Ella turns ONE! & Okla{home}a!

Lets just be honest. I have sucked at keeping everyone informed about what we're up to in OK! Life has been nothing short of CRAZY (and usually it's been CRAZY in a good way) so I'll take that.

Let me break it down for you. . . . 

1st things 1st, Ella Girl turned the big O.N.E. (I'm not going to elaborate for fear I might have a "moment") Ok, I'll elaborate a little. This is a BIG MILESTONE! 

Ella got some babies (from Evie, who "secretly" got them for herself I think LOL) and one of those "stroller cars" to take for walks and some DARLING clothes! 

Ella keeps us smiling that is for sure! I've probably said it before, but she is the comic relief in our family! Everyone family needs one. Growing up, it was (and is) my little brother, Cy. In ours it will be Ella. Someone to balance out the equation, and keep everyone going.

Ella has the sweetest soul. You just know it the moment you meet her. She's precious!

Happiest Birthday to you Ella Zoe! You make our world spin 'round! Can't begin to believe that you're already 1 year old! You're so loved!

XOXO - Mama, Daddy & Evie Grace

And now we'll rewind and get to some other stuff that's happened in the last 2 months!

~We MOVED 1,000 miles away from "home"! 

~We live just outside Tulsa and are loving it so far

~Oklahoma is BEAUTIFUL and green and humid and lush! In my mind I was thinking cowboy desert for some reason. It's not.

~Evie just started a new dance class and will be starting soccer in a week!

~Evie is still confused about the distance. There have been a few times I could tell her heart was just broke because none of her grandmas or friends from "Bernal" have visited her new house yet. That kills me. I've explained it as best I can, and she's beginning to understand. Still, that's the hardest part!

I'm going to not over-do my 1st blog post in the last 2 months! We'll stop here. Stay tuned, I'm getting a little more settled and will do better at keeping "Y'ALL" informed. <---ya and="" back="" because="" come="" div="" hear="" i="" in="" it="" legit="" live="" now="" oklahoma.="" s="" said="" ya="">

XOXO

Whitney

Ella Zoe is 10 months!

Can this be true!? Apparently it can. Isn't 10 months and one year like almost the same!? Noooo, they are not! But I know in the blink of an eye she'll be eating that 1st birthday cake and I'll be wondering . . . 

HOW IN THE WORLD!?

Here are 10 things about Ella at 10 months:

1. Ella is so close to walking! She's taken 2 steps! She has great balance and will stand up from a sitting position without any help. And proceed to stand there making you think she's going to take off walking any minute!
2. She is mischievous!!!! She can open anything, climb on everything, and get into places that you never though possible. She's everywhere all at once {this is how I feel}.
3. Ella still loves to eat, but she HATES sitting in the high chair. Go figure.
4. She crawls at the speed of light when she wants to, but still in the bear crawl. Oh her hands and feet - booty high in the air. 
5. HER TEETH! OMGoodness! She has 6. Her two front teeth kill me. I LOVE them. They are so big and have that little gap and match her personality to a T. I can't explain it. It was meant to be :)
6. She puts EVERYTHING in her mouth. I suppose this goes with the mischievous one, but I feel it deserved it's own number. I am CONSTANTLY checking her mouth for random things. She literally goes from one thing to the next trying to eat stuff. Mothers worst nightmare!
7. Ella LOVES her dad. When he get's home from work I'm chopped liver!
8. She loves the wind. It's pretty funny. She even likes when you blow in her face. She just closes her eyes and smiles like YAY. 
9. Ella and Evie were sealed to us in the Vernal, UT LDS Temple on the day Ella turned 10 months. I thought that was pretty special.
10. She is starting to say tons of words. Her newest "thing" is saying Weeee Weeee Weeee! She started saying this after we took her to the park to swing and I was telling her Weeee :)

What a sweet baby you are Ella girl! Please don't grow up!

Celebrating Dad

This Father's Day I'm especially thankful for the husband I have. He makes one INCREDIBLE father to our two darling girlies. 

{You can tell where Evie got her eyebrows + where Ella got her eyes + their passion for food + chubby cheeks anyone!?!}

Braden is the dad who walks through the door after work with a smile on his face no matter how his day was. 

He immediately hugs Evie and talks to her about her day, and picks up Ella to squeeze her darling bum :)

Not only does he tell us all he loves us daily, but he shows us through his actions.

When Evie asks him to play barbies or come be "the kid", he doesn't say "wait just a minute" or "maybe later", he goes right then.

He's never afraid to be silly.

When he's running late, or trying to get out the door and Ella crawls over to him, he picks her up and kisses her.

