Christmas in the new place

Just when I thought I had everything figured out, mom and dad moved me from our home, moved all the furniture, and put a tree in the living room.

I haven't figured all this out yet, but I have to admit, I love having more room to roam and while the walks are colder, it's fun to get all bundled up and hey, the tree is pretty cool all lit up with things for me to play with. I hope it doesn't get any colder though...

Fall Colors & Halloween

Ella's first Halloween! I was a big, fluffy, pink bunny with my own carrot :) Now that I'm crawling, it was fun to clean the floors with my pink fur at the halloween party.

Family visits and historic 'ol England

Granny Smith came out to visit and that gave me another excuse to convince mom and dad that I should get out to the countryside for the day. I had been reading about England's involvement in WWII and the historic leadership of both FDR and Churchill. So, we took a hike to his estate. But, wouldn't you know it, I was so cute that they forgot to take any pictures of the estate, just me. Well, what did you expect?

Playdates and gettin' bigger

So, now that I've grown to almost 20 pounds, I've made clear to mom and dad that I'm beyond all of the plastic play toys and sitting around the living room. I've got friends that I want to see, travel I want to do, books to read, etc. They are just going to have to recognize, I'm a big girl now.

Where should I move?

I'm sitting here pondering...

So apparently as an adult, you are required to move every two years. Maybe it's a government thing. Anyway, I've been told I have four choices.

In Warsaw, everyone sounds like mommy, so that would be cool, and I could see my cousins as well, but it's cold and gray...I'm a big outdoors girl you know.
In Sydney I've been told they have these things called beaches, I imagine sand probably tastes good, but that means long flights.
Maybe if we stay in London I will get to speak in that funny British accent - but then kids will make fun of me when I grow up...
Then there is Seattle...they have houses there! I can have a backyard! But I heard Dad say something about there's only one Johnnie Walker. Not sure what that means.

Mommy told me it would be helpful for me if I build an excel model, but I haven't been able to figure out the vlookup formula so I'm just going to have to ponder on my own. What do you think?

Ella turns six months!

It's unbelievable that last week Ella turned six months...What a crazy ride so far...and we've been so fortunate. Ella has changed so fast - it seems just like yesterday, when she could barely keep her eyes open for longer than a few minutes, and now it's party time every day, all day, if it was up to her. She's amazing, but of course I'm the mom so I would say that.

She can sit up now, smile, and let us know when she's unhappy about things other than food and sleep. She's figured out how to crawl backwards which amazingly is incredibly frustrating for her parents - we constantly have to get stuff for her or move her. She reaches for things, laughs, and cries when things are not going her way. Somehow she's incredibly stubborn :) She's also eating 'real' food now, as we're trying to get her to eat things like basil, mango, and spinach. Broccoli is definitely NOT the favorite.

We're spending a lot to time in Hyde Park, visiting with other moms, having lunches, going to swimming and music classes. Ella plays with other babies in daycare 1 hour a day when mom goes to the gym - the teacher has mentioned that she's 'very attention seeking.' I wonder why? We must work on changing that but of course it's difficult not to spoil her when she smiles so sweetly! In the evening dad takes over and disappears with Ella for her bath and reading time. It's so much easier now that she's a bit older and great fun as she is starting to be responsive. During the next six months she'll have a lot to learn as I go back to work, but in the meantime, it's still playtime with mom and dad!

Provence

So it was time to vacation again - I guess mom and dad really want me to get used to that whole flying thing! We stayed in a big house, went hiking, walking around little villages, and I think that mom and dad ate a lot of food. They dragged me to nice restaurants where I had to behave myself which was really problematic for me, but oh well. Also, I got to visit my first winery (and many after) and go on top of a big mountain from where I could even see the Alps!

Mom and dad did love this holiday. It was amazing to enjoy so much space after living in a small London apartment. We spent our days relaxing, driving around, hiking, walking and playing with Ella. Fall was in the air, although days were warm and Rob even braved the pool! We definitely ate too much, but it was difficult to resist the local cousine. It will be nice to come back someday.

Portugal...

To escape the 'summer' in London, we made our way south to a little town outside of Lisbon where it was actually warm. Although it was too windy for Ella to explore the beach, the warm afternoons and splendid sunsets provided plenty of opportunity for Ella to explore and mom and dad to relax. Some close friends, Elodie and Brian, came with us with their daughter, Izzy - it was entertaining to watch them both play!

I'm five months old!!!!

The last month has been quite exciting! I got to know my cousins, meet some friends, hang out with my grandparents, begin to learn to eat, sit, and start to show my true colors with my temper! Oh...and I even slept in this weird thing on the plane...wow, life is exciting!

First real food

Having just passed the five month mark, I definitely think I'm over all this baby stuff. I want to do things like mom and dad, especially eat like mom and dad. I try and tell them this by grabbing at their food and putting everything I can in my mouth. So finally, they decided to give me some of their food. I'm so excited, I can hardly wait...

Phototgraphy time

While in Sioux Falls, mom and dad dragged me to the photographer - here are some of the pictures we took.

