Another busy (but fun!) day

Another busy and fun day at our house - we have definitely made the most of this weekend!! This morning Tim + Eli went to Umstead on a bike ride while I went grocery shopping. Eli wore his bike jersey for the first time and was so darn cute!

Ready to go ride

After the bike ride, we went down to Peace College to visit Grandma N. She was here for a quilt symposium so we were happy we got to visit for a little while. Eli loved the fountain and splish-splashed in the water quite a bit. He even tried to climb in. He mostly just enjoyed running around and exploring.

Rocking with Grandma

After lunch and nap, Carol + Ryan came over for some play time. The boys go in spurts of getting along nicely alternated with some frustrations and "mine mine" chants. They were definitely happy to see each other - Ryan had been at the beach all weekend. Then we headed back to the pool. We got to see lots of our friends and neighbors there. Eli is loving the pool so much and never wants to get out. We got there a little after 4pm and were only going to stay an hour. Well, two hours later we were trying to get him home! He played in the kiddie pool for a while - mostly running around, pushing a truck in / out and around the water. Then he got to spend some fun time in the big pool with Daddy. 

Eli + Owen - check out the big green truck

He figured out that he could also ride it down the ramp - that was funny!

Big pool with Daddy

Jumping off the side into Daddy's arms (I think I remember my little brother doing this exact same thing YEARS ago)

Post swim snack.....yum

E-L-M-O.......

Today has been a very busy day. We were fortunate enough to receive tickets to the Elmo show so that was our big plan for the day. Before the show, Tim + Eli went on a bike ride. Then we had snack time and off to RBC Center to watch Elmo. There were so many excited kids waiting for the show to start. When the lights went down and Big Bird + Elmo came out, I felt like a little kid too. It was so fun to watch Eli dance, point and yell the character's names (he doesn't even watch Sesame Street so I was surprised he knew so many of them!). He did really well for the first half of the show but after intermission, he was a little antsy - well, all of the kids in the suite were. The good news was that being in a suite, the kids were able to run around and not have to try to stay in their seats. Overall I think he had a fun time and was telling us that Elmo danced and Big Bird danced the entire way home. We stopped off at Chik-Fil-A for lunch and then home for a nap. It was a big morning!! After nap, a quick run to BJ's, dinner and then off to the pool. Eli is now asleep and we hope he will sleep very well after such a busy day - I know Mommy + Daddy will!!

Pointing and naming all the characters

So cute watching the show

Elmo's World

Fun dance number

Eli, Mommy + Daddy

Baby's Room - peak at 2.0's nursery

Finally took some pictures of 2.0's nursery - or "Baby's Room" as Eli's likes to call it. Loving the modern jungle theme - very happy with the choice of theme and colors (it looks yellow-ish but it's really green). The glider & ottoman will come back into the room once 2.0 gets here - right now it is in Eli's room. Will also frame the birth record after the info is complete and put it on the shelf where shown. We're getting ready for the arrival of our little Wild Thing!

Play time with Gumby

I think I've mentioned Eli's friend, my old 3' Gumby before. Tonight he was so cute pretend playing with Gumby and sharing his trains and milk with him. His pretending skills continue to grow and amaze me. 

Memorial Weekend - Part 2

On to part 2 of our Memorial weekend....

Sunday: Tim + Eli went on an early morning bike ride while I took Belle on a walk. Then we hung out at home for some play time. After lunch, it was naps for everyone (a nice 3 hour one for Eli!!) and then we headed to Apex for a cookout at Robin & Waylon's - otherwise known as "Noah's House". We enjoyed hanging out with our friends - good company and good food. The kids had a blast. Eli got to play with Noah, Stella Dot and Maddie. There were also other kids running around. They all behaved very well and I think tired themselves out! It has been forever since we've seen everyone so it was great to see them, meet new friends and spend time together. 

Monday: This morning Eli + I went on a walk with Carol + Ryan while Tim went on a bike ride. We all enjoyed our morning. After the walk, Carol + Ryan came back to our house and we let the boys run around outside. They had fun on the swing, slide and playing in the water. After lunch, nap time before heading to the pool. I think we're going to enjoy many afternoons at the pool this summer! Eli had a blast playing in the water with Daddy and running around all the play structures. Tonight we had our own little family cookout and then went over to visit our friends Carrie & Rich in the neighborhood to take their daughter Sarah her birthday present. Was nice to spend a few minutes chatting with them. 

Now Eli's in bed, it's quiet in the house and time to mentally prepare for another week of work. Thank goodness it's a short week!!

Eli + Daddy watching 'Bob' on Sunday morning - aren't they cute? 

