Texas

We spent Labor Day weekend in Texas. It was a quick trip, but we did a lot while we were there... and I'm still pooped. I'm so glad we went, though! Here are some of the things we did:

Eli met grandma and grandpa for the first time. They are serving a mission in Fort Worth and got to take a couple days off to spend with us.

3 generations of manly men. Haha ;)

Eli met 5 of his cousins, two uncles, and two aunts as well. (Dallin and I each have a sibling that lives in TX.)

We watched a gator eat some fish in this swamp. This thing gives me the willies!

Dallin helped pin some bugs for my brother's sons. They dry them out and put them in a shadowbox on the wall. Their collection is pretty impressive.

Eli went to a pool for the first time. He loved it!

Oh this boy. I think he is just the cutest.

Of course J has a bug in his hand.

We set off some fireworks. The pyro in me highly approved of this activity.

We ate tons of delicious food, and every BBQ joint we tried was better than the last. 

I'm also very happy to say that we survived the flights without too much suffering, despite the fact that Eli cut his first tooth sometime on the day we flew in and has been working on another one for the past few days. Thank goodness he is such a chill baby, because he was still a good little traveller for us! Hallelujah.

See it? On the bottom right. I bet he loves having his mouth stretched open like this. Sorry, son. ;)

And now it's time to unpack, do laundry, and clean my messy house. After getting spoiled this weekend, all that sounds particularly unappealing.

Eli Thursday

26 weeks

This has been a rough week. Desperate for a few minutes to get some stuff done, I stuck Eli in his booster seat and parked him next to the piano. 

He looked so cute and happy that I ended up spending that precious free time taking pictures of him banging on the keys instead of being productive. I think that was time well spent.

Hello, Tuesday

Things I have done so far today:

-Changed two stinky diapers. It's only 9am.
-Spent far too much time on the phone trying to figure out why NAU is trying to make me pay for a parking ticket I never could have gotten, especially since I never actually attended school there and don't have a student ID (which they need to find out anything about it, and which I would need to pay the fine). SO FRUSTRATING.
-Tried to distract Eli from reaching a level 10 tantrum during said phone call. Annnnd I succeeded, hallelujah! It "only" got to about level 7.5 and I "only" had to ask the nice man to repeat about half of everything he said.
-Changed my clothes once after being drenched in a rare spit-up incident, but hey at least that means I got dressed, right? Dressed TWICE, no less! So fancy.
-Ate chocolate for breakfast, but only because (to my great dismay) we are out of ice cream. (Mental note: must remedy that technicality today.)
-Used the restroom to the tune of Eli crying because I am the meanest mom ever to not be at his side all day erryday. Separation anxiety has arrived, it seems.

And just because no post is complete without a picture, I tried to take one of him smiling with the intended caption of something like, "At least he is still cute," but just before I pushed the button...

And I just had to laugh. 

Plus, he is still cute. Thank goodness.

Eli Thursday

25 weeks

He has lots of deep conversations with himself in the mirror. It makes me laugh when he sees himself because he always gets so excited! Little goofball.

Eli Thursday

24 weeks

This was Eli's first time on a swing, and he loved it! He couldn't stop looking all over the place, trying to figure everything out. The only reason we left was because it started to rain on us.

I love seeing the world through his big, blue eyes. Everything is new and interesting and amazing to him.

Eli Thursday

23 weeks

 The past few weeks he has been figuring out how to sit up on his own. He can't get up there himself yet, and sooner or later he topples over, but I can tell he loves to be able to play like this instead of laying on his stomach.

I just can't handle how much older he looks sitting up like this. Aren't they supposed to stay tiny forever?

Life lately in iPhone pictures

One of my favorite things about having a smartphone is being able to snap a picture whenever the occasion arises. Here are just a few recent ones I've taken:

We moved Eli from the pack-n-play in our room to his crib in the nursery. Bittersweet for sure, but he is sleeping better and that is worth it! // I've been making homemade yogurt. This bowl is sweetened with raspberries and granola. It is really easy, and so much cheaper than buying it!

Silly faces at the grocery store. He pulled this face as soon as he saw me trying to get a picture of him smiling. // Cousins hanging out at Barnes and Noble. Starting the book addiction young! ;)

This is what I am doing approximately every 10 seconds. I just can't help myself, not with this squishy man cub around! // Kayaking with my family. Sad to see the lake so low! 

We went for a walk in the rain, and every time he saw me peek at him underneath the umbrella he would laugh his head off. Little goof. // I could eat curry every day, and last week I got pretty close to doing just that. YUM.