Our Baby is 15 month old!

Our little peanut is now 15 months old. It is amazing how much she has grown up over the last 3 months. She went to the doctor recently and was 25 lbs and 32 1/2 inches tall with a head circumference of 47.3 cm. Not only has she grown up physically, she has developed a lot in how she communicates and expresses herself. Although she doesn't talk a lot yet, she is good at letting us know what she wants and what she is trying to tell us. Right now her vocabulary consists of: Dad, Mom, yeah, ball, duck, and her favorite word is bug - go figure! She likes to make animal noises and does her own version of sign language for more, please. We are really looking forward to her talking more but we know she will do that in her own time. It is just nice at this point that she understands what we are saying to her and can listen to what we ask of her. Obeying the word "no" I think will continue to be a process;) She is a little pistol with lots of energy and is always running around the house leaving a little tornado behind her:) Although she is a busy girl, she is very much still a little cuddle bug and likes to just sit on our laps to cuddle and to read books. She is very friendly to people she comes in contact with but at times she can get sheepish and shy away from people...she is going through a phase I think. Her favorite things currently are playing with her little kitchen and her fake food, playing in the snow and doing really anything outside, looking through her books and pointing out things in the book that she knows/likes....she is really into animals so she loves animal books and her favorite movie is Baby MacDonald:) She loves to play with other kids and we hope she continues to love to be social in the future. Although she can throw tantrums when she doesn't get what she wants, she is a sweetheart and a ton of fun - we are blessed! These are some random pictures from the last 3 months.

Putting on a pouty face:)

Haming it up!

Ella is absolutely insistant that she is independent with her food. She likes to use her fingers and loves adult silverware and does not want to have help - she wants to do it all herself. Just recently at restaurants she has started wanting to get her own cup full of ice and chewing on them and getting her own water with a straw. Meal time is definately messy but she is a great eater!

She now has 16 teeth so we have to work hard to keep those pearly whites clean...thankfully she loves brushing her teeth:)

Her favorite thing to do when we drive around has been to look at books. She would literally look at books for the entire drive and I have had it where she wants the light on by her seat at night so she can look at her books even when it is dark out. In the last week or so she has grown less interested in it, but my goodness, for a while there she was a fanatic about books in the car.

Her favorite attire, if I let her, for playing around the house:)

She is really into bows right now - she likes to play with them and put them in our hair but unfortunately doesn't like to really wear them herself, at least for any period of time. She will put on headbands but that is about it. Here is her playing beauty shop with her cousin Lily.

Sharing is something that she has had to learn especially since she spends time with her cousins each week. Although she can be a typical kid and want to play with whatever someone else is already playing with, she does a pretty good job with sharing her toys.

Here's just a cute pic of her after her aunt Daysha dressed her up while babysitting

Having a "ball" with Daddy!
As noted in previous blogs, Ella loves to sit in baskets. Here she is sitting in her book basket in her room - it doesn't matter how big the basket is, she thinks she can fit in them.

She really loves bathtime. She plays in the tub as long as she can stretch it out...even long after the water is all out.