Ellie's First Trip to CA

My Mom, Ellie and I took a trip out to San Francisco to visit The O'Neill Family. Even though I was super stressed about the plane ride, Ellie traveled well. At times she wanted to get out of her seat to practice her new found skill of walking, but the new environment and a few dollar store toys kept her entertained.

While in San Francisco we spent quality time with The O'Neill Family. We were also able to see most of the Weber Family, Chris and Josie, the Armistead Family and a few of Lien's other friends. We tried to stay busy every day by visiting places such as; Muir Woods, The Cable Car Museum (where we rode a cable car), Chinatown, Chateau St. Jean & St. Francis wineries, and The Golden Gate Bridge. Since my Mom was there we also got to enjoy some delicious Vietnamese cuisine.

We had so much fun, and can't wait to see the O'Neill's when they come visit in June.

On the run

Ellie is on the run! More or less sprinting and sometimes tripping her way around the house to discover new places and things. She loves climbing up the stairs, so we have to close the stairs off with a gate. I don't think I saw Ellie crawl at all today, walking is now her transportation of choice.

Some of Ellie's favorite things are swings, slides, doggies, kitties, bubbles, coloring, bath time, dancing, playing peek-a-boo, flipping through her books, going to the pool, strawberries, rolling on the ground, drumming, and listening to music.

Communication is a wonderful thing, Ellie has learned to communicate with simple words, and a little bit of sign language. She can nod to say "yes," shake her head for "no," she can sign "more" and "milk." She imitates Mommy and Daddy when we call for the kitties, and says "blow" when she sees a candle.

We celebrated Ellie's first year with family in PA this past weekend it was a wonderful time. Ellie is excited that her Daddy is on spring break and the weather is beautiful!

ONE YEAR!

Ellie is ONE YEAR OLD! I can't believe how fast this year has gone. At her one year doctor's visit she weighed 20 lbs 3.5 oz and was 28" tall. Ellie had a wonderful birthday party at our community center on March 6th, it was a beautiful day and she got to see lots of family and friends.
Ellie was walking a couple weeks before her birthday but only a few steps at a time. Now she's much more confident and she's walking from one place to another. It's amazing how much changes each day.

Videos from January and February 2010

Art


Walking with help


Shoes

11 months and our little Valentine!

On Ellie's 11 month birthday she took 4 steps! And since then she has been practicing taking steps on her own, usually getting up to about 4-6 steps before falling down. All this practicing has led to a few bumps and bruises but that's all part of the process.
For Christmas Ellie received a little car she could push or sit on from Heather. She loves to be pushed all around the house by her Daddy, while making car noises from her mouth.
We have gotten record numbers of snow this winter and Ellie has enjoyed watching the snow fall from the windows. The snow is way over her head so she hasn't really been able to play in it much. Hopefully we will get some warmer weather soon to melt the massive piles of snow so we can resume our daily walks.

Lots of snow


We built an igloo


Daddy pushing Ellie


Ready to get out of the house!


Our little Valentine


Check out those teeth!

More words and swim class

Ellie is learning more and more everyday.

Her vocabulary now consists of:
Daddy (which includes Da Da, D, and De Da)
Momma
Kitty
Doggy
Cheese
Bubbles
Pop
Christmas Tree
Baby

She can shake her head as if she were saying "no," but she does this to be silly right now. She also likes tilt her head and smile, just to get Daddy to do the same thing. Her favorite foods right now are strawberries, blueberries, cheese and peas. Ellie has been practicing walking while holding onto my fingers, and she does a great job!
We had our first swim class last week, Ellie LOVED it! She loves bath time so I knew she would have a blast. We did some singing, splashing around, kicking, and she started learning how to hang on the side of the pool and pull herself out.


Having fun in her tutu



Walking with her shopping cart



On a walk



Reading "Pat the Bunny," her favorite book at the moment



Getting ready for our first swim class

Wonderful 2009 Holidays & Hello, 2010!

We all had such a wonderful Christmas, it was even more special because it was Ellie's first. We got to spend quality time with family in Maryland and Pennsylvania. On New Year's Eve Ellie was sick, with a fever of 103.9, a cough, congestion, vomiting, and chills. This was the sickest we've ever seen her and it was not fun at all, for any of us. She's doing much better now, and is enjoying all the great toys she got for Christmas.
Today Ellie is 10 months old! Only two months to plan her birthday party! She's been practicing standing and a little walking with her shopping cart. We'll have to see if she will take any steps on her own before her birthday. One of Ellie's favorite things at the moment is balloons. When we stand in line at Trader Joe's she points at the balloons, babbles loudly and leans towards them until she can get one. She is now a pro at clapping, shaking and splashing.

Out enjoying the snow.

I just want to test Santa's cookies...

They're pretty good!

First crawl through in her new tunnel.

Christmas at Boompa and Ngoai's house.

A little angel napping on Christmas Day.

Playing with her drumsticks at Grammy and Pappy's house.

Everyone having fun with Jim's wii guitar.

Taking steps with the help of a chair.

Clapping!