Eli is Super Good At Eating

My Boy

Eli is getting so old so fast!  It seems like he is changing constantly and learning something new every day.  Here are the things that I love...

1. His "cozy" is his sleep sack.  He doesn't wear it anymore, for the most part, because it is getting warm enough outside that it is not warranted, however, he absolutely loves it and smashes his face into it with great gusto.  When it is bedtime, he folds his whole body into the cozy and smears it all over his face...in love.
2. We still let him have his paci when he is sleeping but he knows to put it on the dresser in the morning.  It is pretty cute to watch him pull it out of his mouth, make a "da" sound, set it on the dresser, and nod his head approvingly.
3.  He is obsessed with lights.  The video pretty much says it all.  He wants to do this all the time!



4.  He, for a long time, was not saying many words at all other than "Mama" but his speech has taken off in the last two weeks and he can now say: mama, dada, baby, baba, wa-wa (raisin), caca (cracker), ball, all done, and car.
5.  He barks at every kind of animal though he did just figure out how to quack, so at least ducks are no longer barked at.
6.  His dance moves cannot be beat!  He goes crazy when the music comes on and it is so cute

Summer!

Look out people, summer time has finally hit the Northwest and we are LOVING it!!!!!

I now have 4 camping trips fully scheduled and one more possibility in the works.  I hope that the kids will love it or I am going to be in trouble. :)  I also found a bike trailer on Craigslist which I am super excited about and hope the kids love too.

It is the time of year for spray parks, hiking, parks, wading pools, outdoor kids concerts, and nature walks.  I LOVE IT!!!!

I found a great little bike for Eli, so we are biking it up now!  His helmet is HUGE.  He seems to really like it though when he decides to dismount, he provides no warning but just throws himself off basically.

 Lucy started swim lessons and it oh-so-cute and quite a little dedicated learner.  She is doing a great job!

 Kaitlyn, Tracie, Lucy, Eli, and I hiked at Discovery Park.  How in the world could I have lived in this area for so long and not known about this hike!!!!  It was amazing.  An actual real hike in the city and you end up on the beach at the end of it!  It was so awesome!

 Eli learning to throw rocks into the water for the first time.  He is now unstoppable however he has no fear of the water...good combo. ;)

 We did the Greenlake paddle boats with Kaitlyn, Tracie, and Lindsey.  It was awesome though I think that Lucy was over it well before the rest of us were.

Parks, parks, parks...and ice cream bars with aunt Kaitlyn!

 I love to go on walks and the kids seem to eat it up too!  This was just too cute!

 Playing in the sandbox in the back yard

 Nature walks with our buddies!

 Oh the ever wonderful spray park!  Eli was into this one little small sprayer

 Lounging in the pool in the back yard

 Evening biking with Daddy!

 Throwing more rocks at the Mukelteo waterfront

Catching up- February

Here are some of the pictures from February

Eli figured out the slide and now he is a total slide master!

Eli at the hospital for ER trip #2 for the season

WOW...it was a raging disaster in this room but she loved it :)

Babies Growing Up

The time flies by these days and every week seems to bring about changes and new accomplishments for both of the kiddos.  Eli has entered one of the most lovely phases, in my opinion, the toddler years.  He is painfully adorable, sweet, and a total adventure boy.  It is so funny to see the similarities and differences between he and Lucy.  I'll try to catch up on some of the accomplishments and random memories since January.

1.  Eli officially started walking on January 20th, one day before the 15 month mark.
2.  He has started to LOVE Dad's tickle attacking and he runs for the door whenever he hears Daddy pull up after work.
3.  He calls me "Ma" and will yell it throughout the house if he can't find me.
4.  I found the little crazy man inside the dryer a month or so back...honestly!  Thankfully he had literally just climbed in.
5.  He is nearly frantic to spend time outside.  Clearly he got his mama's genes on that one!  Once outside, he just acts  like he is conquering the yard by running around very seriously.
6.  His words and sounds are just the sweetest.  He is so expressive.  I'm going to try to do a post this weekend with lots of videos capturing his "talking"

Eli walking for the first time back in January



Lucy loves all things related to craft time.  Here we are with butcher paper taped to the floor.  I quickly realized that clothes on was a terrible idea...

 so we ended up with this...

 Just a picture of Lucy and Eli waving goodbye to Nana and Papa.  I love seeing them standing together.

 I mean, could it get much better than this!?!

 Here is the little man at the ER for his first of two trips this winter.  He gets so tired and snugly.  Poor tired dude.

Lucy crafting and singing.

A Slice Of Life

Ok, since consistent blogging is clearly not my strong suit, I will try once again with the short and sweet method and hope for some improvement in my consistency.  I feel like we have hit this sweet spot with the kids.  Lucy is, with the exception of tonight when she acted like we had given her unfettered access to a stash of crack, chill, sweet, and so thoughtful with Eli.  Eli is starting to become much more independent in his play and just what he can accomplish and understand.  Whew, that first year had some tough moments.

Here is a slice of life from today...and a few tid-bits from the past few days.

First, Lucy and Eli "frolicked", as we like to say, in the laundry bins for at least 30 minutes.  It was funny at first but them become completely comical to me that the play could last this long.  Lucy was engaging Eli like he could understand every word that she was saying and he just went along with the games.  The laundry bins were turned into a fleet of ships and Lucy deemed Eli her "cabin boy" and then proceeded to call him that for nearly the rest of the day.

Here is a painfully long video of the interaction.


Eli has discovered a few new tricks recently:
1.  He can climb...a lot!  He is inventive with it too.  We had a big box of diapers that was delivered and he pushed it across the floor up next to his workbench, climbed up on the box, and then up to his workbench.  We found him like this...

2.  He figured out how to clap and uses his new skill with pride.
3.  He has been taking his first few steps!  The first few steps were in the first few days of January and he is continuing to take 2 or 3 steps toward anything that he finds truly worth the risk...like a big cardboard box as an example. :)
4.  He loves to scream and then laugh hysterically especially at the dinner table.  We may have to work on his manners.
5.  He has a serious love for large boxes
6.  He thinks it is really funny to do this weird snorting thing while he is eating and then ends up sucking food up into his nose...gross!

Lucy is the greatest big sister and also has a few notable achievements of her own:
1. She has started a ballet/tap class

 2. She loves to "do" her own hair now

3. She is amazingly sweet with Eli.  Some quotes to prove my point.

1. "Don't worry Bubs you don't have to be worried about that machine (referring to the blender) I'm right here. I will take care of you"
2. Eli was pulling books off of the bookshelf and Lucy said "oh thanks for finding some books for me Bubs, that was kind"
3. Bubs, do you want to remember how sweet I am with you when you get older?
4. Pat was using the bathroom which Eli was not happy about. Lucy said "Don't worry Bubs. I will take care of you. Let's find you a toy"

And last of all.  Here is Eli getting his second hair cut today.