Gettin' Pretty

Twice now Ella has gotten into my makeup, and decorated herself with my eyeliner. Here's a shot from the second time...but I have a feeling it won't be the last!

Zoo Halloween '09

Last Tuesday evening we took Ella to Halloween at the Zoo. It was such a perfect evening, one of the rare warm fall days that we've had. I had never been there before, and had heard mixed reviews on it. We had received a coupon in the mail and decided to give it a go.
Ella had such a good time and was perfect while we were there. Believe me, that's shocking these days.....those Terrible 2's are hitting hard!! (But that's another blog post.) It was set up really well; very organized. There were thousands of pumpkins lining the walkway and people dressed up everywhere. All of that plus the few animals and other attractions really held Ella's attention.

We had just entered the zoo and rounded the corner and we saw a pumpkin with Ella's name carved into it, so we had to get a pic, of course! :)



Here she is, leading the way! If you can't tell, she's a ladybug this year. Our neighbor gave us the costume and it fits perfectly!



Here she is taking Brad through the maze. I'm surprised she kept her hood up the whole time. Maybe some of you remember the drama with the spider hat from last year??? If you need refreshed, look at the pic at the top of this blog! ;)



Of course we had to make a stop and see the fish. I think they've made quite a few appearances on this blog....



Ella is getting a "treat" from one of the stations. She really thought she was big stuff handing everyone her tickets. I can tell she hasn't been around candy too much because she would hand it right to me without a fight. :) I don't see it being that easy in the years to come...



In the barnyard area there were quite a few animals made out of pumpkins and gourds. They were really cool and Ella got a kick out of them too. Good thing, because it took her mind off the horse I promised would be there....but wasn't. Oops.





At the end of the night, she ended up with ten things, ranging from candy to a straw cup, and even Brad and I got a bag of chips and some coupons. She was so excited with her "loot", this is a pic we captured just as we walked out of the zoo. Don't think you can get a much bigger smile than that! Makes it worth it to see her so happy and appreciative!




And one last pic, a very happy, satisfied, and tired ladybug. :)





I would highly recommend this to anyone who's considering going, especially the younger kids. We had a great time and will definitely go again next year.

English as a 2nd Language

Tonight Ella was reading a book to herself and it was cracking me up. I tried to grab the camera and get a quick video of her, but of course she caught me and then had to show off for the camera. She is actually saying a lot of words and sentences now, but also likes to revert back to her own language, as you will see!

Brad's grandpa asked him once if she was always this energetic, and here's proof that 95% of the time she is! And this was taken right when she should be going to bed....why do they always get crazy right before that? I think it's because if they stop moving they will drop!! :)

Here is the video Enjoy!!

Fun with Friends

Last weekend we had dinner with some frienda. Ella has such a blast playing with their 3 kids, and they are so good to her. She's just starting to really get into coloring, so when they got out all their gear, she was in Heaven! Here is a pic of the youngest child, Audrey, and Ella drawing and coloring on the huge paper. It was a masterpiece, I'm sure!
Thanks Jason and Sarah!! :)

Trip to Columbus

Last Sunday we drove to Columbus for a quick day away. We had heard great things about the Columbus Zoo and wanted to check it out. With our zoo pass, we can get into many zoos around the US for half off. :) So, we decided to take advantage of that for a cheap getaway. I'm also a big fan of Hotwire, and scored a room at the Sheraton Suites for $43!!
We left Sunday morning on the 3 hour drive, and Ella slept for 2 out of the 3 hours, which was great. We NEVER get that lucky on car trips with her, she's usually very cranky. It was so nice to carry on a conversation and not get interrupted. :)
After we arrived and checked out our room, we decided to grab a bite to eat. We were conveniently located by a Champps, So Brad was able to catch up on all the football games and it counted as family time. LOL
We found a local mall (my definition of family time) and then came back to the hotel and swam for quite awhile.

Right after we arrived. Brad and Ella were checking out the bed and drooling over the HDTV.


Acting like she owns the place, feeling right at home!

Ella's quite the little fish; she sure has no fear! That's good and bad...we sure have to watch her very closely. She had a great time, though, and we had the pool to ourselves, which was nice too.

On our way down to the pool. I love her little bum! :)

Happy as can be in the water!


"Hey mom, come on in, the water's great!"