Our children have never, not once, been a burden to him.

Braden,

We love you with all our hearts. Someone invented Father's Day because of men like you. Thanks for taking such great care of us and making our life such a beautiful one.

We love you!

xoxoxoxo,

Whitney + Evie + Ella

Do ya hear?

So, I was looking through old posts. I was shocked to see that all my posts concerning Evie's hearing have upwards of 300 views. Some 500! Creepy? Well anyways, people always ask me how she's doing - if she can still hear - what's up with the hearing aids - how are her ears - etc. So . . .

here is a quick update on my lovely lady with hearing loss.

Evie, is doing fantastic. Because she has a type of progressive hearing loss (can get better and worse) we are constantly monitoring her hearing. So far there have only been very small changes. I could not be more proud of her. I'm pretty sure she listens better than normal hearing kids. With her hearing aids on she hears everything. She hears me whisper to her! SO COOL HUH!? She talks REALLY WELL. Her articulation is, well, it's downright impressive.

If any of you are reading this blog because you are just finding out that your child has a hearing loss, or you're worried they have a hearing loss, or you know someone who knows someone who has hearing loss - well that is awesome. Frrr real. Don't be scrrrrd. (What just happened there?) Anways . . . 

Because we live on this earth, at this time in history we have access to INCREDIBLE technology. 

To anyone just finding out your child has a hearing loss - the first part is the hardest part. Whatever emotion you are feeling, let yourself feel it. Don't be ashamed. It's normal. Things get easier and then all of the sudden you are like HEY my kid is still the same kid they were before. And there is SO MUCH HELP out there for you and your child. Find it and take advantage of it! You WILL find success if that's what you're looking for. With all your might, be POSITIVE, this is not a bad thing. Life is beautiful.

To anyone feeling like your child is showing signs of a hearing loss - GET THEM TESTED. Like NOW. It's so simple and so quick and so painless and so FREE! Answers make everyone feel better. If it turns out there is a problem, the sooner you know the BETTER. 

To anyone who knows someone with a hearing loss - If you ever have a question, ask. Very simple :) 

Evie Grace enjoying her summer:

 Sometimes if I say "PRETTY PLEASE" I can get Evie to strike a pose.

 This was pre-yard sale day. As you can see, she found some treasures.

Eve loves "penguin ice cream"

And she loves ice cream in general.

Just because

This is what happens when you throw out your last pair of contacts, unknowingly, and have to wait 2 weeks to get new ones because you have to see the eye doctor first! Booooo!
I wear glasses on glasses like a boss.
Imawesomelikethis. . . .

I also have to point out that in Evie's "Mother's Day" note they sent home from preschool she said this:
My mom is special because: OF GLASSES

And now you know why.

Words

Aside from the fact that Evie has a hearing loss, I think that most 3 year olds have a few words that they say ToTaLLy Wr0nG!
And sometimes you just don't want to correct them because it's toOOoo gosh dang cute!

In the above picture, Evie is holding her, as she calls it, sumbrella.
And one of Evie's favorite pass times, as she calls it, is to play on the sum-pull-a. (Computer!!!)

Most people don't think Evie talks, unless you're family or a close friend. She mostly keeps to herself unless we are at home or in a comfortable place.
The crazy-awesome thing is that Evie's speech is SO GOOD! Obviously she has some vocabulary words straight from the personalized Dictionary of Evie Grace, but how cool is that!? WAY. She speaks clearly and is understood probably 90% of the time. I've said it before, I'll say it again: TeChNoLoGy Rocks our world.
In preschool her speech and language teachers are AMAZED with our little gem. I'm so proud of Evie girl!

Remember when . . . .

Evie has been on a "Remember When" kick! Just today she has reminded me of these things . . .

1. Mom, remember when you were a baby and I was your mom? {No, I actually don't recall that one LOL}
2. Mom, remember when I have a tooth and it comes out and I am the tooth fairy? {Yeah . . . .}
3. Mom, remember Jaisha? {So funny, we picked up candles from Jaisha this morning, so this one I actually really do remember}
4. Mom, remember when I was just a little baby and I was in your belly and I said WAAA let me out. And I said WAAA I want my binky. {I surely do sister sue}
5. Remember this morning when Hadliegh use to stay here with us. And remember when she went to my dance class? Remember? {We use to babysit my niece Hadliegh while her mom went to nail school. She did come to dance class with us a few times}

Evie is about 3.5 years now. This age is hilarious, hard, crazy, fun, demanding, exhausting, and rewarding. All bundled into one package of adorable-darlingness! I just can't even get enough of Evie's funny personality!

