Mmmmmm

Today was a lazy day. We went over to Victor and Tara's for dinner and they had fixed a wonderful Mexican meal! I love Mexican food. Any day, any time I would go over for a meal; Victor and Tara know how to cook up a whole spread! Sooooooo yummy!
It's always nice to visit with them, laugh and talk. We're really going to miss having such great neighbors and friends when we leave at the end of the month. Ella was a bit fussy, which is so unusual but she was rubbing her gums so I'm thinking the teething thing is getting serious. She ate and passed out just before we headed home. Such a lovely night!

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Dear Mr. Victor and Miss Tara,

Thank you so much for my book about reading.
It's adorable!
We are going to start reading tomorrow night.
I can't wait.

Love Ella xo xo :)

High on Thai

After getting my hair cut this morning, Ron, Ella and I headed out to the High Museum of Art in Midtown Atlanta. It was nice to wonder around some beautiful pieces of art and feel civilized. Though I think if it looks like something I could do, it shouldn't be called art. I mean, splashing some paint on a canvas or dipping a bicycle in paint, in my opinion, isn't art. Although I know plenty of people who would disagree with me. I'm not good at critiquing art, I either love it or hate it, no real rhyme or reason for it. I do really like female subjects in art, there is just something very beautiful and soft about women. I love this bright painting, and loved the sculptures.

We drove around midtown and looked at all the beautiful homes. Now, I would live in Georgia if we could live here! Gorgeous homes, tree-lined lanes, sidewalks, parks, lots of trendy restaurants, total yuppie-ville.
Then it was off to meet Ron's parents for dinner at a really nice Thai restaurant. Ron and I drove by it this week and decided we had to try it. It was sooooo good! This week has been busy, busy. Tomorrow I'm sleeping in!

Ooh, grocery shopping today, we got Ella some stage 2 foods, we had sweet potatoes and corn. We also sat in the shopping cart without the car seat. Such a big girl!!!

On Air

Ron and I, in our week of Atlanta sightseeing, went to the CNN center and did a tour of the studios. We saw a live broadcast and got a look behind the scenes. As we were watching the different video feeds, we realized one of them was down the street from the house (my in-laws house). A bank was robbed next to the grocery store we go to and the robber who fled on foot, left a bag that had to be detonated. Crazy! I guess they've been trying to catch this guy for a while, apparently he's been robbing banks all over.
After the tour we met Ella, Grandma and Great-Grandma for lunch and then we all went off to visit Portia, a close family friend. It was a nice afternoon. Now if this weather would just cool down and be fall like everywhere else in the country!!!

Doctors and Daisies

This morning Ella had an appointment at the Children's Hospital for an ultrasound and an xray to check that her kidneys and bladder are functioning properly. As seems to be the trend in our lives right now, the news wasn't good. They filled up Ella's bladder (using a catheter) with some contrasting liquid and learned that Ella's bladder is refluxing into her kidneys. I'm not sure the medical condition for this but this explains how Ella got her UTI back in August. We were told that on a scale of 1-5 (5 being the worst) Ella's condition is a 2, her bladder is refluxing, but her kidneys aren't absorbing it and swelling. Dr. Ahn is going to contact us once the specialist gives her the diagnosis. She'll have to be on low grade antibiotics for a year (a year? )to protect her kidneys and the specialist thinks because it's not severe, she'll grow out of it. She goes for more tests in a year to determine if she has in fact outgrown it, or will need surgery. Apparently, this isn't uncommon and it's easily treated so we're not too concerned, but hope she doesn't need surgery down the road.

After the doctor, we went into Buckhead (very posh area in north Atlanta) and had lunch at a French bistro, La Madeline. So good! Then it was off to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. I love gardening and got so many good ideas. They had some beautiful gardens, lots of interesting flowers and it just smelled so wonderful.

One Fish, Two Fish

We decided to see the Georgia Aquarium today and see the Botanical Gardens on another day. When the Aquarium first opened last summer, you had to make reservations weeks in advance just to get in. Being a Tuesday, a school day, it wasn't very busy. The exhibits were gorgeous! The tanks and windows were huge, some that wrapped up and over your head, some in the ceiling overhead, and one was a big tunnel. Now, there wasn't anything I haven't seen before, but the displays and the aquarium itself were so breath-taking. You could sit for hours just watching a giant wall of fish 23 feet high and 61 feet wide. Amazing!

