Kids say the darndest things…

A lot of books that Ellie reads depict families similar to hers. They have a mother, a father, and, usually, at least one kid. She is very good at pointing to the mother and saying "Mamma," pointing to the father and saying "Daddy," and pointing to the child and saying "Ellie." She can do this with any familial set of things. She can identify a particular fish on one of her plastic cups as either the "Momma," "Daddy," "Ellie," or "baby."

So. The other day, Adrianne is reading to her and comes to this page:


Ellie points to the child on the left and says, "Ellie." Next she points to the cat on the floor and says, "Mommy."

Then she points to the baby dumping cereal on his own head and says, "Zach."

Adrianne laughs and says, "Don't you mean Cara?"

Ellie shakes her head and repeats, definitively, "No. Zach."

What?! Admittedly, I'm a little goofy sometimes. Especially with my nieces… but really?! =)

Mom and Dad came up for the weekend - it was so nice!

Fun at the park!

Play time!

Just got finished feeding Cara… there's something so peaceful about a baby and a bottle. I felt mesmerized…

I should share this though: usually the drill is, Cara wakes, diaper change, feed, rock to sleep… HOWEVER when I've done it, it's more like: Cara wakes, diaper change, feed, feel her poo while she eats… finish eating, diaper change, rock to sleep, but hear her poo again! So diaper change again, and then finish rocking to sleep… I'm going to have to ask Adrianne and Steve is that's normal.

Anyway, here are some videos of good times with Ellie… she gets really loud when she gets excited, and while I don't want to be the cause of unruly commotion in a house with a sleeping baby and exhausted parents, it's just too much fun!

Adrianne says that when I get older and have my own kids it's gonna be payback time. Even though it's out of character for her, and her own kids will probably think she's gone mad, she says she's going to run screaming through my house getting my kids as excited as possible… lol… can't wait to see that! Bring it on!

Tickling Ellie (click to view movie)

It just doesn't get old for me… (click to view movie)

Ring Around the Rosie (click to view movie)

Pictures and Videos!

Hey all… here are some links to videos taken in the past week, as well as some pictures… enjoy!

Cara's Debut (Click to see movie)

"Stop!" (Click to see movie)

Cara's Wild Ride (Click to see movie)

Jumping (Click to see movie)

Cara on her spaceship-bed! (don't ask, just be jealous)

Ellie loves Cara!

Wheelin' around!

Sistine Chapel?

Cara!

Cara came home and whoa… she's TINY! But beautiful… amazing… mind blowing…

They say a picture is worth a thousand words… here are six-thousand…

Adrianne holding Cara at the hospital…

The proud father…

The excited uncle…

The tables have turned for Ellie!

Ellie giving her little sis a reassuring hand…

Wait, is this a Normal Rockwell? I didn't know he painted Asian families!

So sweet, so shy…

I took Ellie out for Japanese food last night and the waitress there thought she was so cute that when we were done eating she came out with a little hairpin for her and clipped it on. Ellie is so shy though, that she didn't even crack a smile until we left the restaurant, at which point she touched the hairpin and began to waddle-dance back to the car giggling. =)

For those of you who I haven't had the chance to tell… Adrianne had Cara (the new baby) at 9:30pm on Sunday, June 3. This was the same day that I was on a train up to Everett, so when I got in, I picked up Ellie and took back to their home where I have been learning how to care for a 2-yr-old in a sort of sink or swim manner. I now feel quite expert at changing poopy diapers!

I try to have music on all the time - and so I will bring Ellie over to the CD player, load in a CD, and we take a few steps away and both crouch down with our hands cupped at our ears, pointed towards the speakers… and when the music starts to play I gasp and stand up straight, as if startled - and she gets really excited, laughs, and runs around for a couple seconds before settling down. She's so good! Anyway - today I put on Sarah MacLachlan and she does her routine and then pauses and points to the speakers and asks, "Mommy?" Lol! I guess I know which CDs Adrianne sings along with! =)

Adrianne and Steve should be coming home on Thursday after dinner, so the next post should have some pics of Caralyn Yuriko Kwak! I, for one, cannot wait to meet her!

Ellie goes grocery shopping!

Ellie with her new hairpin.

Ellie at breakfast.

Ellie all clean!

Ellie

Here are a few pics (thanks, Dad - you took some really awesome ones). I really can't express how amazing Ellie is. I had a funny thought today, though…

So I have this thing with people I love, where, because I love them already, and I love little kids in general, I often think, "How cool would it be to know so-and-so as a kid (or sometimes just as a younger version)!" I used to always wonder what it would be like, for example, to go to high school with my mom and dad as my peers… or to play with kid-versions of my current friends as, say, an assistant camp-counselor (i.e. not a disciplinarian) for some summer program. Wouldn't that be the best?! I could tell them that one day they would grow up to be wonderful people, and know I was telling the truth. Plus - just think of all the cute stories I could tell them about themselves when I got back to reality!

In any case, Ellie looks so much like kid-pictures of Adrianne that sometimes I think, there but for fortune this could BE Adrianne as a kid! But knowing a little-Adrianne has extra significance for me because it would also be like a chance for me to reciprocate all the love, support, and care-taking that she gave me as the-most-wonderful-older-sister-in-the-world when I was young. It’s a weird thought, I know, but makes it that much more fun to play with Ellie. =)

Anyway - enjoy the pics! Isn't she adorable?!