We had an amazing first tonight; Ellie peed in her toilet! Even though we’re not working toward potty training at this point, we thought it would be a good idea to get a toilet for Ellie and sit her on it every night before we get in the bath. This really came from a desire to not have her pee in the tub upon entry.  Tonight for the first time, I said “Ellie, do you want to go potty?” and she gave me a look that told me yes. I pulled her shorts and diaper off as quick as I could and the first thing I noticed was that her diaper was dry – good sign. I sat her on the toilet and wizzzz….I shrieked with excitement so loud she paused for a moment, but once I calmed down she let the rest flow. 

It’s funny the things that get a mom and dad so excited. Brian ran into the room so happy for our little girl and said “well, I think she’s potty trained!” I don’t know about that, but it’s definitely a step in the right direction. 

Other fun things lately are consistency with words. Amongst our favorite to hear are mama, dada, more, baby, Ellie, ball, doggie, duck, and her effort to say watermelon, which she loves very much. I’ll have to get the watermelon attempt on video because it involves her wiggling her tongue between her lips.  The most amazing thing is to see her really start to understand things. It’s just heart-melting when we ask her for a kiss to have her come over and give us a kiss. When we say “let’s go change your diaper,” she goes to the changing table in her room. 

In addition she’s now going up and down stairs on her own and running tons. This girl is a ball of energy, which I totally love, but every once in awhile I selfishly wish she would just hang within a five foot radius for five minutes. It’s my five squared dream and someday when she understands things more I’m hopeful she’ll listen to me request it and be able to oblige. In the mean time, she keeps me up and about, which I really can’t complain too much about.

Here are some fun pics and a video of Ellie lately.

Eating with enthusiasm: