Bella's first view of the ocean.
Taking it all in.
This was paradise. . . all sorts of rocks and shells to collect!
Bella loved to stand at the shore as the waves came up and splashed her. Even when her lips were purple and her whole body was shivering, she did not want to leave the water (or the 'pool' as she kept calling it). 
I couldn't resist a family photo.
It was kind of a windy day.
Back home: Bella strikes a pose. I am loving how easy it is to get a good photo of her these days!
This is a rare sight. . . Bella asleep on the couch. We never, ever see this kid asleep (she doesn't fall asleep until after we leave her room and we don't go in again until she's awake). She didn't take much of a nap on this day, so I just got her out of her crib and let her watch some videos while she relaxed on the couch. I was busy with some stuff in the kitchen and when I went in to check on her she was out. I love watching her sleep when I get the chance.
Bath time tonight! Looks like she's belting out quite the tune!
My little ham!
Drying off. . . and so sweet!
We have a squeegee for our shower and Bella likes to use it on the cabinet door. 
More house pictures:Our Bedroom:
Bella's room:
Her closet. . . they don't make them like this anymore (which is a good thing)! This is why she needs two dressers!
Snuggling with her penguin, Private. He's one of the penguins from the movie 'Madagascar' which Bella loves right now. 
Playing on the church steps. . . always a fun activity.
Being such a good mommy to her babies.
Having a heart-to-heart with Daddy.
Bella's new hobby: rock collecting. She likes to dig through the wood chips until she finds a rock and then she brings it over to her car. Sometimes I catch her smuggling a few in her fists when it's time to go inside. 
Sitting pretty with a few of her prized rocks. Notice that she has a little 'owie' by her eye. She was running through the parking lot, chasing her ball, when she tripped on the ball and landed on her face. Poor thing. It always makes me sad when she gets hurt while doing something that she really enjoys. 
I decided to bring my journal outside to write down a few thoughts while Bella was playing. Bella had other ideas. Notice that she has a few rocks nearby. 
We're finally got around to painting Bella's room. We still have to hang curtains and pictures, but it's coming along! Bella really wanted to help out.
An artist at work. She really likes to color. . . especially with markers. 
A sampling of her latest masterpieces.
The color or the curtains appears really red in these photos, but it's actually more of a burgundy color. 
DINING ROOM: My parents gave us their dining room furniture and I think it looks so nice in this house! 
Funny story about that glass table in these photos. We decided to use it as a kitchen table since we already had the dining room table. We weren't the biggest fans of having a glass table, but didn't see the need to buy another one since this was here already. One night I decided that I needed to do some ironing, but we didn't have an ironing board. No problem! I'll just use the table. A teeny, itsy voice told me that this may not be a good idea, but I ignored it. After a few minutes of ironing, there was a large shatter. I looked down to see this former table in several pieces. I ended up with a few small cuts, but nothing too serious. So, here's a word to the wise. . . never iron on a glass table. 
The angles of the before and after pics are a little off, but it's of the same area of the room. This doorway leads into the kitchen.
KITCHEN: The table you see in this after picture was given to us by a member of the church. She also provided us with an ironing board. The news of my little accident apparently traveled fast! Whoops!
This is an intermediate photo of our kitchen. We got the color wrong the first time. 'La Fonda Ortiz Gold' looked pretty good at the store, but when we got it on our wall. . . not so much. Thankfully paint is pretty cheap. 
Another angle in the kitchen
We changed the hardware. . . the blue and yellow stripes just weren't doing it for us. We consider it our gift to the house and to anyone who comes after us. 
Here are a few photos from our week:
This is her view. We live on a busy road and there's lots of construction going on. From what I hear, they are definitely building a grocery store and other stuff like a Panera Bread, Starbucks, Old Navy, Hallmark, Kohls, etc. The only definite I know of is this grocery store and the rest are just rumors at this point. 
Playing on the couch
Another dress-up day!
This is a monumental photo here. . . definitely a milestone. This is the first time I have ever said to Bella, "smile" and she did it on command. I usually have to catch her in the act or do something silly to get her to smile. Now she does it when I ask. . . AMAZING!!!
. . . and here.
We are getting so much use out of this pool (or 'poo' as Bella calls it). She wants to play in here every chance she gets. Her water issues are definitely over! In fact, bath times are also going so well again. We're even at the point where she gets upset when bath time is over - light years from where we were a couple of months ago! This kid loves the water!
My little piano player!
Look what's growing in our backyard! There are a few rose bushes back there. When we first saw the house back in June, the roses were in full bloom. By the time we arrived at the end of July, all of the flowers were gone and I thought they were done for the season. After we were here for a couple of weeks, they slowly started to reappear. Just the sight of them makes me feel so happy.
Besides the pool, sidewalk chalk is another of Bella's favorite activities. What she really likes to do is draw on top of whatever I'm currently drawing. She has a whole parking lot, yet she likes to be right over my stuff. So silly sometimes! 
I have quite the little helper. Mops and brooms are play things for this little one. She also likes to help me load the dryer and unload the dishwasher. 
Lately, she's been in to wearing coats or sweatshirts. She also wants me to wear mine. And sometimes. . . she wants to wear mine, as was the case this morning. 
I am currently in the middle of a sewing project. I made the pillows in our living room and now I'm working on curtains for our bedroom. It's fun to have these little projects to work on and very rewarding to see the finished product. We're getting so close to being fully settled and that feels good.
