Baby Alive - No, that IS her name!

Ella got this doll for Christmas. Ever the smart shopper, Mimi scored it half price on Amazon.com, because apparently the bilingual dolls are not in demand this year. So it is the funniest thing! It says "Hola, Mommy!" "Tengo hambre" and "(sniffing noises) Mi pueno es mal" So obviously I don't spell in spanish, but I do have a rough idea of the meaning of these phrases. I like to think that Ella is on her way to being bilingual. If only that were all you ever needed to know! "I'm hungry" and "My diaper stinks, change it!" (roughly translated, of course)

So, she loves this baby. We tried helping her come up with a neat hispanic name for the baby, we tried Rosa, Catalina, Pilar, and my favorite Lucia. Nope. The doll's name is Baby Alive, for the love. Or more true to reality "Baby A-WIVE." Ella will not hear of any other names. So there goes my whole feeble attempt at some multicultural integration in our family.

Although, it does remind me to toss in a few spanish words now and then. Poor Ella, I teach her about random words and phrases when I am bored, so now she knows things like the meaning of the word "reserve" and "spare" and what it means when someone says "adequate" and stuff like that. I know. The apple and the tree thing, huh? There's no hope for her...

Anyhow- back to the point... So, Mimi got her this fabulous doll that poos green goo into preemie Pampers, and now that they have heard all about it, her Grandma Sweetie Pie and Grandma Hearn (they constitute the Californian branch of our family) send her little outfits for Baby Alive! Not the overpriced goofy ones they sell at ToysRUs, real baby clothes. Well, preemie clothes! It is too funny. Baby alive has a great little wardrobe going, and I am often called in to assist with the "napping" of her onesies and skirts and shirts...

So anyhow- Ella is in love. Although last night I walked in on her trying desperatley to shove Baby Alive into a shoebox (which was WAY too small), I'm not really sure what that's all about. I'm sure it's just a phase...

Here she is in a more loving way:



And yes, we are working on her holding technique. I'm sure when The Baby Brother gets here, she'll be over that whole "cover the face with your hand" thing... Another phase, I'm sure...