What's My Name?

(upon asking for help identifying the letter D)

Ella: What letter is that, Mommy?

Mommy: You know what letter that is. What's Mommy's name?

Ella: Majoli?

Mommy: No...that's our last name...what's Mommy's first name?

Ella: Aunt Dina!

Snow 2010!

Valentine's Day collided with President's Day weekend and a couple of snow make-up days which made for a nice LONG six day weekend for us.

We've been threatened with snow a few times this year but Friday the 12th of February ushered in the real thing.

It started snowing at our house around one or two in the afternoon and quickly started accumulating. By around 5:00 Ella and I were outside building snowmen. She really loves the snow and we had a lot of fun. I should note, Airlie was napping.

The snow continued until late in the evening...at last check it was still snowing around midnight.

I was due in to work at 6 a.m. but a colleague (whom I'm indebted to) was working late Friday and opted to stay at a downtown hotel and take the early shift so I could come in at noon, after most of the snow on the roads had turned to water or mush.

I'd say we had around three or four inches of good snow and it was a wonderful treat! Now...I'm done with the cold...bring on Spring!

Who Dat? Superbowl Party!

Okay...I'm a bit out of chronological order -- giving a blogging mom of two a break!

So our neighbors had a super fun, family friendly Superbowl party. I think we were mostly all pulling for the Saints just out of principal...no one's from Louisiana. We claim affiliation to the Who Dat nation because we have family in Baton Rouge.

Anyway...my Superbowl brownies turned out cuter than I'd expected and they were a big hit with the kids.

The Superbowl also provided us our first opportunity to use the wagon handed down to us from Grandad and Babci. They don't use it anymore so we were happy to brush off the dust and put it to use. The girls loved riding in...even though we only had to go a few houses down the road.

Valentine's Party

At the beginning of the school year parents are asked to sign up to help with one of the four or five parties the classrooms have throughout the years. I was disappointed when Halloween was already taken by three eager moms. Ella's teacher told me Valentine's is always fun. A little half-hearted, I signed up.

As it turns out, even tough Valentine's is not one of my favorite holidays, it was fun!

I made matching t-shirts for Ella and me. Being responsible for the food in an "allergy" classroom I made heart-shaped bread sticks, sweet potato muffins and a medley of chopped bananas and strawberries. The kids had crafts, provided by another mom, and we played Valentine's picture Bingo! Every child won! Then another mom made pink cupcakes and we finished the party with some Valentine's books I'd picked up at the library. Of course the kids exchanged valentines and we're now inundated with more sugar and candy crap...but it was a fun party after all!

Nine Month Pictures

We took "antique" looking pictures for Airlie's nine month pictures. It's a tradition Babci started with Alex when she was nine months and now all the cousins have similar pictures.

We did this with Ella in California and they turned out so cute. The big difference with Airlie's is we got to use several family heirlooms and antiques. Obviously, aside from a step-stool that Grandmom Majoli made, we didn't have any of those things in L.A.

We used a trunk and hat that belonged to my great-grandmother, Sarah. Beads that belonged to Matt's grandmothers, Albina and Mary. A jug that used to be on Matt's mother's farm and a chair that belonged to Granddad's sister. The boa and tutu were just too cute...and posed Ella is them for her pictures.

If you're in the Atlanta area and you need family, individual or wedding portraits please consider using this photographer...he's great. He'll even bring his "studio" to your house!

Check them out!

Do As I Say...Not As I Do

The girls and I were quietly eating breakfast. Ella watched her sister being fed and made the astute observation,"Mommy, she watches everything you do!"

I explained, "Of course she does. She watches all of us. That's how she learns. Which is why we have to be careful of our actions. We need to teach her how to be well behaved and mannerly."

Quiet for a few moments.

"I have a great idea, Mommy," Ella exclaimed. "When AJ gets a tiny bit older I'll tell her not to do my actions!"

The Problem with Puffs

I think this video is hilarious. Matt doesn't share my opinion. I'm posting it anyway. For those who don't know (i.e. those who don't know all the theme songs to the PBS shows and have unknown goo stuck to most of your car's interior) puffs are a first finger food. They are kind of like cereal for beginning eaters, like Airlie. Anyway...here's a look at her first association with the pesky puff!

