Thanks, Easter Bunny! BOK BOK!

A photo post of Easter and the few days prior and after...

Last week, Ella was drawing a picture, and decided
to go ahead and write her name on it. By herself. For the first time!
This was not only her first attempt, but she had no help, and nothing
to look at. I was totally blown away!! I didn't even know she knew
how to spell it.


Unpacking the box of Easter prizes from Uncle Denny. Only a
cruel, cruel man packs a box for a 3-year-old full of Easter grass.
Or a man without kids. :) It quickly devolved into an Easter grass fight,
and lots of vacuuming (but it was sure fun!).

Some of the prizes - cute butterfly headband and
frog ("swog") fingerpuppets.

Ella decided Betty wasn't fancy enough...

Coloring Easter eggs at Wah Wah's house with cousin Connor.

Connor holding his new cousin Betty for the first time.

Ella making pancakes with Wah Wah.

Ella in the car on the way to Connor's house to play.
Sometimes I am blown away by how beautiful she is.

Aunt Tiffy showing Ella how to use the viewfinder.

Ella's favorite toy at Connor's house.

Connor the Stuntman, #1 of a series. This kid is seriously
almost indestructible, and totally fearless. There isn't a ledge he
won't hurl himself off of, an object he won't jump over, or a bike
he won't crash. When he and Ella play together, he throws himself
down dramatically in an expert stuntman crash, and Ella, not to be
outdone, carefully lowers herself to the floor in her own "crash".

Connor the Stuntman, #2.

Connor the Stuntman, #3.

Connor the Stuntman, #4: The Dramatic Finale.

Sweet little Betty Marie.

Ella in all her fanciness, blowing up a balloon.

Betty, fascinated by the ceiling fan.

Ella's self-portrait. Seriously, this sort of blew my mind.

Hunting for Easter eggs at Wah Wah's house.

Checking out the treats.

The girls in their Easter finery.

A kiss for "little Betts".

A fancy pose...

Jelly beans!

Betty & Wah Wah.

Ella doing an experiment ("'periment"). She wanted to know what
would happen if we mixed water & olive oil, so we tried it and found out!

Ella insisted I post the results of our 'periment so people would know
what happened. Be wowed, internet!

Betty after a bath. Ella saw that I might take a picture,
so she had to immediately remove her shirt and climb
up next to Betty.

Another "Take a picture of ME and Betty, Mama!" moment.

Trying on Daddy's shoes. She told me she was "going to work
to fix people's teeth."

It's tricky walking a mile in Daddy's shoes!

Sweet sleeping baby.

Ella & Betty

The first smile to be caught on film. So cute!

A sly little grin.

Work it!

A photo post, and an Ella snippet...

The other day Ella was commenting on the pretty yellow flowers on our forsythia bush, and impressed that she had actually called the bush a "forsysia", I told her what an impressive vocabulary she has. The conversation went like this:

Ella: Look at those pretty yellow flowers on our forsysia!
Me: Yes, those are very pretty. And you have quite a vocabulary!
Ella: What's a vocabulary?
Me: A vocabulary is all the words you know.
Ella: I know 'damn it', and 'shut up'.
Me: !!!

It was like she knew immediately that this was her opportunity to use a couple of words she's not allowed to say. I tried to hold a straight face, but that proves impossible most of the time with this girl.

And now, some photos!

Ella with her life-size (sort of) lookalike. (Yes, I know
Paper Ella looks like a blow-up doll. Mama can sew
and Mama can cook, but Mama cannot draw.)

Ella entertaining a fussy baby with a hilarious song and dance.

Making some "practice" Easter cookies. (Mama needed a cookie.)

Decorating the cookies.

A tree shaped cookie with "apples".

Trying out her fun Easter prizes - thanks, Great Grandma Betty,
Great Great Aunt Marie, and Wah Wah Janet!

Sleeping Betty, also trying out her fun Easter prizes. :)

Droopy Daddy & Droopy Betty.

Mama & the girls.

We went to a dinner party at a friend's house, and Ella
came out of her room sporting these ridiculously fancy earrings.
She wore them all night long, despite their rather large heft.

The fanciness never ends over here. (Perhaps she feels the
need to make up for her Mama's lack of fanciness...)

A picture Ella drew especially for the Wah Wahs and the Papas.
She asked me to take a picture of it with my camera, put it on
"the compitoh", and send it to them. Too cute.

"How YOU doin'?" (Can you stand those cheeks!?)

It takes a lot of rest to grow cheeks this big.

"Betts" (Ella's new nickname for her) at 6 weeks.

Betty discovered her hand today! I love watching new
babies discover their own miraculous little bodies.