Santa's arrival and Happy New Year's Eve

Can't believe 2010 is almost over! It's been a great year and we're looking forward to another great year in 2011! God has been good to us - for that we are very thankful! Safe travels to all those traveling this weekend and Happy New Year!

Just a sneak peak of Christmas to hold our families over until I can load the pictures and do a long Christmas blog post. This is Christmas morning when Catherine Ellis discovered that Santa had indeed been to visit leaving her with some great toys!

B is for ....

beautiful baby girl!! That's right - another fabulous little girl is joining the Cain family - for now pink continues to rule in the Cain household ... say a prayer for Papa Cain!

She's perfect in every way - doctor said she looks wonderful - right on track, even measuring a bit early. Wednesday morning her heart rate was 144 and she weighs a whooping 10 oz ....go baby girl!

Merry Christmas to all!

Baby Cain 2 on December 22, 2010

Baby Jesus is coming!

This is our very first Christmas Eve at home since David and I started dating 8 years ago! We have had such a great time preparing for this time and today was a wonderful day! This has been a 'red-letter day' all around.

We've worked hard on keeping the reason for the season at the forefront of the traditions we are starting and here are just a few:

• Happy Birthday Jesus! - Baking a birthday cake for baby Jesus - can you tell CE and I aren't professional bakers?

Catherine Ellis helped Mama ice the cake - think we got more on us than the cake!

Happy Birthday baby Jesus!

• Wonderful time with friends - our visit with Santa was unsuccessful and while I understand the funniness behind pictures of screaming children with Santa - I'm not a fan and wasn't about to make CE sit on this man's lap and pay $15 for picture that portrays her while she is miserable (I know, I'm no fun). She clung to David like she thought we were going to leave her in the middle of the mall with him. She talked about him the entire time we waited in line, but once we got up close - it was all over. We did however enjoy time with the Nations/Baby William and Gmama Holly. Also Mexican on Christmas Eve Eve with friends is a new tradition we hope to continue!

Catherine Ellis and William

• Leaving out cookies and milk on a very special saucer with it's matching cup - just for Santa! I have to say - our Santa has been a real trooper (as he most always is!) and single handed put together both the table and chairs set and the pink retro kitchen for Catherine Ellis. It was quite the feat from hundreds of screws to the final product - so our Santa especially deserves his fudge covered Oreos and milk! Enjoy Santa!

Cookies and milk for Santa

Ready for Santa!

Looks like someone was a very good little girl - a pink retro kitchen with the works and a big girl table and chairs!

• The family service at St.-Mary's-on-the-Highlands - wow! This is hands down the best service we've attended together ever. There were probably 100 children at the service, it was loud, at times a madhouse, but overall magical. There was the Christmas story in the form of a pageant - including a real, live baby Jesus and fabulous music. Catherine Ellis was a star - one of the most well-behaved children there (again, without a nap! We are still in shock!). One of our favorite take-aways from the service is the wonderment in her eyes and the joy of finally seeing baby Jesus. We've been talking about him for days and I bet she said 100 times tonight "Baby Jesus is coming!" We tried to get her to say it on video - but you all know how that goes. She is so excited that baby Jesus is coming .... we are too!

"Fear not for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." Luke 2:10-11

First Haircut

That's right ... I finally broke down and had Catherine Ellis's hair cut. It was getting pretty unruly and unmanageable - so I gave in. David and I both have family members that cut hair, but Friday I decided last minute that I was going to bite the bullet and cut CE's so I called Miss Lynn.

Miss Lynn has been cutting my hair and my mother's hair for over 30 years - there is lot of history with Miss Lynn and we love her like she's family. She traveled to Camp McDowell to style my hair for my wedding and has been with us through the the ups and downs of life - so who better than Miss Lynn - plus we were on our way to Alex City to have Christmas with my mother so it worked out beautifully.

Sweet Miss Lynn stayed at work late just to cut Catherine Ellis's hair - thank you Miss Lynn!

Nope lady, I'm not letting that sucker change my mind ....

Well, on second thought this sure is a good sucker

Yep, in bad need of a haircut - unruly hair all around ...

Off to a good start (notice Honey is clenched nearby)

A little peep pie with Meme

Sitting still for Miss Lynn

Hold still, Catherine Ellis (a quote from our favorite book "Oh, David!")

A curl or two from the back

So far so good

Hello Lynn ... Catherine Ellis loved that she could see Miss Lynn in the mirror

Admiring the new 'do' and getting some lovin' from Miss Lynn!

