To Eli at 19 months old.

Oh Eli.

You are a bundle of energy that never stops moving.  Unless Curious George is on.  Or Cars.

There are so many things I know I am going to want to remember about you at this age.

Like how you say "no" emphatically, but don't say "yes" unless prompted.  And then it comes out "sssss-ya" with a big head nod.

And when you do want something, you say "oooooooo-ooooh" (just like Curious George) with a big smile on your face.

A few weeks ago you figured out how to make your cars drive over things... like the coffee table and my arms and legs.  You make the cutest "vroom" sound while you are driving them around.

You have no fear.  You will run away from me at the drop of a hat just so you can run.  I don't think you would look back to find me until it was too late... so I chase you.  Which you also love.

Your favorite position to sleep in is on your tummy with your butt in the air.

If you don't like the way a food feels on your fingers, there is NO way it is making it into your mouth.

You love cheese and bread.  Everything else is a crap shoot.

Anytime you see the Georgia 'G', you yell "GEEEEEEEEE!" and get so excited.  Sometimes you see the 'G' and I don't which makes for a fun scavenger hunt.  We often go on a 'G' hunt when walking through parking lots.

You love your daddy.  You have stopped crying when he leaves for work in the morning, but you used to do that all the time.  Now you just get really, really excited when he comes home.  You sometimes put a bag over your shoulder and say 'bye-bye' like you are leaving for work like Daddy.  Super cute.

You don't know many words yet... Dr. A tells me it is because your brain is completely focused on moving.  And by moving I mean running, jumping, crawling, climbing, throwing, falling, pushing, sliding, etc.  So I still haven't heard you call me 'mama' yet... but I know there is a point in a few years when that is ALL I will hear, so I am okay if there is a little delay.  "Da" means down, up, ball, Daddy, that... and probably a few more things I can't remember.  You understand most of what we say to you, even though you sometimes ignore me as I am calling your name over and over and over again.

You do say "shoes" very clearly... which probably reflects your deep and abiding love for your Crocs.

You love to fake sneeze.  Usually while in your car seat.  "aah... aaaaahhh... aaaaaaahhhhh... CHOO!"

Your favorite book right now is Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb which Moma sent you.  Even though the monkeys in this book are a little bit creepy, it is fun to read it to you and watch you practice drumming on your legs.

Sometimes I can't believe what a great sleeper you are.  Even now, at 19 months, you take two 2-hour naps most days.  And bless us with 12 hours of sleep most nights.  When you do come into bed with us, you always manage to sleep perpendicular to me with your feet by my head.

Like your brother, people seem naturally drawn to you.  You charm everyone with your easy smile and your willingness to hug anyone.  When we drop you off at the nursery at church, you rarely look back as you run off to play.  I hope I can find some fun playmates for you soon, because you clearly thrive in social situations.

Your favorite TV show is Curious George.  You LOVE that monkey.  Lightning McQueen is your hero but you still get scared when the hot rods are messing with Mack on the highway and when Mater and Lightning go tractor tipping.  You've recently decided that trains are cool and say 'choo-choo' like a champ.  You want to pet every dog that we see.  Cats are smart enough to run away.

If I want to get you upset, all I have to do is mess with your nose.  You HATE it when anyone does anything to your nose.  Strangely enough, you didn't mind at all when I had to put eye drops in your eyes for an infection last week.  Even signed 'more' to me after I put them in.  Go figure.

The tantrum phase has officially begun... you often throw the nearest toy after I tell you 'no'.  Sometimes you slap my hand if I am trying to give you something you don't want or take something away from you.  Guess I knew this was going to happen eventually but I'm also hoping it passes quickly.

You've recently developed a love for the water and surprised me by being willing to lay on your back in the baby pool with only a small circle of your face above the water.

You are getting braver about putting your face in the water to blow bubbles... but we're not quite there yet.

I am sure I am forgetting a million cute things you do but this is a start.

We are on the downhill slide to your second birthday... and I cannot wait to know you as you grow up!

Love, Mama

Wordless Wednesday

18 month stats

We took a trip to see our pediatrician yesterday for Eli's 18 month check up.

We love our doctor and Eli had fun charming her with all of his antics.

He did not have so much fun when the nurse surprised him with his shots.  But he was still willing to say thank you to her with tears in his eyes.  My sweet little munchkin.

His official stats are: 

weight ... 32.3 lbs ... 95th percentile

height ... 35 in ... above 97th percentile

Which is our regular confirmation that Eli is a big boy!  

Inspiration

I have been in love with the pairing of RED and YELLOW lately.

Not sure why.  But it makes me happy.

But when I saw these sunflowers on sale at the grocery store yesterday 

I knew I had to have them and that I would put them on this red placemat.

I also have a red planter with yellow flowers on our front patio.

But I don't have a very green thumb so those flowers are looking a 

little sickly right now and probably aren't worthy of a photograph.

A visit from Grammy

Josh's mom treated us to a visit this past weekend.

Chris has been in Tuscaloosa for the past few weeks dealing with the tornado damage to the house they still own there.  She took the weekend off and drove the 4.5 hours to see us!

We spent the weekend relaxing and tooling around Athens.

Eli LOVED spending some time with his Grammy!

This is about as crafty as I get

Well, that might not be entirely true... but this is about the level of craftiness that I am comfortable with!

Living in Georgia means that we are living pretty far away from family.  And I really want Eli to recognize those who love him the most.  So I went about creating a book for him with all of those smiling faces.

I thought about using an online photo service to create the book but wanted the pages to be tough enough to withstand Eli's page turning... so I decided to make it as a binder with laminated pages instead.  You can't really tell from the pictures, but I used a half-sized binder which is perfect for Eli's little hands. 

I love the way it turned out!

Watch me grow... eighteen months!

I can hardly believe that Eli is a year and a half old!  How did that happen?

Happy half birthday, little man!

Click HERE to see his last 'Watch Me Grow' pic at fifteen months.

Well, hello there June!

Have you missed seeing this face?

May is a volleyball coach's wife's dream.
After a whirlwind spring of recruiting and adjusting to life at the University of Georgia, Josh finally got to take a break. In fact, the NCAA requires it in the form of a recruiting quiet period!

So I took a break, too, and went off the grid.

During our siesta, we loaded Eli into the car and headed down to Destin. I'm a lucky girl as it was my second time down in as many weeks.

The conditions couldn't have been more perfect... there were green flags (calm conditions) on the beach for three days in a row and ample sunshine.

Eli approved!

We found a classic Destin breakfast spot called the Donut Hole. Seemed like the perfect opportunity to introduce Eli to the wonderful world of donuts. It was vacation after all!   I think he liked it!

 

Next to the donut, I think Eli's favorite part of our vacation was the fountain at a local shopping center.  Pretty sure the look on his face was pure joy the whole time we were there.

 

Needless to say, it was a fantastic week.  

I'm ready to go back.

P.S.  My sweet little boy will be a year and a half old TOMORROW!  Can you believe it?  Stay tuned for a 'Watch Me Grow' pic to commemorate the occasion!