Seventeen Months Old

• 9/24 - Officially saying "Mama"
• 9/26 - Spent our first night away from Ella while attending Amy & Fred's wedding in Downtown Buffalo.
  
• 10/10 - Went to Bridget's (Michelle & Matt) first birthday party. Ella had fun running around with Elle & Bridget.
• 10/15 - Todd laid off from Sodexo
• 10/19 - Had a GI appointment - all is well!

Sixteen Months Old

Todd and I just can't believe our baby is 16 months old already. I wanted one year to come so badly (mostly for medical milestones) and now it seems like the months are just flying by!!!

As I type Ella is sitting next to me in her high chair fork-feeding herself sweet potato chunks (she already ate the plum chunks and tried to get me to give her some chicken wings too). Ella has been fork-feeding herself for almost 3 months now. She's also drinking my soda water out of a straw. With how much she loves ice cream and now soda water, looks like she'll be my ice cream soda drinking partner!! That will be one way to fatten her up!

Ella has also started taking more and more steps on her own. She officially started taking steps on her on August 9th. Up until then we would have to bribe her to walk. She still prefers to crawl, but she is walking more and more on her own. Carol, Ella's Physical Therapist, recommended we have her walk with her new sneakers 50% of the day and go barefoot the other 50%. Ella is now a size 4 and has a very classic looking pair of baby shoes - a little higher around the ankle for support and good ol' shoe laces. Our baby is getting so big!!

Todd had to travel to DC for work, so Ella and I tagged along in early September. She did great in the car. We first drove to Annapolis, then down to Williamsburg to visit Aunt Gigi and Uncle Bill before heading back up to DC for Todd's class. While Todd was in class Ella and I visited the Smithsonian Zoo and a few of the museums where she got a lot of practice walking around. We also got to visit with some good friends too! We definitely miss the friendships we had in DC!

Where to Begin?

Oh where to begin? I am disappointed by how long I've neglected this blog mostly because this is supposed to be something Ella can go back and read for years to come. So I am slowly playing catch up. I've already posted about Ella's first birthday BELOW. I will continue to write down the memories I have from past events. Therefore, pay attention to titles rather than the date (as some will be back dated). So keep coming back...I'm attempting to get on a roll!

One Year Old

Our baby is one year old!!! We actually are not in town for her first birthday. Ella, Yia Yia, and I are in Santa Cruz, CA visiting DJ, April, Maya, & Zachary.

But we made sure to celebrate Ella's first birthday at home before we left with all the grandparents (Poppy & Moppy, Yia Yia & Papa, and Grandma & Grandpa) and Uncle Jeff & Aunt Kim on Saturday, April 18th. Yia Yia helped decorate the house and a beautiful princess castle cake for Ella. We decided to have a birthday brunch with a bunch of yummy homemade food. Ella received a Radio Flyer push cart from Yia Yia and Papa and a new car seat from Poppy, Moppy, Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Jeff, & Aunt Kim.

Yia Yia (Papa was at a class that day)

Grandpa & Grandma Rassman

Uncle Jeff & Aunt Kim

Poppy & Moppy

We then left for California on the 21st. The stewardesses on Southwest made Ella a birthday crown and had the plane sing happy birthday to her!

We went out to breakfast this morning, where Ella wore her birthday bib and had all the waitresses wishing her a happy birthday.

We then celebrated Maya, Zachary, & Ella's first birthdays tonight with a yummy chocolate pudding cake, balloons, and birthday crowns. They were too cute! Zachary would not tolerate his crown at all and Maya kept stealing Ella's crown. Ella didn't mind because she was way too into the cake!


In other exciting news, Ella said her first 'sentence' on Friday - "Hi Kitty."

Looking forward to a great visit with the California Crew!!

One Week Shy of a Year

Oi vey...I really let this one go!! It's been SIX weeks since my last update and there's SOO much to catch up on. Therefore, I'll try to use more pictures than words...

On Wednesday, March 4th, Ella officially got the hang of picking up foods and feeding herself. As of today her favorite pick up food is Veggie flavored Pirates Booty (it's basically an organic cheese puff). She will pick up fruits and veggies but certainly not as enthusiastically as she picks up her 'puffs.' In fact, she'd rather use her pointer to squish carrots than eat them. But persistence pays off because if I offer Ella a food enough times, she will eventually eat it (and like it too). Now, when it comes to bits and pieces on the rug and floor, Ella feels it is her duty to pick whatever it is up and eat it!!


