Ella at 3

We had Ella's three-year-old visit last week. Here's some tidbits about Ella these days:

• She is very precise. Today she told me that she wanted to go to Bajio. I told her it was Sunday and we don't go on Sunday. She told me, "Mom. We don't go to stores on Sunday. This is a restaurant." 
• Still no luck on the potty front. She can hold it but cannot for the life of her figure out how to go while sitting down. We're trying to be patient.
• Loves her imaginary friends. Has conversations and playdates with them on a daily basis.
• Leveled out height and weight. Sadly, I can't remember what her percentages are. around 50th. 
• Loves Anna. My favorite thing lately is she will recount their encounters. "Mom. I went and saw Anna and she made her face go like this [smiles goofily]." Or, "Mom. I tink Anna is twy-ing to say, 'I don't want any more food, I want my binky.'" Or, "Mom. Anna was yike dis, 'Aaahhhhh.'"
• She is from Utah. She has started to say "like." It pains me, but it's my own darn fault.
• She can add and subtract, using her fingers, most single digits. This morning she asked me, "Mom, what's 3+4?" "I don't know, Ella, what is it?" "Come on, mom. You can do it. You know. This is an easy one!" "7?" "Right! Good job." (honestly, I am not pushing this on her...as I write this I realize it looks like I am being a little bit of a Tiger mom). She also wants to know how to spell things. 
• She has given up the nap. Sad, sad, day. She can be quite the grump come 4 o'clock. Not my favorite stage.
• Conversation last night: "Mom. Do you know what Daddy yikes more than oranges? Peaches. Do you know what Daddy yikes more than peaches? Ellas." (she and Ryan must have had this conversation a few weeks ago). 10 minutes later: "I yike this slice of pear." 1 minute later: "Mommy. Guess what I yike better than pears? Daddy." melt. his. heart.

Ella turns 3

Some things about my darling Ella Jane

• She has a remarkable memory. She gets it from the Packer side, that's for sure. 
• The imaginary friend thing is evolving. She now has Ah, Va, Da, Sa, Na and Eda-pho-Eda (who knows where she came up with that one). They are her "kids." She converses with them on a regular basis. And today she took it to a whole new level when she told me that she had to crawl on the table because Ah wanted the balloon. 
• Potty training, oh the joy. Here's where we are at: She feels the urge to go. She tells me. We take off her panties and...put on a diaper. She relieves herself, we remove the diaper and put the panties back on. She can't figure out how to go sitting down. She can sit on the potty and hold it for HOURS. She's not stubborn, she honestly can't figure out how to control the muscles while sitting down. Yesterday I asked her to practice sitting in her diaper and going and she told me, "I can't. That's not how my diaper works." Preschool starts in 5 days. Don't think we'll make it.
• She is very very thoughtful. She loves her friends and her sister. She remembers what everyone's favorite color is, and then tries to match their popsicle/balloon/cookie/toy/napkin to it
• The only food she wanted for her birthday dinner was strawberry soup. She hadn't ever had it before, but that's what she she wanted.
• The morning of her combined birthday party 2/2 guests called in sick. We managed to have a great time anyway. Lots of hand sanitizer was involved. 
• She has nearly given up her nap. She needs it every third to fourth day. Shed a little tear. 
• She is fun, smart and sweet. Love you, Ella Jane.

ella at 27 months

• She is a fan of Dora. The children's museum in Manhattan had a whole Dora floor. She loved it.
• The other night we were eating dinner and she was being a little obnoxious. Not bad, just making it difficult to have a conversation. Ryan started to say something about her behavior, and I said, "I know it's annoying, but she's just two." A few minutes later she was doing something I didn't approve of and asked her to stop. She replied with, "Mom, I just two." I guess she got me.
• We've been using a lot of "option 1 or option 2." (Example: This morning she was on the verge of a meltdown because she wanted to say the prayer. Option 1: mom says the prayer. Option 2: go to time out.) She can be so stubborn, but when she is 'making' the decision she does so much better. Although I don't think it will be long before she realizes that she's being played.
• She is not interested in potty training. It's fine for other people, but she prefers her diaper.
• Her favorite number is 11. If you are having a conversation with someone and say, "Let's meet at 1125 south 400 east tomorrow afternoon" she'll say, "Were you talking about my fwavowit?"
• The other day she was playing with her toy clock and said, "I tan't find 13! I've looked everywhere!"
• She started pre-pre-school today. She is a little set in her ways when it comes to how the world should be run, so I thought some time with other kids may do her good. She loved her backpack, but informed me she would have preferred a purple one like Dora.


