Our sassy 3 year old on her birthday =)
Ellie: I'm going to put my princess dress on Daddy.
Daddy: Ok.
Ellie: I'm going upstairs to put it on.
Daddy: Do you want me to come upstairs too?
Ellie: No, you stay downstairs and look at your phone =)
I am still laughing....
Monday, January 31, 2011
Sunday, January 30, 2011
3 Years Old!
Our Ellie Ruth is turning 3 tomorrow, but the celebrating has already begun! Last Thursday Ellie brought treats in for her friends at school, today we had a fun time with all the Boyers and the Betkers, tomorrow Ellie and Mama are having a special day together, and next weekend the Pomeroy clan is coming to celebrate some more! Nothing like breaking up the cold winter with a week-long birthday celebration =) For as much as Ellie is excited for this birthday though, she deserves it! =)
Ellie's seriously been talking about her birthday since October. After Great-Grandma's birthday, she heard that her birthday was "next". Well, that was true (in our family), but there was still Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas to be had. After Christmas Ellie knew her birthday was "next", but she also had 2 friends at school with January birthdays, so we patiently waited through January, first Henry had his, and then Gabby, and then FINALLY Ellie's was NEXT! Oh, she has been SO excited =) I'll do another post with all the birthday fun, but thought I'd write a little about our 3 year old these days.
Ellie is independent, sweet, appreciative, and loving. No, it's not sweetness ALL of the time, but her moments are ones that just come with this age I've decided. She can be very stubborn (independence to the max!) which causes frustration, but I guess we can be thankful that she's learning and trying new things. On the mornings when she's INSISTENT on getting in the car and buckling herself in "ALL BY MYSELF", I just take a deep breath and get a warm chai to start my day.
Ellie is such a talker, and we always hear how she talks so well. She seriously talks so much, non-stop. Her most favorite thing to ask is "Why?"...while it does get annoying, I do think she's trying to understand, so we do our best to explain whatever it is she's asking about. Ellie says so many things, I cannot even begin to list, but here are some that make me smile...
"Oh my Goodness! Oh my Gosh!" (usually out of excitement or joy)
"That's not very nice, he needs a time-out" (usually about Emmit or a friend at school)
"I'm a BEAUUUTIFUL princess!" (Emphasis on the beautiful and usually spinning around)
"I love you SO much Mama/Daddy" (She really emphasizes things and this ones just makes me smile)
"I love my whole family!" (and then she'll proceed to name everyone, including Grandmas, Grandpas, Aunts, Uncles, and cousins, considering the number there are..I'm usually impressed)
Ellie loves her brother and her friends. I love our dinnertime chats where she tells us who she played with and what they did at school. Ellie and Emmit have a bit of a love/hate relationship these days, but for the most part I think it's love. Except maybe when there's a need to share...that doesn't go so well (I actually did my first toy timeout yesterday over a ball they couldn't seem to play together with).
Ellie loves watching her shows - her MOST favorite being Wow Wow Wubbzy and Max & Ruby right now. She loves anything princess and will play dress-up all day long. She wears a princess dress at some point of just about every day lately. She loves reading stories and reads most of her favorite stories back to us now. She knows some of them word for word. She loves to play hide-and-seek, make snow angels, chase around the house, and princess in the castle (Daddy, the mean dragon, puts princess Ellie and prince Emmit in the dungeon (the landing on the stairs) and Mama, the rescuer, saves the day!) Ellie can be very imaginative, so we play lots of silly games at home most evenings.
Ellie's gotten a little pickier in her eating as she's gotten older, but still likes a lot of things so we can't complain at all! She really has a sweet tooth like her Mama though, listing ice cream and candy as favorites! =) Some of her other favorites are grapes, mac & cheese, string cheese, guacamole, popcorn, raviolis, and apple juice. The one thing Ellie doesn't really eat is meat (except hamburger); she'll eat almost anything, but only after picking the meat out first. She is liking milk now which is kind of a new thing - she was a 'water-only' child for a long time.
As a 3-year old, here are some things Ellie's been talking about lately.
