18 Months

Today Ella is 18 months. That's a year and a half! A year and a half! In 6 months she will be 2 years old. But I'm not emotional about this at all. Not one bit. Not even a smidge. Okay maybe a little.

Here are the 18 things that I love the MOST about Ella:

1. She must say goodbye to everything when walking away from it. Her toothbrush, the door, her highchair, her stuffed animals, her crib, her food, her bath.

2. She loves to snuggle with her stuffed animals. She picks one that she will love on for the day and she carries it around the house constantly giving it hugs.

3. She can point out her nose and everybody else's nose and wants to do it a million times a day.

4. She can shake her head no when asked a question, but doesn't know how to nod yes. So every question's answer is a no with a very passionate head shake.

5. She loves to drink out of big people cups way over her sippy cups.

6. She will almost pay attention long enough for me to finish reading one of her books to her.

7. She has learned to climb on the couch, chair and ottoman. I'm not sure if I love this, but it's stinkin' cute.

8. Her vocabulary is expanding daily. She's starting to say two words together, not very many yet, but a few. The sweetest is "hi mama!". My heart melts everytime.

9. Her new favorite show is The Upside Down Show on Noggin. She loves those guys. I can actually cook dinner thanks to them.

10. She has so many friends that she loves so much. She gets so excited when she gets to see one of them.


11. She feels very passionate about many things and one of those is her swing. We finally had to store her inside baby swing, but we spend a lot of time on her swing outside.

12. She doesn't cry anymore when I drop her off at our church nursery. We had major issues with this a few months ago, but she is over it. And I am one of the things that she gets to say bye to as I walk out the door with my bottom lip out.

13. She is the girliest baby I have ever heard of. She makes everything into a bracelet and/or necklace. She must constantly have either of those on her body at all times. She loves bows and hats She loves to play with my shoes. She hates getting dirty and will barely touch the grass.


14. She is becoming very independent. Not sure how much I love this, but it definitely is good in some ways. Like eating. She now wants to feed herself with a spoon. Which means I get to eat at the same time she is eating. See, look how positive I am about her growing independence.

15. Peek a boo and chase still remain her favorite games. She laughs so hard everytime we play and there is no sound sweeter.

16. She loves to give kisses, real kisses. She actually leans in and puckers her lips. It's the sweetest thing ever! And she loves to hold our hands. I can ask her to hold my hand and she reaches up and grabs my finger. In those moments, could I be any happier? No.

17. She has such a sweet deamenor already. I thank God every night for the sweet spirit He placed in her.

18. Last but not least, I love the way she loves our dog Jones. Since the birth of Ella, poor Jones has taken a back seat in our lives. He went from baby to dog. But I'm thankful for him because he adds so much entertainment to Ella's life. And he loves her. He is very protective of her and can hear her crying before I can sometimes. He's a good dog.
These pictures were taken when Ella was about 6 months old. I couldn't resist posting them again!






How is it possible to consume so much love for somebody? I've said this before and I'll say it a thousand more times, but being able to experience the love for your child here on earth is a daily glimpse for me to be able to imagine how much more God loves His children.

"How deep the Father's love for us, how vast beyond all measure. That He should give His only Son, to make a wretch His treasure."


Happy Half Birthday you precious precious girl!