just when it looked like the milestones were coming further and further apart a new one has popped up to each day. last night while we were winding down ellie’s day with some tummy time and playing, we decided to sit her on the ground like a normal human. we’ve been doing this for quite some time and she’s always been very wobbly. last night was different. there was this faint indication that she might be processing the concepts of balance and compensation, so we let go.

she was wobbly still at first and because she was having a laughing fit, as you saw yesterday, she repeatedly and completely lost her balance and needed to be caught. well, i guess while i was at work today, bryn gave it another go, this time in her crib right after waking up from a nap. and what do you know? balance! compensation! a little wobble this way and she pulled it right back to center. a little wobble that way and she pulled it right back. i’m sure bryn was quite pleased, but of course she failed to share this news with ellie’s FATHER (!) until he returned from work. why i oughta!

despite that, i was lucky enough to witness part two in “i sit by myself on various surfaces, by ellie lack” after i got home. it was amazing. it’s funny to look back on pictures like this one and to then turn around and see the young lady that now SITS before us.

it’s nothing short of a surreal experience.

ah, man, a good belly laugh is always a great way to wash away the stresses and annoyances of a long day at work. funny enough, our child was happy to help this evening.

i got home earlier than usual since we’re coming off the holiday weekend and the traffic was almost non-existent. that meant that i got about two hours with ellie, which was nice, but she was not feeling it when i first got here. it’s not that she was in a bad mood, she just wasn’t in a particularly good one. that all changed when i sat her up on the floor and mommy decided to say hi.

so you may be wondering why we videotaped this. so what, another laughing fit. we’ve seen it. right? wrong. these laughs are different. they’re HUMAN laughs, not just little alien baby sounds. they’re the kind of laughs that make her entire body giggle and they’re hilarious. both bryn and i were hot and tired after this fit finally ended, some five minutes after the video stopped.

it’s such a pleasure to watch ellie grow and change. just when we get used to how she is, we reach another minor milestone … and in the video she’s basically sitting up by herself. soon we’ll have her up without any help whatsoever. go bells!