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Yep, I'm SO that mom.

I love having a little girl!

Steppin' Out: Bridal Shower

Today Ellie and I went to my best friend's Bridal Shower. I think I was almost as excited as Katie was......I mean, this makes it real! From now until the middle of May, my life is pretty much all about this girl's wedding! There's lots to do, and I can't wait to see it all come together.

 On Me: Cardigan: Old Navy (thrifted) // Ruffle Tank: Old Navy // Skirt: Target // Shoes: Target

 On Elliott: Sweater: Carter's // Dress and Leggings: Marshall's // Shoes: See Kai Run

I'm so glad we got to share your special day with you, Katie! Love you!

Steppin' Out: Family Date

Elliott, Scott and I shared a fantastic family day together today! 

We continued our tradition of painting ceramic Easter eggs (which was even more fun this year with a 2 year old who LOVES to paint). 

We also stopped for donuts and some Starbucks......food and fun, pretty much the required elements for a great day, am I right?!

I'll share more (lots more) about our day out later. Today it's all about what we wore.

 On myself: Striped shirt - Target // Sweater - Ross? (a very long time ago) //

 Jeans - Jag // Shoes - Target

 On Elliott: Top and Pants - Babies R Us // Hairbow - PolkaDot Posies // Boots - Fred Meyer

I hope you all are having a great weekend, too!

Out of the Mouths of Babes

I am so overwhelmed when I think of the actual person my baby is becoming.

She has words.

And not just words, but she forms these words into phrases.....all on her own!

She has her own thoughts and ides, and she forms them into sentences and communicates with us now.

I know this type of thing doesn't happen overnight, but some days it just hits me like a ton of bricks.

She is no longer a baby. 

There is no more silence in this house, either. 

Constant chatter. 

I love it!

"Momma, I hold you?" - this is quite possibly my favorite phrase. ever. She says this when she wants to be picked up. Melts my heart every time!

"I yike it, Opa" - in translation, "I like Opa". I love how she turns the words around. She inserts various different words and names (although Opa is one of her favorite people, so we hear this phrase quite often as is).

"It's pink!" - everything is pink to this little girl! When I correct her, and tell her that the banana is, in fact, yellow she responds with:

"It's lellow, good job mommy!" - I giggle every.single.time

"I want the pungcorn" - that's my best interpretation of how she says "popcorn"......it's one of her favorite foods, and I really need to record her saying it one of these days.

"Mommy driving" - yes, baby doll, thanks for pointing out the obvious. I told you, there is constant chatter around here. It's like she can't stand to NOT say something....I have no idea where she gets this adorable quality.

"Ellie shoes. Mommy shoes. I'm Ellie." - constantly labeling items, and she has recently started referring to herself as Ellie. She does it while pointing to herself, always checking with me to make sure she's got it right ;)

"sun song!!!!!" - E yells this from the back seat almost every time we get in the car. It's her favorite song, by Caspar Babypants.

"I watch Frank-on" - if you don't speak toddler-ese, that undecipherable word is Franklin, her most favorite show in the entire world. I've started recording Franklin on our DVR because I never know when the toddler is going to want to watch it.

These are just a few of the phrases that make me stop and say "wow, she really is a little person!"

I hope to add to this list as I remember (and as Elliott's speech progresses), because these are the little things that I don't ever want to forget!

Dance, Doctor, and Day Date

Last Friday was a really fun day. It was pretty ordinary and nothing too special, but it was still really fun. 

My best friend Katie, who's laid up with a broken wrist and can't go to work right now, decided to spend this typical Friday with us. I think that's what made it so fun! 

We started the morning with Dance class. We missed the week before due to snow, and all of the kids were making sure we remembered that! It seems that at any given time, one of our normally-well-behaved children was having a meltdown or just plain not listening to instructions. Either way, we were all happy to be back in our dance routine, and seeing my little girl dance around with her pals never ceases to put a smile on my face!

 Sweet little Stella (above) and adorable Rowan (below) c/o Melissa

We only had about 30 minutes between the end of dance class and Elliott's 2 year check up at the doctor's office. So we rushed to the other side of town and made it just in time. I always get a little antsy for doctor's appointments. I don't really know why, but this time I knew that shots were on the agenda, so that probably had something to do with it. Ellie was still in her little dance outfit, and she really had no idea what was coming!