Evie's 1st Dance Recital

Pre-Dance 5/21/2013

Evie's adorable Pre-Dance class danced to "All Dressed Up in Grown-Up Clothes". Seriously they were SO darling!
Before getting ready I said to Evie, "Make sure we don't forget the mascara." Evie said, "Mom, NO. Mascara? Mmm Mmm Miss Kkkk Kkkk Kara! Miss Kara mom!" Miss Kara is Evie's speech therapist! Isn't that too hilarious!? Mascara, Miss Kara. Same diff! HAHA
I was SO nervous for Evie's first performance. I was holding back tears before she came out! I just wanted her to be confident and do the dance I've seen her do at home a million times! SHE DID IT! Proud parents!
Just because this song was so darling . . . here are the lyrics. These girls knew every. single. word.

All dressed up in grown up clothes
High heeled shoes and powdered nose
Hat is hiding every curl
So don't call me a little girl
                      
When you see me passing by
Don't you laugh and wink your eye
L.A.D.Y. if you spell
'Cause I'm a Lady can't you tell!

Ella Zoe is 9, yes N.I.N.E months!

Get a load of those teeth! She's working on SIX teeth right now people! All at the same time too!

What!? What mom!? Am I doing something wrong? Look how cute I am though!

9 Things about my favorite 9 month old:

1. Ella bear crawls. No knees!
2. She is standing up to everything! We may have a walker on our hands by 10 months?
3. Ella is like that kid you were friends with who had a pet hamster that you didn't want to hold because you thought it would bite your finger off. This girl is ALWAYS ON THE HUNT FOR FOOD! Which brings us to #4.
4. She will be your best friend . . . if you feed her.
5. Ella always knows when it's time to go bye bye! She waves and says bye bye! She also says ba ba, ma ma, da da, ball.
6. She is on the move all the time! Ella is SOOOOO busy! Mischievousness should be her middle name! As I'm sure you can tell by the Nesquik incident(s). Yes, this has happened more than once.
7. Ella is wearing 18 month clothing COMFORTABLY. 
8. She L.O.V.E.S. her dad! When he gets home from work she refuses to have anything to do with me! Sometimes I have to hold her while she is crying alligator tears just so B can have a shower! HAHA!
9. This girl is SO happy. She is quite possibly the happiest baby on planet earth. No joke. We all love her dearly! When you pick her up you just want to squeeze and cuddle her chubby little bod!

Love you Miss Ella Bell!

A Morton Family Reunion

My dads brothers + their families + my FABULOUS grandma go on a little vacation/reunion every year. It's something new each year and a different sibling plans it each year. My LOVELY mother (and dad? Hehe) planned it this year. We all stayed in SLC, went to This is the Place Heritage Park, City Creek Center (AWWWWE-SOME), went to the Joseph Smith movie, and dinner at the Lion House.

So fun to see everyone! And, as always, wish I would have taken more pictures!

After all the shenanigans - Braden and I took the girls to the zoo! Can I just say, the zoo fascinates me!  HOLY COOL! I can't believe that is the first time we've taken Evie! I'm ready to go back already :)

 Evie fell in love with these cute tiny houses at the heritage park. Basically she would have been happy if she could have played in them all day.

 Papa and Ella Bell!

 After the Joseph Smith movie, where Evie and Chlo both fell asleep in Braden's arms. 

Ell getting ready to swim.

Just get a good look at the boo-tay! No swimming suit can contain all that goodness!

The Zoo!

{HAVE to make a note here. As we pulled into the parking lot of the Zoo we asked Evie what animal she was most excited to see. A DRAGON she said! Midway through our fun filled day at the zoo she said, "Dad, can we go see the dragons now? I want to see them fly!" . . . . Braden leaned over to me and said, "Is this one of those times where I crush her dreams, or just keep the dragon thing going?" HAHAHA

All About Mom

In honor of Mother's Day.
Evie and her preschool teacher filled out a paper titled: All About Mom. Have to share.

Let me tell you about my mom
My mom is 50 years old
She likes to PLAY KITCHEN
The best thing she cooks is EGGS, HOT DOGS AND HAMBURGERS
Her favorite food is SPAGHETTI
Her favorite thing to do to relax is SLEEP IN HER BED
We like to PAINT together
She is really good at GOING TO THE PARK
As you can see, my mom is special because OF GLASSES
Love,
Evie Grace
04-29-13

My favorite are the first and last answers. Love that little Evie girl :)

I'm incredibly thankful to be a mom. Having two darling babies and a husband who is UH-MAZE-ING make being a mother a beautiful thing. I also credit much of the joy I find in motherhood to my very own mom. She's a sweetheart. Straight from Heaven. Love her. She has taught me so much, and I continue to watch and learn from her in amazement.

