Post Holidays

The holidays are over, but sadly, Eric & I realized there won't be another holiday for quite awhile (one that includes days off from work & time with family, that is!) :( I always enjoy starting a new year & feel rejuvenated to get back into the swing of things. I've enjoyed my time off & I think Eli has too. He has been very lovey to Eric & I giving us lots of hugs & kisses. This development stage is so adorable & I know some day he won't want anything to do with us! I cherish each hug & kiss :)

On Tuesday, Eli & I were invited over to Tori & Jack's house for a playdate. Cheryl & Callie came over, too, and a good time was had by all! It's so fun to watch them all play together as they literally have grown up together! While their play used to consist of just playing side by side, they are starting to interact together & soon they will be fighting over toys (I mean sharing :)! Here are some pictures from the afternoon:

Jack has the same magnetic animal sounds toy & Eli thought it was fun to play the music & dance:

Eli sometimes does this move when he gets really excited:

It was hard to get a picture of all 3 of them together, here's one of the best I got:

Here is a cute video of them dancing to the Christmas tree:



Eli decided to share the love with Cheryl (his future mother-in-law):

And Tori!:

While I love decorating for Christmas & the excitement of it all, I look forward to getting things back to "normal". I wasn't sure how Eli would do with the tree gone since he LOVED saying "ights" & playing with some of the ornaments. One of our gifts for Eli was a toy box/book shelf. I was excited to put it together & organize the living room (I mean play room :). Here's what our living room looks like post Christmas:

Eli's "garage" for his vehicles:

We finally bought a decent somewhat child proof fireplace cover so we could actually USE the fireplace. The coffee table still serves it's purpose of keeping Eli away from the t.v.:

It was time for Eli to get his 2nd haircut. This time we just went to Great Clips & they did a great job! Eli is a "moving target" but he sat on my lap & did pretty good:

Eli has enjoyed playing with his new toys. I rearranged his toys & put some downstairs & in his room. Here he is working on his puzzles:

Eli thinks his playhut is too fun! It's a great toy to play "peek-a-boo" in & mommy has sat in it with him, which he found hilarious:

These days, reading books is a different activity than it used to be. It usually means Eli is reading his books to himself or standing at the couch as we read to him. He gets much too ansy to sit on our laps for the long time it takes to read a book:

Eli knows how to "use" his toy box/book shelf very well. Mommy & daddy have to remind him, though, that he can't go IN the toy box. It is great because it is just his height to pull down books & pull out his toys:

Taking the 4 wheeler out for a spin:

Like a real rocker, Eli can play his guitar while laying down:

Eli isn't a huge fan of wearing hats so I had to get pics of him wearing his new hat:

This is how he entertains himself after dinner while mommy cleans up:

Eli REALLY likes his new ball popper toy. He very quickly figured out he could also use the toy to "cool off":



Eli surprises us every week with what he seems to understand & words he knows. Words he uses daily are "ight"=light, cat, ball, "up"=cup, "choo-choo"=train, eat, "cock"=clock, "dank oo"=thank you, hi, uh-oh, hot & of course mama & dada. This week he started to say "mik" for milk, "dink" for drink, & "t.d." for t.v.. One of Eli's favorite Disney t.v. shows is "Handy Manny". He says "Anny Manny" when it comes on each morning. He has been mimicking a lot of other words trying to say almost every word we say to him (not always successfully, but an attempt none the less). He started to sort his shapes in his shape sorter toy while cheering after he does it. He also is starting to be able to press the correct sound button on his sound books that matches the story. It's too cute because he has started saying "hi" to random people when we are out. What's funny is he doesn't yell it or even say it loudly, but instead says "hi" in a quiet voice. Sometimes people don't hear him but other times they do & he just smiles & laughs when they say "hi" back.

I hope everyone gets back into the swing of things in this new year! Have a great week!