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• She thinks it's hilarious to make up "funny" words. Today she told me she was drinking "milker" and we were going to the "poke office." I am "mam-ha," we are going to have a "bay-pe" and Ryan is "dat-tee." She doesn't use the 'funny' words often, but when she does she gets a twinkle in her eye.

ella at 26 months

• Funny things she says....What that silly daddy is doing?.....What that silly daddy was thinking?....That mom's on a mission!
• She is incredibly interested in understanding and being understood. If we are talking to each other, or to another adult, and she doesn't understand what is being said she will interrupt and say, "What he/she/you talking 'bout?" By the same token, if we can't understand what she is saying she will come up with another way to express herself. The other day she kept saying she wanted to see the _____. I had no clue what she was saying. She repeated herself a few times, then said, "That foldy (cold) stuff in the freezer. [Unintelligible word]!" She wanted to see the 'snow' in the freezer (which had been left open and got a bit frosty). It amazes me.
• She has no interest in potty training. We ask her if she wants to go in the potty and she calmly responds, "No. In my per."
• She associates each letter with someones name. When you ask her the letters she tells you "C for Chris," "T for Taylor" "M for Mommy," etc. She just learned her letters and was very disappointed that we didn't know anyone for "V."
• She thinks we know everything. "I don't know" is not an acceptable answer. "Tell me!" she says.
• She loves to hear stories. "Tell me a story about Ma Janet/Mommy/Pa/Ella/Zeus/Daddy..." is a frequent request.
• A few weeks ago she saw this with Ma Sue. "That's my drink!" she said. Needless to say, she came home with it.

• She's gotten much better about playing independently. She will carry on conversations with her stuffed animals. My favorite is when she says "I sooorrrryy. You tan't have that. It's otay."
• She wants to know "Who is on your phone?" whenever you are talking. She doesn't stop until she knows "Who it is you talking to?"

ella at 21 months

• She went through a phase where she added "ie" to the end of most words. "No-ie" was particularly cute. One day she said, all in one sentence, that we went to the zoo-ie with Ma Shu-ie and rode the choo-choo-ie.
• She talks like a pirate. "I write me name." "I need me mommy!"
• Her Gummy Birds have been life changing. Hallelujah!
• She loves to dress herself. Most of the time she ends up with her pants inside out and backwards.
• She loves salt. She asks for it by name and would eat it plain if I'd let her. It's funny because if I had to pick salt or sugar, I'd pick sugar 99/100. Must get it from her dad.
• She is definitely related to these kiddos, because she asks for her milk "Nice and warm." In fact, most things are "Not hot. Nice and warm." The bath water, her carseat, the temperature outside, her food..."Not hot. Nice and warm." She also likes things, "Not tight. Nice and loose."
• She loves her Grandmas. Ma Ja, Ma Shu, Ma Ota and Ma Pa, Ma Tweet.
• We had a little struggle with nursery a few weeks back, when I substituted for a bit. What? Mom can come to nursery too?? Never fear, we are back to "No Mom nursh. Mom take you nursh. Mom go class."

ella at 20 months

• My favorite age so far. Hands down.
• Her vocabulary is great. She said "I want drink water" this morning. But her speech is not so hot. She still makes noises, not really words, so what she really said was, "Aya deek wa." It's odd, though. When she first learns a word she says it clearly. But once she gets it down she condenses it into a noise. We can't deicide if she is being lazy or efficient.
• Still loves dogs. I worry about her getting hurt because she has no fear. She loves it when they lick her, so she shoves her hand in their mouth. Totally safe, right?
• She has a mullet. Yep. Full on.
• We walk to the water feature in our neighborhood every day. "Wa? Wa? Wa?"
• She loves her little friend Avery. If we forget to pray for "Vrey" we have to say the prayer again.

This picture is taken after they saw each other across the park, ran with open arms to one another and hugged. No prompt necessary.

• She says "Yeeaahh!" and "Noooohhhh..." with conviction
• Favorite food: pasta.
• She loves her play food and her kitchen. She has figured out the whole pretend thing and will fill her glass with water or milk, and then pour it out on the ground, "Oht ohh!" and then clean it up. Pretty cute.
• Favorite number: nine. She knows two {yeah, can't figure out 1}, three, four...nine! Anything above four is 9.
• She waddles side to side when she runs.