Playing with my cousins!

And reading time was with everyone!



I even met Michael and his mom Michelle...


Grandpa has been entertaing me for weeks!

Baptism

We're in America!!!! First it was crazy NYC - all sort of a blur because of the time change and everything. I was even on my own for two evenings - mom and dad were busy partying! Apparently the second night I really misbehaved...and mom's poor friends had to suffer through my mischief. Oh well...that's what happens when going out in the evening becomes more important than me!

But the most important part of the trip is the Baptism when the priest poors water on me so that I can go to haven some day (I don't know who believes this stuff?) Anyway, here I cried as well in the church, but once I felt that water on my forehead, all seemed better. Anyway, I got to meet my cousins as well and see both grandmas, unts, uncles, and many friends. It was a full house! Video to come, but in the meantime, here are some pictures.

Hiking in Henley

Here we go - mom and dad keep doing crazy hiking trips but I love the trees and the leaves. It means that I spend some serious time in the baby bjorn which for the most part is quite fun (it does get old at times though too - although now they let me see the world and face forward at times :)

Ella is three months old!!!

So yes - the big day has finally arrived!!! Apparently all things are supposed to become easier now - I'm supposed to sleep through the night, be on a perfect schedule and let's see...it's hard to know what else I'm supposed to be doing at 3 months since I've not actually read the book, but in any case, I'm going to be doing exactly what I want to be doing :)





We also celebrated father's day in England - it was nice - I got to take a picture with a new shirt!

Reading time

Ok, so I finally get a chance to act a bit. Dad promised to read to me and I told him that I would play the part of the interested baby. I think I've really captured the role here.

Future movie star

I told dad that I was tired of only being represented in slide shows and pictures. I know he has a video camera so I convinced mommy to record me. I've got to refine it a bit before I hit the big screen, but give me a few months...

Playing in Hyde Park

Sometimes, even in London the sun comes out...







But dad still looks really white!

my outfits

Mom insists on dressing me up even though it's a pain to put on new clothes everyday - the sleepers seem to be just fine :) But I get to lay on the big bed to pose :)

Salzburg - My First Plane Ride!

I told my parents that I was tired of spending all my time in London and that we really ought to take advantage of living in Europe and see some other countries (yes, I'm little,but really, there is no time to waste if I want to visit as many countries as my parents think I should). So we headed off to Salzburg and Hallstatt in Austria and saw some villages in Bavaria, Germany on the way. It was a blast (I did get too tired the first day - but oh well, I didn't know that the world is so big!). 'We' hiked in the Alps(OK - dad and mom carried me, but it was still a lot of work to take in all those views - talk about over stimulation)...and I spent a lot of time laying on tables while mom and dad enjoyed having lunch.



They also insisted (well, I think it was more mom) that we see old churches and castles...that got boring quickly but I entertained myself by checking out all these people around (and crying a bit too - why make it so easy on them? :) And there were pretty parks which was more fun...




By the end, I was exhausted. What a great trip.

Family time...

Besides having many visitors who are friends of Mom and Dad - even those that have come across the ocean, like Jennifer and Jocelyn, Ella has also been fortunate to meet her grandparents and both her aunt and uncle already. We don't have all the pics - but a few of Ella spending time with mom and dad and her family.

I'm cute!

That's what mom and dad tell me all the time - but since I've never seen myself, I'm not too sure (that hairdo is the coolest though!)








And I can smile now (even on the playmat!)

My new adventures

Now that I'm seven weeks old and I've experienced so much in my life already (mostly diper changing and sleeping - oh wait, there is that stupid playmat that mom makes me lay on and also that bouncy chair that vibrates constantly as if that was enjoyable for hours on end!), I've graduated to other activities. First, there is the swing, but they only put me in there if I'm about to go to sleep at which point I get extremely cranky and start crying - so fortunately I don't have to stay in there for too long. But the real prize is the outdoor activities - I've been going to picnics, bbqs, out for dinners, and today was my first hike! I even made it outside of London and realized that other parks besides Hyde Park / Kensington Gardens exist in this world. Oh, I slept the entire time so I really did not see much, but apparently there were nice views (it would be nice if I could actually see that far to recognize the views, but oh well, maybe next time).

Oh...and I also wanted to share my new hairdo with everyone - it's too cool with a mohawk on top, a mop in the back, and a beautiful mullet by my neck. I hope it stays this way forever - the concept of long, shiny, blond hair is so overrated!

Playtime with dad!

Since mom loves to take pics and dad loves to play with Ella, there are many laughs to have looking at these. The playmat seems to be a favorite activity; the parents naively believe that the Einstein playmat will somehow make Ella smarter, which of course is ridiculous (who are those parents?? oh wait, we bought into the whole gimmick!)


Oh wait...there is also the bouncy chair as an activity ! These are the very exciting milestones in our lives now (sad but so true :). Although Ella does not seem to enjoy this as much as hanging out with dad - instead, however, she often contemplates very serious matters on the chair.