Dora!

We took Ella to see Dora the Explorer Live this weekend. Boy, was she excited! I'm not sure what she expected, but when she walked in and saw Dora on that stage, she was just blown away! Her chin dropped and stayed that way for a good 20 minutes! I watched her more than I watched the show, because it was just so fun to see her enjoying herself so much. She was clapping and jumping and singing along, completely in her own little world, well, in Dora's world anyways! :)
So thankful to Daddy for bringing her to see Dora...
A happy girl at intermission...Me and my babies...

And, of course, we had to get the souvenir Dora doll...

So fun!!

Adorable

Just because they are the most adorable kids in the world and I love 'em to pieces...

The swimsuit

Ella's favorite outfit these days is definitely her swimsuit. It's perfect for these hot summer days. Whether she's splashing in her pool...

Riding her bike...

Running around outside (Notice the concentration on her face here! Looks like she's about to pass the baton in the 400 relay :)...

Or helping Mommy around the house...

Everything's more fun when you're wearing a swimsuit!! And she's got the cute, little tan lines to prove it! :) Isn't summer great?!

Wow

Sunday mornings are pretty chaotic at the Davidson house. As anyone with little kids can attest to, getting everyone fed, dressed, and out the door on time for church (or anywhere for that matter!) is quite an accomplishment. So this morning, we were sitting at the table, trying to have a nice (rushed) family breakfast. I'm in my wrinkled pajamas, hair pulled back, feeling drained from very little sleep, while a thousand things are going through my mind as I'm trying to organize enough just to get out of the house. Ella says quietly, "Mommy, you look really pretty today."

Wow. Once again I am reminded that the things I think matter really don't matter. The moments that seem ordinary are really the most precious. And here I am lucky enough to have this wonderfully intuitive, thoughtful, little girl who thinks I am pretty even when I think I am at my worst. Thank you, God, for the sweetness of daily life and the blessing of my daughter.

Random

Funny, but I never thought a trip to Kroger could be therapeutic. Seems like an oxymoron, but last night it seemed to be exactly what I needed. I got an hour out of the house, all to myself, and couldn't believe how much better I felt when I got home. My mind was cleared and I felt so much more at ease. I was pretty grateful for that...

And speaking of grateful, I'm so glad I have a handy husband. Our sink/ garbage disposal backed up last night. I was a little horrified, but my husband didn't blink an eye. Just when I was about to pull out the phonebook and look up an emergency plumbing service, he stepped right up, took the pipes apart, pulled out the muck, and fixed it. I was pretty impressed and super relieved. My man is quite a man. :)

Something funny about Ella. She has been talking about gymnastics constantly and keeps mentioning an "injury" in gymnastics class. I didn't know what she was talking about and then realized she was meaning to say "energy" in gymnastics class, but was getting the two words confused. Pretty cute. Now she keeps telling me she needs to eat healthy food so she can have an injury. haha!

Also, not sure where she got it, but her favorite saying this week is "Are you kidding me?!" Every time Chris and I try to tell her to do something, that's what we hear-
We say, "Ella, let's get ready for dinner."
We hear, "Are you kidding me?!"
We say, "Ella, stop being mean to your baby brother!"
We hear, "Are you kidding me?"
Over and over and over. Funny little girl! Such sass so early!

Early Father's Day

We had a mini-celebration for Father's Day last night since we won't be together this weekend. I am working, Chris is traveling to see family. Kind of a bummer, but so it goes. Anyways, Ella and Cade adore their Daddy. Ella loves to help him around the house, whether he's mowing, putting something together, or tooling around the garage. She always right there with him, getting dirty, and saying, "Daddy, you're my buddy!" :) I'm sure Cade will be the same way in a few years. Right now though, he perks up whenever he hears Chris' voice, strains his neck trying to figure out where he is, and just starts kicking and waiting for Daddy to come pick him up. It's pretty sweet.

Ella loves surprises and wanted to surprise Daddy with something (for his "happy birthday father's day" as she called it), so she helped pick out a new pair of Oakleys for him. I think he was pretty excited!!
Daddy and his little man (his little diva refused to be in a picture :)...

I am so thankful my babies have such a wonderful, generous father and example of what a godly man should be. Chris loves me and our kids so much. He always puts us first, but also works extremely hard for our family. I hope someday they will come to realize how fortunate they are to have him for a dad. I love you, Baby!! Happy (early) Father's Day!

Swimming!

