That Time of Year Again...

Throwing rocks in the river with Dad. She loved that game!

I sure as heck can't believe it, but I start school tomorrow!! I will only be taking one class; Microbiology. This is my last pre-requisite class before I apply to the program at CR. It will be nice to only have to focus on one class, especially since I will have to seriously start looking for a job within the next couple months. I HAVE to be working starting November 1st! I can't believe it. It is going to be hard to not be able to spend my days with Ella.

Charley had Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday off last week. It was great to have him home!!! We didn't really do anything exciting, but we did make it to the river on Thursday. We weren't sure how the weather would be since it had rained in Eureka the night before, but we were able to find some sun! The temperature was in the high 70's, so it was mild enough weather for Ella. I am happy Charley will have next Monday off as well for Labor Day.

Ella just started saying "juice". I love getting her to say it because she sounds just so darn cute!

So Much Has Happened Lately!

My Little Miss Sunshine
She put the rings from biggest to smallest and later she went from smallest to biggest! So smart.




Ella had her 18 month check-up. I was very irritated to find out that she had to get 2 shots and a toe prick while we were there. Can the poor girl ever get a break? She knew what was going on when we got there. She didn't want anyone to touch her because she was afraid they would sneak those shots in at a seconds notice. She screamed and cried worse than she ever has for shots. I think she realizes now that she is older that it really does hurt to get those things! She was rewarded with a sucker, bracelet, and a squeaky octopus (which the dogs have already chewed up). The toys cleared up her crying eyes in minutes. I had stressed my concern to the doctor about Ella's repetitive activities. The doctor said that kids just do weird things. Some kids are mesmerized by the television or their toys, and some kids are really interested in how things work. She is just so curious about what is going on around her. She doesn't show early signs of autism, which is a great thing! She is also growing perfectly and appears to be as healthy as can be.


There are some new words that Ella has been saying such as "beep", "vroom", "dipee", "door", and "bopa" (papa). It amazes me how much she can understand. The doctor had asked me how many words I think that she understands. I told her that she can say about 20 words and that she can understand (but can't say) many, many more words. The Doc was impressed! She is very good at following directions. She helps me with putting dirty laundry in baskets and with picking up her toys. She's great.


It has finally happened. I now push Ella on the ten miler with Dad! He likes to go slower to keep his heart rate down, and I like to go faster. Ella adds that extra resistance for me and gets me down to Dad's speed. I could really feel it in my legs Sunday night. I got a great work out on my first run pushing Ella.


A very sad thing also happened this week... Today my friend from childhood Carrie took off with her new husband to Arizona to live with his family for a little while. We grew up next door to each other and have been good friends ever since. We even worked together for a few years. Her husband has training to do and in a few months he will get stationed somewhere. It was hard to say goodbye even though I am so excited for her. I just hope he isn't stationed too far away. I knew this day was coming for a while, but it doesn't hit you until it really does happen. I love that girl and she is going to be missed by so many people. : (

I Think Our Baby is a Genius!!!

I found her asleep on Sadie's back. She loves her doggies.

Will the shoe fetish ever end?!?
Opening the gate before it was finished.

In her new big girl clothes (size 2t!!!)
On a freezing summer night in Eureka...

She's finally fenced in!!!! Yipee!

Ella loves to play in the food pantry... The other day I looked over and she was stacking cans on top of our rice container! I was in shock that she was able to get that many cans stacked all by herself. She is literally obsessed with stacking things such as books, silverware, toys, etc. She can spend up to 30 minutes at one time just putting my shoes on and off. She enjoys repetitive activities.

The fence finally got finished on Friday. It is so nice to just sit outside on the porch while Ella plays without running away every second. Now Charley just needs to make her a sandbox since we can't find one to buy anywhere. The other night Ella ran over to me all excited with her hands out in front of her. She seemed so eager to show me what was in her hands. It was a huge SLUG! I screamed and swatted it out of her hands. I think I scared her, but it was disgusting.

Hi Ella!!

She was being very quiet in my room, so I went in to check on her and she was eating her sucker while laying on Sadie!

Ella is confused on who "Ella" actually is. She says "hey Ella!" to everyone she sees. I think it is really cute. Her communication hasn't been all that successful lately. She whines and waves her hands when she wants something. Sometimes it's hard to figure out what that little girl is wanting so badly.



The fence still isn't finished because Charley has been taking on extra overtime shifts on Fridays. Hopefully it will be done this Friday when he gets his first day off in like 3 weeks. It will be so nice when he doesn't have to work at his second job anymore. Ella has no idea what it's like to have her Dad home on the weekends. I've also forgotten what it's like to have him home... Plus, Ella is getting very heavy and I think my Dad would be relieved to not have to push Ella on our Sunday run. : )