So Happy!

I think it is safe to say that Ella and Avery are enjoying their summer. I know Ella is. She has become a little fish in the water. She lives to go swimming every day. Luckily we have a pool in our complex and my parents have a pool as well. She wakes up thinking about and asking to go swimming and spends hours in the pool. She is so much more independent in the water this year. The other day we were swimming and she just kept saying, "I so happy!" I was so excited. Not only do I love that she is such a happy kid, I love HEARING her tell me those words. Her vocabulary and spontaneous language has grown so much in the past few months. It still catches me off guard. It has been a lot of hard work, daily speech therapy and endless repetition, but we are finally seeing the progress we have been longing for. Everything from the longer sentences, to clearer words, to expressing her emotions has finally begun to emerge.

It is really special to hear your child speak to you. There is something about being able to have a little conversation with her that changes our relationship. Of course this is all part of watching your child grow. I know every parent goes through this feeling in some way or another. I think waiting a little longer for the chance to have these two-way conversations with Ella is extra special for me. I celebrate every milestone she reaches, but this is a big one. We have waited a long time to see significant progress in speech. I feel like I have more confidence now moving forward as we get ready for pre-k in the fall. I never doubt Ella. I have huge expectations for her, but it's funny how one small sentence can provide so much reassurance. I so happy.