May fun & Ellie's first 5k!

Ellie is such a bright little girl. She has been learning her animal sounds and can "buzz" like a bee, "woof" like a dog and "buk" like a chicken. We have also been going through our family flash cards (more than 20 of them) and she can now pick almost everyone out. Board books with touch and feel pages have been a favorite for months, but Ellie has started to enjoy other books now as well. She likes to point out animals, balloons, and balls. One of Ellie's favorite things to do is to go outside, she loves pointing out doggies, birdies, trees, planes and squirrels. We occasionally see bunnies, froggies and deer, which are a special delight! We take many walks to the playground, and Ellie has mastered the swing and toddler slide, she just can't get enough. Some of Ellie's other favorite things to do are, dancing, "reading" books, coloring, finger painting, playing with her friends, playing with edible play dough, running around outside, playing with her kitties, and snuggling in cozy places.













Just before Mother's Day our family was plagued by a stomach bug which left us all tired and homebound. Fortunately we are all better now. Ngoai was so nice to come over to help while we were sick, but she caught the bug, and so did Boompa (so sorry!).

Mother's Day


Last week Ellie went with her friend Ethan to a Rolly Pollies class and had a blast! The kids got to sing songs, play with a parachute, and explore the many activities at the gym. Ellie couldn't get enough of the big pink ball, and loved walking on the trampoline track. She also go to practice doing forward rolls for the first time.

This past weekend Ellie participated in her first 5k! Ellie was pushed by her Grammy in the jogging stroller. Grammy won first place in her age category. Congratulations, Grammy! Brad finished second in his age group in around 21 minutes! My goal was to finish, and I did just that! Having Grammy over for the weekend was such a wonderful treat, after the race, we went to the Piney Orchard Street Festival and got to see Peter play with Big Band Caliente. It was such a beautiful day to be outside.













Caliente playing at the street festival, Peter's in the back row.


Kaye was visiting from New Zealand so Ellie finally got to meet her!


Kerri was in town so she got to meet Ellie, too!

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!