A new smile

One final note in this series of updates: Ella fell on a cement path yesterday and chipped one of her top front teeth. It certainly hurt and she cried a good deal, but as far as we can tell (and she'll meet our dentist for the first time tomorrow to get checked out) the damage is just cosmetic. She looks a bit more rough and tumble now, which is funny, as she is a relatively cautious two-year old who often reassures me that "Ella careful, Mama, Ella take her time." when coming "beep-beep" (backwards) "boom-boom" (downstairs). It is funny how certain words from her original vocabulary have held out despite the addition of words like "hippopotamus" and "everybody"... We'll send some pictures of the new smile when we catch it on film, but haven't yet as we don't want to make too big a deal of it...

Family visits

Yet again this fall, we have been blessed with wonderful visits from our family and are looking forward to a fair number in the next few weeks! Uncle David and Aunt Deanne came for the weekend recently and were part of a very important changeover as Ella went from a crib to a Big Girl Bed. In fact, there have been a number of little changes to her room and she has been very excited about the new space. She can often be heard saying "Ella (pronounced "Eye-a") no baby anymore, Ella big kid." Her verbal skills are improving so rapidly as to have her two parents in constant awe. She uses the word "like" quite often - not in the valley-girl sense, thank goodness, but in order to make comparisons like pasta being "curly like Ella's hair" and "catching daddy like a fish!" The other day, as we returned home and I caught sight of the mess we had left, she finished off my "Oh, goodness..." with a "gracious!" of her own! It somehow made that mess seem much more manageable.

The end of summer...

This September, we have had some gorgeous, warm, sunny days that almost feel like summer and have provided great opportunities for lots of outdoor playtime. However, the weather is starting to turn, so these will be some of the last shots of the summer wardrobe! Instead, we're talking a lot about the changing leaves and all of the colors that we see. It must be so impressive to witness the changing of the seasons for what should feel like the first time - since she is so much more conscious of everything around her this year. I have a hard time explaining that those leaves will be coming back next spring, but we'll have lots of snow between now and then - that's a lot for a little one to take in!
You can also see from these shots that Ella is still VERY attached to "wake-up doggy" whose snuggly satin paws have been key for comforting ear rubs these past two years...

"Hello, baby boy!"

We have been trying hard lately to get Ella used to the idea that a baby boy will be joining the family in February. She is taking it very well so far, and has told us that she is going to "hold him and not let him go boom." When she wants to talk directly to him, she uses my belly button as the portal (see below). And she likes to talk often about babies in daddy's belly and her own belly - where she currently has two - one boy and one girl. It is a lot of fun...

Fashionista

Ella decided to wear striped shorts over striped pants last month and I loved the look. She chose momma kitty as a prop for the photo shoot and I agree that the tabby stripes really compliment the look...

Friends

Ella and her sweet buddy, Casey, have had a lot of good times this summer and fall. Yesterday, as we pulled them around the campus in a red wagon, we caught them on a couple occasions giggling (as Casey leaned out of the wagon and Ella was telling her "No, no, no") and hugging, though restrained by seatbelts. They are great pals and always want to play at each other's houses. Here they are showing off their extreme smiles while at the Beardsley Zoo this past July.