Mackinac Island

Ellison did her first extended car ride when we headed to Mackinac Island on Monday. Though she didn't sleep during her naptime but only 30 minutes, she was an absolute angel for the 3 1/2 hr. drive. Playing non-stop Curious George on the DVD player after her "nap" may have had something to do with it, but we're still going to stick with the excuse being she's just an angel (like her Mom... why are you rolling your eyes?)

Here was the view (from Shepler's Ferry) of the Mackinaw Bridge, which is something like 5.5 miles long. (For those of you wondering, I'm not making typos - there are 2 different spellings of Mackinaw/Mackinac. I have no idea which is the correct spelling for the Bridge).

Amazingly, we ended up just a few miles behind Ellison's Uncle Josh and his family as we got up north a ways, even though they started from the complete opposite end of the state. So we all met up on the road, and were able to ride the ferry across to the island together.

Left to right: Jonathan, Olivia, Ellison, Christina, Emma's little face poking through, Andrea, Josh, & Lucas

The 4 cousins: Emma, Lucas, Ellison, & Olivia

Thrilled to finally be on her feet again, Ellison walked happily with Gramma & Olivia on the way to our room.

The second Ellison saw her hotel crib, she wanted "in" and excitedly rolled around in it. This was before she realized how uncomfortable it would be to sleep in!

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to the favorite men in our lives: Papa, Abuelito, and Jonathan!!!

A Father's Day kissie for the greatest daddy ever!

Ellison loved Father's Day, too. Her daddy got her a McD's hashbrown - the breakfast of champions.

Enjoying the Sunday morn w/ her daddy

Ellison with Uncle Jeff & Aunt Carrie. Apparently she wasn't feeling so ticklish.






Again, Ellison had a nice Father's Day - she also got duckie bubbles from her Great Uncle Bob next door.

Off to Michigan

On June 14, the 3 of us headed back to Michigan so we could attend Aunt Carrie's wedding on Mackinac Island. We couldn't miss it! Carrie & Jeff have been dating for like, 20 years or so. (That would make Carrie 10 years old at the time. OK, so it's really been 7 years). Anyway, we've all been anxiously awaiting the day for the last 4 years or so. Thank God we weren't really holding our breath. Those 2 like to keep us all on our toes. Past experience is telling me that we shouldn't expect kids anytime soon. :) But seriously, we're thrilled for the both of them, and we had a great time. Here is Part I of the travels.



In PTI Airport waiting for her dad to park.

Hangin' with Gramma on the soon-to-be screened porch. G & G have been doing some major updating: new windows, new roof, new siding on its way, etc. Little E wanted to be on the porch all the time.











Ellison got to borrow Gramma Yvonne's little tricycle. She thought it was great! She couldn't reach the pedals or ground if she sat on the seat, so she chose to "walk" around with it like this. And, of course, didn't want help!

Kisses for Papa
Gramma took Ellison all over the yard showing her cool things: birds' nests with baby birds (even in the wreath on the door!) were one of 'em.

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After all the playing around outside and in the dirt, Ellison needed a clean-up. At one point, she noticed the dirt under her toenails, let her Gramma know, and insisted it get cleaned out. She totally liked getting to have a makeshift bath in Gramma's sink. Granted, the bubbles and the pedi brush upped the "cool" factor.

Off to Aunt Carrie's Wedding

Don't know if I'll have time to post a couple pics before we leave, as it's crunch-time now. The Soto 3 fly out to Michigan tomorrow. Ellison's Aunt Carrie and Soon-to-Be-Uncle Jeff are getting married Tuesday on Mackinac Island. Praying for a healthy, fun trip. I'm sure we'll have a ton of pics to post when we return.

E's Stats

Ellison did SO great at her new pediatrician's today! We were very pleased with the office and the doctor, and Ellison didn't cry during her exam for the first time since she was an infant! She cried a little for her shot, but the tears quickly dissipated when the nurse gave her a little bottle of monkey bubbles as a surprise after the shot. Then the crying came again for the car ride because mean ole' mommy wouldn't let her open the bubbles in the car. (I have my nice side, too - we did a few bubbles outside before we left the parking lot, but I quickly felt like we were on slow-rotisserie in this hot weather!) So the scoop is that Ellison's doing great! She weighs 23 lbs. 2 oz., and she's 31 1/2 inches long. This puts her in the 25th percentile for weight, and 50th percentile for her height. Healthy girl. Thank you, God!

19 Months Old!

Mookie visits her new pediatrican tomorrow for her (late) 18-month check-up (long story I won't bore you with), so we'll have her latest stats. As of 3 weeks ago, she was weighing in at 22 lbs, 15 oz, so we'll see where we stand with that, and find out how tall she is. Her fave food is most definitely Goldfish crackers right now, but she's also loving ice cream & "Alligator" Krispies. They're the generic brand of Rice Krispies that have an alligator (or dragon, or dinosaur - whatever the heck he is) on the box, so she wakes up asking for "alligator" pronounced Ellison-style. We've had more potty excitement, but I'm not trying to get too crazy with it yet, as we have travel in our forecast. Ellison's got a lot of pointy tooth-wannabes poking through, so we're still dealing with teething issues, but they're almost all the way in. Ellison likes her usual toys, but for the most part she's most content "helping" around the house and getting into adult things. We're starting a new phase of 5pm meltdowns. (Sigh). They're hard on both of us. As soon as I need to be in the kitchen cooking dinner, Ellison suddenly panics, clinging to my leg, begging "Hold you!" while sobbing her heart out. I mean, you would think this child found her beloved Teddy hanging from the banister or something. Sheesh - is my cooking really that bad?! Anyway, she's getting REALLY good at breaking her mama's and daddy's hearts. One big change this past month - Ellison suddenly does NOT want her mom to hold her for the bedtime routine - it's all about Daddy. I'm trying not to take it personally, but what gives?

Southern Belle Practice

"Would y'all like to join me out on the veranda for some sweet tea?"

Pool Posse

Today we had a fun day over at Mollie & Caroline's house, along with Megan & Baity Barksdale, for a pool playdate. It was perfect in the 93-degree weather. Here are some photos of the day.

(Mollie & Caroline in back, Baity & Megan in front)

Sweet baby Baity

Ellison's turn in the boat

Caroline in her swimmies

Megan & Baity

"Anyone looking?"

Snack time for the girls

"Ah, life doesn't get any better than this... poolside eating Goldfish after fun in the sun."

Ellison Beach - Part II

And finally, Ellison got the "water" aspect of her beach. We tried going over the rules (swim at your own risk, no glass containers, etc.), but she was more interested in her boat.

Glimpse Into the Future???

Oh, we can see it now... "Um, Ellison, what is that on your arm?" "OK, don't get mad, but we stumbled upon this really cool tattoo shop..."

Ah, my princess, go ahead and experiment with the My Little Pony stickers now. You'll discover when you wake up tomorrow that you're "over" the Ponies. You see, so you don't ever want to ink your pretty little bod, as long as you're living under this roof.

Sweet Ellison

Her dad thinks she belongs in a Woolite commercial in this outfit.

I just love the sweet little look on her face.

Ellison Beach

Finally some sand! Welcome to Ellison Beach. What? No water? Stay tuned...