new accomplishments..

Well, Ellie continues to surprise and amuse us with her new accomplishments. Here are a few:

she is now crawling on all fours, sitting up from a laying position, pullling up to standing using the couch or our hands, trying to stand up in the middle of the floor, and standing up by herself (if we put her that way) for about 10-20 seconds. I know most 15 month olds do this anyway, but considering she did none of these things just 2 months ago, we're quite impressed! The PT came this week, and said Ellie has made 3 months worth of progress in the last month. WooHoo!

The biggest amazement happened yesterday, when I was on the phone with my mother. I was glad to have a witness! Ellie appeared to be saying "poo poo" and pointing to her bottom. Well, she had actually gone poo poo! I figured it was a fluke, but then she did it again a few hours later! I can't wait to see if she does it today! Whoever thought we'd look forward to changing a poopy diaper!

As you can see in the picture, Ellie decided she needed to eat her cereal today by herself. She used her spoon pretty well, but really liked getting her hands in it!

Oh, and she is also getting a new tooth! It's a back one, so we can't see it, and you have to be quick about feeling it or she may bite you!

Katie and I are winding down to the last month of school! :) She has done such a fabulous job this year! Kindergarten sure isn't what it used to be! Katie is reading and writing close to a second grade level. I love seeing the work she brings home! Even though I teach, I'm still amazed at what these little ones can do. I still think they should play more, but that's another soapbox for me to get on at another time!

It's been a while!

Well, life has been pretty quiet around here, so there hasn't been much to report! I guess that can be a good thing. Ellie is doing great! She wakes up very happy in the morning, but not so happy after a nap. I know I'd be happy with a nap! She is starting physical therapy next week, although she has gone from lying down to a sitting position by herself, and she is pulling herself up while grabbing onto the couch. New progress! Her crawling is more like an inchworm move, so we'll be working on that, then moving to walking. They say they don't like to skip crawling because it develops the right/left brain function, and can lead to problems with handwriting later. I'm a stickler for neat handwriting, so we'll be working on the crawling!

I go back to work tomorrow :( Ellie will be staying with a friend in the neighborhood, so I know she's in good hands! That helps a lot!

Ellie has attended two birthday parties in the last couple of weeks! The first one was with EllaKate at build a bear. She is also from China, and turned three. The next one was with one of her friends from the orphanage, Harper. She turned one. Quite the social butterfly for only being in the US for 7 weeks!