Ru-Ru

Ella's real name is Gabriella Ruth & I've been trying to teach Jessie that everyone has a few names that we go by.  I started by explaining that she is Jessica Marie--she never really did get that concept & continues to call herself a wild "ta-ti"--strange, I know.  I also tried to tell her that baby had a full name also.  Well, she tried to say it herself & it came out "Gab-i-yella" "Ru-Ru".  The Ru-Ru has stuck & that is another of Ella's nicknames for now.  It is especially funny to hear Jessie saying no-no Ru-Ru when baby is climbing the couch or doing something that she knows not to do.  Ella's hair is now long enough for some little baby pig tails, so she's been sporting that hair style recently.  Here are a few pics of her with her pig tails.  Enjoy & have a great day!

How'd I get the background to blur so much??  Radial blur effect applied to  the background

A little girl and her sucker

Here are some of my latest pics of Jessie to enjoy.  What can I say about our 28 month old??  She's bright, interested in everything we are doing, a mockingbird, and sweet (most of the time).  One thing I've noticed lately is that she seems so grown up sometimes, but also clings to some of those baby things that provide her with comfort.  For instance, she loves to read at night & one night last week after having a very full day...she told me "more rock please".  She just wanted me to rock her.  Of course, that was no burden at all & I enjoyed having some cuddle time with her, since most of the time she will not sit still long enough to even let me brush her hair.  Daily her vocabulary expands & she just loves to help.  She also has quite a memory & if she sees a Bruster's Ice Cream store from the car she always says "ya-ya", which is what she calls ice cream.  Oh also right now, everyone in her life is "wild".  If you ask her what kind of girls we have she will tell you "wild".  If you ask her what kind of daddy, mama, baby, etc. do we have she always says "wild".  I don't really think of myself as wild, but hey I guess that's better than being boring old mommy.  Anyway, hope everyone has a great day!  The dress was made by my mom...there is a matching one for Ella also, so I'm sure these will make another appearance on the blog soon!

Ice Cream Face

Eventhough, Jessica looks more than Michael than me, she certainly has attributes which could come from no one but me!  Jessica is an ice cream fanatic.  Seriously, little girl can eat more ice cream than me, which is saying something.  The other day when we were playing in the pool & she had been a particularly good girl with going potty, I decided she needed a big time ice cream reward.  I had previously gotten a giant box of mixed ice cream treats from Sams so I let her have the sundae cone.  Jessie calls ice cream "ya-ya", so she had a big ole' ya-ya cone for good behavior.  See the carnage that ensued!

She just loves her ya-ya

Sporting a beard of melted ice cream

Pool time!!

Well, I grant you our kiddie pool is not much to look at, but we girls sure do love it.  It may only be about 4 inches deep, but it provides much enjoyment at our house.  Take a look at how most of our afternoons are spent.  Ella has been watching her sister too much, she now knows how to remove her own diaper.  The other day I went in to grab my camera & came back out to find them both without pants playing at the water table...girls, girls, girls, what is a mommy to do!  Hope you all are staying cool during this hot weather.  Enjoy & have a wonderful day ;)

No words...a double full-moon ;)

Just to clarify they both had on swim diapers by this point!!

A rousing game of "don't you splash your mama" broke out

I'm so glad they each have a little friend in each other..they really do love being together

Photos to capture of you & your kiddos

So I was playing on Pinterest the other day & came across this checklist of pictures to take of you & your kids.  Now I'm pretty good at documenting my kids, but I do admit I should get better about getting in the pics with them.  Some of these would be tough to capture for me, as it's usually me, the girls, & my camera timer taking the pics, but I am going to try for some of these at least.  A good reminder to me that pics don't have to be perfect or "pretty" to be something you'll cherish in years to come.  Here's the list:

14 months

So I guess I shouldn't keep doing these since Ella is already a year, but just for memories sake.  At 14 months, Ms. Ella has a definite plan for how she wants things to go.  Her little face has turned into a little girl face, no baby any longer.  She's very robust & almost as tall as her sister & weighs more than her sister!!  I know, she's a big girl.  She loves to play in the pool.  She also loves to eat & drinks 1 gallon of milk every 3 days--yeah, that's a lot of whole milk--thankfully, still cheaper than formula!  She has new words everyday. She loves, loves to carry one of my old purses around.  Sometimes she puts toys or food in it--quite clever for a little girl this age if you ask me.  The last time I had a 14 month old...I also had a newborn & wow--now I see why I was so overwhelmed.  I had forgotten how tiring a 14 month old can be.  They are into everything & learning new things constantly.  Good thing I take lots of vitamins.  Here are a few pics to document 14 months for Ms. Ella.

50mm ISO 100 f 2.2-3.2 1/125 shutter speed--why 50mm here...I wanted to pick up some tree "sparkle"--how the leaves look when light comes through them--my 85mm, although the focus is faster due to the ultrasonic motor, the bokeh is so creamy you don't get the sparkle I wanted

Dress made by my mom...matching one for Jessie also

Just love this one...she's so happy....most of the time!!

Tickling her own piggies

I was laying on the ground looking up at her to get these--look at that curl

That's some good tree "sparkle" above her

Also good "sparkle" & look at that prissy hand gesture...that's very Ella