Mommy's Little Helper

 

I can only hope she shows this much enthusiasm about doing dishes in ten years.

Strawberry Girl

She most definitely belongs in this family -- the strawberries from this morning's farmers market without a doubt earned Ellie's seal of approval!

Seven Falls

Weekly trips to Sabino Canyon are quickly becoming the norm around here as we try to soak in as much of this beautiful Tucson weather as we possibly can before the triple digits set in. Luckily that won't be for another three months or so, but they're coming! Brian and I had this brilliant idea to hike through Bear Canyon (on the other side of Sabino Canyon) to Seven Falls this morning. It's been on our list of places we want to go while we live in Tucson. The hike itself is a bit of a challenge, with seven stream crossings and plenty of uphill climbing. We prepped everything last night with the intention of getting up, eating breakfast, and heading out the door early this morning.

The reality was that we all slept in a little this morning, which was very much needed, and even with that minor setback we had hit the trail by 9. We took the BOB up to the trail head and from there Ellie rode in the hiking backpack. So many people we met on the trail positively commented on Ellie getting an early start with outdoor activity, and I couldn't help but beam a little. I really hope she grows up to enjoy the great outdoors!

It was an awesome hike on a beautiful morning.

We greatly underestimated the amount of time it would take to hike to the falls. What we thought would take a couple of hours round trip ended up taking a little over three (eight miles round trip), but the falls were completely worth seeing!

We haven't had much rainfall this winter, so they weren't quite as spectacular as I've heard they can be, but I'm so glad we made the trip.

Once we got down to the falls, we stopped for a snack (she's such a good sport for always indulging our outdoor antics).

And a few pictures (thanks to the women who offered to take a picture of the three of us!).

After checking the time, we high-tailed it back down the trail, getting back in half the time to get home, feed Ellie lunch and put her down for a nap. I was skeptical that she would even nap this afternoon, but thankfully, she's sleeping as I write this. :)

After a great start to the weekend, I think a low-key afternoon is in order!

Story Hour at the Library

I recently wrote about our experience taking Ellie to the gym children's room. Slightly concerned with her reaction, I've been trying to come up with some ideas to get us out of the house and get her used to being around other kids in new places. It's also partly for me so that I don't become a crazy helicopter parent, because I might be having a few "letting go" issues. :)

Yesterday morning we went to story hour at the base library. For us, it was more like story half-hour since we only stayed for the first thirty minutes, but I would consider it a success! I think Ellie really enjoyed herself and it was fun watching her interact with the other kids. She was surprisingly attentive during the song and stories, but the craft portion afterwards was a little lost on her, and I think she was slightly overwhelmed when all the kids crowded at the craft table. We'll be going back next week and I'm looking forward to making story hour (or however long Ellie lasts) a part of our routine!

Pigtails

Ellie's hair has been getting so long over the last few weeks that I picked up some hair ties over the weekend -- and couldn't wait to try them. This morning I bribed Ellie into holding still long enough so I could put them in by letting her watch the neighbor's dogs from our bedroom window. 

Not bad for my first (or third) try! It's funny how different she looks with her hair tied back... but I just love it!

Bye-bye Breastfeeding

After four days with no breastfeeding, it's safe to say Ellie's weaned. There was no fanfare, no big "this is the last time" moment (I didn't even know at the time that it was, in fact, "the last time"), it just happened. I'm understandably sad yet I feel so much satisfaction to have made it for this one year and two months, but am more relieved that it went smoothly; there was no battle -- no crying. Well, at least on Ellie's end. It took a few days for the reality to sink in and when it did, it hit hard. I thought about the early days after she was was born and still in the hospital, when I was exclusively pumping because she couldn't nurse on her own, and the days after she came home and I thought I was having supply issues. It's been a long road with ups and downs, but one that I have been so happy and grateful to have traveled with my little girl.

As I'm finding with most of these milestones, she was ready before I could ever be.

Blueberry (Pancake) Baby

Ellie + The Childrens' Room at the Gym = Not My Best Workout

My husband called me earlier this afternoon to say he was going to the gym and asked if I would like to bring Ellie and join him. I thought about his offer, then thought about life before Ellie when we would meet after work at the gym to work out together 3 or 4 times a week and how much I missed it, and said to myself, "Why not? They have a children's room at the gym. We can both exercise while Ellie plays." I packed up the two of us and headed to the gym.