Eli + Noah on their first double date - dinner at Noah's house

Hanging in the swimming pool

Peeking through the window before...

climbing in. He would then exit through the door to do it again. He was so funny to watch and laughed at himself the whole time. 

Pool time Sunday with Daddy

My boys

Trying to float - Eli loved watching the other kids and imitating them

Memorial Weekend - Part 1

Long weekend = Long post so I'll break it up into two. 

First off, Happy Memorial Day everyone. Hope you're enjoying it!

Here's how we spent the first half of ours:

Friday - It was a rough work week and I was supposed to have the day off but, as things go sometimes, that didn't happen. I was bummed but the day ended well as I had a facial at 3:45 pm and Tim picked up Eli after work. For an hour, I was super relaxed and enjoyed my pampering. We then hung around the house for a bit waiting for Grandma C to get here. Grandpa C went on his annual fishing trip so Grandma came up to give Tim & I a break. After dinner and a quick bath for Eli, Tim & I took off to Barnes & Noble to just walk around. We got home about 8:30pm and Eli was still awake. He was in "Mommy mode" and didn't want to go to sleep without me. It took less than 5 minutes of me in his room and he was asleep. 

Saturday - We spent the morning doing stuff around the house. Tim & I worked on 2.0's room (or "Baby's Room" as Eli calls it) and finished up a few things - hung a shelf, changed out crib brackets and moved the mattress up. Eli was very interested in baby's room and wanted to play in there while we were working. Tim then did some yard work while I just did some house chores. At lunch, Tim & I disappeared and went to see the new 'Night at the Museum' movie. It was pretty good. I must admit, I was tired so I think I dozed a few times. oops! We came back and discovered Eli & Grandma having more fun playing. Eli, Grandma & I decided to go try out the pool. We joined a pool for the summer (something I never thought I'd do but oh how things change!). Eli had fun in the water and playing on the playground. We must have been there an hour and a half. Grandma C went home not too long after we got back from the pool and then we just tried to have a relaxing evening. 

Some pictures from Friday / Saturday - more from Sunday / Monday to come...

In the ball pit - check out the mohawk Daddy gave him

Where's Eli? Where's Grandma? 

Ready to play in the pool

Eli & Mommy

Hanging in the house with his new friend, Addison (she was so cute!)

Cooling himself off

One last photo with Grandma - Eli was cheesing for the camera, just the wrong direction!

Poo Poo in Potty

Exciting news in our house.....Eli went poo-poo on the potty tonight!!!! He has started showing more interest in the potty both at home and at school. Tonight after our family walk, he asked to get on the potty and said he had to poo poo. Well, it took a few minutes but sure enough, he did. He may not do it again for a month or more but Tim & I were impressed and very excited. He was telling the neighbors that he went "poo poo in potty" and is now talking about how everyone does it. I'm sure there will be lots more potty talk in our future. =)

32 weeks, 2 days

Had my 32 week dr appointment yesterday - didn't want to blog about it yesterday b/c it was Tim's birthday! All was well. My weight gain is great - my doctor was very happy that I've gained about 10 pounds less than at this point with Eli (yippee). Blood pressure, pulse and all that other stuff was good. I'm measuring about 33 cm now, so a week ahead. I feel like baby has hit a growth spurt as things have started to feel a little more cramped to me. He had a strong heartbeat so that was fun to hear too. All in all, a good uneventful visit. I go back in two weeks! 

The belly had a growth spurt!!

Happy Birthday Daddy!!!

 The sweetest way to start the day

Today we had fun celebrating Tim's birthday. I made coffee cake (and coffee) for breakfast. We went out to dinner and then came home to enjoy some cupcakes. Eli gave Tim a book titled 'I Love Dirt' - it's fun stuff to do in nature with your kids. I made him think that he was only getting a cd but he also got a chipper / shredder. I had a little covert operation going with family to chip in and told Tim about it about two weeks ago. He was surprised and we went on the hunt for one. Well, no such luck so he thought it was a done deal. I just happened to find one at lunch today and had to get it. I dropped it off at home and he knew nothing about it until after dinner when he discovered his surprise. It was so great!! I think he had a good birthday.

Yummy homemade coffee cake

Eli with Daddy and his new toy

Enjoying cupcakes

Cupcakes for Daddy

Tonight Eli + I made cupcakes for Daddy. We baked them tonight and will ice them tomorrow to enjoy after dinner as we celebrate Daddy's birthday. Eli had a lot of fun making the mixer go and helping with each aspect of the baking project. The only thing he's not quite into yet is taste testing the batter - give me some time, he'll love it soon enough!

