Day of Firsts!!!

Elli is officially crawling! I asked Ehrin today if she was crawling and she wouldn't give me a straight answer so as soon as I got home I sat a couple of feet from Elli and she crawled right over to me! I could seriously feel my heart swell. Already I can tell our lives have changed and I'm sure she will only get quicker and quicker in the coming days. Time to baby proof!

A little shout out to cousin Grace here...thanks for all your help teaching Elli how to crawl. We couldn't have done it without you!! Elli loves you SO MUCH!!!

The funny thing is that Elli's favorite thing to do right now is not to crawl, but to walk. She loves to hold on to someone's hands and walk. She just laughs and talks the whole time she's 'walking'. She especially loves to run. Elli gets very mad whenever you stop walking her. It's not pretty. I wish I could figure out a way to download videos on here because I'd love to show how she HIGH steps when she's walking.

We had another first today...Elli had her very own Oreo. I grabbed a cookie for a pre-dinner snack and gave Elli a bite of the filling (that's true love...sharing my Oreo filling). She loved it. When Greg and I were eating dinner I gave Elli some puffs and shared some french fry (Penn Station french fries are the best and very healthy for an almost 9 month old to munch on). Then I told Greg about Elli's deep love for the Oreo filling and teased them both by giving her an entire cookie. Let's just say, Elli was in baby heaven and her clothes were a complete mess (and Greg was about to have a cow but ultimately enjoyed the show). I know I have a flashing neon light over my head saying "BAD MOMMY! BAD MOMMY!" I'm sure Gerber would not recommend Oreo cookies to those Elli's age but you only live once...right!?!? I have some awesome pictures but I can't get them to upload...I'll try again tomorrow...stay tuned.

Last week I LEFT ON A JET PLANE...and Elli didn't even realize I was gone. It was my first time really leaving her. I traveled to CA on a quick 48 hour business trip. I didn't see her for two full days. Luckily, the trip was super quick and busy so I didn't really get too much of a chance to miss Greg and Elli. The trip was at the same time as some things for Greg so my awesome mom came to stay for a couple days to help. I can't decide who had more fun while I was gone - Elli or mom. When Elli woke up on Friday I don't think she knew who she wanted - she was torn between loving on me and then loving on mom.

We were playing in Elli's room that day - Elli and I on the floor and mom in the rocking chair. Mom said something and Elli looked up at her. I was at such an angle that all I saw was Elli's profile looking up. She was completely absorbed looking and listening to mom and it struck me at that moment how much I look up to my grandparents. Greg and I are so blessed to have the grandparents we do and Elli's grandparents are pretty terrific too. We've learned from and been loved by amazing men and women and I am so grateful to have mine and Greg's parents and grandparents who are such amazing Christian people...who love the Lord completely and truly showcase that they love us and that Jesus loves us. I don't think there was ever a time that Grandpa said goodbye without saying "I love you and Jesus loves you" and there was usually a "darlin'" said either before or after the statement. More than anything I want Elli to know that I love her and Jesus loves her.

Aunt Sara's birthday was Saturday...Happy Birthday Aunt Sara! We celebrated the day along with a late celebration for Mamaw Sally whose birthday was the weekend before. Seriously, I don't know how Addie gets cuter every time we see her. It doesn't seem possible, but she truly does. Addie shared some of her new toys with Elli this weekend...thanks Addie! We definitely don't see Addie as much as we want to! Happy Birthday Aunt Sara and Mamaw!! We had so much fun hanging out with you this weekend.