Strep, Strep, Strep

Not surprisingly, this week has been rough. Ella was treated for strep throat on Monday, Erin was treated for Strep on Tuesday, and I was treated for strep on Wednesday! Today (Thursday) is the first day this week that we've all left the house. Good grief! I am hoping we are all feeling well enough this weekend for some fresh air!

Doesn't this look lovely...

Strep Throat

The last few days have been rough for Ella, as she battled what we thought was a cold and sore throat. This morning (Monday), she acquired pimples all around her mouth and inside of her mouth. After a visit to the doctor's office, they diagnosed it as strep throat. Hopefully she'll be back to herself in a day or two! The good news is that she did a fantastic job with the doctor and earned a balloon at the pharmacy!

"Yeah"

Erin's vocabulary is growing every day. She does a great job repeating sentences after Ella! We can ask her almost anything, and if she agrees to it, she'll respond with "yeah" which is great because we can now divert most meltdowns.

She also has a really strange obsession with putting her hands in pockets right now. She has plenty of sweatshirts and coats, but she not requires a robe after her bath so that she has her pockets again!

Preschool Update

Ella just finished up her Dr. Seuss lessons at school! Ironically, Ella won two Dr. Seuss books and a stuffed cat in the hat from Family Fun Night (school carnival) so we are excited about those. Here are some  pictures from her classroom (the 2nd one was Wacky Wednesday where they all dressed up silly).

They're So Contagious!

I love my girls. They are my whole world. However, they are the most contagious little stinkers I've ever met. After two sleepless nights with Erin, we started coming down with colds and still aren't feeling well. We hope this weekend will be restful!

Other updates:

•  In one particular night, Derek and I woke up approximately 20 times. 18 times, it was Erin who felt ill, 1 time was Leo (who broke through the gate)making funny noises on the couch, and 1 time it was Ella who fell out of bed.
• We have officially signed Ella up for t-ball this summer.
• Ella had "wacky wednesday" at school today where the kids dressed silly/wore clothes backwards/crazy hair/etc. They loved it!
• Er-Bear got new tennis shoes that ACTUALLY fit her little paws!! She loves them!
• The ice cream shop opened up in Denver and it is right on our walking route!
• Ella is now working on guided reading in preschool, since she has her letters and sounds all mastered!
• Our deck is finally unthawed, which means its grilling season!  Derek grilled chicken/peppers/pineapple. Yum!
• My "no sweets" rule is still holding true for Lent season!

Building Good Sleep Habits

 Q: What is the worst thing to wake up to?

A: A toddler touching your eyelid.

Q: What do you do with a toddler who is terrible at co-sleeping?

A: Let her sleep with you more often!

We've taken a subtle approach by letting her sleep with us that last hour or two of the morning when she is fussing a little. It's taken a few months, but Erin is getting much better at settling down with someone else by her.   I swear, I sleep better with her there, too. :) Good sleeping habits are so important, and I am anxious to get her use to sleeping in a bed (with Ella), on a couch, on the floor, etc.  Here she is rolled up like a cinnamon roll this week!

Smart Little Girl

Ella is learning at such a whirlwind pace right now. It is Dr. Seuss week so they are doing many activities based on that! She is beginning to put together small words (hat, cup, top, etc) which is a perfect time to introduce one of Santa's flash card games. It is a large set of cards that you group in three's to form a word and corresponding picture. She did great!!

Another favorite game is Pictionary (seen below, Ella is drawing an octopus with an "O" next to it). Note to self: teach her that an octopus has 8 legs. :)

Lastly is her most recent assessment, she is a very smart little girl!