They also have a 4-D theatre that showed a cartoon feature about the delicate ocean, teaching people how to respect and conserve the underwater world (very "Finding Nemo"ish and so cute!). The 4-D was so fun! We had water sprayed on us, things popped out from under your seat, dangley things dropped from the ceiling, all while watching in 3-D. Ella couldn't take her eyes off the screen, even though she didn't get the 3-D effect because she didn't have the glasses. She didn't startle or cry at all; she was very attentive and loved the main character, Deepo, an adorable clown fish. It was a beautiful day, full of fun fish and underwater creatures. It's gearing me up for Hawaii!!!

A Day at the Zoo

Ron, Ella and I went to Zoo Atlanta today. The weather was gorgeous, low 80's but with no humidity. The zoo itself wasn't spectacular, but it was quiet and a nice day out. Because it is a school day, there were no crowds, just other people with small children.

It was an almost perfect day at the zoo. We saw the regular zoo inhabitants: a few elephants, zebras, a giraffe, some birds, a giant panda. My favorite of course were the gorillas. I love them! One male charged and beat his chest at us and there were a lot of females with babies on their backs; one mama with twins...adorable. Here's a pic of one of them. Everytime it tried to wander off, it'd only get so far and then whap mama would drag it back with her long arms.

There were a lot of animals that we didn't see as they were resting out of sight or at some place in their habitat out of view. We heard lions, but never saw any, a rhino's pen - no rhino. Ella was more fascinated with the other children and the statues of animals. Tomorrow it's off to the Botanical Gardens!

House Chores

Ron, Ella and I headed over to the house to do some last touch up repairs and wait for the fridge to be delivered. When we got there we noticed someone had ripped down our "For Rent" signs in the yard. They left the pegs though. We think it's the sales office in the neighborhood and that maybe you can't advertise with signs in the yard. Whatever. They can pretty much kiss our butts. So we went to Lowe's and bought a couple signs for the windows and an extra large one for the main window. I had been getting calls all week about the house and then nothing for the past couple of days. Hopefully we get the interest back up. This week we're sightseeing in Atlanta; tomorrow the zoo! We're going to get to see the panda Lun Lun and her cub. They have a "panda cam" that streams live video of mommy and her cub. Too cute, and something to idle away the time when surfing the net.

http://www.zooatlanta.org/animals_panda_cam.htm

Strolling

We went back to Arabia Mountain for an afternoon walk. Ron went for a run and Granddad, Ella and I walked about 4 miles.

It was gorgeous today. I love the weather right now, too bad spring and fall can't last longer here. Apparently it's going to get back up to the 80's next week.

Best Buy This Week

Amy and I, at our "Babies R Us" excursion this past week, bought a cover for the restaurant highchairs. It is awesome! (Amy, don't forget to take yours to Boston this week!) It comes with a detachable play bar that Ella has been playing with. She loves it and tries to figure out the little activities. Such a smart baby!

Tonight we went to CiCi's Pizza (all you can eat pizza for only 5 bucks!) and Ella got to sit in a high chair like a big girl. She was so proud! She watched everyone and loves to stare at other kids. The little boys really love her...I'm always surprised when little boys come up to her and smile or try to hold her hand. I mean, I expect that from little girls because babies look like dolls, but the boys are just as interested and affectionate. Not that I'm biased or anything ;) but Ella is GORGEOUS! :) I'm glad Ron is strict about his little girl...he's going to need to be when she's a teenager.

Stormy Times

Ella's face says it all... "Lord, please help my parents with their house. Please find someone to buy it or rent it and end the insanity! Amen." This is the last time I complain about it, even I'm sick of the whole house fiasco. Looking into some more options tomorrow, wish us luck and pray with Ella.

Tomorrow is Ron's last day at Fort Gillem. I'm excited to have him home for a while before we go to Hawaii. We'll be able to wrap up some last minute stuff and we've decided to buy a "CityPass" to see Atlanta before we leave. It gives us 6 sites for only $60 - CNN Tour, Atlanta Aquarium (biggest in the world), botanical gardens, Zoo Atlanta, High Museum of Art, and the World of Coke. Just the Aquarium, Zoo and CNN tour will be worth it.

Tonight a storm is moving through North Georgia and these are some of the clouds passing over the house at dinnertime. So pretty. I love it when it's stormy, I love the rain. Reminds me of home. Gotta run, "Survivor" and "Grey's Anatomy" on tv tonight!!

Ooh, I almost forgot! I've been leaving Ella on the floor on a blanket and today she finally rolled from back to front. It was only one time but it's a milestone!!!