Fun and Games

Well, no luck with the earrings so far.

This morning, Ellie and I went on a playdate and had a good time. All the other mothers were jealous of me, because my child played quietly in one of the host children's bedrooms the whole time, demanding very little. I assured them that it was because of the exciting toys in there (doll stroller, shopping cart, car seat, and playpen) and that behavior is not duplicated for such long stretches of time at home.

After nap, we played quietly around the house because I was still tired. We snuggled up on the couch and I told Ellie a short story about fairy princess Eleanor, preparing her for her role as "flower girl" in Aunt Grace's wedding next month. (She doesn't really have any duties as flower girl, but she will be dressed as an adorable fairy.)

Ellie buried her head in the corner of the couch, then stood up and held up her index finger at me. "Back!" she said, and headed for her room. She returned moments later with some actual books for me to read to her. "Book!" There's one vote against my storytelling prowess!

Later, she found an unopened 9-pack of big girl underpants in her top dresser drawer, which she brought to me for assistance. We were back in pull-ups after an unsuccessful run with big girl underpants earlier in the afternoon. She insisted that I help her pull on a pair of underpants over her pull-ups. Then another pair. And another. We ended up with 4 pairs of underpants over the pull-ups, and she was content. She was even willing to try sitting on the toilet again. (But she still peed in the pull-ups.)

Today was fun and relaxing, but a little sad, too. My Ellie is so beautiful and so smart and so fun and so funny. But watching her in the company of her peers - kids we took Gymboree classes with when they were all infants - was eye-opening too. I used to notice gross and fine motor differences. Some of those are still there, of course, though that gap has narrowed considerable.

But today the language differences were really noticeable. I know how amazingly lucky we are that Ellie seems to have no hearing problems, and that she talks at all. She does talk. She has a very functional vocabulary and every day I am grateful for that and for how much she's learning. But she's just not expressing the complex thoughts, or speaking in sentences the way her same-age playmates are.

I love my little girl as she is. I want her to achieve as much as she can, and I want her to be able to do that in an environment that is fun and supportive, not judgmental and high-pressure. But that doesn't mean I'm not a little sad still when I notice differences like this.

Anyway, today ended with a humbling bang. We were at The Pasta House Company, and Ellie's milk ended up on the floor ("uh oh!" my left foot). I was reaching for it when - Slip! Boom.

Not only did I end up on my bottom on the ground, but then the wooden chair toppled oh-so-slowly, clattering onto the extremely well-waxed floor. It took long enough to draw the attention of many of the patrons and staff at the restaurant, most of whom rushed over to check on me. How embarrassing. I laughed it off; since I didn't fall far, I don't think I'm hurt.

As is the way of these things, I noticed later that my tailbone hurts a little. And my back cracks whenever I square my shoulders. And did I actually hit my elbow? But it's reassuring to sit on the couch and feel New Baby moving around, so I think I'll sign off and just do that for a bit.