Oh My Gosh!

Hi Everyone,

Hope you all had a great Labor Day Week-end! Ella and I had a wonderful, busy week-end. On Saturday we went to the Zoo-this time with one of Ella's friends in the neighborhood. The girls had a blast and despite the heat, really enjoyed seeing all the animals. We had lunch at the McDonald's play house and Ella actually ran into two kids from her school. Ella is such a pro on this jungle gym and the four kids had a blast. We finished our day with a great swim and this time, even though Ella's friend was a strong swimmer, Ella got in the pool and jumped and swam the whole time. The day ended fabulous because our beloved Aunt Marianne came to visit! Ella's grandparents are back in town as well, and we all had a nice dinner. Since it was Saturday night, Ella was decked out in all her princess finery- crown, earrings, necklace and princess shoes! It was a wonderful day and I could have slept for 24 hours after all that fun! :) Ella of course was up and ready to roll on Sunday and thankfully Aunt Marianne was ready to step in and play. The nights are cooling off here, so we are taking advantage of the last of the swimming days and I am looking into some swimming lessons since Ella really enjoys her time in the pool. I am constantly amazed at how well Ella is adapting and each day as we experience a new first- our first rainbow, our first time gardening, our first smiling and happy school pick up :), I am in awe at her ability to begin to trust in her new life. It is hard to imagine that is has been just over one month when I met my amazing daughter. One of the first phrases Ella learned from her friends at school was "Oh my gosh". Of course the gosh part was taught by Mom because when Ella came home from school it was something to the effect of "Oh My Godnogd". Since it sounded like she was swearing with her accent, we exchanged the last word to Gosh and now, Ella likes to use this phrase pretty much all day long. The funny part is that she uses it in the right context and when people hear her say it they typically burst out laughing which pleases Ella to no end. My little one is quit the entertainer. The last pic is from tonight when Grandma came to visit and read Ella her new book from the library. Ella loves being able to pick out different books and with all the princess and hello kitty books out there, she is one happy camper. She also adores her Grandma and was very happy to get a special visit tonight. Hope you are all doing well.....