Going to the dentist - She learned about the dentist at school probably 6 months ago. I told her that when she was 3 she could go, and she DID NOT forget. She has her first dentist appointment scheduled in a couple weeks, and she's REALLY excited. I am taking her so we will see...she might love it, she might freak out - I really don't know what to expect?!
Taking a vitamin - She's been taking a multi-vitamin every night now, and she just loves this. She always reminds us to take our vitamins too so we can get 'big and strong'.
Being done with her nummy/nukie - I really don't know what to do about this. She still loves her nuk, but ONLY at home. She totally gave it up at school, and doesn't take it when we go places (it always stays in her cup holder in the car). At home though, she still has it. We've been talking about her being a big girl when she's 3 and how she won't need nummy anymore, and she's been saying it back...but we're one day away, and I really don't think it's going to happen. Especially since Emmit equally loves his nummy, so it's just teasing Ellie if he has one and she can't. I am wondering if the dentist might be able to convince her at all???? Someone else had told me that worked, I don't know, we'll see!
Ellie is totally potty trained (for a couple months now) which is AWESOME! Nighttime still requires a Pull-Up, but that is a-ok with me! She is doing great using the potty all day now and loves all her underwear.
Happy 3rd Birthday Baby Girl!
Fun in the blankets! Not only does Ellie love her nummy yet, but she also REALLY loves her green blanket which she's had since she was born. She gives blankie a hug and a kiss each morning, and takes it just about everywhere she can.
Being silly in Mama's boots - Ellie is a dress-up queen!
Grocery shopping with Mama...it's really easy to go places with Ellie now which we love. She insists on walking herself though - no riding in the cart. Grocery shopping is no exception - she loves pushing her own cart. This particular day she did take off running from me, which caused me to have to ditch my cart and chase her, but after that she stayed close!
And Ellie in her most favorite attire...100% princess!
I just love this video. It's from before Christmas, but I was having upload issues and just finally got it to work. This is so Ellie now, talking away, playing with Emmit, and taking care of her babies =) Of course there's a little Emmit in here too...he's listening to music on Daddy's phone and cuts the video short when he decides he should bang it against the door!
Ellie's seriously been talking about her birthday since October. After Great-Grandma's birthday, she heard that her birthday was "next". Well, that was true (in our family), but there was still Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas to be had. After Christmas Ellie knew her birthday was "next", but she also had 2 friends at school with January birthdays, so we patiently waited through January, first Henry had his, and then Gabby, and then FINALLY Ellie's was NEXT! Oh, she has been SO excited =) I'll do another post with all the birthday fun, but thought I'd write a little about our 3 year old these days.
Ellie is independent, sweet, appreciative, and loving. No, it's not sweetness ALL of the time, but her moments are ones that just come with this age I've decided. She can be very stubborn (independence to the max!) which causes frustration, but I guess we can be thankful that she's learning and trying new things. On the mornings when she's INSISTENT on getting in the car and buckling herself in "ALL BY MYSELF", I just take a deep breath and get a warm chai to start my day.
Ellie is such a talker, and we always hear how she talks so well. She seriously talks so much, non-stop. Her most favorite thing to ask is "Why?"...while it does get annoying, I do think she's trying to understand, so we do our best to explain whatever it is she's asking about. Ellie says so many things, I cannot even begin to list, but here are some that make me smile...
"Oh my Goodness! Oh my Gosh!" (usually out of excitement or joy)
"That's not very nice, he needs a time-out" (usually about Emmit or a friend at school)
"I'm a BEAUUUTIFUL princess!" (Emphasis on the beautiful and usually spinning around)
"I love you SO much Mama/Daddy" (She really emphasizes things and this ones just makes me smile)
"I love my whole family!" (and then she'll proceed to name everyone, including Grandmas, Grandpas, Aunts, Uncles, and cousins, considering the number there are..I'm usually impressed)
Ellie loves her brother and her friends. I love our dinnertime chats where she tells us who she played with and what they did at school. Ellie and Emmit have a bit of a love/hate relationship these days, but for the most part I think it's love. Except maybe when there's a need to share...that doesn't go so well (I actually did my first toy timeout yesterday over a ball they couldn't seem to play together with).
