The Daily Times

Five years ago this week, I became a grandmother for the first time.

That’s right. My little granddaughter Ellie Ann turned 5 a few days ago, a spirited, poised, wise-beyond-her-years 5. The thought of this milestone leaves me shaking my head in awe of how quickly the time has passed since her birth and the good-natured jostling among the grandparents, aunts and uncles and friends to see who would get to hold her next.

I should not be too surprised that the years have sped by, though. It doesn’t seem that long ago that Ellie’s mommy Emily was 5, fighting with Ellie’s Uncle Adam, then 4, over some toy or morsel of candy or personal space when my back was turned. Emily is now 31, Adam 30. They still fight over toys and candy, but that is beside the point, which is that the baby girl I held fresh out of the oven five years ago is growing up.

Ellie is a beautiful child, with that blond hair and a smile that looks so much like her daddy’s. She’s rather opinionated and stubborn, too. Don’t know where she gets that ... It’s comical at times, maddening at times. Remember Lucy in the Charlie Brown cartoons? I may have mentioned to Emily that Ellie resembles Lucy occasionally.

Emily was not amused by that comparison as much as I was, but I can definitely visualize her snatching up a football as her brother Seth, now 2, comes running to kick it.

My granddaughter may have a future in the theater arts. She is now taking tap dancing lessons with some of her little friends and loves to show off what she’s learned. Her favorite clothing includes ballet tights and tutus and dancing shoes, preferably pink or purple, Little Mermaid reg wigs and glistening gowns, frilly and feminine church dresses. Painting her nails and putting bows, tiaras or pretty clips in her hair are necessary to complete the ensemble.

Ellie can also be quite dramatic.

She tells a story and weaves in details I honestly didn’t think a 5-year-old could imagine, complete with voice inflections at the appropriate times. Sometimes she doesn’t seem to know quite what to think of her Mamaw Albert.

More than once, when I’ve been teasing her about some nonsense or the other, she will roll her eyes, shrug her shoulders and wave her hands for emphasis, saying in an I-don’t-know-whether-to-believe-this-or-not tone, “Mamaw, are you kidding me?”

Would I do that?

On Ellie’s birthday, she donned the new Little Mermaid outfit her mommy and daddy gave her and struck a pose.

Emily posted a photo on her Facebook page and tagged me in a comment, saying, “Correct me if I’m wrong, but it seems like as a child I was playing football with my daddy and brother in the yard, having mud fights with my brother, having Nerf gun fights with my brother, climbing trees, chasing my brother with crickets in my hands and had a bit of a flannel phase in middle school — how did I produce such a dainty, girly little girl??? Still don’t get it, but it entertains me.”

Just wait, Emily. I can tell you from experience: You ain’t seen nothing yet.

Linda Albert is Sunday Life editor and a staff writer for The Daily Times. Her column runs every Sunday in the Life section. You may contact her at 981-1168 or (linda.albert@thedailytimes.com)