Sweetest Words on Earth

See for yourself -

Don't you agree? Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Sunday afternoons

Sunday afternoons are a time we use for slowing down before the craziness of Monday arrives. We have lots of favorite hobbies, but reading is one of our favorites. Catherine Ellis loves to read and this makes Mommy very happy - I'm quite the reader myself. Now that she's a bit older she likes to 'read' by herself and tell Mommy and Daddy the stories that she has faithfully memorized. We've been reading to her since she was just a few days old - so it's something she's never lived without and we're a-okay with that. Today she asked to sit in her rocker and 'read' - take a look at a favorite Sunday past time .....

20 months

Happy 20 months sweet girl! Every day seems to go faster and faster the bigger you grow - we often think it's not possible for time to go any faster, but with each passing month it does. We are about to start 2011 and you will be turning 2 before we know it! As we always say, what a joy watching you grow up before our very eyes!

December 9, 2010 - 20 months

20 fabulous things you're up to with one to grow on:

• you can say your name when prompted "What's your name?"
• you can repeat almost word for word what anyone else says
• your vocabulary is so big now that I can't even begin to list all the 'new' words you have
• you are talking in 3-6 word sentences
• you can make all the common animal noises when asked "what does a cow, sheep, pig, frog, duck, etc. say"
• your recognition of people is awesome - you saw a little boy's mother that you were in the infant class with for a very short time and knew immediately that she was Alex's mom
• oh baby! That's right - you love babies - LOVE babies. Your favorite baby friend right now is William Nation. He is almost 17 weeks old and you think he's the cutest thing ever. However, you don't like to share your Mama with him (we'll have to work on this!)
• you are cutting your 2 year old molars - the last 2 teeth that you need to complete an official mouth full of teeth
• you LOVE to drive Mama's car or Dada's truck - you can mimic what each one of us typically does while driving - changing the radio, singing, talking on the phone
• your love of music has now carried over to a love of dancing. If a tune comes on you are dancing and moving yourself to beat - you let nothing stand in you way to groove - not even a car seat
• your two best buddies are Pooh Bear and Honey - you take both of them everywhere
• your bossiness has come to life - whew! All I can say is watch out world:)
• your favorite book at school is "Oh, David!" and at home "Gossie" - you can repeat word for word every word of "Oh, David!" correctly on each page - it's a sight to behold
• you are eating almost anything and everything - you still prefer healthy fruits and veggies over meat, but you have some unhealthy loves like french fries - who can blame you?
• you are in dire need of your 'first haircut' - you still don't have much hair, but the front is long enough that you'll need a trim soon - still no sign of curls except for a few big ones in the back
• you've gotten very good with the spoon - the fork, well we need more work there. But as much as you love yogurt the spoon is a utensil that you are mastering well
• you love to sing - you can sing along a few words to some of your favorite songs.
  
• you like for things to be order - almost all things. You will line your baby dolls up in order of size, your ducks, your books.
• you love school - so much now that when I come to get you or attend a program that you are also attending, you will let me sit by you, but not hold you or take you away from your friends.
• you can count to 5 - sometimes it's a struggle past 3 - but you certainly have 1, 2 and 3 down
• you tell everything bye bye - the TV, your car seat, your shoes, your socks, your bed, the dogs, your books - it takes us a while to get out the door in the morning since you're telling every item bye bye.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say Rejoice! Philippians 4:4

Repetition

Oh repetition how Catherine Ellis loves you! It seems almost every action that Catherine Ellis thinks about she has to repeat the action and no matter how many times she repeats the action - it's just like it was the first time - every time. It's mind boggling to watch her in action sometimes - it leaves you wondering how she doesn't grow tired of them same thing, over and over and over. The wonderment of the world is fascinating to her!

Thanksgiving she entertained all of us for over 45 minutes of what we'll call 'bye bye, heyyyyy'! My brother was amazed at the simplicity of the action and just how much joy she got from repeating herself over and over. I think it goes back to being the center of attention at times, but at others the sheer joy of entertaining a crowd. I think she comes by both honestly - her father loves to entertain a crowd and I'm probably safe in saying that neither of us shies away from being the center of attention if necessary (I will say as I've gotten older I do not need that fulfillment near as much as I did when I was younger!).

Thanksgiving

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with my family in Alexander City - and we were right - Catherine Ellis loved Thanksgiving probably because she loves food:) Just kidding! She loved it because she got to spend some time with loved ones that we wish she could see every day. My brother, sister-in-law and mother made it a great holiday! We also got to see one of my best childhood friends and her family - it's always fun to catch up over the holidays.

