Though preschool doesn't really start until next week, I started Elli yesterday. I am teaching now at Cedarville and needed her to start school. She loved her first day because they got to play games in the gym. That doesn't happen during regular preschool very often:)
We picked out this outfit together for her first day. Since there are flowers on the back of her shirt, she wanted me to braid her hair so others could see the flowers.
We love Shoup Park. The shade makes it nice and cool. Elli loves these baby swings. We decided she might be too big next year for them so we better swing as much as we can now:)
She was running so fast. She really has gotten faster and loves to wear her new tennis shoes.
What a cute smile. She was laughing very hard when she was done spinning. So, when she tried to walk she was dizzy and giggly. 
There were 24 kids in Elli's class this Sunday and that is about what it is every Sunday. They are a lively, sweet, and special group of kids. I love them and am glad Elli will be growing up with them.
Sitting in big church. She looked so serious.
Mrs. Liz was helping Elli put her sticker on the chart for bringing her Bible She told me afterwards that no one else had a baby Bible like her. She wants a big girl Bible.
In line with some sweet girls waitng to go to big church:)
Elli loved this little bag and wanted a church bag for her Bible, cup, and hand sanitizer. That's my girl! Such a big girl now. 
Swimming underwater.
This was supposed to be a smile, but the sun was a bit bright.
Is he not thrilled because he knows he is in a pink towel or is he just sad that the bath is done?
She was so excited to get a bath with him.
Having fun at the pool. She showed off pretty much the whole time:) "Seth, watch this." "You want me to do a handstand?" "You want to play with the ring and then I will go get it for you?" Such fun with these two.
Big smiles for us in the morning.
AT just the right moment:)
After the soaking fountain:) Lily and Elli. Love these pictures. They are such sweet little friends.
Our neighbors are talented musicians and came out to play with Elli one night. Here is Paul playing violin with Elli. She was so excited and copied what he was doing.
He let her play his violin. I was a little nervous because his is a little bit nicer than hers!!!
She did give Gem and Heater a high five, but this shot doesn't quite catch her courage. She even wanted to go back and do it on her own, but Gem had moved on.
Gary was out of town, so here is Elli with Heather.
Family picture at the game. We snuck down to the front row. Yes, we missed catching a t-shirt which landed in our old seats, but we got to see front row play!
Elli and Caleb snuggling with Leah after a long night.
Heather was helping the girls dance. Look at those smiles.
Gotta love the face of a girl gettin down:)
So happy. Elli wanted a dance party and planned it over the course of several weeks. She made out the guest list, which included Travis and Sven! She wanted her Bible School music played and wanted the girls to spin. She even showed me several of her dance moves. As it turned out, we had a wonderful time, ate delicious food provided by all who attended and watched these little girls, and occasionally boys, run in circles and spin.
Elli helped me make the princess cookies for the party. She wanted them to be perfect so she worked really hard on the dough.
Elli and I
Lana enjoyed a few rides.
Elli riding fast with her Uncle Kyle!
And the maiden voyage with Daddy.
Me, Lana and Liam, Aunt Marg and cousin Brittany. Aunt Marg is grandma Ferguson's sister. She organized and set up the reunion with the help of her family.
No, we didn't win but thanks for asking:)
Seth joined in on the fun too.
What a fun game for the kids. Elli really didn't understand that the object was to keep her doughnut, but it didn't matter to her. She was able to eat a doughnut off a rope!!!!
Water balloon toss game. Elli picked the biggest balloon she could find and had some trouble tossing and catching:)
We tried a photo shoot of the cousins down bu the water. They were fairly willing participants.
A trip to the beach turned out to be a little cloudy but Liam didn't mind. Elli went swimming with some of her favorite people. Devin, Kyle, Jenna and Justin.
Elli enjoyed the tractor rides.
Not quite as talented as her mommy, but Elli enjoyed shooting a gun for the first time. Brent enjoyed showing her how.
A family reunion tradition, water balloon volleyball. Elli was actually a pretty good partner. We could catch and toss the balloons pretty well.
Elli wanted to be a helper at the reunion dinner, so she took the pretzel bowl around to offer them to others. Here she is offering Grandpa Ferguson some pretzels. Sweet but not really needed:)
Elli has really been working on learning to ride her bike. We don't even have to bribe her to ride it:) Notice her doggie in the basket. She thought that was the most fun thing ever.
Notice she is even wearing shorts. She found out early on that wearing a skirt when riding isn't the best idea. It got caught in the wheel and now has a whole in it, so she decided she needed to wear shorts. This is the only time you will catch her wearing anything but a skirt or dress:)
Happy birthday Caleb. He turned 5 July 25th and we got to celebrate with him at his Tom and Jerry party. Elli picked out a Toy Story car that Caleb loves:) We had a good time with Caleb and friends.
These girls love to be together. Elli plans play dates with Lily and then asks me if it is okay:) This is a play date where I had a date to help Paula paint Lily's room. The girls were so very happy, as you can see. 
