Happy Easter

Butter Head

Toddlers do some weird things. One morning over breakfast, Elijah decided it would be a good idea to rub his buttered toast all over his hair. I'm still not sure why, and he's never done it again. He must have decided that the greasy look isn't a good one, which I'm thankful for.
Another strange behavior that he's decided he really likes to do is to very carefully drop down on the floor in mid-stride to lay down. He just rolls on his back and watches the world go by for a few minutes. He might roll over to get a different angle, but he generally just kind of hangs out for a few minutes. It's actually pretty entertaining to watch, because a lot of the time he looks like he's in deep thought about something. So, unless he's in a spot where it just doesn't work to stop and lay down, I generally let him do his thing. I think he must need the break, or need to ponder something pretty important.
I never really knew how entertaining it would be to watch your child grow up. I know it's not always fun (like when he threw a fit and screamed at the top of his lungs in the store today because he wanted more Cheerios, which makes you feel like everyone is looking at you like you need to get your child in control), but I hope I never lose sight of the humor and joy in my kids at any point.

This was actually back in February on a day that was freezing, and sleeting as we sat and watched Eli play b-ball. This outing didn't last too long.

"D-Dall" Pics

Sports Fan

Anyone who has come to our house in the last month has seen the very obtrusive toddler size basketball goal in our already not-so-spacious living room. This is Elijah's new obsession. Otherwise known at "d-dall" (or you might know it as b-ball). If he is awake he is either playing basketball or talking about playing basketball, or asking to watch basketball on tv, all while chanting "d-dall, d-dall, d-dall." He seems to think that at any point of the day or night, we can just turn on the tv and there will be a basketball game on. Right now, as I look at the living room floor, I can see four different "basketballs" that are on hand at all times.
But it's not only basketball that Elijah loves. He also has really enjoyed the football season this year. If there were football games on tv as often as basketball or if he had a football field in his backyard, he would be just as obsessed with this game. He does however have three different footballs that are constantly carried around the house and thrown to the nearest person - whether you are looking or not. And the kid has a great arm, so you could easily get nailed in face if you're not paying attention. This is something we may have to work on before his little sister gets here!
We really don't watch that much basketball and football, and what we do watch is usually when Elijah is sleeping. So it's interesting to me that he is so enthralled by these sports. It makes me wonder how much of this interest in sports comes from his genes and how much is learned.
This may just be a stage that he will grow out of and won't show much interest in later in his life. Or it could be the start of a life-long love. It's fascinating to watch him grow and form into his own unique little person with specific likes and dislikes, and it makes me look forward to the person he will be in the years to come.

Bookshelf Reorganizer

Sickness

Thankfully, Elijah hasn't ever been really sick or hurt in his young life. I know of many kids his age that have had every illness possible at this point. Even so, I think watching your child be sick or hurt is one of the hardest things to do as a mom. It's so hard to watch them hurt, even if it is just a cold they have.
In the last week or so Elijah has been trying to get over a somewhat nasty cold (which he's still fighting), fell face-first onto our tile floor while trying to chase me (and I always expect him to get hurt while playing the rougher-than-I-like games with Gavin), and today gets his first bout of diarrhea. It's been kind of a rough week.
But what I've noticed is that it doesn't quite affect Gavin the same way it does me. He feels bad for Elijah, but not in the same way or to the same degree as I do. His comforting words to me are, "well, I just think about when he gets older and he'll have to go through much worse and more painful things than this."
Thanks a lot. Now not only am I worrying about the possible damage done to his teeth and mouth and whether or not he's getting dehydrated from his sick stomach, I'm also worrying about his first car wreck that he gets in when he's 16 and too immature to be driving in the first place. Or like Gavin said, "he'll be a lot more sad and hurt when he can't get a date to the prom." Again, not a helpful comment to me, but thanks for trying.
Overall, Elijah is a very healthy, happy little boy. And it's times like this, when he's sick and hurt, that make me even more thankful for his health and all of the blessings that he brings us every day. I know there are so many kids that don't have their health and their parents have to watch them hurt much more than I could ever imagine.
So, it's nights like this that I read a couple more books to him than I normally do before bed, and stand over his crib rubbing his back and praying for him a little longer before rushing off to have the rest of the night to myself.
If this is the worst it's been in the last 16 months, then we are blessed.