We have so much to be thankful for - I wish we took the time every day to give thanks like we do on Thanksgiving - what a great reminder of all the blessings we have. It was a short holiday because we had a wedding that weekend, but we made the most of our time at Meme's and I think it's safe to say from the pictures I've posted below - all had a great time!

A little grace before the meal - she missed our meal, but joined us at the tail end - she's quite the poser sometimes

No holiday is complete without a little hide-n-seek

There she is!

Heading to see Meme

Hey Meme!

More hide-n-seek with Dada

Finding Dada

New Turkey Day look

Afternoon swing

Still on the go

Later Thanksgiving evening my good friend Nancy and her family visited - it was so fun to watch the girls play together. Catherine Ellis is not good about sharing - are any one year olds? - but they still managed to have a good time while we all caught up! Thanks for spending some time with us Bendingers!

Dalton and CE's first play date

Catherine Ellis was a bit territorial at first ....

Then she decided she might give sweet Dalton a kiss .. Dalton is not sure what to think!

Playing cars with Mr. Doug and Dalton

What a great time we had! Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

O give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; For His loving kindness is everlasting.

1 Chronicles 16:34

Big Sister

Yay - I'm going to be a big sister!

That's right - Catherine Ellis is going to be a big sister in May! We are super excited about welcoming baby Cain 2 to our family. So far it's been a great pregnancy and the baby is healthy and developing well.

Catherine Ellis hasn't a clue that she's going to be a big sister, but we know she'll make a great one! We find out December 22nd what her sibling will be - we can't wait!

Every good and perfect gift is from above - James 1:17

T-A-L-K-I-N-G

I learned a new trick this weekend! I'm such a big girl and talking so much these days. Mommy and Daddy can't believe how quickly I'm changing before their eyes. And to think so many people were worried my name would be difficult for me to learn (and yes we've suddenly developed a cough overnight - here's to hoping it doesn't stick around!):

School

It's been a while since I've posted pictures of the things Catherine Ellis is up to at school - so today will be a glimpse of some of her favorite activities at school. When she was an infant I was allowed in the classroom all the time - for many different reasons - and now that she is a toddler interruptions are much harder on the class and the teachers. She is also old enough to know that the building is bigger than her classroom and when Mama shows up she can take Catherine Ellis to get ice, see friends on the 3rd floor and play in Mama's office. So, my class visits are very few and far between these days.

However, Catherine Ellis has super awesome teachers that keep us in the loop and make us feel like we're there with her even when we're not! They send us pictures through out the week and sometimes even video of what she's been up to - this is when I love, love, love technology and the iPhone! Since Miss Stephanie has an iPhone and I do too I get to see tons of video that might not otherwise make it my way - so today I'm sharing with you!

This first video is taken while she is playing in the 'home center'. As you can see she's got her house in order - that's for sure:

The next video was taken while she was in the reading center - as I've said before, Catherine Ellis LOVES books and reading - and has apparently even learned to read at the young age of 19 months:

19 months

Happy 19 months Catherine Ellis! Time is moving too quickly - what a joy you are sweet daughter of ours!

November 19, 2010 - 19 months

We'll talk about 19 things you're up to these days with one to grow on:

• you are speaking in 2-4 word sentences now - most are commands like "sit down Mama", "get up Dada", "hush Cain" and you seem to understand lots of conversations - talking is something you're really excelling in!
• you've made up your first 'real' words - bop and bove (like move but with a b). bop is hysterical to you - you'll say bop really loudly and get tickled with yourself. bove means move, you say it often when you want someone or something to move out of your way.
  
• you are still doing great on the potty at school, but at home you're still a diapers gal - that's okay - no rush!
  
• repetition, repetition, repetition - you repeat things over and over to make sure you understand the concept and are saying the word correctly. We work a lot on what belongs to Catherine Ellis and what belongs to Mama and Dada - for instance your cup - you'll point to it and say "Cat Cat's cup" then look at Mama's and say "Mama's cup".
  
