Baby Einstein Puppets

Ella now knows what ALL the puppets "say." The dog says "woof, woof." The duck says "quack, quack." The monkey says "oooo, aaahh." The goat says "baaa." The dragon says "blah." And the cow says "mmmmm," close enough. We took three puppets with us to the doctor Monday. It was a great idea! She did a show for everyone in the waiting room and the nurses once we got called back. She had a puppet on each arm when they weighed her and she stood perfectly still. I was so proud of her I forgot to ask how much she weighs. She didn't like it when the doctor looked down her throat but she liked to look down the cows throat!! She did great, even though she didn't feel very good. Diagnosis: Croup. I feel like I am always posting that she is sick....(sigh).

From 7-19-09

Unfortunately, MeeMaw did not have enough hands to satify Ella.

From 7-19-09

Etsy store Pattern

I ordered Ella these Baby Einstein puppets for her birthday back in April. She has really started taking an interest in them. She chases Kenzie around with the dog puppet saying "woof, woof, woof!" She also has a duck, cow, monkey, goat, and dragon. She knows the duck says "quack" and the monkey says "oooo, oooo, aaahh, aaaahhh", from the Playhouse Disney song. She's not really gotten the hang of the cow or goat yet. And, of course, if your familiar with Baby Einstein, you know that the dragon says "Blah!"

From 7-11-09

From 7-11-09

I made Ella a dress last night from a pattern I purchased a while back from http://www.etsy.com/. Its an online store where you can buy and sell homemade items. I love it! This pattern is called "The Little Mademoiselle Dress". It was super easy to make and the directions were very straightforward. Actually, I forgot to print out the directions (but I had read them), so I just made it from memory. My straps turned out too narrow - Whoops! I added the pockets because I really loved the fabric. The pattern did not call for pockets. I think it turned out a little long though and I will probably hem it tonight. I'm making a pair of pants for me using the same materials. I will post pics of it in a couple of days.

From 7-14-09

From 7-14-09

From 7-14-09

From 7-14-09

From 7-14-09

From 7-14-09

Ella's 1st Birthday Party

This was the closest we could get to a family photo. There was a lot going on.

I'm soooo glad Leslie was there to tell me to strip Ella down to her diaper before the cake. I probably would have thought it would be too much trouble, but it helped me to relax and let her enjoy her cake. Also, if Leslie hadn't told me to put her hand in the cake, I wouldn't have thought to. Ella and I might have just stared at each other for the next hour. In the end she left the cake in pretty decent condition for the rest of us to enjoy. She's a pretty reserved baby.

This is one of the few smiles of the day. I think everything was a bit overwhelming. Thank you Stephanie for taking pictures for me. We will cherish them forever!
I think the kids had the most fun outside. It was a little cool for those of us not running around. Jason and Jessie, Ethan's dad, hid eggs for Ethan and Cooper and they had a great time hunting them! The girls enjoyed the swing! Presley, Leslie's little girl, had to leave before presents and my brother's kids were unable to be there because they were not feeling good. We missed you guys! Here is a picture of the little group. L to R: Ella, Emma, Cooper, Ethan

There were so many pictures of our day! I think we took nearly 700 - that day alone. Here are a few more:

Happy Birthday to Pop & Poppy (Jason's Dad and Grandad)! We were so glad that you joined us on your birthday, we certainly didn't forget about you! A big thanks to my mom, for helping me with the cake, Poppy, for cooking the burgers & dogs, Cici, for helping us with the yard and cleaning up afterwards. We appreciate you more than you could know!

The Cake gets its own post.

My Mother and I spent about 6 hours Friday creating the Baby Einstein Caterpillar for Ella's cake. I think it turned out adorable! My only regret was that the body segments weren't closer together. But hey, for my first cake, there is really nothing to complain about. It tasted delicious too! The second Caterpillar head was Ella's smash cake. Thank you Lord Jesus, for keeping the ants away since we we unable to refrigerate the cake....it was too big! It took every glass in the house to create the tent to cover it!

Ella's Favorite movie - Baby Einstein (Mozart)

From 38 weeks 4 days 1-4-09