Pouring cake mix into the bowl

Laughing at the mixer blade going

He put the cupcake liners in the pan all by himself

Helping Mommy scoop out cake batter

The rest of our weekend

We had such a great weekend at Grandma & Grandpa N's house this weekend. Eli was so funny cheering "Pop Pop's House" every time we went somewhere and then came back. He really enjoyed being there and especially running around outside - which is what he did most of today. He ran around outside in his pj's in the morning, went to Lowe's with Daddy & Pop Pop after breakfast and then ran around more when he got back. He had fun pushing the frog and turtle statues into the goldfish pond and looking for lizards and frogs. Basically he just loved running around and exploring - wouldn't have it any other way, love that he's all boy! More narrating through pictures:

Contemplating who's next to take a swim - frog, turtle or maybe Buddha 

He loved Grandma & Grandpa's shower with the rocks on the floor - he kept running in there to play and mysteriously couldn't pull up the rocks

Lizard hunting with Grandpa

Hiding in the bushes

A game of "Ready, Go Wolfpack" with Grandma & Mommy. Eli has been yelling "Ready Set Go" but he ends it with "Go Wolfpack" - sometimes he doesn't quite get the "Set" out. He ran back and forth between Mommy & Grandma, giving us huge hugs each time. 

Sitting on the bench with Grandma

Oreo ice cream pie after lunch - Tim's birthday is Tuesday so we had our first celebration today. 

Eli was so tired that he almost fell asleep at the lunch table. He explored his little heart out! 

On the way home, Eli was calling for Ry-Ry so of course, we had to call him and see if we could get together to play. The boys did get to play for a bit tonight - which allowed Carol & I to catch up. We say it's play time for the boys but it's just as fun for us!!

After a great weekend, we're all looking forward to a good night's sleep in our own beds. Hopefully Eli will make it past 6am!!

The MHC Report

Having my new computer is fun - we're able to give you the Morehead City report from Grandpa & Grandma N's house! We got here yesterday afternoon and hung out for a while. Last night Eli did well sleeping, that is until he decided to wake up at 5 am. That was a little rough on Mommy & Daddy. I guess he didn't realize it was Saturday - we've got to work on that! We've had a busy day, I'll try to narrate through pictures.

At breakfast, Eli tried and LOVED strawberries. He also wore them on his face and clothes. 

After breakfast we went to Tim's friend Preston and Maria's house to let Eli play with their boys Ray Ray and Thomas. The entire drive over Eli kept chanting their names so excited to go play. Eli & Thomas were born just a few weeks apart but with our big monster boy, you'd think he was a year older! 

Playing with Thomas

Jump jump on Thomas' trampoline - Eli loved it

The three boys - Eli, Ray Ray, Thomas - the "proper" shot

Now the silly shot - Ray Ray was egging Eli on to be silly, it was cute

After playtime, we went to the Civic Center to check out the Quilt Show. Tim's mom is a member of the Guild here and loves quilting. (Remember she's the one who made "blankie" for Eli. We've already put our order in for 2.0's blankie!) Grandma N spent a lot of time working on the quilt show this year - organizing, hanging quilts, participating in the raffle quilt. It was a joy to be immersed in her world and meet her quilting ladies. She also had fun showing Eli off. He behaved very well during the show. 

Part of the show this year was the traveling Alzheimer's Quilt Exhibit. Having recently been affected by Alzheimer's in my family, it was emotional for me to see. I did ok looking at the quilts but when one of the ladies told me that you could write the name of a friend or loved one with Alzheimer's on a quilt piece that will be used to create a large quilt, that made me think of my Grandmother (diagnosed this year) and I got tears in my eyes.  I wrote her name on a beautiful purple piece of fabric and it's neat to think she will always be remembered in that quilt. After that, I really thought more about her and when I read about each quilt, I thought about how it affects so many people and their families. It's sad to see persons robbed of their memories. 

Back to happier stuff!

Grandma N with her 2nd place pillow in the "Home Decor" category

Grandma N with the quilt that she started years ago with her Aunt 

Outside the Civic Center, just looking at the water watching boats go by

Our sweet little sailor-want-to-be boy

After the quilt show, we took Eli to Chick-Fil-A for lunch and then home for nap. Amazingly, he took an almost 4 hour nap!!! Guess that was to make up for getting us up so early this morning. Tim & I took advantage and got some nap time ourselves. A quick run to the store, dinner and then we had more outside run-around time. Eli loves exploring - tonight we saw several "ribbits" (frogs). He settled down and went to bed about 9pm - late for him but after a 4 hour nap, it was to expected. Hopefully that means we'll get to sleep until 7am tomorrow!!

Our day was full of fun. Hope everyone else had a great Saturday too!