Small hands do them because they must...

[A Little Green]

When once again reading the LotR, something in the council of Elrond really started bothering me, and I wonder if someone here had a reasonable explanation for it.

Even before Frodo announces that he will take the ring, Elrond and Gandalf both seem to know that Frodo will take it. Well, of course it could be just their assumptions, them being Wise and all, but they actually seem to pressure Frodo by their hints.

First of all, Elrond's

The road must be trod, but it will be very hard. And neither strength nor wisdom will carry us far upon it. This quest may be attempted by the weak with as much hope as the strong. Yet such is oft the course of deeds that move the wheels of the world: small hands do them because they must, while the eyes of the great are elsewhere.

seems almost cruel to me. Nothing awry in there except for the fact that it was said before Frodo announced he'd take the Ring.

Also, Gandalf tells Bilbo to

Get ready to write a sequel, when they come back.

This statement also caught my eye. Why would Bilbo write a sequel if someone else went and not Frodo?

So. What do you think? Are they pressuring Frodo on purpose? Or do they know somehow that he has already decided to go and try to encourage him? Or are those quotes just accidental slips? Or am I exaggerating? Or something else?