Ellie loves watching her shows - her MOST favorite being Wow Wow Wubbzy and Max & Ruby right now. She loves anything princess and will play dress-up all day long. She wears a princess dress at some point of just about every day lately. She loves reading stories and reads most of her favorite stories back to us now. She knows some of them word for word. She loves to play hide-and-seek, make snow angels, chase around the house, and princess in the castle (Daddy, the mean dragon, puts princess Ellie and prince Emmit in the dungeon (the landing on the stairs) and Mama, the rescuer, saves the day!) Ellie can be very imaginative, so we play lots of silly games at home most evenings.
Ellie's gotten a little pickier in her eating as she's gotten older, but still likes a lot of things so we can't complain at all! She really has a sweet tooth like her Mama though, listing ice cream and candy as favorites! =) Some of her other favorites are grapes, mac & cheese, string cheese, guacamole, popcorn, raviolis, and apple juice. The one thing Ellie doesn't really eat is meat (except hamburger); she'll eat almost anything, but only after picking the meat out first. She is liking milk now which is kind of a new thing - she was a 'water-only' child for a long time.
As a 3-year old, here are some things Ellie's been talking about lately.
Going to the dentist - She learned about the dentist at school probably 6 months ago. I told her that when she was 3 she could go, and she DID NOT forget. She has her first dentist appointment scheduled in a couple weeks, and she's REALLY excited. I am taking her so we will see...she might love it, she might freak out - I really don't know what to expect?!
Taking a vitamin - She's been taking a multi-vitamin every night now, and she just loves this. She always reminds us to take our vitamins too so we can get 'big and strong'.
Being done with her nummy/nukie - I really don't know what to do about this. She still loves her nuk, but ONLY at home. She totally gave it up at school, and doesn't take it when we go places (it always stays in her cup holder in the car). At home though, she still has it. We've been talking about her being a big girl when she's 3 and how she won't need nummy anymore, and she's been saying it back...but we're one day away, and I really don't think it's going to happen. Especially since Emmit equally loves his nummy, so it's just teasing Ellie if he has one and she can't. I am wondering if the dentist might be able to convince her at all???? Someone else had told me that worked, I don't know, we'll see!
Ellie is totally potty trained (for a couple months now) which is AWESOME! Nighttime still requires a Pull-Up, but that is a-ok with me! She is doing great using the potty all day now and loves all her underwear.
Happy 3rd Birthday Baby Girl!
Fun in the blankets! Not only does Ellie love her nummy yet, but she also REALLY loves her green blanket which she's had since she was born. She gives blankie a hug and a kiss each morning, and takes it just about everywhere she can.
Being silly in Mama's boots - Ellie is a dress-up queen!
Grocery shopping with Mama...it's really easy to go places with Ellie now which we love. She insists on walking herself though - no riding in the cart. Grocery shopping is no exception - she loves pushing her own cart. This particular day she did take off running from me, which caused me to have to ditch my cart and chase her, but after that she stayed close!
And Ellie in her most favorite attire...100% princess!
I just love this video. It's from before Christmas, but I was having upload issues and just finally got it to work. This is so Ellie now, talking away, playing with Emmit, and taking care of her babies =) Of course there's a little Emmit in here too...he's listening to music on Daddy's phone and cuts the video short when he decides he should bang it against the door!
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Madison Rendezvous
Last weekend we met our friends Jen, Matt, Lauren, and Zizi for a family weekend in Madison (an almost halfway point for us to meet up). With 2 hotel suites, 4 adults, and 4 kids under 3 we sure had a lot of fun! We all arrived around lunchtime on Saturday and had a little hotel room picnic to start our vacation. From there it was to the pool! All the kids LOVED the pool, and I have no pictures to show for it! We swam and hot tubbed for a good part of the afternoon, and then made our way back to the rooms for some down time. Emmit, Lauren, and Zizi all napped, Ellie watched a movie, the boys watched football, and Jen and I caught up over some wine =) Too fun! The evening consisted of playing in the hotel, running up and down the halls, another dinnertime pizza party, more football, and more wine - such a great night! Sunday morning we were all up early and after breakfast, in the pool again by 8:30 am! After more pooltime and playtime in the rooms, we packed up for a McDonalds lunch on our way out of town. It was a short little trip, but so much fun! Thanks Leusteks for a great weekend! We miss you! =)
Bathtime fun!
