Weekend at the Farm

This past weekend, we went down to Evia's parents' house for a quick visit. No big reason other than to just see family; we haven't been down since Christmas. We had a great time visiting and relaxing. Mom had everyone over for a cookout Saturday afternoon so we didn't have to drive all over - so nice, thanks Mom! Here are some pictures from our weekend. (Sorry about the red eyes. My editing software is on the fritz - will hopefully fix later!)

Eli & Daddy napping once we got there

Playing with Grandpa

Yummy punch

Cheezy boy

Lovin' Grandma

Upside down boy

Eli had a good old fashioned sink bath

Eli has discovered Belle (check out that hair!!)

Love my Daddy

Upstairs Teeth

The long awaited day....Eli's top right tooth finally broke through. Looks like the left isn't too far behind!

Helmet - Step 1

This afternoon Eli had an appointment at UNC to do the plaster mold of his head to use in making his helmet. Tim & I were dreading it, not quite sure how long it would take and how Eli would do. Well, he did as good as could be expected. They used a spray bottle to wet his hair to take pictures- the "before" shots. We stripped him down to his diaper and they put a little smock over him. Then it was a little mummy sock over his head - the plaster went over that. We weren't quite sure how they would plaster over his hair (we have so much experience with casts and stuff!). They had four sheets of plaster and wet each one, molding it to his head. He did really well up until this point. He was so ready to get that stuff off of him. It went much quicker than we thought and Eli was all better in no time. We go back in two weeks to have his helmet fitted - you'll have to wait to see what pattern we picked out! A few pictures from today...

Mummy boy - just before the plastering

Not too happy with any of us when it was over

Going Digital

Oh my gosh, I am so excited tonight. For many of you, you know that I have been a pretty avid scrapbooker for years now. Well, for at least the past year there have been no pages coming out of Evia's scrapbook loft. I think I'm going to start digital scrapbooking! I have been looking into it quite a bit and it requires less physical supplies (and space) and you can reuse what you have on your computer. Of course now I need to learn how to use my Adobe Photoshop better and try my hand at it. I think it would be cool to scan in the papers that I love to be able to use any time. Plus with all my photos being digital, it just makes sense. It would (I think) be quicker and easier than getting all my supplies out and doing the paper stuff. There are also so many cool ways to print them now. Shutterfly offers 8x8 and 12x12 photo books. I thought "how cool would it be to scrap an entire year and have Shutterfly print it out and send it to us." Although I love scrapbooking, time seems to disappear and it doesn't look like it will get any better any time soon. Plus if we think Eli might have a brother or sister one day, I need to get hopping on his scrapbook. My first project will probably be our wedding and honeymoon - yes I am THAT far behind! Maybe one day I'll post a digital scrapbook page for all to see.

Easter Truck

Happy Easter everyone! Hope you had a great day. We had a nice relaxing day at home. This morning when Eli got up, the Easter bunny had come to visit. He left Eli a truck of plastic eggs and biter biscuits. Eli was quite interested in the grass in the truck. Easter bunny also left Daddy a Reese's pieces carrot. We spent the day hanging out as a family and went next door to have dessert with our neighbors late this afternoon. I made my first ever chocolate cheesecake - and I must say that it was quite yummy. It's definitely a repeat on my baking list. Tim & I also spent some time today (Eli's naptimes -talk about wasting a good nap!) working on a puzzle we started last night. Yes, we are the most exciting people in America. =) It was fun last night hanging out after Eli went to bed and working on the puzzle together. It's been a while since we've played a game or done anything like this. Good quality non-tv time.

The Easter truck

ooooooh, grass

Playing with my truck and eggs

The Great Outdoors

Today was a GORGEOUS day....one to spend outside. So that's what we did. This morning Tim, Eli & I ran a few errands (before many people were even awake!). Eli didn't really want to take a morning nap so I went on a long walk with my friend Kara and her son, Owen. Owen decided he wanted to go home about a few miles but Eli fell asleep so I walked another two miles. I figured, hey while he's sleeping, I might as well get some benefit! We came home for lunch and then it was off to Umstead for a hike with Daddy & Belle. Eli did great in his backpack hiker. About mid way through he got really really fussy until we figured out that he was hungry. So Eli had his first meal in the woods! After that he was quite happy again and even took a tiny nap. Everyone was pooped after the hike and we hoped Eli would nap at home. No such luck but now, after dinner, he has crashed out on Daddy's lap. I even heard him snoring from upstairs in the loft!! Looks like Belle is tired too so it was a good "wear everyone out" kind of day. Can't wait until every weekend is like this. Hope everyone else got outside to enjoy the weather before it gets chilly again tomorrow.

Eli's new remote control

Pre-hike snack

Tim the baby sherpa

Outdoors baby

Eli's snack break

Happy dog splashing around

Tired boy (yes, Mommy WAS on the hike too!)

Eli.....you've got mail!!

Grandparents are so sweet. Eli has gotten Easter cards from both sets of grandparents. He even got some Easter books too! We let him check out the cards for himself and he had a lot of fun with them. Of course, after looking at them, they went straight into his mouth!

I've got mail!

Ralph the Bunny book

Wow, another one for me?

