Growing part 2

I should have mentioned that the change table pictures in the previous blog were from Dec'08 (3 months) and May'10 (20 months).

These car seat photos are from Oct'08 (1 month) and May'10 (20 months).

Always growing

I'm sure I've posted something like this before, but it is amazing to me to watch this little person grow in front of my very eyes! The trial and errors, and trials and success are fascinating! I often wonder if Mark and I are still learning at the ripe age of 30-something the way Ellie is.

I don't know if we cheer on Ellie's growth and development differently because she started out so small, perhaps we do, but for whatever the reason, I am glad we celebrate them. Lately Ellie has taken to clapping for herself when she knows she's done something remarkable - I love it.

Mark and I are in the process of replicating photos of when she was an infant so we can show people that while she is still a little miniature version of the average kid her age, she has come leaps and bounds from where she started.

Climbing

When it became clear that Spring was around the corner, we decided to buy Ellie a little slide for the back yard. The first few times on the slide were a lot of fun, but also a lot of work for Mark and I, as she hadn't quite figured out how to climb up the ladder. I thought perhaps we had bought something too early for her and that it would have been a better purchase for next summer.

One night we were in the yard and Mark worked with Ellie over and over to teach her how to climb up the ladder - now I see her climbing everywhere.

My favourite memory was when she climbed into her little rocking chair, stood up and let go - laughing the entire time. The base of the chair was rocking away, yet she kept her balance and stayed upright for the three seconds she had let go for - she's our little dare devil.

Then last weekend, I was in the kitchen and I turned around and saw her playing at the counter top with Mark's iPod, head phones and loose change he'd left out. I'm thinking as soon as she realizes she can push the kitchen stool around and climb up wherever she wants to be, we may have to put the stool away.

Big Girl Shoes

It was very exciting for me to purchase Ellie's first pair of Big Girl Shoes back in November just after she started walking. We went to Brown's Shoes at Southcentre Mall and found a great pair on sale. Of course, that they were pink suede with hearts and little diamonds made them a quick favourite for me. Nevermind that Ellie's feet were so small that I had one pair of shoes to choose from!

But now we've come to the end of an era - Ellie has outgrown her first pair of Big Girl Shoes and we must hunt for a pair of Size 3's. We went to Brown's Shoes at Market Mall on the weekend and like flies to honey, she went and hugged all the shoes that had sparkles or were pink. We didn't find a pair that shopping trip, that sang to me like her first pair of shoes, so we're still looking.

This photo was taken in March when Great Uncle Norm and Great Auntie Kathy were visiting. Uncle Norm saw Ellie's little shoe and couldn't resist a few photos with his own shoe.

Belly Buttons!!

Ellie has discovered her first body part - the belly button. One would think that it would be a facial-related body part - the eyes, nose, mouth or ears. But no, my child has discovered her belly button. It may come as a surprise to some, but she enjoys going around and lifting shirts to find your belly button and stick her finger in it.

After much laughter at this, I finally sat down to think about this. "Where did this come from?" Mark and I don't go around the house sticking our fingers in each others belly buttons, so I was at a loss as to where she made this new discovery.

But then I found it!

Last night, I was going through the last 12 months of pictures to make my 2010 calendar in iPhoto. Of course, at each video that I found, I had to watch it - what a change in our girl over the last year! Then I found an interesting video from when Ellie spent the night at Ray & Julie's in February. (I will say this was her first sleepover, as she was hanging out with peers (Emmarae & Hadyn), not just Grandma & Grandpa).

Julie and Ray gave the three little girls a bath and took a short video during bathtime. It was watching this again last night, that I saw it. Hadyn did anything Emmarae did, and Emmarae, fascinated by something new (Ellie naked) decided to compare the three little belly buttons. Hadyn quickly followed suit, and now I have an 18-month old who loves putting her finger into her and our belly buttons.

Consider yourself warned!!

Zoo fun

Yesterday was such a beautiful day, so we decided to head to the Zoo for some family time. Having annual passes has been a wonderful thing for our family - we often head out late in the afternoon on a Sunday, walk from the Inglewood entrance to the Africa Pavilion and back again.

This trip, we were surprised to see that the conservatory was finally open again! We strolled around inside and had many wonderful ideas for our garden this summer. In the Africa Pavilion, Ellie was ready to get out of her stroller and enjoyed a walk with her Dad.

It's moments like this that remind me how blessed I am.

A Week in the Hospital

In January, Ellie spent 5 days at the Alberta Children's Hospital with pneumonia. I had strep throat, and Mark had strep throat, pink eye and then mid-way through the week, came down with the stomach flu as well.

We were in rough shape that week, and in retrospect, it was probably a blessing that Ellie was at the hospital as Mark and I were in no form to take care of her!

Ellie was admitted on January 17 because her blood oxygen levels were in the 80%'s - not good. She was quite lethargic and was having difficulty breathing, her naturally "wheezy" state added an element of difficulty. On our way from Emerg to Unit 2, we stopped for a chest x-ray, all the while, attached to a portable oxygen tank. It was quite surreal, walking the halls while Mark held Ellie and the nurse pushed the oxygen tank - I don't think it really sunk in that we were leaving Ellie at the hospital. Perhaps it was exhaustion at this point since it was after 1 o'clock in the morning!!

Ellie bounced back fairly quickly, though she wasn't taken off oxygen until Friday, she had a few hours without it on Wednesday and Thursday. Our nurses were AMAZING - I don't think we were ever really afraid of leaving Ellie, just purely tired.

We brought our girl home again on January 22, 2010 and by the next day, she was running around and laughing and you would never have guessed she'd just spent a week in the hospital. It took Mark and I much longer to recover from the week!!