Time is a-flyin'! (and so is Ellie!)

Guess who's mobile???

Ellie bean

She likes chalk.  Pica?

Around her 10 month "birthday", Ellie started to crawl!  As a result, the baby-proofing has begun (kind of).  We didn't have to baby proof much with Abby because she never got into anything she wasn't supposed to.  I can't really tell yet if Ellie will be much different - she still hasn't shown any fascination with outlets or cabinets - but she's only just started to crawl so who knows!  Hopefully we won't have to make too many changes, seeing as how we're moving in a few weeks. (!! Maybe I should start packing? Maybe we should FIND A PLACE TO LIVE?? Yes I'm just a little bit stressed.).  Anyway, it's amazing how quickly a baby can go from "kind of crawling" to full speed flying across the room!  It's so fun to watch her follow Abby all around the house.

Ellie is starting to eat normal food, but it's quite a battle with her because she seems to have "texture" issues with food.  We've finally gotten her to the point where she can eat the little puff stars (baby food snacks that dissolve in your mouth, for you non-parents out there).  But she still doesn't put them in her mouth herself!  I can't figure out if that's a good thing (she can't put other small non-food objects in her mouth) or an annoying thing (I can't just sit her down and put a snack in front of her for her to eat). I tried to give her some baby food with tiny little chunks of veggies/rice in it, but Ellie gagged and threw it all up.  Oh well... I'm just anxious to stop buying baby food, I guess!  So pricey.  All in good time, I suppose.

If I could use one word to describe Ellie right now, it would be HAPPY.  My dad said the same thing when he was here for Garrett's graduation.  She is just so happy and content to sit on the floor with a pile of toys and just play.  She wakes up happy, is happy to be held, and is just as happy to be on her own.

I've been thinking a lot about nature/nurture lately.  I've noticed, as a mother, that my attitude seriously rubs off on my kids in a big way.  When I am stressed and in a bad mood, my kids get cranky and whiny (or maybe I just notice it more since I'm in a bad mood?). As I result, I get even MORE stressed and angry and it just starts a really bad cycle.  However, the more low-key and easygoing I am, the more my kids reflect that same attitude.  As a person I am pretty low-maintenance and I don't stress about very much - I try to just go with the flow (most of the time).  Thankfully my kids are turning out similarly, so I'm wondering how much much of that is nurture and how much is nature.  Thoughts?

if you look closely, you can see her red knees.. evidence of mobility!