Nothing is Safe

Ella is very mobile these days and we're quickly learning nothing in the house is out of her reach - electrical outlets, power cords, picture frames, cat's water bowl, and even the cats themselves. Thankfully she has patient cats and semi-patient parents.

Rib Fest

Last Sunday, we enjoyed our 4th annual (Ella's 2nd annual - in utero last year) rib fest at the Famous Bar. No, this is not a department store, it's a bloody mary and martini bar. The fest is outdoors in their parking lot. There are 10 rib contenders that compete for attendees' votes for the best sauce and best rib. We enjoy the atmosphere (especially when the weather cooperates as it did this year, 80 degrees and sunny!) Our friend, Derek, lives a convenient 2-block walk away so we partake in a little NFL on the tube and then head out to the rib fest. We rarely make it back to his house as we're usually full and tired.

Fall Fun

Enjoying the Autumn outdoors in her new tree swing and riding the tram at Grant's Farm with Mom!

Crawling, Teething and Pulling Up!

Ella has completely amazed us (again!) over the past week with her sudden strength and coordination to get around the house. She started to crawl (army style), had a tooth puncture through the gums and is pulling up from a sitting to standing position! My two new favorites are seeing her come home from daycare filthy (apparently she now mops their floors with her pants while she crawls) and watching her play independently while we get ready for work. When the silence sets in you know she's either filling her diaper or perfecting her new talents (in the case of this morning, it was both). After leaving her to play on her bedroom floor for a couple of minutes this morning while I fixed my hair, I returned to find her standing against her toy box, reaching in and grabbing each toy, one by one, and plopping them on the floor. I think I captured the guilty, yet proud, look on her face. What do you think?

P.S. we have a great video of Ella crawling, however the file size is too large for upload. Once we reformat, we will attempt uploading again.

11-month pictures by Aunt Stacie

Go Cardinals!

Take me out to the ball game, take me out to the crowd. This is what Mom and Dad were singing Monday night when they took Ella to her first Cardinals game.

Thanks to a lucky raffle win at the Panera picnic, we had 2 tickets to the Sept. 27 game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. With the playoffs on the line (the Cardinals had to win each remaining game in the season at that point) we were excited to go. The weather was perfect and included a crisp breeze as Autumn started to arrive. The seats were situated in right field just a few rows from the fence, so we were able to get some nice shots of the stadium. And joining us in good company, was Panera co-worker, Cathy, and her husband Jeff Todisman.

Ella was sporting her team gear (one of many Cardinals onesies she had to select from). Ella found the game most entertaining when she realized the row in front of her contained open seats that she could try to climb into all night.

Surprisingly, Ella made it through the 5th inning, which was well past her normal 7pm bedtime. When we left the stadium the Cardinals were losing. However, Ella knew they had it in them to win so she was ok with leaving. Lo and behold, when Ella awoke the next day, she found the Cardinals had pulled out a victory... yeah! (note: the Cardinals were promptly eliminated from the playoffs the next day - it just wasn't their season, probably because of all the effort they had put in to make sure that Ella's first game was a winner).

Frozen in Time

We recently heard the idea of taking a family picture in the same place every year. Reviews from people who have done this, say it's really neat to see the family grow & change each year, and to see any new additions to the family. The question is, where should we take the picture? We don't want it to be in or around our home, as we plan on moving (it would be a bit awkward to knock on the door of our old home and ask a stranger if we can come inside for a quick picture by the stove). So we are asking you, blog fans, to submit ideas in the comment section. We think it might be cool to incorporate a city landmark as well, to see how the environment changes over time.

Also, as Ella approaches her first year, please let us know if your family has any other annual traditions, so that we can get it in for year 1!

The Windy City

Ella took a roadtrip to see Uncle Matt and Aunt Michelle this weekend in Chicago. They call it the Windy City, and Matt and Michele's dogs, Rusty and Clark, made it live up to its name...they need to quit feeding those dogs deep dish pizzas.

We had a great weekend, dined at some local restaurants and went to Shedd's Aquarium. As a good Uncle (and Godfather), Matt captured the weekend through a short YouTube video, which can be found below, along with some still frames. Some of the more priceless interactions with the dogs occurred off camera, but the video is great. Ella had no problem with the dogs, even when they licked every inch of her face and playfully barked at her. However the glow worm & doll had to hide to stay safe, and Ella's bib & sock fell victim to Clark's mouth.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJz4SXo6wT