It's been a while I made any updates. Life is good, busy, crazy, and trying at times. I've been struggling with allergies and sinus issues a lot lately. But I've also been blessed to learn and grow too.
I moved jobs (within the same company thankfully), and I am now liking my new department and responsibilities, and most importantly the fact that I'm much relieved from the stress of a pretty crazy boss and clients. In Fall, I've gotten approved to take my Project Management Professional (PMP) certification exam, for which I'm very proud of but also concerned with how am I going to find the time to study for. I feel very blessed and grateful for Heavenly Father's love and care for me. Before finding this other opportunity within the company, I submitted my resignation and started looking, had a promising interview with a company in a completely different industry but since this new opening came up in a group I was interested before, I decided not to pass it up. I've been looking into telecommute opportunities and luckily my current employer has started offering such arrangements. We will see if I can benefit from it at least for a couple of days a week.
Our family is doing well, we're still working towards adoption someday. We pre-selected a few times over the summer for pre-adoptive placements but things didn't work out (I'm sure for the best) and did not get those placements. There have also been a lot of changes in the adoption agency we are with and it didn't help. Meantime we're enjoying the life we have, the trials and blessings we receive.
Ella is doing great, growing and bringing more and more joy in our lives.
She's learning who is she, what she likes, and teaching us a few things too along the way.
Horseback riding: she's still at it, although very recently she came to a crossroads of whether she was going to continue or not. Challenged with being bucked off, not getting to where she was planning to, lacking confidence, but she decided to keep at it and work with her pony. I think she'll keep going with this. She's also expressed interest in starting tennis (she's got an amazing backhand and not too shabby forehand too!)
School: doing good, trying her hand at different things: made it through round 10 of Matchbook, a literary competition, and would really love to make the final team that will represent the school at district. She knows that we are very proud of her that from a year or so ago with hardly ever wanting to read a "thick" chapter book, last summer she read 10 of the Texas Bluebonnet award winners, and this past summer read all 20 chapter books. To enter the Matchbook competition, she had to read an additional 15 titles which she did. We are indeed very proud of her.
She has many favorites amongst these titles:
She tried Nat Geo bee, didn't make the team, but had fun in the process. She's still going strong with piano. A natural talent, most recently starting to play her own little compositions.
She had a part in the school Christmas program and did great! Many kids auditioned and only a handful were selected which made this even sweeter.
Did some jumping during the Christmas break.
We had a nice little Christmas getaway to Cali and enjoyed the Pacific Coast Hwy beautiful places.
Yesterday was a big day: aside from the fact that the temperatures were in the high 70's, and that church was wonderful, Ella accomplished a left lead canter on Piccolo, something she has not been able in a long time. And to her delight we got a very fun family picture with both Piccolo and Marmalade, our newest kitty addition. Marmalade's intake to our family deserves its own post.
A special moment of love. Marking Ella's determination to keep trying and enjoy this sport, and get the response she needs from her beloved horse.