We met Brian in the "Munchkin Room," which has a play area filled with soft mats and fun-looking foam shapes to play with. Seemed like Ellie would love it, right? Wrong. As soon as Brian set her down, she started bawling. This continued even after he picked her up, moved her and then held her for a few minutes. She didn't let up, so after setting a world record for the shortest workout ever (2 minutes and 37 seconds on the treadmill to be exact), I threw in the towel (ha) and took her home.

Because I keep having visions of her at five-years-old, clinging to my leg and crying that she doesn't want to go to kindergarten -- not how I want to picture her first day of school -- it might be time to get Ellie out for a few play dates or some structured playtime outside of our home. It would provide an opportunity to socialize with other children and gain some independence in unfamiliar surroundings. Preferably with Brian so I can get to the gym. :)

My Funny Valentine

A Weekend Worthy of a Post

Our weekends as of late have been pretty unremarkable. Alternating states of "to do" and recuperation apparently have a negative affect on the enjoyment of one's weekend. That was, up until recently. With our to-do list complete and the illness in our house (fingers crossed) finally gone, we were at long last able to finally enjoy those precious two days at the end of the week!

In the days leading up to our weekend, Ellie got her seventh tooth (on the bottom)!

Our Saturday began with a nice morning walk through the neighborhood. After Ellie went down for a nap, Brian and I took advantage of the gorgeous 70-degree weather to sit outside, soak in the sun and have some adult conversation. I also potted some herbs I bought earlier in the week, which must be my millionth third or fourth attempt at growing herbs (Brian reminds me of this fact often), but I'm hopeful that this time it will be a success!

After lunch, we headed out west to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. The weather was warm and breezy -- perfect for strolling around and checking out the animals!

On Sunday, we decided we hadn't had our fill of animals, so we headed to Reid Park Zoo for the afternoon.

We saw lions.

And tigers.

But no bears. Oh well. :)

The weather was quite a bit cooler than the day before, but it was nice to have a jacket on while we wandered the zoo because those hot Tucson temperatures will be here before we know it.

Ellie pointing out the llama.

Watching the giraffes with Dad.

Fascinated by the monkeys.

 

Watching the lion cubs.

Reid Park Zoo is located in a much larger city park, so we walked around the park after we finished at the zoo. There are multiple playground areas with jungle gyms and swings, baseball fields, a rose garden and two huge ponds, both filled with ducks that Ellie just couldn't get enough of. It amazes me how much of our city we haven't discovered yet -- and it's all so close!

After our trip to the zoo, we headed over to Park Place Mall for some much needed frozen yogurt... and some retail therapy for me. :) It was so nice to have a weekend filled with relaxation and quality family time. 

In other news, I think we've successfully transitioned Ellie to one nap! Wahoo! It's earlier in the day right now (around 10 or 10:30), and eventually she'll go down for an after-lunch nap, but she's been sleeping for a solid 2-3 hours right now. The difference this transition has made in the structure of our day has been huge. We can get out in the morning and run errands, then come home for a snack and Ellie goes down for her nap. After she wakes up (so cheery!) and has lunch, we go outside and maybe take an afternoon walk before Brian comes home from work.

We also think Ellie is sooo close to walking. In the last week, she has shown 100% more interest in her walker and has started easily pulling herself up on the wall, so we're hedging our bets that she'll be walking within the next few weeks.

Go, Ellie, go!

Post-Nap Paparazzi

Over the weekend Ellie caught my cold (Brian did, too). Sigh.
  

 Ellie did, however, take a fantastic three-hour nap yesterday morning and was in such a cheery mood upon waking up (those eyes! that smile! those dimples!) that I simply had to take approximately 1000 pictures of her. Well, maybe not that many.Even under the weather, she can be so happy.

The Climb

Last night, under adult supervision (of course), Ellie climbed the stairs for the first time on the way to her bath.

Now we just need to teach her how to come down the stairs on her belly.

Time for a Trim?

Brian thinks it's time for a haircut.

 

(Looking into her sunshine mirror) "Mom, maybe it is time for a haircut."

 

I think if this girl can't sit still when I try to trim her nails, how is she possibly going to sit still enough to have her hair cut... with scissors??

Stay tuned...