Mail is fun

A new helmet coming soon

Today was a busy day. This morning Eli had an appointment at UNC to look at his head. If you recall, we've had "flat head" issues for a long time now. At 4 months it was pretty severe and diagnosed as torticollis. We have been doing stretching exercises with him and his mobility to the right side has improved but not as well as the doctor would have liked to see at 6 months. So Eli's doctor recommended we see a pediatric cranio specialist. That's what we did this morning. We met with the doctor and talked about Eli's situation. When we left his office, we had decided to give it two more months and see how it looked then. Tim & I decided to go check out the "Brace Shop" at the hospital while we were there and see what we could expect if we had to get a helmet. We found out about the expense (and they're calling to see if insurance will help. Good news for us is that they said our insurance is one of the best at covering - whew!) and then met with a Certified Orthotist to talk about the process. She was so great and looked at Eli and talked to us about what happens. We also got to see pictures of lots of other babies with their helmets. Of course, this is much more common now that the push is for babies to sleep on their backs so we're not alone at all. The helmets are made of a semi-rigid foam interior and then an exterior shell. There is a hole in the top of it and it goes around their ears. There are lots of designs to choose from or you can get it white and decorate it yourself (who knew?!). The process is one where we would take Eli in to have a plaster mold made of his head to create his helmet. About 2 weeks later it would be ready and we take him back to get it fitted. A week later, we go back to have it checked and then it would be a visit every 2-3 weeks for as long as he wears it. They continually mold the helmet as he grows and his head changes. There is not supposed to be any pressure on his head, it only touches it. He would have to wear the helmet 23 hours a day for probably 4 months. Of course, the earlier we start, the better correction we'll get. We started thinking about summer, about losing two months of correctability and all other things if we delay him getting one. The Orthotist advised us that his head will self correct some but it will not completely correct on its' own. So, we're starting the process to get Eli a helmet. They're calling our insurance company and then, after the insurance is verified, we'll schedule his appointment to get the plaster mold made. He will absolutely hate that but we'll have to get through it. We'd rather be reporting that he's getting a new bike helmet but this is a little different than that. It'll take us a while to get used to but it is the best thing for him while he's still young and we can correct the problem. He exudes so much cuteness, he'll be able to pull off his new head gear no problem!!

After the doctor visit, we stopped by my jobsite in Chapel Hill so the guys could meet Tim and see how much Eli had grown. Couldn't resist taking a plans / hard hat picture.

Ready for work

Happy St. Patty's Day

Welcome back Snowbirds

Welcome home Grandma & Grandpa!! Tim's parents are back in NC after snowbirding the winter away in Florida. They came to visit us on Sunday and it was so nice to see them. Eli was quite different than when they last saw him and no matter how many pictures we post, nothing can beat seeing his sweet little face in person. We had a great afternoon visiting and playing with Eli. He was such a good boy and in such a happy mood all afternoon. We're very happy they made it back safely and are glad that they'll be staying put for a bit. We'll have to take Eli back to the coast.

Hey Grandma!

Hanging with Grandpa

Reading Chicka Chicka to Grandma

Showing Grandpa some of my toys

My Grandma & Grandpa - I love you

Family Photos

Tim picked up our pictures today from JC Penney. I'm sure they wouldn't be too happy with me but I'm posting some here for you all to see. Eli is growing so fast - doesn't he look like such a big boy?!

A busy Saturday morning

We've been busy this morning having LOTS of fun. Eli decided to get up at his early time again - 5:15am so Tim hung out with him and let me sleep a bit extra. Once I got up, we decided to make pancakes for breakfast and let Eli try his own. He did great!

Then a bit later, Eli & I went out on a bike ride with our neighbor Carrie. It was my first time pulling Eli. We went to the lake and around, probably about 5 miles or so. It was fun and Eli was quite happy in his trailer. He fell asleep pretty quickly but mean Momma woke him up because he was hunched over in the seat. We got home and got Eli something to eat and just played. Now he's down for a good nap and we have plans to go for a hike at Umstead when he wakes up. It's an outdoorsy kind of day - got to get it all in before the rain!!

Got me a pancake

Helmet on, ready to ride

Hey there cutie pie!

Drop 'n Roar dinosaur - look at me sitting up

Bath time fun

Haven't posted any bath time pictures in a while. Eli & I had fun playing with his construction squirters during bath tonight. Love the rubber ducky tub Santa gave us. It gets lots of use!

Man, this is fun!

Dump truck dessert

Vroom, vroom, vroom - go truck go!

Flowers for Mommy

Got a HUGE surprise at work today. I got flowers.......from Eli and his teachers!
The card said "Mommy, I love my new school. I'm having lots of fun & they take really good care of me while you are at work. Love, Eli & the Girls at Primrose."
Isn't that the coolest?! I swear I lost all concentration for about 20 minutes, I was so surprised. And they DO take really good care of him. We love the school and his teachers so much.

Papaya poop pellets

Until tonight, I had never seen the inside of a papaya. I decided to try some for Eli as a new fruit. Of course, exposing him to new foods and trying to offer variety exposes me to new foods as well. Tim assured me that there could not possibly be poop pellets inside the papaya unless a mouse lived in there. Well, I didn't see a mouse when I cleaned it out but the seeds sure look like poop pellets to me!

Have Helmet, Will Travel

Eli got his bike helmet this weekend so now he can ride in the bike trailer.
Isn't he the cutest?

Carl's Birthday Party

Today Eli attended his first party - a birthday party for his friend and neighbor Carl who turned 2 this week. It was a Blues Clues theme party complete with blue paw print cake! We had a great time hanging out and Eli enjoyed the balloons. He was so good the entire time - it definitely tired him out!

Birthday Boy Carl

Not a party without cake!

Yummmm...cake

Hanging with Blue