Month: July 2012

Ellie’s First Unofficial Hair Cut

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It was Monday morning and everything about it was normal for Monday. I woke up however, with a splitting headache and after one attempt to get the girls dressed I took some Advil and laid across my bed, hoping it would kick in soon. The girls were in their playroom singing, dancing and talking. As usual they were enjoying their playtime together. As I started to relax a bit and the headache subsided I noticed that it had become very quiet in the house. Too quiet. So I called on Abby to see what she was up to.

She quickly responded and I could hear her little footsteps as she started to walk into our room.  Before I could see anything I hear her sweet little voice say to me, “Look mommy I cut Ellie’s hair!” The minute she uttered these words I bolted straight up to make sure I heard her corretly. Before I can say anything I look at Abby and in one hand she has my scissors (which I had a huge brain fart and forgot to put back up the night before and this memory was just coming to me now) and in the other she had a large clump of hair. Then, as I am about to utter a shriek of terror Ellie comes bounding in looking like this…

 Oh yes, at this point the shriek erupted from my mouth and the sobbing began.  Abby had cut off most of Ellie’s hair and pretty much all of her untouched baby girls. Abby had also taken the scissors to her hair but luckily it wasn’t too noticeable. She basically gave herself some long bangs. I called Shaun in a hysterical mess but eventually calmed down.

Before I knew it I was laughing about the situation. Abby gave Ellie her first haircut and soon it will grow back. Until then, Ellie will have a short pixie cut and hopefully I can get her in to Christina soon to at least even out what we can. Oh, I could kill myself for leaving out the scissors that are normally in a box way up high in my closet but I cant dwell on it. I am just thankful no one was hurt. Hopefully Ellie’s hair will grow fast and we will have those cute pigtails back soon!

Quick Trips to the Zoo

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Today we make a quick decision to head to the zoo. We needed to get out of the house, get out of the heat of the Valley and head to Santa Barbara for the day. I had also read in our Zoo News emails that there was a new Channel Islands fox (the fox that formerly lived there passed away about a month before) and a new armadillo for the public to come and see. In the end, we didn’t get to see either but I guess that’s just the way the cookie crumbles. Unfortunately a few things came up on our way out of the door so we were pretty delayed but still made it up there with about two hours to spend at the zoo.

This trip was also the first since Ellie started wearing her glasses and what a difference they make. She could see so many things that she couldn’t before, including her favorite animal… the giraffe. When she saw them eating  and wandering around she was so excited. I was so happy that she now could enjoy life a bit more.

Watching the elephants from atop her favorite perch!

“Love Birds”… these two kept kissing and nuzzling one another. Its probably not an act of love at all and most likely they were cleaning each other but I think its fun and cute to imagine that they are a couple of penguins in love.

Ellie could see the Griaffes and was so happy! Nothing like watching your favorite animal!

“Whatcha lookin’ at?”

The day was short and pretty uneventful but we had a great time as always. I think the Giraffes were interested in the shirt I was wearing because they kept staring at me and following me when I moved. We also had the chance to watch a wedding; one of the shortest ceremonies I think I have ever witnessed! Smart bride there! We took a longer detour on the way home, enjoying the summer sun and the beautiful evening. It may not have been much but it was a great day out for our family.

Friends That Are Meant to Be…

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I have been meaning to post something about this since February, but life became busy and I was finding it hard to just keep up with the blog posts I did have. However this was something special that I didn’t want to be over looked. Erika discovered this in February and sent me a text while we were away in San Francisco. I remember getting the text, seeing the picture and completely freaking out. It was so strange but an obvious sign of things to come and what was meant to be. Sorry to be so vague. I had planned on writing about it myself, but Erika put it to words on her blog and did an amazing job. So instead of writing about it on this blog, please click here and enjoy Erika’s wonderful post. It makes me laugh and smile every time I read it! Hope you enjoy!

Little Princesses

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I love that Ellie is now getting to an age of playing dress up and make believe. Listening to the two of them play is such a treat. They mimic their favorite movies and make up silly songs all on their own. I love this age! As long as it doesn’t turn into fighting I could listen to them for hours. I sure do love my little princesses!

Abby’s First Trip to the Movies

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Today we took Abby to see her very first movie in a movie theater! We had waited long enough and we knew it was time to test it out. Since showing her a trailer quite some time ago, Abby hasn’t stopped talking about the movie Brave. So when the movie hit theaters several weekends ago, Shaun and I decided we would take her.

So today we dropped Ellie off at Grandpa and Nana’s house and headed to the theater. Abby was so excited. When we got there we headed to the concessions and let Abby pick out some special snacks for the movie. She chose popcorn and a box of Red Vines to share with mommy. When we got into the theater, Abby chose our seats and we got settled in. Abby looked like a pro and was ready for the movie to start. We only had one potty break and that was a quick one. It came at the right time too! There were a few parts of the movie that were a bit dark and intense and Abby decided she had to go potty right at the scariest moment. Potential crisis averted! Abby loved Brave and even more then the movie, she loved the theater experience. She hasn’t stopped talking about it.We cant wait to take her back again soon!

ABout to head over to concessions to pick out a few snacks. Abby is thinking about what she wants!

All settled into her seat, snacks in hand and cozy under her blanky!

Ellie’s Two Year Check Up

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Ellie went in to see Dr. Calig today for her two year check up. It was a longer wait then normal but the girls were great! Abby made a new friend in the waiting room and Ellie found a few magazines to look at and of course attempt to tear apart.

