I have no idea where she gets this...

Tonight as I'm tucking Ellie in:

Me: Good night, sweetie.

Ellie: You are.

Me: I am what?

Ellie: (with a straight face) Trouble.

Me: Ok, then. Sweet dreams and I'll see you in the morning.

Ellie: See you in the morning, trouble.

Thanksgiving!

It was a busy week leading up to Thanksgiving - Sunday was mom and dad's housewarming. Ellie was very excited about the party, managed to collect some presents for herself, and made some new friends. The day ended with some backyard time, including the "Run At Mommy And Try To Knock Her Down Without Breaking the Camera" game, popularized by Samuel years ago.



On Wednesday Ellie's school had a Grandparents' Lunch, and performed some songs and poems they've been practicing for the last few weeks. Ellie's teacher is French, and is teaching them some French songs - here's Ellie's dance to Sur le Pont d'Avignon (On the Avignon Bridge). Join me in being disappointed at the performance of my point and shoot camera, won't you?


On Thursday we headed to mom and dad's for Thanksgiving. Ellie arrived with aprons from her kitchen at home for both of them, and went right to work helping with dinner. She liked the turkey and mashed potatoes, but was lukewarm on the green bean casserole. I told her she had to eat at least one bean, and after eating one, she kept insisting she was going to eat "just one more" until they were gone. Boy, she showed me. :)

When I was tucking her in that night, we talked about taking time on Thanksgiving to think about what we were thankful for. Ellie said she was thankful for Bubbie, Daddaddy, Aunt Mimi and Wonder Pets. At least the non-animated people came first on her list. I think goes without saying what I'm thankful for this year, but I will add that in addition to my new addition, I am so thankful for all my wonderful family and friends who have surrounded this little girl with so much caring and excitement at her arrival. I am convinced that the circle of love she came home to is the main reason she's done so well, so to all of you on Team Ellie, in person, long distance or just in spirit - we THANK YOU!

Trick or Treat!

My little butterfly enjoyed her first Halloween and getting to meet lots of our neighbors.



And also, there was candy. She liked that, too.



Candy makes me feel funny.



BUT I LIKE IT!



Happy Halloween everyone!

Pumpkin Patch 2009

Years ago, a group of friends and I started a tradition of going to the pumpkin patch with their kids every October. I was the Official Photographer of adorable kid antics, and acted as Assistant Child Wrangler as needed. Our group has grown every year - back then there were only two kids. This year we had seven. Next year if we add another, they'll have us outnumbered two to one. I'm just saying - this could get dangerous if they decide to conspire against us.

Preschool is Ellie-Approved

Preschool is a HUGE hit! A couple of teary mornings the first week and then it was smooth sailing from there on. This morning since it was about to rain, the kids were in the morning drop-off room reading a book instead of on the playground, and Ellie could only manage a half-hug for me before running to join the circle for storytime! She has been so busy that this week she's started actually sleeping during nap time instead of just resting. Her teacher is French, and is teaching the kids something in French each week. This week they learned hello, goodbye, please and thank you. Next week a TCU student will start coming weekly to teach them Spanish, so I'm sure she's going to be thoroughly confused, or is about to become a linguistic prodigy - only time will tell.

We had a great playdate with Calvin and his mommy Tobyn their first week home from Ethiopia! Cal is so handsome and such a happy little guy! He and Ellie had both gotten shots at their doctor appointments that morning, so they enjoyed some well-deserved ice cream and hit the playground. Cal tackled the playground like an old pro, even going on the "too big" slide when we couldn't convince Ellie to go. I think Tobyn and Matt are going to have their hands full keeping up with that little ball of energy! We're glad to have Cal and his parents home to Texas safely, and can't wait to see him again!

Bon Voyage!

A big shout out to Matt and Tobyn who are on their way to Ethiopia to pick up Ellie's new playmate (and future prom date?), the handsome Cal! Here's wishing the Ribs a smooth trip and a happy week with Cal in Addis! We can't wait to meet him!

Countdown to Preschool

So much good stuff has happened since the last post - I guess that's a handy side effect of posting once in a blue moon. The kid starts preschool tomorrow, and it's just starting to hit me that I'm not sure I'm prepared for this. I was just getting used to being her constant entertainer/observer. I told a couple of people that we'd entered the phase where nothing in her world exists or can be enjoyed without my witnessing it. I am compensating by making name labels for everything she might be taking into the building with her. Sublimating anxiety with a label maker - classic Heather!

Recent Achievements

Medical: We went to the pediatrician for a well baby check-up and the doc mistook her for a pincushion and gave her 5 shots. Apparently we only have Ethiopian documentation of one of three rounds of vaccinations so we'll be back again at the end of the month for another 4-5 shots. Although hysterical during the process, she rallied quickly and had stopped crying by the time we got to the front desk to check out. Needless to say the toy doctor's kit was a big hit that evening, and all of her stuffed animals and babies have been thoroughly examined and received clean bills of health, and lots of shots.

Language: So much progress has been made so quickly I can't just list new words - she's started learning them in phrases instead of single words. Favorite new sayings - "Ellie do/did it", "I don't know" (said with a Paula Deen-esque accent, along with "ay-and" (and) and "hay-am" (ham) which makes me wonder how bad my accent is), "Good Idea!", "Good stretching", "Oh my goodness!", "Bubbie lunch tomorrow", "sninky (stinky) trash". Also, every time she sees a train she shouts "A train, a train, a train, a train!" which I attribute to repeated readings of Green Eggs and Ham.

Food: New faves include Spaghetti-O's (don't get your hand too close to the bowl while she's eating or you'll pull back a stump), red grapes, applesauce, salsa, and goat cheese (I'm prepping her for membership in The Finer Things Club.)

Fun: That anxiety about playgrounds she had before - yeah, that's a thing of the past. We went to the fantastic park near our house she owned the bouncy bridge and swing. There are still some mountains to climb - apparently she and mom went to two parks when she spent the day at their house last weekend - the first one Ellie nixed before she was even out of the carseat with a finger shake and a verdict of "too big" about the slides.

Music: This week she's especially enjoyed the music of The Supremes, The Beatles, Kings of Leon, Vampire Weekend, Little Joy and The Cure. As I type this she's eating applesauce and rocking out to Elton John's "Philadelphia Freedom" (and learning the lesson that sometimes rocking out is messy.) I wonder how long I can keep her from finding out about The Wiggles?

Attitude: Are three year olds supposed to be this well-behaved and non-defiant? I don't think they are, so I'm wondering if she's just repressing all of her authority-questioning to unleash in her teen years? Since the first couple weeks there have been no major tantrums or meltdowns that I thought were expected at this age. I may jinx myself by writing this, but that might not be bad - like when your mom used to make you play with the kid who had chicken pox so you'd go ahead and get sick and get it over with. By the way, the chicken pox is now something they vaccinate against, which makes me again appreciate the hardiness of my generation.

More pics later once I find my AWOL camera cord: