Today, we decided to try on our roller blades for the first time in almost two years. We went to Ko Olina to enjoy the paved walkway along the four lagoons but soon found a sign prohibiting any such fun. We got to the third lagoon and decided to take off our roller blades and walk back...we weren't that good anyway. :) 
If I haven't said it before, or at least recently, Ella really is a very happy little girl. She always has been. She's quite content with things and it seems Ron and I are meeting all her needs. She has no fear or anxiety and loves people. I get a lot of comments on how happy she is, how content and smiley she is. She's so easy on us, we take her everywhere and never have a problem with her. 
She doesn't fuss, or cry, or whine. But she does have her moments when she's tired or hungry, and recently she's had a few little moments when she's frustrated. Just to prove that indeed Ella is a real baby, and that we don't sedate her, ("What do you give that baby to keep her so good?" ...yes, we've been asked this many times!) here are some Ella moments. The "I'm so hungry I'm going to eat my foot" and the "grrrrr I'm tired" moments are few and far between, but we do get glimpses of them occasionally, even a pout or two....
Today, Ella and I met Diane and Carol for another day at Ko Olina. We picked them up at the bus stop and headed to Waikele Outlets as it was raining. After an hour of shopping the sun came out and we headed to the beach. All that sand, surf and sun wears us out. Ella loves bath time and with all the salt and sand, we need to hose her down and make sure it's all out of her hair. I'm usually finding grains of sand in her hair days later. Look at her...someone got a tan! 
Ella's hair has been out of control ever since she was born. At first it was really straight and we could slick it down but now that it's been growing like a weed at the top and bottom, the curls are totally uncontrollable. The real problem lies in the lack of hair she has around the middle of her head. 
The exact opposite of balding men who tend to only keep that "ring" around their hair. It's getting really long and the curls are beautiful, it's just the sparse middle makes it hard to do anything with. If we pin it to the side, the barrette doesn't stay in long as there isn't any hair on the sides to hold it in. Today I put her hair in pigtails...what a cutie! Don't get me wrong, Ella has beautiful hair...I'm just waiting for it to grown in and fill those sparse patches. 
Ron had a three-day weekend due to the American celebration of President's Day today. Of course, what better way to celebrate than to show a little bi-patriotism...
Ron and Ella with Diane
Today, Ron, Ella and I headed into Waikiki to meet Diane for lunch. We parked near the hotel at Fort DeRussy, where the Hale Koa is located. When Erin was visiting I made a comment about how much I disliked Waikiki for it's couture, over-priced shopping, beach with more bodies than grains of sand, and the traffic. How could anyone vacation here I thought!
Well, it turns out, we were at the busy end of Waikiki and it's totally different than the Hale Koa end. Diane's hotel, The Breakers, is a quaint little hotel with a Japanese look and a beautiful pool courtyard. Because it's near the military hotel, the Hale Koa and Fort DeRussy park, it's much more quiet than the high-end shopping area. Diane took us on a tour of "her" Waikiki and I have definately a greater appreciation as to why people come back year after year. The walkways are paved and the beach isn't over-crowded. 
There are walkways through and among the big hotel courtyards and the gardens are beautiful. Here's a picture of a Banyan Tree...one of many in the region.
The Hilton has beautiful ponds with ducks, khoi, swans, turtles and even penguins! Here's Ella talking to them. It was such a beautiful day that Ron and I are going to come back with our rollerblades and take Ella around Waikiki and Ala Moana. Diane took us for Japanese lunch at the hotel and it was delicious! What great day...to top it off I finally did some gardening....
Ella has quite the wardrobe. Really, it's massive for such a little girl. Luckily I have a friend with connections at The Gap, and all Ella's designer clothes are hand- me- downs. Her Old Navy stuff is sale stuff for only a few dollars as I have a rule prohibiting spending more than $10 on an outfit for Ella. ...Except when it comes to shoes. 
Here is Ella in her Baby Phat hand-me-down and her brand-new Sketchers. I really wish they had girl shoes in my size. So cute. How do you think Ella is taking her designer wardrobe? Is she posing in that top picture...really???? :)
Today, Ella and I met "Nanny Diane" and her sister Carol and we took them to Ko Olina beach. (Diane and my mom were best friends from when we first moved to Victoria and remained so for almost 25 years) Diane comes to Hawai'i every year with her mom and sister(s) and, as always, it is so wonderful to see and visit with her. The weather was beautiful; a breezy 80 degrees. Ko Olina is so gorgeous, it's by far my favorite beach here for the fact that it is quiet, sandy, has lots of grass and palm trees as well as restrooms and a walking path. On a good night this weekend, I think I'll pack a nice dinner and take Ron and Ella to watch the sunset.
Anyway, today was great to catch up with Diane and Carol. As we were out swimming in the waves (Ella loves her floaty), a Hawaiian sea turtle came up next to Carol. It was AMAZING! (of course Diane and I were thankful it didn't come up next to us as we probably would have drowned in fright!) Seeing as we were in the middle of the lagoon, we didn't have a camera but here's a picture of one. They are endangered and protected here so you can't touch, feed or block them in any way. I'm sure Carol got much more of a view than we did but it was only a few feet away before it dipped back into the water. 
It was definitely time to take Ella in as we were close to the breakwater and I figured if there was a turtle, there's probably other ocean critters too and who wants anything brushing up against your leg! :) 
As I was taking her inside, I sat her on the car and picked her and the car up. The back came off and Ella fell flat on her back on the pavement, she has learned to tuck her head from all the falling over she does on her own, so she didn't hit her head. However, she made a huge "thump" and screamed in fright and pain. She seemed to be okay once she calmed down, no dizziness, or anything but at dinner she began spitting up everything she ate so I took her to the ER. It was so quiet there that all the staff were outside BBQing for Valentine's Day and we saw a doctor right away. 
She's fine. She's laughing and smiling and being herself and because she's not projectile vomiting and lethargic, it was nothing. I feel better and am glad I didn't have to spend Valentine's Day in the ER all night. Hope you enjoy the video...pre-fall trauma....
Anel and Keilana are moving back to Puerto Rico this weekend so Ella has scored some pretty nice clothes. We went through a huge box of clothes for 12-18 months. We have so many, I've donated a lot and we won't need any more clothes until she's at least 2! 
Ella had some passport pictures taken and we go on Thursday to apply for her US passport. How exciting for her! We have some serious travel plans for the next two years and can't wait to travel as a family to some fun places. So far we have trips to Maui, western Canada, and Australia planned. 
I haven't posted in a few days as we've been visiting with my cousin and her fiance who are here for the Pro Bowl and staying with us. It's been about 8 years since I've seen Jodi and she is doing well, it's nice to catch up and finally meet Bart. Here's Jodi with us in front of our house...check out my new haircut. Christin - I finally have bangs! 
Ella is getting more and more sure of her standing abilities and will now practice standing up without the use of objects. I have a video I'll upload later. She's also finally stopped spitting up after every meal or bottle and can actually wear one single outfit for the whole day. We are shocked as it's been a daily routine of 4 or 5 outfits and lots of shirt changes for us. Now she can burp without half her bottle coming up with it...I know, maybe too graphic. 
I'm not sure if this means her GERD (reflux disease) is going away as it usually does in the first year or the amount of solid food she's eating is helping. It's so nice to not have to change her throughout the day and her laundry is half what it normally is.
Onto other news, we finally have a renter in our house in Atlanta. Keep your fingers crossed that she works out. She's a single mom (child psychologist) and has a great track record with renting so we were very happy to let her move in. The property management company does all the work for us and we just sit back and collect a check. Finally after 6 months of an empty house it's now going to be lived in.
Our neighbor, Anel and her daughter Keilana stopped by last night. Keilana is almost two and we can't get over how much her and Ella look alike! They both have that same curly hair and nice skin. They really do look like sisters. Ron and I always laugh about how we know what Ella's going to look like at two. Of course Ella is over the moon in love with little girls...she can't stop giggling!
We bought a play yard that can be connected to form a pen or stretched out to block off areas. Ella's not sure about it but hasn't figured out that she is "caged". She just thinks it's an easy way to pull herself up. She can entertain herself for hours and loves to "sing" too (note the high pitch noises). She'll sing along to the radio or do a little solo like in this video. Even when she falls, the show must go on! 
She's especially vocal when she sees that you are videotaping her... and if she notices you're not paying attention when she's working on her balance, she holler at you until you watch her. I detect a future drama queen! 
