Ellie is Growing UP

Athan is eight months old today, and Ellie is two years, eight months, and 1o days old. Since I have become a Mommy all those cliche sayings about how quickly time passes (except when you are pregnant....) and children growing like weeds I understand now. It feels like yesterday (oops! another cliche) that I married this great guy in a little chapel in big ole' Jacksonville. Ellie seems like a little lady here lately and Athan is just trucking along, smiling and reminding me to savor these moments of baby babbling and drool splatting on the floor and his sensitive, sincere joy. Because one day, though it seems far off, the baby babbling will be no more and I may be helping them with geometry instead of picking up the toy "again" off the floor. :) These thoughts were sparked by something Ellie said tonight --- "I'm scared. " Clayton was at his bookclub in Panera and I thought it would be fun to take the kids to Hobby Lobby and then the Library which are next door to Panera. While we were walking out of Hobby Lobby it was dark and that was when Ellie said, "I'm scared." I was so surprised, and saddened. I was surprised because she has never expressed fear before when we have been out. She knew from her surroundings that things were a little out of sorts, poor girl.

This is more on the funny side, but still shows Ellie's "growing up". The other night her and Clay were looking at this photography book (we always have a lot of these laying around from the library). This one particular picture was of this nomadic tribe that builds these little houses (a box basically) and has a team, I'm talking sixteen reindeer, pull the house! The images were really interesting. Well, these reindeer sparked something in Ellie, it was "teacher Ellie". :)

Ellie --- "These are antlers, can you say antlers?"

Clay ---- (messing with her) "aren't they horns?"

Ellie --- "They are kind of like horns, but horns are for cows."

[I sit down and join them.]

Ellie --- "Mommy I am a teacher."

So, Ellie will tutor for $35 an hour and can be flexible with the location. :)

Quick update on Athan, he is adorable, happy, smiles ALOT, and cries ALOT if he wants Mama and Mama isn't around or just walked pass him. He is in that clingy stage. He is strong, really strong. A lot of times when I am holding him he is trying to walk up me. The other day we were shopping and walking down this strip mall outside. Everytime a car drove by he would lunge towards it and start kicking his legs and smile. When we are out side he is perfectly happy if I keep kicking the ball (while holding him) and then run after it and do it again. Is he a boy or what? :) He is still just doing the army crawl, but does this with great speed. Miss Ellie is a wonderful big sis and helps me out a lot.

Enough of me going on about my kids. :) Have a wonderful night with your family.