Where Did Summer Go?

It’s been far too long since either of us posted an update here.  Where did the summer go?

When we last left off, Ellie was just about to celebrate her third birthday.  She had a great time at her parties (even if she didn’t do a great job of thanking everyone).  Her big gift was a Minnie Mouse bike and matching helmet.  She also got to skip a little bit of school to go out to breakfast.

Shortly after her birthday was a visit to the dentist.  She was doing such a great job that they did the cleaning in the big kid chair.  She particularly loved getting to wear shades for it.

Ellie went to a lot of parties this summer.  Her best friend Aubrey’s birthday party and two birthday parties for her Grandpa Ronn.  She also went to a Labor Day cookout with the Clark side of the family, who she rarely gets to see.

Throughout the summer we’ve seen that Ellie is just an incredibly happy kid.  She has her ups and downs, of course.  Of late she gets into funks where she’ll miss one of Cathy or I, or her grandparents, or her cousins, or any number of people.  It’s clear that her family is very important to her.

I think she understands TV a bit more than she used to.  She loves Paw Patrol and Bubble Guppies and Batman.  She dances to “Elsa on the mountain” (“Let It Go” from Frozen).  She’s gotten a little bit more time with electronics (she even knows how to play “Cut the Rope”).  But she doesn’t need it.  She’s still content to sit on the floor and play with Play Doh or do crafts.  She’s starting to read on her own.  She loves going to the park and playing outside in general.  And she loves helping in the kitchen.

Other events from the summer include going to Balloonfest, fireworks for the Fourth of July, and a surprise illness last weekend.

Of course, the biggest event of the summer was flying to Colorado with a bunch of her family for Aunt Whitney’s wedding.  Ellie got to go on her second plane trip of the year, visit the mountains, play in a couple different pools, walk her aunt down the aisle, and ride in a go-kart.  It was quite the adventure.