Smack Down

And...a few hours after we took that beautiful Grandmom's Dress picture...this happened. Ella loves turning on the synthesizer on her keyboard she got for Christmas. She dances and twirls around the den and usually asks me to join in. But the other night I was resting after making dinner and playing with the baby. Matt was making a salad when SMACK! Ella twirled herself into a tizzy and lost her balance. The downward spiral ended when her face collided with the corner of the coffee table. The bone next to her eye bore the brunt of the fall. Her eye swelled up before our eyes and started turning an awful shade of purple. Matt nearly puked while trying to apply ice while I phoned the on-call nurse.

She's fine...but of course she looks awful! Thank goodness school pictures are at the end of the month!!!

Grandmom's Dress, Year Four

If you follow this blog or you're a close family member you know about "the dress" tradition. I picked up the idea from my friend Gerin who may have seen it on Oprah. At any rate, we take a picture of Ella each year, right around her birthday, in a dress Grandmom Majoli wore to our wedding. The idea is to see her grow into the dress over the years. I envision her wearing it (tailored most likely) to graduation or baccalaureate or something like that. I'm creating an album and have a few of the pictures hanging on the wall. I love this!!

I can't wait to start this tradition all over again with Airlie in April. Matt's mom is looking for a dress that belonged to her mother.

Hair Do!

Most stay at home moms will tell you...that time between afternoon nap (at least for those who have napping children) and dinner is often quite like torture. It's especially tough during the winter months when we can't just run down to the pool and kill an hour or play outside on the play-set (well some days we can). And dreaming up something different and constructive to do during that time can be a bit of a challenge. For me, it needs to be something that does not require a lot of energy, because I'm usually zapped by three or four o'clock, but it also needs to be something that will hold Ella's attention. I also have to factor in the baby...in that she needs to be able to participate or play nearby said activity.

I may have struck gold the other night. I don't call upon my mother's mothering guide too much but this time it worked.

"Hey, Ella. Why don't you go get all of your hair clips and your brush and come style mommy's hair!"

I was not a rambunctious child so I can only figure my mother asked me to style her hair simply because it was relaxing to her. Even so, I applied the task with a different purpose and it worked like magic.

You would have thought I'd suggested ice cream and cake for dinner. She brushed and clipped and talked to me about all kinds of things while an hour and a half went by in the blink of an eye. Airlie sat next to be on the floor surrounded by lots of toys. Occasionally she's look up, a bit bewildered at the transformation.

Here's a look at Ella's creation!

Tongue-tation

Airlie loves her tongue. She especially loves sticking it out and feeling those two little bottom teeth. She just cracks me up when she does this. We have lots of pictures of her sticking out her tongue. Here's another for your enjoyment...just because I think it's cute and funny!

Busy Bakers

Ella and I got matching chef hats and aprons for Christmas. Aunt Durene was nice enough to embroider our names on them, just in case we were to get them mixed up.

Ella loves joining me in the kitchen for dinner preparations, baking bread or dessert. She really enjoys being in the kitchen mixing ingredients and taste-testing everything. I took over a lot of the cooking duties when I had Airlie and scaled back work outside of the home. I am NOT a good cook but I do enjoy baking and I feel like there are lots of "teachable" moments in the kitchen so we're both getting something out of it. She is learning measurement, patience and such and I am getting to spend some quality time with my little eager helper.

Back to the Rockies

Airlie's first trip in an airplane

Ella met me on the slopes after ski school

Our view in Steamboat

And Henry...ready for sledding in Fort Collins

Annabel reads a bedtime story to all the kids

I guess you could say it's becoming a wonderful tradition. A couple of years ago our good friends the Morgensteins organized a trip to Steamboat Springs, Colorado. They rented a townhouse that slept somewhere around a dozen and invited friends and family to drop in and out throughout one week in January as the schedules and finances saw fit. We took them up on it then, when Ella was just two and we joined them again this year.

Airlie Jane's first flight went off without a hitch. She fussed for a grand total of maybe 20 minutes. Which seems like forever when it's your kid but it truly wasn't bad.

We flew into Denver and rented a car and drove up to Fort Collins to spend a few days with our friends the Lashers. We had a wonderful time catching up with Christian and Briana and found ourselves amazed at how their kids, Annabel, Henry (our Godson) and Claire had grown.

After a few days of invading the Lasher abode, we headed towards higher elevations.

The town home was once again tremendous. We had a great view and the heated pool and hot tub were within walking distance.

I kept to my green runs this time and enjoyed myself. Two years ago I let my husband take me down something a bit too challenging for me...and I fell...A LOT! So this year Matt went up one morning without me and took all the double black skiing he could handle before catching up with me for some more green runs.