Happy Mother's Day

For THOSE Days

It has been one of those weeks for us. The kind where you look through your schedule and think, 'I have NO CLUE how we will make it to the end of this week'. So much going on! We're almost there! Time has a funny way of passing regardless of what you have to say about it.
Anyways, I saw this on FB. I think sometimes we let the stress of life warp our perspective on what's really important. I know I do at least! So here you go:

For those days. You know the ones.

Repeat after me:

1. I shall not judge my house, my kid's summer activities, or my crafting skills by Pintrest's standards.

2. I shall not measure what I've accomplished today by the loads of unfolded laundry, but by the assurance of deep love I've tickled into my kids.

3. I shall say yes to blanket forts and see past the chaos to the memories we're building.

4. I shall surprise my kids with trips to get ice cream when they're already in their pajamas.

5. I shall not compare myself to other mothers, but find my identity in the God who trusted me with these kids in the first place.

6. I shall remember that a messy house at peace is better than an immaculate house tied up in knots.

7. I shall play music loudly and teach my kids the joy of wildly uncoordinated dance.

8. I shall remind myself that perfect is simply a street sign at the intersection of impossible and frustration in Never Never land.

9. I shall embrace the fact that in becoming a mom I traded perfect for a house full of real.

10. I shall promise to love this body that bore these children, especially in front of my daughters.

11. I shall give my other mother friends the gift of guilt-free friendship.

12. I shall do my best to admit to my people my un-fine moments.

13. I shall say sorry when sorry is necessary.

14. I pray God I shall never be too proud, angry or stubborn to ask for my children's forgiveness.

15. I shall make space in my grown-up world for goofball moments with my kids.

16. I shall love their father and make sure they know I love him.

17. I shall model kind words to kids and grown-ups alike.

18. I shall not be intimidated by the inside of my minivan -  this season of chip bags, goldfish crackers and discarded socks too shall pass.

19. I shall always make time to encourage new moms.

20. I shall not resent that last call for kisses and cups of water but remember instead that when I blink they'll all be in college.

... with love from one tired mother to another.

 Love capturing these sweet moments when they are so peaceful :) 

Little Ell finishing Evie's sandwich for her. This picture is one of those times when you get your house nice and clean for your hubby so he can watch the kids while you have an hour or so of "me" time and you come back to a disaster area. Was it worth it? Oh YEAH.

Evie Girl

{BeAuTy DoLL, am I right or am I RIGHT? Someone once stopped dead in their tracks when we were on Vacation. He looked at Braden and I and said, "Wow, your daughter is so beautiful. The kind of beautiful that takes your breath away." What a beautiful compliment! What a sweet person to stop and tell us that!}

With all the postin' about what Ella is up to, I decided I better take a moment and talk about Evie! Aka, CrAzY WoOomAn {she refers to herself as that, and it's not woman it's woooman}.
Here are a few things about my darling, one of a kind 3 year old:

1. At one point or another someone has called her shy because whenever she doesn't want to do something she says, "It's because I'm shy mom!". 
2. Evie has multiple personalities. I believe anyone with a 3 year old can relate. One minute she'll be doing something so funny (and I will laugh) and then she will stop everything and say, "MOM that is NOT funny! Why you laughing at me!?!?!?!?!" 
3. She is obsessed with making Ella laugh. She likes to come running at Ella, full speed ahead, and then yell BOOO at her! Ella thinks it's HILARIOUS! 
4. Evie is nearing the end of her pre-dance class. She really has learned A LOT from this class. There have been a few weeks where she has me come sit inside the dance room so she can monitor my every move and make sure I don't miss anything. A few weeks where she comes and sits on the outside with me and watches the rest of her class dance. A few weeks where she is a full blown prima ballerina and just does her own thing.
5. Preschool! Similar story to dance. Some days she goes to preschool LiKeAbOsS. Other days . . . not so much. More like I'm dragging her to this awful place where they make kids play, color, ride bikes, paint, etc . . . I know, sounds dreadful for a 3 year old . . . BUT every day when I pick her up she has a smile on her face and ALWAYS had a good day. We asked her what she does at preschool. She replied that she tells her teachers that she has to go pee pee . . . Lovely.
6. Some of her favorite things include: Ice cream, jumping on the tramp, blowing bubbles, The Hulk (she LOOOOVES the tv episodes), playing with friends, her hearing aids - I will jump to #7 for this . . .
7. Heaven forbid you take Evie's hearing aids out to check them, clean them, change the battery, anything! She LoVeS them more than she loves me (jk, kinda). This makes me so happy too! She is hearing wonderfully. She speaks beautifully. If I try to take them out while she is sleeping she will wake right up and SCOLD me!

