Thursday, April 9, 2009

Sweet Ella Grace

We were waiting at the clinic for Evan's therapy session to start. I caught Ella checking herself out in the mirror!


It's hard for me to believe Ella Grace is quickly approaching 2 1/2 (on the 21st). I have been full of thankfulness this week (even more so than normal) that I get to stay home with her every day. When I had Evan, Derek and I went out on this huge leap of faith. I quit my job to stay home with my baby. It was so scary and definitely an adjustment period, but I am SO glad we did it. With Evan I felt so robbed of my time with him because as soon as we thought he might have autism (age two), we put him in a therapeutic pre-school. This was the best thing for him at the time, but I was so sad! I spent most days just watching the clock until it was time to go pick him up from school.

It has been a thrill for me to be with Ella Grace every single day. We definitely have a full schedule. We go for weekly Gymboree classes and a weekly play group, and in between there is shopping, lunch dates, house work, and taking Evan to school and therapy. We are in the car A LOT and she is such a little trooper! We have so much fun and I'm so glad to experience the world with her.

I adore that Ella Grace loves baby dolls so much. They all have names and this one she appropriately named, "Baby Ella Grace." She sat down on this trampoline and said, "Take my picture."


Here are just a few things my soon-to-be 2 1/2-year-old girl is saying these days:

These two are my absolute favorites and melt my heart..."Momma, I love you SO much ever!" It's usually followed with, "I love you all the time, Momma."

She LOVES to have her toenails painted. We painted them last week and she hasn't stopped talking about them or showing them to anyone who will look at them. Ha! She says, "Look at my fingernails (sometimes she says toenails but most of the time fingernail). They are soooo pink."

"Lil' ladies don't talk about poots." Ack! I am really trying to enforce being a lady. For some reason, she just thinks this is SO funny! Oh, dear!

"I wear panties." "No more diapers!" Yes, she is officially potty trained. :)

She crosses her legs and shakes her foot and says, "I sit like a lady." I really am training her up to be a little Southern lady. Ha!

"Momma, I hilarus (hilarious)!" Yes, she is!

"I funny!"

"I silly boy (we're still working on that...ha)!"

"I so proud!"

When listening to praise music in the car this morning, she was singing "Hu-lay-lu-wah" for hallelujah. I just wanted to cry it was so sweet!

Yesterday she told Evan, after he was all dressed in some new shorts and shirt, "You look cute, Evan." Ha!

"Momma, you are so sweet." I promise to do not coach this or when she strokes my hair and says, "Momma precious."


There are so many more, but these are definitely my favorites! Does it get any better than this? I sure don't think so!

22 comments:

Mommy to those Special Ks said...

What a cutie pie! I love that first picture of her! Kennedy is always looking in the mirror. I say all the time that she is her own biggest fan. LOL

Tracy said...

That just made my heart melt. So sweet.

Lulu will kiss me on the cheek and then pet me and say "you are such a sweet momma" I love it. I'll be sad when she stops saying it.

4shepherds said...

That is too funny about the fingernails. I have a three year old and forever she would say "Mommy paint my foot tails and finger tails" They are just so funny!!!

Meredith said...

Aww that is just sooo very sweet! Your kids are so cute! I love the picture of EG!

Katie said...

"Momma precious"....I LOVE IT! So, so, so sweet! I just love how full of love they are! It's no wonder that God wants us to look to children for how to enter the Kingdom! I love when I find Amelia Kate checking herself out in the mirror...my word... I haven't painted her toenails yet, but I can only imagine what that will be like!

Faith said...

She is an absolute doll!!!

Lauren said...

Oh.My.Gosh.

Could she be any sweeter or precious??? What a caring little heart she has!!

Wonder where she gets that from...:)

Kelly said...

So sweet!!! She is adorable!!!!

Candy said...

Oh, Leigh Ann she is just precious!!! :)

Jacquie said...

You ARE blessed! I wish all Mom's could have enjoy the experience you're able to have.

I LOVE that she says she "loves you all the time"... that says so much about what a loving mother YOU are! It just says to me how she is so secure in your love ALL the time! So sweet!

Megan L Hutchings said...

I would have to agree with La...I know exactly where she gets her sweetness from :)! My favorite is how she sits like a southern lady.

p.s. Vance is wearing my pregnant belly support contraption. I am sure there is a better name, but we will go with that.

Laurie said...

Everything she says is so cute!

Heather said...

It does NOT get any better than this and I feel exactly the same way you do about staying home! It is SUCH a blessing!!! I just love every single minute of every single day...even when I have "one of those days" I always am thankful by the time I go to bed that night...or by the time I tuck in Connor-boo.
I still have those "Wait outside the preschool until I can pick him up" days! I just can't wait to get him back!!!!!

The Pooles said...

Oh such a sweet girl, I love it when girls are say such girly things. She is such a lady too, just the short time I was around her she always acted her best!

Kelley said...

She is a cutie pie! I bet it is wonderful getting to stay home with her. I love her sayings. They are precious...

Marci @All Things Wonderful said...

Ella is ADORABLE! I love the sweet things that she says. What a blessing to experience this time with her. I love the photo of her in the mirror. SO Cute.

His Doorkeeper said...

Leigh Ann, Are you a blessed woman or what?

There are some things money can not buy , trite as that may sound, and having sweet children is one of the best things!! EG and Evan are just God's gift to you and Derek!

Jenna said...

She is just the most precious thing! What a doll! And I bet she LOOOOVEESSSS having YOU as her mama!!

Betsy said...

Oh my goodness...I just loved reading all about that little sweetie pie. It is so great that you are writing all this cute stuff down because you will always cherish these sweet times!! She is so precious, Leigh Ann!

Meagan said...

I am LOVING her (as you know)! I think she's the sweetest, cutest thing ever and all the precious things she says? So adorable!!

Lindsey said...

I love all those sweet thing she says. You will be so glad that you documented it;) Now it's just time for another baby, right????

I enjoyed your precious post on your baby girl;)

Jill said...

I remember a conversation that we had one time at HH and were discussing if you were going to have a 2nd baby. I guess that you taking my advice on that one paid off. HAHA! I know we have talked about it before and how we felt cheated having to put our first babies in all day "school" at such a young age. I still feel that way, but am so thankful to be reaping the benefits of those hard decisions. Watching Claire now makes me understand that it was the right thing. Now as for our 2nd children, whooo, mine is a pistol, but I am soooo very thankful to have had the full five years with him at home. God is so good! Last thing, way to go with your testimony even though it doesn't look like it paid off right now, you have laid some serious groundwork! And how cute did EG look in her KK jumper? Love it!