Busy Days

Ella in her chef's hat at a playdate with the Brindisi's.

The other Ella in her Chef's hat and hotmitt!

Ella and Emily at the playdough playdate,
done with playdough!
On to the books!

Ava, Renate, and Ella at the playdough table.
I think my belly was either squashing or kicking poor Ava!

Aren't some babies just so patient?
Toby looked so funny with his new look.

Toby and Cooper playing at the baby activity table.

Ava in the sunlight!

On Tuesday Ella and I went to 2 playdates! Aren't we social butterflies? Nah, just anything to get us out and about with friends. We started out the day at a playdough lunch playdate where we have TONS of fun. Veronica (Cooper and Emily's mom) hosted and it was a big success with all of the kids enjoying the toys and the soft, edible (thank goodness!) playdough. We finally got a chance to play with Ava (another little girl close to Ella's age), and get to know her mom, Ashley, better. It was relaxing and informal which was exactly what we needed.

Ella was exceptionally clingy and kind of anti crowds at first. She opened up as the day went on though and by the end was the biggest playdough eater of the day. Ella apparently is working on becoming a magician because no matter how many times we emptied her hands, the playdough appeared magically in her mouth. AMAZING!!! Why do kids like licking playdough so much?

Well then we headed over to the Brindisi's to see them after their trip to Alabama for the holidays. Ella gave the other Ella and Layla a set of chef's hats and hot pan pads. Layla is a little too young for them yet, but that just means that the 2 Ellas can play together until Layla wants the hat. We had a great time catching up and watching the girls play.

Wednesday started out with a doctor visit to check on my contraction status and the baby. After hearing that all was good there, we drove 10 minutes north to the Brindisi's to play with Cassia and kids, Rachelle and Toby, and Jenn and her girls. It was another fun day that wore us out. When we got home Ella and Mike went to bed early and I got a lot of work done around the house. I AM REALLY READY FOR THIS BABY TO ARRIVE.

Today, we did nothing, absolutely nothing productive. It was fantastic! Ella took a nap in the big girl bed for the first time. She slept for 2.5 hours and was so pleasant when she came out on her own to play again. My girlfriend, Rachelle, cooked us a wonderful casserole to make things easier leading up to the baby. I am looking forward to its cheesy mexican goodness tonight! Tomorrow will be another fun day at the Brindisi's for Ella and I, and Mike has a work field trip.