On Monday, March 9th, Todd's parents, Todd, Ella, and I left for Marco Island, FL. Let me rephrase, after a 7-hour delay in Buffalo, we left for Marco Island. We were scheduled to take a direct flight at 8:30am until the captain was unable to get the computer system on the airplane running which meant the plane was inoperable. Which then meant they needed to fly a technician and the particular part up from Orlando on the next flight. So he and the part arrived at about 2:00pm and we were on our way around 3:00pm. The bonus was that we were able to extend our trip by two days without any additional costs!! We ended up arriving in Marco at Aunt Margy & Uncle Tom's condo at the Swallows about 8:00 or so. Our first priority was to get Ella into bed!!


The next day, we took Ella into the pool for her first swim! She loved it!! There were no tears at all. Of course, it does help that the Swallows pool is know for its warm waters!! Ella loved hanging on mommy and daddy, sitting on the shallow step and playing, and even blowing bubbles!! We have not done an official dunk yet. We tried to get Ella in the pool almost every day - as the weather was beyond gorgeous our entire stay - 80s during the day, 70s with no humidity at night. We only had the air on two of our 11 nights there!!

On Wednesday the 11th, Jeff and Kim came down from their vacation in Naples to visit for dinner. We all went swimming and then made yummy kabobs. The next day we brought Mom and Dad Rassman up to Naples to check out Tin City where we had a delicious lunch and a nice walk up Fifth Avenue.


On Thursday, my cousin, Gen, had a bunch of us over to the big house for pizza: my cousins, Bill & Erin and their almost 3-year-old, Rose; my cousin, Natalie; Gen and her almost five-year-old, Mason, and 2-year-old, Bella; Gram; Todd's parents; Danielle & Peter Daigler and their children, Violet, Luke, and Jack; and us! It certainly is fun to be on vacation with family members...just like the good ol' days!!


Ella's FAVORITE part of the condo was the large mirrors lining the front hallway. She would make a beeline for the mirrors numerous times throughout the day. It was probably because of the mirrors that Ella mastered pulling herself up to a stand as well as going from a crawl to a sit on her own!! We really enjoyed being in a one floor place - Ella basically had free reign and we didn't have to worry about where she was all the time. Well, that and the fact that we had our '24-hour nannies' (aka Grampy and Grammy).


The only difficulty Ella had was adjusting to bath time - which is so peculiar since she will play in the tub for up to a half hour with Todd at home. We tried her in an inflatable tub in the big tub, in the inflatable tub in the shower, and in the shower with Todd. All attempts ended up with crying and misery. On the fifth night Todd decided to try bathing her in the kitchen sink...which proved to be the winner...and where all subsequent baths took place! Why didn't the other places work?? The only thing in common is that they all have glass doors?????



On Monday the 16th, all the cousins came over to the Swallows to swim and have lunch! After a lot of hot dogs and swimming, Bill, Erin, Natalie, Rose, Ella, and I took a walk on the beach. Let me tell you, it's not exactly the easiest thing to walk a double wide stroller on the beach during high tide. But it was nice to get to the beach since we spent most of our time at the pool. And the water was the most beautiful blue-green I have ever seen it in my 30+ years going to Marco!!!


This was my first ever St. Patrick's Day I've spent in Marco! We met Gen, Mason, and Bella at the Shops of Marco plaza where they were having a huge party!! Mason & Bella entertained Ella while Todd, Gen, and I enjoyed an Irish-like (Corona) beverage.



The night before we left we went over to Gram's for dinner. We caught a beautiful sunset as someone was playing Taps on the beach. After dinner Gram had a great time playing patty cake with Ella. Gram got such a kick out of Ella crawling around, pulling herself up, and clapping her hands!!

And then it was time to leave. You know how sometimes you just are ready to get home? Well, I was NOT!! I could have easily stayed a couple more weeks. Unfortunately, I had an appointment with my superintendent regarding the job share I proposed for next year. Which wasn't worth coming home to since he denied the proposal again. What am I doing next you, you ask?? Well, I know what I want to do...STAY HOME!! But, there are a bunch of other factors that I keep thinking about (losing my grade level, etc.). However, the number one thing that I keep coming back to is that I would be completely jealous of someone else spending the majority of the day with Ella...I want to be that person! So come May 1st, I will let you know what my final decision ends up being!!


