Our little Ham :)

February and March 2010...It's so hard to get a serious picture of Ella, but sometimes the candid ones are better :)

A big loser on spring break :)

YES! It's official, I am on spring break for the next week. I am VERY excited to have a week off and very excited to be able to spend all week doing fun stuff with Ella. I have a lot of fun things planned for her and I. The week of spring break also ends with Ella's birthday on Friday! (I can't believe she is going to be 3!). The last three years truly have flown by! She seems so grown up now and seems to learn something new everyday. Each day I am reminded by her presence just how blessed I have been. And while I am excited for her birthday, I am a little sad she is growing up so fast! Why can't they stay little longer?!
The week at school also ended well and on a high note. I won the biggest loser contest I had been competing in. I lost 15lbs and edged out my closet competitor by just under 1 percent, it was a close race! I feel good, and my clothes fit better :) It wasn't easy, but it was worth it. :)

Storytime Live!

Well today we took Ella to see Storytime Live! Which is a 4 part show featuring the Backyardigans, WonderPets, Kai-Lan, and of course..Dora :) Ella seemed to really enjoy it and was sitting still watching the entire show. She was starting to get a little sleepy near the end and then Dora came on...she perked right up! Ella cleary liked Dora the best and she was closely watching Dora, Boots, and the Map...there was even an appearance from Swiper :) I didn't find it that exciting but I suppose I'm not really the intended audience. Some of the costumes were a little weird and they could have had better props etc. Overall I preferred Sesame Street Live, WAY better! But Ella did seem to like it and I suppose that's really all that matters :).

Spring is "almost" in the air..

In January spring break seemed SO far away and now that we are just 1 week out I can say the last few months actually went by pretty quickly. Work is work and I'm ready to get out of there for a while. The kids are crazy, and I feel like I'm working with a VERY short fuse. This week is also the final week of our biggest loser contest at work. I did pretty well (I think) and have lost about 14 pounds. I had originally wanted to lose 20, but I'm happy with 14. I do feel a lot better and most of my pants are baggy and I can comfortably wear jeans I hadn't worn in months. I'm still not sure I'll win the contest but I think I have a shot, guess we'll find out Thursday at the big weigh in :). I am looking forward to a week off of work, and can't wait to spend time doing fun stuff with Ella. Last year on spring break we did something different every day and I'm hoping for another fun week this year. Spring break this year also includes Ella's birthday! I can't believe she will be 3...where does the time go?! I am still debating what exactly to get her for a present, but I'm considering a scooter she seemed to like and of course a helmet to go with it :) I am going to TRY not to go overboard, god knows she doesn't need any more toys. I don't think we are going to have a big party for her this year, probably just a dinner out with family and maybe a trip to build a bear. I think next year we'll do a Jungle Joes' or Gymboree type party. In basement related news.....we have ordered furniture and it will be delivered during spring break!! Having the basement finished is AWESOME. Money well spent for sure! Anyway, one week to go...spirit week, field trip, and an open house...going to be a long week. Hope it goes by fast :)

Not a baby anymore :(

So this weekend in addition to finishing the basement we also rearranged furniture upstairs. We transitioned Ella's room to a "big girl" room. Basically we gave her the full size bed from the spare bedroom and moved her crib and changing table out of her room. While she hasn't really been sleeping in a crib, she has been in the crib as more of a daybed, without the side rail. And while she still fits in that just fine, we figured this would be a good time to do the moving since we were already giving her room a makeover by moving out all the toys. The changing table has also been in her room just taking up space for a while now, since thankfully we haven't changed a diaper in nearly 8 months! We also got her a bookcase, which she has really needed for some time, instead of just an overflowing basket and pile of books on he floor :). She seems to really like the look of her new room and for me well...I love how it looks but it also makes me a bit sad. She is really growing up, and so fast :)

FINISHED BASEMENT!!!

Oh my goodness, I can't believe it's finally done! It took months and months of slow progress but finally we have a finished basement! I am so looking forward Ella's playroom, and shopping for furniture and accessories for the family room. Here is how it all came to be....as you can see Ella has already "broken in" her playroom! At least it's not upstairs anymore ;) It's hard to believe all that stuff was actually in her room.