Our little snuggle bunny....Ellie must have really been missing her daddy while he was playing golf because she wouldn't leave his side once he got home.
But he'd better not dare talk during Mickey Mouse Clubhouse....OR ELSE....
Just kidding. How could this little sweet face be anything but an angel?
Ellie has become quite the Backyardigans fan. Her Granny got her a little Backyardigans fold out chair, that she just adores. Now we have to name each character as she points to them, no less than 20 times a day.
And when she hears that theme song, she stops whatever she's doing, starts dancing, and makes her way to the chair.
She may even nap in the chair on occasion, so she is sure to not miss another episode.
I think we may have a musical prodigy on our hands, and I'm not just saying that because she's my beautiful, genius daughter.....Well, maybe I am, but I do believe she's a genius. Ellie has grown quite fond of playing the piano, sitting on Mom's lap. And she likes to help Dad strum on the guitar. The best part, though, is watching her little dances whenever music plays. This girl's got rhythm.
Now that Ellie is close to 11 months old, I'm finally getting around to posting some of her 9 month old shots. These were taken at the Jewel Box in Forest Park.
Ellie's hair is growing in quite nicely, so she's been wearing a lot of bows and barrettes lately. This was the first day she actually got to wear two barrettes at once, and she looked so cute that we just had to share the pics.
After our vacation at the Lake, Ellie became quite the fan of swimming, or should I say splashing. So shortly after we returned home, she was at it again, but this time in the kiddie pool that Granny bought for her. 
Jason prepared for what he hoped would be a three-peat of our winning performance by exhibiting his favorite golf poses. And his actual golf swing was going well, but alas, it was not to be. Sadly, after holding the Freed Cup for the past 2 years, we had to relinquish the title to Mike & Sue. However, let me caveat that by saying the rules were drastically changed this year in order to give everyone else an advantage, in the hopes that they would be able to compete more equally with the J. Freed team.
Each year during the Lake vacation, we have a couples golf tournament. All the couples MUST play (to the protest of some of the non-golf-playing wives). And for the past two years, we've implemented a matching outfits requirement, which Kate enjoys because it means more shopping. This year, even Ellie matched the green/white/black Jason Freed team ensemble.
We recently spent a week at the Lake of the Ozarks for our annual family vacation. We go with all of the Freed family and stay in adjoining condos. A good time is always had by all. This year, in honor of Papa Mike's upcoming birthday, we threw a surprise party, complete with "Mike masks" that portrayed Mike through the years, and more pink flamingo decorations than should reasonably be found together in one room (Mike has a problem with the plastic yard ornament variety).
Ellie has discovered the wonderful world of ice cream. Granny and Papi Marler hosted a get together for Aunt Laura and Uncle Nathan's medical school graduation. Everyone had a great time visiting and eating, and Ellie enjoyed watching all the bigger kids. But her favorite part was probably the ice cream cones. You should have seen how quick she spit her binky out when she saw that ice cream coming towards her.
Now that Ellie is mobile, she's enjoying all the freedom that comes with it... The freedom to crawl around to play with different toys. The freedom to sit as close to the tv as possible. The freedom to enjoy Tigger to the fullest extent.
Ellie must have known I was having trouble finding the time to clean out the pantry, because one day she took it upon herself to help me out. Although, apparently she hasn't liked the way I've reorganized it since she seems to rearrange it for me on a daily basis now. Or maybe she's just trying to tell me she's hungry.
Ellie's cousin, Kameron, recently turned 3, and we all enjoyed a BBQ birthday party over Memorial Day weekend. Ellie had lots of fun swinging (she could stay there all day if we'd let her) and playing with her cousins and her Papa Mike. It was a great day all around.
Ellie has begun to crawl!! She did the army crawl for awhile, pulling herself along with her arms. Then she started pushing herself back up to hands and knees, and before we knew it she was a pro. The first time she actually did a full fledged crawl, Mommy started yelling and clapping for her. Ellie gave me a little side-ways glance, as if to say, "What's your problem?" Then she went right along with her business as if crawling was no big deal.
Jason graduated with his MBA in May, and we couldn't be more proud. It was a long couple of years...just ask him. But he finally finished. Now that's just one more thing he can mark off his to do list. Next up--world domination.
