Evening Outdoor Fun

Like most kiddos, Elli comes alive whenever she gets the opportunity to be outside. I don't know what the big deal is - I mean, God knows it's just loads of fun being couped up in a house with her mom all day. But of course this evening of outdoor adventures was made even better since Ellison got to be pantless. She & her mama did some driveway graffiti, then Ellison would walk up and down the sidewalk, each time pausing to "walk backwards" into the steps, where she would sit down with a look of pure pleasure on her sweet little face. Unfortunately, during one of these passes, Ellison suffered her first skinned knees. Alas, it's still cool to go pantless!

The Budget Salon

Jonathan had to practice some real self-restraint here. Ellison kept dipping her food-encrusted hands in the spilled water on her tray, then would rub her hands together as if to "lather" them up, and then "wash" her hair. Seriously, it's as if I could actually see Jon's skin crawling before my eyes. But he did well - he let Mookie have her kid moment.

Pensive Elli

Contemplating whether the amount of chlorophyll in food is directly proportional to its taste...

I love this photo - it almost looks like our little Mookie is eating at a little cafe next to a window. In Paris. A girl can dream, right?

Elli's Weekend Buddies

Ellison definitely enjoyed having her cousins to play with through the weekend! You could tell there were kids in the house - for the first time, she wasn't clingy with her Mama & Daddy with company in the house. All she wanted to do was play with her buddies. Of course, it didn't hurt that she got a ton of attention from Alex. Alex was pretty much her full-time playmate during their stay.

Ellison, our little shoe queen, had to try on Alexandria's cool shoes, with the help of Alex & Aunt Sara.

Fun at the Zoo

I unexpectedly got off work on Saturday, so I got to join the rest of the gang in going to the NC Zoo. We had lots of fun, Ellison was a doll & even missed her nap, and she especially loved trying Dippin' Dots for the first time.

Teddy & La-La had to enjoy the zoo as well.

Ellison's first time on a carousel! She loved it at first, then became a little unsure with the up & down motion, and the loud music, so she tightly wrapped her arm around her dad the whole time, but then wanted to go "again" when it was all done.

Haille, Alexandria, Jonathan, & Ellison

Looking at the rhinos



Playing in the Kid Zone

A Family Meeting

Here is Ellison meeting her cousins, Haille & Alexandria, for the first time! Sara (Jonathan's sis) & Jerry (her husband) and their girls arrived from Jacksonville, FL at midnight Friday night while Elli was asleep. She got a lovely surprise during breakfast the following day.

A New Source of Entertainment

Ellison has found that not only is Grandma & Papa's van fun to hang out in, but so is the Pimpster! It's great - I get the floors mopped while she & Daddy have a hayday in the fun-on-wheels.

Ellison's Swiffer

A few weeks back, Ellison's dad removed a portion of the Swiffer to make it easier for her to push around. No need to consult child labor laws - Ellison loves "helping" to clean on her own. Shortly after the Swiffer adapted to Ellison's size, she decided to officially make it her own by decorating it with a bunch of stickers. For whatever reason, the stickers rubbed her the wrong way on this day, because she tediously tried removing them...

OK, I know stories of Swiffers don't make for exciting photo ops, but she's just too darn cute not to photograph all the time. ;)

To Papa Carl

Today, April 18, would have been Papa Carl's 58th birthday. We've all been thinking of him and missing him like crazy! We feel so fortunate that Ellison got the opportunity to be in her Papa Carl's arms when she was a baby. Anyone that knew Papa Carl knows that was one of his favorite things to do -- hold little ones. He was rarely seen at family gatherings without a child in his arms or his lap. I (along with my siblings) was so blessed to grow up with him as my "second dad". Our families did everything together, and when all of us kids (me, my siblings, & my cousins) were older and having families of our own, our parents (my mom & dad, Uncle Carl & Aunt Yvonne) did everything together. We are still a very close family, but there is such a massive void. Even though Ellison didn't get to know her Papa Carl for very long, he'll still always hold such a special place in our hearts and our families. We love and miss you, Carl! Today, on your birthday, we celebrate how beautiful your life was to each and every one of us!

Here are photos of our little Mookie with her Papa Carl...

A Day at the Park

We took advantage of the beautiful sunny day we have today and went to Country Park. We had a fun time. Ellison loved the slide so much, she would start repeating "again" & nodding her head before she was even all the way down. :)

Barefoot Mook-tessa

Ellison is such a great little helper around the house. She loves helping with laundry, sweeping, vacuuming, and now cooking. The other day I was making some bread, and I needed to have some cinnamon & sugar mixed up. I thought it might occupy her for a little while. Try 45 minutes! She never let out one peep, she just kept stirring & stirring. Her dad started having OCD moments when she kept getting some on her pants. After picking her up to dust off her pants & clean up the counter for the 11th time, I told him he needed to work through it. He had a better idea, and switched her to the miniature whisk - no way to scoop out any. And we wonder why Ellison has issues with getting even little specks of "dirt" on her hands... (Sigh). I can see the years of therapy ahead... For all of us... ;)

Little Lady in Red

Pen Name: Mookie Soto

Ellison no longer thinks it's "cool" to draw with crayons - only a pen will work these days.

Seen here starting on her first novel...

And then practicing taking orders...

17 Months

At 17 months, Ellison continues to be loads of fun! She enjoys being able to say "no" now all the time, and has even started a couple of short phrases on occasion - "Hi baby" "Papa ba-bye", "Bess (bless) you". She loves being read to now (as long as they are short books) and enjoys going to the library to pick out books. This past month marked a big milestone for us, as our little girl no longer takes a bottle! It was hard on her mama, but not on her at all. She does awesome using her feeding utensils and drinking out of a regular cup - she's done that for a few months now. Ellison has started brushing her own teeth (yes, we still do it after or before her), but she also brushes Teddy's and baby Belle's teeth. So motherly is our wee one, that she even washes Teddy & Belle with a washcloth & goes through the motions of washing their hair (and her own). Ever since Ellison discovered her plastic high heels, that's all she traipses around in when we're upstairs. One other funny thing she started doing is covering her mouth and exclaiming "Oh!!!" with a surprised look on her face while watching America's Funniest Videos during her evening milk. Wonder who she learned that from! :) She's really been trying to jump now, which is the cutest thing to watch. Speaking of our little munchkin, I hear "Mama!" coming from her room - someone's awake. :)

A little ballerina in our future???

Playing Dress-Up

I about fell over with laughter yesterday when Ellison found a pair of those plastic kid high heels that her cousins handed down to her to play with. They are so big, I never imagined she'd try to use them. I should've known since she puts on either my shoes or her dad's shoes every single day. I couldn't believe she was able to actually keep them on! It was the funniest site to see her walking around with these things on! I can just envision the expense as she gets older - Manolo's, Laboutin's...

Corn-On-the-Cob

Hey, having teeth isn't so bad! As of late, this girl cannot get enough corn. So we thought we'd try some corn-on-the-cob for the first time. LOVED it! The sound of her little teeth chomping into that corn was so frickin' cute! Cheap thrills for us, I guess. :) At first she didn't want to hold it, but quickly found that it was worth the trouble.