Smarty Pants

Ellie has been blowing us away with how smart she is getting!  As an educator, I constantly worry about her development.  She has been providing me with lots of proof of her intelligence lately though!
This is a list of some things she has done lately:

*When I told her that Katie and Charlie (our friends across the street) were coming over, she went to the front door, pulled back the side-light curtains, and looked out the window; it seemed to me that she was looking for them.
*When I tell her it's time to go outside, she walks to the garage door and pounds her little fists on it.  That's the door we usually use when we are going outside.
*She can wave bye-bye without me gesturing.  I say, "Wave bye-bye" and she waves her arm.
*She can pat her belly without me gesturing.  I say, "Pat your belly" and she takes both hands and pats her sweet little belly (ADORABLE!!!)
I promise that I am not gesturing at all!  I am just saying the commands!!

*She can (not always, but the majority of the time) give me five when I put out my hand and ask her to give me five.
*She is a dancing machine!  Whenever she hears music she stops and bounces/sways.  This isn't the best video of her dancing, but it is still cute!

*When I ask her if she's ready to eat, she walks to her high-chair.
*When we say it's bathtime, she goes into the bathroom.
*When we ask her if she wants to play in the playroom, she will walk to the playroom and put her hands on the door, trying to push it open.
*She will usually (depending on her mood and desire) follow us when we say, "Come on Ellie".
*She goes behind the couch and giggles when she wants us to play Peek-a-Boo.
*She takes blankets and lays them on the ground.  She will then sit on the blanket and squeal.  I think it's how she's asking us to take her on a "magic" carpet ride around the house.
*She points to toys/books out of reach and squeals.  She tries to reach up on her tip-toes to get them on her own.
*She carries anything and everything around the house.
*She is improving GREATLY on her sippy cup.  She drank 6.5 oz of milk this morning!!

She set her sippy right here the other day.  It just struck me as cute :)

*She can say: dada, mama, baba, nana, chush (shoes), shesh (cheese), ba (ball, cup, book), bay-ee (Bailey)

She was watching/listening to the rain.

It's so exciting (and scary) to watch the wheels turn in her brain!  I absolutely LOVE it!!!