Ellie's cousin, Kameron, recently turned 3, and we all enjoyed a BBQ birthday party over Memorial Day weekend. Ellie had lots of fun swinging (she could stay there all day if we'd let her) and playing with her cousins and her Papa Mike. It was a great day all around.
Ellie has begun to crawl!! She did the army crawl for awhile, pulling herself along with her arms. Then she started pushing herself back up to hands and knees, and before we knew it she was a pro. The first time she actually did a full fledged crawl, Mommy started yelling and clapping for her. Ellie gave me a little side-ways glance, as if to say, "What's your problem?" Then she went right along with her business as if crawling was no big deal.
Jason graduated with his MBA in May, and we couldn't be more proud. It was a long couple of years...just ask him. But he finally finished. Now that's just one more thing he can mark off his to do list. Next up--world domination.
The Freed family enjoyed an outing to the zoo recently. Ellie mostly enjoyed watching all the people since she couldn't see many animals from the stroller. But once we took her out of the stroller and her eyes landed on an elephant splashing itself with water, she got the biggest smile on her face, and did her little kicking wiggle dance. She really liked the elephants, bears, and giraffes. However, it was a very warm day and was cutting into her nap time, so the outing ended up being rather short. I'm sure there will be lots of other trips to the zoo in the future.
Ellie had a wonderful time on her first Easter holiday. She got to dress up in a pretty dress and let everyone tell her how adorable she was. We're looking forward to all the Easter egg hunts in store next year.
Just days before the big day, there was an Easter bunny sighting in O'Fallon. We can't be sure it was the real thing, but it was awfully cute!
Ellie loves the bath! Now that she is able to confidently sit up, she can play and kick and splash with the best of them. She likes to share the water with Mommy & Daddy too--so much so that we usually have to change our clothes afterwards. But all the fun ends when we pull her out of the tub into the cold air....brrrrrr!
It's only the first day of spring, but the flowers are already in bloom around the Freed house...sweet, beautiful flowers. Make that sweet, beautiful, sleepy flowers.
We've been enjoying some warmer temperatures lately, which meant Ellie got to wear a dress for a change, rather than the long sleeves, pants, and socks normally needed. And even though it wasn't quite sunny enough in the house to require the hat, we couldn't resist putting it on for just a few pictures.
Ellie is really starting to enjoy her food, and has graduated to sitting in the high chair (although she looks tiny in it). She seems to prefer veggies to fruits--her favorites being peas and sweet potatoes.
We recently went to Farmington for Ellie's papa's birthday, and Ellie got to experience the Elmo chair. The chair shakes and giggles when you sit in it. Ellie thought it was amazing, and giggled right along with Elmo. How fun!
There's nothing better at the end of a long day than grabbing a cozy blanket, snuggling up on the couch, and watching a little SportsCenter.
The Rowe Family elephant made the rounds this year. Ellie received it pre-birth at one of her many baby showers, then she passed it along for her Great Great Grandma Rowe's 94th birthday. Ellie thought it was very cute with its red toenail polish....cute enough to eat, that is.
What a great toy!! Ellie loves her exersaucer that Granny & Papa got her for Christmas. When she first started playing in it, she was still a little wobbly, and only grabbed objects that her hand happened to randomly hit. But she's definitely getting the hang of it now. The challenge has now become trying to get each of the toys into her mouth.
We're working hard to master rolling over. We have every indication that Ellie completely understands what to do, she's just messing with her mom and dad. In fact, we think she secretly rolls around in her crib during the night, but always makes sure to return to her starting position before we get her up in the morning.
Ellie and her Daddy...what a couple of cuties! Of course, I may be a biased mommy.
First Grandma reads a story to Ellie and her cousin, Kameron. Then Kameron reads the story to Grandma and his new baby sister, Paige. Paige is only a week old, and Ellie is very excited to have a cousin so close to her own age. We're sure that they'll be great friends growing up.
Doesn't she look so peaceful? We have to enjoy it while it lasts, because before we know it we'll be singing "Rubber Duckie" for the 20th time today.
Ellie is doing her best to learn to sit up. She's getting some strong ab muscles, but the balance part is still a struggle. It will only be a matter of time before she masters it, and can sit next to Daddy to watch baseball, football, and golf.
