2 1/2

Ella is now 2 years and 7 months old. I can hardly believe it. She is wonderfully full of life and she brings us so much joy every single day. I decided that it is time that I devote a post to my little bug-a-boo, because although she does not change as much as Cavner, not a day goes by where I am not completely surprised and amazed by a phrase, story, puzzle, or countless other things that she does. She is such a little sponge, and she observes, and remembers EVERYTHING!

Last night she woke up in the middle of the night telling us some story about eating corn. I have no idea if she had a bad dream, or what woke her up, but I have to say that I kind of like it when she wakes up in the middle of the night. Is that bad?? I LOVE our time in the middle of the night!! We talked, we snuggled, and she said "mommy will you please sleep in my bed with me? I love you!" How can you say no to that?? Luckily she has a queen size bed and I got to snuggle with her until she fell back asleep. These are the moments that I will remember forever. I sat there for a while after she fell back asleep and just watched her. I didn't care that it was 4am. I just sat there looking at her and how big she is. I really can't believe how much she has grown. I know that people always say "They grow up so fast", but it is 100% true!!

So Ella, what have you been up to lately??

You LOVE books. We have lots and lots of books. As a former school teacher, we have books EVERYWHERE. Your favorites right now are any book with Olivia in them and Curious George.

You also love singing and dancing. Watching you do these things always brings a smile to my face and to many others who you "perform" for! Your favorites to sing are Jesus Loves Me, and Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. Your little brother also loves your singing and you can often get him to stop crying in the car if you start singing to him. It is so sweet!

You are a wonderful big sister. You try to entertain Cavner, and you bring him toys to play with when he starts to fuss or cry. You even give him your blankie sometimes, which is a HUGE deal and it shows us how much you love him.

You love to play games. Your favorites are Memory, Goodnight Moon Game, and any puzzle. You also love to have tea parties!

You enjoy doing art projects, and helping me with my crafts.

You love it when you get to go explore outside. Your favorite things to do are ride your bike or car, play in your playhouse or sandbox and swing.

You started gymnastics a few months ago, and you love it. Your favorite thing is doing a somersault, and you are now really good at them.

We still struggle with your eating as you are an incredibly picky eater. Mealtimes can sometimes be frustrating, but we are hoping this will get better. Please!!!

You also have become very opinionated and vocal. This has been sometimes helpful and sometimes frustrating. You tell us what you want to eat, what you want to wear, and what you want to do. It is nice for you to be able to communicate with us, but you have also been testing us a lot. Fun, fun, fun!

And last but not least we are attempting to potty train you and you are fighting us the whole way. We have good days and bad days, but we are hoping that this will be over soon. You have been a wonderfully easy child, and this is by far the hardest thing that we have had to do.

Mommy and Daddy love you SO much Ella! You have become such a sweet and thoughtful girl. You are so full of energy, and you bring so much laughter and smiles to our family. We can tell that Cavner loves you too by the way that he smiles at you. Our lives have been so blessed since the day you entered this world, and we can't wait to see what you will do in the future.

Xoxo,

Mommy, Daddy and Cavner