Eli is turning seven months old tomorrow and he is getting so darn big. He can sit up on his own now, entirely unassisted. He's eating all sorts of fun foods (all pureed): apples, bananas, peaches, prunes, plums, oatmeal, apricots, pears, sweet potatoes and, most recently, carrots. He doesn't like carrots and whenever we feed them to him, he looks at us like we've just given him a spoonful of ground glass mixed with cod liver oil. Oh well, you can't win them all. Earlier today, he was squirming around with a mouthful of unswallowed carrot when he suddenly sneezed. Apparently, covering Mama with pureed carrot is hilarious.

Another fun thing about being a big ol' seven month old is that it opens up some playground possibilities. Eli loves swinging on the swings! We are thrilled that spring is here so we can go swing and swing and swing.

ROCK ON! Check out Eli's new shirt!

Another great thing about living near the stadium is that friends come by to visit on the way to Braves games. Here's our friend Amanda (far right) with Eli and some of her friends eating pizza on the porch before a game.

One of the great things about living in our neighborhood is its proximity to all sorts of interesting places. For example, we happen to live halfway between the zoo and Turner Staduim. Both are within easy walking distance-- for humans and for horses.

The Budwieser Clydesdales were staying at the zoo for a few days at the beginning of baseball season. For several days, right before a game, the horses would walk down our street pulling their wagon (is there really beer in there?). It was sort of surreal but altogether very cool.

About a year before I got pregnant, I started to really enjoy running. I'm not very fast, but I really like going out and just cruising around for a while to clear my head and wear me out a bit. I've finally been able to pick it back up again with some regularity and I really love it! Eli and I have rejoined our Morning Run group now that the weather is so pretty here in the ATL. Yesterday, we ran 4.5 miles together! Yay us! Then, as is our custom, the whole group headed for coffee.

I've posted comments from our run leader, Steve before, but here is another one about yesterday morning:

Little Eli York-Simmons was all smiles this morning. As we headed down to Centennial Olympic Park, he was having a ball taking in all the sights and sounds of dawn in Atlanta. The wind was in his face, and I could sense his excitement over the adventure he was on. You could see it in his eyes, absolutely wide-open, drinking in every experience we had along the way: the cars zooming by, the tall buildings all about, the colors of the banners at the park, the clacking of railcar wheels on the tracks, the conversations of the runners, the roar of the planes overhead, the pitter-patter of our steps, the clouds racing over the tops of the tallest buildings, the sudden pop of the runners' laughter, the bright orange cones that lined the street next to Underground, the shrill of the policeman's whistle, the yellow pollen running in the gutter, the constant whirling of stroller wheels, and the calm, reassuring voice of his mom, right there with him every step of the way. He could sense it all, I think: every move we made, every breath we took. It was all of a piece--maybe not all fully understood, maybe downright baffling at times--but the stuff of life (lots and lots of stuff) experienced in the midst of a community of friends.

Everything was new this morning. Not necessarily understood, but new, very, very new.

In time, maybe ole' Eli will sort it all out. Maybe he'll remember back to this morning and make sense of all he saw, heard, touched and felt. Maybe one day he'll write a reflection about it. Maybe one day he'll set it to music. Maybe one day he'll tell his kids about it. Maybe...

But you know, one thing I know 'ole Eli knew for sure about his morning, as God is my witness. He knew we was loved. How do I know that? Well, he told me with his eyes, and he smiled it all the way home.

It has been only two weeks since the last posts. Looks like I might be turning over a new leaf! all is well in our world. Eli is hilarious, a delight and a wonder. He had he first vegetable this weekend: sweet potatoes. He didn't seem to notice the change and ate them up with his usual vigor. What can we say? The boy loves to eat!

His newest trick is that he can hold a bottle all by himself, provided that it is a small bottle. He is very proud of himself. He has recently started drinking juice as an afternoon snack and the little juice bottle is the perfect size.