Happy Birthday

Happy FIRST Birthday ELLIE :)

Can't BELIEVE it's been a year!

We love you!

Just amazing how much things change in 12 short months.

Auntie D and I were just talking the other day about how it seemed like forever between when we heard SnL were expecting and when Ellie was born and then this last year has FLOWN by!

Party on Sunday so more pictures then :)

Ellie - 10 months

Iz and I spent yesterday the same way we spend every Wednesday....hanging out with Ellie at Auntie D's house. I feel so lucky that I get to see Ellie every week since she is at that age that she changes so much even in the short time I don't see her. Today, she's 10 months old! Where did the time go? Seriously?!?

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She just keeps getting cuter and cuter and cuter!

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She stands up alone now :) I won't be surprised if she starts walking in the next few week - Yipe!

(Iz didn't start walking until she turned one, so a walker this little will be new for me!)

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Sitting in a big girl chair.

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She's even old enough for iced coffee!!!

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YUM!

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In Case You Were Wondering...

...what a 9-month-old baby wearing size 18-month overalls being fed a bottle by a 4.5-year-old looks like???
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Here ya go!

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Ellie's getting so big! And Iz is a GREAT cousin!!!

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Somebody's MOBILE!!!!

Hold on to your hats folks! She's on the move...

GO Ellie!!!

Photoshopping

No, I'm not referring to shopping for Photos :) Remember the other day when we were at the park and cutie pie Ellie was with us? Well, I snapped some adorable shots of her and this was my fave:


After I took it though I realized the paper on the ground had snuck into the corner of the picture and, though I tried to crop it out, it wouldn't work...so I opened the picture in "Paint" and did a little cut and paste of other parts of the ground. Now, upon close inspection my photo shop job is terrible but looking at the picture here? Not so bad :) What do you think?


An even better question...is the picture better in color, showing off Ellie's amazing eyes?
Or classic black and white???


I can't decide...I love it both ways!!!

Fun at the Park

While hanging out at Auntie D's on Wednesday we took advantage of the nice weather and walked up to the park to play at the playground for a while.

The slide gave Iz a *little* bit of a static problem :)


Little Miss Ellie was there too :) See how she's trying to stick her tongue out? That's because she's looking up at UJ and that's the "trick" he's trying to teach her....won't her parents be proud?

F-U-N!

One of my fave pictures of Ellie...ever! :)

Playing is hard work...sometimes you need to recline for a moment and just relax!

Eggs!

Serious business happening at Auntie D's house yesterday after story time...

Coloring Easter Eggs :)

Look who else was there to "help" color?

She's getting SO big!

We had a blast!


*I would have included one of the million pictures I took of Iz where I said "Show me your egg!" But in EVERY.SINGLE.ONE of them she is doing her awful fake/posed smile and they came out terrible!!! She's really a whole lot more photogenic in candid shots :)

Bike Rides, Nice Weather and LOTS of Cuteness!

After story time at the Library yesterday we made our way to Auntie D's and went for our first bike ride of the year!!! SO fun!

The weather has been so nice this week...we are being spoiled :) In the back of my mind, I keep remembering that we could VERY easily get hit with more snow but I'm trying to push that thought away and enjoy the nice weather while we have it.

Look who else we got to hang out with!!! (Notice Iz's BLUE nails...she really IS a teenager on the inside!)



Look who can sit up ALL BY HERSELF!


So much fun enjoying the weather with the girls, spending some Q-Time with Ellie and, of course, getting our "Auntie D fix" for the week :)

Rain Rain GO AWAY!!!

It POURED rain ALL DAY yesterday! And I mean P.O.U.R.E.D.

It stunk. Our basement flooded. Hubby spent a bunch of time outside chipping away at the ice around the bulkhead (where all the water was coming in) trying to dig a trench.

We went into "town" today to pick up Hubby's rental car and get the rest of the stuff out of his work car and most places were closed. Nanni & Papa, Auntie D and WW all were out of power from about midnight until 1 this afternoon. Surprisingly enough up here in the boonies we just had a flicker and that was it :) Hubby bought a wet/dry vac while he was out today so clean-up will begin when he gets home. I picked up the grocery necessities we needed to last through the weekend and we're planning on staying in for the next few days since it's supposed to keep RAINING! Ugh!

What a storm.

On a lighter note...Wednesday afternoon S stopped by to pick up the baby sled we have to take Ellie out X-Country Skiing on their several acres of land. I stole this ADORABLE picture from L's FB page :)


Ellie just keeps getting cuter and cuter! L said one lap around the yard and Ellie was asleep :)

I'm going to batten down the hatches...gonna be a looooooong weekend!

A Party for Ellie :)

Auntie D wanted to throw a little get together in honor of Ellie's arrival so that some of her in-laws could come up from Mass. and meet her ... Saturday was the day and the party was a success!
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Ellie was all dressed up for the occasion and was awake the whole time
(except for a quick power nap during present opening!)
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...and, boy oh boy, were there a lot of presents to open!
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Even Iz got a present...homemade by her Great Auntie M :)

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Great Great Auntie M made Ellie something too...a BEAUTIFUL quilt

(so wish I had a picture of it opened up...but I wasn't the photographer)
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Having the relatives up gave us the opportunity to snap a picture of something you DEFINITELY don't see every day...

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~FIVE GENERATIONS~

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The poor guys, suffering through a baby shower...and Elie taking a power nap :)
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L had a lot of help opening gifts...some she didn't even get to see, I think! I kept having to remind Iz to show things to SnL before everyone else since the presents were for THEIR baby!
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Nannie made Ellie a blanket too!!!You can never have too many, that's for sure!
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I think Iz liked the wrapping paper better than most of the gifts...and opening them was a lot more fun than what was actually inside!
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The guest of honor...what a doll
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Wondering what she's staring so intently at?
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The ceiling fan - it's her favorite thing at her Nana's house...besides her Nana, of course! :)
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A Pleasant Surprise

I took Iz to the movies yesterday morning. She woke up with a little runny nose but nothing major and the weather was rainy and cold so we bundled up and headed out. Finding Nemo...an "oldie" but a goodie was playing FREE and so we watched the movie and had lunch and cuddled a little and it was a wonderful morning spent with my little one.
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We got a VERY pleasant surprise when we stopped at Auntie D's on the way home.
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Look who was visiting!!!
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That was how she looked BEFORE I got there...
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...this is how she was the entire time I held her.
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So sweet and so cute and so cuddly.
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PLUS...it was the first time I had seen her outside of the hospital AND in real clothes!!!
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On a down note - the runny nose Iz had yesterday morning had her up a couple times over the night. She's still sleeping so we'll wait and see what the day brings and how she's feeling. I'm betting that we will not be going to story time today - and it's all about apples...boo! hate to miss that one! - but, instead, will spend the day cuddling and watching movies and reading books. Which is still a good day, as far as I'm concerned.
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Here's to hoping things are back to normal soon...
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It's Been A Few Days

...and I'm sure you need a fix :)
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This is Ellie's "GO PATS" picture...she's a fan already!

(maybe someday I'll explain the bandage on her right arm...but today is not that day)
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I AM the baby whisperer :)

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SnL and Ellie are FINALLY home from the hospital...the way it should be! and I haven't seen them since Saturday....SATURDAY! Almost a week! Yipe! I've got to get MY fix...and SOON!

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