But the best part was putting Ella in ski school. Several of us pitched in for a Nanny for the younger ones and the older ones went to ski school. We dropped her off around 8:30 and picked her up around 3:00. She learned to ride the magic carpet and put her tips together like a pizza while going down the small bunny hill. She seemed to really like it. Yay!

We're already looking forward to 2012!!

Presenting The Frog Prince and the Bug: A Play by Ella Majoli

You can hear a bit of her made-up language which we call "Ella Speak". Enjoy!

Airlie's Nine Months Old

It's hard to believe she's been around as a living breathing creature as long as she was in my tummy. Our Airlie Jane is just as sweet and calm as ever. It's impossible to be around her and not want to hug and kiss her...she's just that sweet.

She's showing no real signs of wanting to crawl but she is more upright on her arms during tummy time. We think part of the delay in crawling is that she's just so chubalicious! But we've both noted that either she's gotten longer or she's taking in fewer calories because she seems to be getting a bit leaner. This is either our imagination or nature's way of helping her to move.

She's eating more and more baby food and sweet potatoes are her absolute favorite!

I snapped this picture just a short time ago...while she was napping...peacefully. Happy nine month birthday little peep!

Digestive Diction

Ella has been drinking Soy milk since she was about 16-18 months old because regular milk seemed to upset her stomach. More and more we've noticed the regular milk (drank at restaurants, friends houses) didn't seem to bother her very much. So, seeing as regular milk is much cheaper, albeit not quite as healthy, we decided to make the switch. She didn't really seem to like it much at first. I think that's because Soy milk is naturally pretty sweet and Ella loves sweets. But she accepted it after a few days...but her stomach did not. She started having some constipation. We started telling her she really needed to drink lots of fluids and eat her fruits and veggies because she was having constipation.

A day or so later I ran by the grocery/pharmacy on the way home from work after Matt called saying Ella was complaining that her bottom hurt and she could not go to the bathroom. I think he was re-living in is mind the story his mother tells of having to "help" our niece when she had similar problems as a toddler. Long story short, she drank the apple juice and ate some frosted mini wheats as suggested by our pharmacist; problem solved.

Then just the other day we were dealing with another one of Ella's ongoing problems; paying attention and following direction. As I sat on the floor roping the calf that is my four year and trying to stuff her into her pants as she pulled away I told her she needed to focus. "Ella, please concentrate and help Mommy!" I pleaded. After a few minutes I was sweating but she was dressed. She looked at me innocently and said, "I'm sorry Mommy, I'm having trouble constipating."

Sharing the Wealth

So...now that I have two daughters I'm facing a dilemma. Who gets what from my childhood? For instance, I kept my Barbie doll house my dad built for me when I was little. It was in serious need of repair and TLC when we pulled it out of an out-building at my mom's house. It's been sitting in our basement for almost three years and this Christmas I called upon Santa's elves to help me fix it up. It turned out great. It still needs a few touch-ups of paint and it could use some carpet or wallpaper but it looks great. All new furniture helps any house, right?

The problem? It was given to Ella for Christmas. I don't have a single other thing to give Airlie of that same size or significance. The bookshelf my dad built is in Airlie's room right now and I suppose someday down the road she could inherit that but let's face it...it's not a toy. And at some point Ella will have to share the dollhouse with her sister. But my concern is when they are adults and have their own children...how do I pass these things down?

I guess for now I'll just give things as I see fit and hope for grandsons.

Airlie Update!

Our little sweetie is 8 1/2 months old. I can't believe the better part of her first year is over!!

She's a happy 18 pounds and showing no interest in crawling. She's sitting up on her own, for the most part and is happy to sit in the floor and play with her toys or watch Ella dance around like a princess...or fairy...or a mermaid princess with wings...I lose track by the day.

She doesn't fuss much unless she's tired or hungry or has a stinker in her diaper...but who could blame her on that one. In fact...she had two ear infections in December and I did not detect either of them...Mother of the Year...I know!

Here's one of my favorite pictures of her from Christmas...her first. She was so sweet and just sat playing with her toys all morning.

Little Adult

I'm amazed every day at the things that come out of Ella's mouth. And when I say amazed I mean sometimes I'm amazed as in, "whoa, where did you learn that?!" and other times, "hey...when did you become so grown-up?" =(

Yesterday after school Ella sat down next to me and asked, "So mom, how's your day going?" I said it was going pretty well. Then I asked how her day was going. "Oh, my day is brilliant!" Is she hanging out with a group of Brits and I don't know it? Seriously...where did she hear brilliant. The best part it she really enunciates....BRILL-ee-unt!