Walking

Well, I was getting pretty anxious about this one, but as of December 15, at 15 1/2 months old, Elijah is walking. For that first week, he was only taking a few steps at a time, but over the last week he has discovered that most of the time he prefers walking over crawling. When he falls, instead of just breaking into a crawl, he'll carefully stand back up and try again. And his new talent he's learned just over the past couple of days is the pivot. That's pretty cute to watch. This is a very careful and serious task that he does with great concentration. And he's getting really good at it.
It's amazing how this one milestone literally changes your baby into a toddler. He looks so grown up now that he's on two feet. And he looks so proud of himself everytime he stands up that it's tough not to smile and show your own pride while you watch him.
So, one more milestone passed, and one more worry relieved.

Dress-Up

In the past few weeks, Elijah has become very interested in dressing up while he plays and we're just hanging around the house. These are just a couple of pictures of some of his favorite things to wear. He thinks his sunglasses are pretty cool, but the coolest thing is to wear socks on his hands. And he seems to prefer these pumpkin socks over all of his other socks. Once he has the socks on, the loves to clap his hands together either for the sound, the feel, or maybe both. He also likes trying to pick things up with his sock hands, but once it gets frustrating enough, he'll frantically pull the socks off to get the job done. But he immediately needs the socks back on once he has what he needs. This morning we were playing in his room and his outfit consisted of a onesie, a snow hat, one shoe and two pairs of socks on his hands. He's pretty entertaining!

It's a Girl!

For anyone who hasn't heard yet, we found out last week that our new little baby is a girl. Much thanks to the sonogram tech that wiggled, pressed and shook my belly from all sides in order for us to find out! We are very excited about the news, but it's amazing how different it is from the first baby. When we found out that we were having a boy the first time, it was a pretty emotional experience and very exciting. This time, we both just said, "Wow, a girl. That's cool." And then went on with our days. I think I'm feeling this way for two reasons. First, I had convinced myself that this one was going to be a boy, which has actually proven to me that I really wanted a girl much more than I wanted to admit. Now I think I'm just a little in shock with the idea. And this leads me to my second reason for feeling the way I do. I think there's a part of me that's a little scared about having a girl. There are so many neat and fun things that go along with having a girl, but when I start to think about adolescent and teen years, it makes me nervous! Girls have to deal with so much stuff that boys don't and I think it will be very hard as her mom to know that she is having to go through that stuff. But I know it's just part of life.
So, all this to say that yes, I am very excited to be having a little girl. I have always wanted one just like I have always wanted a boy, and I am incredibly blessed to be able to experience them both. As far as all of my other emotions about it - I'm pregnant. If I wasn't worrying about what she will be dealing with 15 years from now, I'd be worrying about something else.

"The greatest gift you can give your children is not your riches, but revealing to them their own."
- Max Lucado

First "Real" Halloween

Last year at Halloween Elijah was only 2 months old, so needless to say we didn't do much of anything. I bought him a giraffe costume, he wore it for about 30 minutes at our house and we handed out candy to neighborhood kids.
This year, I was determined to make his own costume, for two reason. One, I wanted it to be cheaper than a store-bought costume. Two, I wanted it to be original. As you can tell from the pictures, he was a skunk. The cost thing didn't work out like I expected. It was a simple costume, but it still turned out to be about twice as much as something bought at a store. But, the idea was that he would have a new black sweat shirt and pants that would last him through the rest of the fall and winter, thus justifying the cost. I was determined to make that stripe stick while still salvaging the sweatshirt, but I was not successful. So, he has a pair of pants to wear throughout the winter, but as far as wearing the hooded jacket, he now has a permanant skunk jacket.
My second reason for wanting to make the costume instead of buying was to be original. That was successful. I never saw one other skunk all night long, and only a couple of people mistakenly thought he was a cat. But those few people also thought he was a girl.
So, Halloween was much more fun this year. We went to the outside festival set up at our church where Elijah played a lot of games that involved throwing balls into buckets, and won a lot of candy for his parents!