• you were referring to yourself as Cat Cat most of the time - now you've added Ellis which is what most of your friends in your class call you. Except when you all say it it sounds like 'ELLLyes' - precious.
• your recognition of familiar friends and family is at an all time high - people you see only every couple of months you notice and can call by name.
• you and Cain like to play and play rough - ball tossing is something that you both enjoy. Mama just tries not to watch as you throw the ball then stick your hand in your mouth - ewww.
• your teachers have mentioned how good you are at redirecting yourself when something doesn't go your way and you're angry or sad - this is a great trait to have!
• you're becoming opinionated about the clothes you wear - not so much about what they look like, but about how they feel - if you're wanting something long sleeve and Mama puts on a t-shirt - you're not gonna have it. At least 2-3 mornings a week we change outfits at least once.
• you're growing tired of the highchair - you've got a booster seat but you have a lot more freedom in it and don't seem to eat as well so we're not sure what to do - but we're continuing to try. You like sitting at the big people table with Mama and Dada for dinner.
• at night after we finish reading your books our rocking time has gone way down - much to Mama's disappointment:( You're so used to falling asleep on your own and soothing yourself - at school they don't rock you anymore, you lay down on your cot and fall asleep on your own - that once we finish reading you'll say 'night, night mama, lah eh" and point to the bed. I think this is going to be SO hard for Mama to let go of.
• car rides are better - you find lots of things to entertain yourself with and the crying is to a minimum these days. The DVR holds your attention sometimes, but it's not fail proof and we only pull it out when we've exhausted all other options.
• your hair is still thin, very fine and blond - we keep thinking you'll have a full head of hair any day now. And I think Dada has even given up with his special oatmeal hair wash every night in futile attempts to get your hair to grow.
• you have a new expression almost daily - there are several charming ones you've developed, but there are a few scary ones in there too.
• when you finish most things these days you say bye bye. For instance if we're reading and the book is finished you'll say "bye bye book".
• the time change - falling back - hasn't been quite as bad as it was this time last year when you were 7 months old. You seem to be able to exhaust yourself quite well these days.
• see-sawing is a new favorite activity of yours. I'm going to try to get it on video on day soon. You like to bump from side to side hitting the ground and yelling 'bump, bump' and then howling with laughter - it's pretty adorable.
• you love the blog - watching the videos we've posted is one of your favorite things to do! They make you laugh really hard.
  
• you've not been extremely interested in football or learning about our teams - we've tried to teach you war eagle and roll tide. you can say roll ti - which is super close, but you don't even attempt war eagle. You will and can say tiger though - so that will suffice for now. I think Mama and Dada are 1 for 1 so far this season:)
• Halloween was a hit with you this year - we're excited to see how you like Thanksgiving - we're thinking since it's about food and lots of family gathering - you'll be all about it!

Every good and perfect gift is from above ... James 1:17

Trick-or-Treating

Catherine Ellis had her first trick-or-treating experience on Sunday - we decided to do it small since she's so little and it was a school night. She was very interested in all the children that were dressed up and visiting us for candy - a new concept to her for sure!

We stayed home for the first 30-40 minutes of trick-or-treating and then ventured out to a few of our neighbors to say hello and grab some candy for a little girl who LOVES candy:) Don't worry - she didn't eat anything put a pack of M&M's - the rest she just wanted to hold and throw back into the basket.

All in all, it was a fun night of visiting with our neighbors and seeing the children and neighborhood buzzing with Halloween fun.

Getting ready to greet trick-or-treaters

Wait, I think I'll take some of this candy while we're waiting

Not really sure what all the commotion is about

Giving out candy with Daddy

Headed to Matt and Ray's

First candy of the night - yummy!

So many choices from Uncle Ray

Ready for the next stop

Trick-or-treating at the Hoopers

Blowing the Hoopers a goodbye kiss

Happy Halloween!

Fall Festival

Catherine Ellis attended her first fall festival on Friday and had a blast!! It was so much fun to walk her through the stations and see her discovering all sorts of yummy foods that she's never had (cotton candy, powdered donuts) and see all her friends dressed up in their costumes. I am so thankful that she is in school where I work - I feel like I get to be a super involved parent and right now she still loves that!

We had a big bouncy and 15 other stations - she played for over 2 hours in the bouncy after all the big kids had their turn and the cotton candy just kept her going. I think its safe to say cotton candy is now her favorite food - it was a HUGE hit! That and the powdered donut station. I've got two videos from the festival and a few pictures - enjoy!

This is a video from the bouncy - it was dark inside so it's hard to see but as you can tell she's having a blast! Notice when Annie pretends to bite her hand as she sticks it through the net - when she's running she looks down to make sure both hands are still there - priceless!

This video is of the donut station - a donut hangs from a string and you're supposed to eat it without using your hands - Catherine Ellis didn't quiet understand the concept, but she indeed found a way to eat her donut - check it out:

And a few pics from the festival - thank you to the YWCA Junior Board for putting on such a wonderful event for our kiddos!

What is this blue stuff?

Whatever it is - it's yummy!

A blue mouth is a happy, sugary mouth

Enjoying face painting for the first time

Exhausted from all the fun!