She likes to "smile" for pictures

eighteen at eighteen

1. She will accept food within 2 degrees of room temperature. Outside of that "itshot" or "whooooo" (it's cold).
2. Colors dominate her vocabulary right now. I hear "booh," "behn," "bahh," "rhed" (blue, pink, black and red) about five hundred times a day. Turns out this world is a pretty colorful place when you're looking for it.
3. She is a good little sleeper...most of the time.
4. We still struggle without Miralax or a healthy portion of prunes. Breaks my heart to see her in pain.
5. 95th percentile in length, 25th in weight. How did we get such a tall kid?
6. She is not good at sharing and throws a fit if someone takes something that Ella perceives is not theirs. Example: at Kimmy's wedding Ella was the ring bearer. Her only job was to hand Kimmy the pillow at the appropriate time. But Ella was sure the pillow was Grandma's, and there was no way she was going to let Kimmy have it. We did convince her the pillow was Kimmys's, which led her to want to give it to Kimmy RIGHT NOW. At home, if Mom sits in Dad's chair, or if Dad uses Mom's laptop...oh how we hear about it.
7. She is very organized. I think she got it from her Grandma Janet.
8. She loves to talk on the phone. Pretend, real, doesn't much matter.
9. She loves coloring. Especially when you are the one doing it. She loves for you to draw families of birds and then name them. Mommy bird, Daddy bird, Ella bird, Grandma Bird, Grandpa Bird, Kimmy Bird and Avery Bird. She remembers who's who, too. It amazes me.
10. Things in her crib right now: monkey 1, monkey 2, mouse, moose, bunny, giraffe, bear, elephant, kangaroo, dog, two books and an extra sleep sack.
11. She loves having her ears checked. She asks me to do it whenever she sees the otoscope.
12. We got into a bad habit of drinking milk before falling asleep. As it is with bad habits, I thought it was something we only did every now and then, in special circumstances. Too late I realized she had become dependent on it and now we are in the painful process of breaking it.
13. She gives a little chuckle once you understand what she's trying to say.
14. After months of trying to teach her to say 'please' and 'thank-you' I finally turned to signs. Works like a charm. Of course no one knows she is being polite. They just think she is hitting her face. But it's a start.
15. She can nearly finish a carton of grape tomatoes before we leave the grocery store.
16. Most words are noises that you have to decipher, but a few are very clear: mouse, moose, wash, walk. It's really cute.
17. She's fascinated by her shadow. She knows it is somehow her, and will say "me" and wave, but doesn't quite get it.
18. Monkeys and dogs tie for favorite animal.

16 at 16

1. She's really into symmetry. If she brings you one shoe from the closet, you can bet your bottom dollar that the match is on it's way. And you'd better put them on. Same goes for kisses and tricks. If mom gets a kiss, so does dad and anyone else that's in the room. If you ask her where her nose is not only will she show you, but she will also touch yours, dad's, grandma's and the stranger's sitting across the room.
2. She's got the most expressive face. The other day I put her in a sweater that was too small. She lifted both her arms up, twisted side to side and gave me a look that said, "Mom. Seriously? What are you thinking?"


3. Her eyes are still in flux. Some days they are hazel, other times brown, and on a rare day, blue.
4. Almost all of her 'words' are monosyllabic and are missing the last few letters. Although she does turn more into a two syllable word. Mow-uh, with the uh really high-pitched.
5. She really loves her bottle. Given the choice of a sippy cup of milk and a bottle of water she will pick the bottle.
6. Listening to her sing is one of my favorite things on this earth.
7. She has four teeth coming in, and then we are DONE! Well, at least for a year or so.
8. If she makes a "mess," a relatively common occurrence, she wants it cleaned up right away. However, I think we may need to narrow the definition of the word. The other day she was in the bath and splashed water on her arm. "Mess! Mess! Mess!"

9. Finally figured out animal sounds.
10. Hearing evidence of aviation stops her in her tracks. Eyes and pointer finger reach for the sky until she finds the source. Her father's daughter indeed.
11. We are on the Nursery countdown. Our ward has the best nursery leader. February, here we come. Sacrament meeting, on the other hand....still struggling.
12. We wish our cousins and grandmas and aunts lived closer. And our friends Lily and Bea, too.
13. We are grateful for our friends who live close. Keeps us sane. That and the Discovery Gateway Museum. Love that place.
14. She likes it when you whisper in her ear.
15. She says Mom 500 times a day. Maybe more. "Uh" used to be the catch-all word. It is now "ma."
16. A very boring video. But if you're a grandma, you can see her fold her arms, say "more" (twice), "mmm", "no" "mama" and stuff her face full of food, only to spit it all out. One of our favorite tricks.