Thoughtful Gavin

I just wanted to brag for a minute about my wonderful husband. Several weeks ago he received his annual pay raise at work. And a couple of days later I received some beautiful flowers at my door. The note with them just said that I was his partner in everything, even the work that he does at his job. Very sweet.

I realized I don't have any pictures of my little buddy and me on my blog, so I went looking for some and this is the most recent I could find! Pretty sad since this picture is 8 months old! Someone needs to take more pictures of us. This was hiking in Gorum, La when we visited Grandma.

Second Pregnancy Phenomena

I've discovered a couple of interesting things with this second pregnancy. First is the whole idea that you're not supposed to be lifting anything too heavy while pregnant. Since I am a stay-at-home mom of a 14-month old that's not walking yet, all I ever do is pick up and put down 25 pounds of baby, all day long. So, it just boggles my mind when someone notices that I'm carrying a plate, a little tv, a broom, a glass of water, etc. and they insist that I let them take it because I'm pregnant. But, when they see me bending over and picking up my heavy little boy, there's no offer what-so-ever to help me out. Interesting.
The second thing I've noticed is that I forget I'm pregnant with this one. I'm so consumed with Elijah all day long, that I don't have time to obsess about this new baby. I remember with my first pregnancy all I ever did was think about it, wonder what was coming next, worry that I was doing everything right to be healthy, and get impatient that I had to wait so long to meet this baby. Now I don't think about any of that stuff unless someone specifically asks me about it, or I have a doctor's appointment. For example, yesterday someone asked me how far along I was and I told them 12 weeks. Then I went to the doctor yesterday afternoon only to find out that I am actually 14 weeks along. Somewhere in the last month, I stopped counting and lost two weeks. But, it's probably a blessing since I stressed out so much over my first pregnancy. I'm obviously much more relaxed this time!

swingin' at the park

Toe Tapping In Gorum

A few weeks ago Elijah and I went to Gorum, La with my mom to visit my grandmother and other family. I knew it would be a fun trip for Elijah and that he would stay pretty entertained the whole time, but I never considered the idea that he would learn a new skill that he'll keep with him the rest of his life.
A couple of months ago, Elijah had started his own little version of "baby dancing" every time he heard any music. He mostly just sat on his bottom and rocked back and forth. He had kept up this same routine, without any adjustments for several weeks. Until we went to Gorum.
One afternoon we went to visit one of my great aunts. Elijah was playing in her living room with a toy that sings the ABC's, and Aunt Carley started to tap her foot along with the song. Elijah was fascinated with her "dancing" and watched her over and over as he continued to make the toy sing. He was studying her so intently that it was obvious he was trying to figure out how to do it himself. And then he made his move. He stood up holding on to the coffee table and began stomping his foot while watching Aunt Carley's. Ever since that afternoon, he hasn't stopped stomping his foot to music. Whether he's standing, sitting on the floor or even riding in his car seat, when he hears a song he likes, his foot starts moving.
Now, I know that at some point in his life Elijah would have learned this simple concept of tapping his foot along to music. But so many things kids learn, you have no idea when or how they picked them up. But I had the honor of watching the entire process right in front of me on Aunt Carley's living room floor. I will remember that day for the rest of my life.

Surprise, Surprise!

