Merry Christmas, Everyone!

Eli had himself a very merry Christmas, but there was nothing little about it. It included a ton of new toys, lots of playing, even more visiting with family, and very little napping.

The festivities started on Christmas Eve. We gave Eli several of his gifts so that he would have time to play with them since we were traveling on Christmas.

Then Christmas Morning came with his "big" gifts.... These photos don't really capture how much he loved his car and work bench. There truly was a sense of wonder in his face.
Then by mid-morning we were braving the wind and rain (and freezing rain) to have dinner with our cousins. Here's Eli with Mallie and Cooper.
Then back to Grandma and Grandpa's for, you guessed it, more presents!
We hope that Eli will roll around on this bean bag instead of us!
The whirlwind tour through northwestern North Carolina ended on Sunday with a fabulous dinner at Aunt Melissa and Uncle Randy's house.

The whole clan was present....Vicki and Eli enjoyed some books.Eli enjoyed hugs from Papaw and ....

....from Nana

And Eli enjoyed spending time with all his first cousins: Jordon, Jared, and Jada

snow, Snow, SnoW, SNOW!!!

The first really big snowstorm Eli has seen proved to be very exciting. First, Chris had a lovely adventure coming home (in the car) in the middle of the mess Friday. He eventually had to ditch the car and walk four blocks home, but contends he could have made it if everybody else would have just gotten out of the way.

What happened out here?

Then we sat at home and watched it snow and snow and snow (about 16 inches worth). Eli for the first time really seemed to notice that something weird was going on outside. On Saturday afternoon, we took him out to see the wonders and he was so engrossed by the oddity that none of these picture have any smiles in them. We think he had a good time though, and he certainly wore himself out.

Yeah, I'm going to need a little help here.

Chris stomped down a baby path and Eli walked around and around.

We all had a good time in the snow if truth be told.

The snow was too dry to make a snowman, but after a little melting, our dear neighbor Gary was able to build a snowman for Eli in the driveway on Sunday. He said he had to do something with all that snow! Eli was not at all sure what to make of it.

What is this?

In other news, Eli had his 15-month check-up on Friday (morning) and is continuing to be tall and not very chubby (33.25 inches and 25lb 4oz).

We were finally able to get the Christmas shopping done yesterday and now Chris and I are really looking forward to the day!

Oh, Christmas Tree!

Getting the Christmas Tree up last weekend was a lot of fun for Eli.

Oooo! Something new!

Chris had LOTS of help getting the tree into the stand.

Just whack it!

Wow! That's pretty and look at all that stuff you can take on and off!

So far, the bottom third of the tree has been re-decorated "only" about ten times, the tree is wired to the picture rail so its topple-free, and Eli has yet to discover that there is a pan of water under there. So all is well.

No really, I'm not going to eat this pine cone.

A Handyman in our Midst

After more than a week of bad cold and teeth cutting (3 big ole molars), Eli is finally feeling better and was more than ready to help assemble our new kitchen cart last night.

Hurry up and let's get started!

Screwdriver - check! For the record, yes, he does know how the screwdriver works, generally speaking.

Whew! This is hard work. All this fun ended too soon when Eli tripped and whacked his head on one of the cart legs. I think we were more upset than he was and he was certainly more interested in looking at the bag of frozen peas I tried to use to sooth the swelling than he was in being soothed. Today he has a bruise on his head that looks like somebody drew a line with a purple marker. Hope he doesn't call OSHA on us.

Southern Sojourn

What a weekend it was. Friday afternoon we traveled to Raleigh to begin the Tri-Toddler Summit (see more photos on News from the Crib and Pea Patch Post) with Jed and his family. Eli did really well traveling more than 3 hours when he was tired. I think the Happy Meal respite along the way kept him going. While we waited for Ellie to join us Saturday morning, Eli and Jed had a blast playing at the park.

Then Ellie and her parents arrived to complete the party. The hard-won BBQ (thanks Eric) was greatly enjoyed by those of us who are no longer living near the source of such manna from heaven. Chris and I both indulged extravagantly. Delana's yummy persimmon pudding completed our very Southern buffet. After lunch, there was time for some serious playing.
Notice how Ellie's checking out Jed's awesome hair while Eli does his favorite thing - make noise.
After a great visit, we then traveled northwest to see Eli's grandparents and be in town to see an old friend (along with her husband and two adorable children). Eli was awake the entire 2.5 hour trip, again with no fussing. This time the copious amounts of Apple Jacks he had seem to have kept sailing smooth. Sunday was another day of visiting and playing and then home at last after a really good weekend. I think Eli did so well because all the activity kept him completely entertained. I may have a bored babe on my hands today.

