Thoughts

Ellie: 

Things I wish she didn't enjoy so much - but they make me laugh:

• Ellie loves to pull my hair. I don't mean when it's down - I mean when it's pulled back. She loves to grab it from the top, yanking it out of its ponytail piece by piece. It hurts and I look disheveled 24/7. I'm constantly repairing the ponytail. All day long. We laugh and laugh as she does it...
• She can't keep her hands off the vertical blinds by our patio door. Her highchair sits next to them; if I leave her there for more than 30 seconds without moving her chair, she has two blinds tight in her grasp and she's pulling them into her lap. If we're standing or sitting within a foot of the blinds, she's stretching out of my arms or lap to grab and pull at them. Her persistence makes me laugh.

Other things just make me laugh:

• She will sit in her exersaucer and laugh and laugh and laugh. I'm not sure what she's laughing at, but it makes me laugh back.
• She will hold her burp rag in her fists, bring it right up to eye level and laugh...and laugh...and laugh! She finds the silliest things hilarious - I find her hilarious! I'm usually laughing right along with her.
• The other night, Steve was walking with her and she just took off! She was pretty much running as fast as her tiny legs could carry her - poor Steve could barely keep up :)
• In the shower, she tries to catch the streams of water coming out of the showerhead. We think she must compare it to the strings on a hoodie and wonder why she can't get ahold of it.
• She takes a drink of water from her sippy cup in between each and every bite of food. Then she throws the sippy cup to her tray with a bang. Every time.
• This weekend she began scrunching her face up and closing her eyes every time she saw the camera. We spent a good half hour on Friday night just taking pictures like these:

 Oh yeah - and she's such a big girl now, she can stand up to things without us holding on to her (mostly)

Steve:

Steve is amazing. He never fails to surprise me with his thoughtfulness, how hard he works, and his good attitude. Case in point: Ellie got us all sick this week. I started feeling crummy Thursday night and for Steve it was Friday. Since Friday, Steve has done all of the dishes and cleaning up in the kitchen. He has taken care of Ellie way more than his fair share of the time. He cooked dinner Saturday night - and it was delicious! He makes me herbal tea when I need some. He will walk around the apartment with Ellie tirelessly. He reminds me of how beautiful I am (even when I'm at my sickest and worst). He is so patient and so tolerant - he is so easy to live with! He gets up every day and goes to work so I can stay home with Ellie. He works so hard at his job. And then he does everything necessary for his callings - happily and willingly. He's such a great example. I'm a happy wife.

and me:

I've decided that having a baby has made me much more sensitive. I was not expecting that! For instance. The other day (when we were sick) I turned on Legally Blonde while Ellie and I played in the living room. There were one or two spots that made me cry. Seriously?? Legally Blonde? Who cries in that movie?? Me apparently. I distinctly remember one of the scenes I teared up during was when people were mean to her. I imagine that happening to Ellie and my heart hurts.

Same thing happens in books. I just read this fabulous Young Adult book (recommended to me by one of the YW in my ward) called Petey. Steve found me reading in bed one night and I was crying. I threw the book down on the bed and said, "I don't know if I can read this!" It's about a boy with cerebral palsy and again, people are mean to him. I think I have way more empathy for characters and people in general that aren't treated well. It always makes me think of Ellie and how sad that would be.

Oh, and by the way, this doesn't just happen to me when I read about sad things. It happens when things make my heart happy as well. Most of the February Ensign articles have made me cry too. Does this happen to anyone else out there? Please tell me I'm not the only crazy lady...