First day of school!

The darling 2nd Grader!!

Nicely situated in her seat. A little smile and lots of jitters (she was worried that the teacher might not know how to handle her food allergies accommodations. Well, she was right to be worried, big sigh! And so the fight begins... again! I'm praying for patience with the school and the teacher and I think everything will work out fine.)



One more, love you sweetheart! May you have super duper exciting and fun school year!

[She came home super excited about school and her new teacher and the fact that they followed her 504 plan accommodations with her help. (She told her teacher what the accommodations were for snack time and lunch. I am so proud of her and the fact that she is smart and beyond-her-years mature to stand up and on her own for her needs.) After school, she had Pop Chef fruit, chocolate teddy grahams and turkey chili. (Lately, I haven't recorded some of the daily/small details of life such as foods we eat, shows we like but I just realized that too much of the heavy stuff, you know, the worries and concerns are NOT good for the heart. Life is made up of the little things too!!]

The rest of the first day of school was just as good. We had dinner, family home evening with a lesson about the 2,000 stripling warriors, one of Ella's favorite stories, and went for a quick bike ride before it started raining (again.) I think I am ready now. 

Homemaking and a few other things

I shall call this post... . We've been settled into our new home for almost a month now and boy it feels good. There was a lot of work involved but it was worth it. We love the layout and the coziness of the house.

The bravo goes to Hrishi for all hanging the pictures and especially for the very nicely done collage of Ella's pictures.

I have been thinking of this little project to spruce up a bit the grassy and bit boring landscaping. I think a little color can go long ways. I love the weather is warm and summery here long into the fall season. Folks in the gardening dept tell me that I should be able to "stretch out" my annuals through a couple of years. Today I was finally able to start my project. Ella helped too but cautious as she's highly allergic to molds, grasses, pollen, etc. 

Here's the finished product:

With some nice loving tender care, they'll grow and bring even more color. We are particularly excited about the hibiscus.

Yesterday was my birthday. I turned my real age which is 37. We spend half of the day in the doctor's office getting Ella skin tested for her allergies. We got some good news: she tested negative to dogs, cats, bird feathers, and horse hair, yahoo!!!! You cannot imagine the joy and excitement that came over her, well later after we left the doctor's office. The old and not so good news were that she's highly allergic to molds and dust mites, pollen, grasses, and trees. Oh well, we'll continue with medication (year round) and might start allergy shots. She's absolutely terrified of shots in general but has agreed to give them a try. We are so proud of her. So we came her and got into celebration mode, well almost. We made chicken and beef fajitas and Shu and Andrea brought guacamole. Of course we had cake. Red velvet, my favorite. Although I was emotionally exhausted from the doctor's office experience (she didn't take the whole skin test very well), and at some point I just felt like getting into my PJs and laying on the couch with a big slice of cake, I got it together and had a good time with the family and friends. 

All the beautiful cards I got. To those I add the Facebook and text message wishes that did make my day, thanks for all the wonderful family and friends who remembered that it was my birthday.

Some pictures from the doctor's office. I love it that we were able to be all there, cry, and fuss together, and then laugh together.

Hrishi carefully examining the reactions on her back. He got quite a few right.

Those really big ones are the milk and peanuts, the other big ones are molds, dust mites, and grasses/pollen.

With the little gift she got.
                                                

I love my sweetheart!

She'll be starting subcutaneous desensitization, that is allergy shots in layman's terms, in a few weeks. We're hopefully that those will help in the long run with dealing a little better with environmental allergens. Last night I couldn't really sleep well thinking of all the extra deep cleaning I somehow have to fit in. Sigh...

It was a great day though and wouldn't have it any other way. 

Now a few pictures from beautiful Del Lago in Magnolia. That place is so peaceful.

And a few of our amazing neighborhood. The lake is right behind.

(Now, these are some amazingly beautiful and flagrant flowers/bushes. They would look wonderful in our backyard!!)

Fall

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Lovely ladies! Heather with Katie, her fourteen year-old student from Chicago who took a little two-week vacation here in Houston to ride and help Heather, and Ella of course who learned so much from watching Katie ride.  Katie helped school Remi quite a lot.

Remi and Ella hard at work.

 She loves this little tough guy, he's a power pack, well trained pony.

 Cooling off a very little three-year-old student of Heather's.

Loving the filly:

A new friend, Mr. Scottish.

 Riding at dusk, last time before Katie left. The great news is that they get to ride and hang out together in the ring as Katie might be able to visit much more often, at least during her school breaks.

 She had an amazing ride that evening:

 One more, kind of blurry but still beautiful. Next time I really need to try to remember to bring my camera.

Wearing the Del Lago logo shirt which she got as a gift from Heather and Ramon.

Her and Remi again. Remi is making great progress with his jumps. This is my favorite picture of them so far:

How about this one?

Grilling party at barn after riding:

 Getting washed by the barn groom. Remi is truly so happy at Del Lago, so calm and peaceful.

Taking Scottish out for a ride.

Taking a break before riding Samson:

  but something happened last night... something a little rider or her parents are never thrilled to see happen.... she fell off of Samson. There weren't tears, just some good TLC talk between her and Heather, and later on with momma and daddy. She got right back in the saddle. This little letter below summarizes the million thoughts, emotions, and impressions that poured over me as I watched from a few feet away and pondered late into the night.

Dearest Ella:

You only fell off tonight so that you can show us all how strong and determined to get back up you truly are. 

You only fell off tonight to experience maybe the whole spectrum of emotions, from amazingly wonderful to downright scary, that make up an athlete's world.

You only fell off tonight to realize how much you love riding, as you got up, dusted yourself off, and got back in the saddle. That is the mark of a champion not only in the equestrian arena but in life. I hope you will remember this tiny experience in your darker times when you will need to get up and keep going. 

We love you and are so proud of you! You're doing some amazing things and Heaven is smiling upon you.

... the way you play your Fugue, Na Todce, and March.

... the way you play your scales.

... the way you draw.

... the way you figure out your multiplication table.

... the way you so gracefully yet strongly, handle a 800 + lbs pony.

... the way you make connections with the world around you, and understand it, and love it, and live in it.

... the way you take hardship.

... the way YOU ARE.

Love, 
Mommy and Daddy

And although this summer was pretty much all about horses/ponies/riding, Ella did get to do some other things.

She won a reading award from the library for reading a good 20 + books in a couple of weeks.
(Here with her trophy and certificate.)

Engrossed in reading a book about horses (of course!)

The batch we just picked up. I'm excited about these and she is too.

She's doing a really good job with her ABRSM (Royal Music Academy) exam preparation too.

Come Fall this little girl will be mighty busy aside from school, she's got a big birthday coming up --turning eight, a baptism, a couple of exams, a couple of horse shows, and who knows what else?!!! Loving life with its ups and downs. I wouldn't have it any other way. I am happy with our lot and hope to always remember to stay grateful, give more and love more.

Otherwise, we're enjoying our new home, working hard, getting ready for a business trip to good old Omaha, and turning 27! Ha-ha, yes I wish!