Lauren and Zizi (1 1/2), they're just a few months older than Emmit and so sweet. All 3 of the little ones liked the fact that the microwaves in our hotel suites were just their heights.
An attempt at a group shot
And again...
The phones were also fun to play with...this one's is unplugged right from the wall - have at it!
Another group shot, this time with snacks...maybe a bit more cooperative...just a bit.
Cute close-up of Emmit and Lauren (I think, going from memory and pj color...I can't tell them apart!)
Ellie and Zizi sharing
Ellie eating her popcorn and NOT wanting her picture taken!
Cheese for Zizi!
Too big for the mini-fridge!
McDonalds lunch before heading back home!
Bathtime fun!
Lauren and Zizi (1 1/2), they're just a few months older than Emmit and so sweet. All 3 of the little ones liked the fact that the microwaves in our hotel suites were just their heights.
An attempt at a group shot
And again...
The phones were also fun to play with...this one's is unplugged right from the wall - have at it!
Another group shot, this time with snacks...maybe a bit more cooperative...just a bit.
Cute close-up of Emmit and Lauren (I think, going from memory and pj color...I can't tell them apart!)
Ellie and Zizi sharing
Ellie eating her popcorn and NOT wanting her picture taken!
Cheese for Zizi!
Too big for the mini-fridge!
McDonalds lunch before heading back home!
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Fun Times
Just a smattering of random pictures from fun times with the kids =)
We recently dug out the Baby Einstein videos that Ellie loved when she was younger, and have come to find that Emmit likes them a lot too! Colin had me capture this moment, they are sitting on the couch together so nicely...this does not happen that often! =)
I brought these boots home for Ellie since now that she uses the potty all on her own, all she wants to wear are leggings (easier up and down). Colin said, 'What does she need another pair of boots for?' My response, what girl DOESN'T need another pair of boots?! =) Like Mother, like daughter =)
This is a typical picture of Emmit now - as soon as he sees the camera, he is running at you to get it!
Emmit has found that kitchen chairs are very resourceful at getting him into just about anything he wants!
Into things and onto things!
We've been enjoying hot chocolate on cold winter days. Both kids have learned to appreciate 'coffee clutch' from hanging around at Grandma's =)
Ellie's teachers always send pictures home, and I thought this one was so cute. This is Ellie and her friend Henry, they are BEST buds!
And the new stroller has definitely been a hit around our house as you can see. Emmit enjoys pushing or being pushed. This one doesn't end all that well, but he recovered quickly =)
We recently dug out the Baby Einstein videos that Ellie loved when she was younger, and have come to find that Emmit likes them a lot too! Colin had me capture this moment, they are sitting on the couch together so nicely...this does not happen that often! =)
I brought these boots home for Ellie since now that she uses the potty all on her own, all she wants to wear are leggings (easier up and down). Colin said, 'What does she need another pair of boots for?' My response, what girl DOESN'T need another pair of boots?! =) Like Mother, like daughter =)
This is a typical picture of Emmit now - as soon as he sees the camera, he is running at you to get it!
Emmit has found that kitchen chairs are very resourceful at getting him into just about anything he wants!
Into things and onto things!
We've been enjoying hot chocolate on cold winter days. Both kids have learned to appreciate 'coffee clutch' from hanging around at Grandma's =)
Ellie's teachers always send pictures home, and I thought this one was so cute. This is Ellie and her friend Henry, they are BEST buds!
