Ella 2.5 years

Well, baby girl you're 2 & 1/2 years old (or she was on Nov. 16).  What can I say??  You grew up on me in these last six months.  You are such a bright little girl & mostly very loving, although I have recently seen that you have a bad temper like your mama....sorry about that, we'll talk about that later, though.  What are you doing at 2 & 1/2??  You mostly continue to try to keep up with your big sister. You like to do anything that she is doing & have really begun to enjoy painting.  You don't enjoy drawing that much yet, but painting with a paint brush is your thing right now.  You continue to love music & dance...mama tried so hard to find you a dance class for this year, but you are still a little too young for the 3 year old classes near us, don't worry......next year, you'll be in for sure.  You have quite the memory little one, you only need to hear a song once & then you magically know the words & tune...I'm impressed!  You love your baby dolls, your little naked baby--Baby Ella & your bigger baby--Baby Katie are your favorites.  You successfully gave your paci to the Great Pumpkin & we truly haven't heard too much about that.  Thankfully, you are doing well most nights, unless you are sick, which you have been lately.  You are so confident with your potty & have been for a few months, I hardly have to help you anymore.  You love Sophia the first & your dress that daddy gave you.  You often parade around the house dressed as Sophia.  You don't like to be cold, again, you are like me in that way.  You like to get "cozy" on the couch or in bed with your beloved Minnie blankie. Favorite foods right now are turkey hot dogs, pasta, & any kind of fruit.  You love carrots & will eat them any way I cook them.  You also like pizza, plain cheese to be exact.  Really you are a great little eater & will try anything.  You are a solid 3T in clothing, size 7 shoe....those feet baby girl, I'm afraid you got daddy's wide hobbit feet.  I'm sorry about that, but I work hard to find cute wide shoes for you...I promise, they're not ugly.  You seem to really enjoy our time together just the two of us when Jessie is in school, but to be honest, on those Tues/Thurs mostly you're tired & want to nap after trying to stay awake all day while sissy is home on M/W/F.  I have been reading the Five Love Languages of Children & I think yours are mostly definitely touch & gifts.  You love to be held & cuddle next to me & love to have little gifts given to you...mostly these little gifts are from the dollar bin at Target, but it makes you feel special so I hardly ever say no.  You say so many things, many sentences, & do so much more than you could do at 2...it's amazing.  I love watching you learn & grow!  You continue to amaze us with your excellent hand/eye coordination.  You can string beads on a string as good or better than your sister...don't tell her that, but it's true.  Right now we are working on alphabet at home, shapes, numbers, colors (although, you've got these, I like to reinforce them).  You like to sort M&Ms by color into my muffin pan, that's one of your favorite things & you & Jessie love to play "lab" with turkey basters, random tupperware, & other containers filled with colored water. You no longer like your carseat & fight me tooth & nail when it's time to buckle in...uggh, that's a tough one girlfriend because you are strong.  You recently got your own Nabi tablet...it's like an iPad for kids...you love that you now get one for long car rides or at bedtime like sissy.  It's another learning tool, which you have mastered already.  What a lovely little girl you are becoming, we love you little Ella!