E,E, and Little E Stringfellow

Elaina gets a wagon

For Elaina's birthday, she got a red wagon (something every kid needs in my opinion). We were finally able to put it together this weekend. Here are some shots of her enjoying it. I am sure we have many days ahead of us pulling her around in this. Fun stuff!

Our trip to Vermont

Last week we took a vacation (Elaina's first) to Vermont. My younger sister, Nell, and her husband, Dave, have a cabin on the lake. All three of my sisters and their families and my mom went up to spend the week. We had a wonderful week filled with swimming, boating, and, most important, relaxing. Elaina got to hang out with her cousins too. For those of you who have never been to Vermont, it is really beautiful - very green. Also, the weather is very mild and cool for summer. We had a little bit more rain the we would have liked but overall the week was good. Elaina did very well on her first vacation. She did very well on the flights - she was only difficult at one time but it was not her fault. We were stuck in an extremely hot airplane at the gate for 45 minutes before taking off and Elaina was not happy about that. She needed a nap but had a hard time falling asleep since it was so hot. Once we took off and the air flowed, she was a much happier camper (and so were mom and dad). Here are some shots of the vacation......

Some views from the cabin....

Dave with Sadie and Celia making smores - Yummmmm.....

My sister Nell and her husband, Dave

Quentin enjoying his 4th smore - or maybe that's number 7????

Alexandra and Sadie

Cousin Celia

We had the "Olympic Games - Vermont style" while we were there. We divided the teams - one wore bandanas and the other painted their faces. So that is the reason for those in these next few pics. Team "face paint" won the games by a land slide. Most importantly, we all had a fun time.

My sister, Abby, with ElainaMy sisters, Kate and Nell, with ElainaJust a cute shot of ElainaKate tried to recruit Elaina to her bandana team... nice try Kate, but that look is pretty cute on her :)A view of the lake from the dockElaina enjoying a dip with her momSadie and Celia on the boatThere was no bath tub so Elaina got baths in the sink... Aunt Nell was having fun with her hair

What a big girl....

July 13, 2008 - The first week of Elaina being "1" has been a fun one. Not any different then before. We are loving this age - SO much fun. She had her 1 year check up this week and thankfully she checked out healthy and happy. She weighed in at 20 lbs and 13 oz. She is 46th percentile in weight, 49th percentile in height, and her head still a whopping 99th percentile. Brain is still growing :) Over past about 2 months she has:

started walking - she still doesn't do it 100% of the time but she does it about 70% of the time. Crawling is still quicker
started signing for "all done" and "eat"
saying "thank you" or something that sounds very much like it
saying "ok" (so cute)
straddling her riding toy by her self and pushing her self around on it

Here are some pics of the past week... fun stuff.... :)

Playing in the backyard with her water table she got for her birthday. She loves that thing.....

Just a cute pic of her in her new dress that her mamaw gave her for her birthday...Elaina in her new chair she got for her birthday - vanilla wafer and her juice just chillin'. Wonder where she learned this from??

I cleaned out this drawer to get rid of some toys she didn't play with anymore. Well, she made herself right at home... so funny.

Elaina's first steps

Okay people... I know I just posted with pics of Elaina's first birthday but today, July 7, 2008, the day after her birthday, she began taking her first steps. She was taking about 3-4 steps last Thursday night (July 3, 2008) but had not tried again since then. Well, tonight just before bed time, we were in her room and she was holding Erik's finger. Well, he let go and she put one foot in front of the other and walked about 5 steps or so.... Anyway, you know the rest. We grabbed the camera and got some footage. She was so excited she was almost running into my arms. In case you are wondering what I keep handing her, it was a puzzle piece. She seemed to walk better with something in her hand. After we got done filming and put the camera away, she walked from her crib all the way across the room to her changing table. We better get ready - here she comes!!

Happy 1st Birthday Elaina

July 6, 2008 - A year has come and gone (and quickly). Erik and I simply can not believe how fast it's gone by. To celebrate Elaina's big day, we had a party for her at her Granny's clubhouse where she lives. Lots of friends and family came to celebrate and give their well wishes. Lots of fun, swimming, and cake.. Oh yeah, the cake was the best part. Our friends Sabrina and Carl made the cake and it turned out unbelievable. Elaina enjoyed it too - she's a pro at eating sweets. Here are some shots of the big day....(I don't have them all from everyone so I may be posting more)

A shot of the cake before the writing was put on it... SO CUTE!! I could not believe how good it turned out. Thanks Sabrina and Carl!

Here is the cake after she wrote "Happy Birthday Elaina". She also did the cute lady bug cup cakes around the edge... Amazing!!

"Do I have to wear this hat??"

"Hey, this isn't so bad"

"Oh yeah! I can eat some cake. What hat??"

Elaina in the pool with friends Tonja and Christine and her cousin McKaylaElaina got a water table for her birthday - she loves itElaina opening up one of her giftsElaina with her Mamaw (Erik's mom) and Granny (my mom)Elaina with her "aunt" Robyn

More of Elaina in the pool with her friends

Elaina pushes her cousins

Elaina's cousins from Nashville, Sadie and Celia, came to visit this weekend. Elaina loves to push her little car around the house and does it all the time. Well, Sadie and Celia both hopped on the car and Elaina pushed them around on it. Pretty funny considering Sadie is almost 6 and Celia is 4. Pretty funny to watch as Elaina really pushes hard to get them moving. Take a look....

Elaina pushing Celia (the 4 year old). Listen to Elaina squeel as she pushes.

Elaina pushing Sadie (the almost 6 year old)

Where have we been??

Nowhere - just busy. So, I've been really bad about updating the blog. We have been enjoying this phase of Elaina's life. Fun - that's the only word to describe it. Here are some pics of the fun we've been having.....

She finally started drinking from a sippy cup, with a straw. She seems so big to me drinking from it....

Just a cute pic.....

A typical moment with her daddy... She's got a great laugh!

Her friend Caitlin had her first birthday party on Sunday. These are some pictures of her and Caitlin in the kiddie pool having a great time. Elaina loves the baby pool as much as the real pool.

Stringfellow first family photos

We had our first family photos taken. Here are a few of them.

Elaina is 11 months old

June 7th - Elaina turned 11 months old yesterday. Just one more month until the BIG birthday. It's incredible how time flies. Elaina has grown so much. Erik and I watched home videos of Elaina tonight of when she was 3 1/2 months old and both forgot how little she was. It really put a good perspective on how much she has changed.

I don't have a recent weight on Elaina because luckily we've been away from the doctors office. My guess is that she weighs about 21 pounds or so. We have almost completely stopped all her baby food and she is eating just about anything we eat (well, you know, what we can make soft enough and chop up enough). So, she looks like she has beefed up to me - the food has helped with that, I am sure.

This weekend has been a fun one for Elaina. Why you ask? Because she went swimming - not once but twice (and she is going again tomorrow, Sunday, with her granny while Erik and I go to the Smokies game). She did not cry but she did not really crack a smile either for the first 10 minutes or so - she is like her daddy and has to take it all in before she can really begin to like anything well. After then, she really started enjoying herself and splashing the water with her hands. She even stuck her face in voluntarily followed by a funny look and some coughing. She is definately going to enjoy the pool - I have been looking forward to this day of being able to take her swimming. Here some photos of the big event (both days)...

This pic is after she got warmed up to the pool - she really was enjoying herself.