Glad To Be a Gladden: Ellie Clardy Gladden: 7 Months

Ellie is 7 months old!! I can't believe it. These pictures are almost impossible to take, now!

She became a crawler at 5.5 months old. At 6.5 months old, Ellie began to try walking. She holds our hands and hot trots around the house. She can slowly and cautiously use her little walking toys to take steps. She is so very eager to start walking. She pulls up on her walking toys on her own and starts taking steps without my help! We can't set her down without her immediately crawling to a structure she can pull up on, so that she can stand and start walking along or scaling the wall. She stands up in her crib and scales alongside it, too. She hates to be laying down for a diaper change and to not be able to crawl or stand and supported walk to wherever she wants to go. We no longer use her changing table. The second we lay her down, she flips over, pops up to her hands and knees and starts crawling away. So now we just change her on the floor.

She is now a lover of her greens. Except broccoli. She did not give broccoli the approval. Which is kind of funny to me because while all greens made me nauseous while pregnant, none compared to wrath of broccoli. Once, Eric pulled some out and just opened the lid and I actually fell to the floor with nausea and crawled on hands and knees to the bathroom to throw up. I told him to throw it out! So she has never been a fan. She loves bananas and apples.

Ellie and I hiked at Cedar Falls Park on Groundhogs Day with Mimi and our hiking friends. We listened to a story about groundhogs and saw a pretty waterfall. That evening, Ellie went with me and G-Daddy to a princess Meet and Greet at Williamston Town Hall where Ellie got to meet all the Disney Princesses and have her photos taken. It was a wonderfully organized event by the Palmetto High School Cheerleaders- this was special because G-Daddy played football for Palmetto, and the Clardy family all grew up in Williamston. Our small town. Ellie loved the events.

The next day, the Gladden crew packed up early to head to GA to see the Jones family. We celebrated Lydia's sixth birthday at a cabin in Amacolala State Park. We grilled out, hiked the highest peak in GA to a beautiful waterfall, and watched Lydia open her presents and be the star of the show. Ellie did not enjoy the long car ride because the poor girl was put directly in the car seat as soon as she woke up (after her bottle) and she didn't get a chance to play and get her energy out. But the entire trip back home, she slept like a rock and we threw her right back in her crib for the night. She loves her bed.

Ellie got 6 months shots and an EKG was performed as another safe precaution to confirm her heart was normal. Praise God it read normal!

Ellie and I also hiked Chimney Rock, DuPont State Park's, Triple Falls & High Falls, Little Bradley Falls, and Moore Cove Falls. Ellie loves our hiking adventures. She loves the outdoors, seeing the waterfalls, playing with her baby friends, eating dirt, and exploring. It is one of her happiest times. To be outdoors and exploring in God's creation with my baby is such an incredible bonding experience. She and I got a new to us back carrier and we LOVE it. Ellie was even happier in it than in the front carrier. It was easier to carrier her as well, now that she is getting quite heavy. We also went to the park with our hiking friends, in TR, for a super awesome and fun Olympics themed play date. Ellie got to ride the bobsled, do an opening ceremony walk, and even wore a Laurel Wreathe Crown. It was 80 degrees, sunny, and fabulous.

Ellie celebrated her first Valentine's Day. We are so thankful for all the Valentine's our families sent her. She loved holding her cards and listening to the words written to her. They are kept forever. I save cards. I think cards are a precious keepsake as they are filled with love and emotions of our dearest. I wrote a blog already on her first Valentine's Day experience so I won't delve into it other than to say that she helped bake and deliver brownies to Daddy's work, the Easley Fire Dpt. and Easley Police Dpt. She also did crafts and had lots of Valentine's Story Books.

Ellie got to attend her first ballet hosted by the International Ballet Company at the Hughes Library downtown Greenville. The production was an adaptation of the storybook, "Copellia." Ellie wore a princess outfit as tutus and tiaras were encouraged. She LOVED watching the dancers, costumes, and listening to the music. Ellie seems to really enjoy music and productions. She behaves very well, smiles, squeals with joy, and jumps up and down!

She also went to story time with Cinderella. Cinderella read us all stories, sang and danced with us, and turned on the bubble machine! Ellie was her usual happy cheerful and excited self!

She has started babbling with distinct, "mah-mah," "buh-buh," and "bay- bay" sounds. She loves to squeal very loudly with pure joy and delight. She probably has learned this from me....

She is creeping into 18 months clothing. Everything is so short on her arms and legs but she is actually quite lean for her height, so the clothes are loose on her tummy but fit her limbs well. To go smaller means high waters and 3/4 length sleeves.So I just pin the middle if needed.

When I get her out of the tub, now, we wrap her up like a little burrito, and we walk past the mirror ans smile and squeal before getting her ready for bed. She knows that mirror is coming. As soon as she is wrapped in the towel burrito, you can see her little face light up quite mischievously, one eyebrow raised, cheeks smiling into her eyeballs...and when we turn by way of that mirror she coos at herself. I told her she knows she is pretty!