Memorial Day Weekend

Ella meets Droopy

Immediate friends.

Cat kisses??

Ella and the famous "Squirt Gettler"- best cat ever!

Sabrina teaching Ella to be nice to Calvin.

"Hurry up and just take the picture mom, it's starting to rain"!!

Check out her left fist....FULL of fur! Uh-oh. Calvin isn't happy!

"I promise I will be nicer to the cat" as Ella holds his paw.

I thought I would post something for the Memorial Day weekend quickly. This past week we spent a lot of time on the beach with Ella because of the beautiful weather. She enjoys the beach a lot which is a great thing. She sits in her "beach seat" and we bury her feet in the sand as she burst into little giggles. She takes in the scenery and watches the boats on the lake. She doesn't like being put IN the lake because the temperature is still a little cool. One of our favorite things to do while on the beach is hunt for beach glass. We found about 10 pieces this week. Mike and I have always challenged each other as to who can find the most. But, I am sure one day Ella will be the champion. :) I believe our record is 35 pieces found in 1 day (colored glass being "bonus")

Saturday I took Ella to Crown Point to the Cobe Cup race. Mike entered this with his '59 Volkswagen Beetle and cruised it with my dad. Ella watched as all the old cars went by and squealed when she spotted Mike in his car. I think she is going to have a "thing" for old cars just as I did growing up ;)

Ella and I also visited my Aunt Joanne and Uncle Duane since we were in the area. They always love seeing her and can't believe how big she has gotten. She met the cats too. They met her before, but this time she was more interactive. A little too interactive. She pulled Calvin's fur out in a big clump after being getting too excited as she pet him. Poor kitty! I have to say she does love animals. Mike also rescued a baby turtle we named "Pondie" this week- (we kept in our pond for a day-hence the original name ;). Ella really wanted to hold the turtle but we let it back into the wetlands by our house.

Many more adventures to come soon as we spend more and more time outdoors with summer around the corner!

Brigette's Visit

Finally! A shot of those bottom teeth.

Ella tells Bardot how much she missed her. Awww- look at El holding on.

Ella helps Bardot open her present

What a great week we all had at the Liss house! And today, May 24th, Mike and I are celebrating meeting each other 7 years ago today!

Ella was all smiles as she got to see her favorite gal. Bardot came in for visit from California on Wednesday. She stayed with us before going to her parent's house near Fort Wayne on Saturday. Her short stay was so much fun. A memory that will always be in my mind from her visit: When I picked B up from the train station, I laughed because she was so "California" with her fabulous clothes, heels and jelery. (Oh, I miss those California boutiques) She didn't fit in with all the other people on the South Shore. haha- Such a diva to sport diamond earrings down to her shoulders, an eye pad, ipod ear buds, and neck pillow for her commute from O' Hare to the trains to Indiana. I wish I could have taken a photo but the funniest thing is, this was almost 1 in the morning when I picked her up at the Beverly Shores train depot. Bardot had to wait until the next morning to see (her girl) Ella because she was fast asleep.
Ella recognized her immediately when she saw her the next morning. It was so sweet to see these two reunite.
We went out to El Salto for dinner and margaritas Thursday night with all the girls. Ella came with of course and Mike took her home to bed after a certain hour. Even party babies need their rest :) We were finally able to give Bardot her present I had been working on for the past several months.....a scrapbook of Ella. I am not a crafty person by any means, so this was a great accomplishment for me to finish. Ella even helped Bardot open it like a big girl. So cute. Ella and I also went to Valpo to help Bardot paint a room in her beautiful house which is up for sale right now. Ella was such a trooper as she just played with her toys as we painted.

Ella is rolling around very well now! She now has 5 teeth!

Mike is putting our baby jogger to great use. The jogger is a gift from a friend who is a professional runner and triathlete. We are so appreciative of it! This thing is pretty high tech complete with an odometer and UV, bug and rain shields! We can even push her while running in the sand with it. Mike is training for the Chicago Marathon so this comes in handy when he is on training runs and wants to take baby. We just got it the other day. Ella and I are trying it out today for the first time after finish posting this.

Ella is SEVEN months!

Look below to see my teeth! I never show these to people in person- haha

Yikes- This is quite a closeup!

It has been 7 months since we met Baby Ella. Impossible! Just when we think she can't get any sweeter.....well, all you parents can relate to this!! She officially has 5 teeth that have come through her gums! She now has 3 on top and has had her two on the bottom for some time. Ella is now drinking (water) out of a regular cup- with help of course. Now when she sees us drink something she thinks she needs a sip! Her favorite food is her oatmeal. I just introduced her to fruits this week. I was afraid she would have a sweet tooth (like me) and not go back to veggies, but so far so good.