Chris' boss went out of town and left us free reign of his pool this week. Pretty great, huh?! Ella hasn't had a ton of experience swimming, but definitely loves the water.
Such a cutie...
Making her way in...

Swimming with Daddy...

It wasn't too long before she was ready to take on the diving board! I love her adventurous spirit!

Bike ride

We've been taking Ella on a bike ride just about every night, if we can manage it. There are lots of geese and ducks that live in the water around our house and Ella wants to make sure they have enough food to eat. We ride over to the "Grumpy Old Troll Bridge" (for those of you that watch Dora) and feed the geese, ducks, and fish.

Cade taking advantage of a long stroller ride to catch up on some sleep. It will be fun when he's big enough to ride in the buggy with his sis.

Feeding some ducks. Who knew these guys liked Trix and Fruit Loops so much?! :)

On the "Troll Bridge" feeding the fish...

I was playing around with the camera and thought these pics came out pretty cute...

I love the expression on her face... reminds me of the saying, "In the eyes of a child, there are not seven wonders of the world, there are seven thousand..."

Just lucky

This post is for my husband, who's still as "lucky" as ever. Tonight, he went out to turn the sprinkler on, and, in the time it took to walk from the patio to the faucet, he found five four-leaf clovers! Yep, five of 'em. I've only found one my whole life, but he's kind of "famous" for this. Haha!
And, as if that weren't enough, when he went out to turn the water off, he found two more!!

Happy momma

Just a little note of thanksgiving that this very wonderful baby boy,
who is always full of smiles,
slept from 11:30 last night until 9:30 this morning, only waking up once to nurse. That makes for one very happy and grateful momma!

It was his first night in his crib, so maybe that makes all the difference. Let's hope so!

Lazy weekend

We had a pretty low-key weekend. I worked a little, we had dinner out, did some shopping, went to church, hung around the house. It rained a lot, which gave us a good excuse to cuddle on the couch, reading books and taking naps. Gotta love that.
The highlight of Ella's weekend was getting a new bike helmet. Now she can ride all over the neighborhood!
This one cracks me up! Such a goofball!

Papaw and Mamaw are going to be so impressed when they see how good she has gotten on her bike. She's really fast! We're proud of her for practicing so hard. Learning to ride has given her lots of new confidence. Just last night, she was "standing up" while riding and was so proud of herself. Way to go, Ella!

Jingle bells

A little Christmas in June. Ella's rendition of "Jingle Bells" is pretty cute. :)

Funny faces

Ella kept wanting me to take her picture this morning, so we had a funny photo shoot. Here are the many funny faces of our silly girl...
"My favorite face" (per Ella)

"Pappaw face" "Scary face"

"Rain face"

"Ho Ho face"

"Monster face"

And some sweet ones, too. "Smile face"
"Birthday face"

"Happy face"

And not to forget precious Cade... this is a pretty content face...

What sweet, little kiddos...

Newport

We went down to Newport a few nights ago. It is such a fun atmosphere down there, especially in the summer. We ate at Brio and then walked around, just enjoying a beautiful evening.
Ella and Mommy acting goofy...
Thanking Daddy for dinner with a kiss...

Walking along the river...

Part of the Cincy skyline...

And she does it again...

Melts my heart. Again. Call me an emotional schmuck. Maybe the fact that I go back to work in two days. Either way, I've kind of been a crybaby these last few days. Can't seem to keep it in check.

We were looking through Ella's baby scrapbook and Ella stops at a picture of us taken at our wedding. Ella, like all little girls, loves looking at pictures of beautiful dresses and dreaming of the day. She eyed this picture and said, "One day, I'm going to wear a big, pretty dress like that." I said, "You're right. One day, you'll grow up and fall in love with a boy. Then you'll get married and have babies and be so happy, just like Mommy and Daddy." She said, "And Mommy, you'll be there, when I get married. And you'll come live with me at my house."

Oh, my sweet little girl. Please let her still love me so much in about 20 years!!

Show-off day

Today was show-off day at Ella's gymnastics class. Ella was very excited for me to come in and watch all her "routines". :) She does such a great job. At this age, it's all about gaining strength and balance and learning to take risks. No problems there- this is one very strong and absolutely fearless little girl (chalk it up to all that wrestling with Daddy)! Anyways, she is awesome and she loves it and I'm so proud of her!
Doing the inch worm on the beam...
Arabesque...

A little dancing in between...

Transition to high bar... go, Ella!!

Straddle hang...

She even got a medal for all her hard work. Way to go, Sweetie! We're proud of you!