Pop!

My Dad is "Pop"- here is Ada pointing to his picture and saying his name!

A Squirt of Mustard

This video cracks me up- Ada's sound effects for squirting mustard out of the bottle are pretty accurate!

Dinner Time Theatrics

Can't get enough of homemade Smoothies.

Now I remember why I've avoided serving Spaghetti for dinner over the last few months...

This next video is of Ada's acting ability. Happy, then sad. Then happy, and then sad again. She will one day use this against us, I'm sure-

And best one of all- Ada performing her rendition of "Barbara Ann" by The Beach Boys! I can't get enough of this little munchkin! (Please ignore Casey and me in the background... sooooo humiliating.)

Ridin' and Readin'

Well, I had hefty plans of keeping Ada facing backwards as long as possible- it's much safer that way. She's reached both minimum standards to turn them around (1 year and 20 pounds); but I was dead set in my ways.... until the other day. On a whim Casey and I turned her around, and car rides have never been so fun! Here she is, facing forward, and reading!

Cows, Fire Trucks, and Dancing...

This is a clip of Ada moo-ing (or rather, mmmm-ing), riding her Fire Truck, and Dancing one of her silly dances.... I was trying to just catch her telling me what a cow says; but the rest was too cute to edit out! Love this girl soooo much!

A New Discovery...

So; I thought life as I knew it was over when Ada began walking. And then running. And then getting into cabinets. And then climbing. And now...opening her drawers and pulling out her blankets (bottom drawer) and comfy clothes (third drawer). That sweet thing will always be the first to help put them away (as long as you sing "clean up, clean up, everybody, everywhere" continously)- but it IS a pasttime I'm pretty ready for her to get over!!!

Bedtime Bliss

Ada was the easiest, most entertaining, most amazing, happiest baby on EARTH from day one... (That is changing a bit- but normal, from what I hear. HOORAY for early onset of "The Terrible Twos," and then every following year with an ominous adjective)...EXCEPT for bedtime.

Now, it wasn't a problem as long as she got what she wanted at bedtime (I'll save you the details)... and then again 3 hours later. And again 3 hours later. And.. you get the point. She slept through the night from 3-4 months; then came teething- and then never again. Until recently! One night I was too utterly exhausted to go through the whole "please just fall asleep so I can put you in your crib and sneak out" routine so I let her "cry it out" alone. She was NEVER scared; just pissed off. The next night she just curled up on her blankies and hummed until she fell asleep! Then began sleeping THROUGH THE NIGHT. (My friend Katy swore this would be the case- this is exactly what happened with Mia- but I just couldn't bear to try it right away!)

Then came tubes- and she started waking up twice a night again. So, a few nights ago, Casey and I just turned down the monitor and let her fuss. Same scene, different story- she was only mad, not scared (that's my weakness- the minute I hear her scared cry it would be game over.) And she's back to sleeping through the night again!

Praise the Lord! Here are some pictures of her happy in her bed, and getting comfy in her blankies. Love that Baby!!!

Poor Baby!

Poor Baby Ada! Poor Baby Knox! Anna uploaded this to Facebook today, and since I mentioned Ada's "Baby in My Mommy's Lap" Anxiety in my last post- I thought everyone might like a visual. Isn't this sad!? Actually, it's probably funny... but still pathetic! Love that baby girl. She's straightened back up and back to her happy-go-lucky self- FOR NOW!

Pretend Play

So, the week before Christmas Ada started pretend play (at 14 months)! It's the cutest thing I've ever seen in my entire life- it just melts my heart! She'll feed her baby a bottle, rock her and sing her lullabies, and tuck her in with her favorite blankie. She'll also "coke" you something in the kitchen (consisting of stirring pots, pouring beverages, pushing buttons on her stove after putting in her recipe, and taste testing it all along the way) and bring it to you on a tray after it's all cooked to perfection. Here are a few pictures!

This is Ada at The Children's Museum (where we met Katy and Mia- more pictures to come of that eventually!)- having a tea party with her neighbors.

Feeding her baby her morning bottle.

Oh, this baby is high tech- he really cries, drools, and rolls around! I think he needs a binky.

*OK; the live baby above Knox Colwell- the CUTEST thing ever!!! He is actually the happiest baby in the world (and that is coming from Ada Dowell's mother!)- he was a little mad here, but this is a rare happening! Ada was so sweet to him- until I held him! Then she was a piss pot the rest of their visit- she even hid his binky and favorite set of toy keys! Poor, poor future Dowell babies.*