Happy Birthday Ellie!

Dear Ellie, 

Today you are 9 years old! It is hard to believe that our teeny tiny Ellie is 9...but you are!
When I think of you I think of joy. You bring so much joy to our lives and you get so much joy out of life. You are bright and sunny and full of excitement over everything. Let me assure you, when you were a baby I never dreamed that one day I would use the word joyful to describe your outlook on life. You were kind of a grumpy baby (sorry, it's true!). You were never really a screamer as a baby (except every time I touched the brakes in the car) but you just grumbled all the time. But one day you woke up and were happy and you've been that way ever since. You have a delightful personality and I hope you stay that way. I love how excited you get over things, especially little things, and your whole face lights up and you bounce around like tigger.
Another thing I really love about you is your love for learning. You have always loved big words and I love when you come home from school and tell me all the cool things you learned that day. Of all the kids I think you love the classroom the most. Emmie loves school because she loves people but you love school because you love to accumulate knowledge. You absorb every single thing you hear and you don't ever forget it. I hope you always have your zeal for learning. Keep it up and you will make an excellent Jeopardy contestant one day!
This year you did theater as your extracurricular activity. This was your second year of theater and you once again loved it so much. I love watching you shine on the stage. You are normally so quiet and not an attention seeker but you just light up when you get up on stage and it makes me so happy to see that you've found an activity that you love. I hate that you haven't been able to do your spring show but maybe one day.
This year was a big year for you. We went on a Disney cruise, which was pretty much amazing and your favorite thing ever. You had the BEST time and especially loved the pool and Aquaduck. The year got a little crazy from there! You found out we were moving, you did 2 1/2mo of e learning and had quarantine, and we moved to Greenville. You were definitely NOT a fan of e learning. You didn't like being on the computer, you missed being in a classroom and you missed your friends and teacher.  But you powered through and made it to the end of the school year and did a great job learning the material you needed to with e learning. You did pretty well with the move. You were sad to leave your friends and your school and your theater people but you were excited about getting your own room (which you have thoroughly LOVED) and moving onto a street with lots of kids and friends that you already knew. I have been so proud of how you have handled all the changes this year. You have had hard days (as we all have) but you have powered through (usually by hiding in your room and reading) and you have adapted well.
Ellie, your 9 year old year should be an interesting one. This year we are doing virtual school. You were really sad about not going to actual school but you were more ok with the idea when I explained that school this year wouldn't be like normal school. This year you might also try a new activity (you're still thinking about what you might want to do) as I'm pretty sure theater won't happen or will be very different than normal if it does. I'm looking forward to see what new interest you want to explore! This year you might get to try skiing as I think we will be swapping out our planned Disney trip for a ski/snow tubing trip. You're pretty excited about learning to ski. AND most important, this year (in just a few days in fact!) you get to go to Bonclarken for the first time! We have been holding our breath for months waiting to see if it would happen and it is and you are so excited! It won't be like normal but you don't know what normal is so that won't matter to you. And I know that you will have an amazing time!
One of my favorite things is your love for reading. You remind me so much of myself and I love how much you love books. I hope books are always your friends and that you always love reading as much as you do now. This year you discovered how to check out ebooks from the public library...thank goodness...it was rough when the library first closed and you couldn't get new books.
Oh and before I get, this has been the year of you losing teeth! I call you my little jack o lantern now! Also, I'm pretty positive some of those teeth weren't lose when the day started and by the end of the day you had yanked them out! You have been really slow losing teeth so you get so excited every time one falls out.
Ellie Belly, I love you so much. I hope your 9th year is wonderful and full of many fun adventures, joyful moments, and new books. You are the calm in the middle of the crazy, you light up our lives and I am so proud to be your mom.

Love, mom

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

July 14, 2011