Play time

Ellery and I have started going to the University Mall now and again in the mornings while Millie sleeps (the mornings after she has to work). It's much easier (and WAY more fun) to keep Ellery from making too much noise and waking up Millie. There are always a lot of other moms (and usually one other dad) with their little one(s). Most of the moms just sit on the benches and visit while their kids run around and play on the fake trees, dinosaur bones, and rocks. Every now and then they (the moms) will get up follow their kid(s) around and regulate play, either that of their own child or try to tactfully regulate other people's children (all the kids are preschool age). Any fathers that are ever there (including myself) usually just sit out of the way on a fake rock and watch the kids, rarely, if ever, intervening in their play, and never conversing one with another.

I'm not one for social interaction when it comes to such settings... but I do like to watch Ellery and how she interacts with others.

For the most part she just keeps to herself in her own little world. She spends time running around in circles looping around the fake trees, then spinning till she falls over and tosses in a few jumps up and down now and again. She plays in and around the dino bones and likes to go down the small wavy slide attached to the fake tree house. Every now and then she comes up to me and hugs my leg and says, "hi da da" then runs off again. Like I said, for the most part, she's in her own world and seems happy to be so. However, every now and then she'll bump into another kid and realize there are other people her own age and size (or close to it) and she stops what she's doing and watches them. It makes me wonder what goes through her mind when she does that because she watches very intently sometimes.

For the most part, all the kids there play well together, whether in their interactions with each other, or just keeping to themselves; there are really no big conflicts or crying, everyone just seems happy to be there.

One thing that sticks out above everything else is, there are a lot of ugly kids in Orem. Seriously. I know my judgment may be slightly clouded because Ellery is my little girl, but she is easily the cutest kid on the playground. I think today she shone exceptionally because I did her hair in six super cute pig tails that interconnected into three. Should have gotten a picture. She's taking a nap now, so, I guarantee those pig tails wont be in when she gets up.