Well, as most of you already know, baby number two is on it's way. I'm not sure how I'm going to handle all of this. Don't get me wrong, I'm excited and happy about this new addition to our family, but it's literally happening a year and a half earlier than I expected it. I don't know how long it's going to take for it all to sink in, but I'm still in a state of shock. It still doesn't feel real to me.
As I tried to fall asleep last night, all I could do was lay there remembering, minute by minute, the birth of Elijah. I thought your brain let you forget all of that in time to go through it again. That's what I've been told by so many people. It's not that I don't want to do it again, but I really wasn't planning on it this soon. And I remember SO MUCH of those 13 hours last August.
I keep reminding myself that with Elijah I gained almost 60 pounds, he weighed almost 9 1/2 pounds, and he was turned the wrong way and had to be vacuumed out of me. And, I had to be rushed into surgery right after he was born. These are all things that I plan on working very hard at NOT repeating with this baby. I know I can't do much about the baby's weight, but the rest of the stuff I should be able to handle.
I just can't believe my little Eli is barely one year old and I had to pull out the handy pregnancy books last night to start reading them again. I still can't wrap my head around it. It feels like I'm reading the books to get information for a friend who has just found out they are pregnant, instead of for myself.
I mean, I just finished storing away all of Elijah's tiny baby clothes, and I just recently finished space-bagging all of my maternity clothes. Now in a few short months I'll be getting all of that down again and trying to figure out how to fit two cribs in that small bedroom.
It sounds like I'm complaining, but I'm not. I'm just processing. I know that this is a blessing and I am very thankful that Gavin and I don't have the frustrations and stress of those people that are never able to have children. And maybe that's part of my shock of this whole situation. We have been and continue to be extremely blessed. But I know all I can do is be thankful and respond to these blessings with respect and admiration.

The Blessing of a Child

I've written down the words to one of my favorite songs by Nichole Nordeman. It holds a lot more meaning now that I found out she wrote this after her son was born. It is such a great description of how I feel as a mother. In the first few weeks after Elijah was born, I remember being awake with him in the middle of the night, in a dark room somewhere in the house, just the two of us. It felt like we were the only people alive sometimes and I remember realizing what an awesome responsibility I had been given. And wondering why I had been chosen to raise this little boy. It made me feel so insignificant, but incredibly important at the same time. It was a life-changing realization that has altered me on so many levels. And it is such a gift.

Brave, by Nichole Nordeman

The gate is wide
The road is paved in moderation
The crowd is kind and quick to pull you in
Welcome to the middle ground
You're safe and sound and
Until now it's where I've been
'Cause it's been fear that ties me down to everything
But it's been love, Your love, that cuts the strings

So long status quo
I think I just let go
You make me want to be brave
The way it always was
Is no longer good enough
You make me want to be brave

I am small
And I speak when I'm spoken to
But I am willing to risk it all
I say Your name
Just Your name and I'm ready to jump
Even ready to fall...
Why did I take this vow of compromise?
Why did I try to keep it all inside?

So long status quo
I think I just let go
You make me want to be brave
The way it always was Is no longer good enough
You make me want to be brave

I've never known a fire that didn't begin with a flame
Every storm will start with just a drop of rain
But if you believe in me
That changes everything

Happy Birthday, Eli!

It's hard to believe that the little guy in this sonogram picture is a year old already. This last year has been more fun than Gavin and I ever expected. Of course it's been exhausting at times and frustrating at other times, but I can barely remember those times in comparison to everything else that Elijah has been to us.
We have been blessed with a beautiful, bright shining ray of light. This is really the best way I know how to describe Elijah. He is energetic, he is cheerful, he is very silly and loves to laugh, and he is so loving. I could list a thousand aspects of Elijah that I love and still not list them all.
I know I'm supposed to be a little apprehensive about the next year as he enters toddler-hood, but I'm not. I'm excited to watch him grow and learn. I'm excited to see his first steps, I'm excited to hear him learn new words, and I'm actually excited to see him start to assert his independence more. He is a beautiful kid with a wonderful personality and even at only one year old, I am so proud of the little person that he is. Happy Birthday, Eli!