New & Exciting Things

I have really good intentions of updated this frequently and to be honest I do think about it frequently, I just don't get around to doing it. So what is new for the Holleran's?

School is out! I am excited to spend the summer with my Ella Bean. I am not teaching this summer so I can have lots of time with her. So far we have enjoyed sleeping in and playing in the yard. Today we went to Extreme Play (one of those inflatable/jumper places) and Ella had a grand time! She loved the little baby ball pit. What a happy girl!

Ella is pulling up on everything, and thinking a great deal about walking. She'll get there when she is ready. She is very careful about things which I am ok with!

Ella loves her red party shoes. She wears them all the time, even when it's time for bed. :)

Her favorite game is pulling everything off her toy shelve and sitting in a sea of toys. It makes her really happy! (Until she wants to crawl away and gets stuck in the center.)

Beach Pictures and Our Grand Spring Break

We had a grand time over spring break! :) The highlight was definitely playing at the beach. Ella had fun sitting on her beach blanket and digging in the sand with her birthday shovel. Pretty exciting stuff! Raychl and I enjoyed yummy seafood and a home made pasta dinner. And of course I had to purchase Ella her very first tacky vacation t-shirt. And it's a great one... I"ll be sure to post pictures when she wears it. It says "Dolphins are a girls best friend" AND the words glow in the dark. Yeah, I know impressive. We also spent several hours napping... all of us... Ella, Raychl, and me. That's what vacation is for, right?! Raychl and I also enjoyed watching 13 going on 30, a fabulous girly movie.

We enjoyed a family trip to the farmer's market on Saturday morning. It was the first of the season and we had a grand time smelling plants and visiting with people. We purchased a lemon basil plant with smells amazing and a mint plant. We also got mother's day gifts for Oma and grandma, but I can't say what we got. (I don't want to spoil their surprises!) The big purchase was our rain barrel. Philip will set it up on Tuesday and we are so excited to collect rain to water our garden! (Which is larger this year. It's stellar... more about that later.) We also met a local farmer who sells natural, grass fed beef. We are going to get 1/4 of a cow at the end of the month. Yummy. :) I am excited to get yummy beef from right up the road in China Grove, NC. Go local food!

Today (Sunday) we had fun at a little friend's Birthday Party. It was so much fun watching all the little kiddos play.

AND off to work tomorrow morning. I am not ready for spring break to be done. At least summer break is near! I can't wait to spend the summer with Ella Bean.

Beach Bum

Ella is headed to Sunset Beach with her mom and friend, Raychl.  Philip (Dad) is sad that he has to work and cannot come play in the sand.

Ella's First Birthday Party

Ella just had her first birthday party last weekend.  She discovered that she does not yet like cake, for eating.  As a body paint, however, it shows promise.

The Crawling Ella Bean

Well Ella is off crawling and all over the place! She has quickly learned to find things she should not have, so we've put baby gates up. She enjoys the dog and cat's food bowls a great deal.

This morning after Philip left for work she crawled to the gate, held onto the bars and said "dadada." I think she wanted Daddy to come back! :( She's pretty pathetic at times.

This evening we went to Moe's and met up with our friends. We had a good time talking. I enjoyed a burrito, while Ella enjoyed throwing her toys on the floor.

In Which Ella Learns Baths Are Not Scary & She Crawls

Ella used to think baths in the big bathtub were scary, so we just bathed her in the sink. But on Sunday night we broke out the 99 cent, Goodwill Ducky Bath and gave it a try. Successes! I guess the Ducky is much less frightening than the big pink tub. I don't blame here. I would like a Ducky bath in my size.



Ella is also crawling now! She's not super fast, but she's figured it out. It's very cute because now she eyes up what she wants and plans how to get there. Her targets have been:

a. Bode's dog bones (he shares)
b. TV Remote (we don't share)
c. House Numbers (We got new ones... need to put them up)
d. Her Pooh Hairbrush

Ok... I am bad at this!

It's been several months since I have updated this blog. So I will try to do a better job!

What's new in the life of Ella Bean?

She is almost crawling. She is so very close. I think she is just being careful and does not want to rush into anything she's not ready for. I'll let everyone know when she makes the leap!

She says "mama" but only when she is sad and crying. She'll make the most pathetic face and cry "mama mama mama." She says Dada too, when she's happy. I'll take what I can get. :)

Today we enjoyed our second snow day. Snow days in North Carolina are a little different than snow days in MN. There was about 2 inches of snow on our yard this morning. I took Ella out in the snow and she was not all that thrilled. It was cold and made her sad. It's already gone in the areas that have sun light. We've got a two hour delay tomorrow AM because they think it will melt a little and freeze. (Naturally teachers have to be there at the regular time! Our lives are not as valuable on dangerous roads. Although if we are all in the ditch there will be no one to teach our children!)