Getting Ready for a Baby

We spent a lot of time and effort getting ready for this baby. As you can tell, we bought a new car seat,


pulled out the high chair,


caught up on some extra sleep,


and decorated the baby's room with a train theme (complete with a Thomas bed).


Notice anything about these pictures? Yes, that's right. Elliott has decided that he wants to be the baby. I knew he was going to struggle with the new addition to our family, but it is so interesting to watch. And kind of sad. I can't really imagine what it's like to have two people's undivided attention for two years only to have it taken away in an instant. We tried to tell Elliott what was happening, but we knew he didn't really get it. So here we are, trying to protect Elijah from being permanently disfigured while trying to encourage Elliott to be a good brother. Meanwhile, Elliott is trying anything and everything to get our attention--even if it means sitting in an uncomfortable car seat that's way too small for him.

So, for all of you who are younger siblings, feel free to take a moment and thank your older sibling(s). I think it must have been pretty hard at times. And, for our older siblings who are reading this, thanks for putting up with us!

A Warm Welcome to Elijah

We love Elliott. A lot. But we did not love the two-week stay in the hospital when he was born. So for this time around, we were really hoping (and praying) for a smoother ride.



And we got it. Bridget went in around 6:00 am to be induced on September 27th. Although it took a while to get things moving, by that evening she was starting to dilate quickly. When the nurse checked her around 11:00 pm, she was surprised at how far Bridget had come. By the time the doctor arrived, Bridget only had to give one big push and out came our beautiful little boy, Elijah Cole. He was born at 12:39 am on September 28th, weighing 9 lbs 1 oz and measuring 22 inches long. Everything went well, and Bridget and Elijah were able to go home the next day.

We are so grateful to have Elijah join our family. We think he is adorable, and he already has some hilarious quirks. Exhibit A: any time he has his hands free, he insists on having one finger in his mouth. He also makes some classic expressions (what some might call Tourette's of the face), but we can't figure out who gave him that.


Anyway, welcome to Elijah. Thanks to everyone for taking such good care of us, and thanks especially to Paige for taking care of Elliott and our house while we were a little occupied. We will try to be more diligent in posting pictures!

Turning Two

What does this look like to you? It looks like one lucky two-year-old's birthday! Elliott was definitely spoiled by all of the presents from his extended family. He says [a belated] thank you!

Elliott is into a lot of things these days. He loves having dance parties when dad gets home from work. He loves watching Signing Time (over and over and over and over). He loves anything with wheels. And, oh yes, this boy loves sweets. Almost as much as his parents. Two of his favorite things are waffles (with syrup, of course) and cookies. Hence, for his birthday:



I think this look on his face sums it all up.

Elliott: "Have you ever seen anything so glorious?"


Elliott: "Dad, seriously, you've GOT to try this!"


Happy Birthday, Elliott!

News

I don't know how the time slips by so quickly, but here we are in April. Sorry for the lag, and thanks for the gentle reminders to update the blog!

Elliott is growing like crazy. He loves to laugh, scream at the top of his lungs, and learn sign language. He is very into raisins, flying dinosaurs, and having a daily piano lesson with his dad. He is also proficient at feeding himself,



posing for the camera,


and making announcements



That's right! We are expecting a new addition to our family in early October. We are very excited. Bridget is convinced it is a girl, but Elliott seems to want a little brother . . . . What do you think?

A Prince, a Princess, and a Dragon

Once upon a time, there was a dragon who was bigger than all the other dragons but was actually very friendly. He didn't even mind hanging out with the prince and princess.

In fact, you may notice that the dragon even kept one of the prince's swords . . . and showed it to anyone who came within two feet of him.

We had a great time this Halloween. Elliott did pretty well for a sixteen-month-old who doesn't eat very much candy, wouldn't you say?

And what was Elliott's favorite part of the ordeal, you might ask? That is probably a toss up between his first taste of apple cider . . .

and the obligatory pre-trick-or-treating-bucket-on-the-head ritual.

And with Halloween being over, now is the time for those other two holidays. We love this time of year!

Anniversary

It is hard to believe that it has been so long. Three years ago, I was a little darker, a lot skinnier, and a whole lot more naive. But I was also madly in love with a beautiful woman.

Since we got married, we have visited some cool places:

Celebrated a lot of events:

And even had the chance to act a little crazy:

(yes, that is Colonel Mustard and Miss Scarlet)

I cannot imagine where my life would be if we had not met. It hasn't always been easy, but I think that we are more in love now than we were three years ago. And I think that's pretty good.

One Year Already?

We've come a long way, from this . . .





. . . to this.

Here are some of Elliott's favorite activities as of late:

learning skee ball (and yes, by the way, he did celebrate his first birthday at Chuck E. Cheese's--where a kid can be a kid),

playing with animals,

or just acting like an animal,

eating anything with sugar,

destroying anything valuable,

chewing on his favorite toy (and yes, by the way, those are my actual car keys--not one of the several plastic sets that we have provided him),

posing like a supermodel,

practicing the piano (and yes, by the way, we are playing a Shostakovich duet),

and just plain having fun!

Our sweet, little baby is already one! All of the sleepless nights--many, many sleepless nights--are worth it every time Elliott flashes one of his smiles. Sometimes in the morning when I am exhausted from being up most of the night, I will lay on the floor of Elliott's room while he plays. He never fails to come up and lay his head on me and then come close to my face and smile. At that moment I do not care how tired I am anymore. I did not know it was possible for one little boy to make a person so happy. I am so thankful that I get to be Elliott's mom. I love you, Elliott!