And the new stroller has definitely been a hit around our house as you can see. Emmit enjoys pushing or being pushed. This one doesn't end all that well, but he recovered quickly =)
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Christmas - Part 3
The days following Christmas we had fun visiting and playing with the Pomeroy family. The kids ran around wild, we played cards and Blokus, and went sledding too! Here are a bunch of shots from the sledding fun =)
We were very happy to have the whole week + off following Christmas as well. Ellie, Emmit, and I stayed in the UP until Wednesday having coffee clutch, listening to Mama Mia, and visiting with Grandma - those are the best days! =) We headed back to Wisconsin on Wednesday and spent the next few days playing at home and just catching up after a week away. Our friend, Suzy, unexpectedly found herself in the hospital with viral meningitis over those days as well, so we were happy to help out and have Julianna come over to play.
I think one is cute. These two had to quickly learn how to share and play together, but it didn't take long and they were having a great time!
Capping off our party parade, on New Years Day we had the Kaukola family here for a Happy New Year/Holiday party again. It was fun hosting everyone at our house for once! We missed the few that couldn't make it, but had fun with everyone that did! Thanks to Aunt Gretchen for the pictures =)
Host & Hostess
Grandma & Uncle Bob
Grandma & Emmit
Sara, Emmit, & Taylor
Aunt Laurie & Emmit
Cory, Janel, & Taylor
Dad having a festive time! =)
Ellie with her messy Happy New Year cookie
Shan & Henry
We were very happy to have the whole week + off following Christmas as well. Ellie, Emmit, and I stayed in the UP until Wednesday having coffee clutch, listening to Mama Mia, and visiting with Grandma - those are the best days! =) We headed back to Wisconsin on Wednesday and spent the next few days playing at home and just catching up after a week away. Our friend, Suzy, unexpectedly found herself in the hospital with viral meningitis over those days as well, so we were happy to help out and have Julianna come over to play.
I think one is cute. These two had to quickly learn how to share and play together, but it didn't take long and they were having a great time!
Capping off our party parade, on New Years Day we had the Kaukola family here for a Happy New Year/Holiday party again. It was fun hosting everyone at our house for once! We missed the few that couldn't make it, but had fun with everyone that did! Thanks to Aunt Gretchen for the pictures =)
Host & Hostess
Grandma & Uncle Bob
Grandma & Emmit
Sara, Emmit, & Taylor
Aunt Laurie & Emmit
Cory, Janel, & Taylor
Dad having a festive time! =)
Ellie with her messy Happy New Year cookie
Shan & Henry
Friday, January 7, 2011
Christmas - Part 2
After a fun week before Christmas at home, we all headed to Michigan for the beginning of family Christmas madness. As usual the kids got very spoiled, but they sure did have fun with all their Aunts, Uncles, Grandmas, Grandpas, and cousins. I have several pictures and videos, so we'll just get to it! This also seems like 'Ellie's Christmas'...I seem to have way more pictures and videos of her than Emmit. Emmit was there of course, but just not as 'into' things as Ellie this year. Ellie REALLY enjoyed Christmas this year which was a lot of fun! And I seriously have no pictures of the adults (the family pic at the end wasn't mine!)
Ellie was very into opening gifts this year! She likes her new Candyland game, though I think we may have already lost a couple pieces since Emmit likes to 'play' too.
A new back pack
Emmit opened gifts here and there, but was still more entertained tearing paper and playing with toys. He is really liking all his new cars and Cat equipment though! He's all about pushing things around lately.
Henry wearing his new Stormy Kromer
One thing that Ellie was repeatedly asking for up to Christmas was a baby stroller. She had been a very good girl, so Santa brought for her of course!
Instead of cookies, Ellie also left Santa Hershey's kisses (her candy of choice this holiday!). She was VERY excited when she woke up to find that he had eaten some!!
Through the whole month of December Ellie would also randomly break out into 'Santa Claus is Coming to Town'...she was singing it constantly. I'm not even sure where she learned the words. Anyway, I tried several times to get this on video, but everytime she realized I was recording she'd stop. Here are a couple partial versions of her singing though. The first one is funny because she's singing away while watching TV and you can't see, but I signal Colin to turn the TV down...well that didn't work.
