An Interview with Eli

I've seen similar ideas floating around Pinterest lately, and thought it would be fun to document a conversation with Eli at almost 3 years old. Here's how he answered my questions...

What is your name?: Eli

How old are you?: I am two

What is your favorite color?: Red (That's news to me)

Who is your best friend?: Kres. And Macey too.

What is your favorite animal?: a Cow

What do you want to be when you grow up?: A Cow. (Ha!)

What is your favorite movie?: The Tow Mater one.

What makes you happy?: Layla

What makes you sad?: That kid hit my face with the ball. (True story from Island Playground today.)

What is your favorite food to eat?: Pampakes (pancakes)

What is your favorite song to sing:? Jesus Loves Me

What games do you like to play?: Trains, Cars, Puzzles...Oh! And hide & seek.

It was fun to see him answer these types of questions on the spot. Makes it even more clear how much our little guy has grown over the past year. He's so clever, and quick, and has a seriously good memory! We just love him!

My Baby

I dare you not to kiss this face!

We've had a fun little game going on in our house over the past week. It all started one day when Layla was fussing in the car. Eli said to me, "mommy, why's my baby crying?" Before I could even answer his question, I said, "your baby?!?' No way, that's MY baby!" And so the game began. He tells me at least 10 times a day that Layla is HIS baby. Not mommy's. Not daddy's. He thinks this is the funniest game ever, and loves the rise it gets out of us. It warms my heart to think that he loves his baby sister so much. It's his ultimate goal everyday to get her to smile the biggest, to share his toys with her, and to sing to her when she's sad. I truly never imagined that he'd be so fond of her right away :).

You couldn't ask for a cheeeese much bigger than that!
Pretty in pink :)

These two make the long days seem like a walk in the park.

Sunny Days

We have been taking full advantage of this 80 degree weather, that's for sure! Although we haven't been to the beach yet(I'm not brave enough). We've been spending most of our days outside as much as possible, especially while the baby is napping. I'm sure she enjoys sleeping in peace every now & then too :). We've had lots of playdates at the park, picnics, and many a mile long bike rides in the last few weeks. Praies the Lord for a very mild winter!
He zooms around the driveway in circles...over and over and over again.
We're so thankful to have close friends that live in our neighborhood. Eli and Amelia just love each other, and are really starting to play a lot together.

It's a good thing she just goes with the flow. This is her hanging out in the garage while big brother played outside.

Had to break out more Spring & Summer clothes for today...it was a hot one!
Thought she looked extra sweet today :)

Be Happy

That's something we've had to practice in our house recently. Being happy. The last two weeks of parenting have been hard. Friends have been telling me for a while now that three is much harder than two, and sometimes four is even worse. Eli has seemed to do a lot of things on the early side, and it looks like we're experiencing the 'horrible 3's' a few months before making it to three. He walked early, he talked early, and now he's become the ultimate sass talking and authority on everything three year old that we'd been warned about. It's exhausting! I rejoice every time I see a glimpse of his sweet old self, and praise Jesus that he's still in there! Yes, I'm exaggerating a bit, but it does seem that way some days. Thankfully, there are more good days than bad. I've spent a lot of time in prayer asking for extra strength and patience. Asking for the ability to show grace and understanding. Asking for the right words to share with him, and that maybe, just maybe some of them will register! I know it's a God thing when Eli comes up to me 20 times a day and says "I love you SO much mommy." And then immediately finds his sister and tells her the same thing. This parenting thing is not easy, and it only gets harder as they grow. I'm so thankful that we're not on our own in this! And since I started writing this a few days ago and never finished, I'd like to report that my happy boy seems to be back :). HE never gives us more than we can handle...thankfully!
We started using a little sticker behavior chart this week. I think it's definitely helped. Just a little visual representation of his good choices throughout the week. He gets a sticker for things like using nice words, saying please & thank you, not arguing with mommy & daddy, and listening the first time. The last one being his biggest challenge most days.
I'm very thankful that he's still so smitten with Layla, and hasn't shown a bit of jealousy yet. He is so proud every time he makes her smile, and very loudly announces that, 'Layla likes me!!' I pray that she always does! :)

Aunt Katie took some more extra sweet pictures while they were in town. So fun to look at the differences between her newborn and 6 week photos.
Can't get enough of her squinty eyed side-mouthed smiles!
She loves her daddy!
Couldn't be more thankful for the opportunity to spend each and every day with my two little blessings. The hard times, silly times, sick times, tired times you name it! There's simply no other job in this world that I'd rather be doing.

2 Months

Precious girl…

You are two months old today! You are the happiest, most smiley baby, and we couldn’t be more absolutely crazy over you! Here’s a little bit of what you’re like at two months old…
*We think you weigh around 11 pounds, but we’ll find out for sure on Monday!
*You had a huge growth spurt right around 6 weeks. You wanted to eat constantly, and had a few rough nights of sleep.
*You love your crib at night, but would much rather nap in the swing or bassinet during the day. We’re working hard to break that. Mommy is much more relaxed this time around though!
*You would still spend 24 hours a day in your swing if we let you.
*You are sleeping really well at night. You have been waking once to eat, around 3 or 4, and then going back to sleep until at least 7. Last night you slept through the night! You slept from 10:30-5:45, and then went back to sleep until 9!
*Your schedule isn’t quite the same everyday yet, but you’re getting closer to being in a great routine.
*We found that you LOVE being snuggled up to mommy in the backpack. This has made trips to Target and the grocery store much more manageable. I love that it keeps you from being in your car seat all of the time too. (Thanks Aunt Katie for the backpack :) )
*You are nursing every 3 hours during the day. You are a great eater, and have the chins to show it :).
*If you’re awake and have a full belly, then you’re smiling.
*Your second favorite spot to hang out is on our bed. Every night after your bath you spend at least 30 minutes there smiling and talking to the fan.
*You love to ‘play’ on your activity mat, and your big brother loves it when you do! He thinks you’re such a big girl when you swat at one of your toys ;).
*You are starting to have a little more awake time during the day now. We love hearing your happy noises when you’re nice and awake!
*Eli still loves having you ride in the car with him. He tells mommy when your ‘eyes are awake,’ and when you look sleepy.
*You’re starting to lose some of your hair on the top, just like your brother did at this age! Your new hair coming in looks much lighter.
*You know when its bath time every night, and you get so excited about it! You get your arms and legs going a mile a minute with excitement.
*You have a love/hate relationship with the car seat. Sometimes you scream until we get out of the neighborhood, and then you’re fast asleep. Just in the last week you’ve started staying awake and happy in your seat a little bit more.
*You are finally smiling at more than just the wall! As soon as you find our face you just light up. You’re also trying to copy sounds that we make. I just love our little talks!

You are such a blessing, sweet girl. Your little personality is starting to blossom, and we’re loving it! I’ve learned to let things like laundry and dishes pile up more than usual, just so I can spend those extra quiet moments with you. Those moments where you smile and coo for an hour straight. Please, please don’t grow up too fast!