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.

"Hay, horsies!"

While walking through a field in the park, Ella found some dry grass and decided that it was hay. She immediately started calling for the horsies, and you can see her here trying to project her voice by cupping her hands on the sides of her mouth, but she had the angle wrong... Very sweet.

"Okee dokee, mama"

Ella went through a two-week phase of saying "Okee dokee, mama" quite often and in many different voices. Here is a video (which you unfortunately have to watch sideways) of one of these series of Okee dokees!

Grandkids and "Happy Birthday!"

Here is the yearly shot of Grandma with her four (soon to be five!) grandchildren and then one from our fourth or fifth birthday celebration this June.

Geem yogurt

Ella developed a serious addiction for Key Lime Pie yogurt this summer, which she calls "green/geem" yogurt. Here are some shots of Ella feeding herself an afternoon treat and then a quick video expressing her love for this delicacy.

Playing with the cousins

Ella loved hanging out with Matthew (then 13, now 14!), Hero (5) and especially Robert (10)! She was constantly calling out "Come, Robert!" so that her cousin would join her in whatever game she was playing... They were great sports!

Catching up - Summer '09

It has been a wonderful summer. We started off with two weeks out in Washington State, visiting with my family, here are some pictures from that adventure! These are from the beach on Whidbey Island where Ella spent a good deal of time playing in the sand with her Gramma, Poppa, and cousins.