In a final hurrah for the weekend, I spotted a tooth during a giggle session last night and on further inspection there's a whole mess of teeth coming in. We had several people ask us how many teeth Eli had over the weekend - he apparently is going to have more than 8 very soon. Just how many remains to be seen, but I think there are at least 2 and probably more coming in on the top and bottom.

So here's to good friends and teeth - what would life be without them?

Ah, Fall.

As you've already seen Eli is loving his fall (well he's loving all those leaves). This is despite a second round of illness - a cold this time. Poor Eli, sick twice in the last two and a half weeks.

He's been a trooper though and still managed to enjoy his Halloween.

Ooooo. What is that stuff in there?And have a lot of fun in the autumn sun....

Pushing off into the great unknown.

And the joy of sticking the landing.

As for Chris and I, we're tired. This child, even when sick, is a bundle of constant motion. He never sits and plays with his toys. If we are lucky he'll squat down and look at something for a minute or two, but then off he goes to (quite literally) look for trouble. He is still only when riding in the stroller or his wagon. He's a consummate explorer and is frankly bored with the "baby approved" zones in our house. He loves to be outside, but you better stay on your toes if you don't want to chase him up the street or fish a handful of patio gravel out of his mouth. When I do get to stand still, I'm shocked how quickly Eli has grown into a beautiful boisterous little boy with a great smile and a charming giggle.

Poor Eli!

It is awful to be sick, especially when you are little! Poor Eli had a high fever all day yesterday. He was such a good boy about it, but he obviously felt so bad. He thankfully seems to feel much better today!

Here are some new photos I took a few days ago.

Sunny Day!

OOooo! look at all those leaves in the neighbor's yard!

Did you see these leaves, Daddy?

Happy Birthday Ellie

Happy First Birthday Ellie! Welcome to the Big Kid Club.

Eli intended to send his personal greetings today, but unfortunately he is under the weather.

Play, Play, Play -- Play All Day!

A number of things never occurred to me until we had Eli. The most surprising among these is that being little is not all fun and games. Sometimes you can see that Eli is really working hard to learn new skills and understand what we want him to do. Other times, though, being little is a lot of fun!

Toting Teddy Bear is fun.

Getting ready to help Daddy install molding in the kitchen is fun.

Reading books is A LOT of fun.
Just hanging out in the toy box can be fun too!

We're So Proud!

After clapping for Eli about everything, he finally caught on today and began to clap to music. We're so proud! According to the books, he should have done this awhile ago, but he's been busy with other things. Like growing, for instance. He is now over 23 pounds and 32 inches (still 50th and 90th percentiles). In other developments, he's beginning to learn to point and is mimicking lots of things we do. Chris is doing wonders for his manners by teaching him to stick out his tongue. Eli would really love to feed himself, but hasn't mastered the spoon and fork. I've had to be creative to think of bite-sized foods he can pick up with his fingers! And, oh, the mess - you just wouldn't believe it!

Here's a photo of the clapping - guess I should have really done a video of that!

One Year Old !! Happy Birthday, Eli!

Eli has had a great birthday thanks to all of you who have helped him celebrate in one way or another. We'd like to give a special thank you to the sweet birthday shout out from Jed at News From the Crib this morning.

We can not get over how quickly this year has passed. It has been wonderfully tiring, hilariously frustrating, and simply amazing. We sure wouldn't trade it for anything.

Here's a glimpse of what this year has brought.

Re-runs

Eli's Aunt Melissa just sent us some more photos from his birthday party - they're so cute, I just had to share some more.

Hey, there's my friend Sophia (and her mom, Michelle)














Two hands are better than one.














Daddy!!!I was saving that bit!














Look at my new ride, man!














Birthdays are so much fun - thanks, everybody!

Party! Party! Party!

Eli's First Birthday Party was a lots of fun for us and him.

There were bunches of people to play with....You are so much fun, David!














There was lots of food.....



















There were peppers to pick......



















And then there was cake (and homemade ice cream)!














I really need some milk with that...



















Oh, I ate so much cake!