The appointment went smoothly, and little miss handled her two shots (one in each leg) very well! 

She weighed in at 23 lbs (8th percentile), is 32 inches tall (11th percentile), and has quite the big noggin at 19 inches (71st percentile). All just as I had suspected :)

For doing so well with her shots (and because mommy and auntie needed a Target fix), we headed to Target and hit up the snack bar and the Starbuck's before we got our shop on!

I'm sure glad that I took the time to enjoy these moments.......because the second half of our day wasn't nearly as nice! Ha! Shots took a toll on Elliott, and no nap made for an exhausting afternoon for both of us. Ah well, such is life!

Wordless Wednesday: Ice Cream for Dinner

Last night I took Elliott out on a little date. We ate ice cream for dinner.

 This girl has been kind of a fuss-bucket lately. Whiny, defiant, strong-willed and just down-right toddler-ish.

 And yesterday was a looooong day of just her and me. We ran a bunch of errands, and despite what we will call the terrible two's, we had a decent day. She put up with a lot of driving around, sitting in shopping carts, and waiting in boring lines.

 So I felt that a treat was in order. 

I would have taken her out for ice cream after dinner, but seeing as this little chicklet hates food lately, I figured that would be asking a lot. 

Ice cream was our dinner.

 And while this might not be the healthiest of habits, I see a lot of it in our future. 

I mean, come on, we are girls after all!

Linking up with Naptime Momtog, And then, She Snapped, The Paper Mama, and Live and Love Out Loud.

Happy Wednesday to you!

A Wedding Weekend via iPhone Pics

I'm crying right now.

We went on a fabulous little vacation to Florida last weekend to see one of Scott's best friends get married. While it was a destination wedding, and far more expensive than we could afford, we decided to go for it.
To make it a real vacation, and just relax and enjoy ourselves.
And that's we did. I took my old camera with us, because I didn't want to travel with my nice camera.
I checked the battery before we left, and made sure that I had plenty of space on my memory cards.
And wouldn't you know it, I didn't get a single picture on that camera while we were in Florida?!
It wasn't for lack of trying.......my camera is just broken :(
I'm not quite sure what I happened yet, but what I do know is that I took about 200 pictures.......all of which show up on the card and my computer as a solid black photo. BUMMER!

So, what pictures I do have from our vacation are from my iPhone. Now, I managed to capture quite a bit on my iPhone, and I cherish these pictures, but they're just not the same, ya know? But they will have to do!

Oh, and after uploading them all, I realized there is a LOT of pictures. A lot. So, you're welcome.

 Here is our vacation via iPhone pics:

 Playplace at the Airport.....awesome idea!

 The view from our hotel.......love at first sight!

 This girl would have swam in the water if I had let her. I had a death grip on her hand the ENTIRE time.

 Gorgeous setting for a wedding!

 Elliott loved Jesse.

 And I think Jesse loved Elliott, too!

 This girl danced for 3 solid hours......and then crashed hard!

 Left the reception early to put this little one to bed:

 Some Momma and Me time at the beach. I seriously love the sand there!

Again, showing her love for "Uncle Jesse"

 Fun arcade/amusement park. Can you see the excitement on E's face?! lol!

 Just, you know, taking a nap with her cookies.....the only nap she took the entire time we were there!

 Waffle House is my favorite thing ever. Period.

 Action shots on a cell phone......winning!

 This little aquarium/miniature Sea World was pretty fun.

 We did some shopping.....E got some sweet shades on some new kicks.

 My first time eating at Chick-fil-A. NOM!

Family night out for some fro-yo.....someone got her own bowl and polished it off!

 Just driving right next to the gulf. No Big Deal.

 One last trip to the beach before flying home.

 It wasn't the cleanest beach, but I'm still in awe over how clear and warm the water was. I loved it almost as much as Ellie did!

Silly antics.....this little girl did really great flying home....even with lots of delays.
She deserves a medal or something. I'm just counting my blessings ;)