Ella can count

Poor Ella. Because she is the middle child, we barely notice her developmental milestones. For example, because we play "hide and go seek" a lot, Ella has memorized how to count from 1 to 10. And I think she has known how to do it for a while now, but we're just sort of realizing that she can do it. Nevertheless, it is really cute as this girl is exploding in terms of the volume of words she can speak. And might I add she is exploding in terms of the actual decibel volume of her voice, too. Man can she scream.

Here's a brief video of Ella showing off her counting skills. She just woke up, so her hair is everywhere.

Getting Quinn to Smile

Quinn is starting to be more interactive, which is making him infinitely more fun. If he can see you, and he recognizes you, you'll likely get a big smile.

More than that, he wants to interact. I think he's happier when the commotion of the family is around him and he's eager to communicate...at least we're projecting that desire upon him. His eyes and shifty eyebrows are so expressive and he is trying desperately, it seems, to talk back to you. If you say something to him, he'll usually try to eek out a back-of-the-throat proclamation as he moves his lips into various circular like shapes.