitting on the floor going through some papers (I was shredding them and she was helping by chewing on them). I was sitting indian-style and Ella was on my lap. In the midst of reading something, I suddenly felt her lift herself up off of my lap...and sure enough, she had grabbed a hold of the chair in front of her and puller herself up to stand! It was SO COOL!! Here's a pic taken from the phone -- it was the only thing close enough to get before she let go and toppled backwards. I wasn't really dressed for having my picture taken, but there I am!

A Visit to the Easter Bunny

We took Ella to the mall to see the Easter Bunny today. Who knew the line to see the Easter Bunny would be ten times longer than the line to see Santa?? Not us! Ella was in a great mood when we got there (thanks to a three hour nap earlier), but 30 minutes of waiting around will try anyone's patience. All the other littler kiddos were fussy and crying and reaching out for mommy when they were put on the Easter Bunny's lap... and fussy Ella... well, turns out she LOVES the Easter Bunny! We had trouble getting her to look at the camera and not the bunny! She cried when we took her away from him! We weren't planning to buy any pictures, but it turned out so cute that we had to get one.

Play Ball!

Are you watching, Aunt Michelle?? Today while you were out at the White Sox opening day game I picked up my first softball bat! I was at my friend Alison's house and she got a softball game for her birthday and I loved that bat! Sorry you missed it, but mommy got some pictures just for you.

Happy Passover!

Today was a truly gorgeous day in Las Vegas! We went outside this morning to take some photos in the beautiful sunshine....



Ella in her Easter outfit from Babcia and Dzia Dzia.

Today was also the beginning of Passover and we hosted a seder for 15 adults and 4 kids in our two bedroom apartment...just kidding! Our friends were kind enough to lend us their dining room. While we were getting ready, Ella was scooting around the living room and discovered her reflection... who is that pretty girl??


And finally... I snapped this picture this morning while we were outside. I was fooling around with the lighting and the zoom and Ella looked at me at the exact right moment -- cool, huh??