Her check up went well and everything, according to Dr. Calig is great! She is very happy, healthy and doing a great job when it comes to growing. Just to show you how well she is growing, here are her stats:

Ellie’s Two Year Stats
Weight: 30 Pounds
Height: 36 Inches Tall
Ellie has grown a lot in 6 months. She is in the 98th percentile for both height and weight and doesn’t show any signs of changing. She is my skinny girl but we think she will be tall too! Ellie lucked out with this appointment as well. No vaccines today just a prick of her finger for some blood work and a poke on the arm for the TB test. She still wasn’t happy about it but it could have been worse. It wasn’t anything a few stickers couldn’t fix! Always glad to see that my girls are happy and healthy. No more doctor for another six months unless we get sick, but maybe we can make it a goal to stay away until then!

Ellie’s First Pair of Glasses

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About a month ago Shaun and I noticed that Ellie has having some trouble with her eyes. Out of the blue she started crossing or turning her left eye in and as parents this had us a bit concerned. After a trip to the our pediatrician and then to see a pediatric ophthalmologist we discovered that Ellie is extremely farsighted and has an astigmatism. As a note, most children up to age ten are farsighted. Its a natural part of eye development. They range between a 1 and a 2 and can correct their sight automatically without any issues or without any awareness of it. Ellie on the other hand sits between a 5 and 6. In order to see properly when looking at certain things she has to cross her eye or eyes to focus. The brain quickly adjusts to this, so the sooner you catch it the better. 
Well we caught it right away so hopefully this will benefit her in the long run. Ellie now gets to wear glasses in order to strengthen her eye muscles and correct the issue. So today after a bit of waiting and a lot of patience we picked up her glasses! She looks adorable in them. We chose a light purple color mainly because they looked the best on her but also to match her blankie! Now the challenge will be getting her to adjust to wearing them and keeping them on. But until then, she looks adorable!

Happy Second Birthday Ellie Belly!

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Ellie,
Has it really been two years since we held you in our arms for the first time? Has it already been a year since we celebrated your first birthday, your first big milestone? Time certainly moves quickly but we have enjoyed every minute of it that we possibly can. You have grown by leaps and bounds; walking, talking, running, climbing, testing anything and everything. You are our fearless girl, the one who will climb and keep climbing. You are our engineer; taking everything you can apart just to see what happens and building whatever you can with blocks and more. There isn’t a book left in your library that hasn’t been torn to bits because of this. You are our thinker, always stopping to ask why at everything thing we do or say. You are our tester, always trying to see how far you can go before there are consequences. This keeps mommy and daddy on their toes and a little bit frustrated at times. You are our snuggle bug, always wanting to be held and loved when you can. Asking mommy or daddy to “nuggle” is guaranteed to put a smile on our faces. You are our silly goose, always making a silly face, saying something funny or doing a silly dance just to make us laugh.
Ellie you bring so much joy and love into our lives. Your sister has a best friend, a playmate and a cohort in you. We see many years ahead of us filled with dress up, artwork and plays put on by the both of you and your daddy and I look forward to each treasured moment. We love you so much and cannot wait to see what age two will bring. Happy Birthday Ellie Belly! We love you so very much!
Ellie only a few hours old, July 1, 2010

Ellie only 1 week old, July 8th, 2012

Ellie at One Year Old, July 1, 2011

Ellie Turns Two, July 1st, 2012

Ellie’s 2nd Birthday Party!

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While Ellie’s official birthday isn’t until tomorrow, today we celebrated her second birthday with family and friends. Since Minnie Mouse is one of Ellie’s favorite characters these days, we had a fun Minnie Mouse themed party. The day was pretty relaxed and low key. Abby and Ellie had the chance to play with Harrison and just enjoy being kids while the adults mingled, talked and caught up with one another. This year it was wonderful to have my parents and sister here to celebrate. I know its hard on them when they have to miss birthdays, so it was extra special to have them here.
Ellie had a great time and enjoyed eating her birthday ice cream cake. She was a little unsure of all the people surrounding her and singing to her and became very shy when it came time to blow out her candles, so mommy had to do that for her. We had two cakes this year (I think this will become tradition) one was an ice cream cake from Baskin Robins the other was made by hand by yours truley from scratch. For those who might be wondering, the ice cream cake tradition started last year on Ellie’s first birthday when the cake I was baking from scratch turned into complete chaos. In the end we ordered and ice cream cake instead and I only make a simple small cake for Ellie to smash her hands into. This year my cake was a success and I think a hit with those who chose to have a piece from it.
Nothing but smiles from the birthday girl.

Both of Ellie’s beautiful birthday cakes.
 
Ellie’s birthday cake that was made from scratch by mommy. Lots lof love went into that cake!

After cake and a bit of playtime it was on to presents! Ellie was definitely more involved with opening them this year but still wanted to play with everything as it was unwrapped. Eventually she lost interest and I did a lot of it, but that’s ok. Her distraction came from toys she loved the minute she opened them. Who am I to complain about that?

Blowing out candles but a little overwhelmed by all of the attention.

Kisses from mommy for the birthday girl.

MMMMMM… CAKE!

Opening presents with reckless abandon!

When all was said and done we were surrounded by lots of presents, food and two happy but tired children. The afternoon was a success and it was obvious to us that Ellie is very much loved by everyone she knows. What a wonderful day. Happy Birthday Ellie!