Once getting home not too much was happening. We fortunately had a few really nice days. In fact, one of those days Mom and I took a walk up to the Clarence Center Coffee Shop and had lunch with Ella outside!!!! When Todd came home from work, we took Ella outside to experience grass for the first time. As you can see from the picture above she wasn't all that thrilled that she had to touch this funny feeling stuff. Ultimately, she became comfortable enough to crawl around, pick at it, and even taste a few blades!!

And then the big day came...April 4th...when the twins turned ONE YEAR OLD!!! We were bummed that we missed the official party, but comforted by the fact that Ella, Mom, and I will be leaving to visit DJ, April, Maya, and Zachary from April 21-30th. We'll actually be in California for both Ella's birthday (the 22nd) and my birthday (the 28th). I'm super excited since for my birthday dinner I have requested SUSHI...west coast sushi is SOOOOOO good!!!! Ella has requested acorn squash and prunes!!

For Ella's birthday we are doing a very small birthday brunch with all the grandparents. We are then thinking that we'll do a Big Birthday Bash for all four one year olds (Zachary, Maya, Ella, and Braiden) in July when DJ & April come to visit. How fun would that be?!?!?

This past week has been filled with a lot of sorrow as Ella's hematologist (our favorite doctor and the one who literally saved Ella's life) was in a horrific accident in which both of his children were killed (http://www.buffalonews.com/home/story/632486.html). Mom and I went to both the wake and funeral since he means SO much to us. Dr. Ambrusko spoke at the funeral about the short lives of his 6 year old daughter and 4 year old son. He ended by encouraging us to live our lives with exclamation marks like his son did. It just breaks my heart that someone who lives to save other children's lives, loses both of his beautiful babies.

On a happier note, Todd's cousin, Michelle, and her three daughters, Hannah, Brooke, and Paige, came into Buffalo to visit along with Todd's aunt, Donna, for the Easter weekend. We spent all of Saturday in Rochester visiting the Strong Museum (an incredible children's museum). We then went to the Super Wegmans in Pittsford for lunch. We had lunch at Tastings which, I believe, is their test kitchen for all the recipes they publish in the magazine. The food was great and the store was crazy big!!

We then went to a yummy Easter brunch at Mom & John's house. Ella had a great time playing with her cousin, Braiden (Brian & Barb's 9 month old).

Ok, I'm stopping here for tonight, but still have more to write about (and edit - excuse my mistakes for now). However, if I wait to publish until I'm done...who knows when that would actually end up being. So keep checking back as I plan to use the next couple days to add to this posting!!

Forty-Six Weeks Old

Some exciting events in the life of Ella this week. First, on Saturday, we bought Ella her first official pair of shoes. It was recommended by her physical therapist that we buy her Stride Rite brand shoes. So we went to the outlet mall, had her foot measured, and since she has such a tiny foot (size 2) we had one shoe to choose from. Fine by us!! When Carol, her PT, came over on Tuesday, we put the shoes on her for the first time. She cracked me up! Ella reminded me a Bambi as her legs were wide out trying to negotiate these new shoes.

Some of you may be asking, why shoes and why now?? According to Carol, by having Ella experience shoes for about a half-hour or so each day will get her used to wearing shoes when the time comes that she needs to wear them full-time (which will come sooner than later living in Buffalo). Furthermore, with her new shoes comes a better base of support. Therefore, she is able to 'walk' with her hands held by an adult.

And, as of today, Ella can now feed herself finger foods. Ella has been picking up foods for a bit now but couldn't quite get that she could put them in her mouth. Except for cat food...she loves to take a fistful of cat food and try to shove it in her mouth.

OK, got to cut this one short as we are very busy preparing for our trip to Florida!! Very excited to be going with Todd's parents. Also psyched that my cousins: Gen and her two girls (Mason & Bella); Bill, Erin, and their toddler (Rose); and Natalie will be down there too.

See you when we get back!!!!

Ten Months Old

So these past two weeks have been filled with much sadness as well as excitement. On February 12th "Grumpa" (my dad's dad) passed away. You can view his obituary from The Buffalo News by clicking here. He had gotten sick around Thanksgiving and just could never make a full recovery. Grumpa wished to not be laid out nor have a traditional funeral mass. Instead, he requested that we have a Memorial Mass with close friends and family. In keeping with Grumpa's wishes, we are going to have the Memorial Mass sometime the week of July 13th as my Uncle Jon, Aunt Marilyn, cousins Aaron and Matthew; DJ, April, Maya, and Zachary; Alysia; and Becky and David (my Grumpa's companion, Catharine's daughter and her husband) will all be in town at that time. He would be very happy to know that we will all be together for more than just an afternoon to celebrate his life!!

