Thursday, September 25, 2008

So today I held an 11 month old tight in my arms while he laughed, giggled, wiggled, cried, smiled, and whined while he got his very first haircut. I know, I tried to make it to his birthday and while only 3 weeks away I just couldn't wait. His hair was in his eyes, over his ears, and on his neck. He has the softest, blondest hair and I don't think I realized just how much of it there was until 20 minutes after they started cutting they were still cutting (or maybe that was just because he kept moving). By the end I no longer had a baby but a little boy who looked so much older that there was a sad part somewhere floating around in me. Landon was the official photographer during the whole experience and although there were quite a few pictures I deleted the moment was caught for sure. Landon and Ella were excited about the activity but mainly because they were lined up to get a balloon for Eli's haircut. Eli could care less about the balloon but was very happy to get out of my lap and on to mobility. With all of his wiggling it looked as if his sister had mistaken him for her "first book of cutting" where zig zag lines are the goal.

Other than the first haircut we have been trying to coax Eli into walking. He is so fast crawling that he can get from one end of the house to the other in 2.3 seconds. His favorites are to help loading the dishwasher, the dryer or setting up the Candyland game for Landon and Ella. When not helping out he prefers to hold on to the remote, the phone, the camera, or Dad's blackberry - I think he has a thing for electronics. As for dinnertime, Eli has decided that babyfood just isn't good and is refusing it all. The good thing is that he seems to tolerate most anything we are eating especially banana pudding or apple pie. So much fun.

How about the other two??? Ella and Landon are learning how much fun Eli can be to play with by crawling around with him or how much he can get into when they try to play a game on the floor. Preschool has gotten better for Ella with a string of days where she has come home happy and letting us know how much fun she had. However, afternoons are a whole new ballgame because she is not taking a nap now. She had one too many nights (actually Mike had one too many nights) of waking up several times for no apparent reason. It has been fine except I have been selfishly missing an hour and a half of time that I know will be generally quiet. So instead, we are getting more school done in the afternoons as Ella is asking for "homework" like her brother has and has become very excited about writing letters and counting.

Landon is having fun with school and seems to like his teacher ok ;-) I think his favorite right now is geography. He can place all of the states on an unlined map on level 6 of this website http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/web_games.htm I challenge you all to go to the site, the center section - level 6 and play it. He is a regular with 96% accuracy and I ahve a hard time remembering especially the way that they disappear if you get them correct. He is also psyched because football season is in full swing and weekends get filled with at least some time to watch racing and football. Lastly, he is now taking taekwondo and loves it. Luckily, he isn't practicing on his siblings! I hope to have some pictures of him in his uniform soon but haven't gotten any yet.

Happy fall to everyone - the cooler weather is a very nice and we are looking forward to fall happenings like the colors of the leaves and the fair!

Saturday, September 13, 2008

So we are watching the Hokies and hanging around the house! Trying to catch our breath from the week as each week seems to get busier than the one before. Landon's birthday weekend extravaganza was a lot of fun for us all but by Sunday night I thought I was going to collapse like a card house under a ceiling fan. Putt putt was a hit with Landon and he played more than I could imagine! He played so much on Saturday that he didn't even get phased by the 12 mosquito bites he had within 2 minutes of playing in the backyard. On Sunday he enjoyed playing until he got his new tee ball set that throws the balls up for him to swing at. His cake was unbelievable - check out the picture. Our sister-in-law Caroline made it per Landon's request. I didn't tell her that the day before his party he changed his mind and decided he wanted a race car - Mike was able to talk him out of it or at least postpone the race car cake until he turns 21 when his favorite car number matched the race car theme.

Ella has started preschool and is slowly getting used to the new routine. She seems to enjoy the class, especially music with Ms. Amy and the creature teacher who visits monthly. The first few days her teachers commented that she cried a lot and didn't want to participate and then they began saying she was having good days. However, she would come home and say that she "wasn't a good listener" and that she had a timeout or two. I'm excited about her honesty but trying to work on the listening skills. But who could every get frustrated with this face???

Eli has had a rough couple of weeks with a few bugs and ear infection. He is a trooper though because through it all he has remained a happy guy and puts up with our crazy schedule of going here there and yonder each day. His mobility is amazing as I catch him exploring every room of our house withing 15 minutes and follows Landon and Ella like a bear after honey.

Homeschooling is going well so far. Landon has been more than excited most days and Eli cooperates by playing by himself while we get work done. Ella has become very interested and asks for a "homework book" to work on as well. So on days she is home we all work on some school work together. I am very drained by the end of every day but I am sure it will all be worth it in the long run.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LANDON !!!!!

Mom's asleep so Dad's typing a rare post...

OK...you all know this, but I have to say it .... We flat out love our kids!!! They are amazing ... a lot of work ... but we get back a whole lot more.

All right ..... to the man of the hour ...uhhh .... day.
Landon was awakened to streamers hanging from his bedroom door, and to the sounds of a sad sister who was very upset that it was not her birthday... (Sorry Ella ... need to take that one up with the man upstairs). But hey, she came around when she realized that she ALSO got Krispy Kreme's for breakfast and she ALSO got to go to Chuckie Cheese for lunch. Eli didn't really seem to care one way or another, but he was diggin' the festivities. Just for full disclosure, Eli also "digs" holding up a piece of scrap paper and staring at it while he moves his hand around.

Let me back up a bit ... Last night Landon was amazed when I explained that he would never be 4 years old again... you never think about "losing" something on a birthday, but you really do... That got his wheels turning, however he showed no remorse over the "loss" of the 4 label. He truly enjoyed this day and I am so glad that I could take the day off from work and share this time with Brooke, my smoking hot wife, and the kids. (She'll take the keys to the blog away from me for that one...)

As mentioned, there have been Krispy Kremes for breakfast and Chuckie Cheeses for lunch, dinner with friends, a chocolate chip cookie the size of a hubcap, got to stay up later than normal and play PS2 Maddon football with Dad, and even though late to bed... we still read a bedtime story ( a treat ususally reserved for nights when they get to bed on time.)

I love to see my kids smile and there were lots today ... Thank you God !!!

Tomorrow (Sat.) we have a party with some of Landon's friends and then Sunday a get together with the family, so Landon's birthday celebration is spanning a legit 3 days.... its kinda like a political convention without the speeches and with slightly less silly hats.