Crazy Ella

We finally got Ella's 1 year old pictures back and I can't believe how big she looks! I mean she is such a skinny little thing, but she is just growing up. There are times when I get really excited about all of the new things that she is learning, but at the same time I'm sad she's growing up. She does things to make me laugh all of the time. Tonight at dinner she threw food off of her tray and before I even had a chance to do anything, she looked right at me and started shaking her finger saying, "no, no, no, no". I had to turn away so she didn't see me laughing. Everyday John and I say, "She is so smart!" Maybe all kids are like her, but we don't know any better since she is our first. She is getting so good at sign language and knows at least 20 signs. She is also working on her animal sounds, so far she can do: dog, bear, bird, cat, tiger, bee, duck, horse, monkey, lion, fish (mouth movements of course). Now when it comes to walking... that's a different story. She is such a chicken and will only take a few steps at a time, then she will just crawl the rest of the way. It is already hard to keep up with her (especially with my growing belly) so I can't imagine what it's going to be like when she is walking/running. I am so grateful that I have such a wonderful husband who loves to spend time with his little Ella. I don't know how many of you know this, but he works the graveyard shift at work and is home with Ella while I teach school. They are best buddies! He is one in a million!