Now I knew Grumpa always kept himself busy, but I never knew just how busy he really was until I helped my dad clean out his apartment. First and foremost, he was an avid writer. He has two full-length published books: Young Jesus, the Missing Years as well as Remembering Old Buffalo. However, his file cabinets were full of many, many, MANY other stories and articles he wrote as well. Most of them have been published in The Buffalo News or other local publications. For instance, he did a good majority of the cover stories for Living Prime Time and wrote numerous reminiscence articles for After 50 and the Bingo Bugle.

But what I didn't know was how many letters he wrote. He wrote letters to everyone from Monroe Muffler (he wasn't impressed with their latest products) to President George Bush...literally. He has copies of letters he has sent congressmen/women, senators, representatives, sports figures, and more. And what was even better was that many of them wrote back to Grumpa.

And when I say copies, I think he saved a copy of anything and everything he ever sent out or received. There were files of email correspondance between family and colleagues among copies of just about anything you can imagine!

In the meantime, in every closet my father started to clear out, he would find another box of photos! Photos dating all the way back to my great great grandfather!! And what is even better is that so many of them are actually labeled!! My great grandmother, Mabel, Grumpa's mother also was an avid scrapbooker. Therefore, my dad also came across numerous scrapbooks that she made for my grandfather up until she passed away in her mid 90s. Supposedly, there is even one that she made of my brother (the oldest grandchild on Dad's side).

In addition to the photos and in his file cabinet were files of Radder Family documents. Everything from a journal from around the Civil War period to obituaries of various ancestors.

Grumpa was a man with 1,000 stories...each that was more interesting than the previous. He will be missed dearly, but happy he gets to reunite with my grandma who passed away almost 30 years ago.

If you haven't already noticed that the date Grumpa passed away was the same date (and close to the same time) that flight 3407 crashed into a house in Clarence Center - just about a mile from us. It was a lot to comprehend seeing that I found out about both Grumpa and the crash at precisely the same time. It's amazing how many people were from Clarence on that flight. The house that the plane crashed into belonged to the secretary at our district office - who's daughter teaches with a friend of mine's husband. My principal's brother's girlfriend was on the flight as well. She was flying in for my principal's wedding. And I went to school with another passenger's brother who was a year behind me in Clarence. And then there is my step-brother-in-law who was a responder on scene for the Clarence Center Fire Company. All I can think about is the last moments of the flight and how scary it must have been. We continue to think of the families and hope that their happy memories of their loved ones will help them through the difficult time.

Okay...can we get on to the happy stuff now????? The week leading up to Valentine's Day was a very progressive one for Ella. She began to consistently place objects 'in' as well as lifting up her arms to be held (that gives me such a warm fuzzy). Then on that Friday, Ella took a little crawl step while I was Skypeing with April but nothing more until Valentine's Day. She took off crawling and there has been no stopping her since!!!!

Her crawl started very slowly and deliberately which was so cute to watch. Now it has blossomed into a full out, hold nothing back crawl. And she is using her skills to her best advantage. Ella is officially getting into everything in her site which calls for regular vacuuming, closing doors, blocking stairways, you name it! She can get herself to kneeling and even pull herself to a stand on lower objects. She uses these skills to pull items off and out from just about everywhere. Furthermore, Ella is also able to climb up the step to the kitchen. However, she still learning to go down minus the face plant! And to top it off, I found her standing in her crib on Saturday. I can't believe how much and how fast she has taken off developmentally. Where has my baby gone???

Ella has also graduated to medium diaper covers and standard baby-sized prefold diapers. Yes, we are still using washable diapers and still wouldn't do it any other way!!


In other exciting news, good friends of ours, Michelle & Matt Parks, along with their 3-year-old, Brayden, just welcomed in a new member to their family. Tallulah Grace was born on February 16th at Michelle & Matt's home (yes, it was a home birth - how awesome is that?!?!) and is doing wonderful!! Is she adorable or what??

Well on that note, my mind has a hard time deviating from the fact that there are less than 2 weeks until we leave for Florida!! And we can't wait!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!