Sorry about the long time in updating. Ella does a great job at running us ragged....

News from this Spring....

We had our courtdate to formalize the adoption in Wisconsin on April 26. With a 10-minute hearing and Julia answering a few simple questions, all the process was over. I got off easy since I didn't do any of the paper work, but it is nice to see Julia's long journey end.

We have a happy baby. She sings and talks, sings and talks. She likes to point out things that are yellow and red, with the occasional blue thrown in. Her vocabulary is around 100 words at the moment. We are nerds - we've been keeping a list on the refrigerator. All of this from an 18-month old. We like to think that she is very smart. We encourage her learning, but since we can't leave the house without forgetting the diaper bag (and we've had six months to learn), we don't like to give ourselves too much credit.

Today Ella got to accompany me to the high school theatre where I am doing the set. She enjoyed watching the show. She sat for about an hour, helped by the ham and crackers I was giving her, and enjoyed her first taste of the musical theatre. She likes to watch singing and dancing on T.V. She watched quite intently. She was also a hit with the kids backstage. She got several "she's so cute"s.

The love of duckies continues. Auntie Heather showed up with the gigantic duck last month...

Ella is really enjoying the nice weather. We like to take a walk to the neighbor's house where she enjoys running up and down their driveway. We go to a cute little park about four blocks from our house. She loves the slide - she fearlessly launches herself down, and giggles madly even when she lands with a thump. Loves the swings too, although she does not like having to take turns when other children want to use them. Well, who does?!

She also likes take Roxie's leash when we walk. Of course, I put another leash on the dog. We'll see how long that lasts. She is also feeding Roxie. She dilligently gets a scoop of food and takes it to Roxie's bowl. If she drops a piece, she will go back and pick it up. 18 months and already she is doing a chore. Again, we'll see how long that lasts. Roxie is so patient and wonderful with the baby-- even when Ella is tugging on her whiskers or messing around in her water bowl. They are great pals! Ella gives many commands to Rox: "Come!" "Off!" "No! No!" She gives these same commands to us too...