14 at 14

1. She LOVES to dance, which now includes twirling. She twirls and twirls and twirls...and falls over. Then she does it again.
2. Potty training at 1 didn't go so well. First month was great, second month not so much, by the third month she hated the potty. Hopefully we didn't scar her for life. Next time I think I'll try starting at 11 months, because I really do think it can work. {Or more likely I'll totally bag it and laugh at myself for being so 'first-time mom'}
3. 12 teeth. 4 top, 4 bottom, 4 molars.
4. New favorite food: pomegranates. Thank you Aunt Lauren for sending some our way.
5. She has started waking up in the middle of the night. I don't know what the deal is.
6. New words: monkey, wow, shoe, nose, book, mom, dad {you'd think these would have been earlier words}. Ba has advanced to "ba-uhl."
   
7. She completely lights up when she sees her monkey. She loves "Mo." She kisses him, feeds him, tries to bathe him.
8. We turned her into a little TV addict. 2 weeks ago we realized that we had a problem when she would freak out if we skipped commercials. So we went cold-turkey. No TV or computer. It has been hard, hard, hard. It surprised me because I didn't think we watched that much. We probably watched one Baby Einstein a day, and then had the TV on at night while we were playing or eating. But it adds up and is so nice to use as a babysitter. I'm reading a new book, "The Elephant in the Living Room." We'll see if it strengthens or weakens my resolve.
   
9. Ditching the bottle has been an ordeal. Not there yet.
   
10. She has only been sick twice in her 14 months.
    
11. Her eyes are turning a hazel green color.
12. We are playing the the 2 to 1 nap transition game. Not our favorite.
13. Favorite song: Eensy Weensy Spider. She starts him climbing and then washes him out. Not really into climbing up the spout again.
    
14. She will make her "angry face" on demand. She scrunches up her nose and purses her lips. But she knows it's funny so she has a little twinkle in her eye while she does it. I'll try and get a picture.
    

12 at 12

1. After going through a phase where she hated hats, she now loves them.
2. She has turned cuddly. She gives hugs and kisses all the time. Especially to her toys and books.
3. Unfortunately for her, she inherited her mom's super fine hair. I have already seen a split end.
   
4. Going outside to "see the birds" will stop any amount of crying or fussing. If there happens to be a dog outside...heaven.
5. Favorite foods: pasta, tomatoes, milk. She goes through fruit phases. Used to be blueberries. Now peaches. Just tried pickles and got a big mmmmmm.
   
6. We are attempting a little experiment: potty training. { "very European," my pediatrician said. was that a dig or a compliment? beth--you might know.} Yesterday she woke up, went in the potty, stood up and proceeded to go on the floor. Progress?
7. She needs 2 naps a day but only wants 1.
8. She got her 12 month vaccines last week. Even though I give my "shots do not cause autism" speech on a daily basis, and I truly believe that shots do not cause autism, I did pause and think, "What if Jenny McCarthy is right?" It is different when it's your own kid. (I still gave her all her shots, plus the flu vaccine.)
   
9. 80% for length, 33% for weight, 90% for head.
10. If I need to get anything done online, I open one window for me and one window for her. I've watched Maggie the counting dog wow Oprah more than once.
    
11. She has loads of teeth. Three on top, three on bottom, upper and lower molars on the right, working on the lower left. There is a night and day difference in her happiness level when she is teething. Heaven help us through these last two molars.
12. She starts to boogie whenever she hears music.

10 @ 10

1. Early on Ella learned that when she is nearing the end of her bottle, she needs to tip it up to get the last few sucks. She can't figure out why that doesn't work with her straw sippy cup. It gets low, she tilts it back. She looks at me like, "Mom. What is going on? This is supposed to work!"


2. She loves balls. I picked up a watermelon in the grocery store to weigh it. She was enthralled--and cried when I put it back.

3. She can stand for about 15 seconds. Sometimes she thinks it is fun, but most of the time once she realizes she is standing unassisted she plops down or grabs onto me for dear life.

4. She shakes her head "no" when she doesn't want something. We think it is cute now...

5. She has finally learned a sign. "All done" may like a wave to you, but to the discerning eye there is a distinct difference.

6. She had her first swim! She wasn't sure about it. A little scared, a little enthralled.

7. "Mom" and "Dad" are starting to take on meaning, and she understands some of what we say. "Can you wave at the bus?" produces a wave. "Put your binky in the crib," results in a quick binky drop. It absolutely amazes me to watch her little brain develop.

8. Ever since she saw her friend Avery race up the stairs she thinks she is a climber, too. She can do about 4 stairs. Again, we think it is cute now...

9. She thinks it is really funny when she sneezes. She laughs and laughs.

10. She had her first taste of sugar. A snow cone at the 2009 Granite South Stake Family Fun Day with Aunt Kimmy. She did like it.