First foods!

We decided to try cereal with Ella for the first time on Monday night. Ella always seems a little desperate when it comes to eating - and this was no different! She seemed to know just what to do with that spoon! And, if I paused just a bit too long between bites she let us know about it! She didn't take her eyes off that spoon.

We were waiting for the funny faces we remembered from Ben when he tried cereal for the first time. She, however, didn't flinch at the new food and acted like she'd been eating cereal forever. No funny faces, just a little confusion over what her tongue should be doing. Good job Ella!

Easter Fun!

Breakfast with the Easter Bunny

Ben wasn't so sure about sitting on the Easter Bunny's lap, but when the BIG boys went, he wanted to go with them. Ben, Devin, and Roy.

Then he was brave enough to go with his sister!

EASTER

It's not easter without BUNNY EARS!

That tricky Easter bunny - he sure does a good job of hiding those eggs!

Our sweet little bunny!

First Easter morning!

Yum, a chocolate bunny!

Luella and Ella - two dolls in their Easter dresses!

Home Depot Fun

On the 1st and 3rd Saturday of each month, Home Depot has a kids workshop. It's free and the kids get make fun projects. This Saturday we just happened to be at Home Depot and decided we should check out this workshop. This week they were building Butterfly houses.

First you have to lay out all of your pieces and do a little light sanding.

Then you have to glue.

And the best part - Hammering in the nails!

After all of that work we don't have a picture of the finished project. However, it turned out great and Ben wants to paint it red. I guess that will be a project for another morning.

Special Ben Day!

As a big brother now, Ben has to share his time with mom and dad. He loves his little sister and takes such good care of her. He really has done pretty well with the change in his life. We decided he deserved some special time just for him and, since he'd never been there, took him to the MOA.

His first ride of the day!

In the butterfly house, several landed on Mike's head.

Ben was very gentle and tried petting the butterflys.

He decided he wanted to go on this ride all by himself - Mom and Dad could wait and watch.

Hang on tight!

Ben told Mike they were racing the other drivers - they won, of course!

Lunch at Rainforest Cafe - he was a little nervous about the alligator behind him. He also did not like the thunderstorms that would happen inside the restaurant. He DID like the Mac and Cheese.

We don't have pictures but we took him on the Log Ride. We made sure he did NOT know the big hill was part of that ride. After it was over, he never once mentioned the big hills...what he didn't like was the scary Blue Ox! He covered his eyes when we passed by Babe and Paul Bunyan. He also really enjoyed the ride on the Ferris Wheel - Mom did NOT enjoy that ride.

We had such a great day! Ben can't wait to go back again.

Target Field

Steven and Tenielle invited us to attend the Target Field Open House a couple of weekends ago. What a cool place! We can't wait to enjoy a baseball game, outdoors (in nice weather, of course), enjoy some peanuts and cracker jack, and perhaps a beer or two.

What a view!

What do you think of the Stadium Ella?

Ben likes it!

4 Months Old!

Ella is all about the smiles these days! She even wakes up happy now - just hangs out in her crib and chatters. Here are a few recent pictures of her beautiful smile: Bath time and from her happy spots - car seat and the changing table !

"I feel so pretty with my FIRST ponytail!"

"I love bath time!"

"Did you know my hair gets curly when wet?!"

"I'M SO HAPPY!!"

Ella's 4mo Stats:

Weight: 15lbs, 9oz (90%)

Length: 26.5 inches (100%)

Head: 17 inches (93%)

Go to sleep!

Ben has begun to find ways, most nights, to avoid going to sleep. He might need a glass of water, or to go potty for the second or third time, he might be scared of the dark, or need a blanket or stuffed animal that isn't already in his bed, and sometimes he just plain goofs off. One night, a few weeks ago, we thought Ben had gone to bed perfectly for once. After watching some TV for a while, I headed upstairs to bed. I was halfway up before I noticed this.....

Apparently, Ben hadn't just gone to sleep perfectly that night! After my initial scare of seeing something unexpected on the stairs, Mike and I got a pretty good laugh out of this. I'm just glad he didn't roll any further or he would have tumbled down the stairs!