We spent a few days in Florida last week with my parents and had a great time.  We got to meet Maya for the first time.  Elise wasn’t too sure what to think of her at first… too much puppy energy!  But Maya loved Elise, and Elise still talks about Maya.  We got to visit two great grandmothers, eat at some of our favorite local spots, and enjoy relaxing.

Snow!!  We got a whole bunch of snow Friday afternoon and much of the night.  It was beautiful to watch it fall, heavy and wet and stuck to everything.   Elise was excited to play in it Friday afternoon, but by Saturday morning it was too deep for her liking.  The dogs had a blast!  They acted like crazy puppies again.  Cassie would bury her face in it, and they both frolicked.  The snow didn’t last long with a sunny day, but it was beautiful while it lasted!  I guess winter is over now.

One of Elise’s favorite things to do is go upstairs in our new room and dance! Here’s a video of the fun! WARNING: Baptist pastors dancing are not pretty…but at least Elise is. Listen carefully and you will hear Elise say “baby” a few times after she hears it in the song.

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Elise is 17 months old!  The biggest change in the last month is how chatty she is suddenly.  Most of what she says is her own little language still (though very entertaining to hear), but new words include banana, baby, ball, bath, amen, cheese, and shoes.  Her favorite thing right now is babies.  Whether we see a baby or a picture of one, she gets very excited saying “baby” over and over loudly, pointing to it and signing “please”, usually over and over.  It’s entertaining in the grocery store or at church when this happens and I explain to her that she can look at the baby, but no, she cannot have the baby.  This often upsets her.  She has begun to insist that her baby doll wears shoes.  Since baby doll does not have her own shoes, Elise is kind enough to share her shoes with baby.  She has become fond of wearing hats, though preferable on her own terms (meaning she can take it off whenever she pleases).  She insists that she holds both mama’s hand and daddy’s hand when we pray, and she insists quite loudly if this doesn’t happen.  She is very entertaining, and we are enjoying every moment, laughing more each day.