Lake Del Valle Pics

Lake Del Valle.

Ben came home a day early from his Tahoe trip last week so we could spend the day together as a family. So we decided to do a little hiking at Lake Del Valle. The weather was beautiful! We decided to try a new trail and have a little picnic. We definatly worked hard for our lunch that day. The trail went straight up for a good mile or two. But the view was worth it. It was a little bumpy for Ella but she had lots of fun once we stoped for lunch. She loved picking up sticks and rocks and throwing them back down. She pointed at all the birds, which she calls ducks, and even saw a couple of dogs in the park. She loves to see items that she is familiar with because she likes to use her new vocabulary. Her favorite words are:
1.Dog
2. Doggy
3. Duck
4. Dadda
5. Happy
6. Sock (shes having difficulty with shoes so she calls them socks as well.)
7.Ball
8. Baby
9. Sad
We are working on cat, shoes, and turtle.

Ben's Tahoe Trip

Last week Ben full filled a dream of his, which was to ski in Tahoe. One day he took a group of fellow Coasties as an MWR trip up to Tahoe, and then just a few days later he spent 3 days by himself skiing. I stayed behind because I thought Ella and I would be more comfortable at home. This Florida girl doesn't get overly excited to hang out in the cold. Seeing snow is always fun for me but I hate being cold, and I wouldn't have been able to ski anyways since Ella is too young still for that sport. So here are a couple of pics from Bens trip.

Oakland Zoo.

The weather here has been beautifull over the past week. High temps in the low to mid 60's and sunny. So on Bens long weekend (MLK day) we went to the Oakland Zoo. Ella had a blast. Mostly just because she like being around kids, and other people. She was just mildly interested in some of the animals. She said hello to everyone and even walked most of the park. We had a great time, although it was just as tiring for Mom and Dad as it was for Ella. Following a toddler around a park is a lot of work. But it was worth it to see her having fun. As soon as she was buckled in to her car seat she passed out . Maybe next time everyone will have enough energy to go on some of the kiddie rides.

Walking in Daddys shoes.

Ella loves putting on other peoples shoes so Daddy helped her get into his work boots.

Those are big shoes to fill baby girl! Maybe one day you will follow in your Daddys foot steps?

Happy New Year!

I hope everyone had a safe and happy New Years. Ben and I celeabrated the way we normally do.... at home and in bed before midnight.

I finally found the motivation to post some Christmas pictures. The week of Christmas Ella was sweet enough to share her germs with Ben and I. So the whole family was not feeling well during the holiday. Ofcourse it only took Ella a few days to get over the illness where as Ben and I are still dealing with a mean sinus infection. Which brings me back to the pictures. We didn't take too many because the flash was too much for my already thorbbing head. So later this weekend Ben will post video of Ella opening some gifts.

We really enjoyed watching Ella open her gifts this year. She still had a difficult time or lacked intrest in opeing most gifts but once they were open she realized they were for her and lit up when she got a new gift.

Even though we were not feeling well we still had a wonderful Christmas because I realized how lucky we are to have a warm home, great food, and to have our family. There's nothing better then that! So here comes 2011. Another busy year for the Glanvilles. We have lots of plans, trips, and Im sure there will be some surprises too in the new year.