Monday, March 31, 2008

What a Wonderful Wedding



Oh yes, our little man made quite an ADORABLE ring bearer in Aunt Ann and Uncle Mark's wedding. He successfully walked down the aisle with his Mama and met up with Dada halfway down. I was so proud of him. I don't think THAT many 15 months old could do it. Luckily, we made plans for a babysitter to whisk him away once the ceremony got started...he doesn't sit still well. And with Mama and Dada in the wedding party, we weren't gonna be much help.


Here is a lovely picture of the bride, Ann, her maid-of-honor and twin sister, Kate, and me. (No, I was not a fan of my hair).



Eli loved his time at the reception before being whisked away, once again, by our fabulous babysitter, Mandy. Eli loved visiting the tables and dancing to the music. Here he is giggling with cousin, Hailey and getting a hug from another cousin, Brandon.

It was a whirlwind weekend full of bachelor/bachelorette parties, rehearsals and dinners, and of course all of the wedding day preparation and fun. The down time on Saturday and Sunday was perfect for a family brunch and just hanging out with the Canadian/Pittsburgh/Jacksonville family. After catching up from all the lost sleep due to late night fun and Eli not sleeping well...I'm sure we'll have even more stories to tell from the weekend. So glad to be a part of such a blessed event. Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Mark Ward!!!

Sunday, March 23, 2008

Happy Easter!


We had a wonderful Easter weekend.  Saturday, we were invited to a big Easter Egg Hunt, and Eli did well considering he didn't really know what to do.  Matt and I tried to get him to practice that morning.  We'd hide eggs, and Eli would go back to the same place looking for it over and over.  Putting it in his basket was a bit more challenging to get him to do.  When it came time for the real deal, he found a few, but preferred to shake them (jellybeans make a great rattle!)  And even when he got the eggs open, he didn't bother to put the jellybeans in his mouth.  He puts everything else in his mouth, so I can't figure out why he didn't attempt to eat them.  I guess I shouldn't question it, right?

  
       Eli and his first treasure of the hunt!                       Eli loved opening and closing the eggs.


And on Easter morning, Eli woke up and was pleasantly surprised by his basket of goodies that included an awesome new sand toy (that has already provided much entertainment...withOUT sand!) and other fun treats.  We filled up his eggs from the hunt on Saturday with some of his honey graham bunnies.  He shook the eggs and made quick work of digging out the bunnies.  These, he didn't hesitate to toss into his mouth and enjoy.  Too cute!  

We had a yummy breakfast with the family and just relaxed until church.  Note to self: going to Easter mass at 6 pm was nowhere near as crowded as the morning services.  Eli gussied up for church.  He didn't want to hold still for a picture, so here is one I snapped when he fell while trying to get away.  



Hope everyone had a wonderful and blessed day.  Alleluia!


Friday, March 21, 2008

Almost Wedding Time

Matt's sister, Ann, is getting married in a week!!!  What an exciting time.  We are all in the wedding, and I just couldn't 
resist giving you a peek into how cute Eli will be as the ring bearer.   


These are Eli's shoes for the BIG day.  Too cute to not share...

Friday, March 14, 2008

He's On Track

Since last week's trip to the doctor resulted in a flu diagnosis and a prescription for a cough...I figured I'd report on this week's "well-child" visit.  Eli was due for his 15 month check-up.  The nurses, as usual, commented about how amazingly well-behaved he was and his great thighs.  He didn't fuss at all (until it came time for the shots....dun-dun-dun.)  

He stood on the scale all by himself and stood still against the wall to be measured.  As for his measurements, he's a little over 22 pounds, 29 and a half inches tall, and has a BIG noggin.  This puts him around the 20th percentile for weight, the 10th for height, and at the 90th for head circumference.  I wonder who he gets that from? :)  I measured Eli's height the other day, and got around 30 inches, so I don't know if letting him stand on his own gave the most accurate measure...or it could just be that Mama really stretched him out in hopes to add inches to his short stature.  

As for developmental milestones, Eli's doctor went down her list and was impressed with how 
much Eli can do and say.  According to her list, he is already doing some 2-year old skills.  We knew he was a genius, didn't we?  He can build a tower of two blocks, has a vocabulary of over 10 words and over 15 signs.  He can back away from things, kick a ball, knows his body parts, and can help with household tasks (bringing things and throwing things away).  

Finally, it was time for two shots.  He cried while they were in, but settled down immediately.  He's tough!

Overall, visits like this make us proud to be Eli's parents!

  

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

One Sick Puppy....make that 3

Eli has not been feeling too great the last 5 days or so.  He got a mild case of the flu, despite having both his flu shots....BUMMER!  The doctor assures us that it would have been much worse had he not gotten the shots, so I guess that is better than nothing.  He's been pretty pitiful, but seems to be rounding a corner today.  His fever is almost gone and he has more energy and appetite than he's had in days!  On top of it all, Matt and I decided to catch the stomach flu at the same time.  It  seems to have run its course, and we hope that is the only part of the flu we catch!!

 
         Cuddling with Grandpa while sick                                                 A rosy-cheeked flu baby

I've been meaning to update and fill everyone in on Eli's latest and greatests!

He is a quick little bugger!  He loves to run and play.  He doesn't always pick his feet up all the way, so we've had a skinned knee and a scraped head from playing outside.  He'd rather be outside, on the playground, or in the sand/dirt any day; climbing on stairs, up slides, on chairs and tables.  We're working on teaching him the appropriate places to climb. :)  He also has MANY dance moves...he's a mover and a shaker.  When not banging on his drum, he's bouncing to the beat, tapping his hands on his lap, worming back and forth, spinning, stomping, or clapping.  He'll even sing along..."do, do do."

He has really picked up a lot of sign language the last couple of months...he signs many foods (the important stuff, right?) like apple, water, fish (goldfish), and cereal.  He is also picking up on manners with please and thank you (we're still working on the latter...)  He's always friendly and waves to other children and adults.  When he sees a baby, he signs by rocking his arms back and forth.  Very cute.  And then waving and blowing kisses good-bye, of course.  And he still keeps up with his original signs too.  He's up to 15+ now!

Language-wise...Eli's coming along.  Animal sounds are probably his favorites.  Dog was his first and is still his #1.  He can also give the sound for monkey, kitty cat, and cow.  Sometimes we'll get a "qua" for oink and he'll imitate and elephant trumpet.  Fishie faces are fun too.  His favorite word right now...and recently learned...despite Mama's efforts to use other words...is "no."  His little "no, no, no, no, no" is precious as he shakes his head.  He can nod, yes, but not say it yet.  His other favorite (who taught him this????) is "mama."  He says it NON-STOP while driving...especially when he wants something and Mama can't get it for him because she's driving.  UGH! (in a good way! :) )  Of course he says "dada" too.  And dog, hot (while doing the sign...), ball, book, shoe, sock, banana, blueberries, etc.  Many of these words can only be understood and translated by Mama or Dada, but at least he's communicating.  Another cute one is "go."  He'll say it when he wants to go outside, and he even made up his own sign (like he's driving a car!)  He also says it as a question with his hands up like "huh?" as in "Where did it go?"  And sometimes that is followed up with him singsonging..."here it is."  Not really saying the words, just singsonging it the way we do.  We are adding more to the list everyday!  

Now, Eli understands much more than he says.  He knows where all of the parts of his face and head are, his toes and belly button too.  He CAN follow directions....when he wants to.  For the most part, he's a good listener.

I've gone on for too long, as many mothers do.  Hope I didn't bore you!  And last but not least, a link February's pictures.  There are tons from our beach trip...so peek at those you want.  

Lots of love from the Carson Trio!