Ella started school on Sept 15th. She was a bit overwhelmed and looked kind of wary of it at first but now she seems to know what is happening when we put her on the van in the morning. I’ve gone to visit her at least twice at the school and have the impression that the program is much more intense on the therapies and structure than was the summer program (as everyone said it would be). Kim, Ella’s teacher, is amazing. She remembers so much about each child and works so well coordinating all the aides, therapists, assistants, etc. Ella seems to be different following the surgery in that she is more alert and somewhat more talkative. She is more exact with her vocalizations. Significant progress is being made on the toileting front. This morning she spent the whole morning without a diaper. The problem is that she uses the “pee-pee” and “kah-ki” (poop) as a weapon. Currently I am in her favor so she goes immediately when I put her on but does so in dribbles so I have to keep praising her over and over until she lets it all out. I finally got her going at school (she refused to go in the toilet over the summer). We did it gradually: first I took her to the toilet, then Kim took her successfully and now apparently she’s ok with others too. (Ugh, so much work…). Walking is a little more stable and now we’ve opened the front wheels on the walker and she is able to control and keep her balance. I still have to help her a bit with a lead (we use one of Chamlo’s old leashes tied attached to the walker), especiall when stearing through doorways and over thresholds. They are still working on getting her an suitable walker at school. Apparently one was never ordered over the summer like we thought. Ella is eating very well and finishes off almost everything (of the 5 accepted food types) we put on her plate.