Playtime

I have this entire week off of work, and it's been really nice . . . lots of quality time for all three of us.

Elena's new favorite thing is feeding treats to Ginger and Charlie. She just grabs handfuls of treats from the bag and throws them on the ground. Ginger and Charlie love it too!Charlie was running around inside and Elena was pointing at him and laughing. She loves the dogs.We've been going to the park for the last 3 days since the weather has been so nice. She likes to look for squirrels on the walk and at the park, and a lot of them are really used to being around people so they'll get close (sometimes a little too close).The slide is her favorite thing. She'll go down then want us to help her climb back up so she can go again about 10 or 20 times. Right next to the park there's a big open field, so she likes to go there and run around and play chase. She found a pine cone the other day and I told her, "That's a pine cone. They fall out of the trees." The next day she found a pine cone and held it up to the tree. Then today I asked her to find a pine cone and she did. And she held it up to the tree again. I was proud of her (they learn so quickly!) so I told her to bring the pine cone home. She put it in the seat of her stroller and "helped" me push it. Then about every 10 feet she would stop and walk around to the front to make sure the pine cone was still there.My grandma got me this umbrella for Christmas. Elena saw it and just had to play with it, and she loved it. So for awhile today she and Jorge were hanging out under the umbrella, on the couch.She loves to clean up. I washed a cup for her to play with and she immediately took it to her little kitchen and pretended to wash it in her sink. Then this morning she wanted a baby wipe and I gave it to her and she started wiping down her room.

The flip side of this is that she isn't the biggest fan of getting dirty. She walks up to me all the time with a hair or a piece of fuzz that she wants to throw away. So I wasn't sure how she would respond to finger painting. We've done it for the last two nights before her bath. It's taking some getting used to, but a few more times and she'll get the hang of it. She got some paint on her foot and didn't like it.Then I ended up sticking her entire foot in it. In the middle of the painting tonight she started doing this motion with her hands, which she does when she wants me to sing "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star." She's making the "diamond in the sky."This is the finished product from the first night. Pretty impressive, considering she didn't really want to touch the paint!

We Wish You a Merry Christmas, We Wish You a Merry Christmas . . .

We had our first Christmas at home, and it was pretty awesome. No traveling, just visiting.

Elena opened her presents in the morning. It's funny because older kids want to open their gifts back to back to see everything they got, but she wanted to play with each toy after she opened it. She got the hang of openings presents with me pretty quickly, and she was just as interested in putting the wrapping paper in the trash bag as she was to see what the actual gift was.

She got play food for her kitchenAnd little egg-shaped toys that make it easier for little ones to grasp crayons to colorAnd a bath toyAnd many other things, including coloring books, dolls, stuffed animals, clothes, a train, and balls.

Later on Amy, Savanna, Sabrina, Monique, Mercedes, and Philip and his two kids, Makayla and Caleb, joined us. The little ones had such a blast. Elena didn't mind them playing with her toys at all, and Makayla and Caleb seemed to have a pretty good time in the playroom. Even Mercedes got in on the playingIt was pretty packed in the playroom, it got put to good use!Elena loved playing with Savanna. She kept running and jumping into her arms, and when everyone was heading out, she gave Savanna kisses.Even though there was a lot going on, Elena loved having all the people over. And so did I. We had a great time, and I'm so glad we got to spend Christmas with all of them.
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Elena Rose loves when we sing songs with hand motions, so the other day on youtube we found a video of a mom and a little girl singing Jesus Loves Me. Elena absolutely loves the video, and she likes to watch it again, and again, and again. This just started two days ago, but she's been doing the sign for "Jesus" whenever she watches it. It's pretty cute.

We're so thankful to have her.
Merry Christmas everyone!

Here Comes Santa Claus, Here Comes Santa Claus . . .

I love Christmastime! It's been such a good week.
We went to a neighborhood in the area that goes crazy for Christmas. Everywhere you look you see lights. And there was a band performing Christmas music in a garage. Every time they finished a song Elena wanted more. We went twice because she loved it so much the first time. The line of cars to get in is so long that both times we parked on the next street and walked through.

We bundled up really good since it's been so cold at night. The pictures don't do the lights justice. They are so beautiful.We went to a church service yesterday and Elena loved that too. She just loves watching people perform. And we got to see them perform my favorite Christmas song:

Joy to the world
The Lord is come
Let Earth receive her King
Let every heart
Prepare Him room
And Heaven and nature sing
And Heaven and nature sing
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Holidays

I can't believe Christmas is just over a week away! Elena Rose is loving the Christmas decorations. I have a lot of Rudolph and Snoopy ornaments and decorations so it seems like I'm pushing their buttons all day because she wants to hear them again. And there are some that she likes to listen to simultaneously; not exactly easy on the ears.
We decorated a gingerbread house.Whenever people who don't know Jorge meet her, they tell me "She looks just like you!" And I respond with "That's because you haven't met my husband." I know she has my eyes, but she looks just like him, especially when she smiles.It's funny how early kids pick up technology these days. She likes to sit at the computer and push the buttons on the keyboard, and then she messes with the mouse. It's been so cold here! We are bundling up every time we go outside, and she hates it when I put her jacket on, so that's no fun. Today was the first day in awhile that it didn't seem like it was freezing. Okay, I know it's snowing in other places, but it's all relative . . . A few other things . . . Elena loves to clean. Give her a paper towel and she'll immediately start wiping the floor, cabinets, windowsill, whatever's near her. Sometimes she'll put her sippy cup on a coaster.

She loves to dance. The other night I was dancing with her and it was the most exercise I've gotten in a long time. She wouldn't let me sit down, so I was pretty tired by the end.

She has a mouth full of teeth now, and I think more are coming in (she's been fussy the last couple days).

I'm glad the college football season is over . . . but now it's basketball. Seems like I never get a break!

Happy holidays everyone!

Thankful

We are thankful for so many things.

I am thankful for having such a silly husband who will dance with his daughter to make her laugh.

And we're thankful for our daughter, who brings joy to every day.Elena's thankful she had her first chocolate chip cookie. And I'm thankful Jorge wasn't there to see it (I can tolerate a lot more messiness than he can).For Thanksgiving we drove up to Santa Maria and visited my family, then spent the next evening with Jorge's family. Here are some pictures of our visit with my niece, Destiny. Elena Rose didn't mind me holding or playing with Destiny at all, she's totally willing to share her mommy!April thought she would be able to get out of this shot . . . she thought wrong!And I'm thankful that since my licensure I have time to do things I enjoy. I recently bought a sewing machine and am learning how to use it. See the monkey pillowcase I made? Not too bad for a beginner! I made two, for Elena's playroom. And we're thankful for many more things, including our home, our jobs, our health, our family, and our friends.