Monday morning we got around and headed for the zoo. Ella had to get in on the "primping." I'm waiting for the day I round the corner and catch her with my lipstick all over her. I can guarantee it'll happen. I have to hide to put on lip gloss so she's not begging me for some. What's the deal with that?? Is it just instinct for little girls? It's not like I wear a lot of make-up, believe me; I should probably wear more!


We couldn't have picked a more perfect day. It was gorgeous out and we almost felt like we had the place to ourselves! This huge zoo, and the parking lot was practically empty!

One of the highlights was seeing a baby elephant. They are one of my favorite animals, I could've stayed right there all day. Ella was most interested in the ball the baby was playing with.

Up close and personal with a tiger. It kept walking back and forth and Ella would try to reach out and grab it each time.

They have a great aquarium area, complete with manatees.

They had several types of monkey/apes/orangutans, and they're also fascinating. Definitely the closest to human. There were a couple of young monkeys that were running around chasing and picking on each other just like normal siblings. I could've stayed there all day, too. This orangutan was trying to nap in the shade, but was rudely kept awake by my ever-curious daughter.

There were several statues of different animals to climb on.



We had a great time walking around, and our feet sure felt it at the end of the day!

We spent 3 1/2-4 hours there and still didn't see everything. We would definitely go back again and highly recommend it to anyone who's been thinking about going.

End of the day pose. A good zoo equals a pooped toddler!



BONUS* Ella was wiped out and slept most of the way home, too!! :)

Ella's Ritual

Well, the "stall tactics" are in full swing at bedtime now. We have to make sure the dog is kissed and hugged, the last drink of milk is taken, mom and dad are hugged & kissed, but not before the dog!! She always comes first.... I just love the secondhand dog kisses. And this is all before going into her room. Then, the real fun begins. She has to have several animals and "babies" with her each night. And, the special blankie, of course. If any of them are missing, we have to hunt them down. Then on to bed...almost. The next step is to turn on her music, get her into bed, and try to cover her up while she plays a "game" of putting her legs in the air so even that is hard to do. (That's comedy to a 2 year old.) ;) Finally, the animals are placed in their positions; every night it's different. And, here's the final product:



The funniest part is her trying to bring her hands together to pray after all that!

Sweet Dreams!!

Labor Day weekend

We traveled to see family up in Michigan near Grand Rapids over the holiday weekend. My cousin, Megan, and her husband Josh had just bought a house and we were their first official "houseguests". :) They have a beautiful home and we enjoyed our time there. When we got there Saturday late afternoon, my aunt, uncle, and cousin Kalee were there also for a cookout. Ella had a great time running around and being the center of attention as the only child there.

Here's Ella winding down at the end of the night with my Uncle.

The girls chatting around the table.

The next day the girls decided to head to Lake Michigan around Grand Haven/Muskegon to walk around and just enjoy the day. The guys headed up north to the hunting cabin to work on a few things. I don't know what all they did, probably boring Guy stuff. We just walked along the shoreline mostly. Ella loved the big boats and all the ducks, as well as the dogs being walked. She was very entertained! We walked for miles! There was even a naval museum we came across that had a submarine parked for us to see. That stuff usually doesn't excite me much but to see it up close and to know it fought in a war (don't ask me what one, I HATED history!) was pretty cool. On the walk back, Ella spotted a playground on the beach and had to check it out. Man, the older they get the smarter and more aware of things they get.....;) I can't hide ANYTHING from her anymore!

A view of the beach



My Aunt Bec and cousin Kalee.



Ella and I in front of the submarine.



See??? I'm actually learning something!! :)



She belongs on the beach!!



Here she is on the playground with Megan.



Remember a few posts ago how I said she likes to lay in the sand??? Everytime!



Back at the house that evening we got a little Wii tournament going. I had the most fun taking "action" shots of everyone playing. It was cracking me up!!
Here's Brad and his nice bowling form.



Kalee...



Meg....



And....Moi!! I need LOTS of room to play this stuff! haha and I was not being dramatic, I didn't even know the pic was being taken!!



Cute pic of the girls watching the action.



We had a great time being with family, and hope to do it again sometime soon! Here's a few more pics of Ella being her goofy self. What's new??

She discovered the kitchen counter island is the perfect height for "swinging"!



She loved playing in the bathroom, especially the shower. Her eye is swollen from a bug bite. :( It was pretty nasty for a few days.



Hope everyone had a great Holiday!!