She's PeRfEcT to me. The end.

Ella Zoe is 8 months!

I don't even know how this is possible, but it's true. Little Ella is 8 months old! Oh my! She is just about the sweetest, chunkiest, lovable, and adorable baby EVER! What is the 'just about' stuff? I mean: SHE. IS. 

A few things about Ella at 8 months:

1. Ella has 3 teeth. Two bottom. One top.
2. She's crawling! She's getting faster every day, but at first she crawled like she weighted 100 lbs. Just slow and steady. {If you've seen the size of her booty and thighs you might understand why she was crawling so slow HAHA}
3. She is my big EATER! Got food? She'll be your BFF! She's already had her heart broke once . . . it was by a string cheese ;) She'd bitten off a huge piece and I took it out of her mouth and she had the biggest alligator tears! {As if she'd never see the site of food again}
4. Some of the outfits she wears are 18-24months . . . WHAT!?
5. {I know someone will hate me for this} Ella sleeps through the night and has since day #2! I can probably count on one had how many times I've had to get up with her in the night.
6. Ella says dada, baba, bye, ball . . . maybe even a few more things, all I know is that she does NOT say mama yet {come on Ell, what have I done to deserve this silent treatment!?}
7. If you are holding her and start kissing on her chubby little cheeks, arms, legs, etc. you will hardly be able to control yourself. She has the most kissable little body you've ever seen!
8. She is the most well tempered happy little thing! Makes being a mother of two a breeze and so much fun! I'm fairly certain that Evie is going to be the "drama queen" sister, and Ella will be our comic relief.
9. Just within the past few weeks her hair is starting to grow pretty fast! YAY! Dare I say it . . . in the sun there are hints of R.E.D.
10. Last but not least, did I mention she likes to eat? She does ;)

 One last 'fun fact' about Ella. In case you didn't know, her middle name is NOT Zoey. It's ZOE. Rhymes with bow. Zoe. Bow. Just had to throw this out there :)

Name that Barbie!

{LOOK AT THE LEGS ON THAT BABE! work it guuurl!}

{mom barbie, see below for her unique name}

Evie is really into playing barbies lately! I love to eves drop and see what's happening in "Evie's World". I have to be so sneaky with pictures or it shuts down the whole operation! MOM, NOT TAKE PICTURES OF ME!
Evie is VERY specific about what toys Ella can play with. She wants Ella to play with her, just not really play with her. As you can see it's CONFUSING! Ella crawled into the bottom of the barbie house the other day . . . stressed Evie right out! MOM, ELLA GETTIN' THE BARBIE HOUSE!
 I love the scene of the 3rd picture: Naked barbie sitting in the kitchen, one boot, one shoe. She also moved the toilet up to the kitchen area just in case (how thoughtful). And the last photo of the kitties, how sweet. Little touches of LOVE all throughout the barbie house today!
P.S. Today the mom barbie's name is
Yellow-Mara-Lita (this name was pretty far out compared to her usual names ex: Fairya, Angles)
Favorite part of my day. Finding out what the moms name will be. Weather it be the mom barbie or Evie's the mom or her friend is the mom. BEST NAME CREATOR AWARD: Evie Robinson (hands down)
Love my girls!

Easter

 Easter

This is the first year we decorated Easter eggs with Evie! I have a little thing called anxiety (only with really random things that would make you laugh) and it was the first time I dared get out the Easter dye and my child in the same space LOL! Except the ironic thing about that is that I was the one who spilled a cup of yellow dye all over the table :/ (I'm sort of known for that in my family . . . I spill my drink at least 3 times a week . . . WHY!?)

Evie is such a creative girl! She is going to be a talented artist like her Great Grandma Marianne! Her new favorite thing is to draw faces. She was having a hard time with the paint on the eggs but I think it looks awesome! She draws all these faces and then imitates them for me. Crazy face, happy face, silly face, mad face, scared face! You name it!

Braden also discovered he had a hidden talent for coloring Easter eggs. HEWASLOVINGIT ;)

 

Evie + Kai

 

 

EASTER BUNNY CAME! Evie was so excited for the EB to come this year! Holidays become so magical again when you have little ones!

 

QUESTION: How do you celebrate Easter? Next year I want ours to be a little more Christ centered! It's so easy to forget the meaning behind these holidays!