She has really taken an interest towards mechanical objects...light switches, thermostats, wires. It's funny when she goes past the thermostat. She reaches out for it and makes noise. Same thing with light switches sometimes. Oh and the wires (her favorite)....she started grabbing for the USB cords on the computer desk when we were sitting here and now she is obsessed with them when she sits on my lap at the computer.

The only thing she likes more than the wire is her youtube music videos. She has a few favorite groups and songs already. She LOVES the Velvet Underground (Pale Blue Eyes), anything AC/DC (I was on an AC DC kick when she was in my womb-no pun intended), Elvis (Suspicious Minds in particular), anything Greenday, Yummy Yummy by Ohio Express, Norah Jones (the cute video clip where Norah sings with Elmo), Janis Joplin's Bobby McGee (believe it or not), a little Neil Diamond and of course, Wilco. I took video of her shaking her pink maraca this week. It is quite funny because she giggles when she shakes it. Mike and I swear she has rhythm- her little foot goes crazy sometimes when she listens to music. haha! We are definitely take Aunt Dolly's advice and introduce her to an instrument early. :)

There is so much to look forward to this week. We are excited. This Wednesday is the arrival of our beloved friend, Bardot (from California)!!! She is coming for a short visit. We all can't wait to see her again. Stay tuned!

Mother's Day 2010, and more.....

peek.

Mike and Ella checking out a model.

Ella wanting to leave the Science Fair.

Behind Crown Hall at the Illinois Institute of Technology.

My turn to take YOUR picture mom!
Ella with Grandma Liss on Mother's Day
Storm brewing over Chicago- Ella's first storm she watched come in over the lake at sunset.


This first week of May we submerged Ella in academia. She attended the Science Fair at Elston Middle School where she helped "judge" science projects. It was rumored she would have won first place for cutest baby if they had a category for "cute baby". For those of you who may not know, Elston is the school where Mike teaches. Ella absorbed the projects with intensity, wanting to touch everything she saw. She was a hit among the students of course--especially the teenage girls! And her kitty pants were all the rage. As always, the school administration loved seeing Ella too.
Later that same evening,she moved up the academic ladder a few rungs when she attended the annual architecture exhibition at IIT, (the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago) with Mike and I. Mike and I have been attending this exhibition for years so I couldn't wait to subject Ella to this environment. An array of impressive projects were on display to the public in the world renowned Crown Hall on campus. The College of Architecture at IIT is rated in the top three architecture programs in the United States. Students from around the world dream of attending IIT. This is one serious exhibition with some of the most ambitious projects. Ella seemed more intrigued with all the small models of conceptual buildings more so than the digital art pieces. Crown Hall is one of (the late) Mies Van der Rohe's famous buildings he designed. [Side note here: Mies is one of my favorite architects if you didn't know. Our house in Beverly Shores was designed by a Mies protege (Swiss architect Otto Kolb), so my enthusiasm for Mies is boundless]
My department head from Purdue, Dr. Evans, met Ella for the first time at IIT. Dr. Evans and I teach the same classes at Purdue Calumet. The last time I saw him was less than 48 hours before E was born. Ella also met some of notable architects of Chicago at IIT. She met George Schipporeit, the architect of Lake Point Tower (one of my faves) in Chicago. He is an instructor at IIT and was present at the exhibition. I had met him before when I was involved with IIT "back in the day" but it was exciting for me to have an opportunity to introduce him to Ella. Lake Point Tower is a very highly world recognized structure and its design logic is truly incredible. Its foundation (consisting of three caissons) are as deep in the ground as it is high! Again I digress. Sorry Ella!
I had a nice first Mother's Day. We visited both of Ella's grandmas. Lunch at my parent's house and dinner at Mike's parents. It was low key so it was nice and relaxing.

Ella at 6 1/2 months old

Ella likes what she sees!

Shannon with Ella and Benatar (one of Shan's many Blythe dolls)

Mike with Kenzie and Ella (and his two arms full)

This week we welcomed the month of May with big smiles! May is one of my favorite months! It just means warmer weather and sunshine will be more prevalent (I hope). I love being outdoors, and I can look forward to being outdoors more with the baby.

