Ellie ar 21 months

Oh, my little Ellie Belly Jelly Bean...  She's growing so quickly!  She's a little love bug who, for as much trouble as she likes to get herself into, is a blast to watch.  Her vocabulary is amazing for her age.  Every day she has more and more to say.  I thought Pop was going to jump out of his skin when she said I love you! to him today.  Here she is performing one of her favorite songs for Mimi & Boppi.  I have to sneak the camera out because the minute she sees it, she'll stop whatever cute thing she's doing and just say cheeeeeeeeeese!  Don't get me wrong, that's cute too but I have tons of shots of that already!  hehe!!

Ellie's 18 Month Check-up

I worked from home today so I could take Ellie to her 18 month check-up.  Overall she seems so healthy.  She's in the 90th percentile for weight (28-10 lbs) and 75th percentile for height (33 1/4 inches).  She's pretty much still on the same part of the curve she's been on since birth which is what they like to see, steady growth.  And she's pretty much following the exact same line as Charlotte.  He mentioned she has an innocent heart murmur.  I was surprised since this is the first time it's been mentioned to me.  Charlotte has one as well but hers shows up more frequently at her appointments. He was impressed with her vocabulary and the way she was "reading" a book to me when he walked in.  He chuckled when he heard her say "he end" - the end.  She's a smart cookie!

I had one concern I wanted to mention.  She constantly has a runny nose, pretty much since she was an infant.  It does clear up sometimes for a few days, sometimes even for a few weeks.  But for the most part, it's there.  And she doesn't seem to have any other cold symptoms, just the runny nose.  Lately, I've been noticing her snoring at night and lots of people have been pointing out how when  she eats, she seems to have a hard time breathing through her nose.  I don't think it's anything too serious but just something I wanted to inquire about.  Of course her nose was completely clear when he looked in.  But he did witness her struggling to breath.  So we got a referral to an ENT.  Dr. Mulqueen thinks it could be enlarged adenoids.  It wouldn't surprise me since I had mine removed as a young kid as well.  And the lucky little girl does seem to have a lot of me in her.  =)  Since I was home, we took her for the Xrays this afternoon and she did awesome.  She seemed a little scared but she actually laid still for them to get a couple pictures.  Stephe decided to come so we could take Charlotte too.  She's fascinated with anything medical and I think she was little scared that Ellie had to go to the hospital.  The last person she went to visit in the hospital was my grandmother, a few days before she passed away.  I wanted to make sure she understood that not everything in the hospital is serious.  She thought it was really cool to see the giant special camera and the pictures of Ellie's neck.  We could even see her adult teeth up in her jaw.  We won't know anything until her appointment with the specialist in May.

More Misc Phone Pictures & Updates

I almost feel guilty typing this but the kids just had their first real colds of the season.  In March.  And the symptoms lasted 2 whole days.  After reading all the facebook posts about sick kids, ear infections, bronchitis, stomach bugs, sinus infections and more.  Charlotte has to be in the only kid in her class that hasn't missed a day of school.  I can't believe we made it through the winter with nothing, Ellie gets a frequent runny nose but that is it.  So they both had a little cold that lasted 2 days for Charlotte and a little longer for Ellie.  I was extremely happy that the weather warmed up enough to head out for a nice warm walk to get some fresh air.  I swear by this.  The next day, both kids were back to normal.  Being outside is the best remedy!!

I happened to notice this while I was driving.  We were driving down Kelton St and I looked back to see the girls just holding hands, unprompted and unposed.  It was too sweet, I just had to snap a picture.

Here's cute little Ellie.  My parents have stairs in their house but no gate.  So when we go there, I place the dining room chairs in front of them as a blockade.  It's Ellie's mission in life when we are there to find a way through.  Here she thought she had it figured out but quickly realized she got into a jam.  All I heard was her saying "cuck cuck".  Translation:  Stuck Stuck.  She's so funny!!

The older kids giving the smaller kids piggy backs at Grammy & Pop's.

Last weekend we had girls day out.  My sisters and I took my Mom to see Mary Poppins at the Opera House.  Great show, tons of laughs and even a little shopping.  Here we are at the Cheesecake Factory after the show.  It was my Mom's 61st birthday so we had the waitstaff sing to her.

Saturday night was the lowest brightest moon I'd ever seen.  We took the kids up to the mountain to check it out and watch the skiers.  Here's a picture I took while driving down the highway.

Cute Conversation

Charlotte & I were driving in the car last night when Charlotte starts asking me about work and why I have to go.
 
Me:  I go to work so we can have money to pay for  things like our house, car, food and stuff. 
Charlotte:  Work sounds great!  When I grow up, I'm going to be a doctor.
Me:  Oh yeah?  That's great!  Then you'll be able to take care of everyone.
Charlotte:  I know.  And then everyone will have to call me Dr. Charlotte... even Daddy & Pop, right Mumma?
Me:  That's right Charlotte.
Charlotte:  But don't worry, even when I get a job I'm still going to live in our house with you, Daddy and Ellie.

Missing Mimi & Boppy

Stephe's mom & step dad are spending a couple months in Florida this winter. The first couple weeks were ok but now the kids are starting to express how much they miss them. The other day driving in the car, Charlotte was saying that she misses Mimi and she can come home soon because the snow is starting to melt. And Ellie walks around the house saying "Hi Boppy!" 

Here are a couple videos with a message for Mimi and Boppi from home.

Random February Fun

I could watch my two girls play together for hours... especially now that they actually like to play together and for the most part, get along!  And with all the snow we've had this winter, this is how we've spent quite a few days -- in the house getting silly and running around like monkeys.  They love making crazy videos (or bideos as Charlotte says) and then watching them.

They spend hours riding around on thier zebra "motorcycle".  I think it's funny when they switch off driving.

Ready to venture out in one of the gazillion snow storms we've had in the last month or so.  She loves it even thought it's tough for her to walk around in.  The snow shoes help a little plus they leave cool monster footprints!

Once again, Ellie was stuck inside with me.  The snow is just way too deep for her to handle.  The snow in the yard is taller than her!

Charlotte and Daddy have been having movie day when Ellie goes down for her nap.  He thinks it's so cool that she will actually sit still through entire movies now.

I took the kids to Hannah's b-day party at Jump and Play on Sunday.  They both had so much fun!!  Even though Charlotte JUST had her own really cool b-day party at the Drawbridge Puppet Theater, she's already got ideas for her next two parties.  She wants her fifth birthday at Jump & Play and her sixth birthday at Disney.  I guess a girl can dream....

We have so much snow that Stephe actually let Charlotte jump off the roof!  She said she was going to flap her arms to fly.

 These last 2 picture are cool because you can see that the snow in the yard is higher than our picture window!!  Next time I'm out, I'll try and get some pictures of some the snow banks around town.  Poor Lainey hasn't had many walks lately, it's too dangerous to walk in the streets and the snow is too deep for hiking in the woods.