MAMA!!!

Out of sheer frustration, Ella finally said "Mama!" She was on the floor, whining because she backed herself in the corner again, and I just sat and watched. No, I'm not a cruel Mommy, but I do want this child to be mobile, so I wanted her to figure out the forward motion on her own. So she whined and whined, then finally she said, "MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!! Mmmama!" She loves me!

Ella walked! Ok, so it was like 5 steps and she hung on to me for dear life, but she put one foot in front of the other and walked all by herself! This girl will never crawl...she is going to just get up and run off one of these days.

Ella's most favorite thing to do in the whole world is to ROCK OUT playing her drum!

Gratuitous cuteness...

Quick! Get the vicious Doberman away from the baby!!!

Oh, No! Now the cat has her!


Watch out! The cat is taking her breath away as she sleeps!!

Ella got her fourth tooth on June 1! So, now she has her top two and her bottom two teeth - now that makes for a cute smile! She also has a new way to smile. Instead of opening her mouth wide and smiling, she just kind of turns in her lips and grins really big - very cute. Her tongue sticks out quite a bit - especially when she is concentrating, and her bottom lip is often tucked in when she is content or playing.

Ella and Chuck seem to be hitting it off this summer because they spend so much time together while I go to class. The house is usually a wreck when I come home because it is nearly impossible for Chuck (or any man, I assume) to multi-task while watching a baby. But, Ella is always happy, well-fed, and has a dry diaper. I guess I can't ask for much more.

Ella loves to give kisses. Let me tell you, she gives the sweetest, slopiest, most violent, ear-ring removing kisses you've ever experienced! She grab your face (and sometimes ears) as hard as she can and pulls you vigorously toward her wide-open mouth. She then either slobbers all over your face or slobbers all over your face while also biting you. Both types of kisses are very sweet, but I prefer the non-biting version.