The highlight of Christmas morning - Santa came to visit! Mike was sure a good sport, and as you can see the boys were not making it easy on him!! The whole time we were home too, Ellie wanted to play 'customer' at her store (aka the bar in the basement). She would sit behind the bar, and we'd have to come to the store for candy. So Santa had to come to the store too =) Ellie's helped my Mom out at work a lot which is where she learned her excellent customer service skills! =)
Later Christmas morning he headed to Pomeroys for more Christmas and gift opening fun. Colin's Aunt Darla made all the kids stockings which was really nice.
Ellie's attire for Christmas day - her new Cinderella dress!
Max on his new scooter (this was his FIRST gift and the only one he was interested in!!)
Loving her new baby
Brendan with his new Packer clothes
Emmit ripping some paper and then trying out the scooter (see Emmit was there...you know how they say you have a lot fewer pictures of the second child...poor Emmit, this post proves that!!)
The 'big' kids table at dinner
Three blonde boys in a tub
A cute one of Ellie in her new dress from Grandma with her matching baby doll
And the annual Pomeroy family Christmas pic (minus Ashley)
One last video...the Pomeroy cousins really have fun together. The house is pretty much chaos. I have some more 'after Christmas' fun which I post seperate because this is REALLY long...notice Ellie's leap at the end. I'm pretty sure I stopped recording assuming tears were going to follow that, but she landed just fine and then did it a few more times until we had to make her to stop because Emmit was then wanting to jump off the bed too!!
Ellie was very into opening gifts this year! She likes her new Candyland game, though I think we may have already lost a couple pieces since Emmit likes to 'play' too.
A new back pack
Emmit opened gifts here and there, but was still more entertained tearing paper and playing with toys. He is really liking all his new cars and Cat equipment though! He's all about pushing things around lately.
Henry wearing his new Stormy Kromer
One thing that Ellie was repeatedly asking for up to Christmas was a baby stroller. She had been a very good girl, so Santa brought for her of course!
Instead of cookies, Ellie also left Santa Hershey's kisses (her candy of choice this holiday!). She was VERY excited when she woke up to find that he had eaten some!!
Through the whole month of December Ellie would also randomly break out into 'Santa Claus is Coming to Town'...she was singing it constantly. I'm not even sure where she learned the words. Anyway, I tried several times to get this on video, but everytime she realized I was recording she'd stop. Here are a couple partial versions of her singing though. The first one is funny because she's singing away while watching TV and you can't see, but I signal Colin to turn the TV down...well that didn't work.
The highlight of Christmas morning - Santa came to visit! Mike was sure a good sport, and as you can see the boys were not making it easy on him!! The whole time we were home too, Ellie wanted to play 'customer' at her store (aka the bar in the basement). She would sit behind the bar, and we'd have to come to the store for candy. So Santa had to come to the store too =) Ellie's helped my Mom out at work a lot which is where she learned her excellent customer service skills! =)
Later Christmas morning he headed to Pomeroys for more Christmas and gift opening fun. Colin's Aunt Darla made all the kids stockings which was really nice.
Ellie's attire for Christmas day - her new Cinderella dress!
Max on his new scooter (this was his FIRST gift and the only one he was interested in!!)
Loving her new baby
Brendan with his new Packer clothes
Emmit ripping some paper and then trying out the scooter (see Emmit was there...you know how they say you have a lot fewer pictures of the second child...poor Emmit, this post proves that!!)
The 'big' kids table at dinner
Three blonde boys in a tub
A cute one of Ellie in her new dress from Grandma with her matching baby doll
And the annual Pomeroy family Christmas pic (minus Ashley)
One last video...the Pomeroy cousins really have fun together. The house is pretty much chaos. I have some more 'after Christmas' fun which I post seperate because this is REALLY long...notice Ellie's leap at the end. I'm pretty sure I stopped recording assuming tears were going to follow that, but she landed just fine and then did it a few more times until we had to make her to stop because Emmit was then wanting to jump off the bed too!!
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