This past week Ella received her 6 month shots. She was such a trooper and really didn't mind it this time. The last time she about hyperventilated after the nurse jammed the needle in her leg-and I felt so bad. The nurse this time was much more gentle and Ella liked her. I used to work at the same facility (Chicagoland Christian Village) with this nurse waaay back when I was in high school and college, so it was good to see someone I trusted giving Ella her shots.

Yesterday evening, we had dinner at our friend's (Shannon and John) house in Chicago. We had a fabulous salmon dinner that John grilled on their new grill. Shannon and John have a 21 month old (Kenzie), so it was fun to watch the reactions of both Kenzie and Ella meeting each other for the first time. Kenzie brought a bunch of her toys to show Ella when we arrived. Mike insisted on holding both Kenzie and Ella to show off his "skills" in order to prove to me he was ready for more kids. haha! We took a walk after dinner around the neighborhood. It was cute because the guys pushed their daughters in the strollers as us moms walked behind. One of the many highlights of the evening was when Ella and I were introduced to Shannon's Blythe doll collection. And what a collection! There is an interesting history with these dolls, but I am most fascinated with their tiny detailed mod clothing. I had never seen a Blythe doll in person--I was shocked at how big they actually are. I had to get a picture of Ella meeting a Blythe doll for the first time of course.

Shannon also showed me custom baby booties she is working on sewing. She tried one on Ella --oh my gosh super cute! Shannon is very talented in handmade goods. I am always impressed at everything she makes! check her out at http://www.angryparrot.net/

Happy May everyone!

Dadadadadada

Threw this pic in for good measure (and for Aunt Dolly :) Mike as Mick Jagger..his famous routine always a hit!

"Hey mom, I'm over here with my new friend" (Ella with Natalie at the wedding)

Our fab owl bib set from Miss Bardot! Thanks Bardot!

Look ma, no brace! ha ha!

Father Doug speaking to Ella of the benefits of joining the Convent ;) (mom says keep talking)

Well, Ella did it! She "said" her first word last Tuesday. Dada... Mike wins ;) And it's been so sweet to hear her say this over and over (and over) again :) Big girl Ella! This week, Ella received a nice gift (very cute owl bibs) for her 1/2 birthday from Bardot and boys! We sure miss them since they moved to California.

Other breaking news this week.... Ella is now out of her braces! She loves stretching out her legs and kicking around. And she can finally wear pants now! She, of course, outgrew a lot of clothing that has been stored in the closet that wasn't condusive with the brace. Her 3 month pant sets are way too small- she is too long to wear them.

We also celebrated yet another wedding this week. It was the wedding of Ben (Mike's cousin) and Dana. It was a beautiful wedding and we all had a great time seeing everyone! Two of Ella's littlest admirers were Kyle and Hunter who absolutely loved her. Most of the evening Ella just chilled in her car seat and watched the activity around her. She loved the lights! I don't have many pictures including Ella of the evening. Ella did have one photo op with the bride and groom although not with my camera. Above are all the photos I took of Ella during the evening. I did get a photo of her listening intensely to Father Doug. She really liked him. She also LOVED being held by Natalie, Matt's (Mike's cousin) girlfriend. Ella is very sociable and will make friends with anyone quickly.

What a big week for Ella! We look forward to many more adventures to soon follow!

Ella is 6 Months Old

Go Cubs! Watching the Cub's Home Opener

Our little Cubs fan

Ella giving herself kisses in the mirror.

She shows Grandma how much she loves the baby in the mirror.

Look what we found in the bag!

Miss Ella celebrated her half birthday today! She turned 6 months old today, Sunday the 18th just as she was born on a Sunday, on the 18th. We had so much going on this week again! She had her 6 month check up and weighed 14lbs. 9oz. and measured 26 1/4 long. That's 2 pounds gained since last visit (2 months ago). After our doctor appointment, we visited Uncle Duane and Aunt Joanne since we were in the area. Ella played until she was wore out and fell asleep on Uncle Duane who I swear is her favorite place person to nest upon and fall asleep.

Earlier in the week, Ella and I watched the Cub's Home Opener. They won so she got to celebrate even more and we sang, Go Cubs, Go after they won on TV. She hasn't heard that song since before she was born. Mike and I went Cubs games last summer when I was pregnant with her, so I knew she would recognize the song ;)

One of the highlights of the week is when Mike discovered that E had cut her first tooth (on the bottom)!! Two days later another the tooth's twin appeared! They didn't seem to bother her as they came in and before they were visible. I never had to apply Orajel to her gums so I wasn't expecting little chompers so early. This is one sure sign she is getting to be a big girl. Can't wait to post many more!